Hah! I only wish I could do art like that! The maps are mine, the pictures are AI generated. I do really try for a unified look as far as style in the art, which takes a lot of finagling of the wording in the AI request and lots of "re-do's." Also, a lot of photoshopping to get the dimensions correct, blend different pics, etc.

Thank you very much for the kind words!

Looking back at the process of building my world, Sihjul, I can't believe it's been 14 years… Unfortunately, the amount of development I've actually gotten put up doesn't reflect the number of years it's been percolating 😁. I start, go strong for a week or a month, then stop, only to pick it up again a week or a month - or a few months - later. And when I pick it back up it's often because I've had an idea for development, then as I work up that idea other things already in progress get reworked. It's FAR more developed in my mind than it is on "paper."

Sihjul started as a mapping exercise, which then began to spark worldbuilding ideas. I've put the world map up here on the forums before, so I won't post it in this thread, but clicking the link below will take you to the site where Sihjul currently lives. There is a world map (which can be zoomed in on significantly) as well as an animated globe linked toward the bottom of the home page, as well as links to everything I'm currently working on there.

At first my intention was to try to publish it as a setting for one or more game systems, but a friend has been encouraging me to use it as a setting for short stories or novels. Some parts are far more fleshed out than others, and there are some parts (including areas on the map) that are hidden away from eyes other than my own so that they can be discovered later, assuming I ever push this forward to publication of any sort.

Sihjul Homepage | World Anvil

Good morning! (At least, it's morning here in the States).

Thanks in large part to Ricko Hasche recruiting me to map his homebrew world, my desire to make my own overland mapping style finally coincided with my energy level and enthusiasm (and with my available time), so I decided to see if I could turn my world Sihjul into a formal mapping style.

Here's what I came up with. I think I've gotten it all set up so that it will work for anyone, but I've never done this before so there might be wrinkles. If anyone decides to try it out and discovers something that doesn't work, please let me know and I'll try to figure out how to fix it.

Do note that while this defaults to whole world mapping, there should be no issues with using it for area maps smaller than a world, or for worlds other than earth size (Sihjul is only a little over half the size of earth).

To start, just unzip the attached file to your desktop. Within it, you'll find all of the symbol catalogues and drawtools, as well as the map template, notes, and icon. There's also a meager attempt at a mapping guide, which includes instructions about where to copy all of those files to so that it will work. (There are no unique assets in this style - everything you need is available through CC3+, a couple of annuals, and the free add-ons).

Finally, as a test case I started a map of earth that I'm attaching. I've got the land masses put in, as well as the map "dressing." I filled in the United States area, and left the rest of the world blank so that anyone who wants to practice the style can just use this map if they want to. It might be fun for folks to fill in different areas and post the results here in this thread…

I hope some of you find this useful and enjoy putting the style to work!

You're very welcome, Ricko! This was super fun for me!

Quenton, this map speaks to me - simply fantastic, IMO!