| Author |
 Topic  |
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
 Posted - 25 Jun 2015 : 15:28:13
|
Thread re-purposed - see below
When I had the fire I lost pretty much everything, including all my map files. I had a bunch of maps on DeviantART that I had taken down and no longer have. Most of these I have been able to find again somewhere on the web, but I don't have a copy of my original Chult map - the one I did before I posted the new 5e* one, showing Chult 'broken off' from the main continent (that one is still up on DeviantART).
A long while back someone sent me their copies of all my maps... but I don't think I saved all of them, and no longer have those E-Mails. 
Anyone have a copy of that Chult map? There was some stuff on that one I just can't find anywhere else (like the Isle of Dread conversion material which is no longer available on the Paizo site).
*CORRECTION: Thats the 4e version of Chult - I have no idea what Chult looks like in 5e.
|
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 16 Nov 2016 03:50:14
|
|
|
Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2015 : 15:36:37
|
| I believe I have the pre 5E Chult map on my home computer. I'll check after work and let you know. If I do have it, how should I send it to you? |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
 |
|
|
The Arcanamach
Master of Realmslore
1842 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2015 : 17:23:58
|
| Dazzler may have it. I know he tries to store anything he can related to the Realms, including fan-made stuff I think. He gave me many of his files a few months ago, I'll have a look and see if I can't come up with it for you. |
I have a dream that one day, all game worlds will exist as one. |
|
|
|
The Arcanamach
Master of Realmslore
1842 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2015 : 17:32:13
|
| Strange, I delved into those files and found that literally every region of the Realms was represented by you MT...except Chult is nowhere to be found in those files. It's even excluded from the Shining South region I have of yours. Maybe Dazzler can point me in the right direction as I'm sure he would have saved it along with everything else unless he was somehow unaware you had done a map for Chult. |
I have a dream that one day, all game worlds will exist as one. |
|
|
|
Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6353 Posts |
|
|
Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jun 2015 : 03:32:40
|
Thanks for posting those. Thats the 4e* one that is still up on my DeviantART site. That one was actually adapted from my regular Chult map which I took down to put that up.
Thanks for reminding me about the Samarach & Thindol one - that one still shows Chult connected, and by pasting them together I can recreate the old map.
*It was 4e, not 5e - my bad. How time flies when you are talking editions. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
|
|
|
Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jun 2015 : 06:38:54
|
quote:
Originally posted by Markustay
Thanks for posting those. Thats the 4e* one that is still up on my DeviantART site. That one was actually adapted from my regular Chult map which I took down to put that up.
Thanks for reminding me about the Samarach & Thindol one - that one still shows Chult connected, and by pasting them together I can recreate the old map.
*It was 4e, not 5e - my bad. How time flies when you are talking editions.
Glad I could help. Those are both yours, then?
Assuming they are, let me know if/when you want me to remove them from my site. I would certainly understand not wanting to have your content on someone else's site. It's not linked anywhere but here, but I have no objections to removing them from my site once you've gotten what you need. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen!  |
|
|
|
Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6353 Posts |
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jun 2015 : 14:38:02
|
No, sorry for the confusion. I was talking in-general about all the maps that were mentioned (so Chult, Tashalar, Samarach & Thindol).
That other IS Handsome Rob's. I have done maps in other styles, but not for FR (yet). I did start a Cormyr/Cormanthor map in another style (inspired by the FR style and palette), but never got very far with it. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
|
|
|
Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36779 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jun 2015 : 16:36:34
|
| I've taken both maps down. One was already online and available, so there was no need for me to host it, and the other I took down because HandsomeRob has not, so far as I know, said other people could share his stuff. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 14 Nov 2016 : 03:46:19
|
Rather than create a new topic, I decided to just REZ this one...
So I am looking through all my FR maps, and trying to make the 'Perfect' FR map, which would include everything from everywhere, and be as close to Ed's original Realms as possible (which means backwards-engineering quite a bit that was first introduced in 3e). I was looking at Patrakis' map of the Dalelands - its really quite pretty - and I noticed all the extra waterways he made. Now, at one time I was a stickler for 'canon', but thats become a rather fuzzy line, and I've even added a couple of rivers of my own to the new maps, because common-sense dictates ones were needed in certain spots. However, despite the fact that I think Patrakis' map is both lovely and even more realistic (in layout) then the canon Realms, they're not actually 'necessary', like the couple I added... splitting hairs, I know.
On top of this we have Sembia, a fairly decent sized country with barely any details, mostly because 1e wanted it that way (so DMs could place their own stuff there). Of course, that went out the window, and now we know a bunch of stuff about Sembia, and yet, its still pretty sparse, compared to other parts of The Heartlands, and especially Cormyr next door. I had already decided to add a 'non-canon layer' to the pdf version, so I could flesh-out where I feel other settlements should be, but that was for man-made stuff. I have no intention of doing such a thing for terrain features (it would be too cumbersome - I have to keep names away from each other, and with a layer 'turned off' it starts to look weird).
So what I guess I am looking for right now is how everyone feels about adding at least some of what Patrakis did to my map? The plan is eventually make these 'official' on the DM's Guild, which means all those waterways would also become official. I personally like them, but I want to get an idea of how they'll be received by others.
P.S. - I'm mostly concerned with Sembia, and maybe Cormanthor. I don't think the ones in the eastern Stonelands really work for that area. There's also a couple of extra towns there (unless he had access to some map I don't know about), but I had already planned to put those on my 'homebrew' layer, so they're not a problem. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
|
|
|
George Krashos
Master of Realmslore
Australia
6646 Posts |
Posted - 14 Nov 2016 : 05:06:46
|
Ed has always encouraged me to make the Realms "mine" in terms of being creative and coming up with stuff. If it makes sense, I say do it.
-- George Krashos |
"Because only we, contrary to the barbarians, never count the enemy in battle." -- Aeschylus |
|
|
|
Patrakis
Learned Scribe
Canada
256 Posts |
Posted - 14 Nov 2016 : 20:58:57
|
Hello Markustay,
I've always been very liberal about my realms maps and never been shy about playing with canon and planting my own creations everywhere. That is probably why my maps have never been accepted by the community. I took what wizards was giving me through published materials and filled in the blanks. Ed always said that they could never show everything about the realms. Not every river, not every mountains, not every lakes or forests. It's all a question of scale to me. So yep, there are many towns and cities and rivers that i added to the dales maps just because i couldn't imagine so much empty lands without settlements. Such large expanses of terrain without features like lakes and rivers and hills.
So i couldn't be more happy that such a respected cartographer as yourself would consider filling the blanks of those maps and inputing your own creations. And if by chance you want to use anything i did in these maps, feel free to do so. I attach no property to my maps.
Thanks
Pat
As always you can find my maps over at patoumonde.com |
Dancing is like standing still, but faster.
My site: http://www.patoumonde.com |
Edited by - Patrakis on 14 Nov 2016 23:25:07 |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 15 Nov 2016 : 03:49:36
|
I hadn't even realized you were still hanging around these hallowed halls, Patrakis, else I would have of course asked your permission.
And as I said, I really like the waterways & lakes you added - gives it a more realistic feel. I've always taken certain (small) liberties with the coasts, because they were far 'smoother' on the game maps than any real coast has any right to be. I've only broadened my mapping perspective to include other "there really ought to be a {insert thingie} around here" recently, and that's grown out of over a decade of making and studying maps (including hundreds - maybe thousands - of real ones).
Since the scale of this latest venture is insanely small (its an eventual continent-wide map, with a scale that can display INDIVIDUAL MILES). I have even taken to shrinking down city maps to get the coastlines perfect (because the city maps almost never show the same coast as the larger maps... which was due to the scale). I was inspired by all the beautiful work Anna Meyer has been doing on Greyhawk - I was totally jealous of the level of detail she achieved!
Anyhow, I should have a new WIP up in a few days - I keep plugging away at it. I 'cheated' and started placing some settlements early - thats the FUN part (because I have to research each and everyone of them to make sure I get them precisely right). Although this map should be usable in 'all editions', I would have to say its set circa 3e, just because I can now use different icons for each settlement size, so I have to make sure I know how much pop. each had in the 3e era (although if no 3e source is available for a particular settlemnt, I have to go with older sources, like the Volo's guides). This also means there will be some problems with some being ruins now, whilst other 'ruins' magically became towns again (4e was special that way). Thus, why these knew maps have to come with an index.
Ive only heard from a couple of people thus-far, but considering the two, thats good enough for me.  |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 15 Nov 2016 16:59:30 |
|
|
|
sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11695 Posts |
Posted - 15 Nov 2016 : 14:08:27
|
| This is going to sound like a stupid question.... but regarding maps and rivers. South of the equator do the rivers flow northward (googling says otherwise, but its something I've commonly heard)? Also, generally, do most folks view the equator of Toril as running right through say Zakhara and just south of Maztica/north of Katashaka? |
Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
|
|
|
Gary Dallison
Great Reader
United Kingdom
6353 Posts |
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 15 Nov 2016 : 17:44:41
|
For whatever strange quirk of fate, nearly all major rivers flow north-to-south. And yes, they all flow 'downward' from the highest altitude to the lowest. The funny (coincidental) thing is that they flow 'downward' on a flat map as well (if the standard North = 'up' is used). IIRC, The Amazon is the only MAJOR river that flows south-to-north, but I don't think that has anything to do with the equator (although you never know - I heard southern tornadoes spin the opposite way, which I thought was a joke until I looked it up).
Come to think of it, The Nile also runs North-to-south, so I'm not sure how accurate that fact I quoted above is (I read it in a book MANY years ago). I suppose it all depends on your definition of 'major'.
I'm not really worried about some sort of theorized 'polarity affect' on rivers in FR, or any other fantasy setting. We have instances of rivers flowing UPHILL in FR (in the High moor - it literally has subterranean rivers that flow UP to the surface for a short time, before disappearing back down again), so which side of the equator they're on is the least of my worries.
My big problem is thus: When we look at an Earth map, or even just a continent map, very few rivers 'pop out'. That gives us the false impression that there aren't that many. Ed has said for years that his Realms maps don't show thousands of smaller waterways and bodies of water (and small clusters of hills, tiny swamps, marshes, and bogs, woods, etc, etc), just like on a real map. Now that I've reduced the scale sufficiently to show each individual mile, at least medium-sized geographic features should begin to appear, so the 'sparsity' on the Faerūn map is beginning to look a bit absurd, hence my needing to add at least a few features here and there.
I could, of course, just add my own wherever I like (ie, where they 'make sense'), but I also like to keep consistent with other people's maps, even when they display non-canon items, and since Patrakis layout looks very nice (especially in regards to the stuff in Cormanthor), I will just borrow from him (thus generating an 'internal consistency' amongst non-canon resources).
Moving Forward
I plan to add quite a bit of other people's stuff (locales) to my non-canon layer, all indexed so people know where to find info about them, should they choose to adopt them (and I will be borrowing the 'color coding' format Brian James came up with for his original GHotR, which was brilliant, just to define the amount of 'canonicity' each locale has, within that index). Some of what I do is 'fixing' inconsistent lore where locales are concerned, so an entry can even be two (or more) different colors. Another thing I do is extrapolate - if I have several mentions of a similar thing in the same area, I may combine them, IF there is no canon lore to the contrary. For example, in Kara-tur I had an unnamed city in a novel that wasn't on any maps (no settlements at all in that region). I had another, off-hand reference to a named settlement in one of the local legends where something important occurred, and since both should have been right in the same area, I made them one and the same (inside a 'forgotten province' that was included in the original OA but later dropped from the K-T box... I hunt long and hard for ever last scrap of lore).
Not that I have any plans to revisit Kara-Tur (not until Faerūn is done, anyway). And that sort of 'lore blending' only becomes necessary the further afield we go from The Heartlands.
One 'Ed map' I am missing and would love to see is his Unapproachable East - I am greatly intrigued by what he had where Vassa & Damara are. I have noted a 'squishing' affect, N.-to-S., in regards to the Dalelands/Moonsea area. The Fonstad Atlas is mostly consistent with Ed's Realms, but this is one place where she followed the published maps closer (and I wish they hadn't done that, because it would have pushed the Great Glacier and other 'parts north' on that side of Anauroch about 20 miles further north, which may explain some of our temperature/weather variance from one side of that desert to the other). I have found a few things on some of the original Realms maps that never even made it into the Fonstad Atlas, so there may be a couple of 'surprises' (Ed had way more islands everywhere - I think he even alluded to this in PftF and PftM* - he mentions several island chains that have been 'lost', for one reason or another.
*And now I just reminded myself I need to go through those AGAIN with a fine tooth-comb; I had lost my original geography notes in the fire, and have been trying to rebuild them. There are a LOT of 'juicy bits' in those.  |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 15 Nov 2016 18:15:42 |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 16 Nov 2016 : 00:45:27
|
So here's a crazy thought (how crazy is CRAZY?):
I've been playing with the map. Not the one(s) I've been working on, but rather, the 2e campaign map. I'm actually thinking about this - What if I had been asked to 'fix' the maps for 3e? I know the two main reasons they did what they did; the first (and most important) was reducing the map size to fit nicely on the smallest 'footprint' possible (for printing), and also to bring some of 'The North' down so we didn't have the weather/temperature inconsistencies (you'll note it was that statement in my last post that started me with this new idea). The least important reason, but the one they seem to have 'harped on' (pun intended) was that there was 'too much empty space'.
Now, taking all of that into consideration - and realizing they were actually right (in regards to a published game setting) - and also having access to technology that wasn't that great back between 2e/3e (the tech was there - its just that not too many artists of the time were tech-savvy), I can do a lot of weird things they either couldn't or just didn't (having taken the low-tech solution of cutting a physical map apart like a pizza). With a slight rotation and some finesseful resizing of 'sub-optimal' areas, I can achieve much the same thing, at least with the top-half (the part everyone uses) of the map. On the most basic level, all I did was 'squish' that slice of the Sword coast around Candlekeep (the region thats never had any sort of splatbook)in order to drop 'The North' to a position closer to how it is in 3e. It looks pretty good, but if I really want to get things to be similar latitudes that they were in 3e I'd have to also do a 5° rotation (VERY similar to what they did, but without the 'fan effect' they were going for). so the left side of Anauroch gets 'dropped' while the right side 'stays put', making things still look the same (and not really losing anything), but achieving most of what they were striving for.
I did a mock-up of what I am talking about HERE.
It really was the ideal way of doing most of what they were going for - the only bad distortion is to an area that never received much attention anyway. Also, since the east and west sides of Anauroch are almost like two different settings, they remain 'internally consistent' to themselves (none of the weirdness we get when going from the 2e Volo's guides to the 3e map). You'll also note, while still keeping the 2e layout, I've managed to keep locales on the left side of the map fairly consistent with their 'latitudinal partners' on the right side of the map. For example, on the 3e map, Shadowdale and Waterdeep were of similar latitude, while on the older 2e map, Waterdeep was WAY north of Shadowdale - even north of the Moonsea! Thus, I've managed to capture the feel of both 'eras'. And since 4e's maps were based on 3e, and 5e's are based on 1e/2e, they also remain fairly consistent, despite all the changes. The only thing that got overly 'squished' was the four areas that go along the lower western side of Anauroch, but I can fudge them in much better if I decide to go with this approach. That happened mostly because I needed Cormyr intact (which is the only thing that has stayed nearly 'pristine' between editions), and that would include the Tunlands and those mountains surrounding it.
The thing I really like about this layout is that Hartsvale now falls-out at the same latitude as Sossal, which makes a lot of sense. Icewind Dale - despite it reputation - should and DOES fallout a little south of those places (but we can assume everything above the Wall of the World is a high (windy) plateau). I also really like the way the High Moor looks on that - the resizing made it make more sense, IMHO (seriously, did it ever need to be THAT BIG?) The thing I really hate about it is that I am deep into the very canon maps I am working on - I would have to rotate what I have 5° on the current two maps, and make corrections. I don't have to worry about the 'squishing' until map #3.
Any opinions? I am torn right now. I really prefer this layout, because its more 'universal' to every edition, but at the same time (and for the same reason), its not 100% consistent with any one edition/era. We haven't had a 5e FR campaign map, have we? The smaller, regional maps I've seen (and have) will still match-up as well. If mine becomes the 'default' for 5e that would be SWEET. Kind of like 'the best of all worlds'. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 16 Nov 2016 17:33:08 |
|
|
|
Cards77
Senior Scribe
USA
745 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2016 : 01:11:04
|
The main waterways are well delineated on most maps. All that is needed is to add tributaries in a dendritic fashion. This would be the most common drainage in mountainous and hilly terrain.
Polarity doesn't have any effect on rivers. Many many rivers flow north and south on all the continents.
Also, EVERY SQUARE MILE of land has to be drained. Topographical relief is present in every inch of land, nothing is truly "flat", even if there isn't enough water present to flow across the ground.
I'm most familiar with the Sword Coast North, and hydrology is one of my areas of expertise. I think more tributaries would be more realistic but there is a point to which you cannot really add any more because with each valley/stream, a ridge or landform also exists.
Calling Horns is a good example. It sits atop a major ridge, and large waterways drain both sides of this major ridge.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drainage_system_(geomorphology)
|
|
|
|
Gelcur
Senior Scribe
502 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2016 : 05:03:18
|
I'm sure you found the map you were looking for by now. But I can't help to mention this useful trick, you can use the wayback machine, in case of your deviant art page, https://web.archive.org/web/20110701000000*/http://markustay.deviantart.com/ . Surf to approximate year and if you are lucky you'll find the full map, if you find only a thumbnail, they often do not archive larger images. You can then take the tumbnail url and paste it into, https://images.google.com/ . Low and behold it finds similar images all over the web.
I have hit that heartbreaking wall of something gone missing off the web to often. Hope this helps in the future, sorry for the urls. Best of luck on your newest project. |
The party come to a town befallen by hysteria
Rogue: So what's in the general store?
DM: What are you looking for?
Rogue: Whatevers in the store.
DM: Like what?
Rogue: Everything.
DM: There is a lot of stuff.
Rogue: Is there a cart outside?
DM: (rolls) Yes.
Rogue: We'll take it all, we may need it for the greater good. |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2016 : 06:28:43
|
Well, I repurposed this thread since my initial question, but that was still useful info - Thanks.
As for water drainage - I am aware of all that Cards77 (hence, why I feel there needs to be more). The only ones that truly concern me was areas with large mountain ranges that were missing even a large river on one side (like in Turmish and Impiltur). These are the things I want to resolve moving forward.
I gave up on the above map idea - the one I posted a mock-up of. I continued forward with it, until I got the mock-up near perfect, and then realized I would have to restart everything again, which I absolutely refuse to do. It was really the rotation that was killing me (plus I later stretched both Cormyr and Impiltur to give them more room, amonsgt other things). So instead, I settled for a 'quick & dirty' fix, that will allow me to use everything I already have complete, but still accomplish some of what I want. I basically compressed the the whole left side of Faerūn top -to bottom. Not enough to be noticeable, but enough to drop some of 'The North' down to where it makes more sense (although the High Forest is still higher than the Moonsea... I didn't want to mess with it that much). Waterdeep is at about the same latitude as Zhentil Keep, which is much better than how it was. I may do a bit more compression with the Great Glacier, just to get Sossal and a few other things back on the map - we'll see. It won't be as major as what I did to the left side.
And the only place where things got 'funky' was in the region covered by the Volo Sword Coast Guide, and more specifically, Sunset Vale. Couldn't be helped (well, it could have, but I am still a little nuts). Managed to fix it pretty good with a slight rotation on the Sunset mountains (but still keeping the crater-like appearance of the Tunlands that we lost in 3e). Its not ideal, but its the simplest way to solve a bunch of problems without having me start from scratch again. I may also play with the Shining South a bit as well - I can do more there because we didn't have as much detail... and nobody uses it anyway. Something along the lines of the 3e map, but without losing anything (as they did). Thats a long ways off yet. Still need to finish these first two, now that I've gotten the 'crazy' out of my system (for now).
|
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 18 Nov 2016 06:36:39 |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 21 Nov 2016 : 02:24:56
|
So I completely rebuilt the 1e/2e map, to bring a few of the 3e changes back-in (the ones that made sense), and did so in such a way that unless you are me (or someone else who has spent literally thousands of hours pouring over FR maps... like ED), the changes are virtually undetectable. You''ll think you are looking at a 100% canon 1e/2e/5e map.
Shrunk a couple of 'outer' areas up, and actually expanded two (which I felt needed to be bigger, one because it makes more sense, and in the other case... it just looks cooler). Once again, the changes were spread-out enough to be extremely hard to discern (Kara-Tur got a wee bit smaller, for example, but still lines-up to the Hordelands and Faerūn like before - its magic!
Zakhara remained the same size (NO, I don't have any intention of mapping Zakhara, but I had to place it to get the Utter East perfect). By keeping it 'pristine', the published canon maps will work and line-up fine. Its the one (sub)-continent that has not been affected by editions.
And the Shining South shrunk; not nearly as badly as it was in 3e, and the continent keeps it shape, but I didn't have to rotate anything or lose anything, or 'fudge' anything beyond recognition (ie, the canon 3e map). Basically I accomplished what the 3e design team set-out to do, but did it the way it should have been done.
Oh, and why am I bothering to relay any of this? Because I had given up on adjusting/fixing the maps because of the work I have completed, but now that central area remains 100% canon and I won't have to change anything (except tweak a few rivers on the left side of the map that I've already tweaked once before). So now I can 'have my cake and eat it too'. Had I not gone ahead and pre-planned this out, it would have been nagging at me and the building frustration would have forced me to stop again (which has been the death of 100+ mapping projects). |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 21 Nov 2016 02:34:24 |
|
|
|
Gelcur
Senior Scribe
502 Posts |
Posted - 01 Dec 2016 : 06:52:02
|
| Would love links to the specific maps you are referring to. Especially before and afters. Checked your deviantart page but could not spot which ones you had changed. |
The party come to a town befallen by hysteria
Rogue: So what's in the general store?
DM: What are you looking for?
Rogue: Whatevers in the store.
DM: Like what?
Rogue: Everything.
DM: There is a lot of stuff.
Rogue: Is there a cart outside?
DM: (rolls) Yes.
Rogue: We'll take it all, we may need it for the greater good. |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 01 Dec 2016 : 09:49:49
|
There isn't really much on my DeviantART page these days, but there will be, shortly. I'm actually working on multiple maps at once (not out of my usual ADD, but with a plan in mind - I want consistency).
I'm re-releasing two maps I did awhile ago - two of my best, both of which were almost complete. They are areas I won't be covering immediately with my latest project (the one I talked about above), but they are certainly still more than adequate and will hold people over until I get back to those regions. I've managed to update parts of them in a way I didn't think possible (like pulling layers apart, to create new layers, to emulate the way I work now). The first of those will be ready over the weekend (and if ts not 100% finished I'll still post whatever is done by then) - its a newer version of my Western Heartlands map (although I've extended it once again, and changed the resolution). It really was a good-looking map to begin with (if I do say so myself), and I think this update will really knock people's socks off.
The other is the Shining South, which started out as a conversion, and became more & more 'canon' as time went on. I think all I had left on that one was to place a few more river names, and do all the road names. Funny thing is, I already have a better version I am working on, but it will be some time before thats complete, so there will be this one in the meantime.
The reason why I had to take a step backwards (and re-release some maps to tide people over) was because I had to alter my plan for the first two new ones. Since I redesigned the Realms from the ground-up this time out (as I described above), I had to rough-in the rest of Faerūn just to get the first two PERFECT. I'm starting from the middle and working outwards, which is tough - this why I always started from the west coast before (and kept doing it over and over again). I was never able to get around to doing Cormyr/The Dales because I kept starting over. Thats no longer a problem. The new layout is so perfect that even I am having a hard time telling what I did, its so incremental, but the over all effect is amazing (just about everything 'got better'). Hell, with the new, smaller scale, I can now get some details in from smaller maps, like the Veilstone Peaks, or the Valley of Bloodstone (all those maps are layered into the rough map). Hell, I even got a couple of city maps on there (super-tiny, just to get the coasts right).
So right now I am working on polishing the older map for re-release, and then by Wednesday I should be back working on the new ones (with the new 'old school' terrain). I may be getting very busy with other work real soon, so I want to get as much of this done by the end of December as possible.
So thats why you can't find the maps - I haven't posted them yet. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 01 Dec 2016 10:06:02 |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 22 Jan 2017 : 04:06:23
|
I can't find the topic where I was talking to Krash about rivers in Impiltur, but that subject came up here as well, so I'll just post this here.
I found a cool map of the river systems in the U.S., and you can really see what I am talking about in terms of FR NEEDING lots more rivers -
United States River Basins Map |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jun 2017 : 14:36:38
|
In case someone missed this that I posted in the other thread.
New Faerūn Continent map WIP
The explanation is below it - its bare-bones on purpose, because its meant to be used for historic maps (things like tribal migration patterns, etc), and its very High res so that you can just used the part of it you need without losing any definition. I will be placing the rivers on it (even though some of them have changed over time as well).
EDIT:
The thing I really like about this particular one is that it covers more area than any one single map ever did before - you can see bits and pieces of every other Torillian setting (those two bits off to the lower left are Maztica AND Katashaka!) I added more islands to the chain along the NW edge to better match what Ed had envisioned there (although his island chains - Eskember, Anchormé, etc. - were much further south, but one does what one can, and it also helps explain the Northmen better). |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
Edited by - Markustay on 24 Jun 2017 14:50:51 |
|
|
|
KanzenAU
Senior Scribe
Australia
763 Posts |
|
|
sleyvas
Skilled Spell Strategist
USA
11695 Posts |
Posted - 24 Jun 2017 : 20:58:11
|
| This makes me so wish for a new world map like the Scholar's one. Not needing all the detail, just outlines, but something that at least gives a world view that someone from the moon could see and map out. |
Alavairthae, may your skill prevail
Phillip aka Sleyvas |
|
|
|
Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2017 : 01:38:07
|
I may, at some point, expand it, but as of right now I have to map all those rivers.
The full, existing map actually touches on the K-T coast, but I really just want to keep this one to Faerūn-proper, and its surroundings.
This is primarily for 'big things', like mapping empire expansions, or cultural migrations - that sort of thing. I could even do one of those time-lapse maps now, showing the 'rise & fall' of various kingdoms. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
|
|
|
|
George Krashos
Master of Realmslore
Australia
6646 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jun 2017 : 05:17:55
|
Magnificent work and oh so useful for my musings. Bravo Mark.
-- George Krashos |
"Because only we, contrary to the barbarians, never count the enemy in battle." -- Aeschylus |
|
|
|
Topic |
|
|
|
My maps
