DnD Campaign Map de Nuevo

My weekly DnD campaign rolls along, and last week I got a little more prep time than usual - granting me the opportunity to tweak the week's dungeon map a little more than I normally would. And by tweak I mean of course throwing handfuls of Photoshop Filters at it to see what stuck.

I like some of the effects I got with beveling and noise, though it seems to me it might be a little overwrought. I'm a big fan of simplicity. At any rate, C&C, as always, is greatly appreciated.

Thanks for taking the time to look.

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Nice map. Extremely clear.

Are you using it as the DM's map to draw from or putting it on a computer for the players to see?

I ask this because the numbers are really really big and bold. Makes for an interesting style but it would draw a great deal of attention to the numbering of the rooms. I think it would print really well but I find it a little over the top personally.


Sigurd

Just a DM's map, mate. Running in a little window at one corner of my laptop, hence the oversized numbering.

When we play I just draw things as they appear in blue felt tip pen on the battlemat. So, until I discovered the CG, I was the only one who ever saw them.

Thanks for the kind words. :)

Oh yeah, I like this map. It's a bit of a blend between schematic and realistic. Looking very crisp and clear. I am sure lots of other people could find this map useful :)

I was going to mention the numbers but Sig beat me to that. And then I was going to say lighten the blue river but since you're the only one looking at it then I guess that's just fine. Personally, I like it a lot and can see how you could whip up something like this in fairly short order and be ready to roll.

So, put together the next level of the cave system, and here it is, to a usable state. Took Ascension's advice about lightening the water a bit, and I agree, it looks much better.

Tried not to go overboard with the setpieces - barrels, crates, torches, etc. It's hard for me to fight the urge to clutter the map almost to unreadability with tiny 5x5 pixel sticks of furniture. Also reduced the size of my numbering, trying to keep in mind that I'm posting these things for other people to look at or use, and obscuring 1/3 of the map with big white bubbles kinda defeats the purpose. :oops:

The northern end of the underground pool is supposed to be fed by a small waterfall, or spring - and though I tried a few different methods of making this apparent, I had trouble finding one that read easily, short of hand-drawing it in. Any suggestions?


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Level 3 of this particular cavern system - leading to an underground river chase sequence. Should be good fun.

It occurs to me that this thread would be better placed in Dungeons/Subterranean. If a mod concurs, I'd be happy to have it shifted. I tend to overlook important details, like the correct place to start a new thread, at four in the AM. This is something I will endeavor to remedy in the future.

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I like that one. It's a pity your players never get to see it (or do you show it to them when all is over?)
Easy to follow, very clear.

I like the design elements too, I see you're bringing in the water style from your whale map - I still love it. (I've started using the effect in my own rivers too, to great effect, thanks again for sharing that one)

I usually show them the map when all is said and done, though I've been trying to find an economical way to start printing for gamenight. Pretty tough to do with 30x30 color prints being somewhere in the neighborhood of forty bucks at the local printshop.

I really enjoy doing the water that way, I think it conveys a sub-surface current pretty well. I've been tweaking it for a little while, which I suppose is evident from levels 1-3 of this particular map set, with Whalebelly somewhere in between. Glad you're finding some use for it!

Use? are you kidding, it's bloody brilliant. you're my current Hero :)

Too bad about printing prices being what they are.. Doing a world map or something would be one thing but yeah, printing out for a single session like this would be cost prohibitive. Black and white taped together for the table? I remember having a boxed set of Judge Dredd map tiles way back when, I adopted them for my wh40k city battles, ran out quickly for the size of battles I would host. The photocopied sheets ended up being a hit, they were a lot more grungy than the originals, and fit the feeling well. Plus you could cut up the map and just lay out the elements the players have run into as they get to them..

Ok, thinking out loud too much :)