put your old maps here

**terrainmonkey** · 08-30-2007, 09:33 AM

hey folks, so i was going through some old campaign notebooks, circa 1983-87, and i found some maps i did when i was a wee lad of 16 and 17 and i first started to DM a lot. (4 games a week for about 3 years in high school) anyway, i figured i would post these here, just to see what i was doing back then, as opposed to now with high falutin computer software to help. i got to thinking about all those old hand drawn maps i used to do and after looking at some, they bring a tear to my eye just thinking of all the cool memories attached to them. this is also a thread for all those of you who wish to post old maps you did when you first started out, and to tell us what went into the thought process behind them, techniques you used, materials, etc.

the first is a city called Gorson's Bluff, and why i named it that at the time, i don't know. all i did was pick up a couple of pigma micron pens at a hobby store and started drawing boxes. i think i had a .005, a .01, and a .05 black, and a .05 red. what started out as roads became a town i have no idea could have flourished here. i'm thinking the chapel, (area 1) would be a church of some king od earth diety, hence the labrinth in the back. there's a few taverns scattered about, but i don't think i ever really came up with a description for every building. i remember that this town was under assault by ghouls, much like a zombie movie. the PCs at the time had to be heroes and put down the plague by going into the underdark and defeating a beholder king and his lich companion.

**terrainmonkey** · 08-30-2007, 09:41 AM

here's another one i did for the same campaign, but a low level goblin hunt. this was done in 1983, as one of my first adventures. my sister gave me a set of prismacolor markers for christmas, and a sketch pad to draw on. i remember a bunch of dwarves hired the characters to go take back a mine they ran that was infested by goblins. yes, i know, pretty amatuerish but i was 15 so i can't be bothered to come up with something original, it was hack and slash, loot and pillage in those days. all we needed to have was a reason to go kill evil and loot dungeons in the process. i seem to remember one of my PCs jumped in the mine cart and went on a trip into the main lair by himself. that didn't turn out pretty...

anyway, here's the goblin cave mines.

(oh, and yes, i've always written in upper case letters, i think i was taking an architecture class at the time and it stuck)

**HellHound** · 08-30-2007, 10:11 AM

My old maps from the early 80's are all gone... heck, so are my maps from the 90's and up until 2005 really.

Awesome thread!

The town in particular is impressive for a teenage gamer.

**thebax2k** · 08-30-2007, 01:51 PM

I second Hellhound on the town map, it looks very sharp and well defined. It reminds me of the early FR city maps, although if its pre 87', then it predates FR! Your teenage self was quite skilled Terrainmonkey.

**pyrandon** · 08-30-2007, 05:40 PM

What a sweeet idea for a thread! Unfortunately, like Hellhound, my old maps went the way of the dodo. In a bit of instanity circa 1996 I GAVE AWAY my entire collection of late 70s/early 80s D&D books, modules--and my binder of years' worth of work.

Still kicking myself!!!!!!!!!!

You guys posting old stuff here does make it better slightly, though!

**jaerdaph** · 09-08-2007, 01:53 PM

Great idea! My mother was telling me she came across some old graph paper dungeons I drew when I was 14 years old (which was 28 years ago yesterday, by the way, happy birthday to me

). Next time I visit I'll get them and scan them in.

Edit: I can't do math.

**Venardhi** · 09-08-2007, 01:59 PM

If I had any old maps, I'd be sure to post them, I was always a 'free-winger' when I ran campaigns back in the day and only had a basic concept of "Okay, they go into tunnels then eventually it opens into a cavern and splits towards the surface and the depths of the underground ruins. . ." My players were too impatient to wait for me to draw out detailed maps every scene change. If I ever get into it again, you can rest assured I won't let something small like their patience or sanity stop me though.

**Arcana** · 09-10-2007, 07:40 AM

I'm definitely going to be digging up and scanning some of my old maps tonight...great idea for a thread, agreed!

**NeonKnight** · 09-10-2007, 07:48 AM

Check out my maps in these threads (They date all the way back to almost 1980):

http://www.cartographersguild.com//showthread.php?t=852

http://www.cartographersguild.com//showthread.php?t=851

http://www.cartographersguild.com//showthread.php?t=845

I am in the 'project mood' of converting them all to Degital (i.e. CC3 format), cause, well, it takes up less space.

Wish I has some of my 'really' old modules I typed up on a typwriter of all things.

**torstan** · 09-12-2007, 06:23 AM

Well, my old maps are in dusty boxes in a different country, but here is the first map I ever created for online play (circa 1 year ago

)

put your old maps here-alchemistsmall.png

It's a dock area in the city with a hanging ship. It was used to detail a section of a Dungeon adventure I was running. I can't remember the name of it right now but will edit this post later when I've tracked it down.

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