New Mapper with Challenge Idea
I have been a part of this forum for a few months and have never posted before. I have looked at a few of the tutorials as well as the challenges and thought of an idea. Why not combine both? There is no doubt that there are tons of very talented artists here, but how many are able to teach as well as do?
My thought here would be that someone who would not participate in the challenge would create a simple continent map (most likely in the style of a pen and paper map that you would hand draw up in say 10 minutes). The challengers would attempt to duplicate the map as close as possible in whatever style and tools they wish, but part of the judging would be based off of not only the final product, but how well documented the steps were to making the final product. My expectation is that with 8+ people participating, you would have a range of map styles and products which would be contributed to the Tutorial section.
Since the base map would be the same for everyone, this would allow each participant to show how they would interpret a specific feature (trees, mountains, deserts, etc) using their tool of choice. Perhaps one person would do an atlas style, another would do a wood carving style, another would do a pen/ink style, and another would do a stylistic, etc. The goal would be that anyone with access to the tools used would be able to duplicate the final effect reasonably close to the artists rendition.
If accepted, there should be some basic rules such as:
- Common Size: All submissions must be x by y
- The map must maintain the same relative size/shape as the original
- Features such as mountain ranges, forests, deserts, rivers, etc, must maintain the same general scale and shape as the original
The idea is that anyone looking at the original and then the final product should know instantly that they are the same thing in different formats. Does anyone else think this is an idea that might work?
Joe
Interesting idea. The downside would be that the turnout wouldn't be very large as tutorial creation takes a lot of time and energy and as we've seen since we've been doing challenges the longer and more complex the challenge the fewer participants we get.
That said, we'll definitely keep it in mind and who knows, you might see it go up in some later months. I agree, it is a neat idea and would be beneficial to everyone.
Bill Stickers is innocent! It isn't Bill's fault that he was hanging out in the wrong place.
Please make an effort to tag all threads. This will greatly enhance the usability of the forums.
Understood. I started playing with Fractal Mapper around a year ago and was pointed over here by some of the posts you have made over on rptools forums. I figured I would give GIMP a go, so have started looking at some of the Tutorials already published, though I am having a bit of trouble getting anything that looks right. My main goal is to get a better map for my GM's world since he used the Campaign Mapper from the Core Rules CD from way back. Of course, I would also like to be able to make or modify a few battle maps and convince him to start using Maptool at our face to face game also!Originally Posted by RPMiller
As an aside, perhaps this idea could be used to fuel a multi month contest to give people plenty of time to complete their work. I know a month can be a short time to just get a map done sometimes with real life, much less also having to make a tutorial in the process.
Joe
Actually, this was the initial spark I had when we first decided to do contests: a contest in tutorial making. I LOVE this idea & hope we do it some day. Good thinking, and thanks for posting!
Well welcome to the Guild!! Please feel free to post any questions you need answered in the appropriate forums such as the WIP and I look forward to seeing how your mapping develops.
Bill Stickers is innocent! It isn't Bill's fault that he was hanging out in the wrong place.
Please make an effort to tag all threads. This will greatly enhance the usability of the forums.
I echo Don completely in this. Fab idea, the tutorials are in many ways the crown jewels of this community and any way we can think of to encourage people to post more of them is always welcome.
I certainly love this idea, and I would give it a shot myself when such a contest would be held.
Posting Permissions
LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Reply With Quote
