darrenkitlor's Abeir-Toril Map - Forgotten Realms

[darren_kitlor]

Snowfall / Cloud Test Image

It's really quite challenging but this will greatly enhance the realistic feel of the map (I can disable the clouds and snowfall via layers for a more readable/political map experience).

I'd really like some feedback - is this a critical hit or fail?

TorilMapCloudTest.jpg

[Big Mac]

Abeir is seen more in Spelljammer.

I'm a big fan of Spelljammer and have no recollection of seeing Abeir in any SJ source. As far as I know, the only information about it comes from the 4e FRCG. I think there is someone, somewhere, making a world out of the bits of Toril that got "lost" and filling in the details with Abeir-like stuff. But I can't recall exactly where they were.

Snowfall / Cloud Test Image
It's really quite challenging but this will greatly enhance the realistic feel of the map (I can disable the clouds and snowfall via layers for a more readable/political map experience).

I'd really like some feedback - is this a critical hit or fail?

I'm with Ascension and Steel General over the cloud layer. If you wrapped this into a sphere (sans your top and bottom boarders) and gave it to Silverblade's Suitcase for inclusing in a 3D space picture, the cloud layer would be great. But as it is, it just gets in the way of surface details.

That aside, I think this is one of the most attractive maps of Toril I've ever seen. But you might want to check your sources on Osse, as I've seen other maps that have gigantic lines (like the Nasca Lines). I believe the lines are supposed to be big enough to be visible from space.

So far I've not found anyone who knows why the lines are there, but they generate interest in the Spelljammer community.

[Werthead]

Yeah, in 1E-3E the world is called Abeir-toril because it's just Auld Wyrmish (the most ancient language still used on the planet) for 'Cradle of Life'. 4E rather ridiculously retconned this as that the one world of Abeir-toril was long ago split into two worlds coexisting in different dimensions at the same point, Abeir and Toril, and the Spellplague (the highly controversial 'Realms-shaking event' between 3E and 4E) saw the two worlds smashed back together resulting in lots of magical craziness such as Maztica exploding and being replaced by a new continent called 'Returned Abeir' (the current Realms writers have issues coming up with new names that don't suck).

In my Realms campaign, the Spellplague never has and never will take place and Maztica is still there

[Big Mac]

Yeah, in 1E-3E the world is called Abeir-toril because it's just Auld Wyrmish (the most ancient language still used on the planet) for 'Cradle of Life'. 4E rather ridiculously retconned this as that the one world of Abeir-toril was long ago split into two worlds coexisting in different dimensions at the same point, Abeir and Toril, and the Spellplague (the highly controversial 'Realms-shaking event' between 3E and 4E) saw the two worlds smashed back together resulting in lots of magical craziness such as Maztica exploding and being replaced by a new continent called 'Returned Abeir' (the current Realms writers have issues coming up with new names that don't suck).

In my Realms campaign, the Spellplague never has and never will take place and Maztica is still there

I like Maztica (and some of the other FR sub-settings) too much to move onto the 4e world. But I have heard a couple of people talking about getting the bits that were lost during the Spellplague, putting them onto a new map, and then filling up the rest of the world with stuff similar to Returned Abeir (to create an Abeir that contains all the bits of Toril that vanished). That seems like an interesting mapping project.

But if someone ever did that, I think I would like to see them put Returned Abeir back onto the world Abeir and then use the pre-Spellplage Abeir as an alternative world to Toril (during a campaign set during the 3e or earlier version of Forgotten Realms). A project like that would be the thing that would be most likely to get me to buy the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide. If I had a fan map like that, I could use it alongside Maztica.

[Voll-ka the Deceiver]

I'm so new at this, and have so much to learn (albeit a labor of love), I would never presume to comment on your mapping skills. I speak only from the position of "playable practicality". Unless this awesome map is destined to be a wall hanging decoration (which it easily could be!) I would disable the clouds but keep the "snowfall". It has been my hard won but happy experience to note that game maps are tangible things, made to be folded, "rolled"on, and written on - and towards this end sometimes less is more, so to speak. Good games require good maps, but great ones require customization to some degree. This customization is often (usually?) done in little bits, by hand, over time. I cherish most fondly my oldest maps that are covered with years of "character" by my own hand and that of my players - 3+ generations worth! Having said all that, I would personally keep two copies of this map. One with clouds to "hang", and the other without to "use". In short EXCELLENT work, and I would love to see more.