May Entry: Fentor Cross Church

[Redrobes]

I like how you added the Creative Commons licensing to the image.

All of the maps for the co-op stuff are supposed to be CC so I have been adding this to each map. I think its useful to mark up the map as these images seem to travel and then nobody knows whether they can use them. I went on RPGMapShare a few days ago and saw all of my maps there 'owned' by somebody else. I think I haven't been there so long that my account has expired but I marked those up the same so its still possible to know that you can use them without asking. The text takes up a bit of image memory tho ! When I did the base map which is the grass, walls, tiles and steps it came out at 24Kb so the 50Kb is all in the little bit of details like the text, chains, pews, chests and so on.

For GM's Apprentice, there really isnt any more glory to see for this map. It was designed and built for the 75K limit so I had to limit my use of using more fancy textures. Theres some jpg artifacts around a few bits like the chains and text which would look a lot nicer but its essentially the same. Ta for wip tagging - ill rerun the script now.

[RPMiller]

I went on RPGMapShare a few days ago and saw all of my maps there 'owned' by somebody else.

Steel Rat, that runs that site is very good about Copyright stuff so if you email or PM him, he'll likely make sure that you are given ownership of those images.

[Redrobes]

Steel Rat, that runs that site is very good about Copyright stuff so if you email or PM him, he'll likely make sure that you are given ownership of those images.

It wasn't a knock at him. He's a good chap. Its just that these things tend to happen even with the best of intentions. I have a lot of pencil maps there of old alternative Forgotten Realms towns which I said could be public domain as I see no value to them other than that of interest to other GMs and the others are marked up anyway - mainly because I use tokens which are in themselves CC so I figured that I ought to do the "share alike" bit of the CC agreement. Its probably the content management system he is using where my login has expired and its defaulted the user ownership.

[Redrobes]

Hmmm it seems as though I am going to need a little more to keep up with the current ante.

I thought I would put some shadows in and liven it up a bit. I have also done a roof but this is not part of the challenge entry. It's just that I am going to need it on my map. To make life easier for VTTs I have made the roof as a clear background PNG. I am also including a microscopic html page to put the two together so if you don't have a VTT then you can still look at the result easily. Just put them all into a folder and click on the html file.

Running out of ideas to progress this further though I could make this about 60Kb and it still looks alright so theres room for more if I can think of it.

### Latest WIP ###

[Kasim]

If you're looking for ideas to detail it more, possibly a cloak or overcoat thrown over the back of a pew, maybe a couple books laying on the benches.

Not sure what else could be needed to liven up the scene a bit, maybe some sconces around the entry way for a lightsource on that end of the church? Just thinking something to break up the pattern might be nice.

If you touch up the steps with a thin black line to give more contrast they might be a little more clear. ATM they appear to be kinda fuzzy to me.

If you're not looking for suggestions, well...

[meleeguy]

Yes, I agree the competition is fierce.

Your floor seems somewhat dark up against the black walls - consider a lighter, perhaps marble looking with maybe carpets here and there to keep the pixel count down.

One of the things that stands out to me about Torq's map is the masterful use of depth in the composition. Jazzing up your altar, especially as it is such a likely fight scene somehow also might be useful.

Alternately, you could layer up your walls suggestive of the grand structure the building must be.

Anyway, just some ruminations from a novice.

[Torq]

I really like this church layout. I had previously only looked at the thumbnail but when I took a proper look I really liked the layout. My favourite feature is the realistic wall and pillar layout hinting at real architecture and immediately giving it a context. I think there is a bit of a consistency issue between two types of art. The first exemplified by the altar, which has a drawn look with outlining, and the second by the sarcophagus and statue which have a photorealistic look. I think the tow could prossibly be brought more in line with each other. For me the layout would look better with a line drawn feel, so I would recommend "arting" up the photorealistic elements like the sarc.

This can be achieved by running them through a filter. I only really know gimp, but usinf that as context I would run a cartoon filter on it (not too strong) and then use the outline selection functions to give it a thin black outline to match the other objects eg. chests, table etc.

If you are going to have a building shadow on the outside, what about shadows on the inside. Churches are always fairly shadowy places. Maybe a few window glass shine throughs like the one attached. It is from the Dunjinni forunms.

Torq