Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 29

Thread: The Westerlands (Terra Solis)

  1. #1
    Guild Novice Facebook Connected sreynders's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    Belgium
    Posts
    23

    Wip The Westerlands (Terra Solis)

    Hey all,

    As I said in my previous (and first) topic I was planning a new project. This topic will be a exploration of my workprogress and decisions that i make. This topic will be about map making but also on story and lore. I hope you guys and gals will enjoy the road I'll travel!

    This setting is based on the same concept of my previous map: Its a continent in a world that is made by a rp-group. This continent may be mine, but will be influenced by a bigger story, other factions, adventurers and so on. I am, however, its main architect.

    The Westerlands
    The history starts with the sundering of a huge continent, splitting it into five smaller continents. Most of the survivors rebuild their cultures on what's left.
    The Westerlands will be heavily based on Europe during 1450-1500. There is a central church with lots of power over kings and nobles, an Inquisition that enforces a ban on magic (though some mages can work for the church under strict regulation). The church is pretty racist, banning most non-humans from their lands or just downright hunting them down and kill them, blaming them for most 'sins', plagues, etc.
    Humans still have non-human relations though, and alot of non-human culture is inbedded in human society. Noble houses talk in elven (much like french in our world), dwarven cannons and warfare are popular among the human kingdoms,...
    Human nations are mostly kingdoms or free-cities, with noble houses ruling over them. All these nations are located on the East of the continent. The lands in the West are mostly unexplored and inhabited by tribes of different races.

    Thats the lore for now. Here are some "sketches" and wips.

    This is the first Westerlands map I made. I was going for a graphical, clean style, (but changed my mind later on)... I totally changed my mind after I saw SchwarzKreuz' Arden and Ramah's maps though.

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Untitled drawing.png 
Views:	1264 
Size:	946.2 KB 
ID:	52533


    What the Westerlands needed was size and dept. I expanded the map by a great deal and started redesigning a lot of the continent, adding more lands to the West, ready to be explored by the players. The names on the sketch need to be changed though. Elven lands will have a French ring to it, Dwarven lands will be more German and human lands will sound Dutch or English. (ps, those are not rivers)

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	scan0003.jpg 
Views:	369 
Size:	764.2 KB 
ID:	52534


    This is a big project and I'll be working on this for a long time. I think the next thing I'll post is a to do list. I'll keep you guys posted and i hope you'll enjoy my creative journey through my own, unexplored continent.

    Comments and Critique is very welcome, as always!

    Sander
    Last edited by sreynders; 02-28-2013 at 09:10 AM.

  2. #2
    Guild Expert Eilathen's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2007
    Location
    Kurald Liosan
    Posts
    1,334

    Default

    I really dig the black and white sketch you have. Very much looking forward to the development of this map. And keep the history coming. As a fellow rpg-er, i am always interested in details about the worlds we see.

    P.S.: Why are the dwarves always german? I don't get it...

    P.S.S: Sorry but
    Quote Originally Posted by sreynders View Post
    .. SchwarzKrauz' Arden ..
    *LOL*

    (is that a subconcious typo because SK is german?! *g*)

    I'm trapped in Darkness,
    Still I reach out for the Stars

  3. #3
    Guild Novice Facebook Connected sreynders's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    Belgium
    Posts
    23

    Default

    damnit D: now I sound like a racist! Totally my mistake.

    @Eilathen, dwarves are always vikings! *edit* scottish vikings! *edit*

    thanks for showing interest! I'll keep you posted!
    Last edited by sreynders; 02-28-2013 at 07:35 AM.

  4. #4
    Guild Adept Naeddyr's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Finland
    Posts
    300

    Default

    Good start, looking forward to more.

  5. #5
    Guild Novice Facebook Connected sreynders's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    Belgium
    Posts
    23

    Default

    Hey folks,
    Here's a new update for the Westerlands. I've been working on digitalizing the alphashape of the continent. There seems to be something wrong with it but i cant really put my finger on it. Maybe its because it looks so damn empty at the moment.
    C&C very welcome!

    Click image for larger version. 

Name:	westerlands.PNG 
Views:	206 
Size:	377.5 KB 
ID:	52550

  6. #6
    Administrator Facebook Connected Diamond's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Stafford, VA, USA
    Posts
    7,454

    Default

    Hey, sreynders, always nice to see another fanatic world-builder.

    For your latest map, I don't think anything's wrong with it per se; it may just be, like you say, that it's empty right now. The only idea I can offer is that the irregularities of the coastline may be too regular, if you see what I mean. I happen to like it, though.

    I wanted to add also that the idea of having human noble houses speak elvish or some other 'elder' language is a GREAT idea and one I don't think I've seen done before. It really makes sense when you think about it though; of course the new, 'younger' races are going to want to emulate to some degree the older races.

  7. #7
    Guild Journeyer
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    France, near Lyon
    Posts
    100

    Default

    Hi,

    Yes, maybe digitalization smoothed the coastline ? With a bit of distortion, you could make them look more like your first sketch, where coastline seems more realistic in my opinion.

    Nice start !

  8. #8
    Community Leader Guild Sponsor - Max -'s Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    France
    Posts
    4,220

    Default

    I wouldn't smooth the coasline but better sharpen it because at the moment it seems to have too "round" shapes on the line itself which doesn't make it so credible.

  9. #9
    Guild Journeyer Eld's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    Germany
    Posts
    112

    Default

    I think a problem could be that it's the same type of coast everywhere.
    The type at your map is the one with many small bays and little, not too sharp pieces of land sticking out into the ocean.

    I just found a satellite photo of Europe at File:Europe satellite orthographic.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

    There you could find the zigzag-type at Greece and elsewhere at the Mediterranean Sea, but at the Atlantic coasts you also find the type of long, calm lines.

    I'd suppose you could create some changes between those styles on your map which could help to make it look more naturally.

    And, as Diamond said, the zigzag-type is too regular. Though I'm curious how the work goes on... although I don't see, why the dwarves need to speak a German-like language. (we are no vikings, at best some German tribes with a piece of romanisation)

  10. #10
    Guild Expert Facebook Connected vorropohaiah's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2010
    Location
    Malta
    Posts
    1,425

    Default

    I agree with Eld - it seems too uniform. I'd randomize/add more islands to the part in the lower right (which I quite like) and maybe add some small islands here & there. also the undulations in the coast (what i think others might be refering to as zig-zag) are too uniform. For instance, look at the bay of biscay on a european map - its relatively featureless and almost unrealistically straight. contrast that with the islands of the aegean or the western adriatic. different areas, even quite close to one another tend to be radically different.

    So just try to break up the uniformity of the coast a bit - some straighter areas, peninsulas, archipelagos, isthmuses and other features.

Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •