Roadside Camp Site

[Mouse]

I've a different suggestion, though the value of what I say has to be considered against the fact that I've never even played an RPG, and have only ever drawn one battle map intending to draw it (However I have had another three building maps mistaken for battle maps, and the one battle map I did draw deliberately won second prize in a Profantasy Forum battle map competition - the Henge Portal map I recently put up in finished maps)

The colours are good, but there isn't a lot of ground for the players to 'be', if you see what I mean. I've not seen a battle map so covered in tree stuff.

Assuming that you shrink the trees a bit to leave space for players to move around, you might be able to improve their umbrella appearance by adding more texture within the shape of each tree, and reducing the 'burnt edges' appearance. Most trees I've seen on the more striking battle maps there are around the place are far more irregular in shape, and frequently have holes in them that go right down to the ground.

I use trees rendered from Vue, which are very realistic. Sadly I can't lend you any since that would be a breach of the Cornucopia EULA!

[Wired]

I've a different suggestion, though the value of what I say has to be considered against the fact that I've never even played an RPG, and have only ever drawn one battle map intending to draw it (However I have had another three building maps mistaken for battle maps, and the one battle map I did draw deliberately won second prize in a Profantasy Forum battle map competition - the Henge Portal map I recently put up in finished maps)

The colours are good, but there isn't a lot of ground for the players to 'be', if you see what I mean. I've not seen a battle map so covered in tree stuff.

Assuming that you shrink the trees a bit to leave space for players to move around, you might be able to improve their umbrella appearance by adding more texture within the shape of each tree, and reducing the 'burnt edges' appearance. Most trees I've seen on the more striking battle maps there are around the place are far more irregular in shape, and frequently have holes in them that go right down to the ground.

Its really difficult trying to explain what I mean in just words, so you will have to forgive me for sticking a picture in here to show you what I mean.

This is a 1/4 size tree from a set of spring trees I'm working on for my Merelan City map. The resolution is very poor, but that's because I'm nearly out of broadband allowance for the next 5 days (thanks to yet another mammoth Win 10 update!), and this is only an example. What this means is that you can't see the individual leaves, and the transparency around the edges is definitely a bit rubbishy!

Attachment 88566

EDIT: Please also appreciate that this is a spring tree, and only has about half the foliage on it that the summer version will have (when I make it), so the appearance couldn't be more towards the other end of the scale from your own leafy trees if I tried, unless I showed you one of the winter trees!

Hey Mouse, those are valid points and good suggestions all around. I've access to a wider range of Dundjinni-based trees, also in the more irregluar shape that you've suggested. However, I don't want to risk any copyright shenanigans, and I believe hand-painted trees work better with my overall style. Like you I've got basically no experience doing battle/encounter maps, so whatever I've got to say on the issue is based purely on me trying to make an educated guess. So take this response as my way to explain why I've done what I've done.

You're correct in that there's rather little space for the players to move around, but then it is a sheltered camp site in the forest; I'm not sure how to remedy that, or whether it should be changed at all. After all, in part that's the whole point of the map. The "burnt edges" thing is, sadly, necessary in the style I've chosen: each tree is based on four to five layers of leafs drawn by a variable brush. If I don't use the one 1px stroke around the outermost layer, each tree will blurr together with ist neighbor. That's admittedly a nice effect, but I don't get nearly enough contours, if any, to create visibly distinct trees that way. A positive side effect is that I can use the same trees rather effectively for larger maps as well, like village and town maps. At least that's the plan. That being said, you've got a good point regarding the texture; I should be able to work in different shapes by playing with the values and shading/lighting of the different layers of each tree!

Unfortunately, I also cannot make them smaller by any useful degree. It doesn't come across all that well in the examples posted above, so I'll try and upload one with a grid on it later today. The "large" trees are already at best medium sized. For reference, the road is about 11-13 ft wide, and the grid is 1 square inch per 5x5 ft. Not sure how I can make this any smaller without making it even harder for Players to move around.

HOWEVER (and THANK YOU for making me aware of the issue through your post): I could just as well add another image here showing same location inside the forest under the tree tops; like a building map with different levels?

SECONDLY, if you know it, what's the resolution for battle maps for VTT? I've got the feeling that's a not-so-minor point I'd need to know if I were to offer this for VTT.