A Fractured Future Earth

[Tiana]

A pole shifted future earth with flooding and some new continents risen to form a custom fantasy setting. Setting book designed by my client as well as its two feature cities. It was challenging but I like its result, it's very atmospheric. That's the result of a lot of texture stacking and multiple manipulations of flattened versions of the map. At some point I used a difference layer style. I didn't screen record it so I have no idea if I could repeat what I did to get this atmosphere, and I certainly can't explain it very clearly either. Just lots of fooling around with layers after layers after layers, blurs and blend styles. It evolved a lot because I wanted to capture a very particular feeling the writing gave me, and I don't know if this happens to anyone else, but I perceive the feeling a story gives me as a color/texture in my mindspace.

So I began by making a traditional blue water world, but with purple lines, and I knew early on that didn't have the mystical, dream-like, a storm has just passed, ethereal and yet apocalyptic color unease I wanted. I finally achieved that with the faint hint of peach that breaks into the greens, with the heavier saturation on the rainforest regions and the way the ocean feels 'drowned' to me. I'm very happy with the resultant colors of this map. I find it suitably eerie yet resonant with new life. Yes, I generally do overthink my colors like that.

The client requested just a basic compass and simple legend so I didn't do anything unusual with those.

So yeah, first map of 2020, woo. Though the work was begun in 2019. I like it, so I thought I'd share it here.

[Jaxilon]

Very cool and I do love the colors as well. Incredible vibe captured here.

[Tiana]

Thanks, Jax, glad you enjoy the colors too.

[Adfor]

It certainly has a very dreamy, almost radiated feel about it, I love the result! I don't know that I've ever seen a style like this, if you can ever replicate it, I'd like to see more of this rendering!

[Tiana]

It certainly has a very dreamy, almost radiated feel about it, I love the result! I don't know that I've ever seen a style like this, if you can ever replicate it, I'd like to see more of this rendering!

Thank you. I do at least plan to do other maps with eerie colors, so even if there's never a map exactly like this one, I'm sure I will continue being adventurous with my color choices. I really should make a point of doing non-destructive editing layers... I know HOW to set up non-destructive style/effect edits in Affinity which I do if I'm going to make multiple maps for the same artist, but old habits, you know. It actually started out as blue water with purple lines.