Filling a need for a missing map

[wmtenery]

Yes. It took me an hour and a half to deconstruct the Falcrest map into GIMP brushes and then the remaining three to paint the Harken map over it. Although to be fair, I got to start with a beautiful parchment background, scale and compass that I would have had to spend a long while building on my own. Work I intend to do now for my own world, Arastia.

I am working on my own style brushes for houses and so far in an hour I only have thatched and wooden. I'll publish them here for general use as soon as I finish the set.

Seeing what you guys are doing here only drives me to work harder and publish sooner.

[Gandwarf]

Well, I am really impressed that you could copy the style of a professional map like this and create your own map. And that you did it in a few hours is even more amazing. I wouldn't know where to start!

[Bizelplyx]

I like this map a lot. The only problem I see is the compass direction. The map should be turned 90 degrees to the left for it to be correct. As the King's Road through the forest runs east and west direction, not north and south.

[Merriman Lyon]

Wow! Awesome work! And it really does fill a need - I'm right in the middle of a campaign I wrote as a spacer between the H1 and H2 modules, set primarily in Harkenwold. With your permission, wmtenery, I'd love to use this map in place of the rough piece I threw together.

Bizelplyx, in looking at the master map of the Vale, the King's road is east-west through the forest, however, it runs north-south where it passes through Harkenwold and the forest comes nowhere *near* Harkenwold on that map. I'd be more than willing to accept that wmtenery's map is simply more current/detailed than the master map and shows how the forest has expanded down the road to engulf the town.

[wmtenery]

Removed per later discussion.

[Schley]

To be honest, when I initially read this thread I was livid. As a creative professional I spend quite a lot of time making sure that the work I produce is original and high quality. When the thought occurs that someone would Gimp or Photoshop my work into there own piece, especially when 100% of the new piece comes from my original, I begin smoldering at the ears a bit. It's one thing to be inspired by another artist's work but here I must say that you have crossed a line into the realm of theft. Even though you're not selling the image and you discuss how it was made, it still leaves the impression that the majority of the work is your's when clearly it is not. As a result I must object.

You wouldn't collage another artist painting into a new piece without even touching a canvas with a brush and then claim that it's now your "painting" would you?

Why not create your own map with your own art in the "style" of Fallcrest? I dare say it might take a bit longer than four and a half hours though.

Additionally, if you begin to post Gimp brushes taken directly from my work for distribution then it may be Wizards of the Coast your hearing from instead of me.

I'm not demanding that the map you produced be removed because I believe this thread can serve to educate new artists and cartographers about the topic of infringment. The fact that you posted my Fallcrest map without a copyright or authorship note also bothers me but I'm sure you can fix that with a quick edit.

Mike

[torstan]

Okay, I think that's enough. Unless either of you are copyright lawyers then I would strongly suggest that you refrain from making categorical statements about copyright law.

Mike has stated his dispeasure about the nature of use of his work. Wmtenery has removed the maps in response. Both of you feel that you have copyright law on your side and I am certainly not in a position to make a legal judgement. Nor do I believe it is in anyone's interests to take this to a point where such a ruling would have to be made. I would strongly recommend that any further communication be made in private between the two of you.

If you have any complaints about this, please feel free to pm me with them.