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The Cartographers’ Guild is a forum created by and for map makers and aficionados, a place where every aspect of cartography can be admired, examined, learned, and discussed. Our membership consists of professional designers and artists, hobbyists, and amateurs—all are welcome to join and participate in the quest for cartographic skill and knowledge.
Although we specialize in maps of fictional realms, as commonly used in both novels and games (both tabletop and role-playing), many Guild members are also proficient in historical and contemporary maps. Likewise, we specialize in computer-assisted cartography (such as with GIMP, Adobe apps, Campaign Cartographer, Dundjinni, etc.), although many members here also have interest in maps drafted by hand.
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I think astronomy/astrology could make for some interesting play augmentation, if a player, as with a deity, chooses to believe in it. Depending on their world location, and influences assigned to neighboring worlds, one could assign bonuses or penalties for a number of things But beyond that, knowing where each body is located is kinda essential to navigation. I mean, if one wants to nerd out about it. I just joined The Piazza forum, so this is probably a better suited discussion for there i imagine. Star maps are quite interesting, though idk how the stars are explained in the construct of a relatively small sphere are they suns in other spheres, visible through the wall?
@Boozehound Blue: There is a problem with your account at The Piazza. I've sent you an email via this forum. I've also laid out the welcome mat for you.
We have a guy, over at The Piazza (who I met on Facebook) who is trying to make a computer game that does the sort of thing that Pirates of Realmspace did. So I know the right sort of talent is around. But you need to make the data, as well as the program. And if you are going to allow people to move the camera through space (or should I say Wildspace) you need to have maps of the planet surfaces for close up views, as well as a map of the stars, to wrap onto the inside of a sphere. We have pretty good numbers for all three of the original crystal spheres in the AD&D Adventures in Space boxed set. SJR2, SJR6 and SJR7 add some more objects (and some of these are not given accurate positions). And other SJ products don't even give a proper size or shape of worlds, let alone give their positions. So I think the fans need to work together to build up the data.
Greetings. I've been running a Spelljammer game using the Pathfinder rules, and was looking for maps or other props I could hand out to my players. Some of the stuff on here is amazing! Great job!
Oops. Sorry for the delay NichodemusReborn. If you want handouts for Spelljammer, try the official website: Spelljammer: Beyond the Moons, or the world's largest Spelljammer community at The Piazza forums.
Hi: I am new to cartography, and indeed new to software such as GIMP 2.8. That said, the notion of crystal spheres sounds very interesting because I have recently been giving thought to how to create such a sphere. Hopefully I will pick up a few tips and be able to contribute in turn.
Just joined the group, I am looking at uploading various named shipcards. I see there are quite a few Spelljammer Deckplans already created for the group. I'm not sure that the ship cards are the best fit for this site. But there is a deckplan map associated with each. I also started designing a simple Dwarven Citadel map, perhaps I'll post it here at some point. Lots of projects. Glad to see the group of Spelljammer enthusiasts!
