Orobis / Style Test

[Diamond]

I'm not sure how much of the WIP I'll be posting (since lately I tend to make a map in two or three marathon sessions instead of bits and pieces, and that doesn't lend itself well to showing WIP stages), but I wanted to get some feedback on which ocean color scheme you folks like better. At first I really loved the dark one, but the lighter one has grown on me to the point that I'm almost 100% leaning that way now. What do you think? One concern I do have for the light one is that labels may not look as nice on it - on the dark one, some aged ivory colored text would really look cool.

OLOOv1.jpgOLOOv2.jpg

edit: I should note that these are 25% of full size.

[ChaosTheory]

I think it depends on what you're going for. Is the map mainly for display, or will people actually use it as a map? If it's for display, the lighter one looks more like an old map, which is a good thing when you're making a fantasy map. If you need people to actually read labels and use the map as a map, I would go with the darker one.

[Azélor]

Definitely, the second one is more consistent. The contrast is too great on the first one IMO.

[Malicious-Monkey]

They both look good, but I'm not too keen on the white outlines in the dark one. They're a bit hard and bright, maybe a little diffusion would help? The light map is very pleasing to look at but I can see the concern about reading the labels. The islands and lakes are very easy to distinguish at least, especially in the light map because it doesn't have the glowing edges.

[Chick]

Is there a middle ground?

[Larb]

I prefer the second one. I think the dark blue of the first one is just too dark.

[Pixie]

Definitely the lighter ocean.

The one with the dark ocean has a truly digital feel to both the color and the white linework. It doesn't fit the aged look of the canvas or the style you are choosing for the border.

[Eilathen]

Aaaand we're back to awesome landshapes

As to your question: I definitely prefer the light-color version. Just fits better and is more pleasant on the eyes (imho and ymmv etc. ).

Looking forward to the end result.

[ChickPea]

I'll echo the votes for the lighter colour. It simply blends together better, and I say that as someone who likes strongly contrasting colours. The difference in the first map is just a bit too stark, IMO.

[Jayharchitect]

Lighter vote! (But like others have said, if it is for computer screen / video then the first might be better)