Veil Vale - an experiment

[Gamerprinter]

I liked how the exterior map in my October challenge turned out, especially the bevel terrain elevations on the hill. So I thought I'd experiment with this technique in Xara further.

The following is supposed to be a vale of three waterfalls, though only two are in view on this map. The elevation is not defined so a GM could say its 10 feet, 20 feet or 50 feet between each. This is a fairly deep canyon.

Every "stack" of terrain, I applied a different ground texture just to help define each elevation level another experiment.

You will notice a path to the right of the bottom waterfall. There is supposed to be an oracles cave under the second falls, haven't developed that yet.

Heavy on graphics again, probably good for VTT though. I'm having fun with this. Oh the waterfalls are stacked objects both with transparency, one with a fractal cloud filter, the other with a fractal plasma filter.

Thoughts?

[ravells]

I like it. It has a very individual style to it, and the bevels / stacks really add depth to the picture. It almost looks like it's been built in real life to place miniatures on - i.e. it looks like a miniature model rather than a realistic depiction which I think works better for VTT type games as the map is very clear, so lines of sight etc would be easier to establish.

Good one!

[Valarian]

It almost looks like it's been built in real life to place miniatures on - i.e. it looks like a miniature model rather than a realistic depiction which I think works better for VTT type games as the map is very clear, so lines of sight etc would be easier to establish.

I like it too, and under 1Mb, it's the right sort of size for a VTT. I agree with Ravells. The picture looks like a minature model diorama rather than a photorealistic view. The grass texture even looks like the felt you use on physical models. It's ideal. Very nice work, when does the map pack come out?

[RobA]

Interesting technique!

It gives the image a very distinctive look.

-Rob A>

[Joshua_101]

Using the different textures for each level of terrain was a fantastic idea.

I think by incorporating more shadows you could really give deeper parts of the vale a more 3D look with greater depth. Maybe even place some trees next to a "drop off" and give the shadow a "stepped" look to provide some reference perspective.

[helium3]

Nice looking map. It's essentially how you'd build a three-d terrain using sheets of cardboard cut to represent different levels of elevation.

I gather that VTT stands for virtual terrain tile, but what are VTT's used for?

[Valarian]

The coast road encounter map in action using Fantasy Grounds and a few skirmish symbols knocked up in Campaign Cartographer (still a little rough around the edges with the transparency layer).

[ravells]

Heh....that looks really cool, Valarian!

[Gamerprinter]

I like the mixture of maps in that screenshot, giving you a peek in to the larger world, to keep the party fully understanding where and what they are doing at the time.

And as I said, above, whether its a river gorge or a hillside stream the graphics work in Veil Vale - a nice advantage for a single terrain map design!

Thanks guys!