forest battle maps

[GabryelFall]

What's the best way to build forest battle maps... tons of trees seems to make the map too clutterd, but it's not a forest (with difficult "tree walls" on the edges of the actual play area) if there aren't trees. Looking to make "realistic" maps, raster I think is the term?

[anstett]

I think it is a partially a question of scale. If close up view battle map (only showing 25 yards or so) then spacing the trees out in some spots but bunches in others work. If the scale is much bigger than that it feels to me that you lose individual trees and it is more of the clumping effect.

I use Gozzy's for quick close up quick maps. http://www.gozzys.com/ Nice random generator for a quick one off map.

I would prefer to have the trees foliage be a bit more transparent though to give a feeling of height.

BOB

[Gamerprinter]

For my Endless Terrain Battlemaps - Heavy Forest, on an 11 x 17 map tile, I have about six trees on average in the map. While a regional view of the same terrain might show a blanket of trees and no ground, it depends on your point of view. I've been thinking however of creating some forest maps that show the trunks and roots of the trees and not the upper foilage at all, so use between trees could be more apparent.

It depends on your needs.

GP

[Wannabehero]

Something like this GP?

http://www.fantasticmaps.com/Gallery/Battlemaps/AWCTheLeaflessWood.jpg

[Jaxilon]

Hehe, another one of Torstan's. I haven't seen him around here much recently, he must be cooking up something big or else finally fallen into one of those black holes

Course, I should also admit that I haven't been on as much lately. Not because I haven't been thinking about you guys. Summer just sucks a lot of energy out of me.

[Hai-Etlik]

What's the best way to build forest battle maps... tons of trees seems to make the map too cluttered, but it's not a forest (with difficult "tree walls" on the edges of the actual play area) if there aren't trees. Looking to make "realistic" maps, raster I think is the term?

Just what kind of forest? Around here, most of the forest has a fairly thick ground layer of shrubs, and the trees themselves often have low level foliage. The ground also tends to be quite uneven and rocky and there's often a lot of deadfall. It makes for slow movement, poor footing, and poor visibility.

You might also want to consider if you have characters who can fly, super jump, climb rapidly, etc and might need to interact with the upper parts of the trees.