City, regional, and encounter maps for Wayfinder #11

[mearrin69]

Hi all,
Long time, no see! Here are some maps I just completed for Wayfinder #11, a fan-zine for the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game. Here's a link to #10, to which I also contributed, if you're interested in seeing what it's like.

This issue is focused on Cheliax in Pathfinder's home setting. I guess picture Medici Italy with devil worship and Halfling slaves.

The region map is pretty meh but is built using a modified "Ascension Atlas" style. The encounter map is my typical style, though less detailed than normal.

I'm more proud of the city map which is, again, pretty much done in the city map style I've developed over the past few years...no doubt with influence from some of the talented folks around here. If I hadn't pushed completing this one out so late I would have added more "special" buildings and little details (chimneys, hatches and weapons on towers, custom weathering, additional building styles, etc.) It's decent but could be better.

Well. Now that I'm done critiquing myself...enjoy! Hope you like them.
M

[Domino44]

I agree that city map is really fantastic! You should be very proud of it! Your other two maps are really nice as well.

[jtougas]

Hey !! Good to see you Once again the Lord Architect has returned with wonderful city designs. These are great !!

[mearrin69]

Thanks, guys!
M

[gpepper]

Excellent ! I love the render you did on the houses !
How did you do that ?

[mearrin69]

Thanks. These are pretty simple.

They're just a layer with house shapes in a single color (generated by RPG Citymap Generator and cut apart, rotated and moved into place). I turned on a Pattern Overlay style with a woodgrain texture and then Bevel and Emboss until it looks right to me. On top of the houses I have a layer, set to Overlay I think, that has color painted over the tops of some of the houses to give some variation. On top of that is a layer with a grunge texture set on Multiply with a lowish opacity. That gives even more variation.

For shadows I use a copy of the layer in black (I usually just copy the original then Color Overlay in black and flatten it) with a light Gaussian Blur offset (with a blend mode of Multiply usually set at 66%). If I need a longish shadow as I did here I just copy the layer, offset it a bit more, and keep doing that until I get the right shadow length. I'll usually blur each layer a bit more as it gets further from the building. If you do this, merge all of the layers together before setting your layer blend mode.

I usually do things a bit more varied than this method, though this was faster. If I want more detail I'll have multiple layers of buildings, some done as above, some with textured roofs (tile or something else), some in stone. I'll also designate some buildings to be multiple stories and add shadows on the tops of lower buildings. Details like this can really make a map pop.

Here's another city map of the same rough scale as this one but with a mix of buildings: [link]

Here's one taken very close. Lots of detail in roof textures, etc. Took forever, of course: [link]