Novel vs rpg

[Elterio Delgard]

Hello everyone!

This is my third thread in this forum, and like the two others I just want to learn and share with all of you on a general subject. This time: do you make a map for a fantasy novel the same way you do a map for a D&D? I am asking because I never did some D&D, though some friends of mine asked me several times to make a map or two. In general I think there are not many différences. What are your thoughts on the subject?

[ladiestorm]

Well, I would think it would depend on what type of map they are asking you to make. When you are making a map for a novel, it's the story that drives the map... The locations where events in the story take place. If an epic battle takes place on the Great Plains of Gildahar, you would probably show that on you map, if you are mapping for a novel, because it's those details that make a map interesting to the reader.

When you make a map for D&D ( or any other game) it's the campaign that drives the map. This is similar because there is still a story involved, but it's not the same. For one thing, for a novel map you mapping the area in which the story takes place. In a map for a game, you are mapping any where your players might go, which may cover a bigger area. In a campaign map, you want hints to what may be going on, but not complete details, because a big part of the fun in a game is discovering the details of what's going on. There's a bit of mystery involved. You want to leave clues...not reveal everything.

[Janden]

Good question. I will start with RPG maps. The idea is you're making a map of a setting you want your audience (the players) to immerse themselves in. You plan for different areas to be exciting and full of adventure. Think of a sandbox game. I'll use Fallout. The map is one of my favorite things, I know I can explore it and it will be awesome. Same thing with an RPG. You want to put enough stuff there that's intriguing, but you may also have a particular campaign planned out, so you can nudge the players in a specific direction (you only have adventures planned for these two towns for now, so you need to make sure the players go there). You can essentially just fill the rest of the map in with plans to make adventures there later.

Same thing with a novel.

But with a novel, the whole campaign is figured out. Beyond the story, the audience doesn't get to go to places on the map that aren't mentioned. So that makes your job easier, as a novelist. If you're doing a series, definitely throw in some locations that seem enticing, ones you can visit later on in subsequent stories.

[Elterio Delgard]

Mmmmm... Well, I believe that another difference is how you describe some elements you put on your map.
For example, ruins. In my novel, I have alot of ruins, but they do not hold artefacts so to speak (unless we have the archæological definition) but only broken remains of the past that hold nothing of value if not mossy stones and so on. I do have some ruins that hold magical otems though, but they are really rare. In rpg worlds, often abandonned structures or settlements or ruined towers are places where you find treasures so more than simply being a leftover from the past ruins are like a gold hunt.