About a month ago I started my most ambitious project to date, a full Faerűn continent map. It actually goes off into the Hordelands and Far East some too. My original intention was to style it similar to the 3rd edition map, however, to do it in the way I wanted I felt like I'd need a drawing tablet - those details with a mouse would be hard and tedious. So instead, I decided on a more realistic style. Hopefully, by the time I'm done with it I'll have a drawing tablet and I can do another version. The research and location placement is easily the most time consuming and after this first map it'll all be there already for the second map.

This is just a screen capture using Windows snipping tool. That's at 12.5% zoom. The document is 100" x 64"

Capture 1.JPG

After adding the main land areas, it eventually turned to this. All the terrain is done in this one file.

Capture 2.JPG

I then visial clone the terrain map and set it as the background in my second file where I place the locations. So far, everything is holding up okay, though the second map is over over 900 layers & 5b and I'm only 40% done with the locations. So it may take a third map to finish locations and a fourth to place terrain labels. This next map is at 50% zoom.

Capture 3.JPG

Once I'm done with labeling I'll detail the landscape. Who knows when it'll be done but it's a fun project. The research needed though takes forever! Especially with D&D, you have multiple editions so making sure your locations match the right time in history and are canon can take a really long time. This map is based on 3rd edition but uses 4E and 5E lore that would have existed at the 3E point in time.

This is at 100%.

Capture 4.JPG

There are a couple places I have some uncertainty. The first is that I like that the labels are visible zoomed out a bit, however, as you can see, in some places there are a lot of labels and reducing the size might be a good idea. As it is, I have reduced the label aize from normally being 10pt to 9pt in conjested areas. I'm not sure how easy it is to see. If you know to look for it, I know you can see it. Maybe I should just reduce everything to 9 or 8pt? I don't know yet.

Another are the mountains. I produced better mountains in my Trade Sea map though it was destructive and time consuming. So between not having the exact process to copy and the map being huge, I learned a new way. It's okay and it matches the 3E style of most ranges having a single spine, but I find myself wanting more. I'll probably leave them though and save a better mountains for the next one. Anyways! Here's my current project! Enjoy.

-Craig