WIP: Expedition to a Deserted Island

[woopingwooper]

Hey guys,

This is my first map, so it's pretty rough around the edges. It's going to be the regional map for my next Pathfinder campaign, in which the party will act as guards for an expedition to explore an unnamed, deserted (or so they think) island.

Because this is an unexplored island, the map is somewhat empty, lacking any labels other than the basecamp. The island itself, the party will find, is the shell of an ancient, giant creature, a fact I tried to subtly hint at by the spiral pattern of mountains to evoke the image of a nautilus.

I'd love to know what you guys think of the map's composition and art. Does it read well? Do the forests look like forests, the cliffs look like cliffs? What do you think of the pseudo isometric perspective? Could it benefit from more detail, less detail, more color, improved textures along the cliffs or mountains, etc.? Does the map's overall aesthetic feel like that of a mysterious, unknown island, or how would you have achieved that kind of feeling?

Please feel free to speak your mind. From what I've seen, you guys are dang good artists, and I'm here to learn!

Map Final 1.jpg

Looking forward to making maps with y'all!

[Twinkletash]

Hey.
I think that's a great first map and a good concept for your gaming group, too. I really like it.

I am about as experienced as yourself, so will just give feedback on what I see with fresh eyes:
The keyline of your coast is maybe a bit strong compared to the rest around it making it jump out a tad too much?
Also, the interior of your island seems to have large mountains and cliffs, but no foothills. That is probably a little unusual not to have rolling hills leading up to at least some of your mountainous areas?

Hope those observations help fuel some thought!

[woopingwooper]

Thanks for the input and compliments, mate.

Now that you mention it, you're right. Line thickness seems to play an important role in drawing the eye. I wonder if there are guidelines for when to use thicker or thinner lines. Maybe use thicker lines in the foreground and thin with perspective? Or use thick lines on higher elevation surfaces for top-down maps? Hmm...

And yeah, the geology of the island is a horrifying mess! I was more concerned with getting the island sectioned off into areas of elevation and environment so I exaggerated wildly. I'll have to keep that in mind going forward.

[Jayharchitect]

I really like the colors and tone. From your description and the fact that you used an isometric view, you might use shadows to help the map pop... I did this in 5 minutes (without my Wacom) so take it for what it is worth...

Shadow.jpg

[woopingwooper]

Thanks for the input!

I haven't noticed much shadow in isometric maps, but I'll keep that in mind both when making my own maps and studying other peoples. The shading I did on the mountains in this map suggests the light is coming from the NW, so adding shadows to this one would put most of the island in shadow. I do like how your north-pointing shadows look though, perhaps in the future I'll try the light coming from the south.