Hammerstone Commission

[Wingshaw]

This is excellent, Arsheesh. I like that the scale of the area is quite small, as it feels very 'local' and implies that this area is a real tinderbox for the events to come...

Wingshaw

[arsheesh]

Super slick and you can tell they have been enjoying some peaceful times because the lookout towers have forest right up against them. They have a pile of lumber in the field just outside begging to be crafted into siege equipment .

Love the escape route to the river, it's filled with good stuff and that is a great border.

Good eye Jax. Yes, the Orcs and humans of Hammerstone live in fear of attack by the Crimsons, the ruling orc clan of the realm. Hence, all the watchtowers. And yes, that little cave by the river is indeed an escape route from the city.

This is excellent, Arsheesh. I like that the scale of the area is quite small, as it feels very 'local' and implies that this area is a real tinderbox for the events to come...

Wingshaw

Thank you Wingshaw. This was the first piece at this scale that I had worked on, and it was a lot of fun.

[TheRedEpic]

Great work, very detailed and elegant. The borders are cool, I love to see creative borders! I have a small critique, and that would be the color of the water which I feel is a bit too grey. It might be interesting to see what it would look like if you make it darker (except the falls) and bluer. Just my opinion of course.

[arsheesh]

Great work, very detailed and elegant. The borders are cool, I love to see creative borders! I have a small critique, and that would be the color of the water which I feel is a bit too grey. It might be interesting to see what it would look like if you make it darker (except the falls) and bluer. Just my opinion of course.

Sorry for the late reply Jared, my family and I ahve been entertaining out of town guests this weekend. Thanks for the feedback, I'm glad you like the borders. I've always found them a bit of a challenge so I've been devoting more time of late to this particular design element.

Yes, I can see what you mean about the color of the water (and although you say that it is "just" your opinion, the opinion of a cartographer of your caliber is certainly worthy of careful consideration). In fact this was something I went back and forth on myself. I originally started out with a bluer hue. However with this piece I was experimenting more with limiting myself in terms of color palette. I wanted the red within the border to really shine through without too many competing colors to vie for one's attention. In the end I decided that sticking with warmer earthier tones for the rest of the map was the best way to accomplish this. I'm still not sure how well I feel I accomplished this. Your observation is thus welcome feedback, and I appreciate your taking the time to offer it.

Cheers,
-Arsheesh

[Ilanthar]

Splendid work, Arsheesh! The skull, the castle, the frame... Everything is beautifully done and works perfectly together.