Very first map attempt!

[Azélor]

!

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Good that you have an explaination as of why there is so many rivers in the mediterranean seabed because it would normally be a very dry place with no water flowing from Gibraltar strait.

[Veluux]

Huh. It worked fine for me last night - but yet, now I'm getting that error message now to. Guess we'll try again. I added in the coastal highlights since the last version (the one with the error).

CotFS World Map v2-01.jpg

We'll see if that does the trick. And thanks for following this project Azelor. As a new member it's greatly appreciated! I can use all the feedback I can possibly get, so if you know anyone interested in this style of map, feel free to share it with them. ^.^

As usual - the river lines are just planned, not permanent. If you're wondering what the black lines are for, those are just temporary guidelines for me (the present-day Mediterranean Sealevel).

EDIT: Upon closer inspection after posting it here, I decided to get rid of that noisy glow along the coast - which makes it look much cleaner. So you'll see that change when I post the next update (after I do a few more things today - like adding a planning layer for ground terrain). Ignore that crazy pixelated crap around the bodies of water. I scrapped it.

[Veluux]

Here's a shot with the added border text.

CotFS World Map v2-02.jpg

It was tough to cut up that script and get it all aligned right where it looked halfway decent. I couldn't do it as text (because the script wouldn't copy and paste properly), so I had to screen capture the images, blow them up, then multiply them to hide the white. Then I merged all the pieces and ran a hue/sat adjustment on them to get them to blend in a nice dark teal color. The black script is kind of like the title of the passage - which is why it is bigger and a different color. Then it reads from there, right to left around the border. ^.^ I'm loving this stuff. I'm so addicted to map making!

[ukie]

Beautiful concept if I maybe so bold to suggest the shape dynamic fade for rivers it would make it even more spectacular in my opinion.

[Veluux]

Beautiful concept if I maybe so bold to suggest the shape dynamic fade for rivers it would make it even more spectacular in my opinion.

I am TOTALLY brand new to this whole deal. Do you have a tutorial for that effect you can point me to, or perhaps an example I can see with a few pointers? I'm using photoshop (very familiar with the program - despite never making maps with it before). I'm always up for trying new things - especially bold new things!

[ukie]

I just sent you a PM with the brush description. I hope it works.

[Veluux]

I just sent you a PM with the brush description. I hope it works.

Yep. Got it. I unfortunately don't have a wacom yet, but I will toy around with the settings to see if I can make it work and look good with the mouse. I agree though that the fade looks awesome on rivers. I've seen a few maps where the narrow down slowly to the source and it looks just awesome. I'll attempt to get that look if possible. Thanks for the suggestion!

[Veluux]

Okay so I got the rivers in mostly how I want them. Not sure if I'm loving the texture effect or not - but I really won't be able to tell until I start getting in the terrain details. Here is an update of the map (minus the region text, border accent, and other aesthetic details that will be on the final map). It's mostly just a focused view of the setup for the water network: ocean, sea, lakes, rivers, etc.

CotFS World Map v2-03.jpg

And here is the same view, but with an overlay of a Mediterranean Topographic map - so you can get an idea of how and why I chose my river network:

CotFS World Map v2-04.jpg

Keep in mind that the large inland sea is fed supernaturally from another dimension (an semi-ethereal plain of water high in the atmosphere). Once I start getting mountains and elevations defined I'll better be able to define the river sources (as some of the major rivers coming out of the primary inland sea are spring sourced, rather than overland flowing).

I gave that fade dynamic a try and with a little experimentation I really came to love it! Anyone have advice for mountain brush styles? This map is a large portion of the world - so I'm debating on just using color/texture/lighting, or actually defining mountain ranges symbolically with calligraphic style brushwork that's not actually to scale.

Feedback would be lovely!

[Azélor]

There is a couple of mountain brushes if you search on deviant art or here in the guild. Ramah and Schwarzkreuz among other, did some nice brushes. That is good if you want to add symbols but since you map is already folded you could increase it's intensity where the mountains are. Maybe it would fit better.

A question though, in wich direction does the water flow at Gibraltar? The topography suggest that it flows inland but it might be otherwise. Right now it might be a little confusing, so have you tought of a way to indicate in wich direction the water flow? It might be useful sinci it seems to play an important part in the world.

[Veluux]

I'll have to figure out a way to illustrate which direction it flows in. I may redraw it with a stronger fade. I'm also contemplating having it not actually source all the way out to the ocean, but rather just starting in the valley there.