Ninevia--a highly realistic conworld!

[Robulous]

That's fascinating, I also like to do the physics for my world of Helevos which is small than earth but with a superdense core and strong magnetic field. I'd not heard of Clima-Sim, I'll give it a go.

What did you use to render it as a globe?

[Peter Toth]

Hello Robulous,

GIMP was used to render the equirectangular projection as a globe. I believe it's under Filter, then Render, then Sphere Designer.

I look forward to seeing Helevos.

Peter

[Peter Toth]

Hi Khaalis,

I've actually never done any commission work but would seriously consider doing so; just let me know what exactly you'd like me to create for you.

When I've completely refined my process, I will very likely publish a tutorial about it right here on the Guild. Right now, however, I'm still experimenting with a few elements so this tutorial probably won't appear anytime soon.

The map you've provided is a good start; if this is an equirectangular projection of the entire world, then I'd create some realistic distortion especially on the northern shores of the left continent. This can be accomplished by using the "Polar Coordinates" view on GIMP or Photoshop. Like some other users, I create two sections of the map--northern hemisphere and southern--then I convert them to Polar Coordinates. This new view allows me to pretty much "draw on the top of the sphere" where you might have ice caps or even a polar continent. When you're done "drawing on the top of the sphere," you can convert back to Equirectangular; the distortion will then look realistic.

I always start a map by defining the physical characteristics of the planet, like mass, radius, gravity, age, and then the attributes of the planet's sun. This will allow me to see how my planet will compare to the Earth. For instance, the gravity allows me to calculate the maximum mountain height; the age (also considering mass) can be used to determine relative tectionics (like the speed of the plates) compared to Earth, etc.

Next, I define the planet's tectonic plates, usually beginning with a supercontinent which has fragmented into two or more continents. I use the GIMP Script-Fu add-on called "Tectonique" to realistically place each tectonic plate, painstakingly modifying the plate boundaries based on the "relative motion," which can be easily calculated with the Script-Fu. You can look this up right on the Guild; there is a tutorial for how to set up your tectionic plates realistically.

After the plates are done, I define the coasts based on where the continental crust is located (which was determined in the last step, tectonic plates). I try to emulate a real Earth map in this process for increased realism. Sometimes you'll have jagged coasts; other times the coasts will be smooth.

Next I define mountains, and again there are several tutorials on the Guild regarding how to create realistic mountains. I always overlay my "created mountains" with a random hill texture (Difference Clouds in GIMP) to get a realistic look. The random texture will also allow me to carve out natural-looking lakes.

I then process each continent separately with Wilbur (only because I'm working on a dinosaur computer). I erode the mountains and hills; I use the Incise Flow to generate rivers; I then carve out some lakes.

I then assemble the world map with each finished continent piece in GIMP, then apply a "Gradient Map," which Arsheesh has explained in his tutorial; just search the Guild. This will generate three layers of map: a Temperate, a Desert, and a Polar. All you’ll have to do is use the masking feature in GIMP to paint the deserts and polar regions onto your temperate map. (When I do this, I’ll want to refer to the “Climate Cookbook” to correctly place your biomes.)

Indeed creating a world takes many dozen hours, but in the end your patience will be rewarded. If you need any clarification about any of my instructions, if you have any questions of your own, or if you're interested in a commission map drawn for you, just give me a personal message.

Happy conworlding!

Peter