Elyden map

[Chashio]

That history is intriguing.

Unrelated question... What's your computer have for guts that lets it so easily work on huge image files (I reread your first post and nearly choked on my coffee at " 4 x 6' ")?

[Klaus van der Kroft]

Oh my, oh my, oh my!

I don't know how I missed checking this map. I'm simultaneously awe-struck, beffudled, gobsmacked, and decombobulated by your work. Truly fantastical.

I'd rep you twice, but the system doesn't let me.

Well done, good sir, well done.

[vorropohaiah]

Unrelated question... What's your computer have for guts that lets it so easily work on huge image files (I reread your first post and nearly choked on my coffee at " 4 x 6' ")?

funny... i never said it lets me work easily! in fact its a simple HP compaq presario CQ61 laptop that has close to 0 graphics card (anything to do with 3D it has to render in software. crashes are common when i do this) however i've been able to up the RAM to 8gb (best I could manage at the moment) which has been a huge help with PS. the original incarnation of the map was in PSB format due to the size bust load/save times were excruciatingly slow (upwards of 15 mins and im not joking) so i managed to change size and res and tend to merge layers as soon as possible to decrease size (though that has its own setbacks). other than that i have no problems, other than applying large filters and effects to the entire canvas. I also have a dedicated drive of 50 gb for scratch disks, which speeds things up (unless i fill them up...)

the size of the new map (See latest wip pic for the one im on about) is 41" x 61" at 300 dpi. id normally be working at something like 100 - 150 but this is intended for print so i have to work at 300 dpi. that makes a huge difference too

[Chashio]

Ouch. I rescind easily. You put up with much more than I could. I bow to your patience. Forty One by Sixty One feet?! Are you printing it on a rug?

[vorropohaiah]

my bad. " and ' keys are inverted on my keyboard i keep on getting them mixed up... 41" x 61" :p

wow, id love to see a pc that can cope with 41' x 61' lol

[Chashio]

Oh, okay. Haha! I know how that is. I have a keyboard that mashes together the shift and up arrow keys. I'd love to figure out a way to reprogram it. Not likely.

[vorropohaiah]

Gah! my tablet pen broke today halfway through working on the map. i tried changing the nib, but nothing (though the buttons and the eraser end still work) So i ordered a new one. I cant justify ordering a new tablet (upgrade!) as I just this last week got an android tablet (asus transformer 300 to anyone interested - love it!), so i dont want to spurge on too much at the same time. a replacement pen will do for now...



Anywho, attached is the slow progress on the map. a few more regions are mapped out and a rough test on subtle texture (fibres and embossed render > clouds). I also started applying the new mountains to it (open the attachment for better vies of the mountains), though i shant be carrying on until i receive the new pen as work on a laptop with no mouse and just cant use a scrollpad to work on PS (its slow enough as it is!) I doubt the colour/texture will remain the same, though it's a start. on another note, anyone interested in the nations can take a look at this table (regions amrked in bold have finished histories. welll, as finished as they can be in an evolving world...):

• Aethios: aiklah (humanoids with feather-like growths on their heads, backs and arms) ruins. A central mountain with radiating rivers. Still bare-bones, needs a lot of work.
• Ahrishen: done, though needs some updating. the region is a buffer-zone between west and east, with western crusades and religious propoganda being a constant threat throughout the Korachani empire's dominance.
• Alam Bethyl: some cities and areas have names, but little else. i have a very cold celtic-like theme in mind for this place with wooden demon-masks used by leaders - shamanistic sorcerers.
• Almagest: has a pretty detailed history though its a very old version that needs to be changed. its since become an independant entity (no longer part of Korachan) and the eponymous city - once a steampunky dystopian place of 8,000,000 bodies) has been toned down in size and scope and is now quite different; suffering after a devastating plague left the main city largely empty - its voluminous ruins haunted by degenrates, freaks and the broken survivors of the plague.
• Anubia: a vast desert region with little true backstory yet, though its few oasis cities are enticing and i look forward to detailing them.
• Aquariia: little more than the name exists for this region, and the name is likely to change slightly by the time i get round to it (though i do like it, particularly the double-i at the end)
• Arkos: the most-recently detailed region, spanning 4 consecutive cultures of which Arkos is the latest, this region is fresh and needs little additions for now. A nobility that is descended from the first crude imperial vat-born clones (adonis-like figures, with hairless alabaster skin) they now indulge in incest to keep their biology untainted. the region recently fragmented.
• Artalscelli: Like Hoamm, this region is an offshoot of Korachan and a recent addition to the world. history is largely complete though needs updating to reflect the Sundering of Korachan into 2-states in 3075 RM, which i only recently devised.
• Azazem: i just need to collate the many bullet-points and snippets of history and expand them into a full history. Azazem was once a fertile region, and provided much of the foodstuff for the empire, though centuries of soil mismanagement and climate change (including lowering sea-levels) has left the place (like much of the world) devastated; little more than a wasteland, though it has since adapted to the changes, being the chief producer of dross - a reconstituted meaty pulp thats made from all sorts of stuff you'd rather not know about, including human flesh (oops...).
• Ba'ath: Suma'ya was once a part of Ba'ath, though i only recently divided the two. both are complete, history-wise - ba'ath has a history of penumbral corruption and culturally, hates it, giving rise to a caste of Set (sorcerers) that use the penumbra to understand it and ultimately defeat it. a gross generalisation, of course, but thats the gist of it.
• the Broken Lands: a series of cliffy-islands resulting from a cataclysmic devastation in Khamid in 101 RM, this region has little history following that point, so it will be interesting to create the various disparate cultures that evolved from the common ancestor (Khamid) and to see how they diverged since that time.
• Cyhlagharr: oghur (ogre) lands. lots of cyclo/hydrocephaly (if youre squamish, dont look those words up). looking forward to fleshing this place out!
• Erebeth: just a name for now!
• Gatha: a frontier city-state, attracting many half-bloods (the scions of otherworlders [angels and demons] and mortals). the place is a melting-pot of cultures and beliefs, colourful, chaotic and largely lawless. one of my favourite cities.
• the Growing Mountains (Mulciber): 30+ disparate tribes of 'barbarians'. most are little more than a name. a handful have a vague clichéd character that needs expanding. this will take a while to get done, though luckily their histories are localised.
• the Hareshk: 8 closely-tied nations with roots in the genepools of many different ancient peoples, this will be time-consuming but interesting place to expand on. i have little other than recent events and spattering of ancient history (initial settlement and colonisation etc) though have a strong feeling of white-marble/byzantine/angelic-motifs. as good a-start as any.
• Hoamm: a relatively-recent addition to the world, this was a natural offshoot of Korachan. once used as a prison-island, it was largely forgotten with the meteoric rise of the Korachani empire and became its own entity. history needs slight updating to bring it in line with the new Sundered empire i recently (foolishly) devised.
• Hololach: just a name, for now.
• J'Thana: i recently tore this region away from N'rach and made it its own place. originally it was a part of N'rach (calling them spider-men is doing them a great disservice. think this picture - they were once a pure mortal race, though were penumbrally-corrupted), the only region of that entire nation to treat humans as little more than slaves, where a mercantile caste rose. it eventually overthrew the aanth overlords, whose roles are now reversed.
• Juras: i have very little done here, other than links with Korachan and Parthis.
• Karakhas: once-barbarians, though still blood-moon worshipping 'tribal' culture, lots of riots under Korachani rule. I have lots of tidbits ready for this region and with the scattered encyclopaedia entries i have ready I have the basis for a strong history of rebellion and martial pride and blood sacrifices.
• Kaspia: with a name that isnt even visible on the map yet, there is little history created from here, other than a harsh angelic sovereign-deity and lammashtu-motifs.
• Ketesh: the epicurean city. thats it, but I do like my sodom/gomorrah cities
• Khamid: this is a leftover form an older world (Sola) i had devised. I ported it over to the Elyden setting though it needs polishing and retrofitting into the new world. vague ancient middle-eastern influcences, a magical dynastic history that is now little mroe than a bitter memory.
• Khitai: little more than a name, this region is harsh; the north made up of jagged mountains and the south largely an iron (rust) wasteland. it is home to the abyssal templars. will be fun learning what this region brings to my world.
• Khuraur: once part of Karakhas though since-sundered. thats all i have.
• Kolchis: (aka the grey forest). now Kolchis (and Alam Bethyl, for that matter) are on the 70th parallel, i might have to reduce the forestyness of the place that i had envisioned - a creepy celtic/shamanistic vibe. certainly not good guys. obviously a harsh place to live. perhaps some geothermal vents to make climate a bit more manageable?
• Korachan: the less i think about this place the better... the timeline of this nations also includes the timelines of those nations its subjugated or conquered over its 4-millenia existence... other than that i know more about Korachan than most other regions yet-to-be detailed. the home of technarcana, biomechana and the dark sorcery known as penumbrism.
• Laaskha: a decent timeline and history exists for here but for the time being its just bullet-points and snippets in various encyclopaedic entries.
• Lidea: Next on the list to receive the history treatment. still not sure where to take this place, though i know the ancient history so ill just move from there and piece the tidbits of history i have to that.
• Lyridia: ruled by a sybilline prophetess who serves nine-catatonic mummified abulia (whose collective dreams feed her visions), this is a sparsely-populated region with two distinct culture-centres - its limestone and mudbrick towns centered around the region of Iblis, and troglodytic tribes that populate caves around the Lythi mountains who worship the sybil and her augurs as deities.
• Lyridia Dhai: needs little updating
• Mharokk: perhaps a name change is in order, though i still like the moroccan influence (stucco walls, domes, vaulted markets, hot climate, rich myth). thats about all i have so far, but a decent start.
• Naareth: an interesting region - matriarchal society where men are little more than second-class citizens; workers and a 'lucky' few are sex-slaves to the monstrous breeding Maphrians (think corpulent hags whose sole purpose is to birth new slaves; the task such a strain on the body that its enhanced with grotesque technarcana.) this femme-centric culture has lots of tidbits of history that I've yet to evolve into a full history.
• Nakhe: the oriental place - a clichéd pastiche of Japanese, Thai and Chinese culture and myth, this needs a big update, though there's little written about it yet. a strong honour'code, patriarchic dynastic reigns and a spiritual (if not esoteric) link with nature are things id like to base this region around.
• Narthel: the first nation to receive the updated history treatment, Narthels history is exhaustive and goes back to the previous age and 'forced' me to elaborate on the extinct cultures of this area -something ive done with all other regions to get the full history works since. i do enjoy this, but its time-consuming.
• N'rach: the spider-man place (which are really called aanth). penumbral mutants stabilised into a 'race', of sorts. they breed and capture disfigured human slaves. once-envisioned as a true nation, theyre now little more than degenerate savages, with a couple of 'cities' (gossamer fortresses built over expansive birthing pits) serving as anchors for them on the map. the rest of this region is penumbral wasteland.
• New Pelasgos: brand new place. 0-history. likely needs a new name too
• Ophiussa: much like most of the nations in the west of the map this region is little more than a name and a vague clichéd concept - snakes. much work needs to be done!
• Paraiya: tribal people, 3-different regions, totemic patron-'spirits' which determine their cultures. a rich monarchic history that is now shattered, like teh ebon palace that sits forlorn in the centre of the fallen kingdom. The paraiyans are a shadow of the kingdom that once was (much-like ethiopian empire)
• Parthis (Parthia): lots of history detailed for here but its old and needs a big revision. this is one of my favourate regions and was, at one time (in-world) a rival of Korachan; with technarcane constructs and manufactories to rival those of the empire.
• Pelasgos: one of the earliest places i named so it has quite a few snippets of history though nothing truly unifying or characterising, so ill need to brainstorm some ideas for this region.
• Rhamia: an old imperial colony that was abandoned and became its own nation, having problems with penumbral corruption and 'forest' clans to the north-west. needs little updating.
• Rhinocoloura: massifs, rivers, ancient ruins, a harsh land and dour/stoic people. this is all i have for this region other than a kickass name (at least i think so :p)
• Sabia: not even marked on the map - one of the nations north of Temur. i have lots of cultural tidbits done for this region (and its neighbour Kaspia). but little history - they will be linked.
• Sagittaria: links with Tahab, migration, slaves in exile. Thats about it.
• Saragos: a reltively recent addition to the world - an offshoot of Venthir, following Hetepheres (the sphinx-queen of venthir; last of her kind)'s exiling of technarcanists following her increasing paranoia (she is more machine now, than man, as obi wan kenobi once said). little needs to be changed here (unless the forthcoming Naarethi history makes me...)
• Sarastro: alongside Venthir, one of my favourite nations with a detailed history to match - black-magic-wielding dynasties who loved their slaves and ziggurats; gave way to subjugated people dominated by Sathep the risen (the worlds' only liche). Why is it i like the deserty places so much?)
• Shotha: a new nation i added after coming up with a big civil war in the empire (the artifex wars that left Almagest an independent nation). needs history.
• Siriphagos: started out (in my mind) as a bandit stronghold but evolved over time (in-world and in my head) into a trading powerhouse, forming the hub of trade in this arid region of Elyden - the backbone of the so-called salt-road. other than his it has little history and needs expanding.
• Sour: pirates and traders of the rpoiling sea. Thats about it. needs fleshing out some more, methinks!
• Skaros: a vague timeline and historical outline exists for here, though needs collecting into a coherent format. Its one of the oldest nations to become part of Korachan, thoug hwas sundered following the artifex wars, with its northern lands falling under Almagesti control. the remaining territories became unstable following this time.
• Soleyn Territories: nothing exists here but the name. suggestions? LOL!
• Stolas: creepy emaciated birdmen (think tall gaunt skeletal-looking men with horrid beaky faces, disfigurement and spike-like feathers on their backs and heads and elbows. gross) that worship a totemic remnant of a long-dead demiurge. have a basic outline for this region though no true history. this will be a good one.
• Suma'Ya: i recently created this region, sundering Ba'ath into two - Ba'ath in the north and Suma'ya in the south. both are up-to-date.
• Tahab: i have some broad history done for this nation, but its old (both in-world and in real-life) so it needs updating
• Tarati: a city-state ruled by a 1st generation halfblood around the largest known oasis in Anubia.
• Tartak: horse riders that at some point was subjugated by Kroachan and Parthis.
• Temuja (Temur): interestingly, considering this was the first place i named and the one I've researched the most (heavy mongolian influences) I have very little history created for this region, but lots of cultural character (pretty much the opposite of many other regions). Ill enjoy this one as itll take me back to my first experiences in the world of Elyden. almost 8-years ago now.
• Thrace: allie/vassal of Parthis. oghur wars and lots of hydro/cyclocephaly.
• Tzallrach (Char Mathi): the savannah/lion place (many region names and cultural features here are derived from real-world leonine names, like Aslan).with this now located between the 35 - 25 parallel and in the rainshadow of a mountain, i either need to change the geography to keep the flavour or change the flavour to keep the geography. this region is linked with Venthir so anything i do here will likely impact that regions' history.
• Vaalk: cultural links with Laaskha. all i know is that this is a militocratic culture.
• Varr: a wasted land, its resources exploited by the korachani empire over 1000 years, leaving it a dead place, marked by open-cast mines, empty quarries and dust-filled plains overfarmed to oblivion. as though that were not enough, the bitter maddened Demiurge Vorropohaiah dwells in unending pits of Carceri beneath this area... the history is ready for this region though I've since changed much of the great history of this age (the largest change being the sundering of the Korachani empire into two around 300 years before the present). plus on re-reading I've realised its lacking much of the character i had in mind for this region, so needs more oomph, particularly in the antique ages.
• Venthir: dry, harsh land, though rich from its many slave-worked gold mines. ruled by the crazy sphinx queen, hetepheres the strangler, this is one of my favourite regions, with the most expansive history. i do like me a crazy sphinx-bitch queen.
• Virahan: brand new - a nation splintered from ahrishen some time ago. i know little beyond the time of its fracturing form ahrishen. so what i come up with for here will likely impact neighbouring nations
• Zion (sarastroan Zion): ancient golems whichform the centre of a mystical cult based on mistranslated ancient magical lore, now occupied and subjugated by Sarastro. i like this region and it needs little updating for now.

wow! more places that i realise, come to think of it.

[Jaxilon]

Man that is cool. It's just so massive which is awesome in itself. Great work so far.

[vorropohaiah]

Man that is cool. It's just so massive which is awesome in itself. Great work so far.

thanks so, ive been messing around with colours, trying to come up with as style i like. the psd is far from complete (at the top of my head - need to fix the symbols, do a couple of cartouches, fix any region-names that have been too stretched...) and this was just a mock-up so to speak, though i thought id share it. i dont think ill veer too far off these colours, though will certainly be toning down the grunge and will try look for a higher-res paper texture as this one became rather blurred after scaling it up.

here's a regional 'detailed' pic, with the whole map in the attachment:


Edit: to anyone looking at progress on the mountains, the mountains visible are mostly 50% done - still needing highlights - for a taste of what the finished mountains will likely look like look at the large region in the s-e quarter of the map, surrounding the Anubian desert.

[Chashio]

*s l o w whistle* P r e t t y! 8P

Edit: Ooh, noticed a little something... SW of Tarati, in the Anubian desert... It's difficult to read the city label (Anubis?) that's covered by the projection line. And, out of curiosity, how did you apply the color?