Excellent ! I love the way you did the forests. It reminds me of some excellent Hârn maps. And this dragon resting in the middle of the mountains is a delight.
It took some time, but at long last my map of the Margravate of Greifshold is finished. I sketched the map with pencil and proceeded to inking the line art with 0.05mm and 0.45mm tip Micro Pens. This was then scanned and colorised using Photoshop. Here is the link to the WIP thread that contains more information on the creation process:
The map is part of a campaign setting that I work on at the moment (both for my blog and Patreon). A short introductory snipped follows, but in the end I wrote more than 7000 words on the general history of the region and major locations.
Feel free to ask me any questions about the creation process, should you have some.
First off some close-ups:
Naturally there is a version with labels (actually two, one with the names the people of Greifshold use, one with the names the native tribes use to refer to places. However, I included a "landscape" version below, to show of the actual art.
"The Margravate of Greifshold, an introduction penned by Regis of Werta, intrepid traveler.
We call the forest to the north “The Cradle” or “Wiegalant” in the tongue of the native tribes. The northeastern forest is called the Wyrmwood and the northwestern part Black Quill Forest.The forest extends further to the west as far as the eye can see. No one I spoke to set foot in those parts.
Three rivers divide the forest, two of which are arms of the Aharot, the principal river of these lands. It flows north to south past the remains of an ancient temple and unites with the sea west to Greifshold, the only major settlement on this continent. The Herza flows east to west and splits from the Aharot at Starspire, an observatory built on a large hill surrounded by Yew trees. The Jarsamig flows north to east and passes the Balding Hills and the small fishing village Breka before it unites with the sea.
The Wyrmblood Range forms the northern limits of the forest, yet its foothills extend deep southwards and form a stretch of hills just north of Greifshold. The city itself is in part build on a gentle hill. They are called The Balding Hills, due to the sparse growth on most of them. I have it on good authority that iron ore was found in these hills and they may as well reveal precious stones in time. The northern parts of the Wyrmblood Range are not well travelled and should be avoided in winter.
What lies beyond the Wyrmblood Range is for the most part unknown."
the-margravate-of-greifshold-area-map-low-res.jpg
Oh my! Just look at all those lovely trees. And they are all individually such a pretty colour!
Everything is really pretty.
I'm thinking that providing the dragon is friendly I might like to live there
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Nice work! I like the autumnal colours you've used, and your border is gorgeous. I love the characters you've included like the toadstool and the rather angry looking tree!
Can't rep at the moment, but this really is a lovely map.
"We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams"
Really gorgeous map! The forest is so well done.
The border, dragon, the characters, crest and castle are all beautiful touches and pull the map together in a wonderful way.
The only critique I would have would be that the dragon could use a bit more linework detail on it's side, but that is very very minor.
Beautiful job!
Thank you guys, glad you like the map.
@Josiah VE: I thought about it and given it is all digital I could still add some scales to its body similar to the serpent. That said I imagined the dragon to be more like a Wyrm (to fit the setting). I imagine a wyrm to be snake like, so at least at a distance more sleek. Maybe some subtle texturing is the answer.
Beautiful map. The forest is really mesmerizing with all those colours.
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Wow! The black and white version was full of promise and you can say that you kept these promises with the colors!
Such work on these forests!
Very good idea too not to use plain colors for the dragon and the giant mushroom : they blend into the landscape and the map gains coherence.
I also find the border very successful ... Bravo
That was well worth the wait - it's flippin' awesome. So many nifty details, but nothing looks shoehorned in or out of place. Straight into my inspiration folder you go! And have some rep.
This is an amzing map D&B! Very colorful, both in style and in spirit! I love this one! (: