WIP - Sekai

[kkmo]

Hello,

I posted this earlier, but for some reason it didn't go through? Anyway, I hope I'm not double-posting!

I am new to computer mapping, and I'd love some tips on this map. I am making it for a forum game. It is a fantasy region called Sekai. I think it is helpful to post the process, so I will attach 3 images to show my process so far. I had the most trouble getting the forests to merge seamlessly with the mountains, and the mountains to merge into the lowlands, and so on. Maybe I was successful?

I would like tips. And I have some questions...

1. Is it "natural" for the coniferous forests to blend into the deciduous like they do in the northern area? Does this happen in the real world? Sorry - kind of a stupid question.

2. Is the blur around the landforms too much?

3. What are your thoughts on the mountainous parts of the sea, blending out from the coast? I can easily get rid of those. I haven't decided yet!

Any other advice you could give me would be much appreciated.

[rdanhenry]

Mountains don't generally go all the way down to the sea as frequently shown here, except islands. Not saying it can't happen, just saying it's not usual and unless you intend that all the mountains are freshly made and erosion hasn't had time to work its magic, I'd pull at least most of them back a bit.

This is a fairly nice pseudo-Europe-plus-Mediterranean map. Other than the mountain issue, the only other thing that bothers me is those three lakes near the Aiakal Forest. Well, not the bottom one so much, because it has mountains in the way, but there's no visible reason that the top two don't have outflows to that eastern sea.

Oh, as for the actual questions you asked: Yes, deciduous and coniferous trees can grow together. This is "mixed" forest. Your ocean shows depth in a way that is informative without being distracting (more detail can be good if you plan on submarine action, but not really important for almost all surface activity). However, the mountains-into-the-sea thing is problematic not for the look, but because erosion would generally fill that in and create a lower coastal area between the mountains and the sea. I don't see any excessive blur.

Some may tell you your colors are too bright. That's a matter of taste, and they probably favor either satellite photo style or historical mapping style. I like the vivid colors, and its a very natural choice for this type of map.