[ProArtist] Digital Mappack on Kickstarters.

[Schwarzkreuz]

Hi everybody,

For a long time I have though about doing a KS with a pack of generic fantasy themed maps. Others like Chris West and Gustaudes with the Art Kit have proven that this way may be worth a try, especialy for a beginner in the professional area like me. So well my final exams are in December and than a big gab of unsecurity is awaiting me. But I want to use this time to startup some Projects like the mappack, so I could maybe make a small living from it while expanding my portfolio till i can truely knock on the dooors of bigger companies.

I think most of the members of this professional group are not dependent on small comissions ranging between 50 - 150$, well I am broke most time so I did a lot of small jobs for an extra income.
But now I want to make this KS campaign as professional as possible and hope for some advise, from you fellow experienced Members, so I can avoid gravely errors.

My Plan so far is to offer 10 - 20 Maptiles of the size 6x8 Inches, in 300dpi, which will be aligned to maps of 2,4,6 and 8 tiles size. All Regional Sets so it doesnt interferre with West/Gustaudes custumers. Also this Kickstarter shall start Mid November so a break of 2/3 weeks will be between the end of the Art Kit and my own afford. What I want to offer is that the Pledge will include the stitching of the maptiles (seamless connection), Adding seamless paper multiplytexture, adding predefined Borders and map elements as compasses and little boats/seamonsters etc. With the raising of Money, new maptiles will unlock, like a Deadly dessert, Undead swamp, Burning vulcanos , frozen North etc etc etc.
So the maximum of the KS with unlocked all goals would be 120 Maptiles, 500-800 png objects (Houses, creatures, special enviroments, city icons). if they want it to be labelled by me it would be adding 5$ per tile with an average of 20/25 name taggs on a tile, maximum of 40. Each Tile will cost about 5$, for a digitally produce map. About, and if at all, printed versions will be offered, is still in nagotiation with some print companys.

I also did asked some fellow Cartographers, who would like to join in with an own set of Maptiles for this project. The income would split by percent of the ordered maps.

Normal pledges get premade maptiles, highter up pledges will received the construction set, maybe similar use as seen in CC3, top Pledges will order custummade maps as commissions.
Also do I have fully access to a silkscreen printer, Lithographic Workstation, Sylverbaryt Laboratory, Hightquality inkjet printer with measurements of 110cm maximum size 150years color garanty ink on museum-quality archieval Hahnenmühlen handmade Brandpaper. So making quality prints is also possible. If handmade Maps will be wanted, I am buying paper from Fabriano, Europes oldest Paper-Manufatory.

Thats about the quality I have access to. The contentskills is shown in the Forum. If anyone ever want to use such fathilities for whichever reason, I am happy to helpout.

If the Kickstarter runs ok, my output will be 10% of the maximum aims per week. With delivery anouncement for May 2013.

One of my concerns is to kill of small requests if I offer such a pack, which maybe will have an impackt in this area. Also if distribute digitally, pirating and redistribution of the material after the Kickstarter is a sure thing in our digital age.

Also distribution would continue as digital products on RPGNOW after the Kickstarter with a slightly highter Price, for the map tiles only, and PNG packs.

So, with opening all my plans, I just want to ask, do you think this might be a good idea or totall brainbugged delirium?

[Djekspek]

Hi, interesting idea! Important will be to understand if there is a need for these kind of tiles. I've seen kickstarters for maps (with amazing art) not being funded so being succesfull on KS is more than just a good idea and great art (but there's loads of threads on this).

So, here's some of my thoughts ... Note that this is not intended to be negative, just to help you sharpen the mind... As I see it, the main question is who will be interested in regional maptiles. I presume they are intended for use with an RPG? So why would a GM want regional tiles? Note that detailled action takes place on battlemaps, and most GM's create rough/sketchy world/regional maps themselves for reference. I presume this is where the tiles would come in. Will a GM be interested in laying out these tiles (every session again) or rather have a complete reference map to show on the table... But then again a GM doesn't want to reveal a complete map so tiles could work to show only parts of the world...

Sidenote: I see on KS that products with more content (in stead of 'only' maps) tend to get better funding, just saying.

Anyway, good luck with the KS! cheers, DJ

[Schwarzkreuz]

Ah, well. The maps will come if pledged for example 6 tiles in a complete stitchtogether map. So one map done finished.

Yes I saw, that most things that got funded are VTT or Battlemap related. You think that those were better suited due regular usesage?

[Djekspek]

Finished maps may be more suitable indeed. As for regional tiles I honestly don't know, just thinking out aloud. There is many people offering battlemaps, so this may be a gap in the market...

[Schwarzkreuz]

The size and scale of the map shall be that a small campaign should be playable per Tile. They all come in seamlessly connectable to each other, so maybe a generic playgroup can use them. The initial Idea was, that the People choose from a catalog of tiles what they want and I stitch them to a map as large as they want it to be (within the pledge) I am not just sending lots of tiles. Thats for the Constructionset (highter pledge) where peole can get the seperated tiles to stitch them together themself or just print them out in a size they want.

Basicly its 2 versions:
-Buffet map = Take a Map size (1, 2, 4, 6, 8 Tiles), choose the tiles and position, I combine them, choose borders and compass, (nametaggs and icon placement is optional with an extra fee), send to people
-Construction sets = choose the tile sets interesting for you, choose PNG sets with icons and so on, get the bunch to use them as you like. (different pack sizes)

The first is a onetime order of a map,
the second version is for DIY people
Than there is a Third way, to comission a map outside the sets, but using their elements, thats the hightes pledges, get a complete custom map.

I hope this makes more sense now?

[Schwarzkreuz]

In recent discussions, i got the advice to aim with a modular mapset for small press publishers. All those volks who makes small self published adventure settings or selfmade Books for Pathfinder or so on RPG Now and Paizo. Well I try to look more closely into those areas in the next weeks.

[Djekspek]

That may be a good audience indeed. There's a lot of them around and they have limited budgets so prefab maps may work well. Just another question you may think about is whether they would worry if their maps look very similar to those of other publishers... cheers, DJ

[Schwarzkreuz]

Thank you for your input, I still ahve to figure out how to make the definite Idea work out.

[Gamerprinter]

Yeah for a map Kickstarter to work you need to have a 'wanted' product. The problem with regional maps is that most game masters either use a published setting or their world setting, and do not need third party regional maps for the most part. Consider that my recently released Haiku of Horror: Autumn Moon Bath House is a map product of a typical bath house/inn that can be utilized in any oriental setting. My product is selling well, but you have to consider that there are almost no local site maps for oriental locations, compared to a typical inn for a standard 'western' setting, which there are dozens and dozens available. Not that you need to design oriental maps, but you definitely need a specific niche to latch onto, and hopefully one with little competition - this is the best way to achieve some level of success in sales of map products. Regional maps are too specific to an established world, so I think regional maps is a poor choice.