June 2021 Challenge: The Tower of Woven Words

[wminish]

Hi Everyone

For the challenge this month I thought it would be a great opportunity to map the Tower of Woven Words, a location from my DnD campaign that I ran a few years back. The players never ended up visiting there so I didn't get around to mapping the structure. It is a map that I've been meaning to make but I had been putting it off while I tried to figure out a good way to map such a complex structure.

The tower is home to a conclave of Gnome wizards and it exists across many realms and crossing between them is as simple as moving between rooms, the structure is really just a massive collection of magic portals seamlessly integrated into the architecture of the building. The central element of this structure is a tower called the Presidium which is comprised of an atrium with stairs, walkways, and hundreds of doors packed closely together. The Presidium itself exists in all the realms the tower spans while not really residing in any one in particular. The doors off the Presidium open out into rooms that span all the realms that the tower inhabits. Walking along a landing for example you might pass a door to the material realm, then one to the Feywild, and finally a door to Limbo (the home realm of the tower).

Here is what I have so far anyway.

### Latest WIP ###
progress1.jpg

[Adfor]

The idea is quite elaborate, your work is always fun to watch unfold. You've been hitting the maps hard recently!

IR

[Bogie]

Very cool! It reminds me a little of a map I made when I was just starting. It was based on a D&D adventure supplement called Tales of the Outer Planes. It revolves around an inn that has dozens of doors that open all over the outer planes. It was called The World Serpent Inn.

[wminish]

The idea is quite elaborate, your work is always fun to watch unfold. You've been hitting the maps hard recently!

IR

Thanks Adfor, I have been having a really good time with mapping recently. I've been working out the watercolours and doing a bunch of smaller pieces at A5 size. It's been a little while since I've done an A4 piece so it'll be nice to be able to include a higher level of detail.

Very cool! It reminds me a little of a map I made when I was just starting. It was based on a D&D adventure supplement called Tales of the Outer Planes. It revolves around an inn that has dozens of doors that open all over the outer planes. It was called The World Serpent Inn.

That sounds like a really cool location. DnD adventures can definitely provide some great inspiration for maps.

I've made a bunch more progress over the last few days anyway. I'm still debating how I'm going to do the border for this one but I have a few ideas so we'll see.

### Latest WIP ###
progress2.jpg

[Adfor]

Thanks Adfor, I have been having a really good time with mapping recently. I've been working out the watercolours and doing a bunch of smaller pieces at A5 size. It's been a little while since I've done an A4 piece so it'll be nice to be able to include a higher level of detail.

A lot of the time I do my mapping when I'm in the mood for it. Also I'm ADHD, so focus is always an issue, and small projects have been a better bet for me recently.

I've taken a lot of inspiration from your rough sketching over the course of project to project. My pre-ink sketching is far too time consuming, I want to speed it up, and maybe easing up on the depth of pencil detail will give more power to the pen.

IR

PS It's a beautiful structure so far.

[Diamond]

This is a pretty ambitious piece; already looking cool.

[wminish]

I've made a bunch more progress on the pencil plan and started the inking in. Here is the current version.

### Latest WIP ###
progress3.jpg

[MistyBeee]

Such a promising concept, full of details !

[Paritegic]

Oh the border looks super cool! Alongside all the details, and a really great map design, this looks great!!

[wminish]

I've gotten a bunch more of the inking done, here is the latest update.

### Latest WIP ###
progress4.jpg