Continet Map for a Fantasy Novel

[JBGibson0518]

So I'm fairly new around here, and after picking up various techniques and experimenting with various others through trial and error, I've decided to use a technique that meshes slightly realistic coloring and detailed coastlines with sketchy mountains and more fantasy traditional schemes of paper/back ground.

Most of the mountain brushes came from deviant art so credit to: calthyechild, StarRaven, Mawstock, and I-A-Grafix, if anyone recognizes one I may have missed, please let me know.

I've been working on a fantasy story for a long, long time, and I've drawn (by hand) several different designs for this map before finally settling on this one. It's a fairly epic story that will cover thousands of years from the beginning of time until the end of time. I have a lot of ideas for this map, I'll be adding further detail, islands, names, etc. later on, as well as close ups of regions and alternates including political boundaries.

But, in the mean time, please let me know what you think and any suggestions, criticisms are welcomed.

Telani Top Color.jpg

Thanks a million!
JB

[Gidde]

The style looks cool! You have some rivers doing very improbable things (i.e. running from sea to sea). Take a look at the "How to get your rivers in the right place" sticky in the tutorial forum, it's a wealth of riverine information!

[Paramenides]

This is a very gorgeous map, I love the shape of the landmasses you've got going there. The mountains just seem really... out of place to me though. It might be the color of the mountains that's kind of weird or maybe the way they go into the land or something else, but something seems a little off about them.

[arsheesh]

I like the mountains, but they do seem a little blurry or something around the edges. I like the overall shape of the landmass, and the color pallet and textures you are using. The desert territory in the upper right hand of the continent could, however, be better blended into the surroundings. This is looking very promising though.

Cheers,
-Arsheesh

[JBGibson0518]

Thanks for the feed back everyone! Thank you for the words as to the color scheme and detailing, I work very hard to get the land masses right and it's actually a bit of a piece of pride for me.

As for the rivers, some have a specific purpose to do what they do within the world, but I get what you're saying so I will take a look at that tutorial and make some adjustments.

As for the mountains, I think it may be because of the sketchy nature of them mixed in with the less sketchy details. I saw some tutorials on the forum last night about more realistic mountains, so I'm going to give that a shot.

[cereth]

That color palette is very nice indeed. The landmasses look interesting as well and your attention to detail shows.

[rdanhenry]

As for that box of mountains around Eanti, that's fine as an example of "a wizard(/god/alien/superhero) did it", but it doesn't look at all natural. You can have valleys enclosed or mostly enclosed with mountains, but the angles at which ranges meet are improbable and I just don't see a way that it could form like that.

[JBGibson0518]

Hey everyone,

Thanks for the feed back. I'm working on some of the suggestions here, as well as changing the style I'm using for the mountains.

As for the rivers, I've changed some, but like I said before, some are that way for a reason and influence the story.

For the mountain ranges, primarily Eanti, I am changing the shape of them, and rather than having them make a straight bar across the North, I have the western range now extending up into the north and meeting at the islands, making it look much more like Kilwe was a sub-continent that has collided with the north. Hopefully it'll come across better and I hope to have an update here in the next day or two. Thanks again for all the feed back.

JB

[JBGibson0518]

So, here's an update:

1. I've taken the advice regarding the mountains, especially around Eanti, and tried to make them flow a bit better. I've also changed the style, utilizing the "Rising up the Mountains" tutorial from this site. http://www.cartographersguild.com/sh...s-in-Photoshop
2. I've added some islands and names, small details mind you.
3. I've fixed a few rivers. Some will come later. The main ones that have to remain the way they are (for story purposes).

As a side note, someone remarked that there are some things that appear to be there because a wizard, god, etc., caused them. In my story, the god are very real and have had direct impact, so certain areas of mountains, especially to the west and north of the Telani Sea, and the west and north of the Kori Sea, are that way for a reason. I am still completely open to feedback, however, as well as criticism as to make things as natural as possible.

At some point later, I intend to do more detailed regional maps, so while some things may not make as much sense now, they will with subsequent detailed illustrations.

Again though, all feedback and criticisms are welcomed and very, very much appreciated.

Telani Top Color 2.jpg

Thanks,
JB

[letsgoheat]

Wow that lokos way better than the one you had before. Mountains look cool and the extension of that box mountain range makes it look more realistic.