Hi there, and thanks already!

[smail]

Having never made a proper map before (I've done some sketches but that's about it), but having a fair bit of experience with GIMP with making textures, I'm really amazed at what I've managed to do so far, entirely in thanks to this forum. I combined random tutorials with general tinkering in the past 3 days or so, and came up with something that looks fairly decent, though it's still a fair way from completion. This map is based on a set of drawings from roughly a year ago for a game world that's now nearing the stages of completion; someone asked for a map that was easier to understand and I figured I'd try my best to help with it.

As you can probably see it's not finished and is still overlaid with sketches and all. (Currently I'm having trouble trying to draw the marshland on the east side of the island, but I'll just keep fiddling with it until it looks acceptable. )

regmapsm.jpg

I just thought I'd say thanks to everyone who posts up maps, or tutorials, or anything that gets people into this kind of thing. <3

[arsheesh]

Hi there Smail, welcome to the Guild! You're map is coming along nicely so far. Can't really help you on the swamp-lands, as I haven't really attempted these in the style you are going for. You should post it up in its own WIP page though as you will probably be able to receive more feedback for it there.

Cheers,
-Arsheesh

[Gidde]

Welcome! Marshland is always tough. There's a whole thread about it recently in the How Do I??? section I believe. Check it out and see if it helps

[jbgibson]

Welcome, Smail. I'll add my two cents to a suggestion you post your map in a WIP thread - it'll garner more views and more comments with which to learn. Kudos for sticking a map right in your first post - that's genuine participation and contribution right from the launch, and is appreciated. Not to mention which it's a creditable start at a nice style.

To go ahead and comment here rather than in the eventual (?) WIP :-) ... a difficulty with getting a good marsh look here is you're using an aerial photorealistic look. Symbology is a nice shortcut to understanding, but that would clash. How big's your island? Is the marsh there just because it's a bit of coast that happens to only be six inches above mean sea level? Or in addition are there streams feeding it from inland? Having streams wander into an area and meander and thread and pool and get lost and turn up as ponds and squishy expanses of mucky water is a way to say "marsh here!", if you can pull all that off in your photoreal style. If it's the former, well, your coastal depiction seems to say 'surf on steep shore' all the way 'round the island. A nice 'can hardly tell its' land or sea' marsh might plausibly have further shallows stretching waay out to sea, hence the look of your *offshore* could contribute to the impression formed of what's going on barely ashore.

You're doing the surf thing well, by the way.

As an additional selfish request I'd ask you to please post this initial map and the in-progress versions right on the site - that way six years from now when you've forgotten us because you're all successful and stuff :-) the reference material will still be there. 'Cause six years down the road I *will* still be short on marsh technique, and I *will* need to revisit this and other threads :-).

[smail]

Right, I'll make a WIP thread when I find out where to do it. *Whistles innocently, browses the rest of the forum...* EDIT: Done, yay!

The island's quite small, though my scale is still slightly messed up - something I hope to sort out for any future maps, really! Thanks for the comments already, I really didn't know what to expect but it's so nice to find a forum like this.