Kraken Bay

[Tom]

Hello folks,
I want to share with you this project, I "almost" completed it, but I'll show you some screen of the process until now.
Several months ago I received a commission that originated this map:

Long Valley Region (color).jpgLong Valley Region Map.jpg

The client was happy, but that map feel incomplete to me so I decide to reuse part of the lineart to realize another map:

Long Valley Region (bw).jpg

I felt inspired from a board game and a book that I was reading (Blood Rage boardgame and "The Crystal Shard" by R.A. Salvatore) to create a nordic setting involving a sea and land, with viking vibes.

After few attempts I came up with this (it's not the early version, I didn't saved it so this is the final lineart step)
My initial thoughts was to call it "Harlakan Bay", no reasons, just liked the sound , but I think that those bay branches look like arms of a giant octopus, so "Kraken Bay" feels more cool.
I'm still open to suggestions though..

Harlakan bay bw.jpg

I choose a cold palette, with low saturation for base colors and came up with this. I decided to ignore light direction (so no shadow on mountains and stuff) to give a "foggy" feeling
Harlakan bay.jpg
But was too dark, so I brightened things up and added some snow effect
Harlakan bay 2.jpg

Original size is 36x24 inches so plenty of space for details.
Now I'm still in the process of adding lots of tiny icons for villages, monsters and such..

[Arimel]

This looks amazing (and that is said before it has fully loaded). I really like how your marshes and glacier have turned out. I can't wait to see the finished-finished version!

[MistyBeee]

I love the super traditional feeling on this map, and you rendered perfectly the sense of cold, frozen biomes. Really cool !

[Diamond]

Wow, that is... fantastic. You really do an excellent job making colors convey climate. Can't wait to see the finished product.

[Bogie]

Looks fantastic!

[XCali]

Ach! Can't rep you again so soon. Anyway, loved the map! And I appreciate seeing your WIP for it. This is really a cool map, great color choice. I do think a darker version can couple as a night version going forward?

A job well done

[Tom]

Thank you guys! I really appreciate!
Here comes the towns and the firs monsters!

krakenbaytowns.jpg

The lone "parchment" label in the sea is an experiment, is cool but I'm afraid that on land would be too covering..

[XCali]

This... what can I say. It's such an effective style with so much possibilities. I adore the towns.

[Arimel]

This looks good. That cave in the mountains is amazing - something straight from a nightmare!

and while I like the banner, it would cover way too much for be used for more than major location.

[Tom]

And here are the monsters, let's see if you spot them all!
krakenbaymonsters.jpg