Today I didn’t finish my map in my break. Firstly because I plan for it to be rather large, and secondly because I’m learning new techniques.

This is a map for a megadungeon in my Mutant Future game. I’m trying to simulate here the kind of visitor floorplan you see in hospitals or universities. I did search around on the net as Carl Nash suggested and didn’t find any plans online I liked, so I decided to go for it. Here’s the first three floors.

Mutant Future Megadungeon

Continue reading…

Comments: 1 comment

Tags: Cartography, Map, Mutant Future, World Building

Continuing the series focusing on what it’s possible for a busy GM to get done in very little time.

Today a bit of a cheat, this is actually a lunchbreak job rather than a coffee break.

A well spent lunch time

Time saving photoshop tips in this map are the repeating patterns used all over the map. There’s a pattern for painting the forest, and the majority of the buildings, as well as the swamp. Other buildings are drawn with the thick line technique I mentioned earlier. The roads, walls and mountains are just drawn with a round brush.

Comments: Leave a comment

Tags: Cartography, Hand-drawn, Map, Photoshop Tips

Sometimes as a busy GM, I need a map in next to no time at all. I also require that they look nice, especially if they are going to be handed to my players. Anything that increases my players sense of verisimilitude is a bonus.

To that end I’m practicing knocking out maps and handouts quickly in what’s become the Coffeebreak Cartography Challenge!

Here’s another coffee break map. Finished in just under 15 minutes.

The interesting photoshop technique here is the buildings. To quickly draw simple buildings like those above, use the line tool set to a decent thickness. Then simply drag out the rectangles in the direction you need. Very quick for filling out a whole swathe of buildings.

Comments: Leave a comment

Tags: Cartography, Fantasy, Map

Hi my name is Iain and I’m a mapaholic. Or should that be cartographaholic?

I like drawing maps, both with paper and pen, and digital tools. To that end I’ve decided to publish a series of maps, all done in a coffee break.

I can’t promise one a day, that would be foolish, but I’ll try for one from time to time.

Here’s one for today, as a quick test I’ve been attempting to replicate a hand-drawn style in Photoshop.

It’s rather reminiscent of the style of maps I would draw in class at school, 25 years ago. There’s a definite Tolkein influence at work.

There’s really no digital shortcuts involved, to replicate this hand drawn style I’ve  hand-draw it with a stylus. Once it’s done certain elements could be reused, a mountain here, a hill there. Certainly if I was to include forest elements then they could be repeated with a pattern.

Comments: 2 comments

Tags: Cartography, Fantasy, Hand-drawn, Map