Steampunk Archipelago

[caribbeancasa]

Hello All,

Long time lurker, first time poster.

I've tentatively completed the map for my upcoming weekly steampunk rpg, Clockwork Dominion.

It's based off of the Fibonacci Sequence, otherwise known as the Golden Ratio.

The world is known as the Spiral Archipelago and I have attached both a labeled and unlabeled version.

I would appreciate any feedback, critical or otherwise, from the valued members of this community.

I'd like to thank all of the members of this wonderful website for providing me with inspiration and guidance throughout this endeavor. The map wouldn't look anything like this without the tutorials and maps provided by countless posters.

Thanks in advance for any comments, criticisms, or random thoughts you happen to leave.

P.S. the airship in the labeled version is not my creation. I found it on the Internet and assumed it was acceptable to include since it's for personal use. Please correct me if I'm wrong!


Regards,
Scott

[Klaus van der Kroft]

Welcome to the guild, Caribbeancasa!

I like the map; the unusual geography gives it a unique flavour, and so do the names. Very nice work adding variety to the islands while keeping in with the climate ranges.

Four things I'd comment:

-I notice this archipielago seems to cover an entire planet, or at least hemisphere, judging by the scale (I'm eyeballing the map at around 18.000kms north-to-south, perhaps?). These are some huge islands (the one containing Greater Nydisa about the size of South America), so much I'm not sure we could call the islands anymore! Not a problem in any case, however.

-The landmasses seem to be hovering above the sea, due to how abrupt the coastal outline ends. Perhaps you could add some shore gradient, waves, or whatnot to make the transition softer and help the land blend with the water.

-The river in north-western Andinna, while technically possible, seems odd considering the way the altitudes are drawn; some of the tributaries start in almost flat land right next to the shore, yet chose to go inland for quite a stretch.

-I only see three lakes in Mil Lagos!


Other than that, I really like the map. Very creative and compelling.

[caribbeancasa]

Welcome to the guild, Caribbeancasa!

I like the map; the unusual geography gives it a unique flavour, and so do the names. Very nice work adding variety to the islands while keeping in with the climate ranges.

Four things I'd comment:

-I notice this archipielago seems to cover an entire planet, or at least hemisphere, judging by the scale (I'm eyeballing the map at around 18.000kms north-to-south, perhaps?). These are some huge islands (the one containing Greater Nydisa about the size of South America), so much I'm not sure we could call the islands anymore! Not a problem in any case, however.

-The landmasses seem to be hovering above the sea, due to how abrupt the coastal outline ends. Perhaps you could add some shore gradient, waves, or whatnot to make the transition softer and help the land blend with the water.

-The river in north-western Andinna, while technically possible, seems odd considering the way the altitudes are drawn; some of the tributaries start in almost flat land right next to the shore, yet chose to go inland for quite a stretch.

-I only see three lakes in Mil Lagos!


Other than that, I really like the map. Very creative and compelling.

Hi Klaus,

First off, thank you for taking the time to critique my work. It was most appreciated. I also appreciate your kind words regarding the creativity of the design and the naming of the countries and bodies of water.

In regard to your critiques...

1. I wanted to use the Fibonacci Sequence for the size of the planet. So I used 168.1 nautical leagues per inch. It makes for a very large world (much like the size of our own) and makes the 'islands' much larger than I originally intended. I think I may keep it that way unless the feedback is overwhelmingly negative.

2. I don't quite see the 'hovering' aspect but that may be a case of me having looked at the map for hundreds of hours and just having grown used to it. I'm going to be very interested in the feedback of others to see if they are mentioning the same thing. If so, I may have to adjust my thinking and take up your suggestions.

3. Not at all happy with the end result of that river. Do you have a suggestion as to which branch/branches should be removed?

4. Mil Lagos is approximately the 500 miles by 500 miles. So the lakes you do see are the 'Great Lakes' but there are innumerable others that dot the landscape of that wondrous land.

Again, thank you for the time you took to critique the work and have a pleasant weekend!


Regards,
Scott

[caribbeancasa]

Hello Fellow Cartographers,

As per a suggestion from Klaus that the original islands looked as if they were floating above the landscape, I added a light dodge effect around all of the land in an attempt to integrate it more seamlessly with the ocean.

Thoughts? Does this second version look better than the first?

Feel free to critique and provide feedback. I'm not an expert and I'm looking for as much input as possible. Thanks!


The Spiral Archipelago_Labeled_Dodge Effect.jpg

[Klaus van der Kroft]

I think it looks much better now; I'd add one more layer of maybe a darker gradient between the actual shore and the dodge effect, to make the transition from the hard line smoother. Perhaps a feather selection with 1 or 2 pixels in grayish black that extends outward.

Looking great!

3. Not at all happy with the end result of that river. Do you have a suggestion as to which branch/branches should be removed?

I would remove the northernmost tributary, the southernmost one (or shorten this one a bit, so that it starts in the mountainous area rather than in the flatlands to the west), and bend the north-eastern tributary so that it begins in the mountains and doesn't approach the norther coast along the lowlands so much.

[foremost]

This is looking like a really good steampunk map. Here are my suggestions with regards to your river problem(s):

1. Remove the connecting tributary. Because water will take the path of least resistance, and there can only be one path of least resistance, it's pretty rare to see a river diverge like that. It's also rather tough for the viewer to ascertain which direction the water is flowing.
2. Shorten or remove the Northernmost tributary. As it is now, it starts right up near the shore where the altitude should be relatively low.
3. Curl the middle branch up towards the mountains. Not necessary, but I think if you did this you'd be going above and beyond, which is nice!

Cool map!

River Problems.png

[caribbeancasa]

I think it looks much better now; I'd add one more layer of maybe a darker gradient between the actual shore and the dodge effect, to make the transition from the hard line smoother. Perhaps a feather selection with 1 or 2 pixels in grayish black that extends outward.

Looking great!



I would remove the northernmost tributary, the southernmost one (or shorten this one a bit, so that it starts in the mountainous area rather than in the flatlands to the west), and bend the north-eastern tributary so that it begins in the mountains and doesn't approach the norther coast along the lowlands so much.

Klaus, Thanks for the tips and feedback. I've played around with the darker gradient but have been unable to find the right balance yet. I'll post when I hit upon the correct color and size. I'm helping my son with a science project but I'll post an update with your and foremost's river suggestions tomorrow.

P.S. Best of luck with your steampunk game. Have you looked at Clockwork Dominion? Very interesting initiative mechanic that keeps everyone engaged at the table. One of my major dislikes with most rpg systems is that after you take your turn you might as well go out and grab a pizza or make a beer run because you know you have at least a half-hour until your next turn. With Clockwork there is a card system that allows you to aid or interrupt at any time. I was lucky enough to meet the designer at a convention here is Northeast Ohio and he ran a session for our gaming group. In any case, I hope your system sees the publication this year and I hope it is wildly successful. I'll keep my eyes out for the English version in the future!

[caribbeancasa]

This is looking like a really good steampunk map. Here are my suggestions with regards to your river problem(s):

1. Remove the connecting tributary. Because water will take the path of least resistance, and there can only be one path of least resistance, it's pretty rare to see a river diverge like that. It's also rather tough for the viewer to ascertain which direction the water is flowing.
2. Shorten or remove the Northernmost tributary. As it is now, it starts right up near the shore where the altitude should be relatively low.
3. Curl the middle branch up towards the mountains. Not necessary, but I think if you did this you'd be going above and beyond, which is nice!

Cool map!

River Problems.png

Hi Foremost,

First off, thanks for taking the time to comment. I appreciate your feedback and your kind words regarding the map design.

That being said, I'm not sure I'm completely understanding your feedback even with the awesome cutout that you provided. It's not you, it's me as I didn't get much sleep last night. At least that's the excuse I'm going to use.

Here's what I think you meant. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

1. Remove the connecting tributary, by which you mean the small river that connects the central branch and the southern branch because it duplicates the flow that is already happening when those main branches connect miles to the west in a larger sense.
2. Remove or shorten the northern tributary, because unless there are hills or mountains along the northern coast, the river wouldn't magically stop just short of the sea.
3. Curl the central branch so that it originates in the mountains. This one confuses me a little because if you look closely, that branch does go into the northern-most spur of the mountain chain. Would it be more realistic to have it bend to the south like you suggested? I'm all for it if it makes the map more realistic.

Thanks again for your compliments. I look forward to hearing back from you if time allows.


Regards,
Scott

[foremost]

Hi Scott, I'm not sure how clear I was with my critiques, but I think you understood them quite well regardless.

Rivers *do* diverge in some cases, but it's really quite rare, as the land has to be very flat for that to happen. Furthermore, rivers that diverge usually connect back up after a few hundred feet (a scale that would be too small to depict upon your map).

With regards to the central branch, I think it would look more realistic if the end of it was kept further away from the coast. If the river is choosing to travel hundreds of miles over the land rather than only a few (by diverting itself North from the mountains), then that means you have some really steep land near the coast. It would have to go up from the river and then back down to sea-level. Not impossible, but perhaps not your intention. Rather than make the river shorter, I would start it back further in the heart of the mountains.

Hopefully that made more sense, though I get the feeling it didn't!

[caribbeancasa]

Hopefully that made more sense, though I get the feeling it didn't!

Hi Foremost,

Actually it made perfect sense. Especially after a good night of sleep.

I've implemented the changes you and Klaus suggested for the river running through the Country of Adinna. Thanks to the both of you for taking the time.

If you get a moment to send some feedback it would be most appreciated.


Regards,
Scott