Actually... now that I look at it, perhaps this would make more sense?
god-map_alt_lowres.jpg
Doing a little bit of worldbuilding here...
god-map_lowres.jpg
starting-out.png
My plan is to map out the tectonic plates and do a bunch of other layers with things that might be interesting.
I'm grateful for all feedback
Actually... now that I look at it, perhaps this would make more sense?
god-map_alt_lowres.jpg
Can't really speak for which version makes more sense, but both look cool! Love the continent shapes.
Thanks!
I think I like the second one because it does not have the "dark" continent in the middle. I've been thinking a bit about perspectives when making maps, i.e. it is the maker that decides what goes on it and where it goes. In this one, I'm thinking that it is a person/culture who is not so prone to conflict with the people of the Dark Continent that they are not putting it in the centre.
I've also been considering how to fill in the continents and what style I want it to be in. But for now I will make it simple and just map out where the mountains and lakes go, etc. So, I'm starting with basic topography (trying to keep some tectonic movement in mind...)
god-map_alt_lowres.jpg
Your style is lovely; I really like the layout and yeah, something about the second version just feels 'right'.
I've been wanting to do something similar to this, to get an overworld idea of design going forward. This is wonderful inspiration!
I usually begin with mountains and hills, then on to rivers and swamps flowing out before I finalize the coastlines. Forests and the placement of cities is my last step before I think about depth of detail. Scale of perspective is a key factor, so nailing that down first would be a solid foundation.
I'm fond of your style as well, it has a softness that I can't quite explain. It's nice.
IR
I like all the thought you're putting into it.
I base the scale of details off of the size of the mountains. The smaller the average size of the mountain, the further out the perspective, thus the smaller the surrounding details will be. It's just my way of keeping scale in order. It may be something that is outdated, that used to be a means to keep myself from wandering off scale. Regardless, I like to set a precedent for the scale at which I'm about to draw, and that's what I meant by that.
IR