Ancient Empires: 222 BC

[Cernel]

@Name You are a natural.:face_blowing_a_kiss:

[Cernel]

@Name I strongly suggest avoiding any cases of crossed borders, like Jasi, Iapodes F/mines, Andizetes, Mazaei H. Most times you are presented with such element, you have the doubt whether you are seeing a very small border or no border. In this case, one might wonder if there is a very small border connecting Japodes F/mines with Andizetes.

My suggestion, never having crossed borders except maybe if two of them are sea-to land. That is becoming even more confusing to read in the moment any borders are rivers, or anyways not single pixels, or such (and, regardless, they tend to become confusing once you do relief tiles, typically).

Especially to give more possibilities when it comes to details drawing, I also suggest avoiding small borders (as they might, then, look like crossed borders, with some relief on it).

[Name]

@Cernel I've been told of this already, I just failed to notice in this case, thanks for pointing it out.

[Hepps]

@Name Looks incredible!!! I guess I should start preparing for a relief "How To..."

[Name]

@Hepps Everything but borders is in other layer(s), at least for now until I deside for sure. Or do you mean extra details, ideas etc?

[Name]

Wip Dacia and neighbourhood, center-north part of the map:

[Hepps]

@Name said in Ancient Empires: 222 BC:

@Hepps Everything but borders is in other layer(s), at least for now until I deside for sure. Or do you mean extra details, ideas etc?

I was just being funny... when your ready, and if you want some pointers for adding some pizaz to the map, just let me know.

[Hepps]

@Name Quick question... are mountains meant to be impassable territories?

[Name]

@Hepps The ones you can see here, yes, representing high mountains/peaks. But there will also be a mountain territory effect, preventing blitz and buffing some unit types and garrisons.

[Hepps]

@Name I have to say I am genuinely and completely impressed with the level of detail and your total commitment to adding a sense of realism!

[Name]

@Hepps Thanks:) Not that I'm deeply satisfied. The research and polish on this can never end, if I want to claim realism. Anyway, here's the Alps WIP, probably the hardest part (so far).

[Hepps]

@Name Still map maker porn to me!

[Hepps]

@Name I am glad to see you are adding comparable detail to the entire map and bringing a greater parity to territory size when compared to Greece across the map. Well done.

[Name]

@Hepps It makes more sense from almost any perspective this way, I was just trying to skip extensive map and XML work with the excuse that tribal areas won't have many players anyway.

[Hepps]

@Name I agree with your decision to "hunker down" and make the extra effort to add the detail that makes the most sense.

[Hepps]

@Name After reassembling the pieces it looks even hotter. Looks like you are about 30% there.

[Frostion]

Ancient Empires seem like a serious map project with a real good chance to become a playable game Yay! I think this is a rare thing to happen. Most map making seems to start and end during the conception / idea phase.

@Name I hope you are just as insistent and perfectionistic when it comes to all the other different aspects of the map as you have been in regards to drawing borders. If so this can become a real nice map

How do you end up handling the big rivers? Was there to be a few bridges along rivers? Where will crossings be set? At places good for the gameplay or places that could be considered realistic and/or historical?

How big pixel-wise is your working image? I mean do you work with a drawing that you most shrink down at some point or are you drawing it 100% sized to "what you see is what you get" ingame?

[Name]

@Frostion Thanks, I also hope I'll finish it and it will be enjoyable. I think I'll be even more focused on other parts, such map detail only got into the plan due to advice by people here (and after some mapping "accidents" due to ignorance).

The map is 22400 x 9400 and ment to be played best at about 55-70% zoom (what you've seen is at 100%). I'm a bit concerned now that I'm adding high terriotory density almost everywhere. Could it lag in game, could it take too long to finish a game? Victory conditions could help with the later I guess. For sure now it's also going to take quite a while for the XML.

I used mostly @Hepps mapping method, but making it easier on myself. I cropped a strategy game map to the region I wanted and scaled it up x5. Did the coastline black lines "by hand"(with pencil tool), smoothing the effects of scaling up. Then I used a fitting rivers/lakes map, region map and heightmap, saving time over google maps copy-paste (as per @Hepps advice). It might contain some minor innacuracies this way, but the ancient landscape wouldn't be exactly the same as today's anyway. Drew borders, rivers, mountains etc (again pencil tool), using the extra maps as layers/guidance, while researching each region I wasn't too familiar with for tribe names and estimated locations. Mostly wikipedia and it's maps, as it already was a quite massive task to go deeper.

Rivers were chosen for being too important to ignore or being suitable as borders (so not always the larger rivers or tributaries were chosen). For now I have them in a different layer. It might stay as a relief, with rivers being just some of the borders. Else once/if the map is ready and good enough I could make them territories and spam @redrum to implement penalties for attacking over rivers. Not sure yet

@Hepps I'm also done with Gauls and the southern Germanic tribes between Gaul and Dacia. Will upload pics later. I'd say maybe 40% of the map done now.

[Hepps]

@Name said in Ancient Empires: 222 BC:

@Hepps I'm also done with Gauls and the southern Germanic tribes between Gaul and Dacia. Will upload pics later. I'd say maybe 40% of the map done now.

Looking forward to seeing the progress. Enjoying very much watching your creative process.

[Name]

North of the Alps

North Gaul

South Gaul

Edit: Forgot Italy