But I also think these high quality maps can be alienating. Maps like this add to the overall value of that product and give a high sense of polish and quality. Furthermore the decision to produce such maps makes financial sense when you consider D&D is a marketable product. There is also a nice degree of detail that populates the page with enough interest but ultimately the map remains functional and uncluttered. Below, to the left is an original map from In Search of the Unkown adventure by Mike Carr from 1978, whilst on the right is a modern map in the old style by Kristian Richards (2018) of .uk.Ĭragmaw Hideout, Lost Mines of Phandelver (2014)Ĭompared to the early style maps, the Cragmaw Hideout gives you a sense of height and environment, the colours are deep and enticing. They were simple yet beautifully complex.
After a year of game play and having been very MAP heavy at the start, then experiencing a non mapped campaign I’ve landed somewhere in the middle, and I thought for this post I would explore the concept of maps within TTRPG’s, focusing predominantly on Dungeons & Dragons ( becausethat’s what I know and play), and hopefully come up with a few guidelines on when to deploy a map in a campaign.Īs far as I can tell maps have accompanied D&D games for a long time. Somepeople find maps invaluable, others a distraction or a nuseance. Sometimes the shortest distance is not the most direct route! I cannot tell you how many times Adam and I have bickered over directions. In reality they can be very useful for getting around or on occasion quite the oppisite. They are an artistic display with their own language of strange and mysterious symbols. They tell the tale of the land: how geography, the weather, and we have changed it. In the most obvious sense, maps are like stories.
My fascination began as a child, staring at an Atlas or an Ordanance Survey map, trying to imagine what I would see if I were there or I would loose myself in fantasy maps such as those in the Hobbit & the Lord of the Rings and imagining my own adventures. As mentioned in my previous post, I’m a big fan of maps.
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