# Gallery > Cartographers Choice >  Haibianr - by mearrin69

## Gandwarf

*Map* (Click to enlarge)




*Created in:* Photoshop

*Review*

Haibianr is a Hong Kong-like city that serves as the introduction to an Asian-themed campaign setting that guild member mearrin69 is building. The first version of the map was handdrawn. Then mearrin69 tried out several different styles, ultimately leading to the map that we can enjoy today. It turned out great. The city looks convincing and the map is very pleasing to the eye. Take extra note of the beautiful compass!

mearrin69 says:On the mountainous north-eastern coast of the worlds largest continent perches a bustling trading port  a cosmopolitan city of twisting streets protected by ancient magic and modern might. Over the nearly two thousand years since its founding, Haibianr has evolved into a powerful independent city-state. Its masters pay no tribute to the feuding Five Emperors that rule the southlands, wielding Haibianrs near-monopoly over trade with the rest of the world as a cudgel that guarantees freedom from Imperial dominion.
*Original Thread*
To go to the original thread click here.

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## Coyotemax

*applause*

Well deserved!  keep up the fabulous work!

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## Gandwarf

Don't forget to rep me... eh the creator  :Razz:

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## Ramah

Good stuff. I was really hoping this would get to be featured.

Congrats Mearrin, well deserved.  :Smile:

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## Gidde

Congrats!! Well deserved, and a beautiful map.

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## mearrin69

Wow. Thanks guys. It's totally an honor to have my map featured alongside so many beautiful works of...

[Kanye]Yo M, I'm really happy for you and I'm 'a let you finish, but ...[/Kanye]

 :Smile:  Seriously, though, there are so many great maps on this forum every day and I'm learning something new from every one I study. Looking forward to continuing my education. 
M

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## Sapiento

Congrats. Well deserved. A pleasure to look at this map.

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## Aenigma

Sweeeeeeet  :Shocked:  :Very Happy:  
Congratulations on a very fine map!

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## Steel General

Very nice, and well-deserved.

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## Djekspek

Aye, awesome map. I really like the colorbalance and layout. gratz!

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## Tom_Cardin

That is very very nice. I like the subdued colors and overall mood this map creates for me.

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## illustranaut

Great job! really love the feel of it.

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## Immolate

Very pleasing style you've invented!

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## oddball

Nice painted map, but unrealistic.

A small town in an estuary that has to be able to be defended against invaders (you have a city wall with towers!) should AT LEAST have recognized the central Island in the estuary mouth : a FORTRESS (and governor seat) should have been built there.

On the right bank there is a HIGH PEAK.  That screams for another fortification.

Real life examples ? : Havanna(Cuba)  and Cartagena (Colombia).


(( read the history about the british attacks on these cities ))


Why does the left bank town have no roads inland (to the terraces?) to farmland and logging ?
The right bank (much smaller) does have these roads..funny.

Where are the farmlands (even based on rice paddies you need more surface to feed the town) ?

Why so many jetties ? 
and no shipwright/repair yard ?

And what about waste (dumped in river/streams: discolouring ... and/or burned in open fields).

The right peak has a small little house on top ? doing what ?

Very closeby a stream starts..where does the water come from ? Snow? Gleischer?

That stream runs down very fast , but it makes a hard turn to the left.. instead of breaking through to the bigger river.
That's unnatural.

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## mearrin69

Appreciate your comments. My backstory explains some of your concerns...might have to look in the original WIP thread for that. Looking forward to seeing your maps. With your knowledge of city design I'm sure you'll fit right in here.
M

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## Vorhees

Wow This is the first i have seen this map and i love it 

in reflection of issues that some people have with maps - remember fantasy world not real world 

I write my own worlds all the time.  i have many worlds on the go and they some times reflect in no way the real world if there was a Wizards tower in that map would any one say hay you would never see that there that's unrealistic?

GREAT MAP - KEEP IT UP



i may use this map in my next campaign  :Smile: 

And consider your self reped

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## mearrin69

Thanks, Vorhees. Much appreciated. Please feel free to use this for your campaign. I'm working on some encounter maps and such for the same world. Hopefully I'll get a chance to finish the rest of these over the next couple of months.
M

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## Locution

Well I personally love this map. It can be easy to over analyse fantasy settings and find the unrealistic bits (I have agonized over the realism of my own campaign settings to no end), but there is a point where you just have to say "hey, is it really that important?"

If everything was completely realistic it wouldn't be fantasy. Would it?

Great work!

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## Jaxilon

It's beautiful M.

What's the copyright on the bottom? Is that your own or is that due to it's being published somewhere? I see a lot of Creative Commons but yours is different. I'm not up on all the copyrights and if I am going to do more stuff here myself I will have to read up on the threads I guess.

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## mearrin69

Hi again. Thanks guys for the comments. Really appreciate your praise, and your critiques.

@Jaxilon: The copyright is from my company. I plan to eventually publish this in a gaming supplement compatible with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game from Paizo - which may be sold, given away, or given under some sort of shareware-style license (I haven't decided yet). That said, I'm more than happy for people to take it for personal use if they like it. 

Chances are that the final will be somewhat different from this one. At the very least it will have an Asian-style border. I have a lot more other stuff to get completed before that happens, however.  :Smile: 
M

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## mearrin69

While I'm at it...since you've added so many questions. Much of this information is given in my backstory but I'll repeat it here for your benefit:




> A small town in an estuary that has to be able to be defended against invaders (you have a city wall with towers!)....


True. There's a city wall. The terrain itself prevents most attacks, as the only way in is via the road on the east bank or by water. The water approach from the sea is defended by the several arcane towers along the coast, as mentioned in my backstory. The entire harbour, including the river approach, is guarded by fast patrol boats bearing both arcane and black powder weaponry.




> ... should AT LEAST have recognized the central Island in the estuary mouth : a FORTRESS (and governor seat) should have been built there.


Um. Yeah. Well. Maybe you noticed the large walled compound on the central island of the harbor mouth? Both government seat and fortress....well, and, plus it's got three big honkin arcane-fire-spitting towers on its seaward shore. It's well defended, don't worry. Again, this is in the backstory.




> On the right bank there is a HIGH PEAK.  That screams for another fortification.


No need. The city is well defended against land-based invaders due to the largely impassable terrain. Covered in the backstory, I think.




> (( read the history about the british attacks on these cities ))


You have piqued my interest. I will look them up. I'm pretty sure they didn't have arcane-fire-spitting towers or fast patrol boats with arcane and black powder weaponry, though. The Brits would have been hard-pressed if they had.




> Why does the left bank town have no roads inland (to the terraces?) to farmland and logging ? The right bank (much smaller) does have these roads..funny.


? There actually is a road going back to the terraces on the left bank, unless you've got your left and right confused. I decided not to put a defined road on the right bank...and, in fact, probably made the one on the left too defined. There isn't any logging in the vicinity anymore...it's easier to send it down the river.




> Where are the farmlands (even based on rice paddies you need more surface to feed the town) ?


Most of the food comes from upriver. Also, seafood makes up a large portion of the diet. Not sure if I put that in the backstory or not.




> Why so many jetties ?


Because there are a lot of boats? Didn't think I needed that in the backstory.




> and no shipwright/repair yard ?


There are a couple, actually. They're not noted as such on the map. Maybe I haven't drawn them well enough for recognition...I'm not sure how such a place should look. Will check into it and consider modifying the final.




> And what about waste (dumped in river/streams: discolouring ... and/or burned in open fields).


Very good point. In fact, the polluted harbor is a main descriptive feature of the city (see backstory/flavor text)...but I didn't want to go there visually. The water did end up looking rather pristine. Maybe I'll brown it up a little.




> The right peak has a small little house on top ? doing what ?


Again. It's in the backstory. I won't go into details here but, if you're interested, you can go check it out. It's called the Temple of Heaven. The larger, walled building is called the House of the Four Winds.




> Very closeby a stream starts..where does the water come from ? Snow? Gleischer?


Got me there. Hadn't put much thought into it. Who can say?




> That stream runs down very fast , but it makes a hard turn to the left.. instead of breaking through to the bigger river.
> That's unnatural.


The River Police can correct me here if I'm wrong but streams follow the contours of the land...and don't just go "breaking through" wherever they like if there's an easier path downhill. The streams on the map follow the contours of the land I designed before I drew them...I just put them into the place I figured water would naturally collect and flow. Again, I submit to the mercies of the River Police on this one, as I am not an expert on the subject.

Hope that answers all of your questions. Appreciate you taking the time to analyze the map!
M

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## GygaxLives

Very thorough!  You've certainly answered any questions I might have had and then some.  

Great map!

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## the-golem

This is a very lovely port city, and the workmanship on it is masterful. What is the estimated population of such a large town?

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## mearrin69

Thanks very much. Now, see, that's a very good question  :Smile:  I honestly didn't put a great deal of thought into the actual population of the city. I envisioned it as a very large (by "medieval" standards) city probably in the mid-tens of thousands but not reaching a hundred thousand. There would be a largish transient population in the city as well, primarily merchant caravans from the surrounding areas as well as foreigners conducting trade. I still have not put an actual number on it though...probably afraid to commit to it. I've got to do it soon, however, so I'll post here when I figure out a number I can get behind.  :Smile: 
M

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## Gonzotron

Great job. Excellent detail.

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## mearrin69

Thank you very much! I hadn't seen this thread in quite a while...it was nice to reread it and "re-appreciate" the comments.  :Smile: 
M

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