Muna workshop

[mbartelsm]

Every time I try to post something of Muna (the world I'm building), I change the world and end up not finishing whatever I was making. So, in order not to spam the forum with failed attempts, I'm just gonna spam this single thread with them.


Right now the world looks like this:


Until now I've been very focused on climates


and biomes


Climates are based on Azelor's guide and biomes on my own WIP guide

I'm planning on making a regional map of one of its regions, so that's probably what I'll post next.

[darcycardinal]

Thanks for posting,

What program are you using for the maps? I liked the top one the best.

Darcy Cardinal

[mbartelsm]

Hi Darcy

I'm using photoshop for mostly everything. The top map was made using a method called Cross Blended Hypsometric Tints. Basically, instead of using a single gradient for the whole map, I use four gradients, each for a different climate.
As a base map I use arid colors, then I make an overall wet gradient map with a mask based on the precipitation levels of the world, followed by a cold wet mask which combines high precipitation and low temperatures. Finally, I make a polar gradient map that covers the coldest areas.

The process is better described here:
http://www.shadedrelief.com/hypso/hypso.html

And a more complex verion here:
http://cartographicperspectives.org/...viewFile/20/70

[mbartelsm]

Sigh... I just had to make a thread for my unfinished maps in order to actually finish a map.

The next step —and something that I've wanted to attempt for a long while— is a regional atlas. Working with a large file made me realize that it is not the most elegant way to make a map, rather, it is quite inefficient, cumbersome and demanding on my machine. So, making an atlas seems like a good idea in order to avoid such problems.

Along with the atlas I'll also be focusing on building maybe three languages for naming the different manmade and natural features. Naming has been the cause for most of my unfinished maps, as I often get the urge to develop a full language and end up forgetting about the map. Likewise, cartography has caused the same problems for me when I'm developing a language, this whole world was made as a result of me wanting to give a home to my language, which I left unfinished in order to make the map.

In order to be able to name the different features consistently I will first develop the language map for the region, just like I did with the biomes for my other map.

After that if finished I will make an 8 page physical and cultural atlas based on the following image.



The language and biome maps will be published along with a religious and a natural resources map in a smaller scale, using up only a single spread each.

Finally, the atlas will open up with a 2 hemisphere stereographic projection of the world.

If I actually manage to finish this I will most likely print it and display it

[mbartelsm]

I've been experimenting with different methods to replicate 19th century maps after miserably failing last time. The current result can be seen below:



I love how the colors and the paper turned out, but I'm still not convinced by the blacks. I'll do a couple more tests before just leaving it like this.

The method, while relatively simple (I've automatized the tedious parts with actions) is kind of cumbersome as it requires two layers for every color I use. I plan on doing the heavy lifting in Illustrator and then exporting by color to photoshop to apply the style. Hopefully everything will look great.

EDIT: Another test

[jshoer]

Nice - I would be careful how the colors for topography and vegetation mix, though. That might confuse the map if it gets more complicated.

[mbartelsm]

Yeah, I was thinking the same. I'm still not sure if I should add vegetation information to the map.

As for the actual map, I'm planning the mountains and rivers to generate better contour lines:


EDIT: Here's a version with the contour lines finished. Unfortunately, I don't like them. The way I made them they are kind of like one huge mountain, while in reality it should have a lot more isolated peaks, not just ridges.

[darcycardinal]

Yeah, I was thinking the same. I'm still not sure if I should add vegetation information to the map.

As for the actual map, I'm planning the mountains and rivers to generate better contour lines:


EDIT: Here's a version with the contour lines finished. Unfortunately, I don't like them. The way I made them they are kind of like one huge mountain, while in reality it should have a lot more isolated peaks, not just ridges.

Ahhh, thats how its done! It looks like it would be a very time consuming but rewarding process. The mountain part is very realistic. I'm going to have to get into Photoshop, right now im using GIMP 2.0 by I miss my creative cloud account.

Darcy

[Lingon]

Very unusual landshape, I love it! The contours are looking good too, quite realistic. Isolated peaks are very rare, it's just like that it should look. Could use some more detail though, in my opinion, looks more like hills now as it gives a soft and not very steep look.

[mbartelsm]

Very unusual landshape, I love it! The contours are looking good too, quite realistic. Isolated peaks are very rare, it's just like that it should look. Could use some more detail though, in my opinion, looks more like hills now as it gives a soft and not very steep look.

Yeah, that was bad wording on my part. I meant that a smooth gradient towards a central high point is not really common. Mountain ranges have high and low point all across as can be appreciated in these maps:

Japan and Switzerland from Pergamon World Atlas of 1967

Here many contours are broken apart by erosion, resulting in multiple lone peaks instead of a single long network of smooth ridges.

And yeah, it looks very smooth, I think it's because I'm working with a geometric scale instead of a linear one (0m, 250m, 500m, 1000m, 2000m...)

Ahhh, thats how its done! It looks like it would be a very time consuming but rewarding process.

It's quite exhausting. I'm trying to do it slow so as not to end up hating the project.