How much do adventure publishers spend on maps? I don't have a lot of third-party d20 adventures, so maybe what I'm saying doesn't apply. But in a lot of the ones I've seen, both from WotC and some of the smaller publishers, the cartography is presented as 3D-rendered, photorealistic works of computer art. Looks nice - but has very little utility. I don't care if a bed is fully rendered to look all fluffy with a patchwork quilt, or if the hardwood floor really has a grained texture to it. I want something I can use:
- Make it monochrome (B&W is good) so I can photocopy it for easy mark-up.
- Give me a square grid so I can easily and quickly draw it out on a battlemat or use it with MasterMaze pieces during the game.
- Use standard map symbols so I can tell what things are at a glance.
- If you don't need to, don't make rooms, corridors, etc. odd lengths. Does that room really have to be 22' long by 13' wide? 20x15 or 20x10 or whatever works out much easier on a grid system, which d20 encourages, and if it has no impact on the adventure or "realism", the players aren't going to care.
I prefer 3E (3.5) to 1E, but the maps in 1E were much easier to work with. This isn't nostalgia talking - it's practicality.
(Yes, this is a repeat from my "Articles" page; I posted it here since it seems more appropriate to be in a blog).Labels: artwork, publishers, RPG
