Completed Map of Illia'thar

[indonesiancat]

I'll mix things up a bit but it will certainly have a viking/Norse influence.

Awesome, I'm writing my own mythos that is centralized on norse inspired settings. I would assume however, when you named it ''Nytt Voldenskagg'' that you were aiming for a translation for ''New Voldenskagg''. In swedish, when we speak about geographical locations, we use the word ''Nya''. So for instance ''New Zealand'' becomes ''Nya Zeeland'', or in this case ''Nya Voldenskagg''.

The names of the different kingdoms all try and have a similar ring to them. Zostrova obviously having more of an eastern European sound for its cities. Sanguinestos's cities are either Romanian or Hungarian words.

I would assume then that south Zostrova is basically like the Balkans and South Slavic nations?

I want to use medieval European cultures as the base and then change various things so they have their own unique features.

The first half of the story is far more focused on realism.

I'm trying to narrow down a time frame to use as a reference for how every day life is, what architecture is like, etc. Hovering around rougly the mid 13th to mid 14th century.

I think you've got a pretty damn solid foundation. Are you planning on keeping out monsters and crazy wildlife as well for the first half?

 

[Miskatonic]

Yeah I used words that sounded similar enough to the real world language equivalent to drop a hint as to what the culture is like, as you pointed out. And yes the name is supposed to be New Voldenskagg. It's named as such as it was once a land invaded by the warriors of Voldenskagg who defeated the Zostrovian army and claimed it as their own territory. I'm pretty sure I just made up the word for new. Iron shield and Iron sword were named because that southern border of New Voldenskagg held up against all attacks and sent the Zostrovian soldiers back to their capital with far fewer soldiers.

Southern Zostrova is sort of new because it's the lands held by the exiled heir to the Zostrovian throne. His brother tried to have him killed and he fled to the south with those soldiers loyal to him and established his fortress at Stiavna.

I basically wanted Zostrova, as far as the topography, to be similar to the area from the western border of Russia to the western side of the Ural mountains. Not all of it fits this description but the flatter areas that make up a lot of the kingdom were based on that topography.

I'm keeping a very minor amount of humanoid beings in the first half of the story, like stunted cave dwelling creatures that live in mines and become a nuisance to the miners and sometimes have to be dealt with and sent fleeing down into the further depths of the earth. Wizard familiars are also in the story, basically creatures created by magic with minor shapeshifting properties. One for example that's the familiar of the eldest wizard on the "good guys" side is like a pixie/fairy that prefers to spend most of her time in the form of a house cat.

 

[Brithel]

Love the map.
Do the runes along the edge of the map mean anything? And how did much did this cost?

 

[Miskatonic]

Love the map.
Do the runes along the edge of the map mean anything? And how did much did this cost?

I think they were part of the basic template that the map's artist used. So basically generic.

Let's just say a map like this can run anywhere from $250-$300 depending on the level of detail.

 

[xerolee]

I really like the map, But I think it should be edited so it doesn't look like you have used Britain or Europe. Because at the moment its very obvious. But the design of the map is really good.

 

[Miskatonic]

I really like the map, But I think it should be edited so it doesn't look like you have used Britain or Europe. Because at the moment its very obvious. But the design of the map is really good.

It's supposed to be based on those locations.

 

[Nomadica]

What skill stet do you look for in a map maker? One of the things I'm trying to learn for my own map is how geography effects the security and economy of cities. Like which cities would naturally become trade hubs.

 

[Reilith]

This looks wonderful. I wish my level of map-making was half of this. Also, if you need any help with the Slavic history, I might be able to give you some insight as I am from a Slavic country.

 

[Miskatonic]

This looks wonderful. I wish my level of map-making was half of this. Also, if you need any help with the Slavic history, I might be able to give you some insight as I am from a Slavic country.

I'll know where to go if I need some answers.

It would probably be more cultural stuff than actual history, since I'm not drawing on specific events all that much. Though I guess that might be a catch-22 because history is what spawned the culture to begin with.

 

[Miskatonic]

What skill stet do you look for in a map maker? One of the things I'm trying to learn for my own map is how geography effects the security and economy of cities. Like which cities would naturally become trade hubs.

I think natural resources nearby, such as timber, fresh water, fertile soil for crops, etc., would be one thing to consider. Or perhaps the ability to mine natural resources. Entire towns have been created around a particular type of industry just as logging and mining, as well as fishing. Weather patterns and climate are also something to take into account when it comes to agriculture. Rice paddies are a great example of how seasonal weather patterns allow for particular types of crops. Or cranberry bogs.

As far as security I would think that if the location was difficult to march an army into, whether because of landscape, weather or what not, it would make a place a bit safer. Then again if it's difficult to reach in general then trade would be affected by that as well.

There's usually a trade-off, especially when warfare is more primitive. You might have a nation with seemingly endless fields that grow abundant crops every year but in turn it's pretty easy to march an army across lands like that.

 

[Miskatonic]

Here's a preview of the next continent I'm working on. It's located south of Rydios. It's called Osyrica.

 

[Jamesthesecond]

Those look incredible!! Who did you get to draw them for you?

 

[Miskatonic]

I commissioned one of the members at the Cartographer's guild to make them for me.

 

[Darkfantasy]

Very cool. Nice names for place I wouldn't even know how to pronounce half of them though lol

 

[Miskatonic]

Very cool. Nice names for place I wouldn't even know how to pronounce half of them though lol

Yeah the names for the places on Sanguinestos are ones I'm not completely sure how to pronounce either. Some are Romanian and the others Hungarian.

 

[Devor]

How much does a map like that run?

I think it looks great, except for the placement of the country names. I think they're obscuring some of the detail and make it look crowded.

 

[Miskatonic]

how much does a map like that run?

I think it looks great, except for the placement of the country names. I think they're obscuring some of the detail and make it look crowded.

$300.00 usd.