Hexes or squares?

[Psion]

Another poll with insufficient choices.

The right answer:
Squares indoor, Hexes outdoor.

Hexes are more convenient when you have relative freedom of movement.

Hex maps of indoor areas with straight walls, etc., are ugly and inconvenient (cannot STAND SJG deckplans. Ack!)

 

[Kae'Yoss]

OH no it is too difficult to place 8 figures on hexes. After all if the figure steps on line it will break Eric's Grandma's back. Oh whoa is us who set in our ways and don't know when to forget the lines on mapboard.

As soon as you do this, you have to rely on rulers to measure some distances, and then you can as well use rulers all the time.

Anyway what's the point on using a grid if you ignore it all the time?

 

[TheAuldGrump]

As soon as you do this, you have to rely on rulers to measure some distances, and then you can as well use rulers all the time.

Anyway what's the point on using a grid if you ignore it all the time?

The same reason I use them - It is more convenient for drawing the map. Once the map is drawn the hexes or squares can both go hang, out come the rulers. Actual terrain pieces are much to be prefered. (Though several companies print squares on their fold up terrain these days...)

The Auld Grump

 

[MeepoTheMighty]

Red dragons and Orcs with Pies clearly come in 10' x 10' rooms. I don't even want to imagine what sort of funky abomination that would work out to in hexes.

 

[Kae'Yoss]

The same reason I use them - It is more convenient for drawing the map. Once the map is drawn the hexes or squares can both go hang, out come the rulers. Actual terrain pieces are much to be prefered. (Though several companies print squares on their fold up terrain these days...)

The Auld Grump

I prefer not to use a ruler, the grid is sufficient for me, and it's not that much of a bother (terrain pieces may be nice, but the enemies won't conviniently wait all on the same battlefield, so a b/w grid and a couple of water-soluble pens will suffice.

 

[Zappo]

I use squares. I recognize that hexes are better for circular shapes, cones, diagonal movement, and similar problems. However, they cause more problems than they solve when the action is taking place indoors. I could use squares indoors and hexes outdoors, but I don't want to have to deal with the inconsistancy problems this would cause (ie, number of flanking enemies, different arbitration of area effects, different arbitration of diagonals, etc). Plus, we're all used to using squares.

Where's the; "If I see another poll/thread about this I'm going to throw up all over it"-option?

Huh? I can't remember another similar poll, not recently at least.

 

[frankthedm]

Squares for movement indoors for the newbs and those who try to steal more than thier fair share of movement. If its outdoors we toss down terrain onto the tabletop and just measure. Monsters are kept on bases at the chaimail standard. Goblins on 20mm, ogres on inch and a half washers. All the players are more than willing to give characters 'realistic' weapon weilding space due to the fact all the dms in group use the '1 = something bad happed' rule.

Most of my group can be trusted to measure their distances without grid though.

 

[frankthedm]

Squares for movement indoors for the newbs and those who try to steal more than thier fair share of movement. If its outdoors we toss down terrain onto the tabletop and just measure. Monsters are kept on bases at the chaimail standard. Goblins on 20mm, ogres on inch and a half washers. All the players are more than willing to give characters 'realistic' weapon weilding space due to the fact all the dms in group use the '1 = something bad happed' rule.

Most of my group can be trusted to measure their distances without grid though.

 

[Stormrunner]

I tend to prefer hexes all around. Ya, sure it's harder to draw perfect-90-degree grids of streets/buildings/rooms, but if you look at real-world examples grid layouts for cities are a recent thing. Mathematical layouts for the interior of big buildings (especially temples/cathedrals) goes back farther, but this tends to be a matter of "where do we put the supporting pillars" rather than "we like 90-degree corners". Just eyeball it, like a real medieval builder.

I've occasionally seen maps done in "staggered squares" - a grid with every other row of squares offset 50%, like bricks. This gives you movement/facing like hexes, but nice square corners for the Jello-cube lovers. Unfortunately you can't get the big office-supply pads (but then, you can't for hexes either), and battlemats are hard to find.

The only times I've had to "zig-zag across the map" have been when playing Star Fleet Battles; in RPGs it hasn't been a problem, I think partly because with hexes you have six directions of "straight-line" movement instead of four, so there's less need for "diagonals" unless you need to Charge an enemy who's barely the minimum distance away.

OTOH the giant presentation pads are nice, especially the ones that are a giant Post-It note so you can stick them to the wall.

 

[ConnorSB]

I tend to prefer hexes all around. Ya, sure it's harder to draw perfect-90-degree grids of streets/buildings/rooms, but if you look at real-world examples grid layouts for cities are a recent thing.

Uhh.. What about the square, symetrical cities the Romans built? Sure, they would get fouled up over time, but all the original designs for outlying cities in the empire (IE: not rome itself), were square grid designs with regularly interveled streets, 90 degree corners, etc.