Malvoisin's Savage Tide OOC Thread *Resurrected*

[GwydapLlew]

Speaking as the target of its attack, I'm rather glad it missed me.

 

[Malvoisin]

stonegod:

That is a wonderful combat map you've got going over in your Expedition to Castle Ravenloft game. How are you making those?

 

[Rhun]

stonegod:

That is a wonderful combat map you've got going over in your Expedition to Castle Ravenloft game. How are you making those?

I think the map itself must have been found on some site for the game, since Endur is using the same thing for his Castle Ravenloft game. I'm guessing Stonegod is just opening the file in a paint program and adding his PCs to it.

 

[stonegod]

stonegod:

That is a wonderful combat map you've got going over in your Expedition to Castle Ravenloft game. How are you making those?

Step 1: Harvest the maps from somewhere (Rhun is right that they are all from Wizards for Ravenloft; you'd have to either scan or copy/paste from the Paizo supplements)

Step 2: Use software that has a bunch of layers. I use a Mac, and there is a great piece of software called OmniGraffle; Photoshop, Viso, Illustrator or some other graphic design program should work. I turn on its grid, stretch the scanned map to fit, and then everything lines up nicely.

Step 3: I have a grid layer (w/ the locked map and the grid key), a hidden monster layer, and an everything else layer. Each token is a black circle with 75% opacity and a bold, shadowed letter. I just move things around as appropriate.

Step 4: Export at as an image.

Setting it up takes a bit (but I had some time between Ravenloft coming out and when I actually started), but it is sure pretty.

 

[hafrogman]

If you have Excel, it's really fast to create simple maps there. Not as elegant as Stonegod's but easier to use than ASCII. Just create a dot for everyone, move them as needed. Rooms and other things can just be made with block fill.

This example took less than a minute.

 

[Rhun]

Setting it up takes a bit (but I had some time between Ravenloft coming out and when I actually started), but it is sure pretty.

Well, it can't take any longer than the way I make my own battle maps in excel! And they look a whole lot nicer.

 

[Rhun]

If you have Excel, it's really fast to create simple maps there. Not as elegant as Stonegod's but easier to use than ASCII. Just create a dot for everyone, move them as needed. Rooms and other things can just be made with block fill.

Yeah, this is what I do. I had never thought about using excel for maps until Lord_Raven showed me how. It works pretty good.

 

[GwydapLlew]

I like the Photoshop options, but I can't justify the price tag for it. *sniff*

The Exel maps are very basic, but work quite well. I've had to do ASCII maps in the past, and they are a PITA to deal with!

 

[stonegod]

Well, it can't take any longer than the way I make my own battle maps in excel! And they look a whole lot nicer.

The initial setup is a pain (for Ravenloft, I have to edit out the original monster positions; not such an issue for other maps). I use tokens just like in Excel, but Excel doesn't have layering so I can't toggle things on and off. Not a big deal, but a nice feature for me (I know where the hidden beasties are).

Edit: The point I was trying to make is that its pretty easy after the setup.

 

[stonegod]

I like the Photoshop options, but I can't justify the price tag for it. *sniff*

OmniGraffle is free...

...with purchase of a Mac.