Trying to gauge interest in new battlemap-making software

[heruca]

I was expecting for people who were interested to post here, not people who weren't. I kinda figured that people who weren't interested would just move on to something else.

You're lucky to have access to Photoshop. Most people don't, and many that do aren't good enough with it to create good-looking maps with it.

 

[Jhaelen]

I was expecting for people who were interested to post here, not people who weren't.

Well, it's a reaction to your second post. Apparently, there wouldn't be any posts if only people who were interested had posted.

 

[innerdude]

My intent in posting to this thread was to simply give some perspective, because I had already gone through the entire "buyer's journey" for exactly this kind of product. Back in 2009, I would have been quite interested in a product such as the one you're proposing. I researched HEAVILY before purchasing Campaign Cartographer, and if your proposed product had been around, I would absolutely have considered it.

The problem is, I've learned since then that the balance between usability and quality of output for digital mapping depends greatly on the tool used, and for me, using a "mid-way point" application between a professional drawing program and freeware like GIMP simply isn't the best value.

And just because I had 30 minutes and nothing better to do:


View attachment 80404

 

[heruca]

LOL @ your flowchart! Seriph Affinity should get you on their payroll.

I researched HEAVILY before purchasing

I know you did. I read all your reviews/posts about mapping software here on Enword. In fact, I was planning on asking you to take a look at my app when it's released.

 

[3ArmSally]

I am a GM with over twenty years experience and I tend to avoid D20 and other grid map heavy systems due to the heavy prep time in creating high quality and diverse combat maps and the game flow disruptions that come from unplanned combat that requires a map. I would be very interested in a product that did all of the following:

1.) Random map generation with a few parameters selected from drop down menus. (Terrain type, difficulty, weather/season, dimensions, fantasy/steampunk/scifi/modern, number of elevations)
2.) Continued map generation without boundaries. (i.e. A forest that keeps going for pursuit or long range combat. I have yet to see a physical map that accommodates the full weapon range of a party's arsenal of weapons and tricks)
3.) An app that lets players see their character's movement range and line of sight and move their avatar on the GM's screen when their initiative comes up. This would be very helpful to players who telecommute to their games or new players who have difficulty visualizing their character's line of sight and movement range.
4.) The ability to create maps of your own and customize unique hazards and environmental effects (conveyor belt, rotating surfaces, fast running water) and to manipulate the locations of avatars to allow for location affecting spells and abilities.
5.) Square and hex based maps.

These are the things I can think of off the top of my head. I'd pay good money for software that did this and was easy to learn. I hope you can get this off the ground.

 

[MNblockhead]

I may be more of your target audience than other posters here. I have a bad habit of buying software that a barely use. I seem to be collecting game-supporting software as much as I am minis, terrain, and PDFs. I don't know if your product will be of interest as I'm not clear what exact niche it is trying to fill.

I'm not looking to publish anything. I want a convenient way to support my homebrew campaign world with maps to reveal in RealmWorks during a game and the occasional battlemap. I don't have one approach, I mix it up. But I'm increasingly looking for lazy ways to prep, which means buying maps others made and using easy to set up terrain, or a wet-erase battlemap (though I'm currently without becase--AGAIN--I used a sharpie on in and am punishing my repeated stupidity by not allowing myself to buy a new one until I've learned my lesson).

I own Campaign Cartographer and a number of the addons. The learning curve and time necessary to get something useable out of it made it feel like work and so I barely use it. But now and again it is the best tool for what I want to accomplish, such as turning a real map into a to-scale grided map.

For purchased digital battlemaps, I prep them for printing with GIMP and PosteRazor using the process that DM David describes here: http://dmdavid.com/tag/how-to-print-map-graphics-as-battle-maps-using-free-software/

My main go-to tool to put something together quickly is Inkwell Ideas's Dungeonographer, Cityographer, and Worldographer. My problem with these tools is that while they make it easy to create a battlement, region map, or town, everything kinda looks the same after a while. Also, adding icon packs is a pain, I stopped supporting their Patreon because I found I didn't want to bather with the icon loading and management process. I am, however, backing their kickstarter for their new version of Worldographer.

I'm also backing Dungeon Maker: An Isometric Map Maker for Role Players since it looks fun and will give me another kind of map that I can use in RealmWorks or to make handouts. It is not useful for making battlemaps.

With all this software, what do I still wish I had?

1. An easy way to take a high quality battlemap image and prep it for printing without having to go through all the steps with GIMP and PosteRazor. I want it to help me prep to print in sections on 8.5x11 and also an option to print a plotter printer.

2. Something as easy as Dungeonographer or easier with a much wider collection of doors, furniture, etc. and/or an easy way to add items from graphic files.

Seems like your tool may help with both. If your software give me a way to quickly make battlemaps without a high learning curve and which allow me to make maps with a different look and feel, I would probably buy it for 20 on an impulse buy. Over 20 and I have to start really comparing features to what I already have to see if I would really get much use out of it.

 

[heruca]

3ArmsSally, sorry, but my app won't help with your #2-4 requests. This won't be a virtual tabletop program (but it will compliment any 2-D VTT).

DNblockhead, some good feedback, thanks. My intention with my mapping app is that putting together a map will feel less like work and more like play. Map-making should be fun, not a chore.

Off-topic #1:Is Realm Works good? On a scale of 1-5 stars, how would you rate it?

Off-topic #2: If you can get your hands on some acetone (or perhaps nail polish remover), that might be able to remove the permanent marker from your battlemat. Might be worth googling the topic, at least.

 

[MNblockhead]

DNblockhead, some good feedback, thanks. My intention with my mapping app is that putting together a map will feel less like work and more like play. Map-making should be fun, not a chore.

If you succeed at that, you have my money.

Off-topic #1:Is Realm Works good? On a scale of 1-5 stars, how would you rate it?

Hard to give a rating because it can frustrate me to no end but I can't live without it. It is a great world building tool. If you have all your adventure content entered in and also have HeroLab, it is a REALLY nice to run an in-person game using it. See Daplunk's videos on YouTube to get a better idea of what it is and isn't.

For published adventures, I don't want to spend time entering all that in RW. Many do, but that seems like work, not play, to me. Once the content market is up and running, if they sell 5e material, I will definitately buy it. I would love to run the 5e APs from RealmWorks. Players have Pathfinder will get all the love initially. Paizo and LWD seem to have a good, long-standing relationship. There will be lots of PF material. 5e? Remains to be seen.

Also, it is not a VTT. It will still be useful for world building if you are using a VTT and I know DMs that use RW and Fantasy Grounds together to run their games, even their in-person games. That, again, for me, seems like lots of duplicative data entry and work.

So, I highly recommend the game to world builders making and managing campaigns in homebrew worlds.

I recommend it for PF players, but htey may want to wait until the Content Market goes live and make sure that there is material that they would like to run.

If you want to play official DnD adventure paths? Probably better of with Fantasy Grounds or just using the books, IMO.
[/QUOTE]

Off-topic #2: If you can get your hands on some acetone (or perhaps nail polish remover), that might be able to remove the permanent marker from your battlemat. Might be worth googling the topic, at least.

Already threw it away. Should've Googled it. :-(

 

[Gilladian]

Acetone eats the grid lines,too.

 

[heruca]

That would be bad. Disregard, then.

My app prototype is coming along swimmingly. It shouldn't be long now until I can launch my Kickstarter and offer a download link for everyone to try the program out.