Map Thread VIII

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Scarecrow

Emperor-of-New-Zealand said:
:rolleyes: Not everyone is a creative genius. Me, for example, I tend to make maps that are useful to me and post them for opinions on the world in question, not the quality of map. I don't care if people think it looks crap, at least it's a damn-sight better than some others.

Anyway, you could do without calling them 'crappy UCS maps', especially when they take a lot longer to make than you seem to think. I was planning on Munroing my last one, but now maybe I won't.
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In the case of your map you’ve mentioned that you were intending for a utilitarian map, and you have mentioned that. It is good that you have included labels though its more than most.
My comments are not a rant directed at your map, I simply didn’t see it when I was writing my post.
Iori said:
Their is nothing wrong with the CS Basemap (especially given how much time we've put into ficing it), further more, unless you already have an idea before you start making a map doing a map of the world allows for far more creativity..
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There is nothing wrong with the CS basemap, it’s how people use it, as a crutch. After all people have been making maps long before the CS basemap come along in its current form.

People don’t plan things out? My process is this:
1) What do I want to make a map of?
2) Where will that map focus on?
3) Find if I have a vector base already, if not create one and make my map.
I’d assume most people would do something similar.
Iori said:
When it comes right down ot it, if you don't like them, then don't look at them and certainly don't bitch because people are'nt doing what you want.
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That's my point. I am ignoring them because they all look the same. When I make a map and post it here I want comments. Praise is good, but I want the criticism so I can learn from my mistakes and make better maps.

ZachScape said:
I completely disagree. I am actually quite fond of the UCS and base map. Variety is great, but a complaint about how people aren't as skilled in Gimp and the like seems inappropriate. I know what your intentions are, but your post was too in-your-face and did not come off as con instructive criticism but instead any old rant.
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Fair points Zach. In retrospect my rant may have been a little bit harsh. My rant isn't that people are not skilled at GIMP, Photoshop, etc., it’s about people sticking with the same old skill set. There are really good maps that can be made in Paint.NET, but the implication by using UCS is that you haven’t put the effort in.
 

Emperor-of-New-Zealand

Kicked
Feeling slightly disheartened by Scarecrow's thoughts, I did a B_Munroist version of my last map, hoping it is better. There is no long wall o' text to go with it, however, as I'm still working out the details. Also, I'm still getting the hang of this whole Munroist business.

--

In any case, here's a short wee introduction:


  • The Year is 1910, and the world's powers are divided into two distinctive blocs of power. On one side, the hot colours, is the Liberalist Bloc, consisting of countries that have shirked the restricting and oppressive ultra-conservative ways of church-run states and replaced them with more open societies. One the other side, the colder colours, is the Conservative Bloc, nations that still cling onto the right-wing way, although some more so than others. This isn't to say all conservative ways are bad - Austria, for instance, isn't the theocratic dictatorship it used to be.
  • Meanwhile, in the Orient, China is building its own power bloc, hoping to at least match the Western Powers, but can this traditional Far-Eastern empire really match the more modern and socially progressive ways of the west? Find out next week.... (but not really...)
Map to follow, because it's bigger than I thought. Hope it turns out okay...

Edit: Disclaimer! Because my original version got lost on the last page, I better add this for anyone who didn't see it: ASB ASB ASB. It's for a short story series I am jotting ideas down for, with a lot of Rule of Cool. Implausibilities aside, this world doesn't have a POD from ours, it just is different. It just is :p.
 
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Emperor-of-New-Zealand

Kicked
Mappity map, please work out...

FICTION Munroist version.png
 

Highlander

Banned
Scarecrow said:
Man I am sick and tired of all these crappy UCS maps. Rather then whinge I'll post some handy hints. To get people to improve their maps.

Colour: Almost universally UCS maps look horrible. They have crisp, distinct lines but the colours clash terribly especially 'darker colour = territory'. Use unique colours to make your map stand out. This is a good website to get colour schemes: http://colorschemedesigner.com/

Focus: Focus on one particular aspect for a map, be it geographical or a particular issue. If you have to use the world map I would suggest only colouring the countries that are important, and leaving the rest.

Labels: Please use labels so people can tell what is going on. It doesn't have to be a full key. This helps show that you have put effort into the map.

Quality: Put the time in to research or come up with a unique idea for a map.
- CSA victory? Great! But why not do something interesting like a map of Central America showing nations and guerrilla armies armed against the invading CSA.

- Central Powers victory in WW1? Cool! What about a map showing the areas of migration into Central Powers controlled colonies?

Even if its looking at Wikipedia just try and do something creative. My final comment: Don't use UCS and make unique less crappy maps.


It is possible to do all these things I've mentioned here in Paint.NET, GIMP or Inkscape, all free graphic design programs, so don't say 'oh I don't have Photoshop you can't do that in Paint.'
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Yes, exactly, spot on.

Even if you don't want to invest in a graphic program, there is nothing stopping you from creating a masterpiece in MSPaint. Don't believe me? Go look at the earlier map threads, where there was actual variety. A good many people turned out some great things with that program.

ZachScape said:
"Good maps."
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But that is the thing. The vast majority here aren't. The vast majority really aren't even that original. There are some original ones that are done that cause me to pause, but the vast majority that have been posted over the last few years cause my eyes to glaze over while scanning this thread.

The process that has created the UCS/base map/etc. is incredibly admirable and I use the OTL ones quite often for reference. But creatively, it is binding. It has turned people lazy so that they don't even put labels on maps anymore.
 
oshron

oshron

just updated my UEG again. what i want to work on next is the partition of sahara and kurdistan into as many smaller states as possible. kurdistan should end up being reasonably large, but i KNOW there are other distinct groups in alot of the area currently designated as kurdistan that i want to give provinces. sahara i care less about: i want to fit in as many provinces as i can (preferrably around the edges) and the remaining continuous rump sahara will be the actual sahara province

anyway, the provinces are now:

  1. Acadia
  2. Antilles
  3. Atlantis
  4. Australia
  5. Bengal
  6. Canaan
  7. Dravidia
  8. Eire(land)
  9. Euskadi
  10. Ezo (Hokkaido, etc.)
  11. Great Britain
  12. "Great Pacific Garbage Patch"
  13. Greenland
  14. Hainan
  15. Hellas/Greece
  16. Japan
  17. Kalimantan
  18. Kashmir
  19. Korea/Joseon
  20. Kurdistan
  21. Malagasia
  22. Mediterranea/Mare Internum
  23. Mongolia
  24. Njordsland (North Atlantic)
  25. Papua
  26. Philippines/Tagalog
  27. Ryukyu
  28. Sahara
  29. Sapmi (northern Scandinavia)
  30. Sunda
  31. Taiwan
  32. Tasmania
  33. Tibet
  34. Uyghur (Xinjiang)
  35. Wallacea
  36. Yakutia/Sakha

UEG test.png
 

Emperor-of-New-Zealand

Kicked

Iserlohn

Vexacus said:
So instead of Kiwi's we have Guiness within a tankards throw of those Vegemite eating Aussies
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Promethean said:
An Irish German New Zealand? Well the beer will be quite good then :)
Why is it called Tasmania?
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Well, I just decided to use the old province names of New Zealand and made the map in German to add some variety (and since there is only few text on it anyway). The name Tasmania: Well, Abel Tasman discovered New Zealand and I thought it would be fun if a Republican New Zealand throws away their colonial name and chooses something else (but not Maori of course, for that it is too early).

So I don't think there would be significantly more Germans or Irish there than OTL, unless there are massive butterflies.
 

Shadow Knight

Scarecrow said:
Man I am sick and tired of all these crappy UCS maps...
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I agree. I got fed up enough with it that I went and spent four days building my own base map, and about a month building the map. (That large ass BAM of the ATL Shadowrun world I did.)

I hate to sound like an old timer, but...back in the day the map thread would get updated far less often however when it did you'd get a well built map like Highlander's a few pages ago.

Honestly there are even other world base maps if that is what you are going for then change it up a little. If you are going just for changes in Europe, but the rest of the world hasn't changed much or is mostly uninhabited then why not just use a Europe based base map?

Now to end my old time moment: "Get off me lawn!" :shakes fist at those rascally kids:
 
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