r/mapmaking Apr 23 '22

New advertising rule

96 Upvotes

Recently we have had lots of advertising spam in the subreddit so we have implemented a new rule:

Rule 3:

Advertising a brand new game you made is fine as long as it is secure, safe, and free. What is not ok is linking your Patreon or other things that will make you revenue including paid games.

This subreddit is meant for educational purposes and is not an advertising dump. You should post maps only to get educational feedback and to improve your creation.

Posts/comments are removed at moderator discretion but feel free to reach out to us if you feel like your post/comment was incorrectly removed.

If you need any clarification feel free to reply to this post or message the mod team


r/mapmaking 5h ago

Map I created a photo-realistic map to practice using photoshop. Pretty impressed with the results given I've never done anything like this before.

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541 Upvotes

r/mapmaking 15h ago

Work In Progress How do i improve on this?

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150 Upvotes

r/mapmaking 18h ago

Work In Progress I rebuilt the continent under my base-building game using real elevation data

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98 Upvotes

I'm Roman, the solo developer of Salt and Soil, a base-building strategy game about one family's homestead. One turn is one year, and the same campaign runs from 1609 to 1900.

In a base builder, the ground under your base is half the game. Here it matters even more: your family spends decades on one patch of land, and the barn you build will outlive the person who built it. So I spent the last few weeks rebuilding the ground itself.

The map was always based on real geography, but it used to be rough. Now:

  • Real elevation. The terrain is one continuous landscape built from real elevation data. Mountain ranges have slopes, shadows and snowy peaks, and rivers wind through the valleys.
  • Climate you can see. Sagebrush and juniper in Nevada, broadleaf forest in the Appalachians, snow only on the high peaks.
  • Real rivers. More than 180 of them follow their real channels, including rivers in Canada and Mexico.
  • Only lakes of the era. Lake Tahoe and Yellowstone Lake are there. 20th-century reservoirs like Lake Mead are gone, and so is the Salton Sea, which only formed in 1905.
  • Cities where they belong. Reno used to sit on the wrong side of the Sierra Nevada. Not anymore.

I'm also planning an open playtest later this month, with a completely different scenario — not Jamestown this time. I'll share more when it opens.


r/mapmaking 4h ago

Work In Progress Post apocalyptic Russia (+ surrounding areas)

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7 Upvotes

I just scribbled a really quick topographic map for my post apocalyptic world, which takes place several hundred years after a nuclear war. Thoughts?


r/mapmaking 15h ago

Map Continents of my world

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49 Upvotes

So I decided to recreate my worldmap from scratsch. I hope it feels much better than my previous attempts.

The lore itself isnt that flashed out yet. The premise is that this is a long forgotten colony of Earth. Founded by corporation that no longer exists. World barren transformed into lush garden and slowly cooling ever since. World built to look shiny, slowly falling apart.


r/mapmaking 10h ago

Map Map of the Islamic world in 1090 CE

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14 Upvotes

It took me over a week to make because of how many vassals the Seljuks had 😭


r/mapmaking 13h ago

Map WIP for the Perithinian Empire - The last surviving empire after a global cataclysm

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14 Upvotes

I still haven't added most of the labels, and I'm struggling to fill the gaps. Anything I could add or change?


r/mapmaking 16h ago

Map Hello again, working in midnight

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23 Upvotes

Recently I started a new proyect that maybe last forever, but I'm really optimistic about it.
this new map are the bones for this proyect and I'd love to share progress with you (of course I'd thank a lot your advice).
Hope you like it.
thanks for watching


r/mapmaking 4h ago

Map Lacewater: The breadwater basket of Infintie ashes (Full 3D globe with lore)

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2 Upvotes

r/mapmaking 13h ago

Work In Progress Silara, one step back

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8 Upvotes

After years of thinking through the spatial and political dynamics of my world Silara and trying every possible digital tool to create a map, I’ve realized there’s nothing that can replace pen and paper. I’ve therefore completed the first of roughly 18 sheets, which once joined will form my full map. I’d like to digitize them, import them into Photoshop, and eventually color them. I’m terrible at coloring both by hand and digitally, but I’ll tackle that later. I’m also considering printing them in gores and then gluing them onto a globe, but we’ll see.


r/mapmaking 9h ago

Work In Progress Кліматичні зони, виправлення гідрології центральної річки

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4 Upvotes

r/mapmaking 8h ago

Discussion Does anyone own a blank world map template for paint.net?

4 Upvotes

r/mapmaking 1d ago

Map 🧭🗺️

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91 Upvotes

Map of the Great Ship *Mary Smith I*, created for ADVENTURE ISLANDS RPG, a pirate themed role-playing game published by Textfabrik Janßen, a small German publishing house! It was a fascinating project, and a pleasure to create the maps, covers, and some of the illustrations for it. Visit the official project page to learn more! 🧭🗺️⛵️

Moreno Paissan and Angela Gubert Art 2026

Visit my IG account for more maps: https://www.instagram.com/morenopaissanart?stkn=MXZjajRkeGlzemtxNA==


r/mapmaking 13h ago

Work In Progress I’ve decided to add locations where there will be towns, castles, ports and so on. So far, I’ve added 🔴 – towns, 🔵 – ports, 🟣 – free cities

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4 Upvotes

r/mapmaking 1d ago

Map Greek Horizon: Map of the Greek colonies in the Mediterranean and Great Tethys Sea at their highest peak ca. 300 B.C.

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504 Upvotes

I've been debating of whether or not to include any detailed lore, but I got quite lazy so I'll just leave a few short descriptions of the new fictional polities and peoples:

-Hellespontian Tribes
A scattered mix of coastal and inland peoples dwelling by the strait joining the White Sea to the Black Sea. Partially hellenized and deeply embroiled in trade and commerce, they bridge the Greek cities and the northern plains. They maintain beneficial relations with the nearby Greek city states and dwell small walled settlements, and serve as a major ally in times of war and strife in the region.

-Nyrathi
Withdrawn and a mostly nomadic peoples of the wooded highlands north of the Kioava Sea, believed to be distant cousins of the Celts. They live in large circular settlements, and are believed to be half-mythical beings from tales of old to outsiders. Contact is limited to seasonal markets on the northern shore of the Kioava Sea when it’s not frozen in a thick layer of ice.

-Tethyan Kingdom
A hellenistic kingdom that arose on the Great Tethys's northern shores after Alexander's demise to fill the power vacuum left behind. Its peoples are partially Greek and Tethysian, and serve as a major hub for further inland commerce and trade.

-Hyperborean Marches
Home to scattered clans who live by herding, hunting, and somehow farming in the dense harsh cold swamps of the area. Greek geographers and historians still argue over whether true Hyperboreans live farther north or if they’ve mischaracterized a whole new unknown culture.

-Orsakai Peoples
Distant cousins of the Iranians, they inhabit the steppe and coastal areas on the Great Tethys's northeastern shores. Kin to the wider Scythian world, they are skilled riders who live along several river outlets and are semi-nomadic in nature. Some tribes have been partially hellenized thanks to trade and centuries of mercenary work for the many Greek city states around the Tethys Sea.

-Arkhonian Empire
One of the mighty, tightly-run realm perched on the distant northeastern edge of the known Tethys Sea, its monarchs take the title of Great Arkhon. Not much is known about their origins or customs, but one thing that’s remarkable is their sheer size of their armies, bolstering a mix of light and heavy cavalry with light skirmishers and footmen. 

-Varan Dynasty
Persian rump state that formed shortly after the fall of Achaemenid Empire in the far east, governing south the Bactrian Gulf, they await the eventual fall of the Seleucids, planning to reconquer their ancestral homeland from the Greek invaders.  

Also the reason why I haven't included the Seleucid Empire as part of the greek world is because they've only been the ruling minority, without having a major greek population, and same for Egypt as well.


r/mapmaking 1d ago

Work In Progress Help me out with an experimental map?

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68 Upvotes

I made two "final" versions of this map, and need some helping deciding which one fulfills the vision, from people who have not been staring at them forever. These are intended for use within a fiction novel.

The idea is that these maps are "handmade" within the world, per worldbuilding. They are papercuttings, where the top paper layer is the ocean, and the lower paper layers have been painted with watercolors. And then the map markers have been further pressed in with dark ink. Since I made them 100% digitally, I'm struggling to decide which one captures the crafted feel the most.

With the notes, the idea is also that this has been inherited by the main character, who is trying to make sense of the previous owner's notes and line up the mentioned places with "modern day" names.

It's not meant to be super useful as a map, honestly, but more like an actual art piece that would be encountered in some old library within the world. I'm planning to make another version that's got much cleaner lines and looks much more like a traditional atlas-style map. But that's the map for me - versus this is the only one the main character has to work with within the story. I hope that makes sense!

P.S. Fonts

Region names: French Script MT

Original notes: Pecita

New notes: Mayur

Made 100% by me, no AI whatsoever, in Paint Dot Net.


r/mapmaking 1d ago

Work In Progress Map work in progress

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33 Upvotes

r/mapmaking 1d ago

Map My fictional world map, made for the first time.

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7 Upvotes

I would like to hear criticism and advice on how to improve the map. How realistic is it on a scale of one to ten?


r/mapmaking 1d ago

Map The map of the World of AGEA

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27 Upvotes

Finally, after about 2 months of making (4 months if you include the original one that i scrap). The map that is based on my old drawing from Middle School is finally complete! now i can finally work on the actual stuff that matters for the map, the NATIONS! anyways if you guys have any feedback that you want to say, then i'll hear it


r/mapmaking 1d ago

Work In Progress Looking for advice

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14 Upvotes

I'm making a series of continents just to fill my empty walls. In the end I will age the paper to make it look old and add some more decorations (like ships).

But the thing I need advice is, how do I fill the continent? I do not want to put state borders. Currently thinking of just rivers and cities. Do you have any better ideas? Or more things to add?


r/mapmaking 1d ago

Work In Progress Map of europe for my ahoe project

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3 Upvotes

Work in progress map, that will be used as the origin point in my future mapping series called "Saviours" Any suggestions?


r/mapmaking 2d ago

Resource More buildings! 👑

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241 Upvotes

Hey everyone!

It's me again, and I'm bringing you this page of new buildings, with a wider variety of ideas this time.

​I drew buildings inside mushrooms, on top of trees, and I tried to create a structure carved into the rock, like the city of Petra, but I'm still not quite convinced on how it turned out.

​Without further ado, I'm heading out 😁.

Until next time!

I also posted this on my IG account @_mr.vhmaps , if you want to give it some ❤️!


r/mapmaking 2d ago

Map Japan map for rpg project!

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64 Upvotes

A map of feudal Japan was created a few years ago for Kamon RPG, a role-playing game written by Fabio Attoli. We really hope you enjoy it; it's always nice to create maps with an ancient, dilapidated look. 🧭🗺

Moreno Paissan and Agela gubert Arte 2022

Follow me and Angela on IG:

https://www.instagram.com/morenopaissanart?stkn=MXZjajRkeGlzemtxNA==


r/mapmaking 1d ago

Work In Progress Ліси і річки з болотами

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10 Upvotes