What do you use to create maps? (Particularly city)

[Miz_Liz]

I'm working on a custom setting right now that is going to be one giant city (Think Coruscant, but less sci-fi and more steampunk) and I want to create a map to give the players a general layout. This won't be a battle map, as the scale is too big, more for show and tell. The problem is I can't draw to save my life, and I can't afford to shell out money for something like Inkarnate pro (I tried doing it with just the free assets, didn't really look right.)

So I'm just kind of throwing the question out there. When ya'll are making non-battle maps, what sort of systems/tools/sites/etc do you use? Any tips for someone who can't draw to make something reasonably good looking?

[Pleh]

Besides free map software? I've been shamelessly stealing some favorite maps from video games. It's a lot of work doing that much tracing, but you tend to get good quality maps.

The nice thing about Coruscant clones is the players will never see most of it, so you only need the main area. I'd suggest looking at early Assassin's Creed maps, as they're modeled off historic locations, but they're manageable in scope and easy to tweak after you get the bare bones put down.

[AdmiralCheez]

I draw a lot of city maps by hand and don't worry about whether or not I'm any good at it. Generally, as long as the point gets across, the players don't care too much. Like, these rectangles over here with the words "market district" written over them are the market district. These curved lines snaking through the middle are a river, and these solid lines are roads. No sense in going the extra distance to make a fancy, to-scale map if it isn't necessary, unless of course you just want to.

If you don't want to do that, you can always go into any image editor and put a bunch of simple shapes down as buildings. This way you even get to color-code them.

[Anxe]

I use a paid software for mine, so not much help. You could try building the maps using a scenario editor from a game like Age of Empires or some other RTS/city builder game you already own?
I'd agree with the others though. Quality of drawing isn't as important as, "what is where?" A sketch can be just fine.

[Beleriphon]

https://theangrygm.com/practical-cartography/

Angry has some good advice. The important part of a map is the information. A fancy pretty piece of art is not necessary to convey information. It is necessary if you want fancy pretty art to show your group.

A city map can be a setup like a flow chart, you have to go through the market to get from the jail to palace. Beyond that you don't need much layout on a street by street basis unless its relevant.

Look at a what a real work map does for you. It gives you information you need. Want to navigate by car, you need the street layout, want to navigate by compass on foot, you need elevation and locations of specific objects in relation to each other. Neither of those require knowing the precise location of every building. If you wanted to use a map to determine the layout of a subway system you do want to know the size and shape of buildings along with the who owns what property on the route; you'd probably need to know soil composition as well.

[jayem]

https://theangrygm.com/practical-cartography/

Angry has some good advice. The important part of a map is the information. A fancy pretty piece of art is not necessary to convey information. It is necessary if you want fancy pretty art to show your group.

A city map can be a setup like a flow chart, you have to go through the market to get from the jail to palace. Beyond that you don't need much layout on a street by street basis unless its relevant.

Look at a what a real work map does for you. It gives you information you need. Want to navigate by car, you need the street layout, want to navigate by compass on foot, you need elevation and locations of specific objects in relation to each other. Neither of those require knowing the precise location of every building. If you wanted to use a map to determine the layout of a subway system you do want to know the size and shape of buildings along with the who owns what property on the route; you'd probably need to know soil composition as well.

And if/as you're on 'Coruscent' you could have the fancy art be a 'Tube Map', Space-Taxi fare poster or some other variant (enabling you to use your flow chart directly).

[jjordan]

I like this as a starting point. I heavily modify them using GIMP and Inkscape. Sometimes I prefer to pull the street map of an actual medieval town/city off Google Maps and then use Inkscape to put in the buildings and modifications I want. I've played around with using Sketch-Up to make simple 3D maps but that's generally too much work.

For what you're looking at you could simply do area mapping. Break your larger area up into smaller areas and make a few notes for each area:

-Smuggler's Pit
Warehouse district serving the small port adjacent. Medium to small warehouses with flophouses and bars fit in between them. Higher than average crime rate, higher than average law enforcement presence, no one wants to see something that will inconvenience them.
Lots of bots and laborers moving things around.

[Beleriphon]

And if/as you're on 'Coruscent' you could have the fancy art be a 'Tube Map', Space-Taxi fare poster or some other variant (enabling you to use your flow chart directly).

Also true. You can combine those things, but fancy art does not a map make. And being able to produce fancy art isn't always in everybody's wheelhouse, even if we as RPG players tend to enjoy those kinds of things. I know I do, even if I'm not the best at producing fancy art.

As an example look at the London Underground map. It is super, super straightforward. All it does is show where the different stations are in order, and which lines cross and where. It isn't even accurate based on distance between stations. But is however a brilliant map to get the reader the information they specifically require from a map of the London Underground.

[Imbalance]

I use AutoCAD and plot them to scale on scrap paper. I've made a few "nice," finished and detailed maps that I had printed in color at Staples.

Literally watered down Coruscant:

https://www.google.com/search?q=star...iw=640&bih=312

[hoaiphong123]

I often use AutoCAD. It's easy for me

[Ken Murikumo]

For a time, i used to draw city maps by hand on paper. It was pretty basic but it mostly got the point across. I eventually got lazy and used an online town generator (google will bring you to a few if you look). Now i don't even do that. For me and mine, it doesn't really contribute to the wealth of the game. I find it's easiest to google image search for "whatever cityscape" and use a picture that really conveys what i want the setting to look like. I then use my DM descriptive power to run the players through their time in the setting. I have a laptop that i use, but passing around a smartphone would work too.

I do, however, still make world maps if the setting is that inclusive and open ended. My campaign now is set in space so i kit-bashed a bunch of space pictures i found on google into a galaxy map (using paint.net if anyone is interested in a free lightweight image editor that isn't Photoshop).

[Squire Doodad]

Go stare at an Escher work for a few hours XD

Actually though looking at landscape artwork could help. I find basing things off of a fictional place is bad because you tend to either wed yourself to replicating "sorta-[place]" or to making it overly distinct, and instead it's better to base it off of the idea of it. May seem odd but that's how I would describe it?

I usually would sketch things out myself, more going for how the city looks than the actual roadways and such aside from major landmarks. Unless there's an invading army nearby...