Whilst buying a few PDFs on RPGNow, I stumbled across the City of Liberty, originally intended to be published in many parts, but sadly now an abandoned project. It does have one redeeming feature, however. The city map earned it's artist, Christopher West, the 2004 Gold ENnie Award for Best Cartography, and is probably the best example of a near perfect fantasy city map since Judges Guild published City State of the Invincible Overlord in 1976.
I thought I should highlight the map (which is available separately) as a future collectable. Cafepress print on demand, but they drop items that don't sell, and seing as the project has run on bad times, it may never be completed. Whatever you think of
d20 and modern products, that does not have any bearing on what is and is not a good map. This one is brilliant.
So, why is this map so good? What sets it apart from masses?
To answer these questions we need to go back to the very basics of good map design. Whether it be good dungeon map design, good wilderness design or as in this case city design, there are four basic design tenets.
1. Terrain - The physical aspect of the space in which the character stands.
Good maps encompass more than a single type of terrain. This one contains a finely balanced selection of water and land, and within that there are rivers, waterfalls, ports and pools of varying sizes, and both rugged and calm costal waters. The land is divided between urban, rural and wilderness uses. We see fields, forestry, grassland and copse; out of town attractions, squalid and splendid construction, new and derelict construction, fortification, private gardens, a palace, a lighthouse and a stone circle.
2. Environment - The nature and use of the space in which the character stands.
Looking a little deeper into how these terrains have been placed, we see logic and functionality in the construction and layout of the city. It has credibility to it in the same way that believable history and motive creates a credible NPC. We see a palace built upon a natural bridge, an easily defensible position given the proximity of the barracks and military contingent in a city this size, but not the sort of place you could build a fortification before the city had been developed. So it was not always this way and just to the north are the remains of the old castle, a more traditionally placed and shaped fortification from a time when the city was not there. Maybe there was just a fishing village below. Of course the stone has all been removed to build the current city walls, and it looks like a large amount was quarried locally.
As the city has grown on the back of quarrying and seafaring, those who have grown wealthy on the back of the increase in trade live in the higher, more desirable locations, and have more spacious and less cramped dwelling. As the quarrying has almost reached sea level, the old quarry is given over to slum dwellings, a place that could be susceptible to falling rocks or the whims of tidal waters.
You only need to look carefully at a city map, and ask yourself 'Why?', and you will see how the place may have developed over time. The city maps that do not ring true, the ones that are poor to play, and hard to
DM, are the ones that have no built in developed character. They look like they have just been dropped there, for no apparent reason, just appeared over night.
This map has grown in the place it is drawn. You could be looking at a snapshot of a campaign that has been running in this location for many decades. It has that feel.
3. Dimension - The shape and scale of the space in which the character stands.
We live in a three dimensional world. If you bear this in mind when you design a setting for a campaign, or a dungeon, you are far more likely to engage your players.
With this particular map, the vertical aspect of the terrain has been used to great effect. We have a sunken port overlooked by both a grand palace and the ruins of the old castle fort. We have an elevated aqueduct that becomes the main technological feature when viewed from the squalid end or town. The rest of the enclosed city comprises tiered gardens and waterways, with temples and towers positioned on significant promontories and an arena and training fields placed in the centre of the flat lands; all designed to emphasise the three dimensional nature of the space.
4. Navigation - The method in which a character moves from one space to another.
One of the most critical considerations that a prospective dungeon, wilderness or city map designer must take on board is the means by which characters may move about a map. Too many maps can be navigated solely by walking around, and this is great if you want that old school scrapbook dungeon feel to your campaign.
Different terrains and environments tend to force you to vary the methods by which PCs navigate your map, as does using the third dimension. In this instance there is the option to walk or run the streets, swim or sail the channels, climb and scale the battlements, or venture into the warren of sewers and tunnels beneath the streets.
The use of tiers and waterways offer many more options of moving between say the squalid part and fortified merchant sector above. You can walk up and present yourself at the gatehouse, scale the cliff and battlements, jump in the river and try to negotiate the waterfall at night, or leave and present yourself at another gate. The same goes for approaching the palace. Do you present yourself at the gatehouse? Arrive by boat and scale the cliffs? Work your way along the aqueduct and into what must be a cellar system and cistern? And we've only looked at non-magical means of movement.
Varying the rate at which characters can move also adds to the interest of a map. This is most critical in the design of dungeon maps. Characters generally know that they can wander around wherever they like, and run away when necessary. By PCs can also crawl, climb, duck, jump, leap, swim, sink, swing, fall and fly. Forcing characters to consider and use unconventional means of movement can be some of the most rewarding experienced to
DM. Being aware of these possibilities and offering a wide variety of choices during the design or your dungeon map (or city map) will only enhance your dungeon and make you a better
DM.
Publisher -
The Game Mechanics........Cartographer -
Christopher West........Buy This Map -
CafepressThis week I've been mostly eating . . . The white ones with the little red flecks in them.
