TTRPGs
Over time, I’ve come to play Tabletop RPGs with my friends, both as a player and as a Dungeon Master. When acting as as DM, I like to write scenarios and create maps myself to play with.
This article will just be a showcase of different maps and other miscellaneous elements I have prepared for TTRPGs over the years.
This is a mix of Narrative Design, Level Design, and Game Design all at once!
Map Creation
Roll20 is an “online virtual tabletop” to play Tabletop RPGs online without having everybody in the same room. I prefer face-to-face sessions too, but when all participants are all over the country, this is a good alternative.
This article is, obviously, NOT sponsored by Roll20; it’s just the tool we use.
The thing is with online RPGs, there is a map, there are tokens that people move around, and those assets need to be done.
I could use Forgotten Adventures (again, not sponsored) and their catalogue of ready-made maps; but those maps need the story to adapt to the maps.
I like to write complex and custom scenarios though…
This is why I make my own maps.
Using Forgotten Adventures’ Mapmaking ressources (instead of their maps directly), I can create custom maps in Photoshop specifically for my settings, as well as customize the tokens so that characters have the right colour schemes or equipment.
Intro’s done, here are the results (WebP compression messes a bit with them but it’s good enough):
“Assault of the Fortress of Sablevent”
“Stopping a dozen of minutes away from the Fortress, you found—as indicated, the entry of the underground Surrey River. You went back up the flow of the water using uneven rocky footing inside of this dark and damp cavern. It feels like you’re drenched from head to toes just by being there; but your goal is close.”
“You enter a mystical room, covered in large stones lit by all colours. In the center, a stone altar illuminated in purple is surrounded by black-emitting glyphs, as if photons were vacuumed in their vicinity. And all around, alchemy tools, organic matter and glassware are scattered.”
“As you move down the hallway, you enter the dormitory section. The West wing is for merchants, whether employed or temporary, while the East rooms are for other workers like cooks and guards. Traces of everyday life are found around some beds, while some are left distinctly void of personality. Something seemed to have happened in this one room though.”
“The Ashen Woods”
“You find yourself on the border of the Ashen Woods. In front of you the vegetation worries and intrigues you. Beyond the dirt paths is a physical border, a supernatural expression from which everything is grayed out, desaturated. Grass, trees, bushes… Everything looks as if covered in an anormal ashen veil.”
“In front of you stands the two-story manor. No footsteps are visible from your position and dust covers windows and wood alike. But what stands out to you is the liveliness of the construction. The saturation maybe. The grayed veil of the Ashen Woods doesn’t seem to affect it. The doors half-open as you approach. You are welcome inside of the Manoir Gazel.”