I really need to organize my files better.
So I was downloading a few free maps for later reference/inspiration when I found a folder containing a handful of maps that Logen Nein had posted up on the reddits. Most of these maps were from when he was first experimenting with mapping and posting them up for critique and use. I've cobbled together an encounter area using one of these maps before.
Hmm. What's this folder? Oh look, this map...
...and a half-finished dungeon-stocking exercise dated March 2023. Holy unfinished projects, Batman. Yes, one of many temporarily or permanently abandoned projects.
I'd come up with quite a few features and foes to occupy the space, but had never determined a theme or raison d'etre for the place.
The big-bad had been inspired by a post and illustration from Yuri Perkowski, one of the illustrators of Shadowdark and other RPG products. It occupied the space denoted as "22. Chimera-type monster, born of cataclysm, broken thing" on my map.
And then it sat for two years.
Ok, let's print this thing out, figure out names and personalities for the placeholders left in the old document. Make some justification for the highlighted and "???" inserts. And what the hell do the four classical elements have to do with anything?
Two more days of scribbling and squinting, followed by rampant theft from Wikimedia Commons.
And a (hopefully) cohesive exploration space filled with hazards and discovery. I leaned heavily on my favorite spell supplement, Theorems & Thaumaturgy, as well as a couple of other favorite resources.
Add a silly alliterative name, and let's post this thing. Statted per OSE/flexible old-school stuff, best for a mid-level party with a bit of resilience.
Welcome to Lysimachur's Elemental Error. Watch your step.
Let no one say anything bad about a map hoarding addiction.
ReplyDeleteNot at all. Or allowing old projects to marinate.
Delete