Welcome back! This week's map is the Desert Cliffs (50x40), a large map that embodies my insistence that deserts maps ought to be 90% empty. But seriously, I'm sick and consider it a win that I managed to make any maps at all- here's hoping next week is better for me. I'd like to think I'll be making a more colorful map of a more uplifting setting but that relies on a lot of variables this weekend, we'll see how it goes.
Sketch! Here we've got your bog-standard cliff face with a path nearby. I was planning on adding a crossroad or something similar but I figured fewer signs of life would make for a more versatile desert map. I think I probably should have added 1 or 2 more fun elements to this map though, it's a little bare and that means it's a little unexciting. When I'm feeling inspired I like to ensure a map has 3 interesting elements, though when I'm struggling that number dips.
Cliffs, that's the map. I finally got the guts to make the ledges each paper thin, just 1 or 2 little contour lines below each one to give the impression of some unknown amount of depth. And, yes, it seems that shading does actually do the job, I probably could have been getting away with this from the first desert map but I guess I just didn't believe it would work without a certain level of detailing.
Sheesh, I had a heck of a time with the color here. All the water really threw me off, I just couldn't get a bead on the palette. I honestly couldn't tell you if this even looks similar to my previous few desert maps, I've stared at it for way too long to have any objective idea how it looks. Here's hoping it's halfway decent.