The Game Master's Guide to Fantasy Mapmaking

Bring fantasy imaginations to life and create personalized worlds of wonders with this must-have cartography guide. From deciding the scope of one’s world to drawing the nitty-gritty details of its topography, Cody covers it all so that any eager reader looking to expand their game play or fiction world building knows exactly where to start. With this book, readers quickly realize that mapmaking isn’t just about creating direction; maps are the key to understanding a story’s setting and culture. Cody divulges important tools of the trade, teaching readers how to not only draw key individual assets (everything from mountains and cliffs to dragon bones and ancient ruins) but also how to integrate those geographic features into a functional, fantasy map. With tutorials grouped by biome, readers will be able to find detailed guidance on drawing anything they can dream up, from fortresses and farms in settled areas to floating mountains and magical portals in mystic lands. Beyond the specific assets and regional maps, Cody also includes broader tutorials on creating integrated world and planetary maps and composition and layering. And in even more exclusive lessons, readers will learn all the extra bits and bobs that turn an amateur’s map, epic, like perspective-informed borders and illustrative compass roses. Armed with this book, a piece of paper and a pen, any world is now, literally, in the palm of the reader’s hand.