Love the plaid water.

Another outstanding effort. Your work always seems to add much needed character to original works that often appear too utilitarian, if not at times downright dull and uninspired. Keep up the good work!

It looks very nice. I find the area names useful in FtF play too for discussions about borders, and necessary for use with the Scenario Book (to pick what bits are in play and which parts aren't). The flood plains are a bit too low key for my tastes, but I'm not sure there is anything you could do without ruining the general aesthetic. You might want to change the year that you added this in your intro

I like not having them, but that's purely personal preference. As this is a raster graphic, it's a lot easier for people to add them back in than it would be to remove them.

On the names, this thread: http://www.civproject.eu/forum/viewtopic.php?t=321

And thanks, fixed the date.

Nice!

Ha, thanks, glad you like - though surprised relative to your comments on item 4 - this shows significantly less topography than the CR map, which actually was accused of showing too much because it integrated non-period satellite photography.

Beautiful map, although I can't quite figure out the color scheme. In particular, the brownish tone seems to sometimes represent arid regions, and sometimes elevation. (unless macedonia and southern france are much drier than I realize)

Well, the guys at Civproject made those determinations - but in gameplay terms, I'm pretty sure it represents fertility and hospitality of the land to human habitation - because they correspond roughly with the population limits of a given area.

That is awesome. Nice work.

My only critique is that - having played the game many times - the battlefield countries really need to stand out from the rest. Perhaps changing their red stability number to be a white stability number inside a red box would do the trick.

Beautiful box art as well.

Alot of it was more a matter of opinion

The flags wrong flags are. Zaire, Algeria and Zimbabwe. Well Maybe not numerous, lets say several.

As I said before your a great talent, keep it up. Im glad someone finally hired you!

excellent job --- two thumbs up

In this case the map is not an improvement. The original map is simpler and fits better to counters. Artistic but not functional.

This one got a cleanup recently... http://www.west2productions.com/Mapology/_NEW/MapB6.html

A comment thread: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/124920

Ooh. Didn't even know about this game. Sounds like one the wife might be interested in.

Jason

This was picked up by Columbia for the game! http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/14844/item/379460#item...

I may just be getting old, but I can't make out the lettering at all. Is the contrast better than the picture lets on?

Yeah - try looking at it fullsize by clicking on the picture again after you've loaded it up.

Whoa. I hate to say it, but you got this one really, really wrong. I don't know who told you that the original was about punk elves, but they were sadly mistaken.

The Borderlands series with punk elves was a series of books published during the late '80s- early '90s, with authors like Charles de'Lint contributing short stories for the collections. The Borderlands game was published during the early '80s by Eon, and was a game of resource management and empire building in 'the barbaric future'. The two different Borderlands were completely unrelated.

Besides that, I find your new map kind of garish. I guess I can see where you're coming from with the urban/neon theme, but it's hard to make out different regions, etc. I think a more apropriate theme would be an futuristic/antique/anacronistic combo sort of thing- imagine your Vinci and Hammer of the Scots maps, but with a sort of (low-tech) techno edge to them. Perhaps as if the map was being viewed on a primitive holographic screen/projector/whatever. That would give the appropriate 'barbaric future' vibe.

Alas!

Very nice! Really adds a touch of class needed for this actually very good game.

i drool over the rest of the maps, but don't think this one is much of an improvement

Like it? I love it! I want one!!!!!!

Yes, I want one as well. This one and the Hannibal map!

"Mapmaker mapmaker, make me a map!" Please!

...and then we simply re-attach the ear like so...

Ha, that's true, really is a strangely shaped little island.

I'm sure Ted will be very happy with that. It actually bears a resemblance to Paths of Glory, another of his favorites.

Nice work.

First time I saw this I thought someone had actually defaced their own map.

Yeah. Sorry about that. It's long gone...

Amazing map. Kudos.

NEW VERSION: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/150687

This image is my desktop. It is gorgeous. I was wondering how to get a larger image for use with the copy of CR that is coming to my house.

OK, GMT should be hiring you.

Actually, Avalanche Press needs you more...

Superb!

What's wrong with GMT'S Maps? I think they are generally quite nice.

I think this is a wonderful semi-abstract painting that I would willingly put on the wall of my living room, but as a map of a theatre of war, the original is what I would play on, even with its wacky plastic green background and the Rand McNally road atlas imagery.



That the original map is much clearer in showing the topography and infrastructure that I would expect to see on a real map; that for me, it depicts a landscape with roads and cities and not an abstract network of intricate but content-free box shapes. Although I appreciate the art, for me the main goal of a game map is not to exhibit art, but to render geography.

And yes, I do like the eastern orientation of the new map.

That's an extraordinarily narrow definition of a map, especially for a boardgame mapboard. Let me recommend "The Map Book" (ed. Peter Barber)

WOW!!!! That's AWESOME!

What do you do about the red and blck lines between the regions? All the seperators look the same color.

JPGs aren't really detailed enough to show it, but Matt made the lines subtly different, and I didn't strengthen the difference. Probably should have...

Now that is an impressive map. Hammer of the Scots was the first game map that came to mind that was in desperate need of a redesign. Even after the second edition release they still got it wrong. Columbia Games should take some notice.

Lovely! I want to frame it.

It's very well done artistically and is much clearer, but it is a game board whereas the original is a map. Feels quite lifeless and unevocative to me; this would really drive home that I'm moving wooden blocks on paper rather than armies.

I was excited when I heard that they remade the Axis & Allies game with country specific troops, tanks, planes, etc. And then I saw the map...

I thought "You've got to be kidding?!! Man, that stinks on ice!" Your map is awesome however! How do you do it? Do you design it all on the computer? How do you get it printed though? Most maps would be way too big for a home printer. I'd like to know the details of how this is done as I've got some games that would benefit from a graphics overhaul of the maps and I think that it would be fun to give it a try if I just knew how to go about it. Super job on all the maps you've done so far!

Depends entirely on the material. WE print onto their outdoor vinyl, which makes a wonderful sigle-piece map that can be rolled up without losing shape... but it costs around 10 dollars/square foot. Other materials would cost significantly less I imagine.

On the vinyl, how does the color printing look? do you have a full range of colors? Is the banding obvious in gradients?

I'm going to have to look into this; I'm intrigued.

No, seems to work pretty well. Perhaps a bit more liable to scratches than printing on paper. I'd suggest printing a small test for yourself to see how you'd like it...

I'm going to do that! You've inspired me.

Great Stuff! This map is great fun to look at. I'm commenting to give you incentive to continue your efforts in general. I'll look at anything you make available.

i'm impressed! look like a lot of work.

Damn. That's impressive. That's the kind of photo I want to see more of.

Did you post a file of it somewhere?

The complete variant can be found here: http://www.west2productions.com/Gamers/AGOT9