MECCG Map Attempt

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Padster
Posts: 24
Joined: Sat Jan 01, 2011 10:40 pm

Hi chaps

See attached map of Middle-earth MECCG, including the Northern Wastes. This is at 50% resolution (32MB).

I am not sure what the base map this is made from was meant to represent in the first place, i.e.: what expansions it was meant to cover (other than clearly covering the NW). Whilst there are some regions to the South and East on the map, some of the expansions (which TBH I am not familiar with outside of the expansions that lead up to The Balrog), are clearly not catered for in full.

There are usability issues with this map, some of which I think are easy to spot now, and some of which possibly won't come out in full until I get it printed (using the full hi-res export from GIMP, which this clearly isn't, and which is over 100MB).

These usability issues might be:
  • Site names are very small (almost unreadable in the low-res attached). I sized the Site names on the basis of fitting them all on the map in the most densely populated site areas, like around Udun and Imlad Morgul. This did mean the Site names had to be small and therefore, I fear, unreadable. I may have to increase the size of the site text, which is going to be difficult when it comes to fitting them all in to those densely populated Site areas.
  • The sites only have icons for Information and Items (minor, major, greater and rings). For some reason, that is now irrelevant, I put text within each icon's to further help ID what they stood for, i.e.: I, Mi, Ma, G and R. I should have just stuck with solid blocks of colour (as I have seen on another MECCG map) and then added a Key to what the colours meant at the bottom of Belegaer. I should really add where Allies and Factions are playable too, but I do fear this will make highly populated areas even tighter on space. Plus additional complications are that some Sites can have factions playable, but only where certain conditions are met, which I am unsure how to represent.
  • The inclusion of the Underdeeps is, I believe, necessary, but it does complicate the map still further. I am a little uncertain I have the numbers representing the chances of movement between Underdeeps sites correct.
  • In the original game there were impassable mountains, but that seems to have been ditched in one of the post-Balrog expansions. Subsequent maps I have seen online, have some mountains with region symbols, whilst others still do not have them. It would be good to get some clarity on this.
  • The Eastern and South Eastern regions (Nuriag, Relmether, Nurad, Chey and Heb Aaraan) have no sites. I am sure they must exist in some of the expansions (Central Plains?), and it would be nice to get them on here.
In terms of the construct of this map, it has been completed in GIMP, which seems more than suitable for the task. GIMP seems to be quite easy to learn, and I have done all my learning so far, just in the building of this map. I don't recall where I got the original base map from now, but it had next to nothing on it, other than the orange borders and a few names (all of which I have tried to get rid of, in favour of my layer that holds all the region names). Not all the borders were complete (and some I fear were not accurate). So I completed the borders (as best I could), on the original map, and then added everything else as layers, to make it as easily amendable as possible without screwing with the other layers.

I plan to get this test printed on something like A0 paper (1188mm x 840mm, or 46.7" x 33"). When I zoom in to 100% View on the map within GIMP, everything is perfectly legible, so I do hold out some hope that the map, once printed, will be usable, even if it could be greatly improved with some tweaks. Ultimately I will try to reduce the map, in terms of printing it, so it can fit on my dining room table, with space enough for the players around the edge.

This map is clearly far from perfect, and I would welcome constructive feedback on how it might be improved. Once I have amended, post-feedback, I will happily send it to anyone who wishes a copy.

Please feedback as soon as you can.

Cheers

Patrick
Attachments
001 - No Name Key - Clean Up - With Boarders - 50pc.png
001 - No Name Key - Clean Up - With Boarders - 50pc.png (32.9 MiB) Viewed 5175 times
Vastor Peredhil
Council Member
Posts: 1321
Joined: Wed Jan 31, 2007 10:46 am
Location: Kempen (Niederrhein) Germany

well - Muzgash was trying something similar - maybe you both could team up or share some effort - also best join discord so we can live chat about it - it makes communication soo much easier

yours Nicolai aka Vastor DC Team
Muzgash
Posts: 78
Joined: Tue Jul 09, 2013 1:24 am

Hey Padster, this looks really cool. In some sense I think our projects are a bit different in that I'm trying to build an interactive map and you're building a printable map that has all sorts of useful information on it. I think the two maps would be very complementary.

That being said, it should be pretty easy for me to add the interactions from the map I was using to any other map if there is any appetite for that. I'm still pretty early in developing my project, but this is what it looks like so far.

https://uvatha.github.io/

I could even include some of the information that you're including as a pop-up text box.

Anyway, looks really nice so far.
Padster
Posts: 24
Joined: Sat Jan 01, 2011 10:40 pm

I have done another run through of the site names, and inevitably found some errors. I have also added factions and allies, but only where they specify a site. For example, I have not included an Ally or Faction where it says that they can be played at ANY Ruin/Lair, etc, in a specific region or regions.

I will upload a new version when I have updated the map.

In the meantime, in the hope that someone can now provide it (as it can be seen I am actually producing stuff in which some might see some value), does anyone have hi-res DC maps that are just plan, i.e.: with nothing on it. Just the map. I could then add the borders as a layer instead as part of the map itself.

If anyone has the larger map that shows the lands to the south, then I will happily do a version of that too.

If not, then so be it. I'll keep going with this map, tweaking an updating, and anyone can have it. You'll just have to PM me.

Also, happy to join Discord. Is there a link of something?

Cheers


Padster
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CDavis7M
Posts: 2816
Joined: Fri Jul 20, 2018 3:10 am
Location: California

I like what you have done. But for me, the map really has 2 use cases:

Deckbuilding: I am deciding which sites to use, checking region distances and playability, etc. Here I don't really care how the map looks and I just want to see the information as easily as possible, and be able to determine alternative sites, compare the automatic attacks, compare site paths, etc. And so this map is usable for that but not ideal, and really, not even good for it.

In Game Region Movement: Here, I appreciate a nice looking map. But I'm mostly concerned with being able to point out my path to my opponent. At this point, playability doesn't matter because I already know what I'm doing. Sure, plans can change, but I have already determined alternatives. And if crazy stuff happens, I'd rather check a deckbuilding style map to see where I need to go, rather then scan small text and images.

So, I like the map for region movement, but I don't find the site playability to be useable enough to warrant having. Still, it looks nice. Well done. I'm sure others would like it.
Kjeld
Posts: 307
Joined: Thu Mar 22, 2012 5:40 pm

The third use case is to print it out huge and use it as a table-sized mat underneath your (Arda) game.
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thenamelessthing
Posts: 58
Joined: Sun Jul 20, 2008 12:56 pm
Location: Quebec,Qc,Canada
Contact:

Where can I get this map in full quality? It is finished?
My haves/wants are here: https://councilofelrond.org/forum/viewt ... 124&t=4397

Join Meccg discord server at: https://discord.gg/EFqBJmT

Join Meccg (Canada FR & EN) Facebook group at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/meccgquebec
Padster
Posts: 24
Joined: Sat Jan 01, 2011 10:40 pm

thenamelessthing wrote: ↑Sat Nov 21, 2020 4:05 am Where can I get this map in full quality? It is finished?
Not quite. I have done some tidying up, and made the site names bigger. I stil don't know if they will be legible once printed. Obviously on screen one can just zoom in and out.

And am still lacking sites for the regions in the far east of the map, but that is mostly because I have not looked them up in the plethora of expansions available. Not sure I will bother prior to a test print.

I'll just finish making some of Ered Harmal impassable (I am sure I have seen a map with some it is impassable), then I'll post a revised version.

Cheers


Patrick
Padster
Posts: 24
Joined: Sat Jan 01, 2011 10:40 pm

Latest version attached, and I think the first one I am going to get test printed.

Any feedback on the following would be appreciated:

- Adding sites, particularly in the East and South.
- Identifying errors.

The map is at 50% resolution to keep the file size down. Even at this resolution it is over 30megs. Full map is over 100megs.

Cheers


Padster
Attachments
001 - No Name Key - Clean Up - With Boarders at 50pc.png
001 - No Name Key - Clean Up - With Boarders at 50pc.png (32.17 MiB) Viewed 4900 times
telengard
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue Aug 24, 2010 1:56 am

Wow, this is amazing. Thanks for your work on this. Will be curious to hear about how you had it printed as well.
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synesios
Posts: 15
Joined: Mon Jul 24, 2017 7:01 pm

Hello ,

The tool is amazing ! Very useful for deck building exploration.
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