map idea repeated

[Anonymous]

Hey guys.

My names gone black and I’m having trouble logging in now, so I’ll be a guest for the time being.

Anyway, a while ago I posted the following idea for using maps in the WLD:

Print out the poster size maps minus the secret doors/traps at kinkos

laminate them

color over them with dry erase markers

reveal the map as the players go along.

I finally took some pictures of an example map of the principle in action. It’s a good poor man’s alternative to using a projector.

The map in the photo has been well used so the black parts could do with some touching up. Also in the photo is a print out of a black/white map with the traps/secret doors/my notes on it which I use as the DM.

What do you guys think?

[riddles]

Actually, I think that works rather well.

How easy is it to scrape the stuff off?

Also, have you thought of using the larger artwork protectors that you can buy? You could then reuse rather than needing to aminate each one.

[Wellard]

The question is where in the UK could I get it done.I have already been knocked back by Prontaprint(the only shop of that type in my town)

[Anonymous]

The map in the photo is of region A and shows the wear and tear after a month and a half of gaming.

I basically just used a standard thick EXPO dry erase marker to fill it in. It took me about 20 minutes and was effectively opaque. We gamed on top of the surface with dice and paper and the stuff didn’t really wear off (certainly not enough to matter). I used the eraser side of a pencil to reveal corridors and my EXPO dry erase marker had a bigger eraser on it’s opposite end so I used that for larger areas of big rooms. The stuff worked perfectly and the players really enjoyed seeing the map rather than having to draw it.

For the game, I made region A much more fiendish than in the book. As per Twofalls suggestions on the Enworld thread, longtail had been killed by a Kyton that was waiting for the party at the end. Also, I included various nasty buggers from the book of fiends (Green Ronin). You know the very first 3 orcs the party encounters? Well after the first night the party heard them being slaughtered so they came back to check it out. They were just in time to see a Vlogar burst out of one of the Orc’s bulging stomach (which is a servitor of lust from gehenna and gets a sado-masicistic delight in it’s own pain which the party found disturbing). At other points I had the walls talk to players. As well as the heads of fallen monsters. One time, a doorway bit off a players hand. The cleric was too low level to do anything about it, so they used knowledge (engineering) to anchor a thieve’s pick and dagger into the bone of the arm stump (think evil dead).

They all had terrible knightmares as well as they got closer to A103 with increasingly bad effects (becoming fatigued).

I got sick of the darkmantles so I replaced them with Unc’s (book of fiends, like aliens they lay eggs in you that burst your chests and become Vlogars which then violate your corpse).

I also replaced a lot of the swarms with roaving bands of lemures.

Turag played a big role in my parties region A fun. I altered him a bit to make him a more decent NPC and a potential player character upon PC death (all the players characters after their first one are made by me and must come from the dungeon- hence half of them are know lizard men, crazy gnomes, or bugbears). Anyway Turag had monkey grip with a large greataxe which made him the biggest meat cleaver ever. The funny thing was, that the party was so scarred of him, they ended Coup-de-graing him in his sleep.

Oh well.

Sorry, I don’t know where you can print out poster size colour prints in Britain (it’s 22 by 17.5 inches I think). A university print shop maybe?

Cheers,

Sam

[Wellard]

Well my nearest uni is over 100 miles away so thats not economical

think I will just have to go with a mosaic print at A4 size(4 sheets to a region)

[riddles]

Wellard wrote:

The question is where in the UK could I get it done.I have already been knocked back by Prontaprint(the only shop of that type in my town)

They don’t do A3 repro? How strange!

[Ffaern]

Sam,

You really are a Rat Bastard DM! I should imagine your players are terrified.

Well done Sir!

Brian

[Wellard]

Actually Riddles US poster is slightly taller than A3 but not as wide this means that you lose about 1/2″ of the map.The next size up they offer is A5.Additionally they will not copy anything which may violate copyright(which means I have to sneak prints from my works Photocopier whenever I can)

[riddles]

Wellard,

Silly question but do they do digital printing to A3? If so, take in the pdfs (it could also mean you can take off all the trap symbols etc, esp. off area B…)

[DM_Bashir]

You don’t even need a laminate over each individual map. I went to kinkos in the states and they said it would cost me 800-1200$ US to do it all.

That is when i got the idea to use a simple Poster frame, and just black marker the entire plastic covering. the solution is a mere 20$ US and it can be used forever. The only problem is to decide what scale to stick to so that you can print out the map in managable portions.

-DM Bashir

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