Battle Map Making

Combat is an important part of the D&D experience, yet how can one make a fun map for their players to fight on? There are actually a few ways to get a map quickly without having any real difficulty.

The easiest way is to disregard the map all-together and the G.M. just keep vague track of where people are in their head. That can lead to many confusing experiences where the G.M. loses track of where someone is, or people keep thinking they are closer to a target than they really are.

Scratch paper is a great way to make a quick map. This method is very spur of the moment so most of the time the paper is small and people are represented by simple icons. A lot of erasing and redrawing is needed with this method. A G.M. could draw some basic maps in ink a head of time, and then reuse the material. The issue there would be the wear and tear on the paper from continually erasing and redrawing on it.

One could also use a map from online. D&D is over forty years old, so it should have plenty of maps floating around in images only search engines. What's important to note here is that this method usually doesn't work well when printed out. First most printers are only going to do the 8''x11'' letter size paper, and to keep something in color could require a lot of ink. Online maps work best for online game sessions, such as Roll 20 and Fantasy Grounds. These allow the players and G.M. to see where the various player and non-player icons are on the map. There are also sites that can randomly generate dungeons and the battle maps can just be the dungeon rooms themselves. (D&D Dungeon Generator).

Figure 1: Map from online. (anomiecoalition).

Similar to the scratch paper method would be the use of a white board. White boards would also use very simplistic representations of the battlefield; however, white boards can easily have their contents be redrawn and come in much large sizes than scratch paper. Laminated boards can function in the same way as well.

Figurines can be used instead of icons. While these are more costly and incases require the time to pain them oneself, figurines remove the need of an icon or constantly redrawing character positions on the map. Due note that if one is using letter size paper that the figurines would be best kept small, or have multiple papers puzzled together.

In truth one could ignore the use of a map with figurines much better, and simply use other items as a means of portraying the battle. Instead of a log bridge, through the water bottle there. Instead of a river, use some string to represent it.

There is also the question of angles. Most battle maps are bird's eye view maps, some though can be isometric. The purpose of an isometric map is to give better feeling of depth or size; however, it makes the process of properly gridding maps with squares/hexes more difficult. It also makes the use of figurines or other icons more difficult, as they can't be scaled down to the perspective.

Figure 2: Isometric Map. (NA).

If someone is willing to pay the extra money, they can buy tiles to assemble together.  If that's too expensive you could always use old cardboard, cut it into equal sized pieces, then color them with acrylic paint. This will provide much cheaper and customizable tiles for the players to use in combat.

Drawing off digital games, specifically Neverwinter to keep a D&D focus, the battle maps can be better focused on. "With that in mind the environment team could take existing maps and modify them to suit the narrative of the story arc." (Julia). Random maps don't need this, but when designing a campaign make certain that the battlefield adds or tells its own story.

When making a map consider what actions can be done on it. If your players are in a bar then there are tables for them to flip over as shields, counters to stand, and chairs as improvised weapons. Doing a large area of effect spell could ruin the building itself. Props are a way to give a sense of environment to a map. To give an idea of how to build a map the one in Figure 3 will be deconstructed.

Figure 3: River Crossing Map. (eVile-eAgle).

At first this map seems fairly simple but there is a lot of potential. The road shows a clear sense of direction, reinforcing that the encounter happened while the players were travelling. There is also a river of unknown depth with a narrow bridge going over.

The bridge creates a clear choke point during a fight. There is also flexibility in the map. The river has several stones sticking out of it that a player or nonplayer character could use to get across the river, avoiding the bridge; moreover, the G.M. could have the river not be very deep. Reducing the depth of the river would create difficult terrain, so avoiding the bridge and stones would greatly hinder anyone wading through to the other side.

Figure 3 also has foliage. The bushes can act as a means of concealment. Rogues or other stealthy characters can then use the bushes as means of hiding from enemies. The bushes could also be set on fire in a fight to add to the chaos of it.

Finally the map has differences in elevation. The first difference is the river bank; it being a sharp slope to the water. More notably is the rock outcropping on near the river towards the right edge of the map. Either the players or nonplayers can use this to gain advantage on ranged attacks.

While a very simple map it employees a sense of story, agency, props, and elevation. None of those items need to be complex. Below are a series of pictures I created that go through the process of creating a basic battle map that incorporates very simple elements. The software used was Pain.Net.

Figure 4: Foundation

First I start with a 6x4.5 inch white space to build on. Next I make a rough outline of the map parameters, along with picking the angle. I decided to go with a wall battle scene to fit with my Ruination of Bran campaign I created. To emphasize the elevation I made the map isometric. For larger scale areas like fields this would be more annoying, but I only have to grid a very small space in this instance due to the narrowness of the walls.

Figure 5: Laying out

Second I make another layer in the Pain.Net program to start creating the actual walls. This process only requires limited definition and need not be fancy. I simply want to give a clear picture of how the walls are. A useful tip for this program is also to make one item detailed [the battlements] and then copy paste it with slight tweaks where needed. I also create a see-in border for the tower should the players go in there.

While I work on the main layer that will become the battle map, I do keep the initial drawing of Figure 4 visible. The lines are there to act as a means of guiding me to ensure I keep the line angles relatively consistent throughout the process.

Figure 6: Starting Stairs

Third I add on to the walls and tower some more. I created more battlements for the top of the Tower. I also wanted to show the defenders didn't think enemies would get past this wall, so I didn't add battlements to the side facing the town. It also puts less work on me. After that began the process of creating stair cases. I decided to remove the lines I made for guiding the walls and replaced them with those of stairs. For the lower more obscured parts of the tower I hid the majority of its stairs beyond the scope of the see-in border to reduce my workload.

Figure 7: Stairs Complete 

Fourth I continued to detail the stairs. It took some times but I managed to create individual steps and a railing. More importantly though I added a means to measure distance once the grid is set in place, along with giving a compass for direction. I also added a title for the map in Algerian font.

Figure 8: Almost Done

Fifth I began to add in props and other environmental effects. I started by added deformations to the wall on the left side as a means of showing both that the city had been under siege and to remove white space. Some brick patterning was added too in various spots to remove white space also, yet again not everywhere as a mean of reducing white space. Next I went about adding a few props into the tower, beds, barrels, crates, and so on. This was to add a sense that the space was used. Then I added a rope with a grapple to indicate how the players reached the area. I ended this part by placing a city building in the background near the wall to remove white space and give the player's the idea of jumping off the wall rather than fighting.

Figure 9: Complete

Finally come the grid lines. Normally I don't use them but a large assortment of people do. This process is tedious but valuable. I made a separate layer to create a large blue gridline over the wall and tower. After that I went into the layer the wall with details were on and began to redraw over the blue line in black. Once completed I deleted the blue grid layer. Alternatively I could have erased around the edges and merged the layers, but I didn't want to risk missing anything.

Completed I now have battle map for my campaign. I can also save this picture and reuse it in the future, removing the text if need be. The map itself gives the players a sense of height and narrowness. There are numerous choke points and little path to escape beyond risking a jump to the buildings or climbing down the rope. The map was designed for an encounter that was time sensitive, with more enemies coming after a certain amount of rounds. This forces players to be especially quick. That makes the choke points of the narrow doors and stairs even more difficult. If they are fighting outside the encounter also has ranged enemies firing down upon them.

There it is the different ways to make battle maps, and my own loose step by step method for making one. Feel free to use the map I made if you want too.

Works Cited

anomiecoalition. U1 - Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh (Al-Qadim Revision). Drunken Nerdy. March 24, 2013. Web. 04/30/2017. Accessed <https://drunkennerdery.com/2013/03/24/u1-sinister-secret-of-saltmarsh-al-qadim-revision/>

D&D Dungeon Generator. drow. 2016. Web. 4/30/2017. Accessed <http://donjon.bin.sh/5e/dungeon/>

eVile-eAgle. River Crossing Battlemap. DeviantArt. 2011. Web. 04/30/2017. Accessed <http://evile-eagle.deviantart.com/art/River-Crossing-Battlemap-265852012>

Julia. Developer Blog: Quest Environment. Perfect World Entertainment, Inc. April 17, 2017. Web. April 20, 2017. Accessed <https://www.arcgames.com/en/games/neverwinter/news/detail/10469103>

NA. Author Not Available. Publisher Not Available. Date Published Not Available. Web. 04/30/2017. Accessed <http://cdn.obsidianportal.com/assets/6299/DandD1.jpg>