Thalassa hexed world map: 72 miles/hex scale

[LoZompatore]

I managed to make a full 72 mile/hex map of the whole world of Thalassa, below you'll find the result:



A full size picture can be downloaded here (zipped PNG image, about 3.5 Mb). Warning: it is a very large map (some 12500 x 6000 pixels) and you may not be able to fully visualize it in your computer. Just in case, I splitted this large picture into 4 smaller maps that you may download here (a set of four zipped PNG images, about 4 Mb total). Every lesser picture is about 6000 x 6000 pixels.

The Dymaxion projection of the map above grants that the distorsions induced by latitude on the hexgrid are someway shared by all hexes so, as far as mapmaking is concerned, we can well assume that all hexes on the map actually represent the same area and cross-borders distance, regardless of latitude/longitude distorsions and other similar issues (i.e: an equatorial exagon is equal to a hexagon near to the poles, and so on)
(Technical note: a dozen purple hexes are visible at the triangles' intersections; they should be pentagons instead of hexagons in order to have a true Dimaxyon progection, but the error you introduce in assuming them to be 6-side polygons is negligible)


Said so, I think the 72 miles/hex scale is someway a limit for the global map of an Earth-size planet (Thalassa happens to have a diameter which is about 1,2 Earth diameter, due to an early cartographic error of mine at the beginning of the project ). It took me a lot of time to build and polish this very big picture: I don't think that any larger scale grid (48 miles/hex, 24 miles/hex and so on) would represent a feasible choice in order to build a global map. In the near future I will not even try to build an hexed global map with a better hex resolution: I will use 24 miles/hex 8 miles/hex scales etc. just to make local maps of interesting places of the setting.

Anyway, I think that the hexed global map would make every region pretty easy to identify and to be represented on more detailed scales. It would also make the calculations of distances between distant places pretty easy. Moreover, I agree with Dave_L's thoughts about having an unambiguous method of identifying regions on the global map (i.e a unique reference hexgrid for the whole planet) so to avoid having nearby local maps with mismatching overlapping borders.
(To Dave_L: are you still around here? What do you think of the map? Do you think it would be still necessary to number hexes? I estimate the map contains more than 100'000 of them!!)

Hope this set of pictures may help you in the future mapmaking of Thalassa!

[Ashtagon]

um, broken links I think

Seems google docs wants you to go to their page, then download, rather than just right-click and select download.

[Dave L]

The links worked for me.

Wow.

That is some fantastic work!

I feel numbering hexes would be quite complicated at that scale - once you get over a 100x100 area it also starts to look crowded. I don't think mis-matched borders will be a problem at this scale, but when you get down to 48 or 8 miles per hex it could be, so perhaps some method of allocating areas to map could be considered.

What I do feel quite strongly about is that we should all use your hex grid for all the maps, so that they do match up when it comes to putting them together.

I still have the Gimp file I made with the hex grid as a separate layer, but haven't done any more work on converting Thorf's artwork. No-one has asked about this, so it was put at the bottom of things to do.

If anyone is interested I can look at this again.

[metal]

Nice looking map!!!

[LoZompatore]

Thanks a lot for the support!

Seems google docs wants you to go to their page, then download, rather than just right-click and select download.

I'm automatically redirected to the download if I right-click on the link and then choose the "open in another window" option (I'm using IE). If you still find problems tell me and I'll try to fix it.

What I do feel quite strongly about is that we should all use your hex grid for all the maps, so that they do match up when it comes to putting them together.

I tend to agree with you: this map could be used as a basis from which drawing detailed zooms or even better 72 miles/hex portions of Thalassa. The 72 miles/hex map above is still very rough: lots of plain hexes, "wide" coastlines, no forest/lakes/rivers, etc:
anyway, I hope to add a few more (very general) details to it before the new version of the updated document will be issued (all my future maps will be based on this master picture).

[Chimpman]

I'll throw in my support as well, and say this is a great mapping effort! I was toying with the idea of taking a small portion of the map and Thorfizing it (using the standard Thorf hexes), but ran out of time this weekend.

[LoZompatore]

I was toying with the idea of taking a small portion of the map and Thorfizing it (using the standard Thorf hexes), but ran out of time this weekend.

This would be really, really great!
In my opinion mapmaking is the basis of a setting: if you would like to flesh out some area of this world you are more than welcome! As you see, there are more than 120'000 72 mile hexes on the global map, which turn to a sheer 800'000 - 900'000 if you refine the scale to a 24 mile/hex grid (not even worth speaking about 8 miles' hexes). As you see, any help in mapmaking would be really helpful!

[Chimpman]

I was toying with the idea of taking a small portion of the map and Thorfizing it (using the standard Thorf hexes), but ran out of time this weekend.

This would be really, really great!
In my opinion mapmaking is the basis of a setting: if you would like to flesh out some area of this world you are more than welcome! As you see, there are more than 120'000 72 mile hexes on the global map, which turn to a sheer 800'000 - 900'000 if you refine the scale to a 24 mile/hex grid (not even worth speaking about 8 miles' hexes). As you see, any help in mapmaking would be really helpful!

Ok, I'll see what I can come up with over the next couple of weeks.

[Seer of Yhog]

I downloaded it and had a look at it (almost killing my computer in the process). I suppose I didn't really read the thread title, but when you said it was hexed, you weren't kidding! Congratulations on finishing a project of that magnitude!

That map is begging to be filled...

[LoZompatore]

Thanks a lot! My computer still bleeds from the last time I needed to open the full size map!
Anyway, I think that most mapmaking will be done on smaller regions. I think at the full global map just as a reference frame useful to match smaller maps together.

That map is begging to be filled...

You said it! But it is a overwhelming effort for a single man: I hope many more people will add their contributions to the map!