untitled story WORLD MAP

ixorv

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So this wonderful post gave me the idea to look for feedback on the two maps I made (for myself, to help me envision the world my story takes place in). Are there any names that strike you as too odd/too close to something else?

(My youngest came up with The King's War for a working title)

RED - the kingdom the story takes place in
GREEN - the antagonist kingdom
ORANGE - protagonist kingdom's allies
PURPLE - antagonist kingdom's allies
YELLOW - neutral but sending resources to antagonist kingdom's allies
Capital cities are in yellow.



***

This map is to show the distance between the capital cities of the protagonist and antagonist kingdoms.
The town in gray (Ploweun) is the setting of the B story and this map shows where it sits in relation to the two capital cities.
The pink triangle is Selka Valley. It is lands that belonged to Vartania a couple of generations ago, but has since been settled by a small ethnic group of Weltavora, the Braites.



I have a bit more information about each kingdom, if required.

Thank you for criticisms and comments.
 
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IGLOOGREENHOUSE

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Borders are often representations of geography and culture. What natural features lend to the borders of your world. What cultural conventions (different ethnic, religious groups) have created the borders? Are there any areas where the culture bleeds from one country into another? How can you represent this?
 

ixorv

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Borders are often representations of geography and culture. What natural features lend to the borders of your world. What cultural conventions (different ethnic, religious groups) have created the borders? Are there any areas where the culture bleeds from one country into another? How can you represent this?

Sorry wasn't trying to write the story in this thread, but I guess I should have been a little more specific. The yellow triangle in the second map represents an area of cultural overlap from the RED kingdom's POV (cause technically that pocket would extend into the RED kingdom as well). The northern border of that triangle is mountains (which is why it doesn't extend into the PURPLE kingdom). Lastly I've tried to show overlap by having city names close to the kingdom borders try and be a mix of the naming conventions I used for both kingdoms.
 

Bufty

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The unfolding story determines my suspension of belief- not a map.
 

Thomas Vail

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That weird squiggly line across the isthmus seems an odd sort of border, unless there's a sea channel dividing things there.

Other than that... *shrug* I don't look at maps in books. I've never found them relevant, my enjoyment of the story having anything to do with the lay of the land. This seems to be on of those Things that people get caught up on making, despite how little overall import they have.
 

ixorv

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The unfolding story determines my suspension of belief- not a map.
Other than that... *shrug* I don't look at maps in books. I've never found them relevant, my enjoyment of the story having anything to do with the lay of the land.

Good to know. I've heard many a tale (though usually RPGs, not books) where one little ill-conceived name sent things into a tailspin.

This seems to be on of those Things that people get caught up on making, despite how little overall import they have.

I generally agree with that sentiment, HOWEVER it was absolutely necessary in my case as I needed a reference point, and names of, other cities and (more importantly) a visual aid to work out travel times because unrealistic travel times would've absolutely ruined my story.

That weird squiggly line across the isthmus seems an odd sort of border, unless there's a sea channel dividing things there.

Completely irrelevant, but my curiosity is piqued (as there are no isthmuses), where do you mean?
 
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benacrow

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What was your inspiration for the kingdom shapes and sizes? And what was the reasoning for their sizes? I'm a big fan of maps with cool geographical features that define boundaries, so it's nice to see what sorts of features define the map.

Also, at first glance, the map reminded me of the balkan peninsula turned sideways, hence why I ask about inspiration.
 

frimble3

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Completely irrelevant, but my curiosity is piqued (as there are no isthmuses), where do you mean?
I suspect that it's the line between Kaichi and Laurel. Without seeing the features of the terrain, or the history, it seems to have strange bumps in it.

Isthmus or peninsula, it's the sticky-outy bit to the right of the map. Sticking out into the ocean.

I realize this map is probably just for an on-line example, because if you're using it to measure travel, you're going to want to show waterways and mountains, at least. The things that affect travel.