So, just dumping some maps I made lately - and I was wondering which of them (purely in terms of visuals) people like (or dislike) the most, and since I don't really have a lot of people to ask for feedback - here we go.

And well - if you have some of your own maps to rate - I'll be happy to give you my opinions!

Hi, I (with other friends) am doing a pixel art 32x32, top-down game. The game would be around 15h long and the whole game is going to be in a city divided in 5 main areas.

The question is: how many tiles should each part be? We want to give the vibe of gigantic capital city but we don't want to make the map bigger than it should be.

It wouldn't make sense remaking shangai if the main story is going to use only small parts of that city and most of the game is going to be walking simulator. Also, this is our first game and it wouldn't make sense to overwork ourselves. But I don't want to risk making it so small that it looks like a pokemon city with 4 houses.

Any ideas on the size?

A different view of the land I’ve made. Hope it’s not too dry.

i might improve shapes when i pick or change continents,especially the third one where it looks like bering strait

yes i know that big central continent looks like africa,im also planning to add new continents

I feel like I'm going INSANE!

Can somebody (PLEASE) help me with river systems and mountain ranges? I have been prickling at this coastline for weeks now but still I cant seem to get it perfect. I understand the rules of maps like how mountains forms, lakes, rivers, etc, but they just don't look good at all. PLEASE someone help.

map that i made lol

I have a large setting based mostly on the geopolitics of a massive continent (pictured in the last image), on which I have thought of ten or so cultural horizons.

The focus on this post is the Horizon - C, the southernmost of the continent, a militarist, laconic culture but a diverse one for the vastness of their territory.

I tried acknowledging every valley, mountain or coast where groups would settle and differentiate, but am not sure if I oversimplified or overcomplicated things, or if it really fits the geography realistically.

let me learn a little :)

These are some maps that I’ve been making for myself.
Some things to note are that, I rarely took into consideration geography, except for things like bodies of water, or cliffs. Because I only use a pencil for these, it’s pretty hard to plan the geography with it. The single direction lined areas are bodies of water, and the crossed lined areas are farmland, ether that be farming wheat, or a spice, or something else, etc. now, a little about each map.

The first map, which I have not named yet is made with a more American style of roads, with straight lines, and blocks. Not much to say about this one.

This map, Fras, was the first map I made, and was made with a more European style. It was mainly a major trading point between two continents, on the end of a peninsula.

This map, Carion, is located in a valley. It originally wasn’t very major, but after many merchants moved through it, as it was a very important chokehold from one part of a continent to another, they started to tax the merchants, quickly gaining a large amount of gold.

This map, Coas, is my personal favorite, as I think the shape of the city, being wrapped around a gulf like that is very cool.

This map, which I also have not named, doesn’t have much to talk about.

This map, which is the most recent map I’ve made, was loosely based on Paris, with the shape of the river. The river that split the city, while originally wasn’t very major under one crown, was used as a border for two different crowns, which is why one side was originally in a more European style, then adopted a more American style.

This final map, Struin, is located next to an oasis in a desert. The farmlands are growing a valuable spice, which is why the city is as big as it is for its harsh climate.

Also, thank you for entertaining my past-time project.

Bonus: Anyone know a app or site that i can draw on the globe and pass it to planisphere?

I am currently on the process of making and deciding these regions. I will add trees after I decided the settlements because I dont want to add/delete forests while making. I only places some settlements on top left regions. Are they normal or too much? Scaling maps is harder than I imagined and I'm not sure if its good or not.

I'm helping my boyfriend make his world, and today I did it's sea currents. However, some of it's landmasses are located in weird places, making me a bit confused about how the currents should go, especially around the left half of the upper right quadrant, around that big island/small continent.

This is of course a draft. Does anything stand out as wrong?

So I’m absolutely in love with this region map from critical role. Does anyone have any resources about how to make this style of map or even just other maps you love in this style? Looking at it feels like someone is petting my brain.

Hey guys,

I like to hand draw my maps and color them using oil pastels. I find hand drawn imagery more attractive (without any disrespect to digital, I'm just bad with technology:d) but it has certain downsides, for example icon creation/implementation. I'm still new to this and as of now I'm working on a desert biome, littered with ruins of an ancient civilization.

If it was just a few places, I'd probably go with simple iconography. However I don't want my map littered by simple symbols and I wanna give it more live look, as if those houses are now more part of the biome, then history. My architecture is inspired by a mix of Mesopotamian mudbrick houses and straw, however I'm not sure how to go around it?

Any tips on how to improve/develop these icons? Or how do you go around showing ruins on your maps? Also it's a country sized map so I'm also not sure, how to go around scaling. Again, I'm an amateur.

I'd just like to know how you do it or where to learn a bit more. Since I like to learn from different sources:)

Thanks.

For context, the light red areas are water. Also, I wanted this planet to be made up mostly of land, but now I'm not sure what to label the bodies of water. I don't think any of them are big enough to qualify as an ocean, and I'm pretty sure for something to be a "sea", it has to be connected to an ocean

So my question is: what do I call these areas? Thanks :)

Hello everyone!

Handmade fantasy map of the Maelstrom region. Just finished!

I'm working on a star map and want to be able to easily change it which is hard on paper. Also I know there's one which is low detail hexagons but I don't like that one so please don't recommend it. Sadly I will not be able to download any of the ones that need the download.

I went for a hand drawn aesthetic so the dimensions of the icons are not to scale.

I was told the delta being next to the two inlets in the southwest is not realistic. I’d like someone to confirm that. Plus any other glaring geological defects

The second image is my rough draft of the map which I illustrated over using Inkscape.

A city map

Any advice is appreciated.

This is a series of maps for my own Nine Rivers setting, they were created by myself using https://azgaar.github.io/Fantasy-Map-Generator// .

All geographic, topographic and cultural/political tiles were painstakingly handmade. Most but not all of the cities are handkeyed, and if you are viewing this in the future, I will already have have ported several missing cities from my past handrawn maps. You can see the updated maps under the post titled "Full resolution maps". As far as I know, the tool uses Microsoft excel and conventional algorithms for its village placement and naming, and does not make use of generative artificial intelligence.

On that note, here are some relevant resources. The wholistic worldbuilding context is not included in the text box of this post and is instead hosted on blogspot for reasons of digital preservation and because reddit physically cannot properly host or format my posts in their intended form.

https://carrion-gods.blogspot.com/2026/07/notably-less-than-nine-rivers.html For 3 additional maps and all the maps in this post in their native resolution (roughly triple).

https://carrion-gods.blogspot.com/2025/05/the-lay-of-land-nine-rivers-setting-post.html For an extensive overview of the lore. This is essentially required for full comprehension but was previously posted here so I don't see it fit to repost here.

https://carrion-gods.blogspot.com/2026/07/five-eras.html For a very short summary of the historic events that took place in the nine rivers.

https://carrion-gods.blogspot.com/2025/03/laws-of-primordial-creation-and-what.html For an overview of the cosmology of this setting. This one is the least essential of the bunch but may be of interested.

On that note, I thank you for the time, and hope you enjoyed your readings.

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask, I would be glad to answer them.

Hi everyone, I hope I'm in the right group to post this (it's my first time on Reddit).

So, I love drawing maps for fictional RPGs—whether it's maps of entire worlds or specific regions. I use Clip Studio Paint, a graphics tablet, and a bundle of pre-made assets, though I also incorporate elements I've created myself. 

I’d love to get some advice and feedback to help me improve—specifically, what you think of my map style and whether you could picture using it in a role-playing game session, for instance.

I should mention that I don’t have any particular talent for drawing >< I’m learning step-by-step as I go to create something cohesive.

For instance, I really like the mix of parchment with splashes of color here and there—but perhaps it’s too jarring? Is the scale right, or does it look too messy? Should i make map with 0 colours or full coloured one, but not a mix ? I should add some rivers too i think 

 For the style its just a general idea, one continent more human-like, civilised with barbarians in the north. The second continent more wild, with tribes and small islands with oriental style. 
The two others pics was my first try, drawing a more specific region.  

I hope to improve with all your help <3 
(The images were too large for Reddit, so i had to compress them-sorry about that).

The Britannoroman Empire

The Last Rome and the First Global Empire

General Information

Official Name: The Britannoroman Empire (Imperium Britannoromanum)

Capital: Londinium

Eastern Capital: Constantinople

Largest Colonial City: Nova Eboracum (Nova Terra)

Largest Eastern Port: Alexandria Felix

Government: Federal Imperial Constitutional Monarchy (later centuries) / Absolute Imperial Monarchy (Middle Ages)

Head of State: The Emperor (Imperator Britannoromanorum)

Official Language: Imperial Latin (with regional Romance dialects)

Religion: Imperial Christianity (with legal tolerance for Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and other recognized faiths)

Estimated Population (late 19th century): ~350–450 million

Territory: Europe, North Africa, the Atlantic, the Mediterranean, parts of East Africa, Arabia, India, Southeast Asia and the Americas.

Historical Overview

The Britannoroman Empire traces its origins to the survival of Roman Britain after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476. Unlike the continental provinces, Britannia preserved its Roman administration, professional army and urban institutions, gradually evolving into the legitimate successor of Western Rome.

For centuries the Empire remained confined to the British Isles while consolidating its internal institutions. Protected by the sea and governed by an unbroken imperial administration, it became a refuge of Roman civilization during Europe’s political fragmentation.

The first phase of expansion began with the gradual reconquest of Gaul, whose cities still retained strong Roman traditions. Local elites often viewed the Britannoroman Emperors not as foreign conquerors, but as restorers of legitimate imperial authority. Once Gaul had been integrated, it became the demographic and economic heart of the Empire.

From there, Britannoroman influence expanded into the Low Countries and northern Germany, securing the mouths of the Rhine, Meuse and Elbe rivers and establishing complete dominance over trade in the North Sea.

Meanwhile, repeated Viking attacks led the Empire to adopt an aggressive naval doctrine. Instead of merely defending Britain, imperial fleets launched successive expeditions into Scandinavia. Denmark was fully incorporated, while the economically valuable coasts of southern Sweden and Norway became imperial provinces or protectorates. The mountainous interiors remained under local kings, who ruled as imperial clients.

The conquest of Hispania followed during the High Middle Ages. Imperial resources accelerated the Reconquista, permanently ending Muslim rule centuries earlier than in our timeline. Iberia soon became the Empire’s principal Atlantic gateway.

Italy represented a different challenge. It was not only strategically important but also symbolically essential. Following centuries of rivalry with Byzantium, the Britannoromans gradually established control over the peninsula and eventually restored Rome itself to imperial rule.

The fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans marked a decisive turning point. Presenting themselves as defenders of Christendom, the Britannoromans launched the Great Eastern Campaigns. Greece, western Anatolia, Egypt and parts of the Levant were incorporated into the Empire, while the remaining Ottoman territories were reorganized into buffer kingdoms and protectorates.

The Eastern Maritime Empire

Rather than conquering vast inland territories, Britannoroman strategy focused on controlling the world’s maritime chokepoints.

The first major eastern possession was Arabia Felix, controlling Aden and both shores of the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, securing access between the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean.

Further south, the Empire established the Province of Zanzibar, dominating the East African coast from Somalia to modern Kenya and Tanzania. Ivory, gold, timber and spices flowed north through imperial ports.

Across the Indian Ocean, the southern coast of India became Alexandria Felix, a prosperous commercial province where Roman urban planning blended with Indian civilization. Rather than annexing the subcontinent, the Empire maintained alliances with numerous Indian kingdoms, allowing local rulers considerable autonomy in exchange for secure trade.

Beyond India, small fortified ports in Indonesia formed India Profundis, the easternmost extension of Britannoroman influence and a vital source of cloves, nutmeg and other luxury goods.

The Discovery and Colonization of America

By the late fifteenth century, Britannoroman navigators crossed the Atlantic searching for western trade routes to Asia.

The first permanent settlement became Nova Terra, established along the eastern coast of North America.

Its capital, Nova Eboracum, grew into the Empire’s largest city in the New World and eventually one of the busiest ports on Earth.

Further north, the vast forests and icy coastlines of Canada and Labrador formed the province of Ultima Thule, whose economy revolved around fisheries, whaling, timber and fur trading.

Exploration of South America led to the conquest of the Inca Empire.

Instead of dismantling native institutions, Britannoroman administrators integrated much of the Incan aristocracy into imperial government.

The resulting province, Piruvius, retained Cusco as its capital, transforming it into the administrative center of western South America.

From Piruvius, explorers gradually entered the Amazon Basin.

The rainforest, however, proved impossible to dominate completely.

Imperial control remained limited to fortified river settlements and trading stations, while most of the interior continued to be inhabited by autonomous indigenous peoples.

Further south, the fertile Río de la Plata basin became the colony of Flumen Argentum, whose economy centered on cattle ranching, Atlantic commerce and grain exports.

By the eighteenth century, the Americas had become the Empire’s second great pillar alongside Europe.

Government and Administration

The Britannoroman Empire was not a centralized unitary state.

Instead, it functioned as a highly organized federal imperial system composed of territories with different constitutional status.

These included:

• Imperial Provinces, governed directly by the Emperor.
• Metropolitan Provinces, fully integrated parts of the Empire.
• Autonomous Kingdoms, ruled by local dynasties under imperial protection.
• Colonial Provinces, legally equal to overseas provinces rather than simple colonies.
• Commercial Protectorates, controlling strategic ports and maritime routes.

Britannia, Gaul and Egypt formed the political and economic core of the Empire.

Military Doctrine

The Britannoroman military inherited Roman discipline while embracing naval supremacy.

Its strategic doctrine rested upon four principles:

• Control the seas.
• Control the major rivers.
• Control the strategic straits.
• Avoid unnecessary inland conquests.

Rather than occupying every territory, the Empire preferred to dominate ports, trade routes and economic centers.

Imperial fleets permanently patrolled:

• Gibraltar.
• The English Channel.
• The North Sea.
• The Baltic.
• The Mediterranean.
• Bab-el-Mandeb.
• The Indian Ocean.
• The Strait of Malacca.

Foreign Relations

By the eighteenth century the world had become multipolar.

The Britannoroman Empire recognized only a handful of civilizations as genuine equals.

China

Relations with China were based on mutual respect rather than conquest.

Both empires viewed themselves as universal civilizations governing half of the known world.

Trade in silk, porcelain, tea and scientific knowledge flourished for centuries.

Japan

Japan developed into the Empire’s closest Asian partner.

Britannoroman merchants established permanent trading stations while respecting Japanese sovereignty.

The two naval powers maintained close diplomatic and commercial relations.

Persia

Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Persia emerged as the Empire’s principal eastern neighbor.

Rather than pursuing endless wars, both powers signed the Treaty of Alexandria, dividing their respective spheres of influence and maintaining centuries of stability.

India

India remained politically fragmented but economically indispensable.

The Empire never attempted to conquer the entire subcontinent.

Instead, it protected maritime commerce while maintaining alliances with dozens of Indian kingdoms.

Northern Europe

The kingdoms of Sweden, Norway and Finland survived as autonomous client states.

Having lost their profitable coastlines, they depended heavily upon Britannoroman trade and naval protection.

Central Europe

The Holy Roman Empire gradually lost all claims to Roman legitimacy.

German principalities evolved into independent buffer states closely tied to Britannoroman commerce.

Hungary and the Danubian principalities became strategic allies guarding the Empire’s eastern frontier.

Russia remained the only continental power capable of matching Britannoroma territorially, though both empires generally preferred diplomacy over direct confrontation.

Culture

Britannoroman civilization represented the uninterrupted evolution of classical Rome.

Roman law, Latin language, Christianity and imperial institutions survived continuously from Late Antiquity into the modern era.

Yet the Empire was remarkably cosmopolitan.

Over centuries it absorbed Gallic, Iberian, Greek, Egyptian, Scandinavian, Berber, Incan, Indian and countless other traditions without abandoning its Roman identity.

Its cities reflected this diversity.

Londinium governed the Empire.

Rome embodied its heritage.

Constantinople connected Europe and Asia.

Alexandria remained the intellectual capital of the Mediterranean.

Nova Eboracum symbolized the Atlantic world.

Cusco united Roman administration with Andean civilization.

Alexandria Felix became the crossroads of Europe and Asia.

Legacy

By the nineteenth century, the Britannoroman Empire had achieved something no empire in recorded history had managed: it maintained an unbroken institutional continuity from ancient Rome while transforming itself into the world’s first truly global maritime superpower.

Its strength did not come from conquering every land it encountered, but from mastering the world’s strategic coastlines, rivers and sea lanes. Through a network of provinces, client kingdoms, colonial dominions and fortified ports stretching from Britannia to Indonesia and from Egypt to Flumen Argentum, it reshaped global history under a single imperial tradition.

Imperial historians often summarized this legacy with a phrase engraved above the Senate Hall in Londinium:

“Rome conquered the ancient world. Britannoroma united the world.”