Battlemaps? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Battlemaps? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Orion Polaris
06-19-06, 04:53 PM What's up D&Dgen? Just wondering what you guys use for battle maps? So far my group has been using the back of the battlemap supplied by the starter set or whatever it is, and using beads and stuff to represent walls and furniture, but that's really dimming on our creativity as it takes too long to set up.

What do you guys/girls use? Thanks in advance.

-Orion Polaris
arjomanes
06-19-06, 05:14 PM well you can always just draw on a large sheet of paper with a sharpie ahead of time. Not too fancy, but it does the job. Or lay a map down under a large sheet of plexiglass and use dry erase markers to mark up rooms or trees or such. You could combine these two methods by drawing the dungeons ahead of time, then drawing in details when you place the miniatures.

If you have a computer, you could make a map out of components online and assembe it in photoshop and print it and tile it, but that's kind of time-consuming. To be honest, that's what I do, but I work at a design place so I have access to programs and large reels of paper I can print on.

Another solution is to buy little models of furniture or trees, or the dwarven forge stuff, but that gets really pricey fast.
StMage
06-19-06, 05:46 PM I have a battlemat from (Chessex) I think. It works great.
I use (Vis-A-Vis Wet-Erase Overhead Transparency Markers)

The mat is about $20 ish (at least when I bought mine)
The markers are about $7-$10 and come with 6 colors.

If you don't want to buy a new mat, you can also go to the local copy store and have them Laminate your starter set battlemat poster, for about $1 per foot of lenght.
The same Vis-S-Vis markers will wash away with a little water from the lamination.

After using the mats and miniatures, I don't think I can play with-out them anymore.
VrecknidjX
06-19-06, 07:20 PM I was broke when I started 3.5, so I went to the local fabric section of the local department store and bought a 54" x 36" piece of light-brown vinyl. I used a yardstick and a permanent marker to make 1" grid lines. The whole thing cost me about $5. It works just like the Chessex battlemat, it's just not as cool.

Dave
Lhorgrim
06-19-06, 08:41 PM I started using Tact-Tiles from BC products a few months ago, and I think they are the best map/grid product out there.
I still have my Chessex battlemat, but it's not nearly as versatile and quick to use as the Tiles.
The Tiles use dry erase markers which can be wiped off with a dry cloth, and they are made like modular jigsaw pieces so they can be moved around to give you more area to work with.
I give them my highest recommendation. :)
Trashguy
06-19-06, 11:17 PM I started using Tact-Tiles from BC products a few months ago, and I think they are the best map/grid product out there.
I still have my Chessex battlemat, but it's not nearly as versatile and quick to use as the Tiles.
The Tiles use dry erase markers which can be wiped off with a dry cloth, and they are made like modular jigsaw pieces so they can be moved around to give you more area to work with.
I give them my highest recommendation. :)
Hey for the tiles, I was wondering if you knew a website that sold or pictured them.
cloudncali
06-19-06, 11:45 PM are the Chessex battlemat wet/dry erase?
Lhorgrim
06-20-06, 10:45 AM Hey for the tiles, I was wondering if you knew a website that sold or pictured them.

Sure.

www.bc-products.net (http://www.bc-products.net)

They are more expensive than Chessex, but I thinkthe Tiles are totally worth it.
Lhorgrim
06-20-06, 10:51 AM are the Chessex battlemat wet/dry erase?

Chessex mats are Wet-Erase only.

Dry Erase markers will usually cause pretty bad stains on a Chessex mat.
Also, if you leave certain wet erase colors on the Chessex mat for an extended period they can stain as well.

I'm not trying to slam the Chessex mat, I have used mine since Second Edition, but I wish I had known about the stain factor before I left a dungeon room mapped on my mat between sessions. :(
shruggar
06-20-06, 12:00 PM I love the Chessex mat, but it does get very dirty and very ugly over time. Everyone has green hands (actually, the DM's entire face somehow turned green last game..) by the end of the night after playing on that thing.
In highschool we just used a grid drawn on a peice of scrap wood we were using for a table, but the Chessex mat has been great to actually draw on. I dont think I'd trust a Dry Erase mat to keep its magical properties over time -being used as both a drawing surface and regular surface seems like it wouldnt hold up well- but the Chessex mat's soft material makes it something I can trust, though its lack of hardness makes it non-ideal for rolling. (though rolling is quieter, so that can be a plus)

Of course, you could do that digital map projection thing.. but.. err.. no :)
kliate
06-20-06, 12:24 PM My "first generation" battlemats were 8x10 1" square grids printed out from an Excel spreadsheet. I would keep a dozen or so blank grids for a session, plus any planned encounters, and draw terrain whenever something random came up (As a guideline, two curvy lines for heavy undergrowth, one curvy line for light undergrowth, small circles for small trees, big circles for big trees. Anything else would be labeled).

After working with these, I ordered a Chessex battlemat and used it along with some wet-erase markers I got with my wall calendar. The red stained rather badly after being left on one night; but the blue, green and black haven't been trouble at all. The red has even begun to fade, although I doubt that I'll ever be totally rid of it.

Since acquiring the Chessex battlemat, I bought Dundjinni. My printer doesn't sit anywhere near the quality I would need to print out full battle maps, but it has otherwise been helpful as a simple planning tool. I hope to create a full-sized battlemat of the title town of my recently resurrected campaign: Eagle's Talon (Okay, more of a thorpe. It will easily fit on a 32x40 map)
GoldLeader13
06-20-06, 07:44 PM I use three different methods of battlemapping.

First, I have a large collection of Master Maze Dungeon Miniatures by Dwarven Forge. As long as its a dungeon based game, works perfectly as its scaled with 1" squares = 5 feet. But, expensive. I actually haven't bought any in two years.

Past that, I buy pads of presentation graph paper. Its 32" long by 26" wide, divided up into 1" squares. Permanent markers and pencils on that, along with D&D Minis, Lord of the Rings minis by Games Workshop, or sometimes Star Wars Minis, does almost anything the expensive models can't. I get these pads at Staples, Office Depot, or OfficeMax.

Finally, good ol' fashioned 8.5" x 11" graph paper, doesn't really matter the size of the individual squares. These, with pencils, served me well for years, and probably will for a matter of years.
Bruunwald
06-20-06, 08:01 PM Every time this topic gets brought up, it invariably draws those who want to position themselves as superior because they are less involved in this aspect of the game.

Personally, I find entire rooms devoted to projector-equipped tables silly and a bit much, but I think I find the snobbery that's flung out against anything other than a pad of paper and a dull eraserless pencil a bit offensive as well.

I don't think there's anything wrong with someone who builds terrains or spends more time or money on his minis. But there tends to be a general consensus among those who don't that those who do are stupid, silly, wasting their time, etc. Why is that? People have all sorts of hobbies. Building a terrain or painting a mini or collecting Dwarven Forge pieces may not be the right hobby for everybody, but someone who doesn't do those things isn't any more superior or a better player or DM than someone who does.

This thread hasn't gotten crazy yet. It's hinted at it. There's a little bit of "I just do this," and "you don't have to --" and "does it just as well as --" But that's how it starts. Almost invariably it ends with someone accusing those who do extreme modelling of "building doll houses" and being "ridiculous."

I wonder why that is? Less can be more, sure. But more can be more, too, if somebody actually invests their heart in it. Nobody is forcing anybody to spend money on this, or even judging them if they don't. It would be nice to have that courtesy reciprocated.

Just an observation.

That said, I do a lot of modelling myself. I like to build terrains: I am a frustrated artist who does not have a lot of time for his other art lately, and my little boy loves them. I also occasionally play on a simple Chessex matt when other stuff is not available. We used to actually play with none of that stuff, and just draw out any complicated situations on paper when any argument broke out.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Orion Polaris 06-19-06, 04:53 PM	What's up D&Dgen? Just wondering what you guys use for battle maps? So far my group has been using the back of the battlemap supplied by the starter set or whatever it is, and using beads and stuff to represent walls and furniture, but that's really dimming on our creativity as it takes too long to set up. What do you guys/girls use? Thanks in advance. -Orion Polaris
arjomanes 06-19-06, 05:14 PM	well you can always just draw on a large sheet of paper with a sharpie ahead of time. Not too fancy, but it does the job. Or lay a map down under a large sheet of plexiglass and use dry erase markers to mark up rooms or trees or such. You could combine these two methods by drawing the dungeons ahead of time, then drawing in details when you place the miniatures. If you have a computer, you could make a map out of components online and assembe it in photoshop and print it and tile it, but that's kind of time-consuming. To be honest, that's what I do, but I work at a design place so I have access to programs and large reels of paper I can print on. Another solution is to buy little models of furniture or trees, or the dwarven forge stuff, but that gets really pricey fast.
StMage 06-19-06, 05:46 PM	I have a battlemat from (Chessex) I think. It works great. I use (Vis-A-Vis Wet-Erase Overhead Transparency Markers) The mat is about $20 ish (at least when I bought mine) The markers are about $7-$10 and come with 6 colors. If you don't want to buy a new mat, you can also go to the local copy store and have them Laminate your starter set battlemat poster, for about $1 per foot of lenght. The same Vis-S-Vis markers will wash away with a little water from the lamination. After using the mats and miniatures, I don't think I can play with-out them anymore.
VrecknidjX 06-19-06, 07:20 PM	I was broke when I started 3.5, so I went to the local fabric section of the local department store and bought a 54" x 36" piece of light-brown vinyl. I used a yardstick and a permanent marker to make 1" grid lines. The whole thing cost me about $5. It works just like the Chessex battlemat, it's just not as cool. Dave
Lhorgrim 06-19-06, 08:41 PM	I started using Tact-Tiles from BC products a few months ago, and I think they are the best map/grid product out there. I still have my Chessex battlemat, but it's not nearly as versatile and quick to use as the Tiles. The Tiles use dry erase markers which can be wiped off with a dry cloth, and they are made like modular jigsaw pieces so they can be moved around to give you more area to work with. I give them my highest recommendation. :)
Trashguy 06-19-06, 11:17 PM	I started using Tact-Tiles from BC products a few months ago, and I think they are the best map/grid product out there. I still have my Chessex battlemat, but it's not nearly as versatile and quick to use as the Tiles. The Tiles use dry erase markers which can be wiped off with a dry cloth, and they are made like modular jigsaw pieces so they can be moved around to give you more area to work with. I give them my highest recommendation. :) Hey for the tiles, I was wondering if you knew a website that sold or pictured them.
cloudncali 06-19-06, 11:45 PM	are the Chessex battlemat wet/dry erase?
Lhorgrim 06-20-06, 10:45 AM	Hey for the tiles, I was wondering if you knew a website that sold or pictured them. Sure. www.bc-products.net (http://www.bc-products.net) They are more expensive than Chessex, but I thinkthe Tiles are totally worth it.
Lhorgrim 06-20-06, 10:51 AM	are the Chessex battlemat wet/dry erase? Chessex mats are Wet-Erase only. Dry Erase markers will usually cause pretty bad stains on a Chessex mat. Also, if you leave certain wet erase colors on the Chessex mat for an extended period they can stain as well. I'm not trying to slam the Chessex mat, I have used mine since Second Edition, but I wish I had known about the stain factor before I left a dungeon room mapped on my mat between sessions. :(
shruggar 06-20-06, 12:00 PM	I love the Chessex mat, but it does get very dirty and very ugly over time. Everyone has green hands (actually, the DM's entire face somehow turned green last game..) by the end of the night after playing on that thing. In highschool we just used a grid drawn on a peice of scrap wood we were using for a table, but the Chessex mat has been great to actually draw on. I dont think I'd trust a Dry Erase mat to keep its magical properties over time -being used as both a drawing surface and regular surface seems like it wouldnt hold up well- but the Chessex mat's soft material makes it something I can trust, though its lack of hardness makes it non-ideal for rolling. (though rolling is quieter, so that can be a plus) Of course, you could do that digital map projection thing.. but.. err.. no :)
kliate 06-20-06, 12:24 PM	My "first generation" battlemats were 8x10 1" square grids printed out from an Excel spreadsheet. I would keep a dozen or so blank grids for a session, plus any planned encounters, and draw terrain whenever something random came up (As a guideline, two curvy lines for heavy undergrowth, one curvy line for light undergrowth, small circles for small trees, big circles for big trees. Anything else would be labeled). After working with these, I ordered a Chessex battlemat and used it along with some wet-erase markers I got with my wall calendar. The red stained rather badly after being left on one night; but the blue, green and black haven't been trouble at all. The red has even begun to fade, although I doubt that I'll ever be totally rid of it. Since acquiring the Chessex battlemat, I bought Dundjinni. My printer doesn't sit anywhere near the quality I would need to print out full battle maps, but it has otherwise been helpful as a simple planning tool. I hope to create a full-sized battlemat of the title town of my recently resurrected campaign: Eagle's Talon (Okay, more of a thorpe. It will easily fit on a 32x40 map)
GoldLeader13 06-20-06, 07:44 PM	I use three different methods of battlemapping. First, I have a large collection of Master Maze Dungeon Miniatures by Dwarven Forge. As long as its a dungeon based game, works perfectly as its scaled with 1" squares = 5 feet. But, expensive. I actually haven't bought any in two years. Past that, I buy pads of presentation graph paper. Its 32" long by 26" wide, divided up into 1" squares. Permanent markers and pencils on that, along with D&D Minis, Lord of the Rings minis by Games Workshop, or sometimes Star Wars Minis, does almost anything the expensive models can't. I get these pads at Staples, Office Depot, or OfficeMax. Finally, good ol' fashioned 8.5" x 11" graph paper, doesn't really matter the size of the individual squares. These, with pencils, served me well for years, and probably will for a matter of years.
Bruunwald 06-20-06, 08:01 PM	Every time this topic gets brought up, it invariably draws those who want to position themselves as superior because they are less involved in this aspect of the game. Personally, I find entire rooms devoted to projector-equipped tables silly and a bit much, but I think I find the snobbery that's flung out against anything other than a pad of paper and a dull eraserless pencil a bit offensive as well. I don't think there's anything wrong with someone who builds terrains or spends more time or money on his minis. But there tends to be a general consensus among those who don't that those who do are stupid, silly, wasting their time, etc. Why is that? People have all sorts of hobbies. Building a terrain or painting a mini or collecting Dwarven Forge pieces may not be the right hobby for everybody, but someone who doesn't do those things isn't any more superior or a better player or DM than someone who does. This thread hasn't gotten crazy yet. It's hinted at it. There's a little bit of "I just do this," and "you don't have to --" and "does it just as well as --" But that's how it starts. Almost invariably it ends with someone accusing those who do extreme modelling of "building doll houses" and being "ridiculous." I wonder why that is? Less can be more, sure. But more can be more, too, if somebody actually invests their heart in it. Nobody is forcing anybody to spend money on this, or even judging them if they don't. It would be nice to have that courtesy reciprocated. Just an observation. That said, I do a lot of modelling myself. I like to build terrains: I am a frustrated artist who does not have a lot of time for his other art lately, and my little boy loves them. I also occasionally play on a simple Chessex matt when other stuff is not available. We used to actually play with none of that stuff, and just draw out any complicated situations on paper when any argument broke out.