Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 vincentblackrose Mar 19, 2009 14:35:48	I apologize if this has been asked several times but, I noticed that the main D&D site does give pdf files of the maps for each issue of Dungeon and Dragon and i was looking for any tips or information about the best way of printing them out. We have a grid drawn on a dry erase board, but none of us are particularly artistic and having actual print outs would be useful. Thanks for the help.
#2 mvincent Mar 19, 2009 14:53:27	i was looking for any tips or information about the best way of printing them out. I paste them into MSword, then enlarge them so the grid aligns with the 1" ruler. Tips: 1) Activate the ruler via "View" (dropdown menu) -> "Ruler" 2) Minimize margins via File -> Page Setup... put 0 in all the margins, then select "Fix" in the resulting pop-up to automatically autoset to the minimum amounts. 3) If you're working from a pdf (rather than a JPG or somesuch), you can use alt+printscreen on the image, then paste it into your document. 4) The map will likely span several pages, so use the 'Crop' tool to obtain a 7x10 square portion of the map, then resize it. Once you're done with the first page, copy the resulting (sized) image to another page, but redo the cropping to focus on a different portion of the map.
#3 Xaielao2 Mar 22, 2009 11:42:14	Follow instructions here; http://newbiedm.com/2009/01/13/newbiedm-tutorial-printing-battle-maps-to-a-1-scale/ Also, find a program called PosteRazor, which is a way to print out large objects (posters) and then easily each printed sheet out and tape them into a full sized poster. These two combined work extremely well for making and printing out battle mats from either the WotC material or other material floating around the web.
#4 vincentblackrose Mar 22, 2009 19:29:11	thanks guys but anything else that doesn't involve adobe? My problem in the end is when it's blow up it's all pixalized. I read about GIMP but I have no idea where to begin, I've never messed with any digital imaging.
#5 DevoDog Mar 22, 2009 20:26:44	Check your printer options when printing to see if there are poster-sized options. I believe that both of my printers currently connected (laser and inkjet) have that option. In regards to pixelization, that really depends on the resolution of the original image. There's very little that you can actually do to fix it (even a graphics program that tries to solve this won't be perfect).
#6 vincentblackrose Mar 22, 2009 20:44:44	Yeah again I don't know much about imaging, but I figure there has to be something that I can do since i'm using the images that the D&D website provides and I'm hoping those were intended to be printable maps, but then again they might not be I guess.
#7 kawnell Mar 24, 2009 11:35:40	Some copy centers also have architecture printers that run print from a 3' wide roll. Will save you lots of tape. Also, a yard stick can just draw the 1" sqares on your map (you can even reset where the grid is for those oddly shaped 'natural' dungeons). -Have Fun