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designer_workshop:making_your_first_board [2014/04/03 23:21] weathertop [Image Editors] |
designer_workshop:making_your_first_board [2014/04/26 06:03] (current) M57 Simplifying language |
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As such, the Designer is necessarily complex, having features that can enable your map to do things that | As such, the Designer is necessarily complex, having features that can enable your map to do things that | ||
..well, haven' | ..well, haven' | ||
- | WarGear has an extensive set of [[http:// | + | WarGear has an extensive set of tutorials |
- | already built into the site. However many of those pages are being updated and migrated | + | |
===== The Evolving Review Process ===== | ===== The Evolving Review Process ===== | ||
- | Once, or even before you have started creating your board, one of the first things you will want to consider doing is // | + | Once (or even before) you have started creating your board, one of the first things you will want to consider doing is [[proving_grounds: |
There is an evolving consensus in the Board Review community that the way a board goes from inception to live should be integrated with the review process such that the very last step of the process (the Review Game) feels more like a ribbon cutting ceremony than an inquisition. | There is an evolving consensus in the Board Review community that the way a board goes from inception to live should be integrated with the review process such that the very last step of the process (the Review Game) feels more like a ribbon cutting ceremony than an inquisition. | ||
- | In order for this to work, the road to bringing a board live should involve the active participation of Review Board members, | + | In order for this to work, the road to bringing a board live should involve the active participation of the members of the [[Review Board Roster|Review Board]] and [[Development Board Roster|Development Board]], |
and the playing of a number of development (Dev) games. | and the playing of a number of development (Dev) games. | ||
It is hoped that active discussion in Dev games alongside other activity on the board' | It is hoped that active discussion in Dev games alongside other activity on the board' | ||
- | **Bottom Line**: | + | **Bottom Line**: |
===== Keep It Simple ===== | ===== Keep It Simple ===== | ||
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However, the review criteria is subjective in nature. You can read more about it [[Review Board Criteria|here]], | However, the review criteria is subjective in nature. You can read more about it [[Review Board Criteria|here]], | ||
but generally speaking, | but generally speaking, | ||
- | if you are making a map that you plan to make available to the community at large | + | if you are making a map that you plan to make available to the community at large, here are some things you should consider. |
- | - one that will ' | + | |
*Avoid making boards that could be seen as being too close, or too redundant, to those already in the inventory of live boards available. The standards for bringing in a board which could be seen as too close to another one will be very high in order to justify its inclusion . | *Avoid making boards that could be seen as being too close, or too redundant, to those already in the inventory of live boards available. The standards for bringing in a board which could be seen as too close to another one will be very high in order to justify its inclusion . | ||
- | *Your map should have textured | + | *Your map should have varied facets of game-play. For a standard Risk-style map, this means a reasonable assortment of choke-points or dice mods, or some other features that give the game interest. |
*Your map size should not be too large - players don't like to have to scroll from the map to the play buttons and back all the time. Again this is a guideline, not a rule. However, if your board is larger than the average screen, be prepared to justify your reasoning behind it. | *Your map size should not be too large - players don't like to have to scroll from the map to the play buttons and back all the time. Again this is a guideline, not a rule. However, if your board is larger than the average screen, be prepared to justify your reasoning behind it. | ||
*Your territories should not be too small - this is obvious, but it should be considered very early in the process. | *Your territories should not be too small - this is obvious, but it should be considered very early in the process. | ||
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You will need a good image editor that supports layers and can make images with transparency. Simple editors like MS Paint will not do the trick. | You will need a good image editor that supports layers and can make images with transparency. Simple editors like MS Paint will not do the trick. | ||
- | Many of the designers on this site that have PCs use professional or semi-professional image editors that support " | + | Many of the designers on this site use professional or semi-professional image editors that support " |
Paint.net is a very popular PC based editor with a number of WarGear designers, and it's free! Another option is the open-source Graphic Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) which roughly parallels Photoshop in tools and features. | Paint.net is a very popular PC based editor with a number of WarGear designers, and it's free! Another option is the open-source Graphic Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) which roughly parallels Photoshop in tools and features. | ||
Mac users should easily be able to find inexpensive but powerful editors like Acorn that will do the trick. | Mac users should easily be able to find inexpensive but powerful editors like Acorn that will do the trick. | ||
- | For more on-site | + | For more information on choosing an editor/ |
If you think you're about ready to take the plunge, make sure you visit [[Designer Tutorials: | If you think you're about ready to take the plunge, make sure you visit [[Designer Tutorials: | ||
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{{ http:// | {{ http:// | ||
- | It's generally more work to create a Fill Mode design as you will need to carefully draw each territory boundary to ensure that it is cleanly delineated but the overall effect is often visually superior. Be careful when using dithering on the lines that make up your borders as this can lead to a messy effect when the territory is flood filled. For more information on borders and anti-aliasing, | + | It's generally more work to create a Fill Mode design as you will need to carefully draw each territory boundary to ensure that it is cleanly delineated but the overall effect is often visually superior. Be careful when using dithering on the lines that make up your borders as this can lead to a messy effect when the territory is flood filled. For more information on borders and anti-aliasing, |
====Creating a Board==== | ====Creating a Board==== | ||