Paper map alternatives

[fwilli001]

Hello all. This is my first thread and first post so have mercy :)
Anyway I was wondering if anyone had good alternatives to the relatively cheap, paper maps included in the starter set. I've seen some nice stuff for the land based AAM, but not much for WaS.

In order to preserve my maps a bit, I bought two 20"x30" poster frames and used the plastic lens to cover the maps during play. It's a pretty cheap way to keep them nice and the reflective nature of the lens makes a nice water-ish surface. I would dearly love it if WOTC would print these maps on plastic or vinyl. I would gladly pay a few dollars more for a starter if it came with a sturdy map.

[Snippersly]

To protect my maps I used Clear Contact Paper, like the stuff you use ti line kitchen drawers with. It is a bit opaque but its fairly water proof since I folded the edges over into an overlap. They roll up nicely for storage too.

One guy I play against at the FLGS bought two sheets of clear plastic and sandwiched his maps between the two sheets and holds them together with binder clips. It creates a nice flat clear surface to play on, but storage is a pain since the plastic sheets are not flexible or foldable.

Hope that helps a bit.

[sherigon]

I had my maps laminated, they turned out OK. I would have liked them to not have been folded. Laminate does not take out the fold lines.

I'm with everyone else I would gladly buy something that was of better quality maybe like the map for that Pirates game that will go un-named.

It seems that WOTC has missed a market for us miniature players. We like good looking toys, and we're willing to pay for em. Quality tokens, 3D islands, 3D airbases, and vinyl mat playing surface are all things that I would buy.

[EvilKobra]

FWIW, I bought a 3x5ft mat from Terrain Mat UK (http://www.terrainmat.com/). Frankly I'm quite disappointed; their naval stuff looks great on the website but rather horrid in person - I would not recommend it at all.

That said, I also bought a 6x8ft desert mat from them for BattleField Evolution, and it truly kicks some serious butt.

[Torps]

I use a 6' x 4' sea mat by Geohex.
It is printed with a hex pattern, but for WaS I drew a grid on the reverse side with marker pen. Combined with some rather nice resin islands and atolls I bought a few years ago the final effect is not too bad at all.

[Admiral Dawe]

Much like Sherigon I also laminated mine and I like the results alot. Yes the fold lines are still visible but the main point here is that they are no longer intrusive to gameplay as they are pressed completely flat.

Now when it comes to impressive 3D terrain pieces I think we should all cut WotC some slack here as tabletop miniature gaming isnt exactly their corner of the market, we're talking about a company that has made most of their fame with trading gard and role playing games. Im sure after they've been in the tabletop mini market a good long while they'll have alot more to offer.

[fwilli001]

Much like Sherigon I also laminated mine and I like the results alot. Yes the fold lines are still visible but the main point here is that they are no longer intrusive to gameplay as they are pressed completely flat.

Did you have problems with the laminated maps curling or not laying flat? I would think that something that large would warp a bit especially if it was laminated incorrectly. Where did you have it done?

BTW - I love the game. I'm not upset with WOTC at all. All collectible miniature games play on these paper maps now so it's an industry standard at this point. I just wish they could find an inexpensive alternative for the paper maps.

[Khayman7]

1 multiple shades of blue colored fabric 4'x6'
1 silver paint pen
1 straight edge yardstick or whatever
1 afternoon
build or purchase 3d terrain (I did both). One is quicker than the other but the other is rewarding in its own way and you get exactly what you want.

I now have a much larger playing area to do larger battles and it folds up very nicely and lays flat (except for the fold creases but thats easy enough to fix). EASY to make, store, and transport.

[Poseidon]

Did you have problems with the laminated maps curling or not laying flat? I would think that something that large would warp a bit especially if it was laminated incorrectly. Where did you have it done?



It didn't warp at all. It's absolutely fantastic. Perfectly flat and much more playable. Just slides alot. But it did that before.

[Vornargith]

A friend bought a huge rollout felt map with hexes ... works great, but I like details of waves ... I have a hex and WaS grid map that you can print out and mount on foam board if you're interested. I'll have to zip them up and place them on a file sharing site.

[Admiral Dawe]

Did you have problems with the laminated maps curling or not laying flat? I would think that something that large would warp a bit especially if it was laminated incorrectly. Where did you have it done?

Well I find that if you lay it down with the side facing the inside of the roll facing up that the corners will be curled a bit but the other side seems to be fine. So I suppose a reasonable solution would be to roll it with the side you plan to use facing the outside of the roll. Also dont roll it too tightly.

And as to where I had it done, my father is a teacher in the Canadian Armed Forces and his office has a large laminating machine that he has access to, so thats where I had it done.

[jack pearl]

Did you have problems with the laminated maps curling or not laying flat? I would think that something that large would warp a bit especially if it was laminated incorrectly.

Ya know one thing I did was to buy some plexiglass to lay over the top of the map...which puts a stop to the curling or warp issue. It also looks very cool...almost giving it a kind of watery effect.

Edit...meant to say warp...not wart. :-)

[Admiral Dawe]

I had the idea recently of mounting each map between two sheets of plexiglass and drilling screws into the corners and edges so that they stay in there and the putting hinges in between the two of them so that it transports more easily.

Dont know if that would work but its worth a try, if anyone tries this before I get around to it or has tried this before let me know how it turned out.

[doganpc]

I got a stained 3'x4' canvas that someone put aside the trash. Plan on watercoloring it blue drawing out the WaS grid and a 3'x3' square for that unmentionable Pirate game. Soon as I find the right hardware I plan on cutting the frame, installing hinges, and making it foldable.

Doganpc
its on the project pile.

[Taisho Bo]

Ya know one thing I did was to buy some plexiglass to lay over the top of the map...which puts a stop to the curling or wart issue. It also looks very cool...almost giving it a kind of watery effect.

did that too. plus I cut up the plexiglass sheet in 6 smaller sections for easy transport and storage

[NorthernRommel]

You mean like this? I have a 4-inch map set available for WAS.

http://www.geocities.com/opmgames/RHR/a_samp2by2.jpg

I did these up a few months back but no one seemed to be interested.

They are still available, and look much better up close then what you see here. I can do them in offset squares as well if people prefer that.

you can contact me at opmgames@yahoo.com if you want more info.

[EvilKobra]

Well I definitely am :D

Where/how can I get hold of these?

[NorthernRommel]

Email me then. Sorry but they get huffy if I put details on the forum.

[EvilKobra]

E-mail sent :D

[Jesse_James]

Try this for a map...

http://hotzmats.com/

[AKI]

I glued two sets of the maps to sheets of MDF with wallpaper paste. Takes out a lot of the fold marks, but replaces them with air bubbles.

To be honest though, I almost exclusively play a tabletop variant, without recourse to hex mapping. Works a treat.

[Vornargith]

Try this for a map...

http://hotzmats.com/


We use one of those now, but they lack ocean wave details. I'm in the process of putting together a more permanent board... I like the clear acrylic sheet idea ... I can get those cut at a local frame store.

Here is a portion of my hex map ... I'll post the zip file link for those interested. It's pretty large and the edges are designed to tile.
http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l67/vornargith/HexMapforSea.jpg

I also have the standard square map as well as an extension to it to increase its size.
http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l67/vornargith/OceanAA-MAP-standard.jpg

[Stormhawk4107]

I'd be interested in that zip file. Could get one big map made and laminated, then use one of those poster tubes to keep it safe.

[weedsrock2]

I had mine laminated at a local sign/printing shop. Cost about $30.00 per map. The curl a bit, but I roll them in a large, loose roll for transport and store them flat under my bed. (Only place with enough room.) The creases do show and they are slippery, but they stay flat and don't wear out.

I would like to see a map made out of tough fabric. The Hotz look good if they made them to match WaS with squares.

[Vornargith]

The Hex map ... 7 files ... the 1 large map, and the 6 sections ... all can be tiled to create custom sized maps.

http://rapidshare.com/files/59073192/WaSHEX-Map.zip

The standard WaS square map base ... it can be tiled as well.

http://rapidshare.com/files/59072831/Large28x35-square-Map.zip

[Poseidon]

The Hotz thing is awesome, thanks for the link.

Though what size hex should one get to somewhat match the normal WaS mats?

4"?

[Stormhawk4107]

Thanks Vornargith for the files. Poseidon, according to their website most people go with a 4inch hex, they don't do 4 inch squares yet. A friend ordered one a few days ago, when it gets here I can post a pic so everyone can see.
BTW remarkable jobs on the sig's Poseidon.

[Poseidon]

Thanks Vornargith for the files. Poseidon, according to their website most people go with a 4inch hex, they don't do 4 inch squares yet. A friend ordered one a few days ago, when it gets here I can post a pic so everyone can see.

Thanks.

BTW remarkable jobs on the sig's Poseidon.

And thanks.

[Jesse_James]

Yup 4" is ideal. The standard square sectors are 3.5" The extra half inch helps a bit with ship placement (more room for those Big Girls) But it is also does not disrupt room if one has limited space.

I will be ordering mine with in the week. Or maybe next pay day. I like pay day. It ticles my giggle zone as you say. :rolleyes:

[Jesse_James]

FWIW, I bought a 3x5ft mat from Terrain Mat UK (http://www.terrainmat.com/). Frankly I'm quite disappointed; their naval stuff looks great on the website but rather horrid in person - I would not recommend it at all.

That said, I also bought a 6x8ft desert mat from them for BattleField Evolution, and it truly kicks some serious butt.

Sent ya a PM withs some Q's

Just a heads up.

[hgraves]

i know its not an shiney something you can download an such but this is my solution to the map problem
http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w150/harleygraves/IMG_0204.jpg
http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w150/harleygraves/IMG_0203.jpgthe map pictured is 4 ft by 8 ft if i need an smaller play field i just fold it down some
http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w150/harleygraves/IMG_0217.jpg
http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w150/harleygraves/IMG_0214.jpgheres an couple of close ups showing the realtionship between the ships and squares the squares are 3.5 inches across
the lines where drawn with an sharpy and an edge and an really big table
hope you like

[Jedi_Ram]

Hello all. This is my first thread and first post so have mercy :)
Anyway I was wondering if anyone had good alternatives to the relatively cheap, paper maps included in the starter set. I've seen some nice stuff for the land based AAM, but not much for WaS.

In order to preserve my maps a bit, I bought two 20"x30" poster frames and used the plastic lens to cover the maps during play. It's a pretty cheap way to keep them nice and the reflective nature of the lens makes a nice water-ish surface. I would dearly love it if WOTC would print these maps on plastic or vinyl. I would gladly pay a few dollars more for a starter if it came with a sturdy map.

This is the map I made which worked out pretty well:
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb7/rich07726/Summer2007141.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb7/rich07726/Summer2007148.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb7/rich07726/Summer2007149.jpg

[Jesse_James]

i know its not an shiney something you can download an such but this is my solution to the map problem
http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w150/harleygraves/IMG_0204.jpg
http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w150/harleygraves/IMG_0203.jpgthe map pictured is 4 ft by 8 ft if i need an smaller play field i just fold it down some
http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w150/harleygraves/IMG_0217.jpg
http://i175.photobucket.com/albums/w150/harleygraves/IMG_0214.jpgheres an couple of close ups showing the realtionship between the ships and squares the squares are 3.5 inches across
the lines where drawn with an sharpy and an edge and an really big table
hope you like

Nice map. Nice islands ;)

This is the map I made which worked out pretty well:
http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb7/rich07726/Summer2007141.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb7/rich07726/Summer2007148.jpg

http://i206.photobucket.com/albums/bb7/rich07726/Summer2007149.jpg

Very nice. I think I remember seein that. How on earth did you get the lines so perfect?

I use the same Islands as well. I just ordered 3 more sets ofthose pirate islands. :)

[Jedi_Ram]

Nice map. Nice islands ;)



Very nice. I think I remember seein that. How on earth did you get the lines so perfect?

I use the same Islands as well. I just ordered 3 more sets ofthose pirate islands. :)

I had a 3' long ruler and I took my time. Although I screwed up the first map and had to buy a new one to make but at least that I screwed up at the very beginning. It took me a few hours to finish it. I did the same type of map for Star Wars Starship battles.

[Poseidon]

I use the same Islands as well. I just ordered 3 more sets ofthose pirate islands. :)

Que? Pirate Islands? What islands are these? They are much nicer than the lil' cards.

[Jesse_James]

Que? Pirate Islands? What islands are these? They are much nicer than the lil' cards.

they are islands you can get from GF9, they are about 30 bucks for 6 islands, 3-D hard plastic.

Want me to take a few snap shots and give ya the web add. ?

[Vornargith]

I can't stand those GF9 islands. They have that "massed-produced" quality.

Here's some more custom islands on a hotzmat...
http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l67/vornargith/Hotz-Islands.jpg

[Poseidon]

You make those Vor?

Any chance I could get a few ;)

[Jesse_James]

Nice islands. I made a few as well several months back. I don't like the way they came out. I have been thinking of trading them or selling them. Think someone on ebay would buy 'em?

[Vornargith]

Get some initial feedback from critics and post them if the feedback is positive ;).

[Jesse_James]

Get some initial feedback from critics and post them if the feedback is positive ;).

I put these pics up some time ago...

http://boards.avalonhill.com/showthread.php?t=19415

Now back to watching Ocho Cinco and the Who Dey Nation.

[Poseidon]

Would be better sans the large square base they're on. Otherwsie good stuff.

[afilter]

Gave up on the small paper maps long ago.

http://s143.photobucket.com/albums/r159/afilter/?action=view&current=DSCN1107.jpg

http://s143.photobucket.com/albums/r159/afilter/?action=view&current=DSCN1108.jpg

http://s143.photobucket.com/albums/r159/afilter/?action=view&current=DSCN1120.jpg

http://s143.photobucket.com/albums/r159/afilter/?action=view&current=DSCN1124.jpg

Now only using the paper maps when traveling for a quick brawl

[Vornargith]

Sweet islands everyone :)

JJ ... I concur with Poseidon ... lose the square edges... And you can probably use less foliage and use more dry-brushing ... I like the molds you used.

If you don't like em, I'm sure someone will gladly buy them.

[Maynard James Keenan]

Nice maps and Islands.

I use the GF9 islands as well. Cheap for the price, considaring I don't have to go out buy all the stuff, and make them my self. Don't have the time.

Plus they are made of plastic so I don't have to worry about them getting damage when I put them in my tackle box. :)

Which is always a plus. I had a ton of terrain damage that I made years back do to traveling. :(

GF9 is also suppose to come out with Large islands some time this year for pirates. I will buy those as well. I have 6 sets already of the first 2 sets. Well worth the money. Now if only they made a W@S map. :(

[Maynard James Keenan]

I can't stand those GF9 islands. They have that "massed-produced" quality.



Heh heh that made me laugh, because the ships have the same look. :rolleyes:

[Vornargith]

Yeah, but the minis are one thing ... terrain is another ... call it a personal preference. The minis can be repainted, and the guys here have done excellent work, but those Pirates islands .... resin terrain could've been better sculpted. GF9 could've done a better job. The plus is its durability and time "not spent" ... won't argue there. I've had satisfactory results with spackling and layers of sealant, and with practice making terrain, one can crank these islands out in no time ... but yeah it's still time.

[Maynard James Keenan]

Yeah, but the minis are one thing ... terrain is another ... call it a personal preference. The minis can be repainted, and the guys here have done excellent work, but those Pirates islands .... resin terrain could've been better sculpted. GF9 could've done a better job. The plus is its durability and time "not spent" ... won't argue there. I've had satisfactory results with spackling and layers of sealant, and with practice making terrain, one can crank these islands out in no time ... but yeah it's still time.

I think I will have to. The islands are praised by just about everyone else, and is one of their best sellers. And when you compare the quality of the islands VS the Ships, the islands win, but then again the islands to cost a lot more.

You can only make a mini look so much better by repainting it, you can't really change the quality of the plastic or change the over all look too much or add too much detail. I have seen panzerpainters and weedsrocks painted minis, a lot better than the factory paint jobs, so I am sure they have no problem making their own islands. But how many can do that, and how many people have the time. The best part of GF9 is that you don't have to worry about flocking coming off over the years or multiple games. Which is more of a factor if you travel a lot I guess.

[Jesse_James]

GF9 is also suppose to come out with Large islands some time this year for pirates. I will buy those as well. I have 6 sets already of the first 2 sets. Well worth the money. Now if only they made a W@S map. :(

When is the exact date? Where did you here this. I would like these as well. That is one of the few disadvantages to GF9 islands, they only take up one sector. If you wanted one that took up 2,3,4 or more you are out of luck.

By the way if you take the GF9 island that is shaped like a boomerang and fling it out side... IT WORKS! :eek:

[aquarius]

Seriously?!?!?

You're kidding me.

I'm just very gullible, right?

[Jesse_James]

Seriously?!?!?

You're kidding me.

I'm just very gullible, right?

the boomerang thing? yeah it works, but it only goes one way, it does not come back.

I have a real boomerang, it hand made and from Australia.

But I have more fun with my tomahawk ax. :D

[Cmdr. Clint]

The Hex map ... 7 files ... the 1 large map, and the 6 sections ... all can be tiled to create custom sized maps.

http://rapidshare.com/files/59073192/WaSHEX-Map.zip

The standard WaS square map base ... it can be tiled as well.

http://rapidshare.com/files/59072831/Large28x35-square-Map.zip

Thanks for the great map!
I failed to notice though that it's designed to be tiled, hence one row shorter than the original map. Which was kind of a fun surprise after I got it printed in A0 size ;) It looked great though, prints beautifully!
Well, I've modified it to include the extra row and sent it to my buddy to get it printed (again). Then I'll make some nice new islands to match! :)

http://dev.pardalis.se/waratsea/11x8_squares_map.jpg
(Not everyone at once please, save some bandwith for the others, K?)