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Hi Dragnmoon,
I posted the following "how to" in a previous thread some time ago, but with many having some time on their hands over the holiday break, it's probably a good time to re-post it:
There's a free utility called Posterazor which you can find easily with a Google search. It's purpose is to slice poster-sized images into A4 PDF pages.
Step 1 - drag/drop a map from a Pathfinder PDF into a folder on your desktop.
Step 2 - crop the bmp map image to form a suitable working image - Picasa (also free) can do this - keep in mind, you're trying to produce a canvas that can be easily divided into A4 pages of 7x11 inch grid squares.
Step 3 - open image in Posterazor.
Step 4 - using the options in Posterazor, define a brief overlap so you can see where the slices will divide your map into A4 pages.
Step 5 - scale your image until 7x11 inch grid squares fit per A4 page.
Step 6 - align your image top/centre/bottom and left/center/right until the slices line up nicely with your map grid.
note: you'll also want to try position your slices along walls, so you can drop A4 sheets on the table during play without giving away too much of what might be in an adjacent room - you may need to go back over previous steps, trial and error, to get the best fit - yes, this can be frustrating! very frustrating!
Step 7 - save as PDF and print the pages you require onto 200 gsm cardstock.
Despite the frustration, especially when your slices almost but not quite line up where you want them, Posterazor seems to be the best technique anyone has found for the purpose so far.
Hope this helps :-)
Cheers,
DarkWhite
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PosteRazor does not enhance the image, so depending on how much enlarging is required, the image can turn into a 80's 8-bit video game. I've found that anything more than 200% makes the image poor, more than 300% and it's terrible. Still, it's great for what it does. I've used it dozens of times and, for the most part, it works great.
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My method is much lower-tech. I zoom in on the image in the .pdf, slide the view to fit the part of the map that's roughly 10 squares by 8 squares in the window, and "Print Current View". Then slide over to the next section of the map and do the same. And again and again, until I've printed out the whole map.
I just ran Mists of Mwangi. I printed out the Blackros museum map onto 12 sheets of heavy paper and trimmed to tape them together into one massive map. The resolution was not terrible, particularly because the players are getting their eyes no closer than three feet or so from the map (so grainy resolution right up close is still fairly good in play). In all, the players were very impressed.
I don't know that I'd go through the trouble again unless the scenario, like Mists of Mwangi, has most of the adventure all in one location (or maybe two, like Tide of Morning).
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Posterazor is just one of several options available. As others have mentioned, whenever you zoom up a low-res image to one inch scale, it's not going to be pretty. However, players are at arms-length to their miniature on the table, at that distance the grainyness/blurryness is usually sufficiently better visually than what you could achieve with map hasitily hand-drawn during game on a battlemat. Players usually appreciate the effort of a printed map, no matter how low res.
My first choice would always be a GameMastery flip-mat or one of GaleForce9's lovely vinyl game mats if one were appropriate for the encounter. Printer ink is expensive, so sometimes buying a good map you can use across several scenarios can save you both effort and ink (hours and expense) in the long-run. Inn of the Welcome Wench and Market Square are favourites I've used in many a scenario.
If I had Photoshop at home (instead of just at work), or some other mapping programs such as Dundjinni, I might be tempted to recreate some higher-resolution encounter maps.
I've also thought it might be fun to recreate an encounter map by hand, with pencils or pens, if I had more time on my hands and a bit of artistic flair, it might be fun to add your own small details to a map like gothic flourishes, tasteless Taldan decor or whatever.
Cheers,
DarkWhite
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Venture-Captain, Arizona—Tucson
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So basically what I am looking for is a how-to on how to scale the image so it does not take me hours of trial and error to get it right.
I also made a map for Mists of Mwangi. I copied 8 by 10 square sections into Word, where I could blow them up to fill an 8" by 10" area. Once you get the hang of it, it's actually pretty easy.
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Little Extra information..
I plan on bringing the Map to Office max to have it printed out on 1 document. I do not plan on taping a bunch of pieces together.
If you're taking into a print shop to print out on one large poster-sized sheet, then can you not supply them with the pdf file, or the map image dragged from the pdf page saved as a jpeg, and let them scale it to one inch squares? You don't need to do any slicing or dicing. Note: I haven't tried this myself, and it may depend on the competency of the staff handling your print request.
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If you're taking into a print shop to print out on one large poster-sized sheet, then can you not supply them with the pdf file, or the map image dragged from the pdf page saved as a jpeg, and let them scale it to one inch squares? You don't need to do any slicing or dicing. Note: I haven't tried this myself, and it may depend on the competency of the staff handling your print request.Little Extra information..
I plan on bringing the Map to Office max to have it printed out on 1 document. I do not plan on taping a bunch of pieces together.
I am not sure they can do that...
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I also made a map for Mists of Mwangi. I copied 8 by 10 square sections into Word, where I could blow them up to fill an 8" by 10" area. Once you get the hang of it, it's actually pretty easy.
I did the same and just resized the picture using the rulers on the top and left side until the squares were 1".
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How I do it for the PFS Scenarios that I run here and at different conventions is to extract the map images from a PDF using Some PDF. Then I just select the area I want to print using Paint or Gimp or whatever. That selection is pasted into Open Office Draw. In Draw I create a 1" by 1" square with an invisible interior. Then I just resize the image manually until, using the square I created as a guide, the map squares are also 1" square.
If it is a very large image I just get my printer to break it up into tabloid, letter, or legal size chunks. Tape these together and laminate.
Not the most elegant method, but it works and I have it down well enough that it doesn't take me very long at all.
Shane
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I am not trying to fit to a 8x10 area, I Want to scale the whole thing to have it printed on one sheetIn other words, I will bring it down to Office max to print the whole map scaled to 1x1 inch grids and printed on one large sheet.
I did it the way you are describing once. But the cost for wide format printing was, to me, prohibitive. To scale the entire image I just did it in Gimp. At the bottom of the window change the units to inches and then just use your rulers and the scale image option under image to get it where you like. Save it to an appropriate format and carry it into Office Max.
Shane
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I am not trying to fit to a 8x10 area, I Want to scale the whole thing to have it printed on one sheetIn other words, I will bring it down to Office max to print the whole map scaled to 1x1 inch grids and printed on one large sheet.I did it the way you are describing once. But the cost for wide format printing was, to me, prohibitive. To scale the entire image I just did it in Gimp. At the bottom of the window change the units to inches and then just use your rulers and the scale image option under image to get it where you like. Save it to an appropriate format and carry it into Office Max.
Shane
I can do the $20 for a rare occurrence, I'm doing it for a Con. I would not do it for every PFS I run.
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I did this for the Sothis Lodge in Pt. 4 of the Everwar series. It cost me something like $60 total to have it printed out and laminated.
How I do it:
I use adobe reader 8 (not 9), and use the select function to select the map. Then I ctrl+C to copy the image to the clipboard. The image selected will be the Background image without 90% of the text overlay, excellent for covering up secrets.
Using Adobe photoshop or elements, I create a new image (which will be sized automatically for the clipboard) and paste it.
Next I find an open area with at least 3x3 that's relatively clear. I zoom way in on the area (500% ish) and then select those 3x3 squares. I then crop the image. I then go to image size, change the image width OR height to exactly 3-inches. The opposite dimension can be read in %. Usually it's something like 229%. I copy and paste that exact % to the clipboard. I then undo everything I did, up to the point the image was pasted. Then I resize the entire image using the % I copied, and voila, it'll print out at perfect scale.
I often use this and then crop to specific areas to print out chambers of a dungeon, but like I said, you can take that file right to kinkos and have them print it out full scale. Careful that they stick with the native size though, the 'tards at kinkos couldn't understand that I had already sized the image the way i wanted it...
email me if you have more questions kyle dot baird at gmail
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I can do the $20 for a rare occurrence, I'm doing it for a Con. I would not do it for every PFS I run.I am not trying to fit to a 8x10 area, I Want to scale the whole thing to have it printed on one sheetIn other words, I will bring it down to Office max to print the whole map scaled to 1x1 inch grids and printed on one large sheet.I did it the way you are describing once. But the cost for wide format printing was, to me, prohibitive. To scale the entire image I just did it in Gimp. At the bottom of the window change the units to inches and then just use your rulers and the scale image option under image to get it where you like. Save it to an appropriate format and carry it into Office Max.
Shane
Uggg...I take that back... Office max is nice and cheap. just over $20, but they can not print at the size I need.. Kinkos can but they want to charge $60! screw that!
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Try your local blueprint shop. Should be a better price and generally understand scaling and precision.
Uggg...I take that back... Office max is nice and cheap. just over $20, but they can not print at the size I need.. Kinkos can but they want to charge $60! screw that!
I was able to track down a Staples near by that can do it for the same price as Office max
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I was able to track down a Staples near by that can do it for the same price as Office maxTry your local blueprint shop. Should be a better price and generally understand scaling and precision.
Uggg...I take that back... Office max is nice and cheap. just over $20, but they can not print at the size I need.. Kinkos can but they want to charge $60! screw that!
Yup, and if staples employees try to give you flak about copywrite, they have something entered into their national database saying tht it is ok to copy for personal use. And I'm pretty sure staples can scale it up for you