Moving onto modules & Adventure paths, how to handle the maps?

[Zeeky Von Vepermont]

So basically, trying to move the players onto rise of the runelords, unfortunately as I hear after getting a couple modules that had no maps, that pathfinder doesn't come with maps, and you'd have to buy them separately.

How do you guys handle the maps when attempting to use adventure paths like rise of the run lords? I counted the squares for just the glass works, not counting outside of it, and it wouldn't be anywhere near large enough to try drawing the map prior. I'd have to continuously erase / move the map and players to fit it all in. Any advice?

[Aiddar]

Hi there - by lack of maps, you mean the large adventure one that you move the figures/minis on?

If so, then the vast majority of adventures (pretty much 99% I would guestimate) will not have maps of the type you want. That said.... the map that came with the beginners box... the flip side is designed to be written on and then erased. As such, normally, most people draw out the encounter area on the map when they need to (i.e. normally when a fight starts). As you note - you measure out the space needed from the map in the module (the scale is normally on the map - if not, something has gone wrong somewhere(!), and you can normally estimate it as being either 5' per square or 10' per square) and then draw it on the encounter map.

It *does* mean you have to keep on drawing/erasing, but that is how most of the hobby does things. There are alternatives, depending on how IT-happy you are - various options from just having a PC screen showing the maps that you share with the players, to having a ceiling mounted projector that projects the map onto the gaming table (and yes, ONE day I will have this - it must be mine!). There is another alternative, depending on how much money you have (i.e. lots) - Dwarven Forge (I think) do a range of 3-D dungeon bits and pieces that allow you to (literally) build your dungeon.

Hope that helps

Aiddar

[Ice Titan]

Purchase one of these maps. For almost all Adventure Paths, I would recommend the largest. For Rise of the Runelords, well, the maps get ungodly huge near the end of the campaign. You'll probably need it.

Buy a pack of these. Chessex has markers, but I find the added purple and brown to be a big deal when going for exactness. I use red/blue/green/purple/brown for objects, purple/brown for doors, green for grass, black for walls, brown for dead grass/wooden objects like fences, red for creatures, blue for water and purple for "edges" such as a 5ft drop and rocks. (Color coding helps translate the maps for your players, I find.)

Then draw the maps. 1sq = 1sq, unless the map is 10ft = 1sq, in which case 1sq = 4sq.

I personally have 2 48x34inch mats, 2 26x24inch maps (going off the top of my head for numbers) and a pad of office-sized graph paper that I can draw on if I run out of even more space. For most of my AP needs, I use one big and one small map and have my six or so encounters. For the last 2 sessions of my AP group I've used both 48x34 mats. Drawing them out is easy. I spend about an hour just drafting out both mats, and then another hour to two hours detailing. For me, it's kind of like an art project that I enjoy, so don't assume that 3hrs is the norm. I've had GMs that just drew as they went, and in one color, and they drew entire maps in less than 10minutes and let our imaginations fill in the rest.

[Odraude]

Also a good rule of thumb is to only really draw out a room on your mat if there is going to be an encounter there. Saves on a lot of time and effort.

Something I do is when I have a map on graph paper, I photocopy that dungeon then cut up the rooms to separate them. As the players explore, I set up up the rooms as they would be. That way, they get a visualization of the dungeon without wasting time on drawing every room.

[Ravenbow]

Put the impetus back upon the players. Draw what they can see on the flipmat or whatever you use. If they want a record, the memories of the encounter will have to suffice if they do not break out the graph paper and map.

[NeoFax]

I play online almost 100% of the time so I use MapTool to handle the mapping for me. The other 10% is with my kids and I print out the maps from the PDF. I do this using Adobe Reader 10, GIMP and PosteRazor. I use the select tool in Adobe Reader 10 and click on the image of the map. I then paste this into GIMP and resize the image to be 1" = 1 square if the scale is 5' or 1" = 1/2 square for 10' scale. Once I have all of the squares square, I save the map as a jpeg. I then open this jpeg in PosteRazor and tell it what size paper I am going to print on, how much overlap I want and the grid size. It then chops up the image into the paper size I want and keeps the grid 1" so minis can be used and saves this out into a PDF which I can then print or take to Staples/Kinkos to have them print. As for maps that are not included in the PDF, but there is an encounter, I scour the interwebs for something suitable to take it's place or my kids get a good laugh at my non-existent artistic skills on a dry-erase mat.

[Kolokotroni]

Well I usually only draw the part of the map the players are interacting with, and only in a combat situation. I dont lay out a whole building if they are just walking through it. I use a dry erase board, and sometimes I alter the size and shape a little from time to time.

That said, if you prefer to have everything drawn out ahead of time, or to keep a permament record, I recommend gaming paper cheap and easy, at 4 dollars a roll, its ok to use lots of it for an adventure.