Map Submissions

Introduction

  So, you've decided that you want to make a map for one of our many areas, but
  where do you begin? In the attempts to provide a clear and concise set of maps
  to help adventurers traverse The World of Jord, it's important to understand
  and comply to a few basic standards so that everyone can quickly and easily
  use the information that is supplied by people just like you. Below are some
  simple guidelines to help you maximize the potential of your idea while keeping
  consistent with some easily recognizable standards. Please take some time to
  browse them before you begin creating your map. If you have any questions that
  aren't addressed in part or completely regarding the creation and submission
  of area maps, then please don't hesitate to direct your questions and concerns
  to The Immortal Staffor the The Caretaker of the Maps Archive.

Submission Avenues

  Map Quests

  On occasion, the need to update or create maps for existing or new areas comes
  about, and an immortal or two may provide a special occasion to submit a map
  for said area or areas. Quests allow players like yourself to provide a valuable
  service to the game we all love while receiving a reward for your time and efforts.
  This generally requires the player or players to perform a task or set of tasks in
  return for the right or ability to submit a map. This may take form in a variety of 
  ways, and neither one is guaranteed at any one time. Also, please be understand that 
  merely entering the quest does not always entitle a player or character to provide 
  maps - that is dependent upon the quest and the immortal(s) administering the quest. 
  While we here at SlothMUD don't typically provide equipment as a reward for map 
  submissions, we do provide alternatives that will help you in your adventures. 
  Examples of such rewards may be but are not limited to:

      1. Godlevel Sanctuary Potion(s)
      2. Drachma Rewards
      3. Character Attribute Reroll
      4. Use of a Special Item (i.e. Holy Hand Grenade)

  Player Submissions

  Over time, the World of Jord changes and may or may not resemble the world that
  it once did. Sometimes areas get updated and may no longer contain complete or
  valid information. When this happens, adventurers are bound to spot the changes.
  Should you find this to be true, you can always contact the immortal staff 
  regarding your interest to update a map or maps by simply contacting us directly
  by email or on the game. As the Immortal staff work hard to provide the best 
  game experience they can for all of you, it might, in many cases, be more pertinent
  to contact them through email using this address:

     wiki@slothmud.org

  Requests for Updates

  Occasionally, you may find that a map needs to be created or update, but you don't
  want to be the one to do it for any number of reasons. That's fine. Simply feel
  free to contact us at the following email address below or ingame, and we will be 
  sure to check it out. We certainly thank you for your requests.

     wiki@slothmud.org

  The Update Agenda

  We here at SlothMUD realize that some maps need to be updated. Some areas have yet 
  to be mapped at all. whatever the reason, we have identified several maps that need 
  to be provided or updated to better represent the game and our revised level of 
  standard. Please ne mindful, however, that occasionally the decision to forego a
  standard or guidelines may be made, but that does not mean we won't continue to
  require adherence to existing standards. The following maps currently are slated
  for updating or creation, and are in no particular order:

  1. The Temple of Neptune
  2. The Sieged Castle
  3. Cavern of Star City
  4. Caverns of the Matterhorn
  5. Ch'ung Kuo 

Guidelines

  So, now you've contacted the Immortal Staff and you're ready to start creating
  your map. You think you've got a good handle on where everything is in your area,
  and what sort of things are contained therein. Well, before you start, metaphorically 
  putting the quill to the parchment, you are going to want to know ahead of time what
  is likely to be accepted and what is not. After all, you don't want to pour your soul 
  into a map only to start over, right? Neither would we! So, please take some time to
  become familiar with the guidelines outlined below. A word of note, however: keep in
  mind that these are guidelines and not rules. What this means is that you should try
  your hardest to adhere to the guidelines, but occasionally the guidelines will be be 
  averted in favor of something that may prove to be useful, aesthetically pleasing, or 
  of greater functional value. Again, these are things that are up to the discretion of 
  the Immortal staff. Otherwise, enjoy.

  Dimensions

  An important aspect of making maps is the question, "How big do I want to make my map?"
  Well, it's important to have a map that is large enough to see without enlarging it,
  but we also don't want a map that becomes fuzzy or distorted when we do decide to
  enlarge it. Moreover, we don't want to have to spend too much time scrolling over to
  see a portion of the map that we may need. As a general guideline, it's probably best
  to try to aim for maps that are around the 1200-1300 pixel wide range. Unless the map
  demands it, it's probably best to aim for a vertical dimension of around 800-900 pixels.
  IT's not necssary to aim for this if there's only ten rooms in the area you are mapping,
  and therefore you may wish to aim for something smaller. But if you have five hundred
  rooms in an area, we do ask that you respect the horizontal guideline. For vertical 
  adjustments, please take the time to view the section under Map Orientation.

  Map Orientation

  Don't you just hate it when you're exploring some place with your buddies, and the
  map on the website takes more time to manipulate than it would otherwise to just
  rush in unawares? Me too! After all, time is money and you've got gold to loot and
  enemy camps to pillage! But in all honesty, it's always nice to be prepared. One of
  the ways we can achieve this is by using proper orientation with our map making. Maps
  are only to be rectangular or square. Rectangles should be no more than 1200 to 1300 
  pixels wide (horizontal), but there are no current limits as to how long (vertical) a 
  map can be. In other words, we would rather maps need to be scrolled up and down to 
  see another portion rather than left and right (portrait style rather than landscape). 
  We, the Immortal Staff, do however ask you that if someone has to scroll more than 
  three pages to see all of your map, that you may wish to contact us about the issue 
  or shrink some of your map's content when possible while remaining relatively 
  consistent with the guidelines contained herein.

     1. Rectangular Orientation

  When deciding to orient your map in a rectangular fashion, you may find yourself wondering
  like many people how you should organize your content. By content, we mean to say, at this
  point, your rooms, room connections, and sections of the map itself. Generally, the best 
  way to organize your content with rectangular orientation is from side to side or top to 
  bottom. On the whole, the map should be centered around the point in the middle that is
  equidistant from every other point on the map unless this proves to be impossible for some
  peculiar reason. While it is possible to orient your content from corner to corner, we ask
  that you reserve that for portrait style maps.

     2. Square Orientation
  
  When attempting to make large maps, square orientation is the best way to approach map creation
  as it allows the sectioning of your map while staying consistent with the preferred scroll method,
  portrait style. Using this method, the organization of your content may be corner to corner, side 
  to side, or top to bottom. As with rectangular formatting, the map should be centered around the 
  midpoint, however the midpoint in this case refers to the midpoint of the page rather than the map
  itself. Again, content refers to rooms and room connections at this point.

  C. Spacing and Text

  Having determined which way you want your map to be oriented (rectangular versus square), you are
  now ready to start adding content to your map. The first thing to know is that in all the content
  that is on the page (text, images, legends, etc) should be surrounded, proportionally, by a 
  reasonable amount of space that has no content at all. In other words, there should be a well 
  defined border around everything and the content should never approach or touch the edge of the map. 
  This does not mean to say that you should draw a line around everything. In fact, we ask you that 
  you refrain from such things for the most part. Simply leave some space between the features of your
  map and the edge of the image itself that most anyone could, theoretically, draw an invisible border
  around. This is done for purely aesthetic reasons as well as to eliminate any possibility of lost 
  or otherwise indeterminate information.

  When using text to describe things like mobs, area features, and equipment you will want to use a font
  that is both easy to read and large enough for anyone to see well. A font that is too large takes up too
  much space and one that is small is hard to read. Also, overly stylistic fonts such as cursive fonts
  and fonts that that are too complex or otherwise "flowery" isn't a very good idea, perhaps. As a result,
  the suggested font size is at least a 12pt font with a wide, well defined line. Headings and the like
  should be bold and slightly larger than that of any other general text. 

  The content of your map may contain several different things - not merely the room layout and connection
  between them. One common thing for many mapmakers to note is whether or not a mob wanders or is stationary.
  Another popular idea is to make mention of an item or items that a particular mob loads. Not uncommon is a
  notation of some kind that marks a mob as an epic mob, a quest mob, or a shopkeeper of some kind. These are
  all good ideas as a map that is just rooms and connections is pretty dull on its own. It's definitely not 
  our intention to produce nor provide drab, unflavored, and otherwise obtuse maps that are only a source
  of function. We also want our maps to be a source for insight and expression for our players. This means
  that if there's a particular trick or technique you use that you may wish to add that to your map. Perhaps
  there's a locked door or trap nearby, and you want whoever looks at your map to know about this. Maybe the
  terrain changes from one room to another or from one part of the map to another, and you may wish to mark 
  that in some way on the map. Each of these examples is a good way to spice up your map, and provide some
  valuable information to future adventurers. Some common ways to note features like this are:

        1. Wandering Mobs - Often noted by marking the mob's name between {}'s
        2. Equipment      - Often noted by adding a + before the item name which is often
                             marked beside the mob's name.
        3. Quest Mobs     - Epic mobs are often noted by putting "EPIC" next to their name.
        4. Recall Points  - Usually noted off to the side in a list or by symbol.
        5. Shopkeepers    - Type of shop or keeper is often noted beside the mob's name.
        6. Terrain        - Generally, the color of the room marks the type of terrain. Red is
                             for fire and blue is for water. See color usage guidelines below.

  D. The Compass Rose

  One particularly common aspect is the inclusion of the compass rose. The compass rose defines the directions
  on your map that correspond to the direction of travel while following the map during gameplay. To make things
  neat and easy, we have provided a few examples of good Compass Roses that you may use if you choose to do so.
  As a rule, please always have the north end of your compass rose pointing to the top of your map. This will
  help to avoid unnecessary mistakes and misreads by those who wish to use your map in the future. You may notice
  that this feature of so many maps sometimes appears as a textual representation. We will not at this time be
  accepting any maps that do not have compass roses that are not well depicted. In other words, if they are sloppy,
  too similar to any other parts of the map, lacking in aesthetic appeal, or otherwise out of place then they will
  not meet the requirement of a proper compass rose. Using a compass rose similar to the ones shown below is a way
  to guarantee acceptance of your map.

     Free Compass Rose Examples:

  E. Use of Color

  One good way to either make or break a map is by using colored text or symbols. There are thousands of shades of
  color that can be used to designate things like terrain and give flair to your map. Color is also a way to detract
  from the usefulness of the map while destroying any aesthetic value as well. Because of this simple fact, we ask
  that any color used in your map, whether in text, symbols, or images, be used sparingly. There are proper ways to
  use color, however. Also, there are colors that should be avoided at all costs. There are, however, a few simple
  guidelines to use when applying colorful features to your maps:

     1. Never, under any circumstances, use any shade of yellow for text.
     2. Always provide a high degree of contrast between your color and text.
     3. Avoid light and neutral colors such as gray, pink, baby blue, teal, and eggshell.
     4. Always choose the darker variants of colors over lighter shades.
     5. Always use black text.
     6. Always use white or transparent backgrounds.
     7. Always use black borders around your colors.
     8. Avoid using two or more colors that mix closely. Example: Dark purple and black.
     9. As a general rule, stick to basic colors: Red, Green, Blue.
    10. Try not to use more than two to three colors.

  F. Use of Images

  Images are a wonderful way to spice up your map and provide a great source of aesthetic expression. Usually,
  a single image is all that is needed to provide an added bump to your map and give it that special appearance.
  However, using too many images can make your map look gaudy and seem superfluous. Preferably, images should
  generally be black and white. Occasionally, if done well, an image can provide a little color to your map and
  give it that special quality. Avoid hand-drawn pictures and pictures that appear to be created by a child. 
  Proper placing of images is also important. Images should be placed outside of the main viewing area off to
  the side or to fill space in a corner. Images, also, should not violate the outside border of the map if possible.
  Try not to use more than two small images, or no more than one large image. Images shouldn't be larger than about
  250 pixels square on average. Occasionally larger ones may be used, but that will be left up to the discretion
  of the Immortal who reviews the map before acceptance.

  G. Legends and Tables

  Occasionally, maps include a large number of symbols and features requiring additional information to decipher them
  quickly and effectively. This can be done simply by providing a Legend or Table. Typically, Legends are used to 
  easily and succinctly define the meaning between colors and symbols such as, perhaps, a circle with an "x" in it to
  mark the starting point of an area or map. Perhaps you've used the color Forest Green to mark rooms that a patrol
  walks through. Tables, on the other hand, should be used primarily with a collection of items that are numbered or
  perhaps an ordinal system of steps to complete a task or set of tasks. Tables should have titles and should be 
  their elements properly aligned with one another. The elements of a table should also be in order and observe the
  guidelines for colors and text. Legends also must follow these guidelines, and both tables and legends should be off
  to the side or in a corner of the map. Each should follow the guidelines involving the borders of the map.

  H. Signatures

  Now that you have got everything in place, there's one final step to your map: sign it. We want to know who made this
  wonderful piece of art and function! But please don't put your real name on the map. Your player name will suffice.
  Simple put a note at the bottom or off in a corner, and please try not to use any strange or unsually hard to read
  fonts. Also, it is not necessary to give yourself an avatar or image representing yourself. That's fine for your fantasy
  football team, but let's try to keep the unnecessary elements to a minimum (zero).

Additional Information

  First and foremost, we all thank you and look forward to your time and effort making maps. After all, map making is a 
  great way for you to help us all out as we try to give you the best game experience possible. Secondly, if you have
  any questions or concerns regarding maps or map making, please don't hesitate to shoot us an email or talk to us when
  you are in the game. Once again, we'd like to take the time to explain the importance of creating appealing, functional
  maps for our areas while keeping in mind that maps should be accessible to the visually impaired. We hope that you take
  the time to consider them when making your map. But also keep in mind that we, the Immortal Staff, cannot address everyone
  all of the time nor do we expect you, the map makers, to do that either. After all, we are only human. Should you find
  a map in error, in need of updating, containing typographical errors, or in dire need of attention in some capacity, then
  let us know! 

  Best Regards,

  Your Immortal Staff
  wiki@slothmud.org