I have been playing around with different configurations for a custom table and wanted to note some things I’ve landed on that I really like. A main one thing is having the map mounted so that it can slide around as needed on top of a bigger playing area. My table is 65” x 95” in total with a 5.5” arm rest around the outside and the middle is a recessed neoprene surface. I have the OOB Global map mounted on 1/2” rigid foam with a 1/2” aluminum frame around it. This allows the map to slide up close to whoever’s turn it is, but then be in the middle so both players can roll dice In front of them without disturbing the map and in easy view of the other player. (Plus we like lots of room to roll the bones). This ability to adjust the surface along with a standing height, makes it comfortable for long uses because you can move around more and don’t feel as tied down.
Things I’ve learned and changed from original design - I originally used too big of a frame for the map and mounted it on too high of a foam block (you can see these pictures at the bottom) - it made it hard to see the other player’s dice and the big frame took up too much real estate. My global map is mounted on much thinner foam (the framing is bad, you can see if you look closely) but I also used much thinner aluminum angle for the frame. This gives just enough grip when needing to move the map around (I use furniture slides on the bottom, which glide very nicely on the neoprene) but doesn’t make the whole thing too bulky. Having it an inch or so off the surface keeps the dice off, but isn’t so heigh that you can’t see the other player’s dice rolls. When playing other versions (such as Zombies) the board is much smaller, but it can easily swap in and out on the same table since it can move around where ever it is needed or be pushed aside.
I originally made it normal table height, but found long reaches while sitting were harder and it just felt cramped. Standing height with a bar stool is a great way to have the best of both worlds.
The 5.5” rim around the table itself gives you a nice arm rest that doesn’t interfere with the gaming surface. I’m playing with how to best add some cushion to this part - open to suggestions. Sometimes I just lay a piece of leftover neoprene on it.
Dice bounce nice on the neoprene and stay off the floor. It also feels nice and has enough give to allow things to slide but be picked up easily. Wouldn’t definitely go with neoprene again as a surface covering.
I made the drawers open to the inside of the table so you can stay hunched over the action while accessing and stowing stuff away. 50/50 on whether I would keep this if I were to do it again. If I were doing it again, I might try to build customer drawers form scratch using actual drawer glides, but that was beyond my ability when I first did this, so I just used clear plexiglass boxes with aluminum pulls mounted on them. It’s nice having them clear, and I was happy with how the pulls came out, but without glides they can be a little fussy sliding in and out of their slots.
I originally designed the table so that I could put a cover surface back on top when not in use, but find I don’t really ever do that, so if I were to do it again, I might not mess with that part (I never even finished staining those as you can see in the pictures).
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First draft 1914 map file
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https://www.mediafire.com/?8p56rdb6cpwvn3v ( this is updated map file)
Need help on the colors… Ottomans, UK, Italy, and possibly Aus- Hun.
Also, if the font does not look exactly like AA1914 let me know, i can include the font file.
lastly, look for text or map errors if you can. Check the neutral flags. i had to research what was during this period and the OOB is wrong in some cases. Then again i could be wrong.
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hhm, the link works but after it completely loads nothing happens, above the load bar it just says “retry”. I downloaded it and it worked fine though :D
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The Dutch flag should be without the crown in it. I used Illustrator the view the file and noticted that allot of territorty names are double font. In white en transparant black or something a like. In seazone 12 the blue color of the lines are different and between seazone 19 and 20 the lines are not of the same shapes.
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The Dutch flag should be without the crown in it. I used Illustrator the view the file and noticed that allot of territory names are double font. In white en transparent black or something a like. In seazone 12 the blue color of the lines are different and between seazone 19 and 20 the lines are not of the same shapes.
On the Dutch, the OOB map has it so in these cases i just found the same flag, but in some cases they fabricated a flag from thin air. In these cases, i inserted the correct flag. I will look into the double font thing and changed color lines.
If you find any misspelled words let me know.
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hhm, the link works but after it completely loads nothing happens, above the load bar it just says “retry”. I downloaded it and it worked fine though :D
Same for me, in both Firefox and IE. I was able to download the file with the down-arrow button in the top-right area.
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Imperious Leader, I love your maps, but ……
A) I would much rather have a traditional rectangle map instead of the tilted one. I see the original 1914 map “under” yours so I don’t know starting over is even possible.
B) I don’t like production chart and mobilization zone in the Sahara dessert. Would it be possible to at least make these two things a layer that can be toggled on/off?- The Russian and Italian territories are the same color or too close to the same.
- I really like that there aren’t any background images cluttering up the map. I find those very distracting and unnecessary during play.
Other than that it’s great!
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I really like that there aren’t any background images cluttering up the map.
LOL. Funny you say that. Alot of people praise how i do this on my maps, but oh well.
I don’t like production chart and mobilization zone in the Sahara dessert. Would it be possible to at least make these two things a layer that can be toggled on/off?
Im working on a solution so the look will be different. At worst case i can send you a version w/o that…just for you.
Let me get it final first.
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Awesome Imperious Leader. Do you use Photoshop to create your maps? I just completed a monster global map in Photoshop, that I’m looking for a home for, and many of the objects are layers so they can easily be toggled on/off.
I’m surprised most folks like the backdrop images. They certainly look cool but during play I find they get in the way and wished they were gone. I’m looking forward to your v3 map, that seems like the one I’ll have printed out. We still use one of your AA50 maps that I printed out.
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I use illustrator CS3
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Looking forwad to your map, bought the game and would love a better map! I tired your links, it loads then doesnt show anything and asks to retry? Is that on my end? Tried IE9 and Firefox.
thanks for any help!
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I think you need to sign up. The down loader is sometimes finicky, try again latter and if don’t work again let me know. I have about 60,000 downloads of my work on mediafire, and they didn’t have issues
Also you need to have current adobe reader installed
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I tired your links, it loads then doesnt show anything and asks to retry? Is that on my end? Tried IE9 and Firefox.
thanks for any help!
You don’t need to sign in, you just have to press an additional button at the upper right corner (see graphic below). Both the left and right button as well will lead you to another desktop, where you can download the file.
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Thanks! Downloaded it… wow very nice work!! Can’t wait till your done!!!
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Ok this is the final for phase 1 map.
see first post in this thread for final map
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Great Map! Whereas I don’t know the game and the OOB map here is some input:
No shaded borders:
- Austria
- Ottoman empire
- Spanish Marocco
- All german colonies in Africa
- Somaliland
- Ethiopia
- Holland
- Norway
- Sweden
- Denmark (double border)
- Greece
- Bulgaria
- Persia
- Afghanistan
Border shading pattern switching:
- Alsace: not consistent with other german countries
- Belarus: not consistent with other russian countries
Border missing:
- Canada (Right beneath country name ‘Canada’)
- Ireland (right of the country token)
Typos:
Marselles - Marseilles
Afganistan - Afghanistan“Wondering”:
- German East Africa - some blue brushes (lakes?)
- Why are there sometimes countries with town names (e.g. Kiel, Hannover, Munich) and sometimes countries with their correct names (Prussia, Silesia)?
- Kiel/Hannover: very strange locating and naming; Kiel is the capital of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of Germany. Whereas Schleswig-Holstein lies between the North Sea and the
Baltic Sea, Kiel is located at the coast of the Baltic Sea. Hannover is the capital of Lower Saxony, another northern state of Germany, in fact located where the map shows the area of ‘Kiel’. - There is a country without a name (between Transjordan and Egypt)
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“Wondering”:
- German East Africa - some blue brushes (lakes?)
- Why are there sometimes countries with town names (e.g. Kiel, Hannover, Munich) and sometimes countries with their correct names (Prussia, Silesia)?
- Kiel/Hannover: very strange locating and naming; Kiel is the capital of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of Germany. Whereas Schleswig-Holstein lies between the North Sea and the
Baltic Sea, Kiel is located at the coast of the Baltic Sea. Hannover is the capital of Lower Saxony, another northern state of Germany, in fact located where the map shows the area of ‘Kiel’. - There is a country without a name (between Transjordan and Egypt)
You realize this is a reproduction of OOB map right?
The lakes are on that map, name changes are not.
The other items will be looked into, thanks
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You realize this is a reproduction of OOB map right?
Yes, I realized it, nonetheless I’m wondering (…about the OOB map concerning the mentioned cases).
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http://www.mediafire.com/view/?98684l266s76fdx
Here is an updated file.
The shaded border thing are not meant to be consistent for all nations. The small space between Egypt and TJ is part of Egypt, which is why it has no name.
Pattern Switching thing: i checked and the texture and color is the same. I have no idea why it looks different, but it looks the same on my file.
Typo’s fixed
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WOW… looks great! I think Sea Zone 15 needs a Mine Icon? By the way the idea of showing those mines is a superb! When we played we forgot about mines, this will remind us! And this is a side question… since there is no anchor in India, I take it no navy can be built there?
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I will check into those items. Thanks
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