How to quick fix a bad map part 1
In my experience, a surprisingly large number of published adventures include maps that...aren’t as good as they could be. The reasons vary, but it seems that sometimes map designers seem to be unsure about what the map is actually meant to achieve on the table. If the text does not elaborate on the map's purpose and lacks notes on how and when it should be used by the players and the referee, the readers are left to figure it out for themselves. In this space of uncertainty maps can become an incoherent mixture of contradictory intentions, which can even render them useless. Which is regrettable, because it´s very easy to fix.
Purpose
Best way to approach designing a map is to ask questions first. Is the map a realstic representation or a vibing abstraction of the location? Is it player-facing or does it only adress the referee? Is it a tool for route planing or does it provide a fast and accessible overview on locations? How important are the relationship between the map's features? Is its main purpose just to communicate setting or does it structure warfare. Will it be mainly a tool for handling the travel through wilderness? Is it a narrative artifact and part of the fiction? Does it contain secrets and hidden locations that are meant to be discovered through procedural exploration? How much information do players have when starting the game? Do the players start with an empty hex map and are supposed to explore uncharted territory?
These are only some of the many relevant questions that need answers before designing a map. I know this because I left many of these questions unanswered myself when I started making (bad) maps. Answering them will imporve your maps.
Grids
Beyond these functional issues, many maps have an insufficient - or sometimes entirely missing - connection to the rules system they were designed for. While most maps at least account for random encounters, a surprising number seem to ignore the implications of overland travel rules completely. Although a missing compass rose or scale bar can be fixed quickly at the table, the lack of a distance grid can be a death blow to the map's potential.
As measuring tools, grids allow players and referee not only to assess travel ranges and travel speed precisely, but also to enter a new layer of strategic and tactical decision-making. Grids (or comparable layout elements for measuring distances) are essential for applying basic movement rules, and designing a map without them can also reduce the PCs’ ability to make informed choices and plan ahead. If you want your players to engage with the regional geography and think about the actual space - while also considering time and speed - this is the way. And if you fear a grid might break the players’ “immersion,” just think of it as an additional layer that draws player deeper into the spatial reality of the fiction. So when in doubt, put a grid on your map please.
Case in point
Yesterday’s session reminded me of this. I run a heavily homebrewed version of “The Horrendous Hounds of Hendeburgh” that got plucked into our Dolmenwood campaign. Without getting to much into detail, the group had to deal with many angry, mounted highwaymen that were assaulting fleeing villagers and setting shit on fire, while four horrendous hounds attacked villagers on three different locations and an important NPCs was running through the streets. It was utter chaos and consequences were severe - enemy and player movement was absolutely crucial, and strict time records had to be kept.
All this would have been an absolute mess without the translucent battle map I bought a while ago and then completely forgot about. I laid it over the adventure´s okay-ish map of the settlement, et voila! A new layer of strategic and tactical decision-making appeared out of thin polymers. Players were talking about how much time they had before enemies arrived at their position. Decisions were made based on movement rates, bows lost and gained accuracy, spells were put on hold, and things got extremely close and very exciting - all because I put that stupid thing on there. I am certain this enhanced the session big time and probably saved me from making unfair decisions based on rough estimates. People were torn apart, set on fire and beheaded at exactly the right time and in exactly the right place because the movement rules were applied correctly. Feels good.
THeidemann 29.09.2026
