Forest's Edge, Adept (Patreon)

This week's map is the Forest's Edge (40x40), a simpler map than usual because I'm taking some time to go on a trip and I wanted to make sure I had something to give you all while I'm gone. So don't worry, I'll be back to my usual maps when I return!

Your alternate version of this map is Spooky, with darker and more spectral lighting as well as a creepy fog emerging from the forest. But don't worry, I'm sure it's just a regular forest, nothing to worry about!

1.  Yup, a road winding into the forest- that's it! The only real considerations here were how much of the map should be taken up by trees and how big/winding the road should be. I decided to be noncommittal and made the map about half trees, the road medium sized, and the road somewhat winding, nothing crazy. 

2. As always, the trees I drew into my initial sketch are more suggestions than anything else- I try not to feel too attached to my sketch anyway and let the drawing evolve as I work. Or more accurately, I fit in my premade trees and bunches of trees wherever they happen to slot in easily, vaguely following my sketch as a guide. Is it lazy? Maybe, but damn it's fast, easy, and usually allows me to move on to more important aspects of the map without lowering my motivation.

3. This time around I used the Forest Cave Entrance as my starting point for the colors, tweaking somewhat so that the grass didn't look quite so washed out. I also decided to be a little bit more bold with the lighting, going heavier on the shadows than I have recently, which I'm starting to think twice about now that I'm taking another look at it. Well, as opposed to the many times I've said it before, maybe I actually will come back, tweak, and re-upload the map this time!