milbysmaps

The Lost Library

Personally, I'm of the opinion that, in fantasy RPGs, a ruined, abandoned library is much better than a regular library. Hear me out. So, either one can be a place the players go to find information, but in a ruined library, much more interesting things can happen. There might be monsters. There might be traps. There might be some crazy old guy that's been living in there for the past 20 years. Maybe one of the bookshelves is a mimic. There are lots of possibilities.

But what's really g...

The Lost Library - Patrons' Edition

Personally, I'm of the opinion that, in fantasy RPGs, a ruined, abandoned library is much better than a regular library. Hear me out. So, either one can be a place the players go to find information, but in a ruined library, much more interesting things can happen. There might be monsters. There might be traps. There might be some crazy old guy that's been living in there for the past 20 years. Maybe one of the bookshelves is a mimic. There are lots of possibilities.

But what's really g...

The Vayl's Firth Codex

As promised, here's the codex for Vayl's Firth. There's nothing new in here, just the DM notes and annotated maps all in one place, which can be pretty useful.

Next, I'll be getting to work on the backlog of Cartographic Congress winners, starting with a grand library, which could be the lair of a book wyrm. Hope that sounds good!

Download from Google Drive here...

I'm back! Vayl's Firth is Finished!

It's been over a month since I posted for non-patrons, but, as promised, here's the complete city map and the upper levels. You can download them all from the attachment below.

If you want to become a patron, there are individual maps of all the islands, plus unfurnished versions, annotated maps, DM notes, a Foundry module and various other stuff. There's a lot. It took me three hours to upload all the patrons' edition maps. Admittedly, I'm on a trash-tier internet connection at the mom...

The City of Vayl's Firth

Vayl's Firth is officially finished! Also, there are now DM notes and separate maps of the farms and lumber camp.

Seven years ago, I made another battlemap of a city called Finbarr's Marsh. I'm still proud of it, but let's be honest: it's a little janky. And it needed a successor, which is what Vayl's Firth is. Hopefully it's the kind of place you'll want to let your players explore and get into trouble. ...

Vayl's Firth - The Garden District and the Great Market

This is the last of Vayl's Firth finished! Well, aside from the farms and the lumber camp, but those are almost finished and they don't count anyway. Because reasons. I will make separate maps for them, though.

After that, I just need to write up some DM notes and I'll post the complete map. I think that's doable by the end of the week. All right, I'm gonna go finish this thing up. If you've got any questions or thoughts, let me know!

(By the way, I fully concede that the Great Ma...

Vayl's Firth - Mages' Isle and the Palace

These are the Mages' Isle and the palace, along with Vayl's secret underground chambers, which connect to the palace via a secret staircase.

I didn't mark the secret door on the map and I'm not sure how you feel about that, but it seems fairly clear where it should be. Plus, if I mark it on the map, it's harder to hide from your players. Anyway, let me know if you think there's a better way to go about it and I'll consider it for next time.

Well, all that's left to color is the we...

Vayl's Firth - The Admiralty, Casement Rock and the Flooded Tunnels

Casement Rock (formerly known as the Inner Fort) is a small fortification in the middle of the harbor that protects the entrance to the city's waterways. The admiralty is, of course, the headquarters of the city's naval fleet. And the flooded tunnels are... well, they're whatever you want them to be. Here are a few ideas:

• The tunnels have passages leading up to various places in the city. The entrances are located under flagstones in the floors and the buildings' occupants may n...

  2025-07-20 21:18:42 +0000 UTC View Post

Vayl's Firth - The Shipyards (and I guess that little island on the left too)

This is the part of the city where dead trees are turned into boats. A few other businesses can be found here too, as well as a number of homes, most of which belong to workers at the shipyards. There's also the little island on the left, whose stairs lead down into the water. This is the entrance to the flooded tunnels, which I'll be coloring next, along with the inner fort. And you know what? I might as well color the admiralty docks while I'm at it.

All right, back to work! I'll be b...

Vayl's Firth - The Craftsmen's Quarter and the Fort

The Craftsmen's Quarter is the middle-class district of Vayl's Firth. There's a foundry, a plaza and various workshops in the area. As with the previous map, I made a gunpowder-free version for those of you running a setting in which "being shot" means getting impaled with a fast-moving piece of wood.

Next, I'll be drawing the shipyards on the island to the left of this one. I'd say Vayl's F...

Vayl's Firth - Coraline Manor

Vayl's Firth doesn't have nobility. That is to say, they don't have hereditary titles. But they do have wealthy families who, for the most part, occupy the same roles in society that nobles would. The Coralines are the richest family in the city, but have never been handed the chain of office to rule it. They pretend to be offended at this, but the reality is that they know 2025-07-06 18:35:14 +0000 UTC View Post

Vayl's Firth - The Shanties, Barracks and Temple

I'm back with another big chunk of the city for you. This time, we've got the temple, barracks and the poor district (now called "The Shanties.") There's a separate map of the barracks that includes the upper levels as well.

I made gunpowder-free versions of these maps as well for anyone running a setting in which "artillery" refers to a thing made out of wood. Those aren't posted above, but they're in the files.

Also, before someone asks, there are no wells in the city, only cis...

The 82nd Cartographic Congress Vote

We've got six proposals this month and, in the interest of getting more work done on Vayl's Firth, I'll leave you to it. As always, feel free to discuss your choices below.

MS proposes a giant ant nest.

Ethan proposes a neolithic cave village set into a cliffside in the jungle.

Pope Dezzicus proposes the Hôtel-Dieu, a hospital in Paris dating back to the first millenium.

Silas proposes a large watermill on a riverside with a miller's residence nearby.

Odd propos...

Vayl's Firth - The Trade Port, Fishing Port and Small Market

Here's are the first three islands of Vayl's Firth finished. I'll have another three up in a few days. Since the map is already about half-colored, they should be coming at a pretty good pace. Most of these smaller sections of the map will be for patrons, but I WILL post the full-size map for everyone once it's finished.

Next, I'll be drawing the three islands below these: the poor district, the barracks and the temple. After that, I'll probably just work my way around 2025-06-28 19:49:14 +0000 UTC View Post

Vayl's Firth - The Trade Port, Fishing Port and Small Market - Patrons' Edition

Here's are the first three islands of Vayl's Firth finished. I'll have another three up in a few days. Since the map is already about half-colored, they should be coming at a pretty good pace. Most of these smaller sections of the map will be for patrons, but I WILL post the full-size map for everyone once it's finished.

Next, I'll be drawing the three islands below these: the poor district, the barracks and the temple. After that, I'll probably just work my way around 2025-06-28 19:48:57 +0000 UTC View Post

Vayl's Firth - Background Colors Finished (Work-in-Progress)

Here's a section of the city that should give you an idea of what the map looks like right now. Most of the background and terrain is done and what's left to color is mainly details like furnishings and so forth. From here on, I'm going to start finishing up the map a few islands at a time and post them as I go.  I'll probably start with the islands in the bottom-right and work my way around. Once it's all done, I'll post the complete city.

I should have the first few islands done ...

Vayl's Firth - The Full City (Work-in-Progress)

Here's the entire ground level of Vayl's Firth, assembled and ready to color. This took a bit longer than I expected because, as it turns out, drawing three billion trees, bushes and crops takes a while. In any case, it's done and I'm ready to start coloring this thing.

Well, I'm gonna get to it. Hope you like how the city looks so far! If you have any questions or thoughts about it, let me know.

Vayl’s Firth Update 10: The Mages' Island and the Unlabeled Island in the Bottom-Left

This is officially the last of the city drawn! I can't really say "It's done," because I still need to scan all of this, touch up the drawings, put them all together and color everything, but drawing the city-- the biggest part of the job-- is done.

Well, I've got a long day of scanning ahead, so I'm gonna get started on that. Once that's done, I'll put them all into a single image and post a picture for you. Hope you like it so far!

Vayl’s Firth Update 9: The Palace

The founding of Vayl's Firth has become something of a legend among the people of the city. Almost 1000 years ago, a wizard named Vayl killed a giant serpent that lived in the mouth of the River Ophidias, enabling settlers to move in and found a city in his name. The independent settlement had its own laws, which did not acknowledge any families as noblility and had no hereditary titles. Vayl himself had two children, but passed down his chain of office-- along with rulership of the city-- to...

The 81st Cartographic Congress Vote

We've got eight proposals this month and, since I'm about to post some photos of the last of Vayl's Firth, I'll get straight to them:

Silas proposes a hidden forest dockyard where a Living Ship is being held captive.

Odd proposes a tastefully appointed gothic manor belonging to the Shadovar nobility. At its back it hides a secret, colorful, vibrant greenhouse garden.

Lost Nebula ...

Vayl’s Firth Update 8: The Manor and the Great Market

Here are a couple more parts of the city finished. I've got the palace about halfway drawn and I should have the whole thing finished before long.

The great market is the town's main marketplace, with a variety of shops and vendor stalls and a cistern in the center. The manor is the home of one of the city's powerful merchant families, who are allegedly involved in piracy, smuggling and other forms of maritime naughtiness. Allegedly.

All right, I'm gonna get back to finis...

Vayl's Firth Update 7: The Wealthy District

Most parts of the city only have a single floor, but the wealthy district has an upper level. Most of the buildings here are houses, but there's a shrine, an amphitheater and a library as well.

The city has a name now, by the way: Vayl's Firth. Vayl was the guy who founded the city long ago and still has a major impact on how it's run. I'll talk more about him later.

With this done, there are only four more parts of the city to draw: the Great Market, the manor, the palace and the...

City Megaproject Update 6: The Barracks, the Admiralty, the Inner Fort, the Farms and the Logging Camp

This is all small stuff, but there's a lot of it. The fort is the one in the center of the map. It's more of a fortification rather than a fortress, but it's a small island and that's about all you can fit on it. I imagine it being a bit like the Torre Scola.

The admiralty is the island marked "navy." It's got facilities to administer and resupply t...

The 80th Cartographic Congress Runoff

I've got three more sections of the city megaproject almost finished and I should have them up tonight or tomorrow. Until then, which of these maps do you like the sound of more?

Ethan proposes a barbarian/orcish burial ground with burial mounds, keyhole tombs and barrows.

Diresquirrel proposes a map of narrow, winding European city streets and corridors that would be good for an urban chase.

City Megaproject Update 5: The Craftsmen District and the Shipyards

Here are two more of the larger islands. The only big parts left are the wealthy district and the palace. Everything else should be pretty quick. I'm going to draw the farms and a couple other smaller parts next, like the admiralty base (marked "Navy" above) and the barracks.

Also, there's a little island to the left of the shipyards and I haven't decided what I want to do with it yet. I'm thinking there might be flooded tunnels running underneath it, but I'm not sure. If you've got any...

The 80th Cartographic Congress Vote

There are only four proposals this month, but they're all really good. By the way, I'm finishing up some inking on the next few parts of the city (the craftsmen and shipyard islands) and I should have those up for you soon. Anyway, on to the vote:

Shawn proposes the Chateau Gaillard castle in France.

Silas proposes a map of Stonehenge during an ancient druidic festival.

Ethan proposes a barbarian/orcish burial ground with burial mounds, keyhole tombs and barrows.

Dires...

City Megaproject Update 4: The Poor District

Here's one of the larger islands done. I've got the shipyard and the inner fort drawn as well and I'll have those up soon once I get them inked. I'm also about halfway done with the middle class/craftsmen island, so I should have a bunch more islands getting finished over the next week.

All right, I'm gonna get back to work. Hope you like it so far!

City Megaproject Update 3: The Trade Harbor and the Lower Fort

Two more down! I'll be working on the "poor" island in the lower right next. So far, this feels like fairly good progress to me.

By the way, I made that second picture so you can see what's finished and what's left to draw.

All right, back to work!

City Megaproject Update 2: The Small Market, Temple and Fishing Docks

Here are the drawings of the first three islands of the river delta city megaproject (which I really need to come up with a proper name for). These are three of the smaller islands, but they seemed like a good place to start. I'll be drawing the trade harbor next.

M...

City Battlemap Megaproject: Here's where we are three days in (Work-in-Progress)

As you can see, I completely redesigned the layout from the original sketch. I had a few problems with it, but by far the biggest was the fact that it was crap. I like this one much better and I hope you do too.

The second picture is the sketch of the island layout with a basic description of what's on what's on each island. These are pretty broad strokes, but I'm going to start figuring out...