Re: (TFT) Re: Building; square megahex

["Eric Tetz" <erictetz@gmail.com>]

On 9/28/07, Craig W. Barber <craigwbar@comcast.net> wrote:
> I seem to recall that the grognards at SPI had an on-going battle for
> YEARS back in the 1970s or so, argueing about whether rivers should
> be regularized to follow hexsides or treated as a hex terrain that
> wanders in and out of hexes naturally.

So what was the consensus? You've got me curious now. :)

BTW: I'm a total role-playing noob (I did a small bit of
Meleeing/Wizarding as a kid and decided to show _my_ kids recently,
which is how I found my way onto this list last week), so I apologize
in advance for my inevitable naiveti -- but this discussion's
interesting. ^_^

It seems to me that the aesthetic appeal of the map should count for
something, and that would favor drawing naturally. In other words, you
would draw the terrain as it is in your imagination, without regard
for hexes/squares/whatever, so that it looks like a map of a real
place and not a game board. That way the hexes don't dictate the
world, they serve a simpler purpose, their intended purpose: a
convenient measuring guide to streamline combat. Then you could have
some rules of thumb to determine what terrain features lie within a
given hex. For instance, you could say that the terrain in a hex is
determined by what occupies the majority of it (i.e. if 51% of a hex
is water, the hex is considered to be water); or if a wall passes
through a hex it, is considered a wall, but you are allowed to occupy
that hex (your back is against the wall); etc. You'd get maps that not
only look more realistic, aiding player imagination, but are easier to
draw.

Cheers,
Eric
=====
Post to the entire list by writing to tft@brainiac.com.
Unsubscribe by mailing to majordomo@brainiac.com with the message body
"unsubscribe tft"