Wandering the labyrinthine byways of the internet of late, I seem to have taken a lot of very right turns. Even without a map to guide myself by I've come across reams of maps. The one that set off this post was one that inspired me long ago. It was a city map...
Blacksand!
That's right, Port Blacksand of Allansia, star of the Fighting Fantasy solo gamebooks and Advanced Fighting Fantasy system. Do you shudder with pleasure, or fear?
I relived the memories at Brighton Roleplayers, specifically at their post on urban settings in fantasy. While you're there, check out Sigil too. Right up my alley. They have the map from Blacksand!, and if you want a list of streets, there's one here. (I've added this useful wiki to memory banks in the right-hand column.) We met the city first in City of Thieves, the solo gamebook, helpfully reviewed here at Fighting Dantasy.
But this only set me off. I think we all love urban maps, whether campaign maps, adventure maps or criss-crossed tabletops, for roleplaying or wargaming. So Porky went snuffling for new or lesser-known options, and presents a subjective selection below.
Mainly fantasy 2D
- Lots of map roundups at Carto Cacography, the latest with some real gems
- Plenty of dungeons and tunnels at Aeons & Augauries
- A couple of post-apocalypic at the Forumopolis
Mainly sci-fi 2D / 3D
- S6 Engineering have some modular road, canal and city block terrain
- Jawaballs is hawking copies of the latest Space Hulk with its superb boards
- Litko have space corridors of their own and industrial towers with walkways
Many genre / fantasy 3D
- WorldWorksGames offer a vast terrain range for printing onto card or pre-cut
- Painted or unpainted fantasy buildings from Custom Kingdoms, shown off here by Blue Table Painting
- Impressive new fantasy towers from Games Workshop, one ruined, one dividing out into floors
No dead ends there - a host of atmospheric destinations - but stay in the lamplight!
So what have I missed? What grand thoroughfares, cramped streets and dank alleyways do you frequent? More to the point, which would you like to?
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