World map generator [Teaser for the future 5th version]

[zanwot]

Using Gothious Rex's excel world generator (Thanks GR) I added a Map generator: over here.
It can also be found over here.

This randomly creates a map from any UWP, or can generate UWP too. F9 to generate new map/world. You can enter UWP or choices in the grey fields.


Updated to fourth version:
* Planet capital, faction capitals.
* habitability taken account of for placing setlements
* Planetary special features possible.

(third version:
* Included mountains, a better ice model, and diverse fixes.
* Included a field to enter a known UWP to make random maps of known worlds.
* Included rival factions generation.
* Included two optional (field at bottom of page) world generation rules: The "Space opera rules", and government wrap around that was sugested by someone here some time ago.)


As usual, F9 for a new world (or map).


If you want to try maps of a specific world you allready have UWP for, you just enter the string of characters, taking out the dash, in the appropriate grey box, and then F9 untill your happy (carefull that temperature is not part of UWP).


Do please point out any bugs I could have missed (but take account that sometimes, as long as it is not too often, weird things can happen on purpose, such as no planetsurface starport...)

 

[RockViper]

Damn that is impressive.

 

[zanwot]

I've just discovered that using openoffice the map does not come out at all.

I'm using Excel 2003, and this is what it should look like:

 

[zanwot]

Ok, must admit I am a little disapointed, I thought more people would find this noteworthy and even usefull.

Anyway, here is what I plan to upgrade (note to myself as well):
* add mountain chains for worlds with little or no seas but do have an atmo (those all white boring worlds at the moment), and also for water worlds (to simulate underwater features).
* fix a bug where a town or the starport can be off the map sometimes, on the right side.
* take account of size,pop, starport level for determining proximity of starport to town.
* improve the ice generation, increasing the ice coverage for coldest worlds.
* change the scale of the map (smaller looks less round-silly-ish), get rid of useless icons on the right.
* include a possibility to take acocunt of weather for placing towns, maybe increase the chances of there being more towns on higher pop worlds.

 

[ZobMan]

very nice - thankyou

 

[Paladin]

Highly impressive concept. A bit more variety in the color on the generation would be nice.

I generated about 20 worlds just "playing with it" and it created a couple with cities underwater and ice.

One with trillions of people and thin/tainted atmo, no water, no ice, no cities and only 1 starport (in fact the map was white except for the starport).

 

[captainjack23]

Shweeet !

Very nice idea and implementation.

 

[zanwot]

Thanks for the input guys.

A bit more variety in the color on the generation would be nice.

Well I want to stay as generic as possible (even blue for the seas may be a little too specific), and not get too flashy-weird.
And with my limited knowledge of Excel, I would only know how to make extra colors by having as many sets of data as of colors, which can get silly (and tedious) when one wants to take account of all possible terrains ans atmos...
And as the map is just basically an excel graph, one can allways fairly easily change the colors of the graphic to fit a specific ecosphere (yellow or green land, red seas, etc...)

I generated about 20 worlds just "playing with it" and it created a couple with cities underwater and ice.
One with trillions of people and thin/tainted atmo, no water, no ice, no cities and only 1 starport (in fact the map was white except for the starport).

That can happen:

For those white worlds I plan to put in mountains, to make them funner. We agree there must be some terrain feature for a world to be inspiring.

Concerning towns, they are not towns really, but "major settlements areas". I try to be as generic as possible, within the Traveller frame, and adapting to any overall population. So it only describe major megapoles on high pop planets, whilst any small colony on a very low pop planet.
So that in effect I do not forbid planets to not have any "towns" (unless if the atmo is hostile actually), as that can mean that the population is just very spread out on the planets (maybe no town above medium sized cities), or that the people are nomadic, etc.
That being said I agree it is less fun. So it is less probable, especially with high population planets, and I am thinking of making it even less probable, but I want the possibility to stay in.

Also the scale is fairly big, so a "town" "underwater", may not be underwater, but just on a small island, or even some exotic seasurface town. Whatever inspires the GM really, in pure Traveller form.

 

[gabonator]

That is a fine piece of work.

 

[zanwot]

I've updated the map generation, including mountains, more ice on cold planets, and some bug fixes. Unfortunately I left positions of major settlements independant of weather and tech for now.

Here is the new map generator:
http://membres.lycos.fr/zanwot/7mer/worldgeneratorMAP2.xls

Don't forget:
* F9 for a new world.
* You can just put in the stats of a specific world to generate random maps for it.
* Because of different formats, it will not work with openoffice. Sorry.

 

[zanwot]

Updated to third version:

http://membres.lycos.fr/zanwot/7mer/worldgeneratorMAP3.xls

* Included a better ice model, and diverse fixes.
* Included a field to enter a known UWP to make random maps of known worlds.
* Included rival factions generation.
* Included two optional (field at bottom of page) world generation rules: The "Space opera rules", and government wrap around that was sugested by someone here some time ago. Sorry no "Hard science" science rules, i'm feeling lazy ;-) .

As usual, F9 for a new world (or map).

 

[RockViper]

That is a really neat spreadsheet, thanks for taking the time to create it.

The only improvement I would suggest is to change the default land color from white to brown or green its less confusing, but this is a change anyone can make so its not really a program breaker.

Thanks again

 

[zanwot]

Thanks RockViper.

Actually I can not make a special colour for land, because I would need several possible colours, depending on atmo, hydro & temperature, to stay universal, and that would require way too much data (or using some trick I do not know of). As you said it is easy to change for the user anyway.

EDIT: Some bugs fixed, presentation slightly improved.

EDIT2: I made some personnal modifications for the "rival factions" of balkanized worlds, giving their importance more appropriate and inspiring names. [I must say I am not unhappy of those balkanized worlds]

 

[Emryys]

Keep up the awesome work! 8)

Question: What is the large circle that always appears in the bottom left of the map? :?

 

[zanwot]

Thanks.

Question: What is the large circle that always appears in the bottom left of the map? :?

That is me cleaning up: I do not know how to program excel to draw or not draw certain elements of a graphic, so I need to draw everything everytime. Therefor I just put the points I don't want on (0,0), and end the graphic with a colourless circle (a mask basically) on top of those at (0,0) (but both white and grey are noticable). The problem is that the largest points I need to hide are potentially the large craters, so I need a circle at least as big...

Appart from the user modifying the graphic (just reduce size of mask and craters if no craters, or even eliminate them), or programming some complex macro I don't know how to program (to print on graphic only certain curves depending on data), I could try some things but I do not yet see an ideal solution (I could try hiding the craters under the planet, but then problem when partial craters).

 

[zanwot]

I am working on the fourth version, and maybe I could use with some ideas:

I have included capital(s), am including habitability for placing of towns, and plan on including "special" planets, such as tidally locked to primary star, etc.

I could maybe use some extra ideas from all around here for these planetary specials. The restriction is that these specials have to have consequences on the map for it to be of interest, but not too drastic as I cannot change everything just for one special case. Also they have to be mildly unusual, but not too extra-ordinary.

Here is what I am planning on for now:
* Tidally locked to sun (depending on weather and temperature, settlements tend to be near terminator, usually on the sunny side. Ice only on one side - equator replaced by terminator)
* slow rotation (days last months - less towns, they tend to be near poles depending on temperature)
* war ravaged (include ruins)
* giant volcano (a single elevation feature to represent it)
* ruins from an ancient civilisation (incude ruins)

An obvious one would be an Ice age special, but presumabily the temperature feature allready contains that information.

 

[zanwot]

Fourth version available. I included, extra from previous version, habitability considerations for towns, capital(s), and planetary specials such as tidaly locked, ravaged by war etc (these can be turned off or even forced using the field at bottom of first page).
It's over here.

Don't forget:
* F9 for a new map (optionnaly world)
* Can be used to create a map for a world you only have UWP of, or to generate UWP too.
* Several fields at bottom of first page (or at top for UWP) can let you control modify the rules used to generate the worlds / or the maps.

I believe this is just about as good as it gets for me. Hope you find it usefull.

 

[Kilgs]

Excellent work!

 

[zanwot]

I'm working on a new version, which will include an extra special or two (recent climate change : towns placed using wrong/previous temperature), but the big thing will be 4 times more details on the map. The default will be it will be increased size in memory, and I am not yet sure poor old excell can handle it. On the plus side the maps should be much nicer, and I could maybe attempt to detail megapoles. Not for the immediate though, I'm just keeping all informed.

Please give me some feedback if you use this for your games or otherwise, I'dd be interested to see how it is used in practice, and the results.

 

[Joi Sourcebook]

Fourth version available. I included, extra from previous version, habitability considerations for towns, capital(s), and planetary specials such as tidaly locked, ravaged by war etc (these can be turned off or even forced using the field at bottom of first page).

[...]

I believe this is just about as good as it gets for me. Hope you find it usefull.

Fantastic! Brilliant use of excel charts. It works really well.