Hex Pixel Size

Hello, I'm using the free version of&nbsp; <a href="http://www.hexographer.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.hexographer.com/</a> &nbsp;to make a hex based map for use in a campaign I'm running soon. What's the correct pixel size for a hexagon so I can get the map to align correctly with roll20's grid? (assume horizontal hex grid, not vertical).

While I don't know the pixel size (although someone calculated it once, maybe they will post it) you should be able to align it properly. If you do have a problem aligning the hex grid let me know, I can walk you through it.&nbsp; Edit: I found the post where the person calculated it:&nbsp; <a href="https://app.roll20.net/forum/post/112778/range-finding-tool-on-a-hex-grid-inaccuracy#post-126461" rel="nofollow">https://app.roll20.net/forum/post/112778/range-finding-tool-on-a-hex-grid-inaccuracy#post-126461</a> - Gauss

Thank you. I think I may abandon using Hexographer with Roll20; it's been too much of a pain to try and get both systems to align with one another because Hexographer doesn't allow decimal points. Let's see if CC3 helps.

I think the hex grids need some love from Riley, but luckily I don't use hex grids for anything at the moment so I'm OK. :) &nbsp;There is something strange about the Hexness :) of the Hex (v) sizing as I said in my earlier post you linked.

Yeah, when creating the Endless Terrains Hex pack, I found it easier to just take a screenshot of a square asset (of the size of the map tile that I intended to make) which had been autosized to the hexgrid and then take a screen shot of that to give me the appropriate dimensions I needed for my image along with the hex grid to paint on. I found out that the interface does not resize perfectly to the hexes. &nbsp;There's a bit of padding that has to be accounted for. &nbsp;And a Hex(V) asset won't fit on a Hex(H) grid if you just rotate it 90 degrees. &nbsp;For some reason the hexes of each grid differ slightly in their proportions.

Phillip. I just bought that. I'll deal by making do with the Hex (V) instead of Hex(H). It's just that Hex (H) is the standard used by Battletech. Do you intend to make a Hex (H) version of the Endless Terrains Hex pack?

Simus, you can get any hex map to align in about 5-10minutes. I can show you how if you want. - Gauss

Simus D. said: Phillip. I just bought that. I'll deal by making do with the Hex (V) instead of Hex(H). It's just that Hex (H) is the standard used by Battletech. Do you intend to make a Hex (H) version of the Endless Terrains Hex pack? I wasn't originally (getting them to work was a huge hassle) but I suppose that if there's a preference in the community for Hex(H) over Hex(V) then I suppose anything's possible. &nbsp;It all boils down to the amount of time I have available. &nbsp;My next Hex set is intended to be a dungeon one. I'll have to investigate Battletech, as I'll obviously want to produce art that's as compatible as possible. Perhaps I should post a Forum Survey, to see which folks prefer, V or H

@Simus I've started a forum thread to see which is more popular, H vs V. I've never played battletech before, but just from a cursory search for info on it, it looks like elevation plays an important role in the game, correct? &nbsp;If I were to convert Endless Terrains to an H format to accommodate Battletech, I think it might ultimately be better for Roll20 users if I just did the terrain from scratch (rather than convert) so that I could create tiles that properly display height. I don't suppose you know of any useful links to resources on learning more about Battletech maps that I could research?

Here is a wiki showing low res images of the map packs.&nbsp; <a href="http://www.sarna.net/wiki/BattleTech_Map_Sets" rel="nofollow">http://www.sarna.net/wiki/BattleTech_Map_Sets</a> Battletech has a number of map elements: General fluff about the map elements: First, hexes are 30 meters across in Battletech Second, each elevation change is approximately equal to 6 meters. Third, Battlemechs are 2 levels tall and only one battlemech can occupy a hex. Fourth: Forests are a 'uniform' 2 levels high on top of the terrain they are standing on.&nbsp; Terrain types (from memory, some may be missing or named slightly incorrectly):&nbsp; Clear&nbsp; Rough (rubble or rocks etc) Light and Heavy Forests Hills and Depressions (both up and down) are measured as 'level 1', 'level 2', etc. for hills and 'sublevel 1' etc for depressions. Water (rivers and lakes, can be at varying terrain heights, should have depth values such as 'depth 1', 'depth 2' etc). Paved/Roads Buildings (Light, Medium, Heavy, Hardened, different sizes from 1 hex to multiple hexes) Some terrain types can be mixed. For example, forested hills. This is basically a common sense thing.&nbsp; That should be a good starting point. - Gauss

Gauss said: Here is a wiki showing low res images of the map packs.&nbsp; <a href="http://www.sarna.net/wiki/BattleTech_Map_Sets" rel="nofollow">http://www.sarna.net/wiki/BattleTech_Map_Sets</a> Battletech has a number of map elements: General fluff about the map elements: First, hexes are 30 meters across in Battletech Second, each elevation change is approximately equal to 6 meters. Third, Battlemechs are 2 levels tall and only one battlemech can occupy a hex. Fourth: Forests are a 'uniform' 2 levels high on top of the terrain they are standing on.&nbsp; Terrain types (from memory, some may be missing or named slightly incorrectly):&nbsp; Clear&nbsp; Rough (rubble or rocks etc) Light and Heavy Forests Hills and Depressions (both up and down) are measured as 'level 1', 'level 2', etc. for hills and 'sublevel 1' etc for depressions. Water (rivers and lakes, can be at varying terrain heights, should have depth values such as 'depth 1', 'depth 2' etc). Paved/Roads Buildings (Light, Medium, Heavy, Hardened, different sizes from 1 hex to multiple hexes) Some terrain types can be mixed. For example, forested hills. This is basically a common sense thing.&nbsp; That should be a good starting point. - Gauss Interesting. Yeah, definitely a huge difference in scale. &nbsp;The biggest challenge I think would be in determining how to apply the elevation labels. &nbsp;I'd certainly want a more zoomed out look to the terrain than what Endless Terrains has at the moment, but still totally doable as a new project. Let me see how my workload shakes out this next month.

Would something like this be more along the lines of what you were thinking? I figured I could make a terrain set that has tiles both with and without text so that folks that want Battletech tiles can use the labels and folks that don't do Battletech and just want the terrain in a Hex(H) format can use the ones without text.

Id put the labels at the bottom of the hexes but yes this works :). Are the labels attached to the underlying terrain or are they a separate image (png)? - Gauss

Gauss said: Id put the labels at the bottom of the hexes but yes this works :). Are the labels attached to the underlying terrain or are they a separate image (png)? - Gauss Bottom is totally doable. The labels are attached although it is possible to create a png with just the labels without the terrain. &nbsp;The ones written there really are just to see how readable the different words are. I was originally considering creating the set with two copies of every tile. &nbsp;One without labels and one with labels. &nbsp;The reason why is because I figure if the labels exist as separate pngs, that would dramatically increase the number of images a GM would have to use in creating the map. But if folks wanted it I wouldn't resist creating separate pngs of just labels :)

The problem with labels on tiles is that the base hex can be any level or sublevel. It would require a lot of extra tiles to account for each.&nbsp; Thus, PNGs would be an idea. Unfortunately, that many PNGs may cause the system to slow down a lot. It would need to be tested.&nbsp; - Gauss

You only need the level png in one hex to show the elevation change for that color of terrain feature. Maybe make the terrain hexes slightly transparent, so that as you stack them, they get darker.

HoneyBadger, could you clairify your idea regarding transparent hexes? Would that not also require PNGs? - Gauss

The opacity of the terrain hex would stack, making them darker as you stacked them on top of each other.

How many levels are usually used (not accounting for water depths or tree/building heights) in most battle tech maps? &nbsp;Does it exceed more than four base levels?

Phillip, I'd say generally 1-6 levels but higher is possible. - Gauss

Okay, I've got a set of 52 assets (so far) that provide four different size hex tiles across three terrain types: Grass, Dirt, Water. I don't think I would/will add any other terrain types to this pack if/when it's released. &nbsp;I want to keep it at a $4.99 level and I still have label assets and possibly a few mech tokens to add to this one. &nbsp;Swamps, lava, buildings, roads, and other terrains could go in to a separate expansion pack. But first I think I need to do another pass on the terrains I've done so far. &nbsp;There are five levels to the grass and dirt terrains and three levels to the water, but I think I need to up the difference in shading further as currently it seems like the difference in light/dark from one level to the next is still too subtle to be easily distinguishable What are other people's thoughts?

Very nice - Gauss

Okay, I've made slight changes to better define the tonal differences between the five different levels, and recreated all 52 tiles with the appropriate changes. &nbsp;I've made transparent label tiles to overlay the terrain and label it as the appropriate Level or Depth depending on whether it's ground or water and I've moved the labels to be positioned at the bottom of the tile per the suggestion made here. &nbsp;I've also added in eight basic mecha giant robots so that folks purchasing the asset set will have, I hope, everything they need to run a basic battletech or other similar genre game with just a single purchase. It got uploaded to the marketplace today: &nbsp; Battle Terrains If it does well I'll devote time towards creating other sets involving additional terrain types, forests, buildings, roads, and perhaps other mecha, etc...