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How to handle large maps?

Hello All,

I think this is the right sub-forum as it's a specific question.   I am trying to recreate the Ruined Tower of Zenopus.   It's quite big.   I am trying to shrink it down so that the original 10 ft squares are only 5 (except hallways), but that still has the map over 100 squares wide and 100 squares tall.   It's a typical old school dungeon and not really broken up in easy to chunk sections.   As I build it, I get the warning that the map is big and will be slow to load, or possibly not at all.   I have a good rig, but not all of my players.    Will I need to chunk it up?   Or is it OK?   

If I have to, I can find a way to break it up.  I can do quadrants.  It is just clunky that way.  

April 28 (5 years ago)

Make it as big as it should be.  Then chop it into <10mb pieces and reassemble in roll20  it'll be fine.

April 28 (5 years ago)
Laerso Ramos
Marketplace Creator

I think the best option is chunking it on 4 pieces. Assemble everything on PS/GIMP and then cut, this should solve the slow loading problems

April 28 (5 years ago)
Kraynic
Pro
Sheet Author


Jim C. said:

I have a good rig, but not all of my players.    Will I need to chunk it up?   Or is it OK?  


This is one of those things where you really won't know until you try.

Thanks for the responses, but....I'm building the dungeon in Roll20.   I'm using scans of the Dungeon Tileset boxed set.   I'm uploading them in Roll20.    Is there a better way to do it?

April 28 (5 years ago)
Kraynic
Pro
Sheet Author

Usually, the fewer separate images there are, the better.  While having that tiles set available on Roll20 for "one shot" maps could be nice, you should get better performance by assembling any large maps in photoshop or GIMP.  Then you can adjust the image quality of the whole thing to reduce the data load of the map and upload it as a single image.


Kraynic said:

Usually, the fewer separate images there are, the better.  While having that tiles set available on Roll20 for "one shot" maps could be nice, you should get better performance by assembling any large maps in photoshop or GIMP.  Then you can adjust the image quality of the whole thing to reduce the data load of the map and upload it as a single image.


Thanks for that.  I do not have access to photoshop, so I guess I need to figure out GIMP.   *sigh*   I hope to be ready by Thursday.   

I wish Ruined Tower of Zenopus was already done somewhere.


April 28 (5 years ago)

Edited April 28 (5 years ago)
Gold
Forum Champion

One of my open table (west marches) groups has been playing Basic Fantasy D&D on this bad-boy map for more than 5 years so far, all on this one page dungeon in Roll20 that I put together:

https://app.roll20.net/lfg/listing/9145/explore-dungeons-inside-a-strange-world-basic-fantasy-rpg-ad-and-d-osr-80-s-number-dnd-live-twitch-tv

250 squares x 40 squares.


Works great!

My map graphic background is very optimized in file size though. It is only black-and-white, and is 1/4 the size in pixels as displayed, but still looks fantastic stretched to this proportion, even at 100% zoom and closer.

The red room-number 12 that you can see, is at 240% zoom (maximum pixelization), a zoom level we never use in actual gameplay. We usually play it on about 60% to 80% viewport zoom. The GM usually uses about 40% to see more of the dungeon surroundings at once.

It is not broken into 1/4's. This one is all one map graphic.


Gold said:

One of my open table (west marches) groups has been playing Basic Fantasy D&D on this bad-boy map for more than 5 years so far...

Wait....did you say BASIC FANTASY?   As in....Elf is a class?   Same for Dwarf and Halfling?   You just knocked me back 40 years.....   

Black Dougal fails to discover the poison needle trap and fails his saving throw.  Sister Rebecca says last rights while Iron Morgan stands guard.