Travel Map and Scale map travel TSM

[Rick7475]

Currently, the plan for TSM is to have a travel map that PC's can use to go to key areas that should be using a "travel area" for encounters such as mountain travel, forest or rural travel, etc. For some areas, it will also have "scale map travel" where a PC can travel the areas between some of the key points.

This will give PC's a choice in some cases for just straight no frills travel (ie the travel Map and Travel Encounter area") and more detailed slower travel (ie through the scaled travel area).

For example, you can get to Quarryvar, in the Moonwood, 2 ways from High Hold. You can use the travel map, and have a chance of an encounter in the travel encounter area, or you can just walk it through the scenic scale map areas and face encounters that way (basically 2 areas to walk). The scale map route is very pretty but includes places you may want to explore (ie forgotten ruins, caves, interesting sites) where you may find some adventure and more danger. The travel map will only be as dangerous as the scripted encounter, simulating a group quickly travelling through the area avoiding as many dangers as possible.

So the Triggers will have signs indicating "Local Route" or "Travel Map". Where there is a local route (ie through the scale map areas) there will be a specific trigger indicating such with a sign or symbol. The travel map trigger will also have a sign or symbol that the PC's will recognize.

This way, we can optimize some of the cool travel areas for explorers and adventures and allow PC's that wish to just get from A to B the choice.

There are not as many scale areas to travel and due to size issues, they may never all be made, but we should include some key famous areas via the travel map. There will be many more travel map areas than local area triggers.

So, for Indio, and AL, I hope this is cool with the state of the module currently. I am hoping that we can start signing out parts of the exteriors so that I can add these features and work on the exteriors and start adding NPC's and interiors

Thanks for all the help, and I hope that we can move TSM into beta 2 within a couple of weeks or so if we get Indio's quests updated and more interiors added.

[AcadiusLost]

What I'd recommend would be making "hidden" transition triggers into the full-scale areas surrounding the region they represent on the scaled travel map- that way as PCs approach, say, the Moonwood, they automatically get jumped into the detail area. If they choose to skirt around the moonwood entirely, they can continue on the travel map- but there would be no "option" to pass through it without passing through the full-scale detail area. Ideally/eventually, I'd like to see it work such that there is little to no indication for the PCs, whether they've found a "wilderness point of interest", or just a random encounter- so when they discover a hidden cave/crypt/tomb nestled in the cliffs while fleeing from some hobgoblins, it retains the excitement of discovery and exploration.

I can try linking some of the existing wilderness exteriors to the early travel map in this manner to demonstrate, if it would be helpful.

[Rick7475]

I am open to that as well. Go ahead and try it

[Rusty]

Lots of good promise. Not sure if there's a need for deliberate 'active' triggers to enter already-known points of interest, just to prevent accidental transitioning into them?