Forums » Smalltalk » Suggestions For Worldbuilding

Hello everyone! I was hoping to start building worlds for my characters soon, but I wanted to be able to design a detailed map, so I can reference locations, and make everything so much more genuine and lively. However, I am a horrible artist when it comes to drawing, and I need reccomendations as to apps or sites I can use to make big, beautiful maps full of forests and whatever else.

Thank you for your time and assistance,

Keat 😙

Hey Keat!

Inkarnate is what I use. It's awesome, easy to get the hang of and allows you to add villages, trees, mountains, etc. ❤

Now back to napping Hope this helps!

Inkarnate is really easy to use! Here's a different one that randomly generates and has a ton of options. It's a little complicated by after you get the hang of it, you can make a lot of unique maps.

Thank you so much guys, but I use a mobile, and I can't seem to word the Inkarnate site. I can only put down some circles and hexagon, with no save button. Is this a site I should use on the laptop?

Yeah, Keaton, you'll need a computer to use it.

I could second what everyone says about Inkarnate, it's a fun and easy tool to use.

I've also use this, If you really don't feel like drawing a map, this will generate one for you, names and everything. It works on mobile, too.

One way to use Inkarnate on mobile is to download Puffin Browser. It's free, saves you a lot of data, and allows you to visit sites like you're on a computer.

Personally, I like to draw out my maps. I don't know if you have dice from DnD, but I like to use those, and throw them down on a large piece of paper. The more jumbled they are, I decide if it's forested, mountainous, etc., depending on where they are considering a compass. It's a little more time consuming than what everyone else has mentioned, but it gives a sort of hands on experience that's really kind of fun. (Plus, I'm just a weirdo!)

As for naming places, I use this link: http://www.fantasynamegenerators.com/

I can't come up with decent names for cities/towns/villages with just my brain, so I like to use this that website to give me ideas. I tend to tweak the names I'm given a bit, but I figure you get the gist.

Hope this helps!

I can attest to having used and enjoyed every method posted so far! I also use the Puffin browser, it's a lifesaver. It's good for mobile gaming too.

I came back to add this site, which has a lot of different generators for fantasy, sci-fi, DnD and Pathfinder: https://donjon.bin.sh/

Thank you so much for your advice guys! I will probably be using Inkarnate, as I'm pretty good with coming up with names, and my drawing skills are on par with that of a toddler. I will be sending you all a gift of sorts for helping me. Thank you so much! 😘