This map shows what the Roman Province of Britannia may have looked like in the year 400 AD, before the beginning of the Dark Ages* ...
... in six-miles-scale hexagons, for use in role-playing- or war-games.
While not a work of scholarship, it does accurately reflect the topography and includes most of the known Roman-period towns, forts and roads. More info on the details here.
And it's free. Enjoy.
PNG File with Hexgrid
PNG File w/o Hexgrid
HXM File (for Hexographer)
... in six-miles-scale hexagons, for use in role-playing- or war-games.
While not a work of scholarship, it does accurately reflect the topography and includes most of the known Roman-period towns, forts and roads. More info on the details here.
And it's free. Enjoy.
PNG File with Hexgrid
PNG File w/o Hexgrid
HXM File (for Hexographer)
FAQ
Why did you make this map?
I was (still am, in fact) preparing a fantasy role-playing game campaign set in 5th century Britannia, and I wanted a reasonably accurate map for the period, to know where one might place the dungeons and the dragons. Then things got a little out of hand, and I began reading up on the transition from villa economies to pre-feudal agriculture and checking the translation of Gildas' Latin to determine the location of Mount Badon. Having gone through all this trouble, I thought I might as well share the result.
Why did you use six miles hexagons?
Because they look pretty, and they tessellate - they fit together without gaps. Squares do, too; but they favor diagonal movement, which is bad if you play games where pieces move on the map. Six-mile hexes in particular are a good fit for role-playing games; this blog post explains why.
What do the map symbols mean?
The map symbols reflect six levels of elevation and a best-guess approximation of terrain cover. There's a legend in the upper left hand corner of the PNG.
Obviously, with each hex-tile representing some 30 square miles, there's a fair amount of loss of detail and abstraction involved. But for RPGs and wargames, this is actually a good thing, because one can quickly derive viewing distances, movement rates, terrain yield and other data from the map.
What can I do with this map?
Anything you like, as long as you don't use it in a commercial product. For that, you'll need to contact me first.
If you're going to use the map in an FRPG campaign or for a wargame, I'd like to hear about it. Why don't you leave a note on the blog?
* Why do you call it "the Dark Ages"? Because, actually ...
I know, I know. The period should properly be called "Late Antiquity". Ah, sorry: "Sub-Roman Britain". Or, rather, the "Early Middle Ages"; aka the "Arthurian", "Brythonic", or "Heroic" age. But "Dark Ages" just sounds right ... considering how giants, dragons and the ghoulish undead victims of Justinian's Plague were crawling all over the place in those days.
Why did you make this map?
I was (still am, in fact) preparing a fantasy role-playing game campaign set in 5th century Britannia, and I wanted a reasonably accurate map for the period, to know where one might place the dungeons and the dragons. Then things got a little out of hand, and I began reading up on the transition from villa economies to pre-feudal agriculture and checking the translation of Gildas' Latin to determine the location of Mount Badon. Having gone through all this trouble, I thought I might as well share the result.
Why did you use six miles hexagons?
Because they look pretty, and they tessellate - they fit together without gaps. Squares do, too; but they favor diagonal movement, which is bad if you play games where pieces move on the map. Six-mile hexes in particular are a good fit for role-playing games; this blog post explains why.
What do the map symbols mean?
The map symbols reflect six levels of elevation and a best-guess approximation of terrain cover. There's a legend in the upper left hand corner of the PNG.
Obviously, with each hex-tile representing some 30 square miles, there's a fair amount of loss of detail and abstraction involved. But for RPGs and wargames, this is actually a good thing, because one can quickly derive viewing distances, movement rates, terrain yield and other data from the map.
What can I do with this map?
Anything you like, as long as you don't use it in a commercial product. For that, you'll need to contact me first.
If you're going to use the map in an FRPG campaign or for a wargame, I'd like to hear about it. Why don't you leave a note on the blog?
* Why do you call it "the Dark Ages"? Because, actually ...
I know, I know. The period should properly be called "Late Antiquity". Ah, sorry: "Sub-Roman Britain". Or, rather, the "Early Middle Ages"; aka the "Arthurian", "Brythonic", or "Heroic" age. But "Dark Ages" just sounds right ... considering how giants, dragons and the ghoulish undead victims of Justinian's Plague were crawling all over the place in those days.