My WIP Conworld, still unnamed

[MysteryMan23]

Hey everyone!

I've been working on a conworld for a while now, and I've come up with this basic map:


Now, this is far from my final map. My next step is to make a map with better coastlines; you know, of the sort that actually look like coastlines? After that, I plan to come up with the geological history of the world, from the latest supercontinent on. Then I'll do the mountains and the large lakes. And once that's done, it's on to the climate!

If you're wondering why there's no names whatsoever, it's because I don't yet have languages prepared to name things in.

So, any questions/advice?

[clawgrip]

Just a reversed and somewhat modified world map?

[Rhetorica]

I dunno... like clawgrip said, I think it's pretty much perfect as it is.

[michaelbusch]

Just a reversed and somewhat modified world map?

This would be part of my question. Things here look an awful lot like the Earth - more so than we would expect even for an Earth-clone planet with about 4 billion years of divergent history.

The rest of my question goes: how like or unlike Earth* do you want this place to be? And how strict do you want to be on following the rules that determine the structures and constrain the histories of real planets?

*As a professional planetary scientist, I say that there are far too many conworlds that are far too similar to Earth - but I recognize that many people don't want to be doing as-plausible-as-possible hard science fiction.

[patiku]

I personally don't have much of a problem with modified Earths. Not everyone will find calculating orbits and climate patterns to be fun. If you only need a space for cultures and languages, why go to all that effort? It's just background. The universe is a big place and there's probably a planet out there that looks a lot like Earth. I've also always been partial to the idea of terraforming by powerful human civilizations which transcend or whatever and leave these worlds to their brethren they left behind.

That said, with a map that's SO similar, you'll probably want to be careful not to totally recreate Earth's history. I can picture myself doing it unconsciously.

[MysteryMan23]

@michaelbusch: I'll admit, I would generally prefer to stay fairly within the bounds of "the rules that determine the structures and constrain the histories of real planets" (even though I also want to have dog, cat, bird and dragon people in my world alongside humans, but that's beside the point). In any case, I didn't intend for the basic geography - and this IS just the basic geography - to come out this Earth-like; not that I really cared too much, since the main focus of this conworld is the various cultures and their languages.

Now, that being said, this world isn't 100% realistic. It's actually a modern-day fantasy world. It's tough to sum up, as it's intended to be a fairly complex world, but at least two regions can be summed up as "take Standard Fantasy Setting X and let it develop modern-day technology, government, etc.". However, for those areas that aren't strongly influenced by magic, I want a great deal of plausibility.

Also, the map I have is more of a vague sketch than anything. I'd hardly call it "perfect as is".

[Genome]

Looking at the map I can even see Japan, England, Ireland, Greenland, etc. Just... wow.

[michaelbusch]

In any case, I didn't intend for the basic geography - and this IS just the basic geography - to come out this Earth-like; not that I really cared too much, since the main focus of this conworld is the various cultures and their languages.

Now I am confused. Did you actually free-hand draw such a near-perfect east-west flipped* version of Eurasia (as well as a big part of North America), without intending to do so?

... However, for those areas that aren't strongly influenced by magic, I want a great deal of plausibility.

Then there are a number of things that you'll have to change, even if you do want to go with a "what if the continents in the northern hemisphere were exactly flipped east-west" initial condition.

For example:

On Earth, there is an east-west asymmetry in climates across continents, with western margins being generally dryer than eastern ones (all other things being equal, which they aren't in any given case). Differences in rainfall go to differences in water flow, erosion, and deposition, but that's complicated by tectonics and the particulars of the rocks concerned. All this means that if you magically started with the same continent flipped east-west at some point in time, it won't be the same after tens of millions of years. Consider your alt-Mediterranean**. In reality, the Med gets relatively little rainfall and water inflow from the land and is kept filled largely by water from the Atlantic coming in through the strait of Gibraltar. But the tectonic environment, combined with erosion and landslides, means that the strait has opened and closed several times (most recently about 5 million years ago). When the strait is blocked, the Med almost entirely dries up. The strait's reopening can be catastrophic, reflooding the basin in only a few years (this is the Zanclean flood model).

Your alt-Mediterranean as currently drawn won't do that. Warm water in the ocean off the coast will keep more of your alt-north Africa and alt-Europe far more humid and with far more rainfall than in reality, and more liquid goes into the interior basin - stopping it from becoming entirely dry. Exactly how much more water goes in depends on the details of the climate, and I will not attempt to correctly predict the general circulation pattern.

*Assuming your map has north up, east to the left, and is in an equator-centered cylindrical projection.
**Which wouldn't have that structure, but I'll save that for the moment.

[MysteryMan23]

Hmm...

The general reaction to this map makes me feel like I should re-do it from the start. The thing is, I don't quite know what will happen if I do. I already have ideas for this world based off this map, and I'm a little worried about what I'll have to change.

On the other hand, I'm starting to feel like I've drawn too much on the real world for this map. I did kind of want this world to vaguely resemble Earth, but looking at the map now, the resemblance is definitely not as vague as I desired.

In any case, I think I'll be at least modifying this map. Which opens the question of how exactly I should modify it; are there any resources as to the artistic side of con-mapping as opposed to the technical? Because clearly, that's something I need to work on.

Thanks for the input, everyone.

[michaelbusch]

The general reaction to this map makes me feel like I should re-do it from the start. The thing is, I don't quite know what will happen if I do. I already have ideas for this world based off this map, and I'm a little worried about what I'll have to change.

You don't have to redo it if you don't want to - this is your conworld after all. But if you do want to have something such that a geologist/geophysicist/planetary scientist would look at the map and not be confused, you should change things as I said.

One more example: consider your alt-Africa. Real Africa's shape is determined by several things. On the west, the rifting event a while back that split it from South America - where is the corresponding landmass here? On the east, we have the current East African Rift - which is tied to the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea in a triple junction and eventually joins into the larger pattern that is pushing India into Asia. On the north, there is the slow collapsing of the eastern and central Med because the plate is being pushed by the rifting (as well as by everything else). Flipping Africa east-west relative to Eurasia doesn't give the same result. Likewise, if you have India/Himalaya, you should also have subduction along a big section of the border between that plate and the Eurasian one - giving you Burma/Myanmar and Thailand, which you currently do have, but also Sumatra and Java, which you don't.

I'm not quite sure what you mean by the artistic side of worldbuilding, rather than the technical one. If you want a world that is geologically plausible, then you design it to be so. If you don't care about that, then you don't need to worry about it so much.