Choose your borders.

[cunningham]

Copy and paste to MSpaint (or whatever)
Draw your borders with a thin medium-gray pencil
Name it with a small black Arial font.
Post new picture.
Go.

newconworld.png (62.17 KiB) Viewed 7352 times

[Nortaneous]

[cunningham]

[Aurora Rossa]

I was not sure exactly what landmasses you wanted borders drawn around, so I picked one of the northern landmasses. I was picturing something vaguely Scandanavian, cold and remote but also enlightened. The name means "Cold land" in one of my conlang projects.

[cunningham]

I was not sure exactly what landmasses you wanted borders drawn around, so I picked one of the northern landmasses. I was picturing something vaguely Scandanavian, cold and remote but also enlightened. The name means "Cold land" in one of my conlang projects.

You seem to have just drawn a line. If you look at the examples such as Fantana, Öömi, Karakeo and Kedekeo you will see what I mean.

[maıráí]

Lol.

[Buran]

Asvaki and Erminjeo had a major war about 15 years ago. After Asvaki used chemical weapons in the Second Battle of Apchen and the siege of Jun-Kamya, the Sjelt Pact Organisation, lead by Alfava, intervened and ended the war by threatening to use nuclear weapons; both sides retreated to the pre-war border, and a demilitarized zone was established. The Tsunkha Demilitarized Zone is the longest fully militarized border in the world. Tensions between Asvaki and Erminjeo were recently exacerbated, as only two months ago a squad of Erminjeo troops was discovered and attacked almost 300 metres into Asvaki territory; four were killed in the firefight, while six more were taken prisoner. The Erminjeo government demanded the release of the soldiers; only two have been returned so far. Both reported that they were interrogated and tortured. The New Conservative Party of Erminjeo has criticized the ruling Ermin Worker's Party for their "weak and submissive" handling of the crisis, pointing to recent intelligence data that confirms what has long been suspected: the Askvaks have been supplying Yun-Mer insurgents with weapons.

While Dzvenka and Byaval are officially neutral, their own conflict (a major war 34 years ago, resulting in the creation of the buffer state Urnenchu, and mutual resentment ever since) may yet be sucked into the growing Asvak-Ermin conflict. The Sjelt Pact Organisation was originally formed by Alfava, Tirpazen, Urnenchu, and other nations as a response to the mutual fear of another war, which would be catastrophic for the SPO nations, since many of them border the belligerent countries and their economies depend on trade with them. Most worrying, however, is the prospect of a 3-sided war between the SPO, an Asvak-Dzvenkan faction, and an Ermin-Byavali faction, especially since Asvak's army is both massive and well-trained, both Byaval and Dzvenka have nuclear weapons, and Erminjeo is working on a nuclear program. The SPO has successfully kept these belligerent nations in line for the last 35 years, but with tensions mounting, everyone is preparing for the worst.

[patiku]

Ongobo, a land of savage jungles and savager people! Despite its strategic location and great mineral wealth, its development has been greatly hindered by two civil wars and six coups in the last thirty years. General Mbzeki, the current Supreme Commander of Ongobo, has ended rebellions in the south and west with great violence (although Odyayo Exclave, his home province, remains untouched and is de facto independent). The eastern coast remains outside of the government's control as rebels there are better armed and known for using Erminjeo's "refugee zones" as inaccessible refuges. Mbzeki is wanted in many Eastern countries for funding his government and military by smuggling, and in Alfava for ordering the destruction of Valo missions. He hasn't visited Odyayo or the island provinces for eight years as he fears that any ship or plane he takes will be intercepted.

[Matrix]

The Gzheulka Divine World Union is a theocratic expansionist missionary state. It sends out missionaries for the Gzheul religion everywhere, attempting to convert other states to its religion, at which point that state becomes a part of the GDWU, as is required by scripture. Kuer recently seceded from the GDWU on grounds of sufficient religious difference. The secession was ratified, but of course, the Gzheulka sent a force of 200,000 missionaries to reconvert the Kuerish heretics. The streets of Kuer's cities are today filled with the din of scriptural debate. The rest of the world watches, bemused, at what anywhere else would have been a fairly standard military invasion. The GDWU does keep up a military with great reluctance, its diplomat-priests frequently bemoaning the state of such a world in which one is necessary at international meetings.

((Also, stop saving the map as a goddamn JPEG. The compression artifacts will make the map shittier and shittier and harder to edit if that keeps up. Save it as a GIF. JPEG is evil.))

[maıráí]

I forgot to ask, what's this for?

[patiku]

Adjective Recoil's map was better.

[Buran]

Adjective Recoil's map was better.

First, thank you Patiku.

Second, I think the reason my map took off was because there was a story that went with it. It's easy to just draw a line on the map and say "That's a country." But countries aren't just lines on the map- they have histories, they have wants and needs, they have fears, and they have hopes. They're like people, in a way- Asvaki and Erminjeo are two bar brawlers, young, tough, strong, with bloody noses and wounded pride. Byaval and Dzvenka are older and smarter, but with older and more bitter grudges; they see two young men fighting at the back of the room, and they sense an opportunity to settle their own scores. The SPO nations are the guys sitting at the bar who just want to enjoy their drinks, but now beer is getting splashed on them, bottles are flying, and they're not about to get hit. When there's a story, it's easier to add in something of your own, because you know how it all fits together- you know the way your country will interact with theirs, when shoved into this rowdy tavern of international relations.

[maıráí]

V V V
THE VALM EMPIRE ORIGINATED ON THE HOMELAND. I NEED NOT STATE WHERE THE HOMELAND IS, NEED I? [Touches heart, looks mournfully south.]
V
WE STARTED SMALL, A STRONG TRIBE, AND THROUGH OUR SUPERIOR WAYS, WE CAME TO CLAIM LARGER AND LARGER TERRITORIES, WE CAME TO CLAIM MANY PEOPLES, AND BEGAN TO INDUCT THEM INTO OUR GREAT CULTURE. BUT SOME FEARED US, SOME REFUSED TO CONVERT, AND IN THEIR WEAKNESS, THEY BANDED TOGETHER. THEY BROUGHT ABOUT THE FIRST GREAT SHAME, AND WE LEARNED THE LESSONS OF AGGRESSION. WE LEARNED TO BE SILENT [V], WE LEARNED TO WAIT.
V
WE APPLIED THESE LESSONS, AND WE GREW AGAIN. AND AGAIN. WE GREW IN SIZE, IN WEALTH, IN POWER, AND IN PRIDE. AND THIS IS HOW WE BROUGHT ABOUT THE SECOND GREAT SHAME.
MANY YEARS AGO, THE VALM PEOPLE LIVED ON THE HOMELAND. IT WAS TRUE PARADISE. THE VALM ROYALTY, ANCESTORS OF HIS HOLINESS KING ANJ [salutes] [returns the crowd's salutes], THEN RULED MERCIFULLY OVER THE PEOPLE, AND THE PEOPLE WORKED PROUDLY FOR THE ROYALTY. THEN THE VALM WERE ATTACKED, BY THE SAFKEMINJ SCUM. [Spits on the ground.] WE WERE WEAK IN OUR PRIDE, AND THE SAFKEMINJ [brings hand to mouth, mimics spitting] DESTROYED US AND DROVE US OUT.
V
WE TOOK REFUGE IN OUR ALLIES, AND IN THEIR KINDNESS WE TOOK TIME TO STUDY THE SECOND LESSON, OF THE SECOND GREAT SHAME [V]. WE LEARNED OF THE STRENGTH OF NUMBERS. WE SPREAD AMONG OUR ALLIES AND WE TAUGHT THEM ALL THE RIGHT WORD OF THE TRUE OLD KINGS. WE DID NOT CONVERT THEM, NOT YET, FOR THERE WAS STILL PURPOSE TO THEIR DIFFERENCE. WE SPREAD NORTH TO ELBOSTL, AND WE TOLD THE PANTHEISTS OF THE MANY NOBLE GODS OF VALM. WE WENT EAST TO STOKON AND TOLD THE STRANDS OF OYA ABOUT THE BLESSED JUDGE AND HIS RIGHTFUL LAW. WE WENT WEST TO THE FULLANDS AND NULLANDS AND TOLD THE SIMPLE FAITHFUL THE WORSHIP OF THE TRUE SPIRITS OF THE EARTH.
V V
AND ALL THE WHILE WE LEARNED THEIR WAYS AND THEIR CUSTOMS, WE PUT ON THEIR SKINS AND SPOKE [V] IN THEIR TONGUES. WE WORKED FROM REFUGEES TO LEADERS OF CITIES. WE REMEMBERED THE HOMELAND, AND UNDER THE SUBTLE DIRECTION OF THE ETERNAL JURY, WE WOULD HAVE IT AGAIN. WITH A SOUND LIKE A TREMENDOUS THUNDERCLAP, THE JUDGECALLED FOR OUR REBIRTH, AND WE TOOK CONTROL.
V V
WE GREW AGAIN. IN SIZE, WEALTH, POWER, WE GREW, BUT WE DID NOT FORGET OUR LESSONS. WE WERE QUIET AND STILL, AND THE OTHERS GREW COMPLACENT. WHEN WE SPOKE, IT WAS IN THEIR TONGUES, MORE FLUENTLY THAN THEY COULD IMAGINE, AND WHEN WE MOVED, IT WAS IN THEIR SKINS, MORE GRACEFULLY THAN THEY HAD EVER SEEN, AND THEY GREW TRUSTING. WE GAVE THEM GIFTS AND FLIRTED AND COURTED LIKE THE SECOND DAUGHTER OF THE JUDGE, AND THEY GREW STUPID, LIKE THE EXECUTIONER'S THIRD SON. [Crowd laughs.]
V
I NEED NOT RECOUNT THE STORIES OF THE GOLDEN YEARS OF VALM, FOR WE LIVE THEM. THE SAFKEMINJ [mimics spitting into hand again] LAY LIKE THE DRUNK IN THE ROADSIDE, AND ALL THE WHILE WE TAKE THE WORLD,PIECE BY PIECE, FORGING OUR CROWN FROM THE EARTH ITSELF.
V
IN TIME, [V] WE SHALL HAVE OUR JEWEL.
V V V
[Notes from S. O. Adrak of the Stokon Heritage Committee on a secret speech given by a cult leader beneath the Yuprins Church, two weeks before his death. The papers are crumpled, with Vs painted in blood at irregular intervals.]













More seriously,

... and I'd really like to know what this is about.

[patiku]

I propose that any submission without a description be rejected, as well as ones which look like shit.

[Pthagnar]

that is some sweet bro and hella jeff quality shit

[maıráí]

that is some sweet bro and hella jeff quality shit

V BEHOLD HIS HOLINESS KING ANJ! V [salutes]V



And I propose that since the maps are all fucked and nobody's following the guidelines anywho, we transfer over boundaries and colors to an image with less artifacts later and save everyone the trouble.

[Valkura]

And I propose that since the maps are all fucked and nobody's following the guidelines anywho, we transfer over boundaries and colors to an image with less artifacts later and save everyone the trouble.

You could just make everyone use a graphics editor like GIMP or Photoshop and put the different sections of the map on different layers.

[Drydic]

Or when a conflict arises you could y'know work it out and/or apologize instead of just saying 'mine's better'.

[cunningham]

I appreciate those of you who paid attention to the directions, but please save as .PNG not .JPG (it messes it up) and also I know colors look nice but eventually it's going to cause problems.
This was an experiment to see what would happen. It's pretty much a free-for-all but don't take up the whole damn map. I don't care what you name the country or what kind of history you have, but just don't go crazy, please.
My countries were just examples, so you can do whatever you want with them.
I think what I will do is recreate a new map and make the borders neater and such. Then hopefully this will continue if people still take me seriously.

[clawgrip]

I really don't know why you want it saved as .jpg instead of .png. That's really the worst possible choice for something like this with small details. Making the borders neater won't help because they'll be surrounded by jpeg artifacts once you save it, and every subsequent edit and save will compound it.

[cunningham]

Fixed.
The Freethinker's Republic has been created. Still waiting for a description of the country from my boyfriend.

The Longitude of Freedom is a demilitarized zone.

The Sjelt Pact Organisation (SPO): Alfava, Tirpazen, and Urnenchu are all one color because they are allied.

Öömi, Fantana, Karakeo and Kedekeo are free-for-all. They were created as examples, but you can do whatever you want with them.

Nortaneous has been exiled to the puffin-shit island of Endthreadistan for attempting to conquer the world.

Let's keep this thread going. I want to go somewhere with this.

[Nortaneous]

suddenly the world is taken over by JPGISTAN

[cunningham]

The Freethinker's Republic:
The Freethinker Republic was established to give refuge to Freethought, which is a philosophical viewpoint that holds opinions should be formed on the basis of logic, reason, and empiricism, rather than authority, tradition, or other dogmas. The Constitution holds that individuals should not accept ideas proposed as truth without recourse to knowledge and reason, and acts as a counterweight to government itself.

The citizens of the Republic strive to build their opinions on the basis of facts, scientific inquiry, and logical principles, independent of any logical fallacies or the intellectually limiting effects of authority, confirmation bias, cognitive bias, conventional wisdom, popular culture, prejudice, sectarianism, tradition, urban legend, and all other dogmas.

Unlike other nearby States, such as the Divine World Union, Freethinkers hold that there is insufficient evidence to support the existence of supernatural phenomena.

The western coast of The Freethinker Republic boarders with Erminjeo's "refugee zones" of the Divine World Union, which border has had incursions by the Union’s expeditionary forces which, from time to time, have attempted to bring their own eastern region and refugees under control. When the last expeditionary force was defeated by a small number of Republic “peace keepers” , the Republic’s Senate wisely allowed a Demilitarized Zone to be established between the Republic and its western neighbor “divine world” as a concession to prevent further expeditionary activity from Republic territory, and under the leadership of Senator Richard Bartel, to allow the DMZ to be a place where most militaristic Republic citizens could act out their control and surveillance instincts and practice military maneuvers without influencing the freedoms within the Republic’s interior. Wisely, it also places certain Generals outside the Capitol of the Republic so that there would be fewer militaristic candidates running for political office.


The Hjarta Claim:
The Republic also has its own territorial claim on part of Kuer, as a refuge for Kuer patriots of freedom during the battle for the Union secession , and to keep them from the missionaries sent by Gzheulkha to reconvert the Kuerish “heretics”.

The streets of Kuer's cities are now today filled with civil and scriptural debate, supported by the Freethinker movement, to promote International conclaves and meetings in a relatively neutral zone.

Kuer has beautiful beaches, and Senator Bartel of the Republic maintains his vacation home at his beach house there, amongst beautiful flowers, with his true love.

JPGistan:
Again...exiled to a god-forsaken island in the middle of the ocean...

[Drydic]

I don't have a small monitor or anything, 22" running 1920x1080 res, but I still have to scroll horizontally to see the map...didn't attachments used to get shrunk? Or am I going mental?

[cunningham]

I don't have a small monitor or anything, 22" running 1920x1080 res, but I still have to scroll horizontally to see the map...didn't attachments used to get shrunk? Or am I going mental?

same here.