# Mr. Hook’s SketchUp GENERICA: RPG Cartography



## None the Wiser (Jul 16, 2010)

*Mr. Hook’s SketchUp GENERICA: RPG Cartography*

Mr. Hook’s GENERICA SketchUp project is a collection of modular wall sections that can be configured into printable, usable paper RPG maps when viewed from the top down (with SketchUp’s Parallel Projection Camera), but can also be viewed from a 3D perspective in order to generate quick and easy visual aids. In the top-down view, the tops of the wall sections have been made to resemble the door, window and wall markings of traditional pencil-and-paper RPG maps. The 3D perspective views offer fully articulated staircases and furniture props with variably textured wall, floor, and window tiles.

Rather than post every single SketchUp component separately, I have compiled my GENERICA modules into “Wall Set” collections, sort of like a box of building blocks you can use to build your own RPG maps with. For each uniquely textured Wall Set, I have also created a corresponding model to demonstrate what sorts of structures can be built with GENERICA wall sections. So the GENERICA Wall Set: Inn model contains all of the individual building blocks which have been designed and textured to facilitate the construction of inn and tavern models. Whereas the GENERICA: Inn model is a fully furnished and designed structure which has been divided into separate floors.

The way in which I’ve divided the grouped GENERICA components into separate floors is a rather important feature which enables you to hide the floors above to reveal the floors below when generating top-down RPG maps for each floor. I have provided textures for various flooring materials, but I can’t supply you with every conceivable floor plan, so you’ll have to create your own floor sections (or modify the floors provided). Likewise, I can’t provide you with every conceivable roofing solution, so there are no GENERICA roof components per se. However, I have invented several roofing solutions for my own GENERICA model designs which can be modified or rebuilt to meet your own roofing needs.

GENERICA Castle sets are a modular system of towers, stairwells and wall-walks that can be configured in a wide variety of interchangeable castle structures. Again, rather than posting each individual component separately, GENERICA Castle models have already been configured into various buildings and interconnected wall sections. Each model has been placed on a 360’ by 480’ grid that can be connected to other GENERICA Castle sets in order to form even larger fortified towns and villages.

All GENERICA wall sections are meant to fit a standard 1 square = 5 feet RPG tabletop gaming grid. Each wall section is 10 feet tall. The floor space in between each storey is 1 foot thick. Most “ground floor” sections have an additional foot of material at the base to represent the building foundation.

Here is the link for Mr. Hook’s GENERICA: RPG Cartography collection at Google 3D Warehouse:

Mr. Hook's GENERICA: RPG Cartography by Mr. Hook - Google 3D Warehouse 

Sample images (these are raw SketchUp renders with no enhancements):







This is what a typical GENERICA Wall Set looks like, just a jumble of building bits. This is the Barn texture set.






I made this horse stable building using GENERCIA Wall Set: Barn modules.






Viewed from the top down using the Parallel Projection Camera, you can generate maps by hiding the roof and the upper floors. Of course, this only works if you’ve grouped the roof and each storey separately. Grouping entire stories into one unit isn’t really very hard if you utilize the parallel projected side and front views when selecting your components.






Here is my first big GENERICA model: the quintessential Inn.






Perhaps your adventuring party met around a tavern table much like this one. You can see the service window to the kitchen on the right and a wooden stairwell on the far left.






From the second storey balcony looking down into the dining area, you can see the doors to the individual rooms around the periphery.






Here are the floor plans for each of those two stories on the GENERICA: Inn model. (The third storey is only roofing.) The room above the kitchen is supposed to be the innkeeper’s room and the rooms with small balconies on either side are the honeymoon suites.






I’m particularly proud of my GENERICA: Church model since I was able to incorporate flying buttresses and even made my own gargoyles.






As you can see looking down the center aisle, even though the church is three stories tall, the first floor takes up the first two stories, while the surrounding balconies lead to directly to a parapet on the roof of the second storey.






This is only the ground floor of the church which shows you the sepulcher tucked away behind the arms of the ambulatory on the east end.






Here is an eye-level 3D perspective view of GENERICA: Mansion. Like the church, the ground floor actually takes up the first two stories, while the master bedroom and the private library are located on the third floor. 






Again, the whole point of the entire GENERICA project is that you can hide the upper floors in saved SketchUp scenes to generate easily readable RPG maps in the top-down view.






GENERICA Castle sets are a little different in that the wall sections are much thicker and that the battle grid is much larger. The modular tower cross-sections can be stacked and recombined in a myriad of ways with windows and doorways pointing in various directions. On the ground-level map for GENERCIA Castle: King’s Court, you can see the throne room situated on the center-bottom side of the map. The inner court is connected directly to a lengthy feasting hall on the right. There are two barracks buildings adjoined to the inner baileys on either side of the northern courtyard. 






For the castle pics, I turned on the shadows to help add a little more depth. Here is a lovely view of the drawbridge.






Since the crenellation is technically a part of the walls, I colored the tops of the merlons with the same shade of dark grey as the rest of the wall sections. In SketchUp you can easily edit the texture to be a lighter shade of grey for rendering purposes.







This if the view from the southeast watchtower looking down into the main courtyard. With SketchUp’s easy-to-use camera positioning tool, the possibilities for creating RPG visual aids with the GENERICA modeling system are virtually endless!

You can download a fully functional version of Google SketchUp for free at the official SketchUp website:

http://sketchup.google.com/download/

All of the models at Google SketchUp 3D Warehouse can also be downloaded for free, hence all of my GENERICA Wall Sets and Castle modules are free of charge! Oh, and did I mention that they’re FREE?


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## Michael Silverbane (Jul 17, 2010)

At first glimpse, this looks very impressive.

I can't wait to try out building my own structures with your models.


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## Tenebrien (Jul 27, 2010)

Wow.  What an exciting use of Sketchup.  I use VTTs all the way now, but would love to add some 3d/isometric elements to my maps... combining this with Photoshop for a bit of texturing could be great.


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## Tenebrien (Aug 5, 2010)

*Sketchup is Amazing!*

I've been training hard to learn the ins and outs of Sketchup over the last week and find it more amazing by the day.  Combined with the likes of Photoshop or another good image editor, the results can be spectacular.  Lately, I've imported images into Sketchup from paper model products that I've purchased from e.g. WorldWorks Games and fold them up in 3D.  Then, I can extrude details such as bay windows, signs, etc.  Building them all to scale on a 5' by 5' grid, the completed buildings look amazing with high-res textures, shadows, shading, antialiasing, etc.  Next, I may try importing a fantasy themed blueprint from e.g. 0One Games and build it 3 dimensionally.

Thanks for kicking off my 3D Fantasy Architecture in Sketchup hobby!  The potential is huge for VTT maps and more.


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## Redrobes (Aug 6, 2010)

These are really impressive. Your inn looks a lot like one I did but not in sketchup. If you have a cartographers guild log in then you can see it.
July Challenge: The four Haskwood Canifers
I think those guys would really like to see your work and know about your download set.


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