Area Building - Anchbhaile Overworld

Having recently finished drafting the story events for Cambio, I considered going back to past stuff to touch up and update for what I started doing during this section of the game. But then I decided I wanted to make the overworld map to give myself a general feel for the world I want, and what players can experience after leaving Cambio for the first time. Much of it is explained in the video below.

However, I would like to better elaborate some of the major areas you'll visit and what my thought process is for designing this world.

Solais

The first major continent in the game you start in was the first to be properly settled on after the Age of Pluto. It is mostly filled with forests, mountains, and several plains. It is ruled my a single kingdom that began at the end of the Age of Pluto. The capital just off its shores, projected through various means. It was humanity's remaining civilization before and now part of a large nation.

Since the beginning, the nation has made much use of the continent to where many settlements exist up and down the land. There is even a railway system that currently exists to connect areas near the eastern shore, going from north to south and vice versa. Plans to expand westward have been considered, but nothing grounded due to wanting to keep a steady ecosystem. The closest example to this is toward the southwest, with one line branching toward Tua'tha, which acts as the primary mining town for excavating Earth Manarium. While several areas along the eastern side still have some unsettled areas, most of those make up the western and northwestern areas of the continent.

Emira

On the other side of the world is the second continent you'll visit. The second to be settled on, and later governed from within an old city encased in mountains. It was first occupied by beastfolk, fresh from the mutations brought forth during the Age of Pluto. Through many years, they were accepted into human society and thus were given right to govern.

The land is more varied than Solais due to a more abundant amount of spirits throughout the continent. They give areas a perpetual season yearly. Also, there aren't as many settlements due to their approach to keeping the land from intrusion. Many ruins are left unaccounted for, and like Solais there is an abundance of nature undisturbed. Their way of living allows them to function without needing to expand as much, thus preserving any ecosystem that allows wildlife to thrive and mana to remain in good quality.

The Third Continent 

Not far from Emira is a third continent, much smaller due to parts breaking off or sinking into the ocean. It is uninhabitable to mankind due to what occurred long ago that froze the land over. Only those taking the Spirit Pilgrimage can step inside and see what lies within its mountain-like walls.

Original Concept and Current Plans

When I first started this project, I considered not having an overworld at all. I wanted to leave it open to interpretation what the world is like after it first ended and overtaken by nature. Areas could be interconnected or have ways to quickly travel. But that changed as I desired having something that I could work with. To give me an idea for what the world structure is and how to properly work it into the story. Plus, it would save having to create individual areas between story sections.

At the same time, I thought it would allow players to do a bit of exploring, like checking out the other settlements, explore some ruins for materials or side quests, and so on. Things could change, since right now I intend to only create maps for areas relevant to the main story. I'll need to adjust difficulty accordingly to account for possible side quests in the future and provide test players items and gear from those potential scenarios. But otherwise, it's story first before expanding elsewhere.

Wrap-up

When given time, I'll start going through the demo portion of the game to better reflect what I currently have mechanic-wise. I don't know when the update will be, but after that I'll be devoting more time into advancing the story more. I feel I have a pretty good foundation to work with, and I'm hoping to make the most of it.