Tall Ships & Sea Monsters
January has already been a busy month for me, both personally and creatively. Kari-Lise and I rushed off to New York City to celebrate her birthday and attend one of the final showings of Sleep No More. (More on that in a coming Trip Report.) I’ve put down a few thousand words on my latest manuscript, plus I’ve also shifted away from my standard brush sets to focus on a new section in my expanding #NoBadMaps Toolkit: Decorative Assets.
Back in December, my assets and brush sets were shared by some kind soul on Hacker News, which drove some fourteen thousand people to my site. It was a splendid early Christmas present. It’s been fun to watch that excitement spread, and I am amazed how many people find my weird little hobby useful. Along the way, I realized it was time to differentiate between my standard sets and the decorative sets designed to enhance other work. So, I moved them to their own page, which you can check out here.
There’s been a few other sets that have been in the back of my mind so I expect this section to grow. Over the last few weeks, I’ve also quietly launched two new decorative asset sets. Since they are smaller sets, I don’t usually write a whole post about these, but they are both unique and exciting enough that I think they deserve it.
Bellin’s Navy: A Tall Ship Asset Pack
Oceans are now battlefields with the thirty-eight 18th-century tall ships and a few other goodies you’ll find in this set. This mini navy is lifted from Jacques Nicolas Bellin’s 1785 Carte Geometrique De L’Entree De La Rivierre De Bordeaux, depicting Brittany’s coast and the Gironde estuary’s mouth—a perfect way to liven up the oceans of your fantasy maps. Expect a few more of these in the future. I’d love to capture more eras of naval activity.
Here There Be Monsters: A Sea Monster Asset Set
Cannonballs aren’t the only thing seagoing vessels need to dodge. The oceans are vast and dangerous and often unexplored; bold adventurers must be warned of the possible creatures lurking in the deep. Here There Be Monsters is a historical asset set to help you do just that! This set features various sea monsters taken from (primarily) 16th-century documents. Version 1.1 features the monstrous imagination from the following cartographers and engravers:
- Olaus Magnus (1539) is the earliest artist features, depicting some of the more fearsome creatures in this set. Magnus’ unique Scandavian style has been on my list for a complete set in the future, but his monsters were too good to pass up.
- Italian engraver Ferrando Bertelli’s (1568) creatures are some of the sillier in this set. But he also decided to expand to the monsters on land as well and you’ll find both included here.
- The man himself, Gerardus Mercator (1569), is our third artist here, and his creatures tend to be more realistic, except for that sea serpent, I suppose.
- Spend any time in historical maps and you’ll come across the extensive work of Brabantian Abraham Ortelius’ (1570). Whaling had existed for centuries, but you wouldn’t know it from some of his depictions.
- Johannes Baptista Vrients (1583–1608) is the last cartographers who’s work is featured in this set. His work was primarily based on Ortelius’ (he bought the plates from Ortelius’ heirs) and you’ll find plenty of similarities between his monsters.
- More to come…? I plan on Here There Be Monsters to be a ongoing set. Expect updates in the future with new monsters by new cartographers and engravers.
All these and a few others can be found on my new Decorative Assets page. Check often to see what else I release over the coming months. (I won’t always make a post like this.)
Big thank you to all of you who bought my books and those supporters of both Kofi and Patreon; your support has helped make both these sets a reality. If you want to help support #NoBadMaps there are three handy ways you can do so:
Buy My Books→
I’m not just a map enthusiast. I’m also a novelist! The easiest way to support me (and get something in return) is by purchasing one of my cosmic horror urban fantasy novels.
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Buy Me a Coffee→
A simple and quick way to support the #NoBadMaps project is through a one-time donation of any amount via ko-fi. Your support helps keep this project going and is appreciated.
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Join my Patreon→
If you want to continually support the #NoBadMaps project through a reoccurring monthly contribution, consider joining my Patreon and get sneak peeks into what’s coming.
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K. M. Alexander 
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