Types of Terrain

[Jürgen Hubert]

I'm currently trying to create a Terrain Section at the Arcana Wiki - the idea is to write general information about terrain features that will be useful when building adventures and settings, and then add actual adventure seeds to them.

So far, I have entries for:

- Deserts
- Hills
- Swamps
- Garbage Dumps (hey, terrain doesn't have to be natural terrain...)

I could need help with both adding missing terrain types, and with expanding existing entries. Is anyone interested in helping out?

[Steel General]

How about; Tundra, Taiga (are they considered the same?), Mountains, Steppes, Plains (they may be basically the same), Plateau's, Escarpements

[Jürgen Hubert]

Well, Tundra, Mountain, and Plain are already listed on the Terrain page. It's just that the entries for them haven't been written yet.

[SowelBlack]

When I created my GIMP hex map brushes, I went through the old-ish Dragon magazines with the "Voyage of the Princess Ark" series because I was going for hexes that matched that style.  Anyway, here is that list:
jungle
grasslands
farmland
light forest
heavy forest
forested hills
rocky hills
mountain
mountains
volcano
badlands
cactus scrub
heavy cactus
rocky desert
sand dunes
swamp
marsh
ocean
sea
shoals
reef

(They also had other icons you put on top of the terrain for cities, towns, ruins, lighthouses, battle sites, mines, etc.)

Hopefully that helps, but alas I don't have time to spare for writing up descriptions.

[Acrimone]

When I'm working on my world, I generally break things up into the following categories, which are based on climate and topography.  I pull this from Goode's World Atlas... the best world atlas out there for the worldbuilder.

Artic:
Icecap
Tundra: Moss-lichen, moss-grass tundra
Tundra Altitudinal Zone: Polar Desert
Subartic: Dark evergreen forest, needleleaf taiga, mixed coniferous and small-leaf forest
Subartic Altitudinal Zone: Open woodland and woodland-tundra

Humid Temperate Zone:
Moderate Continental: Mixed coniferous and broadlead forest
Moderate Continental Altitudinal: Coastal and alpine forest; open woodland
Warm Continental: Broadlead deciduous forest
Warm Continental Altitudinal: Upland broadlead and alpine needlelead forest
Marine: Lowland, west-coastal humid forest
Marine Altitudinal: Humid coastal and alpine coniferous forest
Humid Subtropical: Broadleaf evergreen and broadlead deciduous forest
Humid Subtropical Altitudinal: Upland subtropical broadleaf forest
Prairie
Prairie Altitudinal: Upland mixed prairie and woodland
Mediterranean: Sclerophyll woodland, shrub, and steppe
Mediterranean Altitudinal: Upland shrub and steppe

Dry and Desert Zone:
Tropical/Subtropical Steppe: Dry steppe, desert shrub, semi-desert savannah
Tropical Subtropical Steppe Altitudinal: Upland steppe and desert shrub
Tropical/Subtropical Desert: Hot, lowland desert at subtropical and coastal locations
Tropical Subtropical Desert Altitudinal: Desert shrub
Temperate Steppe: Medium to short steppe grassland
Temperate Steppe Altitudinal: Alpine meadow and coniferous woodland
Temperate Desert: Midlatitude rainshadow desert
Temperate Desert Altitudinal: Extreme continental desert-steppe

Humid Tropical Zone:
Savannah Province: Seasonally dry forest, open woodland, tall grass
Savannah Altitudinal: Open woodland-steppe
Rainforest Province: Constantly humid, broadleaf evergreen forest (incl. vine/shrub jungle forest)
Rainforest Altitudinal Zone: Broadlead evergreen and subtropical deciduous forest

The best part of this list, of course, is the map that you can't see.  It tells you where the various types can be found throughout the world.  Anyway, I don't have time for Wiki work right now.  Busy day ahead of me, and a busy weekend.  But I hope this helps some.

[Lmns Crn]

You may want to differentiate between swamps and marshes. People tend to use the terms interchangeably in casual conversation, but the presence of large trees makes a pretty significant change in the feel of the landscape, to my mind.

I notice you list a few likely sounds for the hills, but make no mention of the riotous cacophony of frogs, chirping insects, and other sounds that characterize a healthy swamp. Might want to make a note of them.

You've piqued my interest about this Arcana Wiki project. I'm highly intrigued.

[Jürgen Hubert]

You may want to differentiate between swamps and marshes. People tend to use the terms interchangeably in casual conversation, but the presence of large trees makes a pretty significant change in the feel of the landscape, to my mind.

I notice you list a few likely sounds for the hills, but make no mention of the riotous cacophony of frogs, chirping insects, and other sounds that characterize a healthy swamp. Might want to make a note of them.

Well, why don't you make a note of it in the entry? This is a wiki, after all.   ;)

(Oh, and the "Hills" entry was written by someone other than me, so it's not surprising that the writing is different.

timeline[/url] and the [link=http://arcana.wikidot.com/trope]tropes section

- both are fairly extensive (if inconsistently so).

[Matt Larkin (author)]

Calderas? Just, because, you know it's a fun word.

[Ninja D!]

Thanks, Phoenix, now I want to play Morrowind again.

[Matt Larkin (author)]

Thanks, Phoenix, now I want to play Morrowind again.

Was it good? The only Elder Scrolls game I ever played was Oblivion. Which had its moments, but also its flaws.

[Nomadic]

Thanks, Phoenix, now I want to play Morrowind again.

Was it good? The only Elder Scrolls game I ever played was Oblivion. Which had its moments, but also its flaws.

I hated Morrowind. Primarily the combat system where you could hardly tell you were even hitting the enemy unless you had an enchanted weapon.

[Matt Larkin (author)]

Karsts?

malpaís?

skerry?

[Slapzilla]

Don't get too crazy on the types cause once you get above 9 or 10 different color textures indicating terrain most folks just stop seeing things.

Not to hijack or Duel, but I think Morrowind's story was 1,255% better than Oblivion.  True, Oblivion was an easier play but nothing is holding you back from just trying it, eh?

[Drizztrocks]

Oblivion IV is a fun game. Never played any of the other ones, so I don't know about them.