Mapping Tutorial

This is a step-by-step tutorial on how to do Mapping.

What its like being a Mapper
Mapping is very time consuming and requires hard work and dedication along with basic knowledge of photo editing and video editing if you feel as thought you know very little about these topics then you should probably research them more before you get into Mapping. Mapping is a very niche genre so don't expect to get lots of subscribers, views, or make lots of money from Mapping as the average mapper has only a few hundred subscribers, you should do mapping because you want to do it.

Mapping Dialect
There are many different styles, genres, and dialects of Mapping. Most mappers are a mix of them but arguably the most popular currently are Eradiate style Mapping and Cheezewafflz style Mapping.

Step I: Find Software.
In order to do mapping you need a photo editing software, there are many different software's to use but the one most often used by mappers is Paint.net due to being free and extremely simple alternatives include GIMP and Adobe Photoshop. There are other software's that can be used but these are the best and most common. unless you already have a lot of knowledge or experince with photo editing it is best you check out separate tutorials on how to use these software's before you begin mapping.

Step II: Find a map
Now, we need to find a base map to work on. You have three options.

a) Google Search "Europe Map Blank" or something similar.

b) Use the "Maps for Mappers" page on this wiki.

c) Use the "Blank Atlas".

Once you have a map insert it into the photo editing software you wish to use.

Step 1: Borders
Often times the maps you find will have anti aliased borders, if so then trace over the borders with the paint brush tool.

Step 2: Textbox
Once you finish step 1 you need to make a textbox. A textbox should show the year, name, and flag of the nation speaking thought it can also include other info such as population, news, GDP, capitals, etc. a textbox should also be decently large. it also needs to be places in an area with lots of space where it wont overlap the map.

Step 3: Colors
The map needs to be colored there are many different shades of blue that can be used for water and you can also use different shades of green for the land, or instead of making the land green you can make each nation a different color, colored maps are harder to make then green maps and when coloring the map use a color scheme otherwise your colors will look out of place and bad, the TACO and TOASTER colors schemes are best to use when coloring a map.

Step I: Avoid Cliches
If you want to become big in the community you need to stand out if you do the same thing as most other mappers you wont stand out and no one will care for your videos. If you do something cliche then it must be implemented in an original and different way then it has been before.

Step II: Plot
Trying to make an original and interesting plot can be challenging if you have writers block then just writing down ideas when they pop into your head is a good strategy as eventually you can build these ideas into a story.A good method is to take these ideas and make a timeline of an alternate history or alternate future and make that timeline into your plot.

Step III: Talking
Remember the talking? It's the main part of the mapping, use the white color or gray on white water.

Use the text tool to make the nation say something. For example:
 * "Hey, Germany can I help you for the invasion from Russia?"
 * "I can see your face, I hate you!"
 * "We shall make a union called Yleran Federation!"

Step IV: War
War is a main thing in mapping. Reds are usually the aggressors (attackers) and blues are defenders.

In a war, the goal is to achieve land. The slides take longer, if you want war territories, you should get the nations keeping some of the land or all of it. Non-war territories claim and annex their territories.

Step V: Main Job done!
Finish your mapping video off. You may realize that you have 50-100 slides. Don't panic; that's common for a mapper. (You can make it smaller, just lengthen the fps [Frames per Second].)

Step VI: Making and Uploading the Video
So, use all of your finished slides, and then use 'Blur' for smoother transitions then publish it to YouTube. Good software that helps making videos are Windows (Live) Movie Maker or Camtasia Studio (paid). But in case you don't have money and a Windows 10 to you can also use the (YouTube video editor) by going to the video manager clicking create then clicking video editor the uploading the pictures to video editor and selecting music.

Step VII: Music
You can go ahead and put in music into your video. A good site for finding non-copyrighted royalty-free music is incompetech.com.

You can also use the YouTube Music Library. After your video is uploaded, go just below the video, above the description, and hit the music note. Search for the music you want and then hit the button that adds the song to your video. You can choose any music that you like (as long as it's not copyrighted of course), but, here is a list of Music designed for FoE!