Fantasy Maps & Plate Tectonics
Why Worldbuilding Stack Exchange recommends it
Worldbuilding Stack Exchange answerers point people to it when they need to place mountains, islands and plate boundaries realistically on a fantasy map.
Recommended by 4 people across 4 different months, 2018 to 2019.
What it is
An 8-minute explainer by worldbuilding YouTuber Artifexian on using plate tectonics to design believable fantasy maps. It covers boundary types, triple junctions and how to check a map on a globe with GPlates, with links to tutorials.
What people said
Recommends KernelOfChaos · 2018-05 · Worldbuilding Stack Exchange · on “Is there anything wrong with my plate tectonics map?”
First, I'd recommend plugging a jpeg or pdf of your map into GPlates. It's a pain in the butt, but this will tell you if your maps make sense on a globe. Artefexian explains the process here, starting at 3:04. [this video] He also has a video specifically on how he uses GPlates. [LINK] Just off the bat, I have a few questions. I have to point out the plate called Telcatha on your map. The green arrows along the volcanic island chain and the arrows above the jungle are pointing at each other. Telcatha itself can't be moving north and south at the same time, so is Mistsong just moving south away from Telcatha faster than Telcatha is moving toward it? And if so, why isn't there a convergent fault al
Recommends Ummdustry · 2018-10 · Worldbuilding Stack Exchange · on “How to make my map realistic?”
Where do I put my mountains/ rivers/ forests/ volcanoes/ glaciers? Where should I put islands? Mountains & Islands (since they are essentially the same thing in many cases) often occur in chains, lines or ranges. This is due to the way that the earths continents are (essentially) large floating sheets. As for where to put them it might be worth noting the differences between different tectonic boundries. I'd advise this video by Artifexian [this video] It's worth noting that theese lines are often quite "messy" meaning if you have any story conditions you can probably bend your plate tectonics to fit. Rivers go from High (mountains plateus or just the ground if nothing else higher exists) to low,
Recommends John · 2019-05 · Worldbuilding Stack Exchange · on “Can tectonic plates have any shape and size or are there limitations?”
Size yes , within reason. You can't have a plate that takes up half a planet and below a certain size its not really a plate because it does not reach the mantle, but you have a huge range in there. Shape no , plate boundaries tend towards linked triple junctions (120 degree angles) at spreading centers and thus continental margins and wide shallow curves at ocean to ocean subductions zones, this is purely due to the interaction of forces and the strength and thickness of the rock. The most glaring errors I see in fake tectonic maps is long smooth lines for continental boundaries and coastlines or 4 or more plates meeting at one point. Yes you can have three plates meeting in a australian si
Recommends TheDyingOfLight · 2019-09 · Worldbuilding Stack Exchange · on “How Can I Draw a Realistic Topographic Map?”
This video [this video] explains the general concepts, while this video [LINK] is a drawing tutorial based on the concepts explained in the first.
Recommends TheDyingOfLight · 2019-09 · Worldbuilding Stack Exchange · on “Northern Great Lakes in an Alternate Island Africa--Would the Sahara DESERT Still be Around?”
@JohnWDailey Just write me here and I'll drop a throwaway e-mail address as a comment. However, I learned most of my climate building knowledge from Artifexian [LINK] , a Worldbuilding-Youtuber. Fantasy Maps & Plate Tectonics [this video] , Atmospheric Circulation [LINK] , Ocean Currents [LINK] and How To Design Realistic Climates 1 [LINK] should help you.