CM1 Brun
Before the world map was published in 1985’s Master Rules Set, this map of the continent of Brun appeared in CM1 Test of the Warlords (1984). An almost identical map was in the Companion Rules Set (1984).
This map shows most of the continent of Brun and the Isle of Dawn, along with hints of Alphatia and the much larger southern continent, Davania. It was the first small scale view of the world. While CM1’s map showed the extents of the warring empires of Thyatis and Alphatia, the Companion Set‘s map focused on showing where existing maps fit into the world.
The inspiration for this map is prehistorical maps of ancient Earth — Jurassic Earth, to be precise, around 150 million years ago. The map which this map was probably inspired from was featured in Continents in Collision (1983), a Time Life book in the Planet Earth series. Many fans spotted the similarities back in the 80s, though the map was not posted online until it was unearthed once again in February 2018. For the full story, see this article on thorfmaps.com.
Replica Map (February 2018)
Sources
- CM1 Test of the Warlords (1984) (PDF at DriveThruRPG)
- DM Map 1: World Area, non-hex map on page 3
Chronological Analysis
This is Map 22. It was published in June 1984. The updated version of this map has not yet been released. See also Appendix C for annual chronological snapshots of the area. For the full context of this map in Mystara’s publication history, see Let’s Map Mystara 1984.
The following lists are from the Let’s Map Mystara project. Additions are new features, introduced in this map; Revisions are changes to previously-introduced features; Hex Art & Fonts track design elements; and finally Textual Additions are potential features found in the related text. In most cases, the Atlas adopts these textual additions into updated and chronological maps.
Additions
- Borders — the rough border between the empires of Thyatis and Alphatia on the Isle of Dawn is discernible, as are the general areas of influence of each empire, although they don’t quite match up with contemporary maps. Alphatia is shown to claim all of Norwold except for the extreme northwest, Frosthaven, and the small isles north of the Isle of Dawn; the islands north of the Alphatian mainland; the Alphatian mainland, but not the spur to its southwest (likely an oversight); and of course half of the Isle of Dawn. Thyatis is shown to claim northern Davania, Ochalea and the western Pearl Islands (all still unnamed); half of the Isle of Dawn; and the Thyatian mainland, though the peninsula of Tel Akbir and some of the islands are not marked (likely an oversight).
- Nations — this map marks the first appearance of the Empire of Alphatia.
Hex Art & Fonts
- Fonts — Baskerville.
- New Symbols — None.
Analysis
CM1’s version of the Companion Set continental map matches it closely, to the point that they are variations of the same map. This one just adds a few labels and the extents of the empires.
Join in the Discussion at The Piazza
Come and join in the discussion about this map at The Piazza, where I am holding a “read through” of the Let’s Map Mystara project.
Past and Future Versions of this Map
Lining Up Mystara Revisited IV – Thorfinn Tait Cartography
23 February 2018 @ 9:01 pm
[…] the same time, the consensus was that the 2.2º rotation of Brun to match CM1’s map with the Master Set outlines is a step too far, making life difficult for cartographers for minimal […]
Lining Up Mystara Revisited II – Thorfinn Tait Cartography
1 March 2018 @ 9:25 pm
[…] CM1’s continental map of Brun is slightly rotated when compared with the Master Set’s world map, by approximately 2.2º. (You can see this in the image above, where the red outlines are based on CM1 — look at the south coast of Brun and compare the red and black lines.) […]
Let’s Map Mystara! – Thorfinn Tait Cartography
13 April 2018 @ 11:35 am
[…] about this for an idea… Writing the commentary for all these old maps I’ve been re-releasing lately has crystallised something I’ve been wanting to do for quite a while […]
Companion Set Brun – Atlas of Mystara
22 May 2018 @ 9:01 pm
[…] split across two pages. This makes it difficult to assemble the map precisely. Thankfully, CM1 reprinted a smaller version on a single page, and this replica references that contiguous map to find the best join for the two […]
Companion Set Brun | Atlas of Mystara
29 May 2018 @ 8:33 pm
[…] split across two pages. This makes it difficult to assemble the map precisely. Thankfully, CM1 reprinted a smaller version on a single page, and this replica references that contiguous map to find the best join for the two […]
Let’s Map Mystara 1984 – Thorfinn Tait Cartography
6 November 2018 @ 10:36 am
[…] DM Map 1: World Area […]