Creating Maps with the Brush Tool

Owned by Derek Batting
Last updated: Apr 04, 2024
3 min read

You can use the brush tool to quickly paint a cavern or wall. Once created, you can use the LOS button to Duplicate Paint Lines into a new LOS Definition.

  1. Unlock your image

  2. Switch to paint mode on the toolbar

  3. Adjust your brush size and color

  4. Draw one or more set of paint strokes. You can use the line, rectangle or ellipse or use the line and freehand draw by click-dragging your brush stroke

  5. Switch to Line of Sight mode on the toolbar

  6. Click the button to Duplicate Paint Lines

  7. Switch back to Play mode on the toolbar and Enable LOS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt2t-YcvCt0

 

Creating Maps with an Image Brush

Your maps can become much more advanced if you use an image as the brush.

  1. Unlock your image

  2. Switch to paint mode on the toolbar

  3. Toggle the Image mode on this toolbar’s settings area

  4. Drag an image from the Assets window to the Graphic Asset area

  5. Adjust the size, rotation, orientation and color tint if desired

  6. Draw one or more set of paint strokes. You can use the line, rectangle or ellipse or use the line and freehand draw by click-dragging your brush stroke

  7. Switch to Line of Sight mode on the toolbar

  8. Click the button to Duplicate Paint Lines

  9. Switch back to Play mode on the toolbar and Enable LOS

Tip: Good Graphics to use as Brushes

Search for the keyword brush in the Assets window for Images. If you are creating your own brush, we recommend a vertical layout that has no transparent pixels above or below the top and bottom edge. It can have transparent pixels on the left and right.

Renaming a Painting Layer

Any new painting layer will show up with a title of Painting. To rename a layer, simply double-click on it to make the text editable. Change the text to whatever you want and then hit Enter. Press ESC to exit and leave the original name.

Example showing two paint layers. One of the layers has been renamed to show where I’ve painted a river.

Renaming Layers

Any layer type can be renamed after creation. If the long descriptive names of tiles or background images make it hard to keep track of your layers, you can adjust them to something shorter that works for your needs.

 

Keyboard and Mouse Shortcuts

Painting Tab

These shortcut keys are to change the loaded image represented as a preview at the mouse pointer location before applying it:

  • Shift + Mouse wheel: Rotate the Image

  • Ctrl + Mouse wheel: Change Image Size

  • A + Mouse wheel: Change the alpha

  • R + Mouse wheel: Change the Red Channel

  • B + Mouse wheel: Change the Blue Channel

  • G + Mouse wheel: Change the Green Channel

  • Holding Ctrl: Snap to grid

  • Middle Mouse Button: Pan the image workspace

  • Shift + Double Click: If during painting with the line tool will cause the line being painted to connect its 'end' to the 'start' of the line.

LOS Tab

  • Holding Shift: All occluder lines will snap to 90 or 45 degree angles

Layers Tab

  • Holding Ctrl: Smooth placement and rotation (no snapping)

Videos

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt2t-YcvCt0