[Project/Guide] The Explorer's Map: A Customised Map for Explorers

[Strangletusk]

Just in time for New Year, hello and welcome to my latest big project, The Explorer's Map!

The Explorer's Map, as the name suggests, is an effort to map the whole of World of Warcraft specifically for explorers, and is the culmination of around a full year of (very) on-and-off work.

To this effect, you'll find on the map a number of features especially tailored for the world of exploration alongside the ever-useful stitched together full-zone maps.

The map is primarily intended as a reference resource with new explorers in mind, but I hope that even the established explorers will find the information it contains useful too!


M A P
F E A T U R E S

• The location of every reoccurring cave type that can be used to get under the world
• The location of every reoccurring building type that can be used to get under the world
• The exact location of every instance portal with a 'beyond the portal' area, and the direction the portal faces
• Fully mapped and to-scale representations of all main and many minor exploration areas, such as Karazhan Crypts, the Wetlands Houses and more
• Detailed zoomed-in maps of each capital city, including explorations within the cities (such as the WKM Room in Orgrimmar)

Currently, the Eastern Kingdoms and Kalimdor are complete, whilst Outland, Northrend and Pandaria are currently a work-in-progress (it takes an awful long time to do this project alongside uni work, as you can imagine).

Individual links for each completed continent can be found below the map, if your computer doesn't fancy loading up a 9000x7500px image.

So, without further ado, here is the map!

Kalimdor Map

Eastern Kingdoms Map

Kezan, Deepholm and Maelstrom Maps

U N D E R - T H E - W O R L D A C C E S S
C A V E S

The numbered pictures below correspond to the letters on The Explorer’s Map - where a single gold-bordered number appears on the map, you will find a cave of the type shown in the picture for that number.

All underwater caves are marked with a single lower-case, gold-bordered 'w', in contrast to the other caves.

Caves are only shown here if they appear more than once in the world - otherwise they are featured in the ‘Unique’ category.

C L I C K on the pictures to watch the tutorial videos for each cave.

Alternatively, click H E R E to watch the playlist.

B U I L D I N G S

The lettered pictures below correspond to the letters on The Explorer’s Map - where a single gold-bordered capital letter appears on the map, you will find a building of the type shown in the picture for that letter.

Buildings are only shown here if they appear more than once in the world - otherwise they are featured in the ‘Unique’ category.

C L I C K on the pictures to watch the tutorial videos for each building.

Alternatively, click H E R E to watch the playlist.

U N I Q U E S

As is to be expected, not every way of getting under the world appears in the world multiple times, like those shown above. There are many unique spots, or 'uniques' as I like to call them (terrible English, I know...but bugger it).

A picture guide would not work as well here, so I've simply created a video for each continent that shows all of that continent's unique spots for your reference.

Linked in the Youtube video description are links to the time that each spot appears to save you having to watch the entire video if you don't want to (note: no there isn't - I've still to add this. It'll be added tomorrow, if not the day after).

All unique spots are marked by a single gold-bordered number 0 on the map.

C L I C K on the links below to be taken to each video!

Kalimdor - Uniques

The Eastern Kingdoms - Uniques

That's the project as it stands - stay tuned for the eventual postings of the remaining continents, with Pandaria coming soonest (it has the most world exploration areas compared to Northrend and Outland).

I hope you've enjoyed the project and will it find it useful in your explorations!

Please do post any suggestions and advice on the map - this is still very much a working project, and I very much appreciate your help.

Also, due to the size of the project there is a very good chance that I've missed some caves, buildings and explorations. If you notice any, do point them out and I'll add them in.

Strangletusk

[WizardTrokair]

Whoa, this is the best New Year's present we could ask for!
This will be SO helpful to so many explorers, new and old. How many times have I been asked how to get under the world? Countless!
A real shame that you now DC when flying under the world...but this will still be an extremely useful tool. Been waiting far too long for this!
Your formatting is AWESOME. The layout of the thread and the material presented is phenomenal.
And video for each cave type... you're a beast, ST!
Thanks so much for creating this for the exploration community.
+9 rep. I wish I could give you ten times as much.

[Emo_Sauce]

Wow, this is just an incredibly useful tool for explorers Strangle, you've been telling me about this for a while now but this is really just off the charts! You've really outdone yourself. The time taken to create something so huge must have required insane dedication.

Will +rep when possible!

[Joeljuve]

This is amazing, thank you for taking the time to help out the explorer's community so much!
+4rep

[WizardTrokair]

I've already consulted this thread twice since it has been posted. Once to find the closest cave entrance to where I was at the moment... and another time to see how to get under what ST calls a type "H" entrance. I mean, there's fricken VIDEO for each entrance! That's twice in a 23 hour span I've used this tool. This is AMAZING.
Thanks again my friend. Requesting a sticky.

[Strangletusk]

Whoa, this is the best New Year's present we could ask for!
This will be SO helpful to so many explorers, new and old. How many times have I been asked how to get under the world? Countless!
A real shame that you now DC when flying under the world...but this will still be an extremely useful tool. Been waiting far too long for this!
Your formatting is AWESOME. The layout of the thread and the material presented is phenomenal.
And video for each cave type... you're a beast, ST!
Thanks so much for creating this for the exploration community.
+9 rep. I wish I could give you ten times as much.

Wow, this is just an incredibly useful tool for explorers Strangle, you've been telling me about this for a while now but this is really just off the charts! You've really outdone yourself. The time taken to create something so huge must have required insane dedication.

This is amazing, thank you for taking the time to help out the explorer's community so much!

My thanks to the three of you for your kind words! I'm glad you like it
@EmoSauce - you're not wrong, it did require a shit-ton of dedication, as you can probably tell from the various times I regaled you (read: moaned at you) with tales of how long everything was taking me. To be honest though, if I actually had proper dedication it would've been done a lot sooner - I spent entire months without working on it haha

I've already consulted this thread twice since it has been posted. Once to find the closest cave entrance to where I was at the moment... and another time to see how to get under what ST calls a type "H" entrance. I mean, there's fricken VIDEO for each entrance! That's twice in a 23 hour span I've used this tool. This is AMAZING.
Thanks again my friend. Requesting a sticky.

Glad you're finding it useful man! I almost ended up abandoning the project since I thought that the DCing under the world would render much of the project's main features useless, but I'm happy it is proving to be pretty useful after all!

Incidentally...I've been thinking of other potential features I could add to the map in the future (this question is addressed to everyone, not just Trok) - do you think adding the 'blue wall' edges out in the sea would be helpful? Ie. the ends of the map around each continent?

[Eryx]

Requesting a sticky.

Wish granted

@Strangletusk: Thanks for making this fantastic post/tool and sharing with the communtity!

Have some well deserved rep from me. Keep those goodies coming!

[IChangedMyUsername]

Just restating what Trokair said. Absolutely fantastic post which goes into enough detail to make me feel bad using it. +However much Rep I can

[Teryaki]

Congrats on the sticky! This is just wonderful and will be very useful to both new and seasoned explorers! Thank you very much Strangletusk, +rep forever!

[marscgm]

By "offline mode" do you mean the D/C macro?

[Strangletusk]

By "offline mode" do you mean the D/C macro?

Offline Mode is when you're logged on, but are sorta offline at the same time - you're not affected by fall damage, fatigue and numerous other negative effects but can't use abilities or spells. You can bypass the disconnections experienced whilst under the world this way.

It does involve using a D/C macro at the last stage yeah. Shunt did a pretty good video explaining how to activate it, I'll link it here for yourself and anyone else that needs it:

Hope this answers your question!

[Strangletusk]

Ok, it's been almost 6 months now since the Map was first posted for the first 2 continents (EK and Kalimdor), so I think it's time for an update on progress for the rest!

It was a major amount of work to get to even this stage so I understandably took a break for a while, but have no fear, the next part of the map should hopefully be coming soon - Pandaria.

Pandaria actually has quite a decent amount and quality of world exploration spots, so I decided to do it ahead of Northrend (which will be after it) and Outland (which has like, bugger all by comparison to either, so will be last).


New features:

- Blue walls/edge of the world invisible wall boundaries:

I mainly did this to show you where the huge invisible wall is that blocks you from reaching the very, very early version of the Isle of Thunder North of Shanze Dao, then thought it'd be nice to include it all the way around the continent itself.

- Beyond the portal area maps (possibly):

So far I've included a little symbol with an arrow to show the instance portals that include accessible 'beyond the portal' areas behind them, but I'm very much considering actually adding maps of the shape of each of these areas as well, like I've done already with the explorations spots, eg. Karazhan Crypts. Not 100% sure, but it's quite likely - at least for the larger ones anyway.


As for progress so far, I've basically mapped in all of the exploration spots, and around 75% of the caves/buildings types and locations, as well as instance portals.

Still To Do:

- Edge-of-the-world walls

- 'Unique Spots' video

- Photoshopping of the original composite map, to increase quality (it's wayyyy too blurry and low-quality at the moment so I'll be going back and tidying things up)

- Zoomed-in maps for the capital cities + Veiled Stair (it'd be bloody tiny on the map otherwise)

I won't give an expected date, or even month, as that just always leads to disappointment so I'll just say...soon™.

[VoTuUS]

I feel we should continue this project, there's a lot of potential and it could end up really useful. We could even make an addon. ^^

GM Island should definitely be added to the Kalimdor Map.

[OotHE]

I remember when you first begun this project. I'm absolutely astounded by the progress you made with the information you uncovered and the material you collected, through and through. It absolutely pains me to hear that you got the banhammer and aren't making videos anymore. I very much wish you well in your endeavors bud. Things may change, but dreams never die! <3

[Strangletusk]

I remember when you first begun this project. I'm absolutely astounded by the progress you made with the information you uncovered and the material you collected, through and through. It absolutely pains me to hear that you got the banhammer and aren't making videos anymore. I very much wish you well in your endeavors bud. Things may change, but dreams never die! <3

Hey man,

This is an exceedingly late reply I know, but thanks very much for the kind words on the project - you were one of my absolute key supports in my early exploring days and your compliments really do mean the world

As for the banhammer, I haven't actually been banned from WoW at all, but mainly a combination of real life (uni studies mainly) and declining motivation pulled me out of the scene. That Offline Mode was fixed - effectively removing a good deal of the map's usefulness - whilst I was still working on the Pandaria part of the map put the final nail in the coffin of my motivation and I haven't done any work on it since, or explored at all really.

I hate leaving it unfinished, but I honestly can't see myself finishing it without a massive burst of motivation coming in. If I did, then at the very least I'd like to finish off Pandaria, as I'd made a lot of progress on it already, and Northrend would be nice to do, but it would probably be without videos if I did do it. Just a map showing the exploration areas, spots under the world and etc.

Being totally honest, as much as I've loved exploring (and still do), when it comes to making videos/projects and whatnot my heart simply isn't in it any more Nacho

If I release videos, it'll be very, very rarely (it already would be if I did now to be honest haha) and of finds I may have stumbled across whilst playing. There's one area I'm looking at at the moment that might have some potential for exploring, in which case I'll make a video, but honestly, it's unlikely. I'm loath to putting ETAs on anything.

The other wonderful explorers out there will have to keep on carrying the torch in my stead

-ST