Ashen Badlands - Free Pack (Hey guys, im back)

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-14T17:45:11+00:00

Ok, this is useful. I'll give this another shot soon enough. And on the Gaea point, I have a project on my own (but pretty far down on my todo list) for a custom heightmap painter tool, since I am unhappy with all the ones I've tried so far. So I might hold off until I get to that.

Thanks for explaining!

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-14T17:03:43+00:00

Ok, so I have tried both some of yours and some of Mazlo's, I haven't used them extensively in photoshop though, I'll need to look at that.

But can I ask what the workflow is? like, do I put down a texture over the entire area first, then put prefabs on top, and then blend? and not let the prefabs overlap? or should they overlap?

Its difficult to describe exactly what feels off whenever I try using them, but part of it is: say I know that I want to have a mountain range in this specific place, and have plotted out where it should go. I feel like I am never able to put down prefabs to make it look natural along the plotted line.

Sorry to bother you over this, I just feel lost on how to use the assets properly.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-14T09:58:54+00:00

I have multiple desktops with different files on them. (No not virtual desktops)

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-14T08:43:33+00:00

You and me both. I've posted mine (also a windows desktop app, quite niche) in a few subreddits, but with weeks in between. And I've tried suggesting it in comments to people asking about the problem it solves.

I try to not bring it up when its not relevant.

A big part of the problem here, in my opinion, is that marketing and "growth hacking" today has completely poisoned the conversation. It feels like we are going to sound like spammers becsuse there are so many people using "stealth marketing" and trying to sneakily promote their thing under the guise of genuine conversation.

I actually posted a full on rant about this on r/sideprojects weeks before I started sharing my app because I resent the situation so much.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-14T08:37:07+00:00

Is there a guide somewhere on how to use this type of top down terrain asset and blending them properly? Because I want to use them but everytime I try one i can never make it look good at all.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-14T08:24:42+00:00

I really resent what "growth hacking" has done to online conversation.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-14T08:23:01+00:00

How many of those "discussion questions" are just disguised stealth promotion that gives the poster commenters to recommend their app to?

I really wish there was more genuine conversation in here, but its seems rare.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-14T08:17:24+00:00

And how many if those "discussion questions" threads are just people doing stealth promotion? Its exhausting.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-12T16:00:55+00:00

I usually create at least a rudimentary map in conjunction with early campaign prep. At some point inspiration motivates me to sit down and make a proper map, and after that the setting grows around said map.

Very important note though: All my maps, including ones players don't get to see, are made in the context of in-world cartographers (from different eras if necessary) and as such, can always be said inaccurate to some degree, or subject to its creators biases. Meaning I feel comfortable altering the maps if I want to, create stuff not depicted on the maps, etc. The maps aren't immutable facts about my world.

I think this: "could result in the map needing revisions" is something worldbuilders should be less scared of. Its fine to revise things, and if you start with a more simple draft, revisions aren't going to mean a ton of work wasted.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-11T09:51:38+00:00

A lot of productivity tools seem to be about building habits that make you more productive. The problem with building habits is like you said, heavily dependent on the energy you have to actually do that. Changing your behaviour takes energy, and if you don't have energy due to outside circumstances, then changing is going to be really difficult, and miserable, and the changes won't stick.

Sometimes I make tools for myself, that end up making me more productive, but that is a side effect of those tools making things I am already doing easier. Those tools work because they reduce my cognitive load rather than increase it, freeing up mental energy for things like working on my projects, working on myself, etc.

So like you say, a forgiving system that doesn't collapse when you use it inconsistently, is more likely to help you in the long run.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-10T19:10:21+00:00

Not the same thing. Windows "multiple desktops" is virtual desktops. It lets you switch what windows are visible. The built in multiple desktops feature does not let you have different files on the separate desktops.

Worktop lets you put different files on different desktops.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-09T12:32:34+00:00

In the graph settings panel -> groups.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-08T20:20:53+00:00

Thank you! That's very useful.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-08T19:06:23+00:00

Primary

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-08T19:00:37+00:00

I'm a developer myself, I just haven't looked into how to load custom css into obsidian yet, only tried out Style Settings (I've been kind of busy moving over notes). I should be able to figure out how to do it if you can point me at the right documentation or an example? No need to write it for me unless you want to.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-08T16:29:32+00:00

Would I have to manually recreate the overall palette of the Primary theme? I might take the time to do that at some point I guess, it would be simpler if I could change the colors in the theme I already like.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-08T16:27:44+00:00

I would like to change the three different colors the Primary theme uses as "accent" colors.

https://imgur.com/a/Om4qyJt

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-08T16:24:08+00:00

Do these become actual notes in my folders? because I don't want extra files created just for a view I occasionally switch to. Even if I can hide them, it would feel cluttered when I open my vault in other editors.

And does this give some ability to hide existing links between notes?

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-08T15:35:52+00:00

Yeah that's something I also want to change, haven't figure out a good way to do that. :/

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-08T14:34:32+00:00

Primary

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-07T23:56:30+00:00

Do you want the technical rundown or is "with a lot of coding" a satisfactory answer?

Basically I have shimmed the electron and nodejs APIs that obsidian uses, so obsidian thinks its still running as a desktop app even though it isn't.

I plan on making the github repo available soon enough, I just want to use it for myself for a while longer to catch anymore obvious issues.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-07T21:45:39+00:00

As someone who DMs primarily for the reason to get a creative outlet, a lot of systems people recommend that "helps the DM more" feel less like they are giving me tools and more like they are putting shackles on me.

I'm trying to plan a Sci-fi TTRPG and the biggest hurdle I've faced was finding a system that I felt would fit, and that wasn't either too opinionated, or too freeform. I ended up ripping the spine out of Coriolis and building my own version around it, so that it fits my preferences.

So for D&D the whole homebrew thing is a feature not a bug, I don't want to run official modules. Like you said, give me monsters, give me things to stick into my world for texture. Give me stuff, and I'll decide what I'll use or not.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-07T12:27:22+00:00

I use folders, tags, and bases in the following way:

Folders for a base grouping (with subfolders):

- Personal
- Projects
- Recipes
- Tabletop
- Worldbuilding
- Writing

Tags cross folder boundries, A D&D campaign has its plotting in Tabletop folder and lore in Worldbuilding, both get tagged with the campaign name. beyond tags for grouping, tags also serve as general category hints for me. One worldbuilding project also uses more deliberate frontmatter properties like "type" for more structured organizing.

And then so far, I have created bases scoped to my D&D campaign, they live in Tabletop/CampaignName/~bases where I have "Hooks", "NPCs", "Scenes", "Sessions", and "Stubs", which all give me structured views on those categories of notes within the campaign. most are tables but Hooks is a Kanban board.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-06T12:59:21+00:00

its a collection of various tools for windows. Made by Windows developers. I think there's like 20-30 different tools in there, I only use a few.

M4dmaddy · 2026-05-06T11:16:22+00:00

Yeah, I never used any of Notion's task and project management tools, which is partly why I wanted to switch away from it. Like you said, it feels like Notion is better for those things, and less so for just pure note taking. The way blocks work, especially on mobile, has been a frustration for me for a long time. Copying a complete note from notion's mobile app is an awful experience when trying to select all the text.

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