Area Mapping On Foot

[Jinumon]

Hey again, everyone!

Thanks for all your input. Regarding specific points:

Originally Posted by johndallman

I think maps with that kind of data density are strictly a modern thing.

I kind of figured. I was trying to be conservative with a theoretical maximum for standard maps. I’m not too terribly upset with how the numbers shake out, though.

Originally Posted by Polydamas

A bit of digging should turn up how fast survey teams work and how long it took to say sketch a fort that the John Company might have to take one day.

If you have the time to spare, I would greatly appreciate a nod in the right direction. Ever since Google switched over to it’s “commercial links first” model I’ve found it almost impossible to get anything useful out of my searching. Only if you have the time, of course.

Originally Posted by Anthony

In a setting with access to GURPS Magic, a number of tools are available that would be extremely useful to surveyors

I’m generally more comfortable applying arbitrary-ish modifiers to magic because, hey, IT’S MAGIC! It’s the base numbers I’m more worried about being at least partially based in reality.

Originally Posted by Pursuivant

Absent magical assistance, they require a team of at least 5 men and possibly a wagon pulled by a team of horses or mules. A reasonable surveying rate in forest or plains terrain might be 5-10 square miles per day.

Thanks so much for the breakdown! Using the scenario I had described before (Jane Cartographer), I think it might be fair to add the addendum that each additional person with at Cartography-12+ and Observation-12+ increases the area mapped by 50%. I.e. A team of 5 moving across plains would map at a rate of 0.3 square miles per linear mile traveled (0.1 + [0.05 x 4]). Assuming they travel at 2mph (laden with supplies and equipment) for 12 hours, that would result in a total of 7.2 square miles mapped per day, which is right in your ballpark.

Thanks again, everyone! A lot of the time I feel like I just use ya’ll as a sounding board, but it really is tremendously helpful! This really is the best community on the internet!

If I put things down on paper for an unofficial “system” I’ll be sure to share it.

Jinumon

[Polydamas]

Originally Posted by Jinumon

Hey again, everyone!
If you have the time to spare, I would greatly appreciate a nod in the right direction. Ever since Google switched over to it’s “commercial links first” model I’ve found it almost impossible to get anything useful out of my searching. Only if you have the time, of course.

The trick is to do what search engines tell you and stop using them! They want you to search specific sites like JSTOR, Wikipedia, or your local library not the web. Offhand see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_...etrical_Survey and Dean, Riaz (2019). Mapping The Great Game: Explorers, Spies & Maps in Nineteenth-century Asia. Oxford: Casemate (UK).

Some GURPS Magic spells can definitely substitute for TL 5+ surveying instruments but not all of those are in Dungeon Fantasy.

[Pursuivant]

Originally Posted by Jinumon

Thanks so much for the breakdown!

Keep in mind that my estimates for time and personnel needed are guesses. In particular, formal long-distance surveying expeditions into wilderness terrain could involve hundreds of people.

The five men and a wagon estimate is based on surveys of the U.S. Great Plains in the late 19th century. The crew consisted of the lead surveyor and several men to handle the chains and rods as well as someone to look after the horses while the surveyors were busy.

It might be possible to do surveying "in parallel" with different teams working in different areas, but it would require someone overseeing the project with Administration and suitably high Surveying skills. Add Leadership if conditions are difficult and Cartography if the master surveyor is making formal maps as the expedition proceeds.

Other folks have given you search engines other than Google. I'll add Archive.org which has scans of lots of interesting old books, although getting useful info is a bit of a hassle. Notable "heroic" surveyors were the men who mapped India and the American West in the 19th century. The latter group includes explorers such as Lewis & Clark and John Wesley Powell. Their exploits might make good GURPS campaigns.