#map editing

This is one of the largest things that changes between RPGMakers.

In RPGMaker MV you have 2 primary layers, the Map Layer and the Event Layer. The Event Layer allows you to create 1 event per map square.

Past RPGMakers would have multiple Map Layers and allow you one tile per Event Layer.

In MV the map layer is split into sub layers. Layer A and Layers B to E.

- My first map -

Step 1:

Make a new map, or modify the settings of the first map every game starts with.

To make a new map you should mouseover the Icon with the name of your project and right click. Then choose the “New…” option.

To set up the default map you should instead mouse over MAP001 and right click. You should choose the “Edit…” option.

New Map:

If you right click on a Map instead of the name of your project, the new map will be a child of the map you right clicked on. This is a good way of organizing your maps.

Modifying the starting map:

You are opening the map’s settings. This is how you can return to the menu for making the map seen in the next step.

Step 2:

Set up your map.

You only need to consider three things right now.

- Name

- Tileset

- Width

- Heigth

The name is what the map will be called in the editor. Giving your maps good names is important once you start having 30+ maps and you need to tweak events in maps you made months ago.

Tileset decides which tiles you can use to make your map. You can add new and modify tilesets in the database under the “Tilesets” tab.

Width is the number of grid squares long your map is.

Height is the number of grid squares tall your map is.

Your window will show 17x13 squares, so the minimum a map can be is 17x13.

- To start leave everything as default and press OK

You can change the settings at anytime. Although swapping tilesets can cause graphical glitches.

Did I make a new map or modify the default map? 50% of adults get it wrong.

Step 3:

Select the map layer.

Click the green icon that looks a bit like a present with a ribbon on it to set your layer to the map layer.

This might seem like a silly thing to devote a whole step to, it’s an easy mistake to make.

I consistently forget to check if I have this set when I want to edit a map. Don’t be a Kyle.

Step 4:

Go to tab A and choose a tile.

Just above the map selector you will see a window of “tiles” and the tiles have a tab associated with them. Choose the ‘A’ tab.

It’s important to place your ‘A’ tiles first because if you place a tile from A it will overwrite any tiles you placed from B-E.

Then click on a tile you want to draw with on your map.

Start with a tile you can’t see any of a grey checkerboard behind. The checkerboard part of the tile is transparent. For now you want to place a basic tile.

It is worth noting that there are tiles that aren’t basic but you also can’t see the the transparency layer. It is fine if you choose one of these.

Tiles also have Passage, which I will detail later. But just know that tiles with ‘*’ passage render on top, ‘X’ under that and ‘O’ on the very bottom. Keep this in mind when drawing your map.

- Choose the A tab

- Choose a tile you can’t see the transparency.

And so it begins…

Step 5:

Draw.

Click on the map to change it to the tile you have chosen.

You might notice that some of the tiles you place overwrite the previous tile and others don’t.

This is because the ‘A’ tile layer is split into three types of tile. The first type is a base tile and will replace anything you put it over. The second type is a decorative tile. It leaves the base tiles alone but overwrites other decorative tiles. The third is a hybrid, it places both a base and decorative tile at the same time. If you go over a hybrid with a decorative tile it won’t change the hybrid’s base tile.

Swap tiles as often as desired but stay on the ‘A’ tab.

- Click all over the map to decorate it.

Sand anyone?

Step 6:

Decorate with layers B through E.

Choose any layer that isn’t ‘A’ or ‘R’. Choose a tile.

Draw.

The tiles on these levels won’t affect Layer ‘A’. You can place two of any layer from B-E on a map square. The second tile occludes the first, and if a third tile is placed the old first tile is removed and the third tile occludes the old second tile.

- Choose a tile from tabs B through E

- Draw on the map

- Repeat

I’m not sure it looks any more hospitable now…

- Tile Collision -

Remember when I mentioned tile passage? The ‘*’, ‘X’ and ‘O’?

Well before you get too excited about running around your map understanding passage is important. 

Tiles marked with a ‘*’ in the database will render above the player, but the player can walk under them. 

Tiles marked with a ‘O’ are tiles the player renders above and can pass over.

Tiles marked with an ‘X’ render under the player but the player cannot pass through them. They stop moving before they can run into them.

Tiles in tilesets B-E also have 4 dir passage. It is possible to have tiles that players can enter and exit from some directions but not others. By necessity these tiles are also either ‘*’ or ‘O’ passage.

 - When placing tiles know if the player can walk through them or not.

Tips:

Use the tools at the top of the screen. Your map editing will go so much faster.

The pencil, rectangle fill and ellipse fill work like any paint program. The paintbrush is your fill tool, and the black tool allows you to add shadows on a special fifth shadow layer.

I almost forgot about the shadow tool.

- You can also choose a tile from the map to draw with by right clicking.

It’s possible to draw with multiple tiles at once by clicking and dragging either over the tile picker on the left, or right clicking and dragging over the map.

- To get a more organic shape to my maps I draw a quick outline with the pencil tool then fill the shape with the brush.

- Recently when I have been designing maps I expand and draw them as I think of things to fill them with. This isn’t great practice because it can cause issues with swapping between maps but it shows that you don’t have to finish your maps before you start programming events.

Note on Event Layer:

Events can be used to add one more B-E tile onto the map, this will always render the tile on top of other tiles of the same passability/priority.

- Afterward -

You are halfway to a demo you can start showing off. 

Try running a play test and walking around your map. There is nothing as rewarding as being able to see your map in motion.

I’ll cover how you get the player from one map to another in another tutorial.

See my code:

The code I used for this tutorial can be downloaded at https://github.com/kylehoffmann/RPGMaker_Tutorials

You will need to download all of the files and the folder RPGMaker MV Tutorial Base as well as map001.json from Beginner Tutorial 1 - My first Map.

Take map001.json and replace the file of the same name in the folder  “RPGMaker MV Tutorial\data” to see my code in your RPGMaker.

Note: I added an event that wasn’t covered in the demo. This is to make the player visible. You won’t need that event in your game.