Uploaded May 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago

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Welcome to Episode 243 of the Mastering Dungeons podcast!

Main topic: Making Good Tactical Maps!
Shawn and Teos discuss how to make great maps for home play or publications. From envisioning movement to avoiding symmetry, we share our tips and tricks.

Contents
00:00 Making Good Tactical Maps
06:29 Envision Your Location
10:41 Fit the Overall Setting
12:52 Fit the Creatures
17:44 Think of Movement and Abilities
26:02 Details that Matter
28:25 Avoid Symmetry
31:20 Add Surprises
34:43 Shout-Outs
38:30 What Are We Gonna Do?

Find our show notes and support our podcast and YouTube efforts:
patreon.com/MasteringDnD
Listen to us on your favorite podcast device:
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https://dice.camp/@MasteringDnD
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Find Shawn:
twitter.com/shawnmerwin
ghostfiregaming.com
Find Teos:
alphastream.org
youtube.com/@AlphastreamRPG
https://dice.camp/@Alphastream

Mastering Dungeons is a weekly podcast, providing News and a Main segment. We separate these on YouTube for your viewing and listening pleasure.

Our intro and outro music is Metropolis Fanfare, provided royalty-free by Tabletop Audio (https://tabletopaudio.com) under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).