Though you won’t find it on any maps, many a traveller has rested beneath the outspread arms of this nameless statue. Unfortunately, there are those that will take advantage of the peaceful atmosphere…

Highland Pass battle map, banner

The mist rolled through the valley before dawn, blanketing everything in tiny droplets that hung on the still grass like so many precious gems. When the sun did make its appearance, drawing golden rays of light through the vapor, it looked to be shining on a newly made world.

It was a badger to first disturb the scene, bouncing haphazardly through the long grass and leaving a trail of bent blades. Behind her trailed four young, snuffling playfully and seeing who could push to the front. They did not loiter, and hurried on to wherever they meant to go.

A while later, a songbird entered the valley, though he was wiser than to interrupt the silence so early in the morn. He perched on the statues head, flicked his head left and right in search of a gnat, and saw that there were none. Instead, he dropped through the air like a falling autumn leaf and landed with grace on the statue’s left hand.

The stone man’s hands were stretched before him, palms raised in an inviting manner, and water had collected there. The bird perched on his thumb and drank, and presently flitted off to another valley.

The statue remained, as he had for a hundred years, his gaze hanging over the valley. At least the bird had not needed to relieve himself today, he thought, with the dull, creeping thoughts of a petrified man. And the badger cubs were getting so big.

Highland Pass battle map, night, banner
Thank you for funding this map, Patrons! You can download your exclusive nighttime version here.

The encounter I had in mind when drawing this map was an ambush from two sides, with assailants jumping out from the high ground on the left and right. The party must either split their forces or combat each side one at a time. Also consider throwing a tough foe in the middle to keep them anchored while you rain fire and arrows down at them from the cliffs!

Or, it could just be a nice backdrop for a fireside chat. What are your ideas? Please share them in the comments!

This map pack also includes an adventure hook written by Sam Brown. Check it out for a ready-made session hand-crafted for the map.

Next Step

You can download The Highland Pass below:

For exclusive map variants and even the PSD files, consider joining the amazing community that makes these maps possible:

The Highland Pass battle map is free to download thanks to Patrons such as:

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License, thanks to our generous supporters. If you would like to use this map commercially, please contact me ðŸ™‚

About the author

Ross McConnell

DM, aspiring artist, and founder of 2-Minute Tabletop! I love drawing, writing, and worldbuilding, and this is the website where all of it comes together.

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Published: March 10, 2019
Tagged: blog

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