Recreating maps of real-life locations in the style of World of Warcraft’s world maps has become a popular hobby for artists who are fans of the game. ConservationOfWumbo, one of the first and most well-known of these World of Warcraft map artists, has recently added Michigan to his growing gallery.
Earlier this year, ConservationOfWumbo began his goal of making Warcraft-style maps of every state in the United States. With the completion of Michigan, he has finished 21 of them–nearly half of the 48 continental states. ConservationOfWumbo wants to get the rest of the east coast done before heading to finish up the west and midwest, with Alaska, Hawaii, and other regions possibly coming after.
The map itself replicates the state of Michigan in the style of World of Warcraft Classic’s in-game world maps. Using assets from the game, he turned the state into a playable zone, using major interstates as roadways. Many major cities, including Detroit, Flint, and Lansing, appear as towns and castles on the map, and major landmarks, like the Huron and Hiawatha forests and the extensive farmland in south Michigan, appear, as well as several of the Great Lakes.
Many other artists have joined ConservationOfWumbo, slowly creating maps of dozens of regions across the globe. A few months ago, Winston-91 crafted a map of the Netherlands, which ConservationOfWumbo saw and praised in the comments. Another map artist who goes by Spoon recently shared Warcraft-style region maps of their own, including Sicily, Veneto, Australia, and Ontario–the last of which could be placed right next to the map of neighboring Michigan.
World of Warcraft fans adore ConservationOfWumbo’s work every time he posts it. Within about eight hours, the post already had near 150 comments, most of which involved dishing on “Yoopers,” denizens of the Upper Penninsula of Michigan, which wasn’t pictured on the version ConservationOfWumbo first posted on Reddit. Many also asked if his work was available for purchase, to which he directed them to his Etsy page, EthonolMaps.
Considering the current turmoil surrounding Blizzard due to corrupt leadership and legal troubles, it is refreshing when World of Warcraft fans can come together to celebrate the work of their fellows. ConservationOfWumbo’s maps are no exception, and his work has started a trend of others making maps of their own. Perhaps if enough artists put their skills together, players will have a full map of Earth akin to the map of Azeroth in World of Warcraft.
World of Warcraft is available now on PC.