Guide

Hex map vs square grid

Decide whether square or hex grids fit your RPG map, VTT import path, and table movement rules.

Use square grids for most rooms, corridors, and D&D battle maps. Use hex grids for wilderness, overland movement, and open terrain when your rules and VTT support them cleanly.

Snowy village fantasy map example for grid choice
Fit

Best for / Not best for

Best for: DMs and GMs who need a practical RPGMapEditor workflow for one map-making task: choose the right size, build the playable space, save the source project, and export a PNG for DnD, TTRPG, VTT, Roll20, Foundry VTT, print, or sharing.

Not best for: generic map theory, hidden keyword pages, fake popularity claims, or promises that RPG Map Editor exports Roll20 dynamic lighting, native Foundry scene JSON, walls, doors, tokens, or automation data.

Square grids

Squares are simple for rooms, doors, and most D&D play

Square grids are familiar, easy to count, and line up naturally with buildings, corridors, and most dungeon layouts. They are usually the safest choice for D&D-style interiors and tactical battle maps.

  • Best for rooms, streets, dungeons, and buildings.
  • Fast range counting for many tables.
  • Easy export alignment in common VTTs.
Hex grids

Hexes help with natural movement and open terrain

Hex grids avoid diagonal movement questions and can feel better for wilderness, overland travel, and outdoor skirmishes where movement radiates in six directions instead of along corridors.

  • Best for wilderness, hexcrawls, and open battlefields.
  • Cleaner distance around circular areas.
  • Less natural for rectangular rooms and doors.
Decision

Pick the grid your table will use inside the VTT

The right grid is the one your players understand quickly. If the VTT will render the final grid, export art that gives the platform room to draw clean lines without fighting a second embedded grid.

  • Use square for most encounter interiors.
  • Use hex for travel or open terrain when your rules support it.
  • Test alignment before session day.
Product workflow

How to do it in RPGMapEditor

Open RPGMapEditor, start from a blank map or demo, paint the terrain that defines movement, place props only where they affect play, keep the grid readable, save the map when you need to return, then export a PNG for Roll20, Foundry VTT, print, or sharing.

Use the screenshot or map example above as proof of the workflow: the article should show an actual editor-created map, not a stock fantasy image.

Use this article in the editor

Turn the guide into one map: pick a grid size, build the example, save it, and export once.

Map editor features Pricing

Keep building from useful pages

Compare the workflow against real examples, read the feature list, or check limits before you commit the tool to a campaign.

Features Showcase Pricing