These guidelines help GMs pick map sizes that most players can load smoothly. Maps are no longer downscaled per client, so every player sees the same map scale and wall layout. These are operational starting points, not hard hardware guarantees.
Last updated: February 19, 2026
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Aethera does not enforce fixed CPU/RAM minimums for map rendering. Use this table as a practical baseline and validate in-session with the performance overlay.
| Map size | Recommended use | Validation target |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p (1920 x 1080) | Default for mixed groups and laptop-heavy tables. | Most players hold about 45+ FPS during normal play. |
| 1440p (2560 x 1440) | Use when your group consistently performs well at 1080p. | Party median remains near 45+ FPS after lights/effects are enabled. |
| 4K (3840 x 2160) | Use only for high-end groups willing to tune scenes aggressively. | If multiple players drop below 45 FPS, step back to 1440p or 1080p. |
Animated maps are served from an Aethera MP4 map-video derivative when available. If that derivative is still being generated, playback can temporarily fall back to the source upload. Animated maps generally need more GPU and bandwidth than still maps.
| Map size | Recommended use | Network starting point (per player) |
|---|---|---|
| 1080p animated | Safe default for animated scenes. | Plan for roughly 8-15 Mbps and verify under party load. |
| 1440p animated | Use when 1080p animated is stable for the full party. | Plan for roughly 12-25 Mbps and verify under party load. |
| 4K animated | High-end only; expect tuning and fallback plans. | Plan for roughly 20+ Mbps with low latency and stable uplink/downlink. |
Tip: In Scene Config you can switch video maps between Still image and Animated video without changing the map scale.