The original plan for Shroud of the Avatar was to have all maps be hand-drawn, found by players, and generally hard to find. This was at least somewhat understandable, but it ran into several problems, as there were more zones in need of maps than hours in the day to draw new ones. It also frequently resulted in players getting lost and failed to account for any sort of changes to the zones, including in player-run towns. So the developers have wisely gone a much simpler route by acquiring the SotAMap project started by fan Jakub White for official development.
This map has been lightly integrated in the game for a few releases, but the acquisition means that the maps will now be hosted on more reliable servers for the game, have improved functionality, and give players direct control over the map display. It should be a happy addition for anyone fed up with being lost in the game, albeit a bit of bad news for those with a deep attachment to the hand-drawn maps.
