Last night, I was playing Betrayal at the House on the Hill which is basically a survival horror game by WotC. And I just got thinking about how that might work with a TT RPG. I mean, there's the whole Hero Clix (which I've never played), and the Mechwarrior TT stuff as well. So, basically, just finding tile sets that work for the sort of game that you're running is the main issue and that'll give your game a lot of variety, if you can GM on the fly. You've got visual representation of cover and distance and all that, but unless you lay the tiles down in accordance with your map, you're running blind basically doing things like the old D&D Random Encounter Tables.

I used a few of my old TT module maps from other games, like a Star Wars D20 map for a game using the little tokens they had for minatures but after a while, a little variety from modules is nice. Anyone got any suggestions on what might make some good options?

Many people use minis on dry erase boards, or hex map mats.

I just draw on the map, making what I want. Otherwise youll be buying tons of maps that will almost never fit what you want.

But you could get the old Sprawl Sites book for maps to draw on your hex mats or find the maps that were in the old DMZ boxed set.

There are precasted mini mazes for miniature games, but they are resin and pretty exspensive.

EDIT: Ill see if I can find the sites I use to visit for that stuff. This computer doesnt have the links.

EDIT2: Ok, I just re-read your post, it seems you are looking for software. I dont know of any software that randomly draws maps.

I'm /not/ looking for software. I know where I can find software to do that. What I am looking for is this but done for Shadowrun. You take a tile and connect it to the area as it is. Yes, I'm not expecting it to fit an image I have in my head, if I wanted to do that, I would just use a map. What I want this to be is like flipping cards in a deck, I don't know what's coming next. The next card in the group could be a corner, it could be a hallway, perhaps it leads them to a dead end. That way, it makes things a little more variable.

Sort of like the dice rolling that they had designed to create the matrix sites. You roll a 1, and it's an SPU, then from an SPU, you roll a 4 and it's an I/O node. Then from that, you roll a 5, which is the CPU. And so on so forth.

Microtactix might have somethig youll like.

They are PDF maps that you print out with different things on them. I suppose you could just print the stuff out and cut the tiles to your preffered size.

Heroclix... you can get maps seperately, and some of the figs (cops, cons, etc.) can be used in your game.

Most of the tiles that you can buy pre-made or print off are going to be fantasy, but there are some sewer ones that would work.
If you have Kazaa or something like that, look for "tiles" or "floor tiles"
Also, Google search for those terms, and you can find some as well. Oh yeah, MicroTactix has some stuff that works, especially if you want to build up to 3D. Look for Cityscapes, it lets you print things like the HeroClix maps.

Edit: Curse you Frag-o, and your superior typing skills!

Edit 2: Warhammer Quest did the "card flipping" thing to make a random dungeon, but I have'nt seen that for anything other than fantasy. Besides, most urban settings won't be random layouts.
Also, look for Urban War minis, they have some cool "Shadowrunny" stuff.

Microtactix does have sewer and street maps you could make cards from. They also have card based industrial stuff an card based NPC sets.

Oh and I dont superior typing skills, just a lot of links to gaming sites and other useless links saved. I just have to be on the right computer to find them quickly or google the right words. Even wonder how the monolith at he end of Space Odessy 2 compares to Darth Vaders Super Star Destroy size wise? I have a site link that has visual aids.

I do agree that for urban environments, it might not work for a cityscape, but at the same time, let's say you're going exploring in the Warrens, it is quite possible to not know what is around the next corner. Or perhaps in the bowels of the sewers as you sneak under a border in Denver. Or maybe it's a secret corporate facility; I mean in games like UFO or Evil Genius, all the base stuff was tile based and sometimes didn't quite make sense. It's just as an option for variety, maybe not used very much.

For those that don't know...
Starhip Dimensions

Handy for lots of things...

Again, back to topic:

Frag-o's right, and I'm sorry if it sounded like I was coming down on your idea. Like you pointed out, it just won't happen often...

Although, in the Renraku Shutdown, something like that would have really helped run it to preserve the "we have no idae what's going on" atmosphere... kind of like that movie "The Cube"

I wasn't trying to make it seem like people were coming down on my idea. It's just I have a few ideas on situations where things could be so random that it would be more fun that no one knows what is going on. The Cube is one example of that definately.

A board game setup might only be good for a SWAT style raid on a residence or something. I think you'd need really small minis, like on the scale of Warhammer Epic, to conduct a battle out in the wilderness or over many city blocks.

That being said, it would be hardcore awesome to run such a game. You could role-play by saying your character is making snarky Full Metal Jacket style comments while rolling your dice.

I should note that WizKids made a product called "Mage Knight Dungeon Tiles" (http://www.wizkidsgames.com/mkdungeons/article.asp?cid=37731&frame=products) which work quite nicely for building out floorplans/sewers. The tiles are large enough to fit most commonly available miniatures (somewhere slightly larger than an in and a half across), and fit together on a one-to-one basis for quite good customizability.

It might not be perfect, but if you have a copy of the game Zombies!!! (from Twilight Creations), it has city tiles.

Not great by any means, but they might help you hash out your ideas.

OMG, I repeated something???!!!!1111oneoneone

Meh, I just take it as a compliment. Obviously, you esteem my opinion so highly that you rush to second my suggestion and thereby further validate my answer.

Either that or you are like me and always forget to check the earlier posts...

Latter. Missed it in the scan.