Hi everyone, I’m working on my world’s map / tectonic history using the tutorials from Artifexian and Worldbuilding Pasta and keep getting stuck on the same issue – flowlines of subducting oceans.
Whenever I create a subducting ocean plate the flowlines go haywire, and I don’t know how to fix it. I have tried everything I can think of but nothing seems to work or fix it. This problem has been happening since 2024 and has caused me to scrap about 5 GPlates projects for the same world due to giving up. About a year ago I managed to get it to work once but then GPlates crashed and when I reopened it but I didn’t write it down so I have no Idea what I did to make it work. I have gone through reddit and the GPlates Forum SOOOO many times trying to find a solution for this but nothing has worked.
The main annoying thing is that I can move the plates independently but the flowlines just don’t connect. I did this in hope that it would snap into place but it didn’t. I have tripled checked that I am not connected to an anchor plate as well, encase that has been an issue for other people.
Here are my notes on what haven’t worked:
Haywire flowlines
Flowlines go haywire because they are connected to plates what are intermediate (still connected to parent/ not moving on their own) - I think
The following does not work
801 0.0000 90.0000 0.0000 0.0000 800 ! Craton H end
801 1.0000 90.0000 0.0000 0.0000 000 ! Drift Correction
801 2875.0000 90.0000 0.0000 0.0000 000 ! Start moving independently
801 2875.0000 90.0000 0.0000 0.0000 800 ! Stop following H
801 3000.0000 90.0000 0.0000 0.0000 800 ! Microcontinent H801 start (following H)
Keep the primary code (90.0000 0.0000 0.0000)
Or
801 0.0000 90.0000 0.0000 0.0000 800 ! Craton H end
801 1.0000 90.0000 0.0000 0.0000 000 ! Drift Correction
801 2875.0000 90.0000 0.0000 0.0000 000 ! Start moving independently
801 2875.0000 2.74216 2.78944 65.2038 800 ! Stop following H
801 3000.0000 2.74216 2.78944 65.2038 800 ! Microcontinent H801 start (following H)
Where | 2.74216 2.78944 65.203 | is the location in relation to following H ( H is pole) - If you swap the parent code and primary code around the plate jumps - not good
Here are screenshots / recordings of the rotation file and simulation:
Rotation File:
Problem Child:
Simulation Globe view: https://youtu.be/LUu8yTidMH8
Simulation Robinson view: https://youtu.be/w3ztvIjwUXQ
Total Reconstruction Pole (2875):
I am unsure of how to fix it being indeterminate but they move so I’m not too worried unless it’s a big issue.
Total Reconstruction Pole (2850):
- 401 has the same issue with the flowlines, but for simplicity I kept them all connected to 400. I will change that when I move the simulation forward.
Also does this random spike in the Velocity have anything to do with it? I’m not sure if this is just it splitting from the parent plate or something else. (801 does this too but it moves fine as seen above)
I really appreciate any help that people could give and am open to trying anything at this point 
.