Cartography Skill?

[melkorspawn]

Detailed Map: A detailed map, one with a increased DC, takes 1d4 hours per 5/DC, Thus a DC 40 map would take 8d4 hours to draw.

But probably a good number of years to survey.

I understand the Knowlegde: Nobility and Royalty synergy bonus, but the "or Diplomacy" part of it makes me edgy. Mapmaking has little to do with etiquete and protocol, and much more to do with understanding the binary language of moisture vaporators.

 

[baudbard]

melkorspawn, you make sense, I suppose at a certain level my idea of the skill breaks down badly. I apologize, and thank you for pointing out the accumulation of the base knowledge is part of the mapmaking process. I have no idea how to incorporate it. Ideas???

 

[Storyteller01]

Me, I do prefer Profession (cartographer). It's sort of halfway between Craft & Knowledge. It's more than just the physical object -- it's about communication with other people.

If "bookkeeper" and "scribe" are Professions, then so too should "cartographer".

ditto.

My two bits about use:

When the player states that they are mapping, have them actually draw the map. They can roll Prof (Cartography) X times per (adequate time here) with a set DC. Success means the DM has to correct one mistake the player may have made or fill in some missing piece of info they may have forgotten. The DM must also fix another mistake/reveal missing info for every 5 over the DC the roll succeeded by. The missing info has to be reasonable. You can't force the DM to reveal an undiscovered secret door or undiscovered traps with this skill.

With this plan, the player can spend less time making the maps as the character levels up, and still gain accurate info as the skill increases. It also reduces the DM's work load (no extra maps for those 'just in case' situations).

This is only for the 'quick, map the dungeon' senarios though. Baudbard's DC's are great for extensive survey missions.

 

[nittanytbone]

Knowledge: Geography should cover aboveground situations.
Knowledge: Dungeoneering should cover your natural caverns.
Knowledge: Architecture seems like it would cover constructions.

Craft: Cartography seems like it would be used to actually make a nice map. Something that you could sell or preserve as opposed to a quick reference work designed to be used only by one's self. I'd let Masterwork Maps be made that gave +2 bonuses to avoid hazards or navigate, similar to the synergy bonus from geography. This seems like a good NPC function but I suppose a PC could take it if they wanted to.

Profession: Cartographer seems like it would used to be in the business of mapping. It'd handle the client relationships, running a store, finding outlets for maps, evaluating map trades and deals, etc. It seems mainly like an NPC function.

 

[Li Shenron]

Although the actual making of a map is a practical craft, I think that being a cartographer is much more. Maybe the most likely in-game use will be that of drawing down a small map of the dungeon you're visiting, but I think a real cartographer (able to craft maps at any scale) is a much more complicated job than just drawing...

For me it has to be Profession(Cartographer) all the way.

And I would not put it under Knowledge(Geography) because IMC that doesn't simply cover physical geography, but also political geography, customs, cultures, forms of government, etc... like in real life (unless someone has a very limited opinion from school about what geography is ).

 

[Greylock]

So my questions boil down to this: is there a d20 source somewhere that handles a cartography skill nicely? Or has anyone run into these problems and come up with good solutions on their own? Anyone have suggestions for appropriate DC's?

It could be as simple as this:

Me/wantsdamnedmap

DM/*HOW!!!!!!!!!*

Me/Wantdamnedmapnow *figgers PHBrule*

DM/givesdamnedmap

HTH

 

[Nekode]

I have a skill in my campaign called "Vocation". It's Craft and Profession rolled into one, for those gniggardly little jobs like Underwater Basketweaving or Scribing that aren't quite a craft or a profession.

 

[was]

I disagree. I think there is a very large difference between knowing all the paths around a mountain, and being able to draw those trails in an accurate, mathematical method so that they can be understood by others. I'd go with Craft, but I would allow a synergy bonus from geography.

-I listed it under knowledge: geography simply because it is cartographers who have the greatest picture of the known world. If you use the middle ages as a reference point, accurate maps were a thing of value. Cartograpghers were learned men, often patronized by nobility. Stealing a map back then was a good haul for a thief.
-I wouldn't expect a cartographer to know every mountain path and trail. I think they have a more macro view of the world. Knowing all the backwoods trails would signify a micro view to me and I would put that under knowledge: local.

 

[melkorspawn]

melkorspawn, you make sense, I suppose at a certain level my idea of the skill breaks down badly. I apologize, and thank you for pointing out the accumulation of the base knowledge is part of the mapmaking process. I have no idea how to incorporate it. Ideas???

If we're talking about areas that would take a very long time to measure... a section of a country, or a barony or such. Well, with pre-existing general knowledge... say 6-10 ranks of Know:Geo, I'd say that one could draw out a rough map that gave approximate distaces (perhaps in days of travel on foot) between different geographical features and towns. To pump up the specificity of said large scale map without doing a geographical survey, how about a Gather Information check, or a number of said checks? (Unless, of course, your character is male... we never ask for directions.)

Might as well throw in a bardic knowledge bonus somewhere. It's nice to give alms.

 

[dcollins]

I have a skill in my campaign called "Vocation". It's Craft and Profession rolled into one, for those gniggardly little jobs like Underwater Basketweaving or Scribing that aren't quite a craft or a profession.

Craft has "basketweaving" listed under it in the PHB.
Profession has "scribe" in its description.