annadobritt
First Post
Making your own symbols is fun too. 
Mapping Programs
MeepoTheMighty
First Post
annadobritt said:Be advised that CC2Pro is still a bit buggy. Fixes are being worked on.
For making maps, CC2 is the best program out there, despite the price.
But it does make me wonder, if people are willing to pay so much for a computer game that can be played a few times, compared to the use they would get out of CC2, well...
I wager I get more use out of most computer games than I would out of a mapping program...not all of us do cartography for a living, after all.
Calling Darraketh...
Darraketh,
Very impressed with your maps from the other thread. I would love a copy of your symbols. My e-mail is pdyer21@comcast.net.
Thanks in advance,
~ Old One
Darraketh said:
Darraketh,
Very impressed with your maps from the other thread. I would love a copy of your symbols. My e-mail is pdyer21@comcast.net.
Thanks in advance,
~ Old One
MJEggertson
First Post
(deleted)
I was going to ask you for those icons, but it seems my hosting company is havning dns issues at the moment. Plus, I think I may have already gotten that set from you...
I was going to ask you for those icons, but it seems my hosting company is havning dns issues at the moment. Plus, I think I may have already gotten that set from you...
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Ok .. I have played with demos for CC2 and Fractal Mapper as well. From the examples I have seen the Fractal Mapper maps look far superior. But the demo for this has hardly any of the tiles in it so I can't really see the functionality of it. Has anyone tried both? What were your reactions to it? Also .. I would love to see some well made CC2 maps. The Fractal Mapper map posted by MJEggertson was one of the best made maps I have ever seen. Can CC2 beat this?
Glyfair
Explorer
One of the things I like best about CC2 is that if you have the Forgotten Realms Atlas, you can take a similiar map and modify it to what you are looking for. After all, CC2 is the basic engine it uses.
Need an inn and don't have the time or inclination to do one. Search for one in the the Atlas. Figure out what changes you need to make. Modify it. Viola! An excellent looking map that can be printed out to any scale. You want a battle mat, you can print it out at a scale of 5'=1" (if your printer can handle it). Just want a map to show the players? Print it out on one page.
Another thing I like is the ability to have a GM only layer (and various other layers). I can have my own map of my campaign world with all the secrets layed bare. I can then click off that layer and print out a copy for my players. I can have a layer with my political borders, one with the Dwarven Mines, one with the ley lines, etc. etc. One map that can be used as any number of special maps depending on which layers are on & off.
Glyfair of Glamis
Need an inn and don't have the time or inclination to do one. Search for one in the the Atlas. Figure out what changes you need to make. Modify it. Viola! An excellent looking map that can be printed out to any scale. You want a battle mat, you can print it out at a scale of 5'=1" (if your printer can handle it). Just want a map to show the players? Print it out on one page.
Another thing I like is the ability to have a GM only layer (and various other layers). I can have my own map of my campaign world with all the secrets layed bare. I can then click off that layer and print out a copy for my players. I can have a layer with my political borders, one with the Dwarven Mines, one with the ley lines, etc. etc. One map that can be used as any number of special maps depending on which layers are on & off.
Glyfair of Glamis
MJEggertson
First Post
Layering is perhaps the best feature of any of the mapping programs. Allows things like dm secrets, hints, or even stuff like this:
campaign.rpgprofiler.net/pics/vohr1.jpg
campaign.rpgprofiler.net/pics/vohr2.jpg
Both done in FM. The maps I make use exclusively bitmap objects, because I think they look better. But mapping software is really designed to use vectored objects, that way they scale nicely when you zoom. When you use bitmaps, you're pretty much limited to 100% zoom, maybe 50% zoom...everything else is ugly.
I wish FM had more of a community. It would be great to download a bunch of vectored icons and such, I just don't have the ability to make them. From what I hear, CC2 has a great community, which would make a huge difference.
That said, there is nothing wrong with FM. It works great, and I love it. They do have a commnity accessible from a tool you get with the program, and some of the members have made alot of stuff. I just wish there were more things like icons available for download.
-mj
campaign.rpgprofiler.net/pics/vohr1.jpg
campaign.rpgprofiler.net/pics/vohr2.jpg
Both done in FM. The maps I make use exclusively bitmap objects, because I think they look better. But mapping software is really designed to use vectored objects, that way they scale nicely when you zoom. When you use bitmaps, you're pretty much limited to 100% zoom, maybe 50% zoom...everything else is ugly.
I wish FM had more of a community. It would be great to download a bunch of vectored icons and such, I just don't have the ability to make them. From what I hear, CC2 has a great community, which would make a huge difference.
That said, there is nothing wrong with FM. It works great, and I love it. They do have a commnity accessible from a tool you get with the program, and some of the members have made alot of stuff. I just wish there were more things like icons available for download.
-mj
ladyofdragons
First Post
themeecer said:
go into the map libraries on profantasy.com http://www.profantasy.com/library/default.asp?Product=CC2&PP=9&Eg=Y&Start=28&Image=27 there are many map images there to look at.
Thanks for the info
Thanks for the link .. I have seen all of those examples on the profantasy site. They are nice .. but still aren't what I am looking for. I really liked this pic from the fractal mapper http://www.nbos.com/products/mapper/samples-nazrain.jpg
I have seen that CC2 gives me many many more options than FM. It seems that FM does a lot of my work automatically with its fractal renderer, which looks wonderful, but I have less control over the look. Also a lot of the controls are much easier in FM. I haven't seen a default curser for CC2 that will allow me to click on an object and change it's attributes ... like color or size.
Maybe the biggest discrepancy between the two is the look of the FM symbols. I really like the look of their trees and mountains more than those in CC2. Do I have the option to take a tree I would like to use in my maps and use it the same way I would use the default trees? Or do I have to enter it via the "insert picture" function every time?
Thanks again for all your help.
Edit: MJEggertson I can't get your map to show up anymore.
Thanks for the link .. I have seen all of those examples on the profantasy site. They are nice .. but still aren't what I am looking for. I really liked this pic from the fractal mapper http://www.nbos.com/products/mapper/samples-nazrain.jpg
I have seen that CC2 gives me many many more options than FM. It seems that FM does a lot of my work automatically with its fractal renderer, which looks wonderful, but I have less control over the look. Also a lot of the controls are much easier in FM. I haven't seen a default curser for CC2 that will allow me to click on an object and change it's attributes ... like color or size.
Maybe the biggest discrepancy between the two is the look of the FM symbols. I really like the look of their trees and mountains more than those in CC2. Do I have the option to take a tree I would like to use in my maps and use it the same way I would use the default trees? Or do I have to enter it via the "insert picture" function every time?
Thanks again for all your help.
Edit: MJEggertson I can't get your map to show up anymore.
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