# What's a good fantasy mapping program?



## Alzrius (Feb 7, 2012)

I'm beginning to grow tired of using my erasable 26 x 30 battlemat in my weekly game. Don't get me wrong, it's nice and its gets the job done, but I think I'm ready for the maps that I lay out for my part to start looking (at least somewhat) like the maps in the adventures I buy, rather than squiggly lines on a grid.

Hence, it seems like the time to look into buying a good fantasy mapping program. Unfortunately, I have absolutely no idea what products are out there, let alone what has the resources I'm looking for. Thus I'm turning to my EN World brethren to advise me on what's a good program for making maps on my computer.

In general, I'm looking for the following things:

*Intuitive Interface* - I really can't stress this one enough. How easy the program is to use is very important. If it's easy to manage, easy to make it do what I want it to do, then I'll probably be using it a lot. If operating it is difficult to learn and a chore to operate, then it'll probably end up being a wasted purchase. I don't want to have to code or graphically design my own icons, or enter complicated calculations to change the map area.

*Details* - While I know that no program can necessarily have all of the mapping details that everyone would want, more is always better. Does it have icons for doors, windows, torches, tables, treasure chests, and more? Will it show mountains, forests, roads, rivers, etc.? Are there (simple) ways to add more, whether by making them or buying add-ons?

*Exporting* - My main goal with this is that I can print off the maps I make (to US letter-sized paper, 8.5 x 11 inches). However, other kinds of exporting would be a nice bonus. Can I turn the map into a JPG or PDF? Or is it something that will live in a proprietary file format forever?

*Squares and Hexes* - The majority of the mapping I'm looking for is dungeon-mapping (scaled to print at square inch grids), which is done on a grid. However, hex mapping would also be nice for outdoor areas. As a bonus, it'd be nice to be able to remove the grid/hex lines if I want (and, as a bonus, to not have the mapping artificially restriced by grids and hexes - e.g. to have a lake mapped out so that it didn't have to conform to hex shapes).

Is this a pipe-dream, or does such a mapping program actually exist?


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## Madeiner (Feb 7, 2012)

Alzrius said:


> *Exporting* - My main goal with this is that I can print off the maps I make (to US letter-sized paper, 8.5 x 11 inches). However, other kinds of exporting would be a nice bonus. Can I turn the map into a JPG or PDF? Or is it something that will live in a proprietary file format forever?




Of course you can, with any piece of software. Print screen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## Alzrius (Feb 7, 2012)

Madeiner said:


> Of course you can, with any piece of software. Print screen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia




True, but I did mention after that (in reference to grids and hexes) printing at a square-inch grid scale...something that's possible, but fairly imprecise, with just sizing up a screen-grab.


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## Lwaxy (Feb 7, 2012)

No, such a program does not really exist for real quality maps. Either you have to learn a lot of graphics stuff or you need to learn to work with non-intuitive programs - or both. 

I use CC3, but it is not intuitive and frustrates me a lot. I can do cool things on it, yes, it has grid options, symbols (which you can also create yourself) and easily creates jpgs out of the maps. It definitely can't do other things, like zoom easily (big big issue for me and some other users). 

If you need/want a lot of cool maps, make yourself a library. There are so many maps out there - I have collected so many I really need to do very little mapping on my own.

A good place to start is the Cartographer's Guild. Most map creators there will allow you to use the maps for private use offline, some even give permission to use them online if you don't forget to credit them and tell them where you play. There are also people to help you with specific maps you may need.


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## kitsune9 (Feb 7, 2012)

I use two mapping programs myself. Dundjinni and Campaign Cartographer. Dundjinni is strictly built around the 1 inch square = 5". Unfortunately, Dundjinni is no longer available for sale though the website is still up and serves as an excellent forum to get maps and tiles for other mapping programs. 

Campaign Cartographer is the other program, but you should get Dungeon Designer to go along with it. CC has a print function in which you can set the map at 5' = 1 inch. CC does have a bit of a learning curve; however, that's dealt with some excellent tutorials by Joseph Sweeney. Google his name on Youtube after you purchase this product and you'll be up to speed on creating some cool-looking maps.

Both of these programs supporting exporting to jpg though CC loses a lot of fine detail every time I do it. Dundjinni comes out perfect. Both of these programs allow you to switch your grids at various levels, thickness, color. CC has a lot more options on grids though and you can add map effects to them.

There are other mapping programs--Fractal Mapper (not familiar with it), Autorealm (a free mapper, but never got around to playing with it), and MapTools (not familiar with it). 

Using a mapping program though takes some time, particularly if you want to make some decent maps and if you want to create the awesome maps that you see in websites like the Cartographer's Guild, you'll need to learn Photoshop or GIMP (the free photoshop clone) and learn all about layering. However, it doesn't involve programming so that's a plus I guess.


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## gamerprinter (Feb 7, 2012)

Lwaxy provides the link to your best source for maps, map objects, information of mapping software, tutorials, etc, and that is the *Cartographers' Guild*.

Regarding your points:

*Intuitive Interface* - what is intuitive for one person may not be intuitive to another, it's really a personal thing as to what is specifically intuitive or not. Many of the mappers at the CG mentioned above use Photoshop or GIMP for most of their mapping - and to me, neither are very intuitive, nor even user friendly. But that doesn't stop most cartographers from using those programs to create most fantasy maps. Xara Xtreme Pro 4 (which the current version of this software is Xara Designer 6), but I find to be very intuitive, except it is not a mapping program per se, rather a vector drawing application with powerful raster image capability. I think it's more intuitive than PS or GIMP, and more intuitive than CC3 or Dunjini as well. (Xara is my graphics application of choice).

*Details* - now your specifically talking about map objects. Three things regarding this.

*One*: having a set of map objects built into software specifically applies to mapping software like Campaign Cartographer (CC3), which is a kind of CAD program (and in my opinion, the furthest software from being intuitive and easy to use.)

*Two*: map objects can be found in all kinds of places - Cartographers Guild, Dunjini forum, MapTool forum, and host of other mapping related sites. Many are free, some you have to pay for. 

*Three*: most graphic applications can import images such as map objects, and transparent PNG files are probably best for this. As mentioned in my first paragraph, most fantasy cartographers use Photoshop or GIMP (or in my case Xara) to create our maps. But these are NOT mapping applications, rather full blown graphics applications that can be used for any kind of graphic creation. Most pros use this kind of software and import varying map objects needed for their maps. Me, I create all my map objects from scratch using Xara, then import what I need to the map file I am working on. Also Photoshop uses custom brushes, many map objects can be converted to brushes, and placed on maps that way.

*Exporting*: virtually all mapping applications and graphics applications used to create maps can export to a normal graphics format like: BMP, PDF, PSD, JPG, TIF. CC3 is limited to exporting in BMP format which can be problematic, but really all such software can export to formats you can use forever.

*Squares and Hexes*: now your back to talking specifically mapping applications like Campaign Cartographer or Fractal Mapper, and many others. You can always choose hex or square grid to place onto your maps. For the rest of us that use standard graphics applications to create our maps - there is no built in square or hex grid, rather you create your own grid and place it on the map, on top of everything else, or for mappers like me, I place the grid just above the floor, but below the walls and other objects on the map.

I'm a professional fantasy cartographer, that is, I create maps for many publishers (and for my own publications). In fact, in the upcoming part 6 of Paizo's Jade Regent adventure path, the capital city of Minkai (Pathfinder's Japanland) is based on my design, although their own cartographer redid the map to be consistent with other maps already created. The map I created has over 8500 buildings in it, all drawn by hand. (Which is something I didn't say above, but most of my maps are hand-drawn, scanned and imported to Xara, then finished: colors, bevels, drop shadows, feathering, map object placement, grid, labels using software.) So I know what I'm talking about...

Here's a link to maps I've created using Xara Xtreme Pro 4 and are posted in a thread in the Media Lounge at ENWorld - *Gamerprinter's Map Emporeum*... so you can see what I create.


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## OnlineDM (Feb 8, 2012)

I run my games online and in-person using MapTool. Online is obvious; in-person, I use a projector to put the map on the table. I'm a big evangelist for this approach, but I know you want to go with printing.

I do recommend MapTool for an easy-to-use map-drawing program, assuming we're talking about tactical battle maps and not world maps. My MapTool Education Central can help here - especially the part about getting the images you need for maps. This will give you all of the background textures and objects you're asking about.

I like MapTool because of the price (free!) and the ease of use. The grid is fantastically helpful, and freely resizeable. You can have objects snap to grid or not. You can freely resize and rotate objects as you wish. There's just tons of awesomeness without being hard to use.

As for printing these maps, what I do is described here. I'm resizing my maps to a one square = 50 pixels scale; you're going for one square = one inch. Same thing in the end, just do the math a little differently (go with inches instead of pixels in Paint.NET). Once you have the image sized the way you want it, use PosteRazor to create a PDF that's perfect for printing and assembling from normal letter-sized paper.

Have fun!


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## innerdude (Feb 8, 2012)

Alzrius--

As someone who was basically in your exact same shoes around 2 years ago, let me tell you my experience. 

I took a long, hard look at all of the available map programs I knew of at the time--Campaign Cartographer, Dundjinni, and Fractal Mapper. 

Being fairly computer savvy, I ultimately went with Campaign Cartographer, because it seemed to be the most powerful. 

And I went at it with a vengeance. I produced a series of maps for a campaign I was working on at the time, but man it was slow going. And no matter what I did, it just never looked as sharp or professional as the stuff I saw over on Cartographer's Guild. 

Then I found out that the real "pros" pretty much eschew stuff like CC3 and Fractal Mapper. They do everything by hand, or use one of the professional / semi-professional graphics programs (Photoshop, Illustrator, GIMP, Xara, or in most cases a combination of several). 

Ultimately I became very dissatisfied with my purchase of CC3, not because I didn't figure out how to use it, but because the learning curve and time investment was too steep to produce stuff I didn't really end up liking much anyway.

So, if you're wanting to produce high-end, pro-quality work, don't waste your money on any mapping software. Go download the GIMP for free (it's open source), and start going through the numerous tutorials on Cartographer's Guild. If budget is a concern, stick to the open source stuff. The GIMP is a must have, but you might also want Inkscape to do some vector drawing as well to import into the GIMP later. 

If you have a little bit of budget ($50-$100), I'd recommend Xara as someone already mentioned. It's a slick little program, but there's not nearly as many tutorials for it as the GIMP for fantasy mapping. 

NOW--if you don't care about producing super high-end, high quality stuff, but just want something to throw some maps together that look decent, and you don't want them hand drawn, frankly I'd go with Fractal Mapper. It's much, much more intuitive than CC3, and since you know going into it that the results aren't going to be super high-caliber, the speed more than makes up for the few bells and whistles that CC3 might have over it. 

Of course, if budget is no object, just go buy the Adobe Creative Suite CS5.  

However, one thing I will say in favor of buying a mapping software first---CC3 taught me a lot of the basic "tricks" behind how various effects happen when doing mapping, stuff like transparency, layers, blending, inner/outer glow edges, beveling, etc. I was much, much better prepared to start doing my mapping in Photoshop and Illustrator after having used CC3.

One minor edit: I also ended up getting the CC3 and City Designer expansion, which came with some nice city building artwork pre-built that I could use in my other programs. I don't know if that justified the price of paying for both of them, but it certainly lessened the sting a little bit, since I can use all of their hi-resolution artwork in my other drawings, even if I'm not using the program.

2nd minor edit: Also, regardless of which path you choose, A. you're going to lose a lot of hours to making maps, and B. you won't care in the least, because it's PRETTY STINKIN' FUN.


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## Matrix Sorcica (Feb 8, 2012)

This is a little flash based tool that's very helpful.


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## Hand of Evil (Feb 8, 2012)

The problem is that mapping programs are only going to put out what you put into them.  I say download the demos and try to find the best for your needs.  I use both CC2 and NBOS Fractal Mapper both are very good programs. 

There are also a number of maps here in the Media-lounge that you may want to look at.  

http://www.enworld.org/forum/media-...k-stuff/300141-map-monday-2011-completed.html


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## Alzrius (Feb 8, 2012)

I want to thank everyone who's replied so far; you've given me some great advice - and great links! - to chew on. As it stands now, I'm re-evaluating what I'm willing to put into map-making versus what I'll get out of it, and trying to re-assess what the best course of action is from there.

One further question I had, though, was about GIMP and Xara. I've never heard of these before, and know virtually nothing about them. From what I'm hearing, they sound like the best materials for making the highest-quality maps...but from what I'm reading, it sounds like these rely on drawings that you make yourself and then scan into the program (or perhaps it uses a tablet)?

Is that the case? I mean, are these programs where you actually hand-draw the map first and then use these programs to manipulate an upload of the image?

I ask because hand-drawing is a deal-breaker for me. I have no artistic ability where drawing (or any other kind of visual-imagery creation) is concerned. None. Zero. It's not hyperbole for me to say that I have to struggle to draw stick figures on a good day; it's a literal statement (not to get too deep into my issues with drawing, but the general consensus from people who know me is that I never learned how to hold a pencil right - that is, what feels comfortable in my grasp is not conducive to actual use; hence why my handwriting is so bad).

With that in mind, are GIMP and/or Xara (or any other program mentioned here) ruled right out for me?


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## possum (Feb 8, 2012)

Well, with GIMP there was a set on these boards made a couple of years ago that had a pretty good hex template as well as common hexes to use as your "paint brush".  That method's not that bad and you can make some pretty decent looking hex maps with it.  I sadly do not have the link on me, however.


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## Quickleaf (Feb 8, 2012)

[MENTION=8461]Alzrius[/MENTION]
GIMP, Xara, and Photoshop don't create images for you (e.g. from a template), they rely on user created or imported images. Which are more easily done on a tablet or via scan, but can be done entirely within the program with a bit of work.

Thing is, the only reason to get into map-making is because you enjoy it, not because your past maps werent working for you. You're looking at a big time commitment to learn the software, create your designs, assemble a template/resource library, and actually create the map. So unless you've got map-maker fever (which it doesn't sound like you do), I'd suggest an alternative.

Something like www.pymapper.com (a tile based program) might meet your needs. Or WotC's online dungeon tile mapper.

SkeletonKey Games and several other PDF publishers sell nice maps online - while they can be hit or miss, you may find just what you're looking for. W you print to letter format you've got to cut the edges off every single page and possibly stick them altogether somehow. Not hard, but something to factor in.

And then there's buying battlemaps from PAIZO or out of print WotC products.

I work in architectural design and did the same thing as [MENTION=85870]innerdude[/MENTION] , picking up CC3 figuring since it was CAD based I'd learn it quickly. Three years later and I barely touch it, using GIMP or Photoshop for map-making.


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## gamerprinter (Feb 8, 2012)

Alzrius said:


> One further question I had, though, was about GIMP and Xara. I've never heard of these before, and know virtually nothing about them. From what I'm hearing, they sound like the best materials for making the highest-quality maps...but from what I'm reading, it sounds like these rely on drawings that you make yourself and then scan into the program (or perhaps it uses a tablet)?




No most people create the maps from scratch within the program itself. There is no need to draw/create something then scan and import, that is just my preferred workflow. _Most people_ create maps exclusively in the program they are using and import nothing but map objects.

Here's a Xara created map without importing anything other than photo textures of ground material used as area fills.


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## WizarDru (Feb 8, 2012)

My experience has been that there is no one single program that will meet the criteria you have, but some will do some tasks well.  There are issues, depending on what you want to do.  First off, the recommendation of Cartographer's Guild is Spot On.  There are a lot of really nice maps there, though you'll find far more geography maps than dungeon layouts.   If you're looking for tactical maps, you won't find as many as you might like, but you will find plenty of city maps and world maps.

Like you, I don't possess a lot of artistic talent...and more importantly I have little desire to spend hours on maps for the game.  I don't need them to be on the level of a published module, necessarily....but I want something nicer than just some pre-rendered tiles and a hand-drawn map.

I tried Dundjinni back in the day and it had a decent interface but lacked so many features that it wasn't really useful to me.  I haven't tried some of the others.  I settled on Campaign Cartographer 3.  The extensions of Dungeon Designer and City Designer have been very useful for me.  As kitsune9 mentions, the Joe Sweeney youtube videos are a fantastic help in making the program usable, something the developer knows as they've hired him for some content generation.  CC3 is powerful and flexible, but NOT intuitive.  You have to learn how to use a CAD program and there's no way around that.

However, the best value for CC3 is to subscribe to the Annual (and buy the older ones).  It releases new tools and styles, one a month...and some of them are super useful.  Many of them recreate styles of well-known game designer mappers or famous cartographers (such as John Speed) and sometimes they provide just cool stuff, like the pirate ship tutorial, a premade inn dungeon map and tools for buliding your own battlemaps for 4E.

You can see some of the maps I've made for my campaign in this thread.  Making these maps usually took between 30 minutes to 2 hours, depending on details.

One nice feature of using a layered CAD program is the ability to customize versions of your maps.  I often make a 'player version' of some maps and then a 'DM version', with some stuff on a layer that I hide before exporting it and giving it to the PCs.


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## InkwellIdeas (Feb 8, 2012)

Allow me to schill for my Hexographer and Dungeonographer programs.  I believe they have different audiences than a dedicated drawing program (like GIMP or Photoshop) or some of the higher-end (for lack of a better term) dedicated mapping programs like Campaign Cartogragpher.  And of course, there is the camp that prefers hand drawn.

Anyway both Hexographer and Dungeonographer have free versions that just hold back a few "power user" features. Both sit on top of Java, so it runs on most computers but occasionally there is a hiccup. 

Hexographer is for outdoor areas and is best for a continent or state level area, but can do larger and smaller areas as well.  You can quickly get a map like the 80's gazetteer style maps or like the 1st Ed. World of Greyhawk map. (For the latter google greyhawk and hexographer in one search for a tutorial.  Here's the 24-page pdf manual.

Dungeonographer is for dungeons/caverns and building interiors.  You can switch the grid between squares and hexes or turn it off.  You can also switch the art between a line art and a battlemat art set style.  (Using a left sidebar radio button.)  I've just added a few features that make it a very simple virtual table top.  And this is a 5 minute tutorial that goes over the basics as it details the new features.  And this is the 20-page pdf manual.



Alzrius said:


> *Intuitive Interface* - I really can't stress this one enough. How easy the program is to use is very important.




My 5 year old (turns 6 tomorrow, but anyway) she can use it... and she taught it to my 3 year old.  (The 3 year old's maps are mostly volcanoes, but she does use it.)  



Alzrius said:


> *Details* - While I know that no program can necessarily have all of the mapping details that everyone would want, more is always better. Does it have icons for doors, windows, torches, tables, treasure chests, and more? Will it show mountains, forests, roads, rivers, etc.? Are there (simple) ways to add more, whether by making them or buying add-ons?




Each comes with about 200 graphics.  Hexographer has multiple styles of forests, mountains, cities, etc.  Dungeonographer has a line art set of icons and a battlemat set.  In the battlemat sets you have several chair options, tables, chairs, doors, a lit/unlit torch, etc.

You can import any PNG image and make it into a map item just like the others.  I think it can accept JPG and GIF as well, but I don't remember for sure.  You can even add an entire folder structure of icons in one step. (Note: the free version does cap you at 5 or 10 custom map items.)



Alzrius said:


> *Exporting* - My main goal with this is that I can print off the maps I make (to US letter-sized paper, 8.5 x 11 inches). However, other kinds of exporting would be a nice bonus. Can I turn the map into a JPG or PDF? Or is it something that will live in a proprietary file format forever?




You save to a native format, but can always also export as a PNG image.  You can print and the print should span multiple pages automatically.  (You can essentially say to print at 1"/square or any fraction.)  I have had reports of that not working properly that I'm fairly certain are due to Java's integration with certain print drivers.  To get around this, one can print to a pdf and then print or export the map to an image and use the image viewer to print.



Alzrius said:


> *Squares and Hexes* - The majority of the mapping I'm looking for is dungeon-mapping (scaled to print at square inch grids), which is done on a grid. However, hex mapping would also be nice for outdoor areas. As a bonus, it'd be nice to be able to remove the grid/hex lines if I want (and, as a bonus, to not have the mapping artificially restriced by grids and hexes - e.g. to have a lake mapped out so that it didn't have to conform to hex shapes).




As mentioned above Dungeonographer will do a square or hex grid or no grid.  Hexographer does not have a square grid option, but you can turn the hex grid off.

Thanks for the chance to describe all of this!


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## adamc (Mar 22, 2014)

Dungeonographer is java-based, unfortunately. There have been too many Java security issues in web browsers...


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## DrunkonDuty (Mar 26, 2014)

I've also purchased and used CC3. And I've got say I wasn't happy with the product. It's got a steep learning curve and it just doesn't produce a final product that's professional quality in terms of resolution etc. Frankly if you're going to spend the sort of money CC3 costs just get Adobe. I also find Adobe to have a much more intuitive interface.


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## trappedslider (Mar 26, 2014)

I may have missed it, but which of the mentioned programs is good t mapping a city? I'd like to finally make a map of crystalshore. My only issue is the program needs to be free due to my non existent budget.


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## WizarDru (Apr 3, 2014)

DrunkonDuty said:


> I've also purchased and used CC3. And I've got say I wasn't happy with the product. It's got a steep learning curve and it just doesn't produce a final product that's professional quality in terms of resolution etc. Frankly if you're going to spend the sort of money CC3 costs just get Adobe. I also find Adobe to have a much more intuitive interface.




There's no question CC3 has a steep learning curve, but there are some very good tutorials available to get you going. Their annuals also come with lots of PDFs which walk you through reproducing many of the maps using their new styles.  I have to disagree that you can't produce something in terms on professional quality: CC3 is and has been used in professional products for 15 years.  From interactive atlases, novels, board games and RPG products.  Most professionals (and many amateurs) don't just use CC3, of course...many start there and then use Adobe or GIMP to make further changes.  But it's demonstrably wrong that it cannot produce a product of professional quality...it has for years.  It's just often very difficult to pull that kind of material out of it without bypassing that learning curve.



			
				trappedslider said:
			
		

> My only issue is the program needs to be free due to my non existent budget.



That's a pretty big issue.   I would recommend getting GIMP and then scanning the internet for appropriate clipart.  And visiting the Cartographer's Guild.


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## DM Howard (Apr 3, 2014)

Here's another vote against CC3 and it's add-ons.  It just simply doesn't do a good enough job (for me) compared to the work I have to put into it.  I've settled on the Hex mapping programs mentioned above as it leaves a little to the imagination, looks nice, and is pretty easy to learn.

Edit:  That being said, I do enjoy CC3 for maps that I will get a large amount of use out of, but for maps that I'll probably only ever use once, the work:time ratio seems to steep.  It may be that I'm simply not super proficient at it yet I'm willing to admit.

Edit #2:  I've recently been giving GIMP a go and I'm pleasantly surprised that I'm getting a very good look out of it compared to the effort I'm putting into it.  No, it's not a mapping program, but I've found it allows a better amount of customization for what I need.  The learning curve is steep, like other programs, but makes more sense to me at least.


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## DrunkonDuty (Apr 3, 2014)

I've put a lot of time into CC3 over the last couple of years. Now I can get it to most of what I want without to much effing about. But it took some time to get there, even with the tutorials. What isn't really discussed in the tutes is that you have to do things the way the program wants them done. It will auto select sheets when you choose a symbol set. Lakes were a total PITA. What isn't mentioned (until something like the 11th tutorial) is that when you look at the sheets list the sheets are in reverse order of what is seen on the map (lower in the list, higher on the map picture.) I kept wondering where my lakes vanished to. And judging by the queries on the CC forums I was far from the only one. 

Now, as I said, I have put a lot of effort into it and eventually I have gotten used to it. I have paid the cash and am going to stick with it. But unless you are used to AutoCAD drawing already or have plenty of time to learn or enjoy the challenge of learning new software, I would not recommend CC to someone who just wants to get on with the map making.

But I'm still not happy with the final resolution of the maps that get exported (as JPEGs, et.al.) No matter what I try the resolution is poor. WizardDru if you have any tips for improving thatI'd love to hear them.


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## gamerprinter (Apr 4, 2014)

DrunkonDuty said:


> But I'm still not happy with the final resolution of the maps that get exported (as JPEGs, et.al.) No matter what I try the resolution is poor. WizardDru if you have any tips for improving thatI'd love to hear them.




And it takes forever to export a file, especially a large map - and almost impossible to export at anything higher than 72 ppi.


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## DrunkonDuty (Apr 4, 2014)

> And it takes forever to export a file, especially a large map - and almost impossible to export at anything higher than 72 ppi.





Yeah, the 72ppi is a problem. There was a suggested work around (exporting "views" IIRC.) I tried it but didn't get any better resolution.


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## gamerprinter (Apr 4, 2014)

DrunkonDuty said:


> Yeah, the 72ppi is a problem. There was a suggested work around (exporting "views" IIRC.) I tried it but didn't get any better resolution.





All the inefficiencies of applications like Campaign Cartographer is the reason I prefer working with a vector drawing/desk top publishing program to do my mapping instead of any mapping specific application. As stated, I use *Xara Photo & Graphic Designer 9* ($89) which allows you to create greeting cards, flyers, brochures, signs, posters (any standard graphics uses), but is also a superior mapping application (although only me, and those I introduce the software ever actually use it for mappping).

XP&GD9 allows me to create shapes, apply bevels, shadows, transparency, edge feathering, infinite layers, infinite undo (even files that are saved, you can reopen and undo anything you did before saving the file even from the first step applied.) Because it is vector, I generally use inches to define a map size and never consider the pixel resolution until I finish the map, and am ready to export it to whatever format best fits my needs. Because it is a vector program, anything created can be reduced or enlarged, even the entire map, and can subsequently export to any resolution from 1 ppi to 300 ppi, even export multiple resolutions from the same original file - so I can use it for Roll20 or print in high resolution. Any tool used, the applied result is almost instant (Xara is one of those programs that most efficiently minimizes memory usage - it is not a memory hog.) Exporting a large map design to large format and high resolution is very fast, almost no waiting at all.

You can view the maps posted in my *Gamerprinter's Map Emporeum* thread (Miscellaneous Geek Talk and Media Lounge forum) - all of them were created in one edition of Xara or another (I've upgraded my software since December). Most of these maps one might not consider to be a vector created map, but they all are.

Really, because it is so easy to learn and use, I find no other program better at creating maps than Xara, and I'm including all mapping applications (CC3, Dundjini), image editors (Photoshop, GIMP), vector drawing apps (Illustrator and Inkscape) in that comparison - I've used all those applications.

And scheduled for August 2014 release are 4 map tutorials guides I am in the process of writing following a successful Kickstarter to fund their creation. Although I offer primer instructions for using the guide with Photoshop, GIMP, Inkscape, Illustator and Xara Photo & Graphic Designer 9 - all the included maps, the tutorials and the page layout for all the guide books were done in Xara. You can view the KS to learn more about this project *here*, or visit my *G+ community* dedicated to the same project.

Also consider that I am a professional RPG cartographer (I even created the original hand-drawn map of the City of Kasai for the Jade Regent AP by Paizo) and created 189 of the map objects found in the ProFantasy Modern Symbol Set accessory for CC3 and related software.


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## DrunkonDuty (Apr 6, 2014)

[MENTION=50895]gamerprinter[/MENTION]

You've convinced me to give Xara a try. 

Now I'm not a graphic designer but I am a video editor and I do do some work with titles and such forth. And as far as I can see vector graphics is the only way to go.* So I was surprised when I got CC3 and discovered it isn't vector graphic.



*I do vaguely recall being taught 20 years ago that there are reasons to use non-vector graphics, I just can't remember them.


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## gamerprinter (Apr 6, 2014)

[MENTION=54364]DrunkonDuty[/MENTION] - I hope you like it. Check out the basics tutorial videos posted on the Xara site, check out the rough draft tutorials on my G+ community, ask any questions there if you have them.

If you want to use some cool free photo-realistic textures, get a free account to download 15 MB of image files every week at *Cgtextures.com*



trappedslider said:


> I may have missed it, but which of the mentioned programs is good t mapping a city? I'd like to finally make a map of crystalshore. My only issue is the program needs to be free due to my non existent budget.




While I don't use this to create my city maps, per se, I do use it to get ideas on street plan layouts. Here is a freeware application called the *Roleplaying Game City Map Generator*.

It has setups for African village, viking village, old west town, European style city, US style city, thorpe to city. You can define parameters for city walls, wall thickness, towers, gates, number of bulidings (population size), building size variance, distance from streets, include rivers/waterways, set size and number of parks, etc.

Once you set your parameters, hit "Go" and it generates a random city plan. If you don't like the result, hit "Go" again and again until you get something you like. Its pretty cool for a free app, though its for Windows only.


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## trappedslider (Apr 6, 2014)

gamerprinter said:


> While I don't use this to create my city maps, per se, I do use it to get ideas on street plan layouts. Here is a freeware application called the *Roleplaying Game City Map Generator*.
> 
> It has setups for African village, viking village, old west town, European style city, US style city, thorpe to city. You can define parameters for city walls, wall thickness, towers, gates, number of bulidings (population size), building size variance, distance from streets, include rivers/waterways, set size and number of parks, etc.
> 
> Once you set your parameters, hit "Go" and it generates a random city plan. If you don't like the result, hit "Go" again and again until you get something you like. Its pretty cool for a free app, though its for Windows only.




thanks  i'll give it a try


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## gamerprinter (Apr 6, 2014)

trappedslider said:


> thanks  i'll give it a try




As stated, I only use it for ideas, but also as stated I use Xara, a vector app to create my maps, including city maps. Here's a recent city map and castle I created with Xara. Note, I used photo realistic textures for the 'color'. Also, note, I create all my map objects - buildings, trees and such with Xara as well.


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## SkidAce (Apr 7, 2014)

DrunkonDuty said:


> [MENTION=50895]gamerprinter[/MENTION]
> 
> You've convinced me to give Xara a try.
> 
> ...




CC3 is vector graphic based.  It's developed from a CAD program.  Bitmap fills and non vector icon symbols have been added, but its definitely vector based.


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## DrunkonDuty (Apr 7, 2014)

OK, I have learned a thing. I'd assumed the bitmap icons meant that the whole thing was bitmap. 
Good to know, thanks.


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## gamerprinter (Apr 7, 2014)

Drawing a contained shape in any application is pretty much a vector operation. Even creating masks in Photoshop is a vector operation. So most graphics applications, including CAD has some vector operations built into the software. On the other hand, in socalled vector only applications like Illustrator, CorelDraw, Inkscape, and Xara, image fills are bitmap, and though map objects can be vector only, often they are vector shapes with bitmap fills, or can be completely bitmap PNG files with transparent Alpha channel. So basically all higher end graphics packages include elements of both vector and bitmap in their operations. I'd argue that while CAD programs are essentially vector based, they are a completely different animal to a typical vector program. I own both CC3 and AutoCAD, and as a professional graphic designer, I only use AutoCAD for contractor/engineer files which they are designed to work with. When I create a map, I never use CAD - I'd rather use something easier to work with and more intuitive.


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## DrunkonDuty (Apr 8, 2014)

> Must spread rep before giving to gamerprinter again.




Thanks for that, it's good to know about these things.


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