CC3 Questions

[esmale]

Hi Johnn,

Wow, you pop up everywhere, eh?

My advice is to use the Tome with CC2 for awhile. Climb the software's learning curve and get used to the interface. If you like the results, upgrade to CC3. If not, you've saved the expense and have cash for another cartography package.

The Tome is excellent, but not 100% applicable to CC3. That said, CC3 improves on several CC2 functions. What I read most from new users is that the interface is difficult and that they have a hard time producing quality maps quickly. CCx takes time and practice to learn, so be prepared to expend some effort.

CC3 is easier to use than CC2, but but not as valuable without the annuals. There are a number of user-created tutorials, a lot of CCx support on the web, and the quick-start PDFs are more than enough to give you confidence to experiment.

Fractal Terrains is good, but not fully integrated with CC3. I also find its climate model lacking, and there's no plate tectonics (if you're into that kind of detail). On the plus side, it offer the best selection of map projections, excellent export functions (particularly to CC2), and the ability to customise many parms.

City Designer and Fantasy Symbol set aren't essential for what you're doing, but they'll give you faster and easier options. As others suggested, I'd recommend Dungeon Designer. One thing that CCx doesn't do well "out of the box" (and doesn't cover in the add-ons) is a good local map tool (smaller than sub-continent, larger than city). Maybe that's an upcoming annual...

I've used CCx since the DOS days. While it's never disappointed, it's not the first tool I reach for when I need a map in less than 3 hours. If you're looking for a worthy competitor, I could suggest nbos' Fractal Mapper (www.nbos.com). It doesn't have CCx's level of precision, but offers an easier interface, is highly customisable, and integrates with the Inspiration Pad random generator. There's also a tie-in script with the Random City Generator software, so you can create random settlements of any size in record time.

Let us know what you end up with. Cheers,

[JohnnFour]

Hey Erin!

Thanks for the great advice. I think my main requirement is dungeon/building/location maps, so I'll hold off on the terrains stuff.

Definitely gonna check out the annuals.

I'm warring with CCx vs. Photoshop now. Buying PS gets me some map capability plus website graphics plus synergizes with a bit of my day job. Price is a barrier. I wonder if eBay has people selling older versions of PS because they've upgraded. Just thought of that! I'm off to eBay now!

[Midgardsormr]

An excellent idea. I haven't found a whole lot I wanted to do with Photoshop that I couldn't do with version 7.

If you can get hold of Photoshop CS for cheap enough, though, you can upgrade to CS4 for only $200.

[JohnnFour]

Coolio.

There's actually tons of stuff up on eBay. Buyer beware though, I suppose.

[esmale]

Hey Johnn,

Glad to help. It sounds like you should definitely work with CC2 for awhile, and put your CC3 kitty toward PS.

Aside from price, I'd say it depends on how much time you have to map and how much precision you need. CCx provides a lot of precision, which is essential when you're making templates to reuse, but can get in the way of making maps rapidly. Fractal Mapper is essentially a graphics tool geared toward cartography, which makes it incredibly easy to make maps, but lacks precision.

I cant's speak to PS, but if you need the graphics tool for other things, then you'll get more mileage out of PS than CCx. So, again, since you already have CC2, use that for awhile so you can make an informed decision about upgrading.

Cheers,
-Erin

[JohnnFour]

It sounds like you should definitely work with CC2 for awhile, and put your CC3 kitty toward PS.

Nice. That sounds like the winning combo.