This time I tackle the issue of getting your lines to look the same when you export your map as they look inside CC3+. Why can grid lines sometimes almost disappear in the export? Why is the pattern of dashed lines so different?

All these issues relate to how you scale different things in CC3+. Sometimes the default options are fine, but sometimes they are not what you need for the current map. The intention with this article is to make you aware of these issues, and therefore being better able to both know what to do, but also to make more informed decisions in the first place.

This is tackled in the first Command Spotlight issue, found in the ProFantasy Community Forum.

I just published command of the week number 52, Symbols in Area, over at the forum. This command details one of the new commands with CC3+ update 14. Symbols in Area is quite similar to Symbols Along, and allow you to fill an area with symbols with a lot of flexibility regarding scaling, positioning, angles and randomness. Check it out in the forum.

This is also the 52nd entry in the series. This series started on the first week in 2017, and I have published a command every single week for a complete year now. Should be quite a bit of interesting information for any CC3+ users in that list. I am now going to take a break, so this will be the end of season 1 of the series. I’ll probably do a season 2, but it will be a while into the future. For now, check out the index of commands, perhaps there is an entry you didn’t read, or an entry you may wish to re-read.

CC3+ Manual and Tome of Ultimate Mapping author Remy Monsen has been running his “Command of the Week” column all year over on the ProFantasy forum, and it has become one of the most popular topics. As the year is coming to an end, we thought to highlight some of the commands he has looked at, not least to make you aware of this wonderful resource in the first place. So let’s see what our five top picks of the year, which everybody should check out, would be:

1. As one of the basic tools at your fingertips in CC3+, I would say that Coordinates are also one of the most important.

2. The second is also a basic thing and equally important, as knowing how to use the various Selection methods will make you a much more powerful mapper.

3. Sort Symbols in Map is a little more obscure command, but no other can save you as much time and as many nerves as this one.

4. Using Trace is another command that separates the beginning cartographer from the more experienced user. It can be a little tricky to use, but Remy expertly explains it in his post.

5. Finally, Text along a Curve is a personal favorite of mine. Making nice, flowing text labels along rivers and mountain ranges can make the difference between a “normal” map and an outstanding one.

Check out the full list of commands in the index that Remy keeps with every weekly post on the community forum.

For a while now Remy has been quietly running a very interesting column over on the Profantasy forum: his “Command of the Week” series. Once a week he takes a look at a CC3+ command, explaining its use and highlighting its special utility. In his own words:

“CC3+ contains a huge amount of various commands and features. In this series, I plan to highlight some of these. There won’t be any special progression to this series, and the command will be selected from the entire range, from the simple basic commands, to more advanced features intended for the more advanced users. Feel free to use this topic to discuss the command presented. If you have a command you wish to have showcased, feel free to request it, and it may get presented.
This series is called the command of the week, but it could also explain a feature or effect. The explanations will tend to explain the technical parts of the command, and is intended to highlight the basics (and complexities) of the command, but won’t be a detailed tutorial on how to use it. It is up to you to use it creatively in your maps.”

Often I find myself nodding as Remy explains a command I use all the time, at other times I am surprised as he digs up a command I had almost forgotten about. Sometimes they are useful for beginners, at other times you’d need to be a little more advanced user to get the most use out of it. But Remy’s comments are always very interesting and useful, and by now he has accumulated 30 commands of the week.

So if you are interested in finding out more about CC3+’s many useful command and tools, head over to the latest command of the week “Sort Symbols in Map“, which also contains an index of all commands covered so far.