>> Is there any automated way to create a continental
>> type Empire map? fairland just doesn't seem to have
>> the capability to create such a beast. Or even a
>> couple of large islands with miltiple sancs.

>> Is there a way to hack fairland to perform such a
>> task? Maybe a script to run as deity? Maybe 1 BIG
>> island in the middle that all sancs start on,
>> surrounded by ocean - but everyone has costal
>> sectors to start?

> Fairland creates fairly distributed start islands ("continents"), with
> identical resources, and not-so-fairly distributed expansion islands.
> That's what it was designed to do.

> Maybe -i can help you achieve what you want.

> I've abused fairland to get maps that don't look like fairland on first
> glance.  My favourite trick is sector selector elev.

> Fairland computes "sector elevation", then uses that to set resources.
> It's not used for anything else.  But it's left it the sector file, for
> the deity's hacking pleasure.  For instance, turn sea into plains, and
> really deep sea into mountains:

>     des * ?elev<0 ~
>     des * ?elev<-50 ^

> Or do special things for the areas around initial player capitals: get
> the coordinates from newcap_script, then use them in @X,Y:D areas.

> When I get the map-making bug, I tend to end up with fairly elaborate
> scripts to massage a fairland map.

>> Markus Armbruster wrote:
>>> Gemini <sco...@websagacity.com> writes:

>>>> Is there any automated way to create a continental
>>>> type Empire map? fairland just doesn't seem to have
>>>> the capability to create such a beast. Or even a couple of large
>>>> islands with miltiple sancs.

>>>> Is there a way to hack fairland to perform such a
>>>> task? Maybe a script to run as deity? Maybe 1 BIG
>>>> island in the middle that all sancs start on,
>>>> surrounded by ocean - but everyone has costal sectors to start?
>>> Fairland creates fairly distributed start islands ("continents"), with
>>> identical resources, and not-so-fairly distributed expansion islands.
>>> That's what it was designed to do.

>>> Maybe -i can help you achieve what you want.

>>> I've abused fairland to get maps that don't look like fairland on first
>>> glance.  My favourite trick is sector selector elev.

>>> Fairland computes "sector elevation", then uses that to set resources.
>>> It's not used for anything else.  But it's left it the sector file, for
>>> the deity's hacking pleasure.  For instance, turn sea into plains, and
>>> really deep sea into mountains:

>>>     des * ?elev<0 ~
>>>     des * ?elev<-50 ^

>>> Or do special things for the areas around initial player capitals: get
>>> the coordinates from newcap_script, then use them in @X,Y:D areas.

>>> When I get the map-making bug, I tend to end up with fairly elaborate
>>> scripts to massage a fairland map.
>> Excellent tips - especially the elevation one. Speaking of which, I
>> see that elev can be used as a selector, however, what command
>> displays the elevation of a sector?
>> I've tried comm, cen, reso, sinfra and peek - and none of them seem to
>> display the elev of a sector. The only thing I can get to show the
>> elevation is a 'survey elev <SECTS>' command - but that's a map, and
>> seas sectors seem to just be "blank" and I'm not sure how specific the
>> numbers are. Better than nothing, I guess.

> Using survey is creative :)

> Try xdump sect.  Not exactly user-friendly, but piping it to a suitable
> awk script should do.

> I also like "sect * ?elev<-50" and such.