Natural Resource and Trade Good Symbols

kristof65

Finally returning to a mapping project I started nearly 11 years ago, and am in need of some symbols to denote natural resources and trade goods.

Anything out there?

The intervening years of the annual have been good to me in providing everything else I need for this once abandoned project, except that.

JimP

On my cell phone but there are grain, apple, pear, olives, and cattle symbols. Also a green and yellow field symbol. Some rows are green and some yellow. I seem to remember avari color version of the farm field symbol, but I'm not sure.

Loopysue

What kind of map are you drawing - in what style?

[Deleted User]

There are plenty of vector symbols, and of course you can easily make your own. The good thing about vector symbols is that they are attached to the map, and do not show as red X's even if the person viewing the FCW file doesn't have them in their symbols file.

kristof65

@Loopysue - These are for a series of maps that I'll be doing in the modern political style from the June 2010 Annual.
https://www.profantasy.com/annual/2010/june10.html

@Quenten - I haven't found any sets that have more than 4-5 symbols, vector or not. I'd prefer vector, and I may end up making my own, I'm just not looking forward to it, especially if someone else has already done the work.

Wyvern

It depends on exactly what you need to show by way of natural resources and trade goods. I tend to end up with graphic fonts for things like this in a pictorial style, because the potential list can be never-ending, and finding everything in a matching style is a nightmare.

For the Modern Political style though, do you really need more than a simple dot marker and a descriptive label?

JimP

CSUAC 2 has stalls for selling weapons and foods.

Bogie's symbols under Dungeon dressing has baskets of food. Apples, oranges, onions, a casserole, breads, basket of gourds, different kinds of snacks, squash, and tubs of soup.

Redthorn Tavern has pies, meat on a spit, a bar bottle rack, single bottles, different breads, kettle-stew on a rack, etc.

On my computer.

[Deleted User]

This is a catalogue (all vector) that I used for my world. Most are symbols from SS1 (Handdrawn varifilled) Commerce. There are many more symbols there for you to use. I have thickened the black outlines from the originals to be more visible though (0.2 to 0.5).

kristof65

Posted By: WyvernIt depends on exactly what you need to show by way of natural resources and trade goods. I tend to end up with graphic fonts for things like this in a pictorial style, because the potential list can be never-ending, and finding everything in a matching style is a nightmare.

For the Modern Political style though, do you really need more than a simple dot marker and a descriptive label?

Finding everything in a matching style _has_ been a nightmare, and I'm remembering it's part of why I abandoned the project.

I don't want to go to dots and labels - I need symbols that can reasonably be differentiated at a glance. I'm doing approximately 90 maps, designed to print out at about 7.5 inches wide, and dots with labels would be too easy to confuse with cities and towns.

I'm slowly accepting the fact that I'll probably have to make them myself, I'm just baffled that in the 21+ years CC has been around that no one's done a single set with a decent variety yet.

[Deleted User]

Have you tried looking at ss1 symbol set, in the Commerce section?

kristof65

Posted By: QuentenHave you tried looking at ss1 symbol set, in the Commerce section?

Forgot about those, largely because I somehow managed to miss installing SS1 on my new laptop. That, and I didn't think to search the term Commerce

So at least some have been done, but I don't care for the style.

I've started on creating my master list, and gathering ideas on doing my own. I have a couple of world atlases that I'll likely be drawing most of my symbols from.

[Deleted User]

I also am interested in this, especially well drawn vector images. i may do some too - perhaps we could collaborate?

kristof65

So what is the best way to share symbol catalogs?

Just as an attachment?

Monsen

You can attach symbol catalogs to a post here. (Just make sure it is something you are allowed to share. Sharing a catalog with symbols you made yourself is great, but you aren't allowed to redistribute official ProFantasy catalogs or symbols)

If the catalogs contains raster symbols, then you need to include the images too, so a zip is the best, but for vector, just upload the catalog.

kristof65

Thanks Monsen. 100% vector, 100% by me.

kristof65

Initial work on my trade symbols.

Monsen

Looking great, but have you tried giving them a black outline? That will help make them more visible on various noisy backgrounds.

[Deleted User]

Just a few agricultural products I would fine useful - sugar cane and timber.
Animal symbols i would like to see: cattle, sheep, goats, pigs,camels (I am an ardent camel lover, and former owner of 3), poultry, fish (fresh and saltwater)
Inorganic products: pearls, sponges, various gems, coal, sulpher, iron, silver, gold, tin, copper, lead (esp important for a culture with magic), other minerals eg bauxite, platinum (?mithril), titanium (?another magic metal), and sign for rare minerals.
You are SO much better at this than i could ever be. I hope ProFantasy will be interested in having these as part of their standard CC3+ (and I know they would pay accordingly).
I also agree that a black outline will help.

kristof65

Posted By: MonsenLooking great, but have you tried giving them a black outline? That will help make them more visible on various noisy backgrounds.

I'm going back and forth on that.

At this point, I'm thinking I will power through my list of stuff, do one of my maps with them, then determine if I'm going to add an outline or not. The maps I'm intending these for are political style maps with largely white backgrounds, so a black outline may not be important to me.

Posted By: QuentenJust a few agricultural products I would fine useful - sugar cane and timber.
Animal symbols i would like to see: cattle, sheep, goats, pigs,camels (I am an ardent camel lover, and former owner of 3), poultry, fish (fresh and saltwater)
Inorganic products: pearls, sponges, various gems, coal, sulpher, iron, silver, gold, tin, copper, lead (esp important for a culture with magic), other minerals eg bauxite, platinum (?mithril), titanium (?another magic metal), and sign for rare minerals.

Thanks.

Most of those are on my lists already - the last time I check, there was just over 100 items total on my three lists.

I suspect that the catalogs will end up with far more than what is on my lists right now. For example, while I was doing Fruits, I realized I didn't have cherries, bananas or pineapples on the list, and added them on the fly. I know there are many more fruits I can add, like Melons and Berries. I'm sure other areas will "suffer" the same additions. Starting on Vegetables tonight, and I already realized Carrots aren't on my list.

Because there are so many items, I am breaking it up into three catalogs - Agricultural, Industrial and Mineral. Breaking down my initial list into those three categories was tough - for example, is Beer agricultural or industrial? Is Steel mineral or industrial?

Ultimately, the decision I made was this - IF it generally requires a manufacturing process, such as both Beer and Steel do, AND they're manufacturing in such quantity that they're being placed on a map to show them as a major export item, then the process is big enough to be considered industrial in nature. The local inn brewing ales and beers on the side for its local customers is still largely an agricultural process, while the dedicated brewer in the big city who is importing grains and hops from the rural countryside, and shipping kegs of beer off to foreign ports is a far more industrial one.

It may not be historically accurate, but that's my thought process as to why things are in one catalog and not another. There will likely be a few outliers, but in general, that's how they'll be grouped in the catalogs. So when I "finish" with the Agricultural catalog, that's why you won't see some things like Beer & Wine in there.

I'm probably going to do a fourth catalog of fantasy specific items - for example, I have two generic trade categories in my descriptions for the kingdoms that border the Dwarven and Elven realms - Dwarven Goods and Silvan Goods. For the Dwarven Goods, I know I'm going to do a Dwarven face icon. Not sure what to do for Elves. My setting only has Humans, Dwarves and Elves, but to make it more useful to others, I'll probably add in a few more icons like that. I'm going back and forth about Mithril being in that catalog, or being in the mineral catalog. I'm thinking I'll have a couple "halo" symbols in that catalog, too - those will be symbols designed to go around other symbols in the catalogs to denote "magic" or other fantasy properties.

kristof65

Progress so far.

Monsen

Coming around nicely there.

I do see you have several symbols of multiple colors (Apple, Lemon, Pepper). You should consider making some of these varicolor.

[Deleted User]

Maybe one symbol for some 'exotic' fruits like mango, papaya etc with varicolor symbols, ditto melons. Varicolor woulr help users being able to use these symbols for perhaps some alien fruits, cereals and vegetables and spices. Spices are important because of the value they have, as well as sugar and cotton and tobacco. All high value items.

kristof65

Progress so far:

kristof65

I still have the following on my list for the Agricultural catalog:
Dates
Figs
Beans
Cinnamon
Pepper
Vanilla
Cocoa
Coffee
Honey
Lumber
Sugar
Tea
Wax
Wool


Not quite sure how I'm going to do symbols for a lot of those. I'm sure that list can be greatly expanded upon.

I may move on to Minerals or Industrial for a while.

Beltharas69

Other produce you could have are:
Coconuts
Oats
Crabs
Clams
Edible mushrooms
Ginger
Kelp