How to move stubborn symbols to the back?
I am making a map, and I want to use a Color Key effect to make some changes. I want to take the front off of the ziggurat, and I want the broken column to lose the attached base:
I create the masks and send the symbols to the back, except the column won't go back. The ziggurat works fine:
So, of course, when I enable the effect, the ziggurat is cut into, but the column looks the same:
Does anyone have any idea how I can get a stubborn symbol to to the back?
Best Answers
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Loopysue
ProFantasy 🖼 41 images Cartographer
Color key doesn't generally work on symbols because of the way symbols are drawn twice by the rendering engine.
The only exception to this rule are 'mapped' city symbols (building roofs that shade themselves according to the position of the global sun), which are only drawn once to preserve the roof shading.
You can copy the png file for the symbol and delete the parts you don't want in the new copy in a bitmap editor, then use your modified copies instead, but be careful to remember they are modified symbols and shouldn't be gifted to anyone else. Using them in your own maps for all the usual purposes, including commercial sale of the map, is fine.
There is really only one big drawback when making your own versions of the public set, and that is if you share your FCW file with others they will only see red X's where they don't have the necessary artwork.
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Loopysue
ProFantasy 🖼 41 images Cartographer
Yes.
There is a half way measure you can use, but it only lasts the session and may have unexpected results. You can switch off the redrawing of the symbols by typing DELAYDRAWSYM, and changing the value in the command bar to 0 (zero) from 1.
As you can see, it works to chop the top off this Mike Schley mountain, but look at the foot of the mountain - the semitransparent pixels in the symbol have been turned fully transparent.
Before:
After:
It all depends on whether you have semi-transparent pixels in any of the symbols in your map.
Answers
You should check what sheet it is on.
Fair question. I forgot to mention, but I had already done that. They are all on the same sheet and layer, which is also the same sheet I put the Color Key on.
In addition to checking to make sure that the Color Key effect is the first sheet effect on that sheet, make sure that the magenta polygon is moved to the front of anything else on that sheet, so that rendering it takes precedence.
Color key doesn't generally work on symbols because of the way symbols are drawn twice by the rendering engine.
The only exception to this rule are 'mapped' city symbols (building roofs that shade themselves according to the position of the global sun), which are only drawn once to preserve the roof shading.
You can copy the png file for the symbol and delete the parts you don't want in the new copy in a bitmap editor, then use your modified copies instead, but be careful to remember they are modified symbols and shouldn't be gifted to anyone else. Using them in your own maps for all the usual purposes, including commercial sale of the map, is fine.
There is really only one big drawback when making your own versions of the public set, and that is if you share your FCW file with others they will only see red X's where they don't have the necessary artwork.
Well, that's... problematic. But it makes sense. So the ziggurat is only working because it's a city symbol, then.
Yes.
There is a half way measure you can use, but it only lasts the session and may have unexpected results. You can switch off the redrawing of the symbols by typing DELAYDRAWSYM, and changing the value in the command bar to 0 (zero) from 1.
As you can see, it works to chop the top off this Mike Schley mountain, but look at the foot of the mountain - the semitransparent pixels in the symbol have been turned fully transparent.
Before:
After:
It all depends on whether you have semi-transparent pixels in any of the symbols in your map.
That is a very good explanation of what is happening; thank you. At this point, I've already just edited the PNGs to what I needed, but I am definitely bookmarking this for next time.