Assuming your friends don't have CC3+, the standard way would be to just export it as an image from the save as dialog. (See page 47 of thr User manual for details about the procedure). Optionally, you can print it to a pdf file instead, all modern versions of Windows comes with a virtual pdf printer installed you can print to to generate a pdf file.

Saved effects settings are found in @System\Effects. They are regular .fcw files

Drawing tools are found in @System\Drawtools. Each style has it's own folder here, and each draw tool is a .dto file, and if it is a macro tool it will also have a .dtm file and optionally a .fcw (for preview) file.

Effects are stored in the map, so existing maps will have all their effects on a new install.

Not really sure how well mixing text labels and number labels would work, but in the end, the only way to know is to try and see if you are happy with the result. There are no absolute rules you have to stick to.

If I were to do that though, based on the elements in your list above, I would probably use text labels for geographical features and town names, and then use numbers for "interesting locations" like battle sites, ruins, cultural location, etc.... This seperates "proper" map information from supplementary information.

That's generally a good approach. The most important for people reading your story is to identify the places they read about on the map. Then you can expand on it later with more names if you write more stories set in that location.

A good style can never have too many symbols.

• Symbol varity is always good. Just variants of some of the same symbols would be great, like variant bridges and castles and towers and more
• Different races and cultures, as you mention elves, dwarves, halflings, orcs, but also culture-inspired like middle-eastern, far eastern, jungle tribes, aztec/maya inspired, bad/evil lands
• How about a mountain symbol with a dragon on top of it, and a volcano and a mountain with a mysterious cave
• Ships and sea monsters
• Windmills
• fruit trees
• a black cat pushing things off the edge of the map
• icebergs
• all kinds of ruins, cities, castles, towers, etc
• a snow and ice fill.