Mapper

Mapper

This mod adds map drawing mechanic (cartography) - the world map no longer updates automatically and costs resources. It serves as a nice balance between the hardcore mode (fully disabled map) and having the map always visible and updated. You can also share the map with friends using the cartography table.

Features

• A handbook guide to explain the mechanics.
• Compass: Required for showing position and direction overlay (Ctrl+V) in uncharted territory; accuracy depends on item type.
• Map:
  • A consumable item without durability; adds map chunks starting from player position and going in circle.
  • Higher scales can chart a larger area with limited resolution.
  • Waypoint placement requires a charted area, even the last death position and ore markers.
  • Shows player position in charted areas, no compass needed.
  • Maps don't refresh automatically, they need to be repainted.
• Drawing kit:
  • A consumable item with durability; paints an area based on the selected tool mode. Lower-resolution maps use less durability.
  • Apart from the charcoal kit, it must be held in your left hand with a paintbrush in your right hand.
• Cartography table:
  • A workstation which stores mapped chunks and can be used to exchange information between players.
  • Requires empty maps and drawing kits to copy stored chunks into the local map. Copying local chunks into the cartography table is free.
  • Offers multiple modes to select which chunks should be copied, evaluated from top to bottom.
  • Players must have use permission if the block is in a claimed area.

Technical details

• Mapper stores data both server-side and client-side. For each player, the server knows about all chunks where the map item was used, their resolution and their last-applied color. The client stores individual chunk pixels.
• Unlike Vintage Story map which uses a SQLite database, Mapper stores data in a compressed binary format and loads it all into memory. This could become a problem for large mapped areas, but the fact that chunks aren't charted automatically and doing so costs resources should mitigate it.
• The save format is backwards compatible. If the binary structure changes, new mod versions will be able to load old save files but old mod versions won't be able to read new save files.
• In the unlikely scenario if this data gets corrupted, an error is shown in-game. This error doesn't affect anything besides the mapping functionality. To restore the mod and overwrite corrupted data, type .mapper restore (client-side) or /mapper restore (server-side) depending on where the issue occured.
• World map needs to be enabled for the mod to function properly. You can do so in world settings or by running /worldconfig allowMap true and restarting the server.

Built-in mod compatibility

• Auto Map Markers
• Geology Map - You don't need to repaint the map to update layers from this mod and its layers are not stored in the cartography table.
• GiMap - You don't need to repaint the map to update layers from this mod and its layers are not stored in the cartography table.

Incompatible mods

• Fast Map - It replaces VS chunk map layer the same way Mapper does.

Localization

• English
• Russian (thanks to Wafflz)