Creating Settlers of Catan Maps Using Hexographer

We’ve recently added a couple of new icons to Hexographer and tweaked a couple of features which now make the program perfect to create maps for Settlers of Catan.  There is a new video clip walking through the process on the Hexographer website.  But here is the cliff’s notes version:

1. On the initial setup screen, set up a map 7 hexes wide and high.  Set the terrain settings to fill the map to solid terrain and set the terrain type to either blank or sea.

2. Scroll down to the bottom of the list of terrain to find terrain types for brick (badlands), wheat (fields), wood (forest), rock (mountains).  Then scroll back up and use the farmland terrain for sheep and sandy desert for desert.  Click the terrain button you’d like to use, then click a hex on the map.

3. Add the ocean by scrolling down to the ocean terrain type.

4. Switch to the icons tab (far right side) and scroll down to find icons for sheep, wood, wheat, brick, and rock.  Click the button then click the hex in the ocean.

5. Go to the symbols tab and click the circle to mark the port locations by clicking where to place it on the map.

6. Finally add the question marks in the oceans and the numbers by going to the custom text tab.  Set a font size of between 50 and 100, then enter the text to place in the text box, click the “start text” button, and click on the map where you want the lower left corner of the text to appear.  Click the “save” button (next to the textfield) to place a new text item. Repeat this for each question mark and number.