Question regarding "Fog of War" on adventure maps.

[Marty78]

Is the "fog of war" that exists on some of the adventure zones (the black part that uncovers when you explore the map) saved on your client or on the SOE server?

I have heard that by installing this mod all the explored maps will be uncovered again (all black). And, even when uninstalling the mod and use the default maps again, you will have to uncover these maps again. Is this true?

I have ALSO heard (which is completly opposite from the above statement) that all these maps will be fully uncovered (no black parts whatsoever) wheater you have been to those places or not. And, even when uninstalling the mod and use the default maps again, all the maps will be fully uncovered. Is this true?

[Deathbane27]

Neither are true at the moment.

The fog is stored on the server end.

However, if we try to create icon pages for overland zones with black fog in the same format that the game uses, this will cause the fog to reset, covering the entire map.

This is why the icons for these zones appear in their own special layer above the fog. It's now perfectly safe for users to install and remove the mod without resetting the fog.

The fog has ended up being reset for some members of the team at various times in the process, but now we know how to avoid it.

That's where the first rumor came from.


There is also a seperate plugin (Zonx's Minimap) (might not be available yet) which allows you to view any map, without fog, in an external window. That's probably where the second rumor came from. But it leaves the fog in the main window alone.

[Zonx]

The short answer: In a nutshell, EQ2MAP should only be providing maps that aren't normally supplied by the game. It should not be resetting fog for any zones you normally see a map for.

The long answer:

Each zone that actually has a map, has an associated Zone Rectangle (ZoneRect) used for various calculations, including what areas of that map have been revealed if fog is present for that zone.

If the ZoneRect is changed, EQ2 tosses all fog reveal data and starts that zone's fog reveal from scratch. Reverting back to a default ZoneRect again refreshes the fog reveal. It DOES NOT restore previously revealed areas.

Fog reveal data is either stored on the server or inside an encrypted file we can't edit.

With that said, the EQ2MAP team has tried not to replace maps already suplied with the standard install or sent down by the server, essentially any zone you'd already see a map for. Off the top of my head, this includes all city zones, Antonica, Commonlands, EL, Nektulos, Thundering Steppes and Zek.

This actually limits what we can do with the Map Window, but was deamed least intrusive to users.

Its possible some obscure zones, for which the server provides maps, have been replaced by EQ2MAP that I'm not aware of, but I doubt it.

Its also possible that at some point the EQ2MAP team may need to correct a flawed ZoneRect for an area they do provide a map for. This would only happen if the ZoneRect is seriously flawed. Everyone on the team understands the frustration caused by refreshing fog and will avoid doing this unless absolutely required.

Some map related mods, such as my MiniMap external window, make use of "supplimental" maps sent down by EQ2MAP (as a courtesty to other modders) that aren't used by the main map window. You'll see map files for the above mentioned zones, but rest assured they aren't used by EQ2MAP and aren't interfering with your fog

[dc_roenfanz]

I believe that Zonx' FetishMaps has that MiniMap option installed.