The brave new world of 3D mapping has taken little notice of time-proven rules of cartography, as if arbitrary viewing angles could somehow obliterate the need to convey a clear hierarchy of features. In this talk we will show how the vector styling capabilities in vts-geospatial may be used to overcome that long-standing shortcoming. From the choice of a basemap through the definition of intellectual and visual hierarchies to the coding of visual style, we will show how to produce 3D maps which aspire not only to the aesthetical appeal but also to the information value of a real cartographic product.