I'll try the latter - simpler for a bemused brain at present. Hill now what I want, and dirt fill fixed - for some reason it had scaled turned off - grrr. Added a clocktower in central city, and working on the southside area outside the walls - hope to complete them today. AND YOU SHOULD BE ASLEEP!
Here is the Southside districts, pretty well finished. Also a close up of the sportsgrounds area. Finally, a view of the whole city. A link to a higher res map will be forthcoming when it is finished, or I am out of hospital, whichever comes first.
Finished Eastside and the slums today. I need help on Beacon Hill - the NW side is not so steep, but the pavement is perhaps still floating. Any thoughts?
And my idea didn't work because shaded polygons work differently to shaded bevels. One reflects light off the steep flank on the lit side, while the other becomes general darker the steeper the slope (even on the lit side).
I think I will try 3 sheets, no bevel. Background, shadow and highlight.
This is possibly the most rubbishy drawing I've ever done, but I am still only half awake!
The two sheets are shading and highlight. They have polygons drawn using the freehand tool (nice and fast) in various tones from the transparent fills (Solid 30, Solid white 30), with an EFI to soften the edges and a blend mode set to multiply on the shading sheet, and screen on the highlight sheet.
Like I said its a really crappy drawing, but I think it communicates the idea ok.
My latest efforts - finishing off the last bit of the city - now for the surrounding country side. Shown is the Westside districts and a close up of the Noble district, along with the main sewer system and the main cemetery. I aim to finish this on 31 August 2018, as promised.
Well, 1 day to go. I have run a bit short of ideas for the remaining countryside - suggestions welcome. Just a few tidy-ups of the buildings in the city proper, and labelling. So still lots to do tomorrow - and the refresh time is getting slower with everything on plus effects - up to 8 mins I also show some of the countryside - I have used vector symbols for the trees in the forest, for obvious reasons - I hope you don't hate them too much, but i quite like them.
Not quite finished, as mentioned above. i still want to fill in some of the empty spaces - one idea is a ruined village using Par Lindstrom's ruined city symbols. Still need more suggestions. And not sure what to label yet; obviously I will use an index
Perhaps Beacon Hill used to be much bigger, made of some hard granite and it has been quarried away to build the walls of the city? Area to the SE of what remains could be rubble and terraced quarried into the depths, now partially filled with water. A place for all the daredivil children of the city to practice their diving. (and they could be food for the creature released from the deep when the quarry went to far into the underdark?? :-) )
Yes - 4 churches have their own cemetery, and there is a huge one south of the monastery in the east.
I think I will put the rubbish dump further to the west, and adopt Jerry's idea south of Beacon Hill (which has to be redrawn anyway).
Working on the city poor section, adding more dreary apartment blocks - yes, they had them in Roman cities, as well as modern slum areas - 'housing estates' I believe.
Still not sure about Beacon Hill, though i like this better - thanks for the method Sue - first time i have used Blend effect . Any suggestions for improvement.
The edge of the beacon hill seems to straight, the color needs to blur between the ground and the green of the hill. Have the hill and the steps leading up to it throw a shadow.
Using a blur with the transparent solids blurs the texture as well (did I say use blur? If I did that was a mistake. It should have been EFI). It would be better to massively extend the area of the shadow side, so that its not so abrupt, and use an EFI. Possibly not such a dark shadow?
Maybe its the angle of the sun... but shouldn't the tower on the building on Beacon Hill be casting more of a shadow than the other end of the building ?
I'm not really sure what the 3 spikey shadows on the right side of the hill are being cast by what building, ground area, etc.
I drew it in the middle of the FCW I was working on at the time (Japanese Temples), and deleted it and its sheets from my workspace once I'd got the image for you. Even if it had been its own map I wasn't really happy with the idea of uploading it because its a very half-baked method for adding relief shading. Very hit and miss. Needs much more development to make it generally useful.
However, I have made this one just now for you, which is slightly different (though equally hit and miss), where I use ordinary coloured polygons and a blur instead of an EFI.
I can't really describe how its done. That's the problem. I have very limited time right now, but basically I look down on the land as if I am a bird, and I draw the white polygon where I think there will be highlight on the mound directly below me, and the black polygon where I think there will be shadow in the lee of the mound. The longer shadow indicates that the slope is more gradual. A cliff would just be a very thin and relatively sharp line. So in this case there is a scarp slope (relatively steep) on the highlight side, and a far more gentle slope on the shaded side.
In the interest of not polluting the forum with half baked ideas that may or may not work, I will whisper the FCW to you, and promise everyone else that I will work on a way to make this a more certain science.
Thanks, Sue, I am sure I will find this useful. I have been working on the city for some hours now - and am now happy with the buildings, and have added a ruined village, using the City Ruins annual of Par Lindstrom. If only a pagoda was required, or appropriate here - I can see a Japanese temple complex based on the layout of Angkor Wat coming up - and I can't wait for the Asian city annual - for a city for the continent of Kumarikandam.
Comments
AND YOU SHOULD BE ASLEEP!
Night night
Finally, a view of the whole city. A link to a higher res map will be forthcoming when it is finished, or I am out of hospital, whichever comes first.
Good to see you've got that transparency acne sorted out
Great work
I'm now very lost, though, and don't know where Beacon Hill is. Maybe a zoomed in shot would help?
Here's an idea that may or may not work...
How about building the hill with loads of shaded polygons?
I'm barely awake yet, but I can do a quick example. Back in about 30 mins.
And my idea didn't work because shaded polygons work differently to shaded bevels. One reflects light off the steep flank on the lit side, while the other becomes general darker the steeper the slope (even on the lit side).
I think I will try 3 sheets, no bevel. Background, shadow and highlight.
Back again shortly!
The two sheets are shading and highlight. They have polygons drawn using the freehand tool (nice and fast) in various tones from the transparent fills (Solid 30, Solid white 30), with an EFI to soften the edges and a blend mode set to multiply on the shading sheet, and screen on the highlight sheet.
Like I said its a really crappy drawing, but I think it communicates the idea ok.
Effects off:
[Image_11460]
Effects on:
I also show some of the countryside - I have used vector symbols for the trees in the forest, for obvious reasons - I hope you don't hate them too much, but i quite like them.
I bet you feel slightly relieved, and maybe a little bit sad now that you've finished it?
As for 8 minutes!
:O
I don't think Merelan city ever took more than about 30 seconds... but my machine wasn't crippled back then
Really great map, Quenten
I think I will put the rubbish dump further to the west, and adopt Jerry's idea south of Beacon Hill (which has to be redrawn anyway).
Working on the city poor section, adding more dreary apartment blocks - yes, they had them in Roman cities, as well as modern slum areas - 'housing estates' I believe.
I'm not really sure what the 3 spikey shadows on the right side of the hill are being cast by what building, ground area, etc.
I drew it in the middle of the FCW I was working on at the time (Japanese Temples), and deleted it and its sheets from my workspace once I'd got the image for you. Even if it had been its own map I wasn't really happy with the idea of uploading it because its a very half-baked method for adding relief shading. Very hit and miss. Needs much more development to make it generally useful.
However, I have made this one just now for you, which is slightly different (though equally hit and miss), where I use ordinary coloured polygons and a blur instead of an EFI.
I can't really describe how its done. That's the problem. I have very limited time right now, but basically I look down on the land as if I am a bird, and I draw the white polygon where I think there will be highlight on the mound directly below me, and the black polygon where I think there will be shadow in the lee of the mound. The longer shadow indicates that the slope is more gradual. A cliff would just be a very thin and relatively sharp line. So in this case there is a scarp slope (relatively steep) on the highlight side, and a far more gentle slope on the shaded side.
In the interest of not polluting the forum with half baked ideas that may or may not work, I will whisper the FCW to you, and promise everyone else that I will work on a way to make this a more certain science.
I'm glad you like it