Elinore - A Diachronic City WIP

[Jalyha]

Wow, that was a lot of work in one day What's that 683 buildings now?


I'm all excited like the town was my baby and just made me a grandma o.o

Yep, I'm weird like that.

On a serious note:

The extra "light" colored farms make the buildings pop... and with so many more buildings and farms, it really does look like it's thriving now. Bonus points on using "internecine" in a sentence and the story continues to interest.

I like it

I hope you are happy with it and didn't just change it cause I am annoying D:


xoxoxo

[Scoopz]

Wow, this is lookin' awesome! Keep up the good work!

I'd like to say, and maybe I'm jumping the gun, is that even if they weren't using masonry on grand scales, the fortifications might begin to fill out some, especially around the rivers. I mean, given the chance, they almost assuredly would tax ships passing through.

Like I said though, I don't know, it might be too earlier in their development for that!

either way, great job!

[Wingshaw]

You say that insulae are incorrectly described as poor peoples' housing. Why is it incorrect? What is the correct term? I took a course on Roman cities at uni, and remember being told that insulae were tenement buildings (not for the poor, but for all classes). Is that correct? (I really like the architecture and urban form of Italian cities, by the way, so I am asking purely to satisfy my own curiosity)

THW

[feanaaro]

I read somewhere that in the past few years most historians have come to think that "insula" was the generic term denoting a lot of urban land where a dwelling could be built, regardless of what was actually built there. Akin our "block", which makes a ton of sense if you think what the word "insula" actually means. Notwithstanding that, the previous meaning is so ingrained that it is still currently in use.
It's true that also the "middle-classes" lived in insulae, but I was more simplistically thinking about the distinction between rich (living in domus) and everyone else.

[Jalyha]

THW is correct on the (currently correct/accepted) use of the word.

feanaaro is correct that *some* historians and etymologists now *theorize* another usage.


Which usage is actually correct? We'll probably never know for sure, but it probably meant both things. "Slang" is not new, in any way. I should think it might have had dual meanings as many words do.

Future historians will puzzle over why "neighborhood" is not the same as "THE neighborhood" or "The Hood".


And yes, it's EXACTLY the same principle.



Summary:

You're both probably right and it can mean either/both things depending on context and inflection

[Wingshaw]

Thanks for the explanation. Curiosity satisfied.

[feanaaro]

I'm proceeding very slowly lately, mostly due to real-world businesses. Anyway, at this point we should see the switch from a mainly wooden town to a brick and/or stone city. Problem is, which one does look better? Or should I do a combination of the two, or a third color entirely?





Also, does it make more sense to have all or almost all the roofs in ceramic tiles? I was thinking of reserving that for the most well-to-do areas or for public buildings, and leave this kind of flat roof with parapet (which may have many uses in a crowded city) for most housing buildings. What would you think, both aesthetically- and functionality-wise

[Scoopz]

Ok, I like the second style better. Also, aesthetically the tiled roofing might look very good for all around. The thing is, the city really isn't that "crowded", there doesn't appear to really be any slums, or large expanses of buildings thrown together with little to no space in between. Idk though.

[feanaaro]

Thanks. This was just a quick proof to check the colors, I still have to add many more buildings and stuff. Most of the "new" buildings are quite close together, either touching or almost touching each other, anyway.
I am not sure about the dark roads in the second one, but if I do the buildings in the "stone" color, then I have to change the roads or else it would be too similar.

[Jalyha]

I like the first one better

And I'm pretty sure that those who could afford to upgrade their homes would, and those who couldn't, wouldn't... but I think it would be more... centralized, like you said, on the wealthier/poorer areas.

(See, I have nothing to pick on today!)