[WIP] Arcantis, the lake city

[kestrelgrey]

I like the idea of the pilings used to funnel the water. As for the smith and bakery, you could set them close to the water and/or make the part of the platform they're on simply as close to the water as possible, even lowering the part of the platform each building is on. That way you don't need a new platform, and there's ready, immediate access to a lot of water to put out any fires. Looking at the smith building right now, it would be a simple matter of shifting the south and west platform edges closer to the building, or just adding some indication of stairs or something to show that that part of the platform is lower.
I have no idea if I'm even making sense, sorry XoX

I love you're buildings, and I'm very impressed with how this is looking! I like the fish idea on the shield ^-^ Other than the obvious connection to water, is there another reason for choosing a fish? Bit of a world-/culture building question, but you already have such great details about so much! Keep it up ^-^

- kes

[Beoner]

Ok, this is far the slowest map I've ever done.

In this update I have added some buildings to the platforms, but the main thing is the sawmills and the smith. There are two sawmills, as you can see at the image, one you can actually see the wheel, the other one you can't, that's because I took jbgibson's idea of "funneling" the water, and the wheel of this sawmill is inside the house, but moving with the water that runs below the platform - The blue lines try to explain that a little better.

As for the smith, I've one at the lighthouse platform (which also needs fire), and a Woodworker building with it, and it could sound weird, but just the other day I was watching a documentary on woodworking and to make wood curve (for wheels, boats, etc.) you actually have to boil water and with its steam and some force the wood will eventually get curved. Its just a small one though, I'm planing on having a bigger woodworker house at another place too. The baker I decided to let there and the center platform, for two reasons: 1) Using well done ovens (even the hand made) the chances of starting a fire are minimum; 2) For location purpouses, being on the center is much easier for the people to reach.

I also added a school of math (engineering) and a library. I chose for the city's shield an anchor, because it is what better represents a city used mostly as a dock.

After a couple of years the rumors of a village being built over a river have attracted men of science, they wanted to see how were the people building it. Not much later those scientists were teaching math and engineering to the main builders. Some even decided to move and started living in Arcantis, after a couple of years they built the school of math and engineering (on the top-left platform, next to the sawmill), to teach young kids how to make the village's maintenance or even make it larger. Next to the school a library was also built.

The years have passed, and what was a village one day, has become a small city, though it is just as important as any great city. It is now part of the kingdom, and received a Shield: The Anchor, and above that the kingdom's three circles. Ships coming from the sea (going up the river), or to the sea (going down the river) dock everyday in Arcantis to spend the night, to buy food/drinks, or to sell their products - specially flour, grains, cereals and wood.


As always, comments are welcome

[torstan]

Looking good - and I love the idea. It's very rectangular for a town on a river. Perhaps add some gentler shapes upstream to stop the river current hitting it square on?

[Beoner]

After one month and I'm still not done, bleh....

Well, last weekend I decided to rush a little and I've completed all the "holes" with buildings, now the city is completely populated. By my math, considering that something around 3 people live in each house, there is a total of 705 people living on Arcantis, I may inflate this number a bit though, since it was common to find families with five or more people at the middle ages - according to my knowledge.

The city now has four sawmills, two smiths, one (but I'm thinking about adding another) potteries, one Backer, one Butcher, and Alchemist, a Doctor, a Fisherman guild, docker guild, trader guild, lighthouse, two woodworkers, school of math, library, exotics store, general store, jewelry, stables, barracks, watchtowers, warehouses, two shrines, and if there is still space to write I'll add coopering and weaving.

You can see two things I named lifts, but actually what I wanted to mean is that they are cranes, to take the heavy stuff on the docks and take upstairs, to place on the warehouses. I'll add more of them around the city, next to the several warehouses it has.

@torstan: I'm not sure I got it right, you mean something more "circular"? Or more like a Trapezium?

Next steps, finish the Great House (which I'm thinking on changing its shape), finish inking the platforms (as soon as I get what to do upstream, with waht torstan said), draw more cranes and docks. Make a good writing and finally make the illustration I'm planing since I started the city, on the bottom rectangle.

[Counlin]

Its getting more cool at each update

As for what torstan said, I think he meant that instead of a straight line, it would be better to have more angles, going "up" and "down".

Looking forward to see the finished version.