The Silver City (a big city around a waterfall)

I've had my eye on this thread for a while and I am really impressed at how much it has improved!

This looks amazing, can't wait to see it finished!

Now, one stair was of course not enough. So, as the keenest amongst you could have predicted, we have elevators too (hey, it's a fantasy city).
The only way I found of making those is by faking a isometric-ish perspective (I know it is geometrically absurd, but what other way there would be?). This of course conflict with the rest of the map which will be top-down, albeit with shadows and reliefs. It was already a problem with the cliff anyway... but no, I am not going to try to do all the buildings isometrically in Ps. Hopefully once the city will be finished it won't be too jarring.

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Looks awesome! Keep it up!

In a (futile) attempt to mitigate the boredom of placing innumerable buildings, with this city I am proceeding with a "multicentric" approach, which hopefully will also produce a more organic look in the end. By the way, I would welcome suggestions about the layout, placement, etc.
The city technology level is roughly that of our classical antiquity. It's main economic drive is obviously being the point at which the commerce on the great river needs to pass to go over the waterfall; but it also has a major military role in that it must defend itself, the surrounding region (for food-crop), and for extension all the lands downstream, from the incursions of a bellicose population of barbaric tribes (bull-riders! I'm telling you!!) that roams the vast plateau.

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wow this is shaping up very nicely. though those lifts on the cliffs seem a bit too mechanical for a classcial antiquity tech-base :S

The idea for the lifts is that there are two big stone columns nested into the cliff, to which the wooden platform is hinged. The platform is then pulled up by a big rope or chain which is rolled around a wheel, pushed by horses or something (possibly captured barbarians, if you know what I mean). So, it would not work (not for that height certainly) in reality, thence it's fantasy, but there is nothing highly technological about it.

Slowly...

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Given the apparent difference in fortification quality between the high city and the low city, have you consider putting a gatehouse on the stair step road, between the two.

I did consider that, and might be doing that. However, even a large stair like this one would be prohibitive terrain for an assault and could be easily controlled from above. Moreover and most importantly, the real military threat comes from the high plains (in fact there is a secondary fortification defending the entrance to the bridge), walls on the lower level are mostly to keep out brigands and other lesser threats.

Looking very good. Very interesting concept ! Have some REP for the hard work !