Made a city detail generator

[bobcat_grad]

I started a community world-building project a couple of weeks ago (blog details on that at Help Build A D&D World while the wiki holding all of the world information is at Tangia - A D&D World Wiki).

Once we got going on some of the basic world details (countries, regions, climates, high level histories), I started looking at starting to give some details to some of the cities that were beginning to take a prominent role. I searched around online for city details generator and didn't find anything I liked - so I wrote my own.

Attached is .zip file of the generator. It's pretty simple, you pick options (City Size, Region, Climate and Sub Climate, Prosperity Level, Criminal Level, and options on whether to include certain details) and click Create City.

Here are two samples, a simple desert village (not showing professions) and a prosperous capitol city on a coast (showing professions):

This village is located in a vast desert region where the prominent geographical feature is a dangerous ravine and holds a population of only 180. Located in a very dry climate where water can be scarce, this area experiences the occaisional storm and supports some wildlife. There are a total of 15 buildings in the village with no inns or temples. There are no walls or other defenses around the village. The village gets most of its water from a bubbling, seemingly never-ending nearby spring and has a major building housing some key government functionaries The village is known for producing cinnamon.

This prosperous capitol city is located in a coastal region where the prominent geographical feature is a series of long, winding beaches and holds a population of nearly 342000. Located in a mild climate with humid summers and mild winters, this area experiences the occaisional storm and supports some wildlife. There are a total of 2212 buildings in the capitol city with 145 inns and 5 temples. Surrounding the locality are tall, well-crafted stone walls with 8 gates spread around the walls. The capitol city gets most of its water from a nearby river that runs close to the population center and has a number of local features that distinguish it from its neighbors. The landmarks that set this place apart are toweing spires that reach into the sky, a large maze made of out towering hedges and ancient ruins from another time sticking up througout the settlement. Some of the major products from the capitol city are eels, hunting hawks, artichokes, olives, pungent cheese and table grapes. Besides the government officials in charge, cities this large have more than one guild to contend with, and here The Thieves Order, The Fishmongers Society and The Guild of Breeders run the city. The services and professions that can be found in the settlement are 159 Armorers, 432 Artists, 304 Bakers, 7455 Beggers, 234 Blacksmiths, 532 Brewers, 404 Butchers, 225 Carpenters, 17852 Criminals, 222 Diplomats, 308 Engravers, 600 Entertainers, 105 Farmers, 1876 Fishermans, 218 Jewelers, 1943181 Laborers, 232 Leatherworkers, 398 Masons, 159 Mercenaries, 3100 Merchants, 1435 Sailors, 753 Scholars, 1482 Soldiers and 300 Tailors.

Enjoy - let me know if you have suggestions.

 

[weem]

That's really slick, good job.

I could see this coming in VERY handy to those running sandbox style / hexcrawling games where the PC's are stumbling across various peoples and settlements, etc.

Thanks for sharing

 

[bobcat_grad]

Thanks. Glad you like it. I noticed a few mistakes with some of the output - I'll fix and update.

Any features you'd like to see added? Anything else a city should have?

 

[weem]

Thanks. Glad you like it. I noticed a few mistakes with some of the output - I'll fix and update.

Any features you'd like to see added? Anything else a city should have?

You know what might be cool (though you would need a lot for variety) would be a line about recent events...

"...recently, this settlement has been plagued by a clan of Orc's nearby"

"...recently, this city has seen an increase in violent murders blamed generally on a war between competing thieves guilds"

Something along those lines - gives you that spark of an idea regarding current events, etc.

 

[bobcat_grad]

You know what might be cool (though you would need a lot for variety) would be a line about recent events...

"...recently, this settlement has been plagued by a clan of Orc's nearby"

"...recently, this city has seen an increase in violent murders blamed generally on a war between competing thieves guilds"

Something along those lines - gives you that spark of an idea regarding current events, etc.

That's a great idea, actually. I guess I need to start brainstorming on what types of events could be created and figure a way to tie them to the region, climate, criminal level, prosperity level, professions, guilds, landmarks, etc.

 

[weem]

That's a great idea, actually. I guess I need to start brainstorming on what types of events could be created and figure a way to tie them to the region, climate, criminal level, prosperity level, professions, guilds, landmarks, etc.

Cool! Yea, I mean, just one little hook can provide a ton of inspiration - especially when you are short on the prep time

You might consider making a thread about this specifically, soliciting ideas to help you get a good number of them.

 

[bobcat_grad]

Okay - I added recent events. (and the ability to turn them on/off, as well as the ability to include inn & temple count in the text).

The recent events (depending on what they are) may take into account city size, region type, climate type, prosperity level, criminal activity level, wall type (which is random), water source type (which is sorta random), guilds, professions and trade goods.

Some samples of the random recent events (only the events - I've left out the rest of the text for brevity's sake):

Travelers and merchants alike have reported that they've been accosted recently by bandits on some of the roads leading to the settlement. Traveling out in the world has always been dangerous, but the attacks are getting both more frequent and brutal. Also, a while back, a large fire burned through a portion of the city, and the population is in the midst of rebuilding the portion that burned to the ground - some suspect arson.

It seems that there is some bad blood between two of the prominent guilds of the city, the Bakers and the Miners. It's not entirely clear why there is contention between the two groups, but just about everyone else in the city would be happy to see the situation resolved. Also, a few years ago, one of the deities of the world put on a display of their power that left the populace feeling blessed - those who speak ill of the deity are treated harshly.

A massive shift in power has recently happened in the city, shaking the foundation of the government. People are uneasy with the change, suspicious of the changes being made.

Recently, there have been an increased number of sightings of massive and unusual snakes and scavengers, scaring much of the population. Also, a long running strike of the Armorers has caused a key industry of the city to shut down and throw the local economy into an uproar.

One of the prominent people in the community was recently murdered and the murderer is still unknown. Also, recently, a person was executed and later was proven to be innocent. Tensions are running high in the populace, and discussions about avenging the wrongful death are whispered about the area.

There are still a few kinks to iron out with these (more dynamic = more chances for me to screw up) but I'll have a new .exe available this weekend for people to use.

I've already used it myself to generate some details for some of the cities in my community world building project:

Greycliffe - Tangia - A D&D World Wiki and Freehaven - Tangia - A D&D World Wiki

 

[bobcat_grad]

Uploaded a new version of the city builder (it's the V2 version in the original post). If anyone has any suggestions or finds any errors, let me know.

Here are a few sample versions of the new output:

City Size: Settlement
Region Type: Forest
Climate Type: Continental
Sub-Climate Type: Wet All Year
Prosperity Level: Depressed
Criminal Activity: Common
Options: No profession count text, no buildings/inns/temples text

This economically depressed settlement is located in a sprawling forest region where the prominent geographical feature is a tall ridgeline and holds a population of only 84. Located in a climate with sometimes warm and sometimes cool summers but always cold winters, this area experiences mostly consistent precipitation throughout the year. There are no walls or other defenses around the settlement. The settlement gets most of its water from a small pond just on the outskirts of the population center. Some of the major products from the settlement are venison and strong riding horses. A few years ago, one of the deities of the world put on a display of their power that left the populace feeling blessed - those who speak ill of the deity are treated harshly.


City Size: Large Town
Region Type: Mountains
Climate Type: Sub Tropical
Sub-Climate Type: Mediterranean
Prosperity Level: Average
Criminal Activity: Low Level
Options: No profession count text, no buildings/inns/temples text

This large town is located in a mountainous region where the prominent geographical feature is a tall ridgeline and holds a population of approximately 5000. Located in a mild climate with humid summers and mild winters, this area experiences high humidity year round but only sees heavy precipitation during the mild winters. There are no walls or other defenses around the large town. The large town gets most of its water from either a single well, or a series of wells throughout the area and has a giant stadium used for athletic competitions. Some of the major products from the large town are amber and siver ore. It should be noted that the level of crime here is lower than in similar sized settlements. A city this size typically has at least one powerful guild and here it is The Smiths Organization.


City Size: Capitol City
Region Type: Coastal
Climate Type: Tropical
Sub-Climate Type: Tropical Wet
Prosperity Level: Prosperous
Criminal Activity: Organized Crime
Options: No profession count text, no buildings/inns/temples text

This prosperous capitol city is located in a coastal region where the prominent geographical feature is the rocky outcrops that poke up throughout the and holds a population of nearly 326000. Located in a tropical climate known for year round warm temperatures, this area experiences rain nearly all year long. Surrounding the locality are tall, well-crafted stone walls with 4 gates spread around the walls. The capitol city gets most of its water from a nearby river that runs close to the population center and has a number of local features that distinguish it from its neighbors. The landmarks that set this place apart are rumors of a mysterious oracle has visions of the future, a series of beuatiful parks throught the city, a major building housing some key government functionaries, one of the more popular theatres in the land, ancient ruins from another time sticking up throughout the settlement and an important temple. Some of the major products from the capitol city are shellfish, hunting hawks, artichokes, rich lobster, eels and pungent cheese. It should be noted that there is an organized crime ring here that has a prominent role in the settlement. Besides the government officials in charge, cities this large have more than one guild to contend with, and here The Thieves Order, The Fishmongers Society and The Breeders Order run the city. The past few years have produced record harvests in the area - people are unsure what is causing the sudden surge in bounty, but can find no rational reason why it is happening.

 

[bobcat_grad]

Made one more update to fix a few bugs and added a few new features (available in the first post in the thread - the V3 one):

1. You can type in a city name prior to generating a city and it will use the name of the city in different parts of the description:

Redpointe is located in a mucky, swampy region where the prominent geographical feature is the extremely dangerous quicksand and holds a population of approximately 18000. Located in a tropical climate known for year round warm temperatures, this area experiences mostly consistent precipitation throughout the year. Surrounding Redpointe are simple walls made of earth piled up to form mounds with 2 gates spread around the walls. The small city gets most of its water from a bubbling, seemingly never-ending nearby spring and has rumors of a mysterious oracle has visions of the future. Some of the major products from the small city are black coal, mangoes and emeralds. This location is a dangerous place to roam alone. The crime level is higher than most other similar settlements. Besides the government officials in charge, cities this large have more than one guild to contend with, and here The Merchants Alliance of Redpointe and The Redpointe Guild of Miners run the city. The oracle nearby has sent out word that an important group of strangers will be appearing soon and people should keep an eye out.

2. You can now step back and forth to look at previous cities you've generated (at least while you've had the app open). Just in case you hit the Create City button by accident, you can look at the last one you did.

 

[Robtheman]

Fantastic!

you might consider adding important NPCs (names could be left out). perhaps "people of influence" that could be drawn from the powerful factions you've already included.

this is a great idea! well done and thank you for letting us benefit from your hard work.