Free Fantasy Architecture (New Stuff! 6/4/03)

Buttercup: When you say "several bells at different levels" do you mean the towers are different heights? or that they are all the same and each has several layers of bells?

Your rendition of Asmon Citadel is flat-out amazing. This totally rocks.

You hit the nail on the head, then shined it up and added your own touches, and it looks fantastic. My favorite details, in no particular order:

- the little curlicues under the bridge between Virkune and the Citadel
- the covered bridge theme in Virkune, with the cross of bridges spanning the open areas
- the sense of scale and power conveyed by the "gate's eye view" -- it's like being there, and that's quite a sensation
- seeing how small things look in the first overview picture, and then realizing how large they would actually be as you zoom in on the individual elements

I tried to keep my original description vague enough that you could use it as a starting point and then run with it, and you did this brilliantly. You brought out so many little details that I never would have thought of -- like the wrap-around cliff edges flanking the Citadel -- and certainly would never have been able to visualize at this level of detail.

This is awesome -- and Buttercup is right: it makes me think of lots of new ideas, new details, NPCs, stories and other elements that come out of being able to see it (and see it from so many different angles).

Thank you very, very much. I checked this thread several times a day since you starting working on this, and the end result was everything I thought it would be. Wow.

haiiro said:

This is awesome -- and Buttercup is right: it makes me think of lots of new ideas, new details, NPCs, stories and other elements that come out of being able to see it (and see it from so many different angles).

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This actually brings up an interesting point - I've always used visualization techniques to spark my ideas in adventures - I'll often sketch out the area that an encounter is to happen and find that it does just what you say, bringing new ideas, stories, even NPC's to mind.

Kid Charlemagne said:

This actually brings up an interesting point - I've always used visualization techniques to spark my ideas in adventures - I'll often sketch out the area that an encounter is to happen and find that it does just what you say, bringing new ideas, stories, even NPC's to mind.

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Oddly enough, despite the fact that visualization is tremendously important to me as a DM (and player), I've never really thought about sketching things specifically to get ideas from them. About all I can draw in a gaming context is treasure -- I usually draw the magic items the party finds, but I don't really do it to get ideas.

Interesting. I wish I had more doodling talent, because that sounds like a good idea, Kid Charlemagne.

KnidVermicious said:

Buttercup: When you say "several bells at different levels" do you mean the towers are different heights? or that they are all the same and each has several layers of bells?

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The second one. I was thinking of the tower like this:

Roof
Bell chamber
Bell chamber
Bell chamber
plain tower wall

Buttercup: here's the Crystal Temple. This was fun. I really tried to emphasize the "crystal" and used lots of cut-glass style edges and such. Also had some fun with reflections.

Crystal Temple in black and white

In color

Front view in black and white

Front in color

Close view in black and white