Town design -- how much is too much?

[Runesong42]

Hey all,
My DM and I are collaborating (sp?) on a project for one of my high level characters. She is a high priestess of her faith and she has decided on a tower for her church, much like a lighthouse (and thus could use the lighthouse stronghold as designed in Sword and Fist).

As time rolls on during construction, a war will be pushing refugees towards her church, and we plan on requiring the citadel to be expanded into a walled city/fortress. At construction's end, we plan on the population being somewhere around 35k.

We are going to role-play through the castle construction period, seeking refugees, dealing with monsters, etc. and what I would like to know is, how much information would you guys create for your DM in such a scenario?

Bear in mind that everything is in a state of flux, so nothing is necessarily permanent until the city is actually complete.

Part of me wants to go into explicit detail on every little thing, and part of me feels that too much detail is going to go to waste.

 

[Sigurd]

Realize that thirty-five thousand people is a hell of a lot of people to house, water, feed and clean.

Sewers, Water Supply, & Town Occupation(s) would be critical (for me) to make this believable.

If I were doing it I would begin with a viable town of 10-thousand, perhaps one that needs converting, in the grips of a devil god etc... Then improve their infrastructure as you get people.

Sounds like you have a good idea of your chars perspective, ask for more info about the town & taxes.

S

 

[Quickleaf]

Great! What I would do is write up a personality sketch of the town - a single paragraph describing the feel of the town and the character of its citizens.
Once this is done, think about what makes the town unique... Is it famous for a certain product, and if so, what is the reputation of the product's crafters? Is there a certain prestige class (or several) appropriate to organizations in the town? What role does the temple play? Is it central to the peoples' lives with as much authority as the governor, or is it a marginalized institution helping a minority against an oppressive majority? What is the relationship between church and state?

As for the temple itself, go crazy with detail.

 

[kanithardm]

You could use that City Maker thing that is on the homepage

 

[yennico]

Realize that thirty-five thousand people is a hell of a lot of people to house, water, feed and clean.

Sewers, Water Supply, & Town Occupation(s) would be critical (for me) to make this believable.

I totally agree with Sigurd.

In front of your citadel a new village will grow and it will not start as an entire (walled) city.
In the next years the population of village increases and at some point in the future the village vill become a small city.

 

[Runesong42]

I guess I wasn't that clear.

The temple itself would only take 10 weeks to build (IIRC, see lighthouse in Sword & Fist).
During that time, my character learns that a major city was routed by invaders, and a slew of refugees are directed to head to the "shining beacon" for protection. And by slew, I mean 30k+.

In addition, the surrounding villages and hamlets also flock to the area. Plus, my DM is granting me followers as per the Leadership feat. This accounts for another 5+k or so, including soldiers and craftsmen from a neighboring dwarven community.

This is going to happen over time. The DM and I agreed that the construction period will take 110 weeks, or just over two years to complete. But the people will show up far before the construction is complete.

Hence, we will be RPing through this tumultuous time.

That in mind, I wanted a rough idea of how much to create ahead of time. Should I make suff assuming that the city will be completed, or should I create it piecemeal as we RP through the construction period?

 

[Sigurd]

If you are going to role play the crush of refugees and the hords of unwashed shelterring under your banner you might want to have an idea of the town/city/outpost before the deluge. Imagine a Helmsdeep scenario, only with your temple as the center.

I'd definately be on the coast somewhere, both to accept more refugees and send out covert missions. I might even locate everything on an island. Makes a natural defence. If your diety is a wise one perhaps he/she picked the location of your temple for its defendability.

Creating food and water for the multitude would be a cool miracle. I imagine years after the defense has passed the survivors will be saying 'I ate the mana during the seige.'

I'd have your DM think about things the refugees can do to help themselves. Leadership would give them something to do and utilize them as a resource.


S

 

[Arnwyn]

That in mind, I wanted a rough idea of how much to create ahead of time. Should I make suff assuming that the city will be completed, or should I create it piecemeal as we RP through the construction period?

This is really something you should be asking your DM - he/she will have a better idea of the possible upcoming events that might occur during this chaotic period, and thus can give you better ideas about what's important.

Speaking as a DM, I'd want as much detailed as possible as soon as possible - and then I can pick and choose the important details based on the events I have planned. But then, I'm all about having my DMing life made easier.