jtougas

Originally Posted by jtougas

*Sorry Guys No Funny today The Riverhewn Gazette has suddenly turned into a spice shop....*


Riverhewn Phase VI...

Well after looking at this map for an hour or so this morning I realized that I just didn't like it. It had no "soul" it was just a collection of little buildings on nice orderly streets, fine for realism I suppose but not so much for my tastes. I like a city with surprises and a lot of back alleys and secrets. I also realized that I was mapping a city that I knew and I mean knew I've spent years and years in Riverhewn I feel like if it suddenly materialized somewhere I could go there find my favorite tavern the "Grumpy Goblin" and have a drink with Rog Henshen the old tavernkeep. In my "obsession" to make a great map I forgot what I was making a map OF. Riverhewn isn't just a city it's a collection of stories, characters, and adventures with just as many twists and turns as it's alleys. When I was hand drawing the original I was writing and playing all the time it was easy to think about a certain story or a certain character and picture the location. I think that's where I went wrong this time. I hadn't EVEN looked at the original map. I was mapping a city not a "feeling". SO out came the two giant poster boards out came the tacks and up she went. I must have looked at it for 3 hours remembering this adventure or this encounter or that character. My little girl (who had never seen the map) was fascinated. She would still be asking me questions if her and Grandma hadn't left to go to Maine for a few days, and I would have gladly answered them. I realized then that I wasn't so much making a map as I was "solidifying" a idea, or a story. This new map might not be as orderly and it sure won't be technically brilliant BUT it will be my idea of how Riverhewn feels and I guess that's what I wanted to do all along.....

So onto the map:

Now I didn't change much on the outside of the city except scale things up a bit. Here's a list of things that happened in the city itself:

1.Obviously all the neat little rows of buildings are gone. This is more like the "Real" Riverhewn
2.Added the "Old City" and it's wall (explanations for all of this are coming up)
3.Added the "Garden Of Kings"
4. Added Markets
I haven't added any "dimensionality" to it yet I just wanted to look at the layout and make sure it felt right first..

All in all I think this version represents the "actual" Riverhewn a little bit better I've gone up in scale so I can show some of the details that make the city what it is.

The Old City
The city of Riverhewn was founded almost 400 years ago. At that time it didn't have a name it was merely a debarking point for servants and representatives of Overking of Aerdi who used what would become Shendenflar as a vast hunting preserve. Riverhewn in it's earliest days consisted of a few buildings and a great manor house that served a a hunting lodge and residence for the Overking and his staff when they visited Shendenflar. Over the years as the region became more and more independent and the Overking's visits became less and less frequent, Riverhewn became a city in it's own right. Merchants and others who were fleeing the constant wars the Overking delighted in waging came to Shendenflar. Trade with neighboring Perrenland across Lake Quag helped the fledgling city become prosperous. Now 400 years later and the area of the city known as "The Old City" with it's wall still stands as a reminder of those earliest days. Some of Shendenflar's "first" families" still reside in the "Old City" and it is a place of stately wealth and ruthless social warfare..."

The Garden Of Kings

In the strip of parkland that rings Riverhewn lies the "Garden Of Kings" a large cemetery that is the final resting place of Shendenflar's rulers and their families. This is a noble place where the guards that monitor it are honored by their assignment . In the center of the garden is the memorial to all the men who have served Shendenflar as it's King. An entrance at the base of the memorial leads down to the mausoleum complex of the individual Kings. This entrance is heavily guarded and only the royal family may enter here anyone caught will be dealt with most severely...

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