WIP City of Moonfall

[RigoIII]

Until I decide what style to use in the regional map of my world, I decided to start a little city known as Moonfall/Moonrise (haven't decided yet), located in the Valley of the First Moon (hence the name). The first picture is just a hand-drawn sketch of it. The first idea was to try something like Blaidd Drwg's Tilvarel Valley, but it is starting to look something like TheHoarseWhisperer's Pyrus which I didn't really mind.

12511400_1021431021246399_620496841_o.jpg

On the bottom-left corner, there's a small altitude map of the city. This map is based on a previous version I sketched out but never got around finishing it. It'll most likely differ greatly from it as I want it to be a tad smaller.

Moonfall.jpg

Please give me all the feedback you can muster!

Always faithful, Rigo.

[J.Edward]

It's a great start Rigo. Both images look good.
Are you going to do this start-to-finish in traditional fashion? Or will you sketch then go digital?

[Caenwyr]

I like your drawing style, Rigo.

I'm not sure the topography you propose in the bottom left corner (which is then drawn in perspective in the main image) is plausible, however. The course of the rivers seems to be at odds with the terrain. A river usually follows the path of least resistance - snaking around hills and keeping the floodplain as wide as possible. They only cut in if there's no other option.

Try envisioning a landscape with hills, ridges, plains and cliffs, without a single river (of course every non-arid landscape has been influenced by fluvial processes, but let's forget that for a minute). Now drop a buttload of water on one of the high places, as if there were a spring. Try imagining where the water would go. Water has no mind of its own, but ofttimes it looks like it does. It seems to stream directly to the lowest point in the landscape, only curving away when it meets an obstacle. It will always run down the steepest slope at its disposal. If you keep dropping water on the same spot, it will eventually start cutting a gorge, but that gorge will always be where the original path of least resistance was, never through the middle of a hill.

If cliffs along the course of your river is what you're looking for, try drawing a terrain that's rather level, with a gorge for the river. The rest of the terrain doesn't have to be flat, it could still have hills and smaller valleys, but the bottom of those valleys should host little rivers and streams of their own, which always flow into one of your larger rivers (maybe they can come falling down the cliff face as a waterfall).

[arsheesh]

Both look nice. Look forward to seeing where you decide to take this.

Cheers,
-Arsheesh

[RigoIII]

It's a great start Rigo. Both images look good.
Are you going to do this start-to-finish in traditional fashion? Or will you sketch then go digital?

Although I consider myself better on paper, eventually I was going to have to go digital to colorize it so I decided to start with Sketchbook early.

Caenwyr, unfortunately, you're right. If it was a lake, I could've gotten away with it, blaming erosion, but they are two rivers joining around a small hill, among many other hills. To make its path more plausible, I shortened the hills and pulled them a bit aside, so it's not really a cliff type, I will also raise a bit the surroundings of the river, and the map will most likely stretch out south. This is a new update, still a sketch but this time with a drawing pad on Sketchbook.

12511400_1021431021246399_620496841_o.jpg

And thank you arsheesh, I'll try to update everyday

[RigoIII]

Fixed the hills (I think, need feedback on that), Castle sketch got updated, outside walls have their own place, I just need to finish drawing them. I'll start the main part of the city now, around the castle, few large houses, aristocracy of course.

Moonfall Sketching.png

EDIT:
I've added the first neighborhood and a temple (might scrap that one, doesn't look as good as I wanted it to, at least for now) added a small somewhat of a road and a the first (of many) port.

Moonfall Sketching.png

Here's also the relief map that I want you all to judge

Moonfall Relief.png