Welp, I am broke as a joke this month so I'm putting this project on the back burner while I do some regular commissions, but I'll still be working on this when I get a free moment.
Here is a perspective render of the town from a while back. I finalized what all the buildings are, and there are a couple that I didn't have the space to include, sadly. I chose a to have a gunsmith in favor of a barber shop, since this will be used for RPing purposes. Bank, jail/sherrif (with a gallows next door), and undertaker's will be represented. Future "expansions" will have to include barber, telegraph office, assay office, etc.
Katto - I actually tried to go back and watch some cowboy movies from my youth to get inspired! Sadly, I chose "Maverick" which is definitely not as awesome as I remember it being when I was 12. I'll have to see if I can sit down and watch Tombstone or The Quick and the Dead.
Ravells - Definitely got the undertaker's covered. I also have a church--whenever I do things like graveyards and churches, I always find myself accidentally wanting to include the regular religious iconography that I associate with them! I always have to remind myself that fantasy settings wouldn't have things like crosses on their buildings!
Tilt - Yes, trees are my enemy. And normally choosing to leave off overhangs/raised porches wouldn't be a problem, but they are pretty iconic for western settings. It's a shame I can't easily include them. Hopefully I'll be able to make it sufficiently western without them.
Just looking at this, and it's wonderful by the way, but at this angle it looks like you could easily put the overhangs and still see the walkways. You might have to fake it a little by raising them higher than they would otherwise be in order to still show the ground beneath but I think it might work. Now, if you plan to rotate it to a top down look then they really are toast.
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Hah, I think I'm toast, then! This is just a sample perspective of the model. The actual product will be a top-down map (with a slight perspective-trick do you can see a little of the faces of the buildings).Originally Posted by Jaxilon
Just looking at this, and it's wonderful by the way, but at this angle it looks like you could easily put the overhangs and still see the walkways. You might have to fake it a little by raising them higher than they would otherwise be in order to still show the ground beneath but I think it might work. Now, if you plan to rotate it to a top down look then they really are toast.
The more I look at this though, the more I think about starting over and redoing several of the buildings. It might make more sense to release each building as a separate map-pack anyway. Though I can't shake the notion that one whole town would be awesome for VTT play. It would be almost like a video game where you could wander around wherever.
It's such a shame without the overhangs.....not sure if you can do this in sketchup, but can you make them and group them. Set the texture to transparent when you do the plan view and bring the texture back when you do the perspective view?
Shame that y'aint havin' the hangin' tree, but I do like the shadow the gallows are casting...really dramatic!
I really am not sure what to do! I can render the overhand separately and turn the transparency down, or I could have them on a separate layer... for the print version, there could be just a separate piece that you place onto or remove from the map, based on what floor your character is on... but that seems like an unnecessary hassle. I'm looking around for examples of how others have dealt with overlapping levels with open sides, but I can't really find any.
Don't forget the random haunted house ruined building at the edge of the town, the one place to scare kids with but no one in their sane mind would come close enough to tear it down.
Did anyone mention a train station? Or the gallows?
Around these parts we like to use the term fundsalow. One quick suggestion when you get back to this; western fantasy town + lightening train = awesome.
Terribly cool. I want it as printable fold-up terrain!
M
You know, I've always played around with the idea of making papercraft models but haven't tried it yet. Definitely down the line though--and western buildings would be a great place to start since they tend to be pretty boxy and would lend themselves well to it. Hmm.
Oh, incidentally, this project has turned into a Western Maps line on my RPGNow shop. I haven't actually announced anything yet since I want to get enough buildings to set up a nice little town first, but hopefully I'll make fast progress and make an announcement in the news section before too long.
neat RE - good luck with the project and may you sell as many as fleas on a camel
regs tilt
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