30 - The Water Merchants [Redrobes]

[Redrobes]

Nice ! I particularly like the way your render of the waters.

Thanks ! Over the years I take photos of all sorts of stuff. This is some water I noticed running under a bridge. It has a few layers where I make up the river bed then some layers of water in pools refracting light then I add a little foam into places where I want it rapid.

The alchemists are working on obtaining a reliable source of ammonia from liquid waste. Perhaps if the engineers up in 39 can work their magic on compressors, between us we may be able to provide you with sufficient refrigeration to solidify your liquid assets. Gin just doesn't seem right without ice

Now ice might me quite valuable. I would have thought that there would definitely be a market for supplying water and having it converted to ice and then distributing that around the city.

[Mouse]

And you can all come drink it down at the Compass Rose... among other places in the city

Nice work, Red. I particularly like the little carts, and all those hundreds of barrels! The flowers look pretty excellent too

[Falconius]

Apparently the Persians built things called Yakhchal's which were cooling towers and they brought ice down from the mountains and were able to keep blocks all through the summer. And, apparently, sometimes they used them in conjunction with wind cooling towers.

Oy, I cant help myself. It's all pretty ... cool.

[Redrobes]

Yeah in many of the large houses here which were exclusive in the 1900's but now open to the public you can often see the ice houses where its like an underground bunker which was full of ice. Once the ground gets down to a certain temperature it apparently holds that temperature almost indefinitely. So you could get ice all year around. Apparently, if you add salt to slush it goes to about -10degC so you can use some of that to cool other ice and thats what causes the salted ice to melt even though its below zero temperature. But eventually you have to throw the salted ice out and start again.

[Abu Lafia]

I love the idea for the district Redrobes! With the steady increase of sources of water pollution, it's not bad to have a monopoly on clean water (or, just seeing that THW is your neighbour, at least convincingly selling it as such )! The layout of your compound looks really great and it's fun to explore all the details. Also, thank you so much for once again putting all the sections together in the overview map!

[Redrobes]

I want to put some more details in but still trying to get some more basic things sorted out. That flower texture worked out better than expected actually which was a bit of a relief because I was thinking I might have make zillions of little flower icons and place them one by one. A lot of the detail is too small to see on my WIPs so I am attaching a closer version of the central bit to have a look at and do a wheres wally on. Of course this shows up all my faults and lazy short cuts etc. Also you can now see how rough and amateur my horses and carts look too. I really need to get a nice top view of a horse I can use. I should get one of those drones.... mmmm.

[Mouse]

That's fascinating - thanks

I don't think the horses and carts are all that bad, really, but I'm a bit confused as to what that grey torpedo-like thing is due north of the hay in the central courtyard. Is it a dog?

[Redrobes]

Yeah, not very obvious is it !!!

You pulling an all nighter again ??? I think its time to put my head down.

[Falconius]

Top down orthographic is a hard perspective to deal with frankly. I think it's why many people default to either flat roofs that residents use and put things on, or more European style roofs, because both are more visually interesting. But objects and creatures from that perspective are perhaps even more difficult than architecture, because we are not use to seeing these things with no perspective, or from directly over. To me it all looks pretty good though. The only problem with the detail shot is the different resolutions between the various textures, which call each other out when placed so clearly together, it all looks fine when zoomed out. I'm saving vegetation to last but you are making me question that choice, really brings a lot to a map.

[Straf]

The world does indeed look very different from above. Being able to pick out landmarks while flying to get your bearings is quite difficult and you don't realise who unstraight some roads are when you're driving along them. You think something is due north from something else but it's more to the NW when you're airborne.

Anyway I think the details are great as they are. This is a map, so representations of things on the ground are all that are needed so I wouldn't worry about the horses - they are definitely recognisable as horses