Shultzy's Showcase - Riverholm

[Battlecat]

I think both styles have their places.  It is kind of nice to mix up the visual appearance of the game a bit every once in a while. 

Lovely natural shots here once again!

[bat]

Two really nice images of that nature!

[ShultzCity]

Replies:
bat, Battlecat, Tomas Neto, Rayden:  Thanks! 
Rady: Thanks for the links, but you guessed right - I do have them all 
Jmouse: I know what you mean    IT's best to ask though - I figure if people are asking for more info, then at least they're interested in what you are doing   -  as for TPW, I have never been able to create a nice looking transition into the game water. Normal ploppable water (I use Tahoe) blends much better into game water. Don't tell anyone, but I prefer to use Tahoe PW over TPW   


Todays update is a tutorial on how I create my coastal landscapes. Enjoy!


4.1  -  This is the area we will be working with.


4.2  -  Start by sketching out the tree line. Make sure you have areas of trees close to the water, and other further away.


4.3  -  Now fill in from the tree line out, starting with Cycledogg's Broadleaf trees, then moving into Aspen groves. Always use smaller, bushier trees closer to the coast, then into the taller trees further away.


4.4  -  Now, choose a small cove on part of the coastline to begin work on. (I have chosen the main inlet that you can see in the middle of picture 4.3). Start filling in from the tree line with medium scrub bushes (RRP pasture flora pack). Paint them in the shape of a bow, as you can see in the picture. This helps to give the impression of a cove.


4.5  -  Now, using green and brown rye grass from the RRP Pasture flora pack, paint under the bushes. You don't necessarily have to cover the whole ground area, just enough so that the texture is not the same under the whole area.


4.6  -  Use the grass texture from the RRP pack to paint another bow shaped area. Remember not to make these bows perfect, but more a general area. Then, using the rye grass, paint over the grass again to add extra texture.


4.7  -  Use the rye grass to paint some more imperfect areas around our cove. Do not stop at the waters edge with textures - always try to blend them in as muchasa possible. This is often the key to coastlines. Also, experiment with overlaying more than one texture - especially with the green and brown rye grass. Overlaying both provides almost a totally new texture to use.


4.8  -  Now, place some groups of rocks and logs to make the area more realistic. Don't go overboard - remember, less is more. Also, always make these groups of rocks/logs in odd numbers. Notice I have three groups of logs and rocks.


4.9  -  Using some sand and pebble textures from Peg, paint around the beach area. Make sure you leave open spaces to use other textures, as this will add more variety to your coastline. Continue to use different textures (grass, moss and clover textures from Peg) to paint around the tree line. Remember to keep overlaying the different textures to make sure they blend well.


4.10  -  Using rocks from Cycledogg, place some in the water. This helps add to the blending of the land to the sea.


4.11  -  Using techniques from previous pictures, continue to add, blend and overlay different textures to cover the coastline. Remember to continue the textures into the sea, never just stop at the sea.


4.12  -  This picture is further up the coastline. Notice how you don't necessarily need to use sand and rocks at the coastline. You can also use grassy, and marshy textures to lead into the sea.


4.13  -  Further along. Remember to keep your flora in order from smallest to tallest/largest. In this picture I have used medium scrub bushes and weeds (A) from the RRP Flora pack.


4.14  -  And as the tutorial wraps up, this is an overview of the whole area, after I have continued to texturise the rest of the coastline.


That's it!  I hope you have enjoyed reading it, and I'd love to hear any constructive criticism as it's my first attempt at a tutorial    -   If you have given the techniques in the tutorial a try, I'd love to see your results 

Cheers, Jacob.

[clearlypowa]

interesting tutorial  . Thanks for sharing

[thingfishs]

nice tutorial Shultzy

[Jmouse]

Very informative tutorial, Jacob. Your advice in 4.9 about leaving room for more textures hits home! I tend to crowd in too much foliage and too many rocks too soon, and have to start blowing things up. Of course, this often ruins the design and ends in frustration. 

I'll be trying out your method of creating shorelines soon, though.

Later...
Joan

[Connor]

Very nice tutorial, thanks a lot for sharing it with us 

[tooheys]

Hi Jacob

Some great work you've put in here, the natural landscapes are very nice indeed 

All my teammates cringe at the very thought of seeing my posts in their MDs because I occasionally ask them about population and traffic data.

I'm one of those unfortunate people  Watch her Jacob, watch her very closely  (only kidding, you can do nothing worse than picking Joan up as a supporter, one of the most helpful people going around. I shouldn't have said that, I'll never hear the end of it  )

Anyway, great to have another Aussie on board and look forward to see how your MD develops.

Goodluck mate

Dave

[sumwonyuno]

Thanks for sharing your strategies. I'm using a similar strategies for my region.  The fact that certain brushes can be mixed in different layers to create a new look is very handy.

[oktoberfest]

wow, thats awesome! im wonderin where u got that sand texture. Thx in advance

[calibanX]

Your work is beautiful Jacob. You play the game like a painter would a canvass. The results are very nice pieces of art. You have an excellent style. Love it!

Geoff

[bat]

Great work on that tutorial! The coastline looks really nice!

[ShultzCity]

Replies...

Clearlypowa, connor, thingfishs, sumwonyuno, calibanX, bat - Thanks alot! Your comments are much appreciated

Jmouse - that used to bug me as well. I'd fill out an area, zoom out and find that a whole area didn't work  . I make sure I zoom out to check every few minutes now.

tooheys - Cheers mate, thanks for the encouragement. I have to say I'd much rather someone comment to ask me something over nothinh 

oktoberfest - Thanks! That sand texture is from a pack by PEG called PPond kit.

Todays update is just a small one - your first look at some suburbs!



I have done my fair share of experimenting on my current region. Suburbs, farming, CBD's transit networking, and of course mainly natural scenes. However, I think it's time I try and start on a region and try and make a realistic city. From agriculture, to suburbs, to a sprawling CBD.

The question then lies in what region do I pick to start with. I have picked out a few I like, but I would really like my readers to have a say in which one they like best. Of course, if you know of another map that you would think suits my playing style better - please make the suggestion 

So, here are the links to the maps I like:
http://sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=1457
http://sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=1125
http://sc4devotion.com/csxlex/lex_filedesc.php?lotGET=1970

Cheers, Jacob

[MTT9]

Great work Jacob, i love that last pic!
I would choose the Whitefall map, because of that weird coastline...
But it's up to you
Matt

[Ennedi]

Both beskhu3epnm's and cogeo's maps are very good, but they are large. If you want to use your map for learning and experiments, I would suggest the smaller one. Please look at c.p. Map Pack 3 (your third link). In my opinion the Ida Bay (the second map in the set) would be the best one for you. It contains a lot of shoreline and a nice winding river, it will be very playable because of large flat areas, but it has some nice hills too. I suggest you to look at this map in c.p. map thread (the link is in the LEX Details). c.p. (ie Cycledogg) provided a nice mix of large and middle-sized cities which offer you a good playability and not too long loading times. Large cities usually contain some water or hills, you will be able to reach a good amount of citizens but not a huge metropolis. I think it will be good for your playing style.

Adam

[firdausabdullah]

Thats very impressive work Jacob  We might not have the same technique but I really admire your planning and creativity. Thanks for sharing them with us. Looking forward to more pictures of your region. Cheers mate!

-firdaus-

[Connor]

The first two links are fantastic maps, so personally i'd choose one of them, though the C.P map pack also had good maps as well. Also, it depends whether you like big regions or not because the first two links are pretty big regions, whereas the C.P. maps are much more manageable in terms of size.

It's up to you though, and whichever region you choose i'm sure you'll do a great job anyway.

Nice suburban picture as well by the way 

Connor

[Rady]

I would suggest a map out of the last pack (CP Map Pack 3) - personally I'm a fan of having game-water rivers on my map, and I think they provide ample possibilities for your rural techniques.

I'm looking forward to your next pictures ... at the moment, I'm still struggling with creating good-lookin' forests  , so I hope to learn something from your pics ..   

[BuildingUp]

It's obvious to me you put in a lot of work in this MD and it really shows! Wonderful job my friend! 

[Battlecat]

Great tutorial there!  Some really good ideas, and an excellent approach.  Thanks for sharing!