Urland, a (mostly) rural coastline

[AtkinsSJ_ 7]

Hmmm. I must say I'm tempted to go back to Maxis farms myself.

Again, your attention to detail is astonishing. I never have the ability or the eye for putting in side-paths and things. I'm always really inspired to do more rural communities - it's a pity I always look at CJs this late into the evening!

~Eskiman

[jacqulina 162]

hiya bernhard,

wow these are awesome farms,excellent countryside as allways,you are so good at rural my friend,awesome work and pics

[JanYpe 17]

Finally another update! How is that electrification mod coming along?

[Nardo69 51]

Hello to All!

Since

- I had a rather creative phase with testing these filler lots

- my picture albums are full due to this

- my RLs is rather mild at the moment

I could make another update within one week ... boy, do I pamper you ...

But of course first the replies:

@Livin in Sim: Thanks for the compliment. Actually I am rather satisfied with how it came out. It looks a bit like the area where I grew up: rolling terrain with valleys, some hills but now mountains and a lot of wood ...

I hope you like the next pics, too!

 

@redhed55: Thanks for the compliment! The grass texture is the standard texture from the columbus mod, just do a search on the stext for cycledogg and you'll find all the needed files

@Eskiman: Thanks for the compliment. Actually I like it rural as no skyscraper can hide all those nice details (which I really like to lay out, too ...)

And hey - looking at CJs is not such a bad thing - you may dream of them and in your next SC4 session you may be able to make your dreams come true ... ?!

@jacqulina: Hello my friend! Didn't see you round here for some time - missed you already! Glad you like them -  I think you'll love this update, too

@JanYpe: Thanks for the compliment!

Actually Kenny just finished his school. At the moment he is batting a really wonderful railway stations - details here (but in German)

And now let's go in medias res - here is

Update 17.2: St Georg

or: Diagonally rural 2

An Overview over St. Georg where we will be in this update.

St Georg is situated along a secondary (not electrifed) railwayline. It is not important enough for its own railway station. Yet there is a short freight siding for the local farms and industry ...

Right in the middle of St.Georg you'll find the St. Georg's Church. The church was build in the 12th century yet its basement are from the 8th century when the wide valley of the river Rhen was way to swampy and humid for any seddlement or agriculture hence all seddlements were build in the side valleys.

A little bit down the street to Braubach. The small creek Klausbach (from Klause: hermitage) passes through St. Georgs mostly open.

Strategically located at the crossroads where the street to Kempenich leaves the ARAL gasstation (another SFBT production) is kind of the CBD of St. georg. After 8 pm it sels more beer than gas though ...

Another closeup. I just love that corner ...

The industrial center of St. Georg. There is a lot of discussion about the small freight siding with the DB (German Railways) now for years as the DB says 30 cars per week is not enough for running that siding economicly ...

Due to a massive break though in botanics (some people say due to Genetic Engineering but that is not yet proven at all!) it became possible to grow bananas in the rather mild climate of the Rhen Valley...

It is said, too, that the first banana brandy is under developement, too!

Another closeup.

The Klausbach is forced into a artificial bed. Due to this falls dry between June and August resulting into a massive bad small an myriads of moskitos that love the remaining small pitches of water. A renaturalisation is planned for years now but is doomed due to a permanent lack of money ...

And as the last pic for today:

The white swan - the only beer pub im Stç Georg.

Don't worry - I am not finished by now ... I have quite some pics left for the next update(s).

Until then:

Have fun!

Bernhard

[jacqulina 162]

hiya my bernhard my friend,i had network troubles a storm fried my router,5 days without net lol i was missing you too,thankyou,you are right i love your update,i love the way you build your farms,well your whole rural areas in fact,i do get inspiration from your work,im trying to build a village or small town again lol and i allways get stuck.beautifull little church you have a great eye for where things belongamazing farms beautifull close up shots.awesome work and pics 

take care

[frogface 354]

Very nice update, I liked St Georg, I hope the small siding doesn't face closure

[JanYpe 17]

Lovely little town. The roundabout near the gas station looks very good, even with the bright and cheery grass on the bridge. I wouldn't park my car on the street downhill from that small freight station though, the lack of a buffer stop/prellbock would be a little concerning.

[Voulpiotis 4]

.....It's the first time I've seen such a realistic town!

[capitol1 1]

woa those canals are nice!Keeper up.

[Nardo69 51]

Hello to All!!!

Today I have a mini-update with a whole lotta railway for you - but of course before we start some replies:

@jacqulina: Hello my friend! I know how you feel, for weeks I had an instable DSL-connection -...

I hope you love my railways, too!

@frogface: Naah, I am not the DB (Deutsche Bahn) ... but I changed the lot a bit as you can see in my reply to JanYpe!

@JanYpe: Woah, you nagged Naggin' Ol' Nardo!!!

And you know what, you were perfectly alright with that!!!

How do you like my workaround:

@Voulpiotis: Thanks for the compliment!

@capitol1: Thanks for the compliment!

And now my today's mini update .. basically consisting of railway pics ...

This was the first time ever that a seddlement grew exactly as I wished without blasting one single lot ...

A closeup. I like the BAT as well as the lot as there are probably ten thousands of similar houses in Germany ...

Did I ever told you that I like it dirty - when it comes to industry in SC4?

Further on upon the (rail)road ...

For the fans of the "Plattenbau" - prefab slab buildings build (not only) in Eastern Europe after the war ...

The railway department of Maxis haven't had any clue about the minimum distances between trains ...

Thanks to Kenny's new train BATs (the one who also BATted the catenaries) I was able to build the first lok station and holding tracks ever that I REALLY liked ...

The train station and some "railway woods". The Kanal is the first Kanal I did within the last three years. I did the previous one with oppie's lots - there had been no alternative at that time ...

From a different angle. I couldn't get rid of the kink at the bridges as the railway lines had a smooth grade before ...

The holding tracks. The lots are zoned yet haven't grown by now unlike the cars that have been "decorated" by now ...

A small overview. These prefab slap buildings can be seen all over (but not only) in Eastern Europe ...

The tracks at the norther head of the station.

.. from a different angle with their surrounding. Again some railway forrest ...

That's for today. I hope you liked my mini update.

Until next time:

Have Fun!

(and don't forget to make Backups!)

Bernhard

[jacqulina 162]

hiya bernhard,hows you,

i love railways and especially the way you do them,i have yet to do railways in PF2 im trying to decide where to start with it lol,excellent work i love the way you have layed the tracks they sure look really great.awesome work and pics my friend,

take care

[Schulmanator 5,813]

Nicely done. You are right-- a lot of railroad!

[rewright 804]

Yes, you do a great job on detail which makes viewing the pictures enjoyable, with always some little thing I missed the first time popping up. The rail roads are especially good. Good job.

[penguin007 27]

Wow this is a great update. I love the railways and the buildings around them. The mixture of farming, factories, housing is also awesome. Is there a mod which I don't know of which makes all rail track have the brown stuff underneath?

Keep up the great work

Will

[kant01 5]

Nice update! I love all those rail lines - looks very realistic. So well done!

[gshmails 536]

That is quite a "mini update".  You have quite the touch when it comes to those railroads.  Very nice pictures! 

[Benedict 3,119]

Excellent rail pictures - quality stuff you have here!

[JanYpe 17]

Spiffy solution for the siding.   Great work on the industry and (as usual) the rail.

[frogface 354]

Nice update, I really liked the railways. The things like the sidings with the DB coaches and locos really add to the realism and also the electrification!

[Nardo69 51]

Hello to All!

I have a good and a bad news for you:

First the bad: This is not a full scale update ...permanent bad RLS

Now the good: it is still a mini-update!

But of course before we start there are some replies to do:

@jacqulina: Thanks for the compliment my friend! An update without your post isn't a really update ...

@Schulmanator: As I said but today the focus is on its competitor ... hope you like it!

@rewright: Thanks for the compliment. Well, I guessed I said it before but on the German site simforum.de people like me are called "Kiestelsteinschubser" - pebble pusher - which is quite exactly what I am doing ..

@penguin007: Thanks for the compliment!

Actually on these pics I don't use a mod for the railway texture - I just ploped the catenaries as TE-Lots in between the tracks in a way that their surrounding brown areas covers (almost) the complete area of the tracks. No mod required ...

@kant01: Hello my friend! Long time no see! Glad you like my railways!

@gshmails: Thanks for the compliment!

 Well, the last  mini upadte as well as this is not a full-scale as I had to reduce the "imageworks" to the basics (shrink&sharp&save) with Irfanview instead of doinf it pic by pic in Paintshop Pro (I still use the PSP 5 version ... )  as well as I left the path of the previous updates - I am not yet returned ...

@Benedict: Thanks for the compliment!

@JanYpe: Thanks for the compliment!

Well, I am still not completely happy with the siding ... I may return there eventually ...

@frogface: Thanks for the compliment.

Kenny did a lot more than the coaches and the catenaries (available over at SC4D)  - right now I am doing the lotting and modding of quite some(!) really beautiful RR German station from him - I am sure you'll like them!

And now let's begin immediately with today's Mini-Update:

All Along the Autobahn

Autobahn: German for highway, motorway, freeway

Some of the higwhays in Germany are really old - planned by the last democratic chancellor Brüning, build under Adolf Hitler.

Not much commenting the pics today - just enjoy ..:!

The last pic is not really connected with the theme of today's update - I just do like it!

@All:

Have Fun!

Bernhard

[penguin007 27]

great update where do you get your industry from?

will

[jacqulina 162]

hiya bernhard,i just realized lol i have never done a highway.maybe later on i will experement.i love your highway,very nicely layed and planned my friend,i love the housing you have used,excellent work,awesome pics especially all these close up shots you sure do an amazing job

take care 

[Nardo69 51]

Hello to All!

Now this can be called CJ fluctuation - Not yet two weeks since the last has passed but Urland went to page 6 ...

Anyway -here is a new (regular) update!

But before:

penguin007: Thanks for the compliment!

Actually since I am not able to BAT I got almost all of them from the STEX or the Lex from SC4D. Recently I am exchanging a lot of old downloads with the new downloads from the (German) Simcity Kurier as a lot of great stuff remodded and partially relotted can be found there. In addition to this I am a SFBT Betatester and this is our official download site

If you look for a certain lot feel free to ask me via posting here or by PM

jacqulina: Hello my friend! Thanks for the compliment!

If you do a highway in rural areas just look that you don't make too many exits. Highways in rural areas have the function to connect big centres with a high quality and security therefor exits are place only on really important places like crossing main streets.

Now let's go straight to todays upadte:

Update 17.3: Around Braubach Bhf

Braubach is rather young town. It basically was founded with the railway. A secondary non electrified railway line is branching of the main electrified railway line to Rhenbrücken. Due to topography Braubach couldn't become big as it is limited by the river, the railway line and the hills.

I like this area. All kind of industrial types next to each other and close to the railway. I always liked dirty industry in SC4, maybe since it belongs together with railways ...?!?

Not much to say. Enjoy! 

A freight train from the secondary railway line approaches Braubach.

An overview over the industrial area. Small but not too bad I might say ...

Some more closeups from different angles. I am really glad that Marszar's great BAT grew here as I generally prefer not to plop!

The transition to St. Georg. A lot of small houses have built there merging Braubach and St. Georg together.

Another housing in Braubach. This area isn't finished yet, I quit at least 5 times without saving ... 

And with that overview I glue all bits of today's update together.

BTW: I regard the railway stations I have done until now as my "Pre-Kenny-Period.". Kenworth BATted some nice RR station that are on my harddisk for modding and lotting at the moment and showed me that most of my railway stations before have been TOO SHORT!!!!

A perfect example that you are never good enough for stop learning ...

@All: Have Fun! (and don't forget to make backups!)

Bernhard 

edit: fixed some strange unwanted stretching of all images and smileys ...

[penguin007 27]

thanks thats another great update. Im learning german so the site makes a bit of sense to mre and I can always use a dictionary

Will

[homeandaway 1]

now that is what i can an update! - its all so lovely! - i love it!

[Benedict 3,119]

Braubach looks great. I also like the bigger maxis dirty industry buildings, a pity they pollute so much.

[Nardo69 51]

Some Quick Replies:

@penguin007: Thanks for the compliment.

If you are learning German I have some nice / useful links for you:

LEO: The by far best English-German - Online - Dictionary. Unlike almost all others you can find a lot of technical terms there.

SimcityPlaza: Our (SFBT) main web page with a lot of nice SC4-related articles

SimForum: Not only the public SFBT Forums but also a lot of German support forums and CJs - the most lively German SC4 Forum IMHO

and last but not least:

Urland: I started to publish the German Versions on the Simforum four months ago. However it is not a 1:1 translation but I write  more or less the same content twice - once in German once in English ...

I hope you'll have som fun there!

@homeandaway: Welcome back - I already missed you! Glad you like my new update!

@Benedict: Glad you like the update! 

About the pollution, well, they do not conform with the strict German / European antipollution laws ... they could be smaller IMHO

On the other hand it made rethink my industrial layouts - I fin only I-HT boring - so put tree ots etc. in these areas which made them look waaay better ...

Nothing is a s bas as it seems. It just depends on what you are doing with it! 

That's it for tonight (it's midnight here ...)

Take care and don't forget to make backups!

Bernhard

[Nardo69 51]

Today - due to actual developement in the SFBT experimental laboratories - this time by royal:

And since I've done all answers in the previous post:

Mini Update: A whole lotta Railways - again

or Railways like in the good old times

When railway signals where mechanical semaphores ... you may find the last exemplars of this Type in Germany, Austria and Poland but most probably not for much longer ... but now they are becoming available in SC4!

In addition to this royal made also new German RR crossings signs that replaces the ingame american style ones

Note: These are shots from the Betatesting - the oldest 24 hours old. Please don't ask for relase date - they will be done when they will be done ... as usual ...

These trials I made on the map of Silberstein, a nice peaceful hilly rural map that I might show in regular updates after Braubach:

The first trials of the new German mechanic signals .. I dreamed of doing something like this since 2004 ...

Second try - I made these pics not yet 1 1/2 hours ago - this time in Braubach! The area around Moitzfeld is designed to be the content of the next regular update ...

Do you remember the small freight station? Just have a lot on the new German Type RR level crossings ...

Isn't this a nice group?

The other head of the RR station Braubach-Moitzfeld. Again - the level crossing, the semaphores ... *sigh*

This overview over Bhf. Braubach-Moitzfeld shows perfectly the weakness of my old RR design: the station is waaay too short ...

Approach Signal with appoach signs and suicide cows - diagonally!

In the neighbour map Buckelstein the railway line coming from Slberstein ends at the Railway line coming from Braubach resulting in a small secondary railway knot:

(please note that there are a lot of construction sites on this map ...

The railway depot and the freight station with the switch box

A bit further up to the station.

Note that royal ahs chosen a different level crossing sign for the grey streets - the older version which can still be found mostly on smaller streets in Germany!

Different angle

The other head of the RR station

The entry signal and another RR crossing with a grey street.

Please note that all shown railways are not main lines but secondary railway lines!

Have fun! (and don't forget to make backups!)

Bernhard 

[Mikeaut1 261]

Wow, nice network of rails you have going there!! Loving the little neighborhoods along the rail as well.

[jacqulina 162]

hello bernhard,

i will remember that great advise when i start building a rural highway thankyou,you sure do amazing rail networks awesome builing and planning.very nice use of those seawalls.awesome industrial area very nice.wonderfull farms.fantastic housing.overview is beautifull.omg the cows there in danger.excellent rail system lots of great ideas you give me but putting them together like you do is another matter lol.awesome work my friend take care