will_silver00

Firstly, Latexmaali and GMT, thanks guys! Secondly... :: FINAL UPDATE :: This is my twelfth and final update, concluding the Otranto CJ, my Simcity career , and my time here on Simtropolis. I hope you've enjoyed reading this as much as I've enjoyed building it. Huge thanks to everyone who has followed this and posted here over the last few months, you've all been great! And thanks to the Simtropolis team for creating such a superb site for us all to share and enjoy! Maybe I should even thank Maxis for a great game... but we all know it's the myriad BAT, lot, map and mod designers who've given this game it's real addictiveness. I leave you with my first (but last, of course) five-piece Otranto mosaic in the Mickebear/Jeronij style, and six other shots of the main city. Thanks again, and goodbye! Will

Will, I think it's a very nice clich

Thanks a lot Dusk - that feels like a royal seal of approval! You know I'd forgotten about the many times I, too, have plopped C BATs straight on the ground!? Of course it works, doesn't it... Whoops. That said tho, these new ones by Xannepan do seem to be ultra-sensitive to outside factors and can delapidate very quickly if you're not careful. Anyway, thanks again for the input.

A European wall-to-wall tutorial Prologue This tutorial has been previously posted in my CJ, but I thought it might help more people if it were posted here. I hope it's pretty self-explanatory, and it mightn't even be that useful for most of you, but if you do have queries, then please feel free to post them and I'll try and get back to you. Personally I haven't seen anybody else build European cities in quite this way which I think is a bit of a shame, so it's my pleasure to share this with you. BUT, if you've already been doing this for ages, why not share a pic of your creation on here? Will Introduction As we all know, the majority of the BATs available for European cities come from a handful of BATters - primarily Xannepan , Porkissimo , Erdmoebel , JEC and Vanderaap . With my CJ, Otranto, I have found Xannepan's and Porkissimo's most helpful, but most of their creations (Xan's especially) are large lots that offer little scope for variations when you're in the game. Let me explain. What I mean is that in European cities, whether in England, France, Spain or anywhere, there are rarely rectangular or square 'blocks' with a boundary of buildings and a big space in the middle. Instead, there are courtyards, more buildings, and all sorts that make any European city a dense urban jungle. I also feel that Maxis' roads are way too wide for European cities, so this guide helps to build without too many roads. Check out this site of Paris aerial pics , and you'll see what I mean. * I stress that this is all eye-candy. It has to be, as you'll see that roads are not always necessary. * Preparation This style of building hinges on filler lots that MUST have no road restrictions, which you'll need to make yourself in the LE. It's easy to do using Xannepan existing buildings many of which can be chopped down to 1x1 or 1x2. Porkissimo's and (most of) Erdmoebel's buildings are both ploppable, with no road restrictions so can go anywhere. You could even use Maxis' buildings to make some filler lots. I've also heard from pnorrell, that Gascooker's pub lots work quite well as 1x1 fillers. They're growable not ploppable, but appear easily apparently. Thanks for that man! 1.) Our blank canvas. 2.) Plop down some corner buildings. 3.) Fill in the gaps with some of your filler lots. 4.) And then fill in the middle space, using varying patterns, and shapes to create a dense urban space. Use all kinds of lots and different placings to create different effects. 5.) What about awkward shapes in the road like this? 6.) With Xannepan's lots, like this one, it's no problem. Use a 1x2 filler lot with details/windows on all sides to fill in the gap. You don't need to use a 90' corner lot everywhere! 6a.) Or with Porkissimo's 1x1 lot, make use of the decoration on the side of the building and place it at the end of a street. Try and find a lot that fits the remaining gap, like this other BAT of Porkie's. Lastly, I read on a CJ that some people where having trouble with Xannepan's new BATs: 7.) What you need to do is make sure you zone first, before you plop them. They're a mix of R and C, so zone that out. 8.) And then plop the BATs, and they should thrive. (Interestingly, I've noticed an increase in population/jobs because of these ones, but never any traffic? Wierd.) So, that's the end of the guide. I hope its been useful and shown you how to go from European cities that look like this before, to more realisitic ones that look like this:

Oh. My. Goodness. Without a doubt, Marsalia is the finest work I've ever seen done in Simcity. It's just so beautiful! Just in this update, that little hill of older buildings in the middle of your mosaic is absolutely stunning - the stairs leading down to the seafront - the way all the buildings fit together perfectly.... And the seamless incorporation of the el-train... And your port area, which seems so... REAL. In fact it's like looking at a proper city, not some game. I can't believe how much work you must have put into this?? Massive congratulations to you - I would say that right now you're setting the pace with this CJ for future European-style city building, and I think this'll be a very hard act to follow... EDIT: Flipping heck, I'm busy typing this about Update A, and then find you've posted another update that's even better!!! Unbelievable.

Yours comments: dhoppeii: I think you're the first to mention the posters - glad you liked them. No idea where the theatres actually are in Otranto, lol, but I enjoyed photoshopping these anyway. I so want to see Les Mis, especially before it decides to stop its run in London. Must get up there soon. I'm also pleased that you found the guide useful. I did it mainly because I'm surprised not to have ever seen anyone else do it, so that's why I wanted to share my discovery. Kwakelaar: Well now you know! Thanks man. pnorrell: It will be a bit sad - I'll certainly miss it. I am satisfied with the following - I appreciate all my regular followers (including yourself of course!) very much, but comparing the 'stats' of views-to-posts Otranto is down a bit on the rest. However, the key to this (and life ) is to not compare yourself to others! That said, I half wonder if sticking 'European' in the subject line put some people off... That's great that you like the tutorial, I'm glad its been received positively. And thank you for your tip too! I'm toying with the idea of re-posting the tutorial in its own thread in the city-building concepts forum, as it may help a wider audience from there. If I do, I'll include and name-drop you for that excellent tip! I always meant to use Gascooker's stuff more, but it often seemed so small next to the Paris/Spanish/Amsterdam buildings... Another time maybe. Thanks again man. aasim45: They certainly are great - I owe them everything in this CJ, lol. Thanks man. Vitruvius: 'Killing' is such a strong word, lol. I think it's run it's course, and it's time to call it a day. As for the guide (that's so cool you've bookmarked it btw ), the infill buildings don't need road access. That's the key to the look, and essential for it to work. You see, Xannepan's early Paris BATs, most of Porkissimo's early ones, and the majority of Erdmoebel's never needed road access, so you can easily edit those to form filler lots in the LE. If you wanna make your own fillers from scratch, then you just use a park lot or something and stick the appropriate props on that, and they'll never need roads either. The consequences if lots DO need roads are obvious, and annoying. ktsurfdk: I'm sure your grammar and wording are excellent, but I don't speak Dutch I'm afraid. The Dutch wording in my sig refers to Bienefeldt's Dutch CJ Lentbury, not me. I'm English. Glad you like the city, and best wishes/condolances for when you leave Europe! Thanks guys! EDIT: Just realised I forgot to reply to anselmthecrack, from the previous page. Sorry mate - must have scrolled too quick and missed you!! Thank you SO much for your marvellous rating too! And welcome to Simtropolis as well!!! As for the European buildings, I hope the above guide and the links there answer y

First post here, and it's amazing stuff Vitruvius. I like the row-home rectangles, they're really very effective. Personally, I like the Royal Quarter. That path from the beach to the palace - simple but it works really well. And I wouldn't mind living in those R$$$ suburbs... Keep up the great work... [EDIT: This post brings me the big 1-5-0! ]

First to comment on the first pic! Well, I'm in even more of a tennis mood with Wimbledon around the corner and now this. Nice complex you got there, but one suggestion - why not link it all together with paths and carparks like PEGs trail kit rather than one-way road. Might give a more parklike feel? I think the night lighting sets it all off great tho! Looking forward to more... EDIT: I just noticed the date of your last post... is this CJ finished, or sleeping? Sorry if I disturbed you early, lol, just clicked your sig-link and posted... Will

Eeeek, it sounds very painful what happened. My sympathies to you, because there's nothing worse than a stupid corruption knocking out something you've spent ages on. I'm with Gemika on backing-up to CD. My plugin folder is at 2.5gb (goodness knows how or why, lol) and thats quite a few CDs, but its worth it. I think of my plugins like a fragile ecosystem, where everything functions just right as one, but one little problem could blow the lot. Backing up regularly preserves it. No updates for five nine (haha I can't count) days - are you going to concentrate on a larger city then, because of the farm probs, or is this an end? I'd like to say tho, your sundown pic is astounding. Beautiful stuff.

Mickebear, I have great pleasure in commenting here - your CJ is absolutely stunning!!! What I really like is that it all seems to be complete, and we're getting a 'grand tour' of the finished article. I've never seen that before in a CJ, but it works superbly. It really gives the feeling of a proper, 'realistic' city that you're taking us around. I'm looking forward very much to the next update. Lol about the zoom level differences on updates. I know what you mean, I think people always like a close-up. And I can totally sympathise with you about the time stuff takes. I've got a 1gb of ram, and its still brain-deadeningly slow. On mine, the game itself takes about 8 mins to load, 6 mins for each city, and about 2 mins for the landmarks menu... Craziness. Keep up the great work!

Well, Kwakelaar, I don't know about a bang but I do plan to stop, yes. So I'm just trying to make the most of the last few updates, that's all. Glad you liked the last update. :: OTRANTO BUILDING GUIDE :: (* Beware = This is pic-heavy. But they're only 640x480s *) I mentioned in my last post the idea of posting some tips on how I build urban developments. This is not meant to be arrogant or self-absorbed or anything, it's just that I'd like to share what I've learned. Perhaps some people might find it helpful? Introduction As we all know, the majority of the BATs available for European cities come from a handful of BATters - Xannepan , Porkissimo , Erdmoebel , JEC and Vanderaap . With Otranto, I have found Xannepan's and Porkissimo's most helpful, but most of their creations (Xan's especially) are large lots that offer little scope for variations when you're in the game. Let me explain. What I mean is that in European cities, whether in England, France, Spain or anywhere, there are rarely rectangular or square 'blocks' with a boundary of buildings and a big space in the middle. Instead, there are courtyards, more buildings, and all sorts that make any European city a dense urban jungle. I also feel that Maxis' roads are way too wide for European cities, so this guide helps to build without too many roads. Check out this site of Paris aerial pics , and you'll see what I mean. * I stress that this is all eye-candy. It has to be, as you'll see that roads are not always necessary. * The Guide Preparation This style of building hinges on filler lots, which have no road restrictions, some of which you'll need to make in the LE. It's easy to do using Xannepan existing buildings many of which can be chopped down to 1x1 or 1x2. Porkissimo and Erdmoebel's buildings are both ploppable, with no road restrictions, so can go anywhere. You could even use Maxis' buildings to make some filler lots. 1.) Our blank canvas. 2.) Plop down some corner buildings. 3.) Fill in the gaps with some of your filler lots. 4.) And then fill in the middle space using more filler lots, varying patterns and shapes to create a dense urban space. Use all kinds of lots and different placings to create different effects. 5.) What about awkward shapes in the road like this? 6.) With Xannepan's lots, like this one, it's no problem. Use a 1x2 filler lot with details/windows on all sides to fill in the gap. You don't need to use a 90' corner lot everywhere! 6a.) Or with Porkissimo's 1x1 lot, make use of the decoration on the side of the building and place it at the end of a street. Try and find a lot that fits the remaining gap, like this other BAT of Porkie's. Lastly, I read on a CJ that some people where having trouble with Xannepan's new BATs: 7.) What you need to do is make sure you zone first, before you plop them. They're a mix of R and C, so zone that out. 8.) And then plop the BATs, and they should thrive. (Interestingly, I've noticed an increase in population/jobs because of these ones, but never any traffic? Wierd.) So, that's the end of the guide. I hope its been useful and shown you how to go from European cities that look like this before, to more realisitic ones that look like this: Hopes this helps!

It's PAGE 7!!!! Thank you everybody for all your comments and support thus far! 181 comments, 6000 views - is that a good ratio or not? Too many lurking viewers I suspect! Please post before it's too late.... For those new to the CJ and seeing it for the first time now, please be aware that this one is drawing to a close soon. BUT, I invite you to review the previous 6 pages and let me know what you think, while there's still time!! Your comments: jacqulina: Thank you again. I have enjoyed it, but it will be a bit sad. I must try and finish your park before the final whistle. Mickebear: I went and had a look at Marsalia - they do appear to be related. We obviously have the same Xannepan / Porkissimo / Vanderaap / JEC genes. You CJ is really quite superb - beautiful presentation and city-building. Excellent stuff! You've hit it bang on - the LE is the key to a 'realistic' city. It's a tip I've learned off Marrast in his Eladremme CJ. aasim45: Thank you so much! le_harv: That's really cool you were able to post here - I appreciate it. Glad you like the mix of old and new - and that you found the links useful! We'll have to see about the airport links. I'm afraid I've made most of the stuff myself, so it's not gonna be found anywhere but my PC. As for the lack of chavs, I've heard that Burbery still retains a certain 'credibility' in the fashion emporia of Otranto. You won't find a cap for less than 50 notes. And for chavs, it'd need to be less than a fiver, and with a dodgy Chinese label in the back. Lol, hopefully they're priced out of the market. Oh, and Fred Perry is straight banned here. pikatchoum: I aim to please! newy2: Thanks very much - I liked the rain one too, it came out better than expected. flappie: Thanks a lot man sheep Vitruvius: Thank you for such kind words! Dare you ask? Well I dunno... Impossible to count. I sometimes play Football Manager and it has a timer which scares me half to death. If SC4 had one, I'd probably have a coronary. Best not to think about it. Sounds to me like you're trying a bit too hard. Play a bit more freely and build continuously, and then you'll find your own style of play. When you've done a large section, you can go back and make alterations, but at least you'll have made a good start to feel upbeat about! Might keep Mrs Vitruvius more happy...? I'm gonna post some tips on how to make Otranto-style urban developments next time. Hope it will be helpful for you? Laters guys

:: UPDATE 11 :: The Seaside Town of Beaconsfield Beaconsfield is located in the southern corner of Hastings Bay, and is a picturesque development dating from a sixteenth century farming and fishing community. It became a popular tourist spot in the mid-nineteenth century, when affluent, middle-class Victorians used to travel across from England to sample the excellent sea air, the European lifestyle, and the luxurious hotel accomodation. It's position away from the main port area provides seclusion and tranquility. However, in recent decades, there has been much development around Beaconsfield with the construction of further housing developments to the north and across the bridge in Seer Ridge. The addition of the M2 out of Otranto to connect it with the port has provided a, perhaps unwanted, permanent connection to the metropolis. ^ Seer Ridge ^ ^ The historic town-centre, and the Church of St Mary. ^ ^ Gladstone Hall. This local manorial pile dating from the late eighteenth century was once on the periphery of the medieval farming hamlet. It now finds itself well within the town centre surrounded by nineteenth century development, but does good business as a tourist trap. ^ ^ A postcard of Beaconsfield from the 1920s. Little has changed in the centre since then, thanks to a strict and conservation-conscious town council. ^ ^ A recent new development along the cliffs to the north. ^ ^ The dead centre of town. ^ ^ Otranto Waste Facility lies across Junction 4 (M2 and M3) from Beaconsfield. ^ ^ Came across these cranes moving all over the map one time I was playing. Goodness knows what the game was trying to do. At least I got a pic of it. ^ Please excuse not replying to your comments yet, I will come back to those later. Can only do so much at one time! But, comments / suggestions for this update are very welcome!