Hammurabi

Hello all! I've loved SimCity 4 ever since I was a kid picking it up from Best Buy in the early 2000s (and The Sims even before that), and the incredible creativity of the mod community has always awed me, albeit maybe lead to a bit of carpal tunnel. Real life distracted me from city-building for a bit, but the bug bit me again recently, combined with the incredible recent DLL mods, both the ones I've installed that have increased stability about 1000%, and the mind-blowing 3D mod I'll install later as my cities grow bigger. I thought to help the hype train out, catalogue my newest city, and work on my writing, I'd put out a journal of my newest city, New Armonia, inspired by Zurich, Buenos Aires, and Cologne. We'll start humble, but if anyone could help out with a question I'll post later in either it's own thread or general, I'll be able to use SC4 Cartographer at least, and maybe more later! Let's begin. (OOC comments will be in italics.) The Black Mountains off the Seren Coast had long been a blockade against the expansion of the Germanian people towards its lucrative shoreline, in the year XX01 as New Armonia's chronicle begins, an isolated trading port only of use as a stopping point by Brazonian and Franzosich trade ships (and, in its unsavory past, pirates). A lack of ambition and technological advancement by the eastern Germanians would be amended, as our record will exhibit, in their push eastwards, and the founding of New Armonia on that very coast, which would later become the primate city of its country. To tell the tale of New Armonia, we must first speak of Armonia, the village furthest east which would later lend its name to the metropolis we inhabit, and which represents perhaps the soul, if not the success, the city and its leaders have lost in the face of its inevitable expansion. An artist's overview of Armonia in the year XX01 (Fareman). The old entrance to the village. A newcomer to Armonia would be immediately greeted by its crisp, unspoiled air, a village of abundant trees and covered paths. Indeed, its founders had emphasized the necessity of living in harmony with nature, and accepting it not as an obstacle, but a benefit to continued human habitation. The auto lot, though more an exhibition by "beloved" local peddlers for rich visitors at the time than a shop for locals, was still a popular gathering spot for its novelty. In the western foothills, across the River Bergama, laid a cradle of farms that at that time mainly supplied food for locals, rather than for export. A small collection of farmers' dwellings, where they both kept permanent house and sheltered workers during the most grueling months of labor, were considered a part of Armonia rather than a separate community. Without access to the sea, Armonia kept mostly subsistence farmers, limiting its growth. Assuming one did not cross this bridge, their path across the river's coast and Harmonia's outermost street would lead to a fork, as the dense trees to one's left gave way to mostly squat, brown brick or timber houses cross-hatched in the Germanian style. Once could either travel straight, keeping the forest to their left as they entered the city's dense network of forest pathways, or continue right towards the auto lot and the main crux of the village's urban habitation. The founders took great pride that the entire village could be traversed horizontally by foot, a vision that mostly survived even with the advent of early automobiles. A ranger's tower protected against dangerous local wildlife, mainly bears, though such threats had faded in recent years. A traveler following the street south-southeast would come to the village's main core, nestled either in the forests and paths or huddled by the coastline. This was where the village's other farmers, and those few those worked in its scant commerce at the time, resided, with a beautiful view of the river and forest on the cliff beyond. Those under the forests' canopy were the richest in the village, those who had helped found or otherwise funded Armonia. Armonia's urban core. The local bratwurst and beer stands were a village necessity. The main street leading northwards towards the village's chapel, centerpiece of the community, was traversable by sidewalk as well. It led to the city's monument to the known and unknown alike who had fallen in Armonia's founding and defense, called Remembrance Park. Two Angels of Remembrance watched over the shrines and multicolored flowers, to remind the Germanians of their due diligence towards vigilance and faith. The Angels of Remembrance. Armonia's chapel, where all would gather by foot on Sunday. Though a visitor would have little reason, as they approached the eastern edge of the city they could cross a bridge east and walk up a couple of hills to the local industrial core, unfortunately and inevitably very polluting with an exclusive use of imported coal. A local landfill had also been built too close to the factory, and had created even more noxious fumes. Luckily, the growth was halted before too much damage was caused, and serious effect on air and water pollution for the village was avoided. A carpool system transported workers with one automobile to the factories; this would evolve into the town's bus line. A new, more efficient landfill was constructed in the dense trees between the coal factory and the western farms, to minimize its impact. As one reached the eastern-most edge of the town, they'd be confronted with the River, where development had ceased on its opposite shoreline due to lack of will for another bridge. Thus, they'd be advised to take the sloping path north, where a new collection of farms dotted the gently sloping hill to the chapel's left as the River's path righted itself straightward. An inn was available on the eastern end of town for visitors. The couple of fields on the hill left of the chapel are tilled by church members; they will rise, attend to worship, and then work with the sun lighting the chapel under them. In the very north of this stretch of farms had sprouted a new community, almost isolated enough to be its own hamlet. The farmers that resided here would spread their fields and houses farther east, as far as the mountains would allow; this event, which we will record in the next entry, played large part in the founding of the Port of Armonia, and then New Armonia itself. A humble farming community, whose push east for more land would portend much greater things. North: Farm Road. South: Gothic Road. Two roads lead to the very eastern edge of Germanian expansion in the foothills of the mountains, the former leading to the farmers' lots. The visitor taking the main road would take the southernmost way, the Gothic Road, and be led a few last hamlets before the sublimation of civilization by scarcely-mapped forest and rock. The unification of these two roads, and the events that would lead to the founding of the Port of Armonia and a beginning shift towards an export-based economy, will be chronicled in our following two chapters.

This does very much remind me of some not very pleasant places and 70s relics. Love the narrative.

Wow, amazing looking city! Love the Spanish architecture.

Beautiful

Wow beautiful city. Love the canals at night

Does anyone know if this site is archived somewhere or if the creator is still active? It's full of great information but when I tried to shoot him an email I was hit with a 404. Would hate for the site to go down before the info is saved.

Wow... I'd love to live here.

Hey guys, I've been playing city builders for a few years now and SimCity 4 is my favorite. I hope I can come to you guys if I need any help, that would be great. My artistic skills are complete crap or I'd try making assets lol.