And Now For Something Completely Different

No, I'm not conducting a class on How Not To Be Seen. I have said elsewhere that I need a break from the Portown Project, and that I would eventually return to it. At present, anything more that I might do with Portown requires a level of skill and knowledge about modeling that I do not possess. I have turned my attention to other projects, but some of these also have some pretty strict requirements regarding how they must look (specifically Aduiltham, an elf compound similar to Rivendell). I need something that I can experiment with, something that is not strictly defined – at least, not as yet.

So we travel about 1000 miles south to Yethlyreom*. An ancient city-state, it is removed both in distance and in time. It is located in the rain shadow of a mountain range at a latitude that gets little rain to begin with. In addition, there is also a dust bowl effect from over farming and forest depletion. As if these things weren't enough, there is a rift valley nearby with volcanoes that throw ash on top of the dust. Even in its prime, water would have been a treasured commodity, except that the Yethlyri feared large bodies of water. In the pantheon of their religion were Cthulhu, Tsathoggua, Dagon and “Mother Hydra” (Blidoolpoolp), and as a result they abhorred the sea, lakes and the like. They prayed to the remaining gods of the pantheon to protect them from these four. Unfortunately for them, the remaining gods of the pantheon were not especially benevolent. Yethlyreom is now a ruined and abandoned city half buried in 1000 years worth of dust, sand and ash.

The city lies in a complex crater (Learn about it here), with the palace, a public square and the temple built upon the summit of the central mound, and the necropolis is built on the rim of the crater (Oh, the plans I have for that...). Due to the environmental factors mentioned above, the ruins of Yethlyreom and the land surrounding it for miles and miles is a dusty, ashy wasteland.

Below is the palace of the King/Emperor/Overlord/whatever-I-eventually decide to call him. I'm especially tickled by the mosaic of Thasaidon on the second floor. I took a picture from the internet, altered it in GIMP, they used the mosaic feature to create a jpg. Then I imported the jpg into Sketchup.

Here also is the same palace, after lots of weathering. Basically, it has been beat to hell by the elements – save water. The wood has survived, but the integrity of the timbers is completely destroyed.

 

Imagine it covered in dust, sand and ash as well. In fact the whole first floor is probably buried.

 

This is an exciting project for me as I am learning things that I can use elsewhere -- like a coastal settlement you may be familiar with. The erosion was done using the Erode extension. I like it, but the finished product is huge in terms of memory. Towards the end, Sketchup became very slow. There are probably many other things to learn. Considering that I've been modeling for about six months or so, I don't think this is too bad.

 

Next up, the temple. With the coming holidays, I wouldn't expect any new posts to appear before sometime in January. I will still be reachable, however.

 

Best to all, A

* Most of the names mentioned in this post come from the fiction of H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith. I am using them for non-profit purposes and without permission or apology.

Playing Demons and Devils

The AD&D system does little to convey the sense of evil of two of the most iconic specimens of evil: devils and demons.

A review of the listings in the various monster tomes describes devils and demons as essentially a cross of other species, similar to manticores and griffons. They are a list of statistics. This denies the experience of supernatural evil that these beings embody. A better conception of a demon is that of J.R.R. Tolkien's Balrog. The creature is described as a being of 'shadow and flame.' This is substantially different from the AD&D version of these creatures. I attempt to keep the following in mind when playing these NPC's.

Devils are more than just humanoids with shocking features, such as horns and hooves. They delight in suffering. They do not kill for the sake of killing. Devils play by rules – but will twist them to their advantage. In the end, they do play by rules because they are lawful beings, and as a result devils roam free. They will not just arbitrarily kill Bob the Barbarian. Instead they will target those people and things that are important to Bob, who to whom Bob is important. For example, a devil will prefer to torture Bob to cause pain and anguish to Larry the Lord and Patricia the princess. The greater the devil, the greater the scheme. A lesser devil might torture and enslave Bob just for the hell of it. More 'sophisticated' devils are likely to torture Bob so that Larry and Patricia can see it. Further, they will trick Bob in to thinking that Larry and Patricia have abandoned and forsaken him, causing Bob more anguish and more emotional pain for Larry and Patricia as well. Morgoth is a good example in The Silmarillion. He tortured Hurin by giving the ability to see the results of his machinations against Hurin's children. Sauron, Morgoth's servant, by contrast was far less sophisticated, as his chief aim was deception for purposes of enslavement.

Devils are likely to regard demons as 'baby evil' – unsophisticated, but something to be fond of, nonetheless. Demons are interested in destruction and defilement. They will kill merely to create chaos and to satisfy bloodlust. Worse, they take pleasure in defiling the sacred, even to the extent of violating human bodies. Causing a human's nose to move around their body so that it is permanently placed just over their ass would strike a demon as hilariously amusing. Demons flaunt rules, and for this reason, their tenure on the Prime Material Plane tends to be limited in some way. For example, they may be able to wield their power without limit, but not be allowed to leave the place of their conjuring. Night of the Demons is a good example.

While demons and devils do have some physical characteristics, they should be played as being supernatural – like Tolkien's Balrog. Care, however, should be taken to avoid describing them according to the elements – just because one is made of smoke doesn't require one made of fog. Yes, this is a deliberate swipe at the Fiend Folio and the thought behind it, the idea that we must fill every category in an ordered fashion. Just because a shadow world exists, does not mean that we must have a lawful good shadow were-weird fighting the underwater pseudo quasi hyper-aerated mer-elemental. Demons and devils are more than mutated physical creatures – this isn't Gamma World! These are beings who are there and not-there. If players confronted with these beings go immediately into strategy, thinking about magic resistance and magical weapons and such, you've lost some of the flavor of demons and devils, as well as that of fantasy RPG's in general.

It is sometimes best to to follow the lead of horror writers. Rather than telling the players what it is, start with a description of the evidence they observe that this thing is interacting with their physical world. Show them footprints, describe a smell, use very descriptive and figurative language. H. P Lovecraft often made mention of the Unnameable, both in the sense of being taboo to discuss but also the lack of words to describe it. In this there was a degree of horror. How will you describe non-Euclidean geometry or Cyclopean geometry to players without using those terms? How do you convey gravity that is wrong, colors that are sentient, reality that is unreal? Or actions that betray a shocking un-morality, without stooping to the merely vulgar by engaging in simple shock value like a group of teenage boys? Will you subtly change the background music during the game (aren't remote controls great?)? These are the things that demons and devils are made of, and to play them otherwise is to suck the magic out of a game that has magic as part of its basic premise. Here, perhaps more than anywhere else, the ability to maintain the suspension of disbelief is paramount. Any game system can only provide a framework. The transmission of the message of horror, terror, and evil is the responsibility of the DM.

Should you have any tips you'd like to share, remember that comments are always welcome.

Continuity

In a previous post of I have stated that that Portown is one of two port cities along a long coastline. This is due to the saltmarsh and instability of the soil along much of the coast. Most towns are several miles inland.

“Most” of course is not “all.” There are many fishing villages along the coast, built with the flimsiest of structures. In fact, there is a village that bears a similarity to Venice, in that there are a number of little marsh isles upon which homes are built, with fishing boats moored right along side. The channels are “streets.”

There is also an area about 25 - 75 miles west of Portown, called Montydo in Kemen. The area is similar to the Everglades, though smaller. Near the coast it is mangrove and saltmarsh, while further inland it eventually becomes freshwater swamp. It is here that the Temple of the Frog is located. If you do not have this module by Dave Arneson, you are missing out.

Those of you who have or have read the module know that there are some things to explain, and by this I mean “Saint Stephen.”

In Kemen, a common form of salutation is, “Greetings, traveller.” (For space and other considerations, I will not translate this into the local tongue.) However, there is another kind of traveller, and I make the distinction by spelling it Travellor. Travellors are beings that have found a way to cross into Kemen through means of n-dimensional travel. For those familiar with Robert Heinlein's The Number of the Beast, Saint Stephen is a Black Hat. Those who arrive via regular interstellar means are referred to as Visitors.

This explains the presence of certain other … beings … in Kemen. You do not need to know this. It is however an example of creating a sense of personal continuity. Some of the TSR modules mixed fantasy and sci-fi, in part as a deliberate attempt to spin off other games and make money. Often, there was no coherent or satisfactory explanation for the juxtaposition.

Personally, I don't like that. I think that it shatters the suspension of disbelief for these things to mix without a defined context, and I'll not have such things in my campaign to satisfy the marketing campaign of a now defunct company.

Further, in the rare cases that a plausible context is suggested, it is pretty thin. In response, I find that it is best to tailor my own context, to devise a backdrop that fits with the flavor of my campaign. In the spirit of Gygax's oft repeated mantra that the DM is the final arbiter of what occurs in his or her campaign, rulebooks notwithstanding – what I refer to as the DM Standard License – I encourage everyone to do the same. It's your world. Don't let someone else tell you how to run it. That includes me. The information that I offer on this blog is meant to inspire. It is not unalterable gospel -- unless you are on Kemen.

Portowners Are Stinky

Here is another way we can use available facts about Portown and the Portown 3D model to craft adventures.

Portown's fresh water comes from a number of wells, which themselves are fed by the underground river known to exist from the original dungeon map by J. Eric Holmes. The only other available source of freshwater is the small pond behind the bath house in the model. The bath house uses water from this pond for the baths. The owner of the bath house has asked Lord Baron Krindell (Sir Travis in Pinnell's module) to prohibit others from using the pond's waters. Krindell has declared that these waters are for all to use – because the bath house refused to pay his price in exchange for sole use. Since this is the only bath house in town and water is not abundant, most residents rarely bathe. The wealthier residents sometimes do and sometimes even visit the bath house, but the usual customers there are sailors who have just arrived in port and received their wages and share. As a result, the wealthy tend to go only when there is not a ship in port. Residents instead visit the markets to buy perfumes and personal scents.

This question about the source of fresh water leads to another question: where does the, um, “not-so-fresh” water go?

Into the sewer of course, but where does the sewer water go? The Portown sewers were built over top of the ruins of the old city. From there, none know.

How does all this lead to an adventure...?

“ENOUGH! Speak plainly!” commanded Thal Krindell, Lord Baron of Portown.

“I will speak as commanded milord,” said Yorell, the travelling mystic and magician. “But none save the Lord Baron himself can know what he will hear,” he added stingingly. Before anyone could speak of his impertinence he went on.

“From where comes the water that the people of Montydo (Portown, see below*) draw from their wells? From what unknown aquifer flows this stream?” he asked of the assembled hall. Playing to the crowd, he asked, “To where do your sewers flow? And how can you know when there are none left alive that saw them builded?” He paused to allow these questions to sink in.

“Montydo was built on top of an older city...a much older city. Its sewers lie on top of the streets of its older sister, and into them flow the wastes of your townsfolk. Down these ruined streets to what sewers there once were, and on to where none can say.”

“So you say!” yelled out Tymos, the baron's most senior retainer and captain of his guard. The man glanced at the Lord Baron, then quickly hung his head and looked to the floor, evidently in fear of some reprimand.

“You would speak, Tymos?” asked the Lord Baron.

The man kneeled. “Forgive my outburst, milord! It grieves me to stand witness as this charlatan weaves a tapestry of lies and midwifery, as if to beguile you!”

“Then you shall put your questions to him, and I shall listen.” Tymos turned and smiled with venom.

“You say that there are none left alive who saw the sewers built. How then know you where they run? Save that your undertaker knows not his work!”

“You need not believe me about where your sewers run,” said Yorell, “nor upon that which your city is builded. Are not the sewers there? Who among you has seen such building, such stonework? And where, Captain, do the sewer waters go?”

“I have not been in the habit of frequenting sewers, magician,” said Tymos, spitefully.

“Nor I,” said Yorell, laughing. “Neither am I a lich.” Then, this to the Lord Baron: “If you know not where comes your water, you know not what you drink, milord. If you know not where your sewers go, might they not go to and come from the same place?

“I have travelled far,” he continued speaking to the room, “and heard tales from other cities, and other towns, that your sister city lies beneath you. Swallowed up she was, by sea and earth, together with her people and her riches. Now, you and your people eat and sleep over them all, and in the morning empty your chamber pots into their streets. Pray her sewers do not come full, lest your own city be swallowed by your own refuse.”

Krindell sat back in his plush hair, in thought. He had perked up at the mention of riches. “And you seek leave to explore the filth filled sewers in service to the people of Montydo?”

“I, alone, wouldn't dare. There are also stories of Zenopus...” At the mention of the name, a shadow seemed to cross the faces of those in the room.

Yet, in the Lord Baron's face was reflected the signs of a strategy, fast forming. “Tymos, you will take two men and accompany our friend Yorell here, and report back to me.”

Tymos made move to object, but catching his lord's eye, subsided in submission.

It was decided.

Later, as the castle slept, Tymos met Yorell in the darkened hall.

“An equal share, then?” asked Tymos.

“Fool! Clever as was our intrigue today, think not that Krindell is besotted! He sent you to watch me, do you think that he will not send another to watch us both? Nay, we must see that the portion we bring him is large enough to rest his suspicions, and divide the rest between us. Perhaps, the journey will become treacherous though, hmm? Were the two us alone to survive and return, we could divide the portions as we see fit, hiding our shares and stealing back to collect them at our leisure. But for Krindell's portion, amongst we two, equal shares.”

“On the morrow, then?”

“On the morrow, at the Green Dragon. And rest well, for we will have need of more than our greed to sustain us.”

And as they parted, they knew not that they were overheard by one hidden in the shadows...

So, a greedy lord, a pair of conspirators, a shadowy figure... Of course one wouldn't read this to the players, except perhaps as an epilogue.

You will have to design the sewers, but I see these as about four to five feet wide, perhaps six feet high covered with a tightly fitted stone arch, running roughly east to west. Side sewers would contribute to the main line, most in the form of a 3 foot diameter pipe. The Cloaca Maxima in Rome is much larger, so this fits in terms of technology. I imagine the sewers to be at a slightly greater depth than the first level of Holmes' Sample Dungeon. The second level of the Holmes dungeon would be about the same level as the sewers, with the third level being the first joint level. This is consistent with Holmes' split level dungeon ideas.

          Holmes Dungeon                      Sewer

                  I                                            ---

                 II                                         Sewer, first level below sea level

                 III                                        Upper Ruins

The sewer level should include holes in the earth where water pours into the the upper ruins. This should be a fair drop, perhaps a cascade. The upper ruins should be full of raw sewage, and Portown's favorite son: rats. No really worthwhile treasure should be found until a significant depth is reached, and there should be real danger in taking it.

Our friend, Tymos, will be bringing two men with him (one of them a spy for the Lord Baron), so of course Yorell will feel outnumbered. He will hire PC's from the 'Dragon. Somewhere along the line treachery will occur, but will it be Tymos and Yorell killing or abandoning the rest, or will the conspirators turn on each other? What of the shadowy figure? A thief perhaps, or maybe a spy for the Order of Daegon? Will anyone return from the depths of this suburb of Y'ha-nthlei...?

* Portown is a known entity among many players, so I disguise it by changing the name to the local dialect. Guess what Montydo means...

Errata

Greetings all,

As I promised here is a post of errata - things that didn't make it into the model or things that I wanted to do but couldn't - or haven't yet.

I previously mentioned wanting to get a jpg of Portown from the window of the Green Dragon.

I would like to add light sources. In one version of the model, I had one of those wagon wheel chandelier things with candles on it in the main dining hall, but it did not make it into subsequent models. So I picture a couple of those around. I imagine oil lamps in the kitchen, and some type of lantern in the game rooms throwing light upon the game boards while leaving the rest of the room in relative shadow.

I'm really not at all satisfied with the windows. I would prefer some sort of diamond paned glass, still in a square wooden casing. Also, I think that in a seaport shutters would be most appropriate.

My biggest complaint about the Green Dragon Inn model and the Portown model is actaully a complaint about the Sketchup software -- it's too clean. I picture Portown as a town full of buildings covered in salt spray. Various places in disrepair and decay, full of rough edges. There really isn't a way of conveying this in Sketchup, short of creating your own materials, which is no small task.

I would also like to add more unique and singular architectural pieces -- friezes, bas reliefs, etc, even some stone gargoyles.

As I told a new acquiantance recently, it feels as though I've spent most of my summer and fall in Portown. I think I may need to take some time away from it, but I know that I will eventually return. Until then, I will undoubtedly continue to use 3D modelling in my campaign, and to use this blog to describe some of the details of Kemen. I hope that you find something useful here.

Best, A

As Above, So Below?

Here is a quick 3D model of a dungeon level that I did last night. It looks like a cross between a Tron movie and a 1980's neon nightmare, but there is a reason.

This "level" is from a dungeon that is actually a magical tower. PC's climb up through the "manhole," marked red in the image. Each color is about 5-10' below the previous color. The colors by height: red, orange, yellow, brown, light green, dark green.

The light blue areas are ramps. As it happens, this structure was not built to cater to human type creatures. The grade on most of the ramps is extreme. Gentle enough to go down perhaps, but going back up will prove difficult. Imagine moving from the brown level to the green level via the ramp in the image above, only to discover an indigenous inhabitant(s) who chooses to behave aggressively in response to your trespassing. Going back the way you came will prove difficult.

This ramp is about twenty feet high. Maybe you could slide down. Maybe you're about to feed something nasty that has learned that sometimes dinner comes from above.

This idea could be used for pre-human cities buried beneath Portown, with the direction reversed. Non-human cities would have an infrastructure and geometry that looks very different from what we might be used to.

Best, A

IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING FILES

Since these files are large, there has been some difficulty in sharing them through email. Therefore I have set them up on Google Drive. If you are interested in downloading them, email or post and I will add you to the share drive.

The Green Dragon Inn, 3D model

Greetings All,

First, some genealogy. In 1977, J. Eric Holmes wrote the Basic Rules edition of Dungeons and Dragons. Included in it was a sample dungeon near a town called Portown.

Later, a person known to me only as Paleologos created and published on the web a map of a Portown, which he or she based off of a port on the island of Crete (2012). With the permission of Paleologos, R.C. Pinnell published his own version of the town (2013), complete with a user expandable key.

In 2014, with Mr. Pinnell's permission, I published a 3D model of Portown using Sketchup ( a free 3D modeling tool - get it here ). The current model of the Green Dragon is based on Pinnell's floorplans.

Now for the fun! I had intended to imbed this model into the Portown model and provide a view of Portown from inside the Green Dragon. I have been unsuccessful. I'll keep trying and maybe one day I can do that.

Below is the exterior of the assembled model.

Note, that this includes the cellar and a third floor. The third floor is my own addition. It includes an additional Common Room (because as a large and popular inn, the Dragon is popular with sailors, and one ship's crew can easily use up the limited bunks; and it is sometimes advisable to separate crews...), some more private rooms and suites, a maid's quarters, and a secret library for magical research accessed from the second floor. The kegs and casks in the cellar are pretty heavy, and summoning a demon or devil to work the Friday night barback shift would draw unwanted attention, so I imagine the owners hire help. The upstairs maids' quarters is for the young peasant girls who are working until they are married off (or whatever other scenario is convenient). The door is located around the corner and out of site of the Common Room and the door locks from the inside; a precaution against drunken sailors.

Here is an exploded view.

Once you have downloaded and installed Sketchup, send me an email or post a comment here and I will send you the file. Then you can explore it all you wish, including the third floor which is under the roof. Use the Orbit tool (looks like a red and green top) to examine the model from any angle. Use the Zoom tool (magnifying glass; if you have a wheel mouse this is much easier) to push through the window and explore the inside. Also, the Pan tool is helpful (looks like a hand). The images posted here are JPEGs, and can be clicked to enlarge. Unfortunately, I cannot post the Sketchup file here.

Feel free to post any questions about the model or Sketchup here, and I was answer as best as I can. Over the next week or so I will post Errata: things I wanted to do but couldn't figure out how, things I might try one day, things I thought of too late, and perhaps some fun background. Remember, this is all free.

Have fun and best wishes,
-A

Green Dragon Release

Greetings All,

My 3D model of the Green Dragon will be released later today. I am trying to integrate it with the larger Portown model. True to form the Dragon model gave me trouble right up to the end. Now I'm having some difficulties getting Portown to do what I want, though all this might just mean I need a more powerful computer, as mine is "ancient" in computer years. Stay tuned!

GDI progress

Hello all,

The third floor/garret level is nearly complete. Too tired to finish it tonight. Some furnishings, a ceilings or two and it will be done. I will then move on to final assembly (sounds like a bomb, doesn't it?) and final cladding. I hope to release the jpg's for the models next Friday. It's looking pretty cool...

Best, A.

Update

Greetings,

The ground floor is complete, the second windows are in, and I expect to have the second floor complete by the end of this weekend. I figure a week before the model is complete, though there could always be unforeseen setbacks.

Regarding the Portown model, once you have the model, you can use the Sketchup tools to explore it. The orbit tool looks like a red and green top. Use this to change your perspective on the model. If you hold SHIFT while you are using the orbit tool, it activates the pan feature. You can use the zoom tool zoom into any part of the model. A wheel mouse makes this very easy. Otherwise, you'll have to use the zoom button, which can be cumbersome.

Doing this may raise questions about the model, and I've created a list of answers to what I expect are the common ones.

First, a word about the campaign. I have shamelessly borrowed, used, modified and grafted from many different sources. I use Tolkien's elvish languages in my campaign, but there are others. To avoid copyright infringement, I will 'translate' any names or copyrighted material into something of approximate meaning that will keep me from being sued. These will be preceded with an asterisk.

In Kemen, Portown is busy port city, as it is one of only two cities along 500 miles of coastline that has both a natural deep water harbor and soil compact and stable enough to support building. There are trade routes to the south, and these connect Portown to a number of other centers of trade. The difference of course is that Portown has access to the sea. The climate is similar to Florida or the Caribbean, and the winds blow from the west-southwest. Though not as destitute as some villages, it is only the abundance provided by its position on the trade routes that allow for some of the luxuries the town enjoys. Though not the dressed stone extravagance of Minax Daro to the east, Portown's building are of brick or wood planks with wooden shingles rather than thatch. Architectural features are very limited.

 

There are three main sources of legitimate industry in Portown: the sea, trade, and local shops. “The sea” includes fishermen, sailors and seamen on vessels of all types, and all associated trades such as ship building, sail making, and hook and linemen. “Trade” refers to merchants in charge of overseeing the transportation and storage of goods and commodities, owners of warehouses, caravan organizers etc. “Local shops” includes local carpenters stonemasons, taverns and inns, and any local trades.

Almost no raw food production occurs in Portown. Most is brought in by merchants. In addition to trade, Portown in known for some manufactured goods. In addition to hooks, lines and sails, candles, pig iron, and some textiles occur here as well.

There are, of course, illegitimate industries as well. These are robbery and theft, underground slave trade, and magic.

The “quarter” directly south of the warehouse district is the least affluent, and most buildings include several residences. In fact, the larger buildings are apartments and tenements (Roman insulae [apartment buildings] were often ten stories high, and medieval Egyptian apartments have been reported to be 14 stories high – for those who are concerned about historical accuracy), with many rooms on upper floors. Often, there are external staircases, usually of dubious construction and maintenance. Hand rails are considered a luxury ( and, I didn't feel like doing them). Others have interior staircases.

Notes

• Why do the buildings have siding? For variety. Pretend it is unfinished wood.
• Why do most of the buildings have the same roof material? Guilds and available materials. In my campaign, Portown is a warm water port and lumber is plentiful. Where there are similarities, assume guilds or convenience.
• Why are there no windows on the west walls? In my campaign, Portown is located in a warm weather region. Western windows are limited to keep out the heat. Mostly where they occur it is on upper levels to help create cross ventilation.
• Why are the buildings in the merchant quarter so low? Most to the merchants have their shop on the main level, and a sleeping loft above. This loft is not usually large enough to stand up in.
• Warehouses: These are made of brick. Inside, many have second levels many of tightly fitted oak. This usually for the storage of foodstuffs like grain and the like, and is designed to keep rodents out.
• Shipwright: This building has a lower floor that is designed for shipbuilding. There is a cradle inside, rather than a true drydock , but this is on rollers so that a vessel in progress can be rolled outside to be finished. Stairs along the west wall lead to a cross shaped living and storage area. It is cross ventilated by octagonal windows.
• Sailmaker's: There are in fact a number of sailmakers here, and more than one project going on at a time. There second floor is accessed from the outside stairs. It is a cross shaped space that is used by the sailmakers and their apprentices. The position includes room and board.
• What's going on with that trench? This is intended to be more representational than accurately to scale. I thought it might be useful for those intending to run a Shadow Over Innsmouth type adventure. Pretend it's further out to sea if you like. I didn't intend it to be quite as deep as it turned out, but when I attempted to change it, the model started to unravel so I left it. It's possible that it may have some breakwater effect upon the inlet, but I'm no expert. Have fun with it. Or change it. Whatever. (This feature is covered by the “sea.” It may possible to 'zoom' beneath the sea, or perhaps make the layer not visible to view the trench. I don't know, I haven't had the chance to try).
• What can you tell me about the scale of the model? Not much. I imported the original map into Sketchup, and used the scale from that map. I converted the distance into pixels and then into inches. Three inches in Sketchup works out to about 3.5 feet. I may have screwed this up, but I screwed it up consistently and used the same scale throughout.
• How come it looks all perfect? I would love it if there was a tool that would weather things, beat them up a bit. I imagine that all the buildings along the water are covered in a layer of salt from the sea, and that certain houses are less maintained than others. Perhaps, if I were Rembrandt and were willing to make custom materials for all these places, and I were willing to devote more time to this, that would be possible. But I'm not. Besides, this file is already large and ungainly.

Feel free to post any other questions you may have and I'll answer as soon as I can.

 

Best, A.

GDI Update

Just a quick note that the windows problem has been solved and I am now completing the cladding on the ground floor. The cellar is complete, and I expect the ground floor to be complete within a day or two. I expect the second floor to move along quickly. The third floor may be tricky. I do not expect to complete the model until 10/12...but given the difficulties I've experienced so far I can't make any promises. This project has already taken nearly as long as the original Portown 3D model.

Once again, this model is available for free. You will need to download Sketchup 2014, a free download. Then simply post or email a request for the file.

Images are one thing but I don't think that I can post Sketchup files for download here, or else I would.

Be well, A.

Windows on the world

Greetings All,

I apologize for the lateness of this post.

The Dragon is nearly done, though I am having some difficulty with the windows. I should have some time this week to do quite a bit and hopefully complete. Kate Upton is right, modeling is hard. ;).

So it will most likely be October, but I do think the final result will be worth it.

Best, A.

GDI Update

Greetings!

As I feared, this is taking longer than I had hoped. I essentially started from scratch earlier this week, with the previous model informing the current. On the brighter side, the work is going smoothly and quickly, so I anticipate being able to offer it in less than two weeks.

As I mentioned, I started from scratch. Yet, the interior is coming along very quickly and with greater detail. The original model did not include the cellar, though I'd thought about adding it later. The current model has the cellar, and the ground floor (including game rooms, bar, kitchen and dining hall). What remains are the upper floors which I expect to go quickly.

I had originally planned for the 'Dragon to be three floors above ground plus an attic/garret. Though the final decision has not yet been made, I am leaning toward two floors and the garret. Basically, that would mean one less upper floor. The floor plan as designed by R.C. Pinnell seems sufficient, and making an additional floor, though not difficult, seems out of character for the place. If Portown were a larger city, perhaps.

Feel free to weigh in on this through comments or email. I look forward to being able to reveal the Green Dragon soon.

A.

The Green Dragon Inn

Greetings!

I did say that I would update on Fridays, and there's still a few minutes left in Friday.

I was hoping that this would be less involved, but at the moment it appears unlikely that I will make the 9/20 date. But what the hell, here's a sneak peek.

The first floor is nearly complete, but I have much to do, and learn, before this will be a completed project. I'm also doing some reverse engineering, which is stupid of me. I suppose it says something of me that the projects I undertake often include far more detail than any but me notices.

Stay well,
-A

Updates

Greetings!

It would be reasonable to assume that I would post some pictures of my Sketchup file of Portown and that would be pretty much the end of this blog.

Reasonable, but wrong.

I am continuing to update the file, and will post new versions of the model and other D&D or Kemen related content on Fridays. I hope to make that every Friday, but let's face it, RL intrudes.

That said, I have not been idle. There will be a significant release on or about 9/20, with release notices on DF and possibly G+. Those who maintain an interest in Portown, or any DM on prowl for something that he can twist to fit his or her campaign would be advised to have a look.

Best Wishes to All,
levallon, the Architect ( silly, isn't it?)

Portown in 3D

[Edited]
In the 1970's, a man name J. Eric Holmes wrote the Basic version of Dungeons and Dragons. This was the now familiar "blue book" of rules that so many of us began with. His "Portown" sample dungeon became an iconic encounter that inspired many.

One of those many was Paleologos, who in 2010 created a map of Portown. Another was R.C. Pinnell, who in 20913 published a map and partial key of Portown based on Paleologos' work. I took his map, imported it into Sketchup and created a 3-d model.

Here are some .jpg images of what I have so far.

I am continuing to update it. The file is huge, but the more detail I can add the happier it makes me, and that's this is all about. I'll post updates occasionally. Anyone who wants to use my Sketchup file needs only to download Sketchup (it's free) and ask me for the file.

Welcome!

Welcome! I've decided to use this blog to post some details about my D&D campaign, Kemen. To some this will sound incredibly geeky. Feel free to move along to some political blog or celebrity picture site. I wouldn't want to bore you.