New Byzantium's Arcane Tower, Bazaar, Merchant's Guild, Barracks, Jail-house, Temple, Casbah and Inn, Warehouse & Baig's Home are erected. I have also built three dungeons already.
Singidun's Warehouse, Marketplace and Merchant's Guild, Temple Academy Complex, Hospice and Magistrate's Home are built as well.
Parisii's Warcamp and Great Hall, Market House, Barracks, Training hall, Mead Hall and Church are erected.
Glastenbury Tor's Tower was already there, as many of the Britannia structures from Europa I, so most of that is done already.
After a well deserved weekend off and a good feast of lobster, I will begin decorating all of the interiors and adding secret passages, etc. I predict this will be completed by the end of June. At that time I will add the NPC houses and decors. As fortune would have it, I got a summer teaching contract, which will eat-up most of my time in July. But building Europa is a pro-bono gig, I gotta pay the bills somehow. LOL
Hopefully soon I will hear form Nicethugbert about the exterior terrains made from L3DT software and converted to NWW2.
A word on the exterior terrains in Europa II. Much talk on the Bioware sites rant on and on about the value of 'eye candy' in a terrain, exalting high levels of visually pleasing content versus the amounts of terrains offered. Many servers have many more interior areas than exterior, which to me is absurd.
A world isn't inside, it's outside.
Europa WILL sport an impressive interior count, 60 just in the 4 starting cities. Add to this the 40 explorable caves, mines, crypts and ruins scattered throughout Europa, and you will have 100 interior areas. But an equal amount of exterior areas will also be available...
...of these exterior areas, you will see open air structures, abandoned sanctuaries, swampland ruins, etc. What you will NOT see is tons of RAM eating decor. Beautifying an exterior area doesn't add to a quest, it doesn't add to the story plot or make the game any more fun...it is what it is, 'eye candy', nothing more. Europa II will work on the premise of content. More quests as opposed to forests of individually generated trees and waterfalls with dazzling effects.
YES, we will strive to make our terrains attractive, appealing to the player, but if there is interesting content such as a stony outcrop or a waterfall, it will be because there is MORE to it, than meets the eye... [grins evilly].
So, I end my rant. Europa II will be dedicated to content and player's suggestions like the ability to build your own home, tent or tower. It will use player based crafting as the main source for magical items. IF all goes well, Europa II will also boast a territory conquest system, as we had suggested in Europa I, where players can form alliances and conquer, invade and defend territories. But, that is a tale for another time...
Erik.
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