I managed to build up to, and then past, the City of Gauntlet in the past week, which is actually something of a departure from how I’d planned to build the map for the game. My primary reason for doing so was that I want to avoid building desert areas for the moment, in the hope that in the next iteration or two of the tilesets I’m using, the desert area will get fleshed out a bit (at present, it is painfully basic).

There are 23 new screenshots on the sidebar that show off not only the City of Gauntlet but the region surrounding it, which I have taken to calling the Gauntlet Plains. This regional naming scheme is helping me prioritize development, and overall I seem to be keeping up a decent pace.

The City of Gauntlet, in New Sosaria, can be considered as being analogous to a fusion of Trinsic and Serpent’s Hold — it’s the military city that houses the various knight orders on the island. Geographically, it is also the Sosarian city that is closest to the Ophidian capital, and it is defended by tall, strong walls out of fear of an invasion.

The updated tileset is earning its keep…and the upgrade was, thankfully, painless.

There are eleven new screenshots on the right-hand sidebar showcasing some of the new areas that follow along the ‘The Great Road‘, the north-to-south road that connects two large Sosarian cities: the City of Gauntlet and the City of Ponder. Notable scenes include the beach terrain and a look at how smoothly the new Seasonal Forest tileset transitions between beach and grass terrain, and from then to hills.

[Show as slideshow]

I’d also like to point out these two shots (above) in particular, because they illustrate how what one sees in the NWN toolset appears during game play. I noticed this angle while adjusting the road placement through this patch of trees and grabbed a screenshot of it, and then tried to re-compose the shot in-game.

Oh, and don’t mind the name of the character, ‘Abby the Avatar’, in the new screenshots. You won’t be playing Lost Sosaria as the Avatar, and Abby probably won’t appear in it at all (unless I decide to make her a joke NPC). In the Aurora Toolset, you can hit F9 to jump right in to the game, which will pre-load the module you are working on and select the alphabetically first character in the list of pre-made characters so that you can explore your work. I was getting tired of the pink-clad elf lady, so I made Abby here…’Abby’ coming before ‘Aluvain’ in normal alphabetic sorting.

Tags: Aurora Toolset, Avatar, City of Gauntlet, City of Ponder, Lost Sosaria, NPC, NWN, Seasonal Forest, Sosaria, The Great Road

I see that Lord of Worms has released the new version of the Seasonal Forest tileset that is providing so much of the graphical beauty in Lost Sosaria’s map areas, and I’m looking forward to trying the new version tonight. Seasonal Forest, incidentally, is the tileset featured in most of the new screenshots.

Hopefully the update will be a smooth one that does not break anything. Worm has added a number of features that will be useful, including cliff terrain, which I expect I can make use of right away, and some water “edge tiles” that allow water to be brought right to the edge of other terrain features (like the castle tiles).

Yes, yes…it’s all a bunch of NWN-related technical mumbo-jumbo that is probably making the reader’s eyes glaze over. Suffice to say, O Reader, that it will make things a little more versatile, and a little bit prettier, than they already are.

Tags: Lost Sosaria, NWN, Seasonal Forest

There are sixteen new screenshots in the sidebar showcasing some of the mountain terrain (four pictures) and the gorgeous Seasonal Forest tileset that will lend its appearance to much of the land of New Sosaria. I’ve been consistently impressed with just how incredible this new tileset looks, and while there are a few graphical glitches — the tileset is still in development — and inconsistencies, it makes up for that with the incredible vistas it can conjure.

At any rate, I guess I did wind up getting one more post in before Easter. To that end, some well-wishing…tailored a bit depending on the reader. Please select the category that best describes you from the options below.

If you are Catholic: Christ is Risen! He is truly Risen! Hopefully this is a season of renewal and grace for you and your family, and if you are not able to attend Vigil Mass this evening may you have a holy and blessed Easter Sunday and find time in the hectic pace of visiting family and preparing large dinners to partake of the Sacrament of the Eucharist.

If you are Christian, but not Catholic: Christ is Risen! He is truly Risen! May this weekend be a time of spiritual growth and a season of renewal and grace for you and your family.

If you are religious but not Christian: May this weekend be a time of rest and of spiritual growth for you, and may you continue securely in your journey of faith. If you are spending the long weekend with family, may you have an enjoyable time with them.

If you are agnostic/atheist/secular: Have a safe and happy long weekend, and may your heart and mind remain unclosed to the meaning that so many people around the world attach to this blessed week. If you are spending the long weekend with family, may you have an enjoyable time with them.

Tags: Christ, Easter, Eucharist, faith, screenshot, Seasonal Forest