kazisky Builder Application

[kazisky]

19


Slovenia


Found the Westeroscraft walks youtube channel in the recommended videos section.


Star Wars, Lord of the Rings



Game of Thrones
Clash of Kings



All of the above


My favourite character is Tyrion Lannister. I like him, because of all of his shortcomings, he realises what his weaknesses and strengths are which he can take full advantage of.


I really like being organised and systematic with everything I do. I think that I'm still pretty familiar with all the procedures in regards to applying for projects, feedback system, having everything well thought out and discussed... As for my building skills I can't really say they have changed that much other, than probably forgetting a few building techniques that I'm likely to remember once I get some feedback.
You can also visit my old plot at /warp kazisky


To be completely honest, I just recently realised that, during my first semester at uni, I haven't really tackled anything that significant or creative, other than studying day in and day out. So after some thought I remembered that this server sums up my needs pretty nicely at the moment. I also immediately felt the nostalgia kick in, after logging back on to the server and touring the houses I actually built nearly three years ago.

https://imgur.com/a/7hyKmBS

(there are also other images of my builds on the profile)


YOU KNOW NOTHING, JON SNOW

Approved by lemonbear on Feb 24, 2019.

 

[lemonbear]

Hello, kazisky!

Welcome back to the server, and thanks for the application. I've taken a look at your build, and here is some feedback:

Overall, the layout and interiors look pretty good. The biggest issue I can see is the stone/plaster, which looks pretty patchy and messy. While it is true that we used to frame plaster with stone blocks, that style is now outdated. I'd recommend you look at /warp hellholt to see examples of good Dornish plaster.

Otherwise, I have some feedback on smaller things. First is the canopy over your house's balcony. At one point shortly after getting wool slabs we were really into making "realistic" drapes, but we've more or less come to the consensus now that they look messy. So, we've come into a style that is a bit more static, but a lot cleaner looking. The right image is drawn from /warp hellholt, and you can see that there is a drape, but it is more regular looking.


Second, please do not use trap doors as shelves. We recommend against using them because they can be activated in game by builder and no-build alike, and if someone leaves them flipped the wrong way it looks very odd.


For your first challenge build, please build a house in single player and share screenshots of it in this thread. The house should be a lower class house in the style of /warp ball, with a particular eye on the thatch roof and stone/plaster gradient used in this style.

Good luck!

 

[kazisky]

Thank you lemonbear!
I really appreciate your quick response. I'll get right to it.

One other thing, I see that there have been a few minor adjustments to the overall style of building on the server. On some other thread I read that normally using logs for smaller houses (unless specifically determined by the project leader) is now discouraged since they look a bit too bulky.
I'm wondering now whether I should worry about any other subtleties, that I might have missed.

Cheers,
kazi

 

[lemonbear]

In the application process, I will be critiquing you on your ability to build in the specific styles I ask for. These styles will be drawn from projects that are generally considered up-to-date.

As such, I'd advise you to look around each project I suggest to see the subtle (and not so subtle) characteristics that make the project both unique and a part of its larger region. I'd also advise you to ask around on the server for some newer projects and any others that builders think showcase our newer style.

And don't worry, I won't lead you down the wrong path.

 

[kazisky]

A lower class house in the style of /warp ball.

https://imgur.com/a/agwarrh

 

[kazisky]

Hey lemonbear!
I have't heard from you in a bit. In the meantime I built a house of a middle class cooper in the style of your /warp hawthornetown just for fun. If you are able, I would really appreciate some feedback on this one as well

https://imgur.com/a/105D5R1

I look forward to reading your reply.

Cheers, kazi

 

[kazisky]

Hi lemonbear,
I haven't received any reply from you in over a week now. I apologise for the inconvenience and hope that everything is alright. I am really excited to continue with my application and truly get a feel for what I should focus on the most. I would be happy to hear from you anytime you're ready.
-kazi

 

[lemonbear]

Thanks for being patient. IRL is quite hectic right now, so I haven't had much time to check out things here. Here's feedback on your two houses.

Ball:
This house looks good! Especially the exteriors. My critiques for this one are quite minor.

In terms of the yard shape, we generally have two principles: angular/no bubble yards and organic/fit terrain. Your yard fits the first principle, but there is a bit of a hole in the hill toward the back wall. There's also some open space by the chimney in the yard that could have something in it, even if only grass or bushes.

Interiors-wise, it also looks pretty good, but I have a few comments. It's alright to use upright barrels for tables, but don't use sideways barrels for that purpose. Barrels are round, and so it wouldn't be very sturdy as a table. Additionally, the room layouts are a bit off. The kitchen area is very cramped, but the other wing of the house has too much open space. And you have beds in the crawlspace of the loft and practically nothing in the standable area. I'd recommend checking out /warp klsprawl and /warp bandallon for some good lower class interiors.

Hawthorne:
This house needs a little more work in terms of palette and construction.

In general, the height of the house looks odd because you based the height of the bottom floor on the yard side of the house, which lends to a stunted height on the front end. In general, it is often a good idea to prioritize the side that is most readily visible, which would likely be the front side in this case. As such, you should increase the height of the bottom floor by one block. You also should remove a few of the windows. There are a lot of windows that aren't all necessary. And the stone overhang on the front end doesn't belong on a middle middle class house. Stone overhangs are reserved for the upper middle class houses.

In terms of d&w, you did a good job. However, your stone gradients for the house and yard wall need work. The house gradient should have more vivid dark sandstone and mossy monochrome sandstone towards the bottom of the gradient. As you can see in the following image, vivid dark sandstone or monochrome sandstone always reaches the ground, and vivid light sandstone never touches vivid dark.

For the yard wall, you need to mix in more vivid dark sandstone at the bottom and just a bit of vivid light sandstone at the top. Yard walls also use the lannisport brick block to break up the pattern and add some smaller stones. Additionally, your wall is quite messy in terms of wall height. People tend to take care of their yard walls, so the tops would be more even height-wise.

Interior-wise, your bottom floor is better than your top floor. The kitchen layout is much improved from your Ball house. One main issue, the kitchen table seats are odd as some chairs have backings and others don't. Be consistent in your choices. Either have all of the seats with backings or none. The one exception to this is if a seat is against a wall, but with our wood door blocks you have some ways to work even with a wall.

Your second floor is entirely too much jungle wood. A good rule of thumb is to have the floor be a different type of wood from the walls and furniture. I prefer to have the floor one shade lighter than the walls/furniture. For example, in Hawthorne it is the norm to have oak floors and jungle (or sometimes spruce) furniture. In general, your furnishing is otherwise decent, although it still could benefit from some practice and a trip to /warp ikea. Do not put together two different types of bed. It looks odd. Additionally, your ceiling on the second floor (if there is an attic) should have rafters. Stair blocks is a good way to achieve that.

However, since you didn't include pictures of your attic, I'm not entirely sure if you have one. For a middle class house like this, you don't really need an attic. It's fine to have the top floor open to the roof, as long as you have something supporting the roof.

Overall, though, good job with the two challenges. For your next challenge, please build a middle class house in the style of /warp woodwright.

 

[kazisky]

Hi, I finally managed to complete my challenge. I too had a bit of a busy week and never got around to finishing the house up until now, hope you like it.

https://imgur.com/a/lbl8FAD

 

[lemonbear]

kazisky,

Thank you for your patience. Overall, your Woodwright house looks very good! I only have a few critiques.

1. When you have a roof made out of slate, it is very important to support the slate from the inside. As such, you should cover up as much slate as possible, preferably such that there are no visible traces of slate from the inside.

2. The hanging shelving unit in the kitchen looks rather modern. We typically try to connect such shelving to the floor or include a visible support structure.

3. The furnishing in your workshop could use some work. The table takes up too much space, and I am not entirely sure why the tailor (?) is hanging rolls of fabric from the ceiling when a shelf would probably work much better. Additionally, rolls of fabric are typically stored on their sides.

For your last challenge, please build a middle-class house in the style of /warp fairmarket. The style is more complex, so take your time looking at town and feel free to ask any questions you have.

 

[kazisky]

hi lemonbear!

Funny enough, I have actually just completed a fairmarket house this afternoon, which also happens to be a middle/high class house of a reasonably wealthy alemerchant and his family. If you wish I can build another one in the same style, but I would also really appreciate some feedback on this one.

https://imgur.com/a/ViAztmL

Thank you for your critiques, I'll keep note of them!

 

[lemonbear]

This looks great!

My only critique is the shed in the back is clunky with the full blocks. We generally use half doors for the walls in sheds for this reason.

Anyway, it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the building team! The next step is to ask a mod in-game to promote you, and check out the New Builder Guide here: http://westeroscraft.wikia.com/wiki/Newbie_guide

Also, please make a probation thread in the probation forum. One of our probation leaders will be in touch and will be reviewing all your builds for the next month. Probation guidelines can be found in the relevant subforum.

Congrats! I look forward to building with you.