DJTaylor Builder Application

[DJTaylor]

What is your age?
21-24

In what country are you living?
Scotland, United Kingdom

Where did you first hear about WesterosCraft?
Searched online

What do you like the most about GoT/ASoIaF?
I love both the deep exploration of character through the many characters in the series, as well as the dedication to worldbuilding shown by GRRM. It's a world i can lose myself in while exploring the complex and nuanced human experiences of the people living within said world. Having started DMing my own dungeons and dragons campaign this year and building my own world i take a huge amount of inspiration from this series and seeing how in depth the information about the world of ice and fire is pushes me to make my own DnD world even better.

What is your favorite build on our server?
Of the big star builds my favourite is highgarden because i think it shows such a brilliant merging of the environment and architecture. The castle itself is stunning and amazingly complex but i think what hits me most about it is how organic the town looks and how well it merges into its environment, how natural the docks look on that coastline. And how the gardens show the marrying of nature and manmade structures. And related to that im also a big fan of a lot of the farms scattered around the map as they look so natural and organic.

Why do you want to join our server?
A combination of 3 main reasons. I want to get back into minecraft building, ive been out of practice for a while but i really enjoy it and i want to get back into it and get better. Secondly i think this project is just incredible, ive always thought that the things people do on minecraft these days is so inspiring, this project most of all, and to be able to be a part of it in even some small way would be really gratifying. And thirdly is the community, everyone i've encountered so far has been so friendly and helpful and has made this a community i want to be a part of. As for what i can bring, while im not the most talented builder right now I am dedicated to learning and putting in the work to rebuild my skills again. Once an interest/hobby gets a bite of me they never let go

Imgur Album: https://imgur.com/a/GWm3vJw

Did you follow the application rules?
You know nothing, Jon Snow

 

[DJTaylor]

We do be kinda bumpin' tho, been a week <3

 

[Ric]

Hey DJ!

Sorry for the wait! Also, thanks for applying, good to see you're interested in joining the team! You did a good job with the app house, I have no comments on it. For your next challenges I'll point out locations for you and you'll have to make houses inspired by the style in that area/project. I would suggest looking at some different houses and then take note of which blocks are used and how to then come up with you own original version. After that you can post the screenshots here and I'll give you feedback. If you haven't already please take a look at our Basic Building Guide, I'm sure you'll find it helpful.

For your first challenge please make a house in the style of Hammerhal, you can see good examples at /warp hammertown. Please include a reasonably large yard as well, you can see examples of that at the warp. If you have any questions feel free to ask.
Good luck!

 

[DJTaylor]

Hello there, im very sorry for the delay. I meant to have this done and handed in last week but it's been a bit of a rough week for me IRL, so thank y'all for being patient. Theres a few details of my build that im not quite happy with but i'd rather get it sent in and get feedback than get stuck up on it for any longer so here goes!

The build was to be in the style of hammerhal and upon asking in game another mod said that for this first build a lower class house would be best. So this is my low class carpenter in the style of hammerhal (i hope anyway!). In my head the living quarters section of this structure was built first, and the small wood workshop attached to it was a more recent addition when the owner of the house had managed to get the money together to start their own carpentry shop. The yard contains some plots for growing a lil of your basic crops, an area for washing and drying clothes, a small counter for conducting transactions, and a small outdoor "lumberyard" for working larger pieces of wood into smaller more manageable pieces (logs to planks) before moving the work to the indoor workshop for the more intricate work. ("lumberyard contains a log storage pile covered with thatch and wattle fence to keep the worst of the weather off them, and a large table for breaking down logs). The indoor workshop contains surfaces for carving, a work in progress table being carved in the bottom left, and some completed projects hanging on the wall (wagon wheels and a barrel), as well as shelves storing some planks. Living quarters contains a simple cooking and eating area and a simple sectioned off sleeping area, with some basic shelves along the walls.

Sorry for the long description, i hope i didn't do too awfully but i know there are some things i could have done better, it'll be good to get the feedback and see how i can be better next time. Thank you for taking the time to look through this and i hope you're having a wonderful week! <3

 

[DJTaylor]

Oh and not sure if i needed to include a verification screenshot for this build too, but i figure there's no harm in being safe!

 

[DJTaylor]

Bump it, louder

 

[Ric]

Hey DJ!

You did a solid work with this house! Nice backstory too, it's always good to give a story to your houses, it's a helpful way of finding out what to include and to make it look unique. Now, I a few points on feedback:

• My first point might be kind subjective, but I think making the vertical wood being birch instead of oak could fit better with the rest of the house.
• The yard looks a little too crowded imo. It's good that you included both a working space and food sources, but for example the table near the door on the right (here) could be removed and the shopping done closer to the workshop. Having a clearer and slightly more open walking space from the workshop to the yards exit would be good too. Also, I would use more dirt along with the gravel. If you're trying to avoid the grass spreading you can use the "dirt slab" as a full block instead of the standard dirt.
• In the interiors, I think some of the shelves you made are too high, they would be hard to reach from the ground.
• When using the thatch in the ground it's better to keep it in a single patch, like a proper carpet, instead of making many small patches.
• I think there's no need to make a stone "ring" around the furnace. As long as nothing too flamable (like thatch) is close to the furnace it should be okay to have just dirt and gravel in front of it.
• Lanterns should usually be avoided in lower class houses, as the glass used in them would be very expensive.

I think that should be it! For your next challenge please make a house in the style of /warp gaunt. Remember to include a sizeable yard again, too. If you have any questions feel free to ask.
Good luck!

 

[DJTaylor]

Hey Ric hope all is going well with you, thank you once again for taking the time to look over my submissions and thank you for the feedback I tried my best to take it to heart!

And here is my next submission, a house in the style of Gaunt. I saw that gaunt appeared to be a pretty agriculture heavy village which swayed me into doing a house that sustains themselves by growing crops and rearing pigs. (Thank you to Jakethesnake for informing me the name of these types of homes are "Byre Dwellings!). Since the house was going to be quite similar to my hammerhal build in the roof material and size/class i wanted to do something to make it stand out from my last build so i tried my first ever go at a diagonal building, no one taught me i just tried to figure it out myself so fingers crossed i didnt mess it up too bad never tried it before! Being a byre dwelling the house has an attached open plan pig sty. I imagine a childless couple living and working this property. The yard out back is divided into 2 sections, one for growing crops and the other an outdoor pen for the pigs. In retrospect i wish i could have made the yard a bit longer but by the time i came to that realization i was too deep into building to change locations. I also worry that due to the yard not being quite as big as i would like in hindsight, there might be a little too much storage on the interiors. But yeah i think that about covers it, hope i didn't do too bad a job and i look forward to getting some feedback so i can keep getting better! Have a great day anyone reading this <3

https://imgur.com/a/eI0G34n

 

[Ric]

Hey DJ!

Very nice job, your house fits really well in the Gaunt style, despite some points that could still use some improvement. Again nice background story too Now, to the feedback:

• Great work in the house exteriors. A small detail you can improve on is in the way of doing the wooden part of the walls is using the wooden slabs instead of the full planks block, as in that way the different types of wood can "conect" to each other.
• For the pigs area I think you could use the mud in one or two big patches instead of making it spreaded out in the whole area. Also, for the entrance to the area I think a door looks a bit odd, using a window shutter would be more appropriate imo.
• Here I think instead of a full block you could use walls to make the division between the house and the pig area.
• In that same image, I think instead of using the half doors you could use wattle fences for the division, I feel like it would fit better with the style.
• In the rafters, when there's a corner you can place the stairs sideways, so that they connect to the others while also hiding the thatch.
• For the loft area it's nice to use it for storage, but I wouldn't leave crates there, as they would be heavy and hard to get up there.

That's it! I think you're progressing really well. For your next challenge please make a middle-class house in the style of Duskendale, including a reasonably sized yard. You can find good examples inside the town near /warp ddnorth. If you have any questions feel free to ask.
Good luck!