Finally some news from Dune: The first upper-class house:
http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z133/mr_siika/Elsweyr/dune07.jpg
http://i189.photobucket.com/albums/z133/mr_siika/Elsweyr/dune08.jpg
Two questions remain:
- Dune will be a three-layer city. The upper-class houses are on the second level, the lower-class houses are on the first level.
The third level could either hold a palace, a religious building or a bathhouse... what would you like best?
- What sort of people are meant to live in Dune? Khajiit? All races?
3.65 pennies-worth
Dune - known: On the edge of the deep desert. East of the River that divides Elsweyr and Valenwood. South of the Imperial province. It is a meeting point of raid and trade routes far enough from the action to be a major center for the planning of such enterprises without taking direct risk and large enough that it need not normally fear the bandits of the desert. However despite it's commanding position, and much to the chargrin of the people, due to the inaccessible nature of remote areas in the deep desert slavers prey upon unwary travellers there - it is a practice totally foreign to normal free-ranging Khajiit but ... Deserts are the places where certain spices are found. Also salt pans, exotic fruit and in the case of Elsweyr the buried remains of a hundred civilisations.
One possible description for your 'top tier' see http://thewormhole.nfshost.com/forum/index.php/topic,1398.0.html Hunting, Hunters,
Hunted part3 Full Circle by AFriend and raggidman.
Add to that: "The nature of Khajjit society is quite amorphous. There are and have been Khajiit kings and priests, nobles, clergy and equivalents but they are not seen by Khajiit in quite the same way that human and mer personages are seen by their own. Where a human or mer ruler may be recognised for his or her power, position and such The Mane (biologically there can only be one) is revered. This clearly stems from exquisite nature of Khajjit perception and their sense of a tie to the mystical and religious nature of their lands and the firmament that is nowhere else equalled as well as to th efact that The Mane is born to be. Note reaction to the Dragonbreak and the Khajiit connection to the Twin Moons and the Ja-Kha'jay. raggidman's book: According to Nature by Dro-raggid attempts to explore this theme among others.
The words of Clanmother Ahnissi show clearly that she was also revered much as was The Tribunal before their fall, but if possible to a greater degree as Khajiit leaders both spiritual and temporal do not appear to have that kind of 'darker side' attached to their acquisition of power and natures. Thus this reverence springs from trust rather than fear. This is not to say that one should be lured into a belief that Khajiit are naive. It is simply that certain things cannot be hidden from Khajiit perceptions and so Khajiit drop various pretenses adopted by their human and mer cousins. Although it has to be said that in their place Khajiit have evolved various ways of dealing with each other that are highly ritualistic. Note the Khajjit avoidance of the word 'I'.
It is clear that Khajiit, rather like the nomadic Ashlanders combine Government with a requirement for Spiritual vision. That requires a combination of the two in the design of their 'centers of power'. Inevitably the shapes of their 'ruling architecture' would have to reflect this and their feline natures. And so the arrangement and disposition of their buildings reflects the kind of connections they make with the mystical and temporal. From this one can easily see that such a center of power would have to be designed as a single organic whole with many and divers parts. Each part being complete unto itself yet still playing a part in that whole."
Suggest include all: Sun-Square - practical magica and the power of the desert, Moon-Square - mystical connection to the Ja'Kha-Jay / God-head, MoonsTemple - twin temple made one, Baths (it is at the edge of a desert right?), and accompanying palace buildings. All should have living quarters open for the use of any visitor and 'private' quarters to which officials can retreat to attend to their personal needs. The design of all such quarters should be varied to allow for both open and closed natures of different users as well as vastly different sizes.
At this point you have to invent the entire culture :facepalm: good luck!
Specifically re your House Mr Siika - good quality, smooth stone and quiet design says artisan to me
Perhaps the interior could be richer in some fashion? Say highly polished and reflective stone?.
It would be good to see a different kind of upper storey window/door/opening. My own feeling is that an important aspect of this in addition to the middle-eastern cultural in fluence would be the cat-like nature of all Khajiit. Ilyana has made important inroads on that with rooftop walkways, but somehow there must be a point at which Cat-nature and culture would encourage a radical departure from our ape design in the shaping of apertures and even rooms. Assuming that the normal engineering principals will have their say ... For example the obvious departure would be that you would not be surprised to see very different sized houses/doors etc to account for the different types of Khajiit - and on that note to an Alfiq this house would be a palace but to a Senche Tiger it would be quite modest in scale.
Qualifier here would be that some cats walk alone and others like company so a hermit natured Alfiq would have a tiny dwellling but a gregarious one would want something that would accomodate all of his/her friends whatever their size. Thus cussions and such might provide a very flexible form of seating. That would require low tables. But other furniture might be taller.
Scratching posts - both for displays of social dominance and for sheer pleasure!
Hanging objects that can be batted about - play and exercise.
Etc ...
» Fri May 27, 2011 1:50 am 
