AoM Tower Phase 1: Watchers on the Trail

[The Stad]

The Lord of Førstlys was in fact the lord of all of the Burial Isle, and its safety was, first and foremost, his concern.  Thus, trusted members of his household were often seen traveling the length and breadth of the island, taking count of the defenses of the various communities set along the rocky coasts and nestled into the mountainous interior.  Makny's father would often take him along when it was time to inspect, leading him on horseback through the hills and gathering news from every outpost they passed along the way.

Spoiler

Greeting the sergeant in command.

Watchful eyes overhead.

The whole MOC.

Inspiration for the rockwork came from @soccerkid6, particularly his recent Nordheim Watchtower.  I might be lacking subtlety in my own application, but I generally like how it turned out.  You're welcome to disagree of course.

[KevinyWu]

I like how you connected the leaf pieces! I don't think I've seen that before.

[narbilu]

8 hours ago, KevinyWu said:

I like how you connected the leaf pieces! I don't think I've seen that before.

It looks like they are sticked through the grass piece...

Very cool build.

[TitusV]

Though I really like the rocks, I have two small comments. The first is that personally, I feel like sing the same colour for the rockwork as for the stonework, doesn't give the best effect, so I'd propose to make the bridge dark bley to give a bit of a contrast? Second, the rocks at the bottom of the lake seem very straight, I wouldn't mind some more variation there either. That aside: nice MOC  

17 hours ago, KevinyWu said:

I like how you connected the leaf pieces! I don't think I've seen that before.

I hadn't even noticed, but they're great indeed!

[soccerkid6]

The white flowers look so pretty! I think your rockwork turned out well, as Titus said there is one section that's a bit flat, but overall the effect is good 

Clever ladder design in the watchtower 

Edited January 22, 2018 by soccerkid6

[The Stad]

Thanks for the feedback guys!

On 1/17/2018 at 5:41 PM, KevinyWu said:

I like how you connected the leaf pieces! I don't think I've seen that before.

Thank you, I tried them out at a smaller scale in some sort of "hanging gardens" in my gateway, after being inspired by one of @Derfel Cadarn's tree techniques that used levers to create more natural shapes of foliage.

On 1/18/2018 at 10:55 AM, TitusV said:

I feel like sing the same colour for the rockwork as for the stonework, doesn't give the best effect

I figured I'd sacrifice effect for what I perceived as realism, thinking that whoever built the bridge probably used whatever material was on-hand, and so the stone used for the bridge would match the stone around it.  But I definitely see where you're coming from!

On 1/18/2018 at 10:55 AM, TitusV said:

Second, the rocks at the bottom of the lake seem very straight

Yeah, a little variation wouldn't hurt there.

On 1/22/2018 at 7:17 AM, soccerkid6 said:

Clever ladder design in the watchtower

Thanks! It's super tricky to do.

[TitusV]

11 hours ago, The Stad said:

...

I figured I'd sacrifice effect for what I perceived as realism, thinking that whoever built the bridge probably used whatever material was on-hand, and so the stone used for the bridge would match the stone around it.  But I definitely see where you're coming from!

...

And you're probably right, they would have used the same kind of stone. It's always a hard balance to achieve!

[Henjin_Quilones]

I like the way you used SNOT techniques on the upper part of the tower to give a good impression of stacked logs. Putting the whole thing at an angle is a good idea, too. I don't mind the bridge color, but I do think that the rockwork of the ravine is a bit too regular (it looks man-made instead of natural), and I am not a huge fan of all of the gaps between the layers. More tinkering with the technique, perhaps, will help you figure out a solution to that. Other than that, it looks like a nice build! I echo SK about the ladder, too.