Timewaster's Guide Archive

@argent
I agree with your comments and maybe that is what keeps bugging me about the perspective of all this. I think that is indeed what keeps running through my head as I look at this. So I really don’t have time “for the contest I am in” to go back and create a new one. But I may in the future once I get this one complete. For my main camera shot I think it will be lower and only focusing on one small area. I would like to put one of the stationary bridges crossing the chasm.  I have read through most “not all’ of the thread pertaining to the mobile bridges. But what about the stationary ones? How big are they and if the bridge builders crafted detailed mobile bridges what kind of stationary ones did they build? Did they have sides to them? Where they built flat or did they have an arch to them.
As always I welcome feedback and appreciate everyone’s comments and suggestions

I wanted to give everyone an update on my progress; i am still working on getting the plains mesh completed and have it successful into maya now with a low poly count. Once i have the UV's laid out i can then start texturing and shaping it.

Questions for the group
1. What colors are the plains? I have seen some red mentioned along with others.
2. What would be considered an average amount of rock formations? Is it rare to see them or does every plateau have one or two
3. Where did the rock formations come from? Shattered during the breaking? Already there and the others feel into the chasms?
4. What colors are the plants there? I was actually thinking about adding vivid colors since they come out after a high storm, maybe they have been infused in some way?
5. High Storm…. Is it low to the ground or does it span from ground level to a very high altitude?

Sorry for the questions but I am working on ideas for upcoming items in the scene and want it as close as possible to the book. I just don’t recall all of the fine details from the book. I really need to listen to it again 

Thank you for the comments CabbyHat, I agree that you may not find a mature audience on the internet these days but this group has been very helpful for me and I greatly appreciate it.
I have only been learning 3D in my spare time now for about 6 months now. I came across Brandon’s work when he finished the book for Wheel of Time and then I moved onto Mist borne. Originally I wanted to create an environment based on the Wheel of Time series but found out they may be making a movie for it. Then after reading Mist borne I came across WoK and loved it. I knew that this would be the series I would create my environment for.
I actually decided to give it a try for a contest being hosted by digital tutors for great scapes. So I thought what a better scene to work on than the shattered plains. While listening to the book I thought of another hero type shot I wanted to create “link below” with someone wearing shard plate with the shattered plains in the background. I wanted it to be a looping movie file to put on a 30” display and the scene would change as the storm came through.
Anyway sorry for the long reply, but the bottom line is I have a personal interest in making this as close to the book as I possibly can  
Digital Tutors link
http://www.digitaltutors.com
Link to animation shot
http://vimeo.com/14852250

OK I could not live with the last picture or the process i was taken. i went back to the drawing boad and tried my best to take everyones comments into consideration. below is my latest render and i hope it looks okay but please let me know if something still doesn't look right. or if it does that would be nice to know also

OK i have attempted to make the suggested changes....... i am at 1.7 million polys right now for this terrain so i am about as far as i can go for now. i also zoomed in on this image to hopefully show a better perspective.

no i wouldn't mind at all, i have changed it since then so maybe i can send a new update in a little while. i did notice the sunken area's and i have been working on adding variations to it

i am currently trying to take a shattered glass image and sculpt that in mudbox for the terrain. trying to find that balance as mentioned above
i do plan on adding a highstorm if i can just get this terrain right

thanks for the detailed reply, i am going back to the drawing board so to speak. i may start over and try a different design. what about the colors of the landscape do they look right?