Fan Mission: The Painter’s Wife v1.1 by Fractured Glass Company (2020/07/01)

[Baal 120]

I am enjoying this very much so far. It took me an evening to even get to the mansion.

One tiny problem: you need to activate the "Open doors on unlock" option. Otherwise the elevator doesn't work correctly (the doors won't open)

[NeonsStyle 586]

Black writing on dark theme is unreadable Dragofer. 

[Tarhiel 31]

Congratulations again to the creators of this mission, mission like this has not been done yet, both to the scope and complexity.

This was a blast to test and anybody playing this is up for a ride

[NeonsStyle 586]

Oh this is wonderful map. Such a great treat to be given such a large sprawling map full of verticality. Love it.

Congratulations on all who participated. Very well done!

[nbohr1more 2174]

@Dragofer can you grace the TTLG folk with a thread? ( www.ttlg.com/forums )?

[Dragofer 1430]

@nbohr1more It's now done. I thought I was the only one who still opened threads for TDM FMs on TTLG, but they've always been well-received.

@NeonsStyle Fixed, thanks for pointing out the font issues (resulting from copy-pasting from a Word doc). And also thanks on behalf of everyone for the congratulations

[Lzocast 18]

UPDATED 23:50 03/07/2020 TO THINGS RAISED IN THIS BELOW (BUG CATCHING UPDATED/LOCATION HUNT UPDATED/MAP MARKERS UPDATED)

My first impressions on seeing the preview screenshots were "Bloody hell, that's a lot of verticality, this is going to be fun" as some of my favourite aspects of Thief 3 were the downtime exploring the hub city and the rooftops etc.

Load in and hit M to get an idea what I'm looking at, expecting a few streets and some rooftops/windows/shops to peak inside on my way to the manor and ooooooooh boy. Whole city block and more to look go around. And that's where like one of the other folks mentioned I started to get overwhelmed in both the positive and negative sense of the word.

Neither of the shops mentioned in the prologue are marked [they are, the font is just tiny and not hand written like the contact's apartment so playing on a tv across the room as I do could not see the shop labels without walking across the room and peering at the map more closely] which fine doesn't take a genius to figure out the weapons shop is going to be in or near the place marked as the manufacturing area, but the apothecary I only found after blindly wandering around the sewers for hours trying different passages trying to locate the

Spoiler

Hidden Chapel: NOW FOUND - TO FIND EITHER HUG RIGHT HAND WALL AFTER EXITING APOTHECARY OR GO LEFT UP STAIRS AFTER EXITING TOILET VENTS IN GAMBLING DEN AND LOOK UP

that various notes and books keep referencing (which I still haven't been able to locate any sign of as of yet though there are several perma-blocked doors in the sewers and a ladder/gate near them I can't locate a key for as of yet) yet our contact's apartment which has nothing in it seemingly is marked?

At this point I've only covered the upper portion of the map as far down as St Andrew's and Bridge St as like others have said there is just so much content to explore

Spoiler

Assassins to stop [Upper Bridge Street, look for mushrooms], emeralds to steal [out on jealous neighbour's balcony look directly forward and up for entrance OR look above building with broken elevator on upper bridge street], spooky mage towers to pilfer for arcane artefacts I have not found a use for yet and a clock tower with some sort of secret [careful jumps and scaling from small assassin's balcony to get to route to clock tower: once inside starts a hunt for 12 bits of hidden loot around the general area] in addition to the aforementioned hidden subterranean Chapel

I would say that what I've done so far, several hours of exploration and side content does make the whole thing feel a bit... unfocused or more accurately the more I've thought about it like you chaps have created what honestly could be a hub world/location for a legitimate full game. I could easily see myself heading off to different areas with specific missions given and encountering all these hidden nooks and side objectives along the way with the drive of the main directive keeping me moving in one direction to prevent a cascade of discoveries or meandering that swallows the main goal. Wouldn't be anything to stop anyone that wanted to wander the entire city combing it for every optional challenge, story or goodie of course, just add a little structure for those of us that like that in their experience.

This could be achieved with a tweak to the current objectives;

Spoiler

-Gear up (with shops marked on map); this sets the player exploring the upper right portion of the map and everything in it
-Check in at contact's apartment for a photo of Lily so I know who to look for (perhaps have a note/tip off from a friend of the contact in the apartment saying that they've overheard one of the alderman's men trying to set up a meeting with a known blade for hire in the underground gamblers den the Hammer's are trying to find); sets the player moving from top right to middle left of map, gives them chance to bump into info about the thieves hideout and hidden chapel.
- Find the Den/Assassin (Sends player directly across the middle of the map); naturally presents option to access the sewers and so on while getting in to the Den

Don't get me wrong this is an amazing piece of work, just my opinion on how it could be more digestible as I find I have to keep turning the game off to take a breather from the array of things all going on at once.

Bug Catching;

Spoiler

Left Pillar with note attached in Factory Area (one saying the house's furnishings etc are for sale) has no collision

Above this along the ledge that goes over to where the Lion's Head Inn is (has a vent you can short cut through), that wall isn't entirely solid. If you sprint while looking towards the wall of the building the camera clips through

Cistern under Thieve's Hideout, the tunnel you reach for a gold plate underwater the tunnel wall on the inside curve as you pass through the gap in the bars lets the camera through

Inside maintenance shaft that goes up to inside the clock tower; stand up in bit of tunnel after the ladder and your head goes through the ceiling

Apothecary shop, jump on to the top of the work bench, right onto space between ceiling and shelf, crouch turn to face the shop and walk backwards to get out of bounds. You can see the spooky magic area with the half a shipwreck etc from here and the full layout of the sewers.

That's everything for now and I will definitely be finishing this and hopefully have more to add at a later date. Once again overall damn fine work gents.

Edited July 3, 2020 by Lzocast

[Amadeus 360]

Thanks for the feedback @Lzocast as well as the bug list  Yeah, it's certainly understandable that one can get a bit overwhelmed or confused about where to go, and we all did work hard on making it so that players could (relatively) easily learn their way around the map. We spent weeks trying to find the best ways to guide the player around but no solution was ever 100% perfect, especially given how large this particular map is. Glad you like it though, and yes, take breaks! I can't imagine finding everything in this map in one go

[Lzocast 18]

@Amadeus No problem mate, I've updated the original post a tad now, anything in bold is corrections or additions to my findings. Bug list has something that I feel is while cool potentially spoilery since I haven't actually discovered how to get to/trigger the thing I have now seen yet xD. Any hints on that?

[Amadeus 360]

Ha, I do know what you're talking about but I definitely won't be giving any hints on that just yet. You'll be pleasantly surprised when you find out for yourself though

[Shaz 20]

I'm currently making my way slowly and haphazardly through this massive mission map. I've had nothing but WOW reactions so many times, but I will say this might be the first mission to make me incredibly aggravated that unlike T1/T2 we cannot make notes or mark on the map in the game, because I keep encountering things that seem usable (but I can't use yet) or locks I cannot pick or just places I know I want to come back to later. And not just one or two of these locations! So I'm left taking notes out of game by either turning a light on (Thiefy blasphemy!) so I can jot a note, or tabbing out of the game. Or simply forgetting about exactly where these places are, which my MS-damaged sieve of a brain is really good at. That's not a negative against this mission, though, simply something I suppose the engine isn't built for. The only negatives I've encountered so far that are specific to this mission have been: 

Spoiler

1. The map is wonderful, and I am so very, very grateful there is an automap location function, but some of the smaller text is incredibly difficult if not impossible to read, and I'm not sitting that far from my monitor.

2. After coming out of the Andersarken area (THAT WAS AMAZING BTW) I could BARELY hear that the PC was making a comment. I had to reload a quicksave I'd made just prior exiting and turn up my speaker volume a LOT to be able to hear his comment on the golden death mask (and I already have both voice volumes up to max)... and then promptly turn down speaker volume because everything else was way too loud. 

I'll be returning to those streets/roofs really soon, and I'll probably be there for days. Marvelous.

Edited July 3, 2020 by Shaz

[Lzocast 18]

I just can't seem to stay off this too long so here we go for things found and bugs to report;

Spoiler

Assassins to stop [Upper Bridge Street, look for mushrooms up high]

Emerald to steal [out on jealous neighbour's balcony look directly forward and up for entrance OR look above building with broken elevator on upper bridge street]

Spooky mage towers to pilfer for arcane artefacts [No use for mysterious stone yet found; located in top of large tower directly south of Factory area]

Clock tower with some sort of secret [careful jumps and scaling from small assassin's balcony to get to route to clock tower: once inside starts a hunt for 12 bits of hidden loot around the map] 

Chalice in Haunted Chapel [To find either hug right hand wall after exiting apothecary or go left up stairs after going through toilet vents in gambling den and look up]

Time out of Space and also a Face [Look at the miniature on the upper level of the highest accessible balcony apartment on Wycombe Street]

Dimension Door [Take the Mask found above to the wind chime apartments attic and USE on stand. Accessed from St Andrews window and then climbing a roof garden's drainpipe]

Thieves Hideout [Accessible from multiple routes once you find the Cistern chamber in the sewers]

Loot Locations found so far;

Spoiler

1. Wall Garden stained glass window sill

2. Sloan Square via the Wall Garden Vents, look for a roof top nook to the left of the vent exit

3. Wycombe Street via Wall Garden Vents, look at the rooftop to the right of the vent exit

4. Inside the Secret Room accessed with the Death Mask (attic of Wind Chime Apartment Upper Street)

5. St Alban's Scribe Room on top of bookcase (accessed by parkouring over the upper wall)

Bugs;

Spoiler

When climbing wind chime apartment drainpipe the roof to the immediate right has no collision

 

[kin 10]

How will I know that I have found painters wife?

[Bumbling Thief 3]

I've been playing quite a few TDM missions recently, and this one is ... overwhelming. In a good way! I've spent a good few hours exploring the rooftops before eventually making my way down and into some of the lower locations. I oscillate between knowing where I am and being completely lost. Good times

Spoiler

A possible bug or, more likely, a misunderstanding on my part: I have Marlow's Letters and want to complete the non-lethal objective. I returned to what I believe is the Courthouse Captain's office (there's a letter on the desk that begins "Your Honour, Your requests are reasonable but ...", and A Draft of New Court Regulations) and have placed Marlow's Letters on the desk, but nothing happens. Do I need to find more evidence?

Spoiler

Another one of my objectives is to collect 4,800 loot and I currently have 4,432. I think I've found 4 of the hidden loot items. Lots of fun and very challenging!

 

[NeonsStyle 586]

Any chance of getting a HD copy of the map? Be great on the 2nd monitor

[Dragofer 1430]

6 hours ago, NeonsStyle said:

Any chance of getting a HD copy of the map? Be great on the 2nd monitor

Sure, here is the map file in 2048x2048. I'll check whether an even higher res original can be found somewhere. (Probably ought to revise some of the annotations in an update).

Spoiler

@Bumbling Thief

Spoiler

There are 2 desks in that courthouse, I think you may be working with the wrong one when it comes to placing the evidence. Should robably just make them both viable.

@kin

Spoiler

A voiceover is played when you see the wife.

 

[chakkman 398]

Thanks, that's very helpful.  Ingame, the map appears pretty small, so that you can hardly read some of the text.

Think I'll just restart the mission. All that straying around has really led me to a dead end, so to say. Need a more tidy approach.

Edited July 4, 2020 by chakkman

[NeonsStyle 586]

Thank you

[Lzocast 18]

Finally completed my first full run through, highest difficulty, non-lethal ending to main quest and loot count 5535 04/07/2020

UPDATED 06/07/2020 with new bugs and Hidden Loot locations now found

UPDATED 07/07/2020 with clearer instructions on how to discover and complete various side quest objectives and events

UPDATED 14/07/2020 Hidden Loot List completed and map added, no further guide info to add

Side Quests/Events found and Completed;

Spoiler

Assassins to stop [Upper Bridge Street, look for mushrooms up high to North West. You can reach the window box via a powerline]
          - A Chronicle of Skullduggery [Bonk the Assassin on the noggin and use the blank note on their writing desk to leave a warning]
          - Ghost Story [Steal the Assassin's tools from the kitchen on lower floor of their apartment and use blank note to leave a warning]
            
Gentleman's Club [Accessed via several vent routes in the sewers OR via the door the patrolling guard on Lower Street keeps going in to that cannot be picked. As he goes in simply stand close enough to the door that your hitbox prevents it from closing fully and he should wander off none the wiser while you open the door and follow him down]

Emerald to steal [out on jealous neighbour's wooden balcony on Mirk Way look directly forward and up for a stone balcony which is the entrance to a private exhibit OR look above building with broken elevator on upper bridge street for a stone balcony that offers entrance to the same area via reading room/den]

Mystery of The Stone [Go to the top of the Tower in Russell Square to swipe the Stone, take it to King's Street and via either climbing or using Marlow Manor upper floor vents, climb along highest powerline till you reach a substation/capacitor next to the complaining clerk's Office (North East Corner). Drop to the right of the capacitor to access vents into an abandoned wine cellar and down further to find a door with a mechanism next to it you need to USE the Stone on. Inside is a Tomb with Hidden Loot and you can climb up out of the tomb for a nice area and some interesting lore]

Clock tower with some sort of Secret [careful jumps and scaling from small assassin's balcony on Alderman Street south end to get to route to clock tower. Alternatively start in the small back garden of the Apothecary and scale up the vines, balcony and rope to reach the thieves highway above Alderman Street that way. Head along it towards Bell Street and find your way up the tower to a maintenance hatch. Inside is a note and piece of loot which in a casual playthrough will likely be your first time activating the Hidden Loot sidequest. Locations of all 13 pieces will be listed separately] 

Chalice in Haunted Chapel [To find either hug right hand wall after exiting apothecary on Alderman Street into an easy to miss nook/door on Bridge Street. Inside is a set of stairs that go down into a power room. Look at the iron beams above you for the access point you need. Alternatively go left up stairs after going through toilet vents in gambling den to reach this same power room from the opposite end and same as before look up]

Time out of Space and also a Face [Look at the miniature on the upper level of the highest accessible balcony apartment on Wycombe Street]

Dimension Door [Take the Mask found above to the wind chime apartments attic and USE on stand. Apartment accessed from St Andrews window and then climbing Upper Garden's drainpipe]

Thieves Hideout [Accessible from multiple routes once you find the Cistern chamber in the sewers; scale the broken ladders, use the semi hidden vent down by the work bench or find the access point to the sewers that leads directly to the upper cistern]

Torture Chamber [Not an event but an optional area; check the wall to right and up of Lily's Bed in the Marlow Manor basement. So far doesn't seem to be any loot etc in there]

Alas Poor Percy [Find Percival dead at M's hand in a balcony apartment in Knife Street. Other than confirming Marlow is a nut not sure what else this shows]

Blessing of the Builder [Water Font in St Andrew's and Lower Wall Garden can be used for a free full heal]

Letter of the Law (Non-Lethal end to Main Quest) [Collect all of Marlow's "Love Letters" from Lily's room in Marlow Manor Basement; additionally find the final letter locked in his bedroom writing desk on middle floor (key is upstairs from here in his library on the top floor). Once you have the full collection deposit them on the Captain's desk in his personal Study (NOT his Office, the Study where you find his notes about knowing Marlow is guilty of something but has been forced to drop investigating)]

Vigilante (Lethal end to Main Quest) [Locate Marlow in the Underground Gambling Den on Lower Street and put an arrow through his eye. He is the one in green. Pick pocket him before hand to add insult to fatal injury.]

Lily's Rescue (Main Quest) [Unlock Lily's bedroom chambers in the Marlow Manor Basement and carry her to safety at your contact's apartment on Mirk Way; easiest route found so far: Unlock basement Sewer Entrance > Exit Sewers via Apothecary onto Alderman Street > Hug right along Bridge Street to reach Mirk Way > Enter Apartments from street level and deposit Lily on your contact's bed] 

13 Hidden Loot Locations

Spoiler

1. Wall Garden stained glass window sill

2. Sloan Square via the Wall Garden Vents, look for a rooftop nook to the left of the vent exit

3. Wycombe Street via Wall Garden Vents, look at the rooftop to the right of the vent exit

4. Inside the Secret Room accessed with the Death Mask (attic of Wind Chime Apartment Upper Street)

5. St Alban's Scribe Room on top of bookcase (accessed by parkouring over the upper wall)

6. Follow Mysterious Stone side quest. Jewellery Box on the Tomb is the Hidden loot in this area

7. From the exhibit room in Wycombe Street go to Tavern Square. Climb the pipes and hop across the upper window sills of the tavern then up the dangling rope. Head through the vent on the ledge you can now access to exit on to Tower Street. Look immediately left as you exit the vent for Hidden Loot.

8. Factory Square, look up for the building where two powerlines meet. Climb up to this point (boards will be lain out as a thieves highway) crouch under the window boxes and travel west and look right. Vase on support beam (stand up to put it at eye level after ducking under the window boxes)

9. Knife Street, from the only accessible balcony (Percy's Apartment) look up and use the rope/chains dangling to reach the highest point possible. Coins in a bird nest are the hidden loot here

10. Solitude Gardens, assessed from either St Andrew's windows or the vents in the power room on Mirk Way. Scale to the highest point of the garden look under and behind the stone bench for a chalice

11. Market Square, if exiting from the Captain's Study into Market Square follow the pipe to your left and up the large pipe it connects to (south east corner of Market Square; can be climbed from street level also). From here you can hop up a couple of ledges to get on to the ledge under the two peaked roofs to the east. Travel along this ledge back in the direction of the window to the Captain's Study (North) and a chalice/note is tucked behind a small curved pipe.

12. Clocktower Entrance above Bell Street, [EDIT: The Clocktower is the large square structure that intersects the corners of Hill Street, Alderman Street & Bell Street, the latter of which is not named on the map] easiest access point; start from the walled in garden behind Apothecary (accessed from Sewers) then use the vines to climb up and the balcony you reach to leap to a rope for extra height to access the thieves highway above Alderman Street. Follow the wooden boards on to a terracotta roof then mantle up the Clocktower until you reach a maintenance hatch. Go inside and up the ladder to access the inside of the clock for two Vases and a note

13. [EDIT: Found by Grayman]: From the stone balcony outside the Collector's Study on Upper Bridge Street, with the door to your back turn right and hop over the balcony wall to walk the thin ledge to the right (you will be able to see the open window that leads back in to the Collector's house). Looking at the window St Andrew's is to your left. You need to carefully jump over to the St Andrew's ledge from here, then go right again (North on compass) and look left for a little nook with some trash and broken crates. There is a chalice hidden in the broken crate in the far back right corner of this nook.

Congratulations you Taffer, you found all the Hidden Loot

Hidden Loot Locations Marked on Map (Provided by Dragofer)

Spoiler

Compiled bug list found so far;

Spoiler

Left Pillar with note attached in Factory Area (one saying the house's furnishings etc are for sale) has no collision

Above this along the ledge that goes over to where the Lion's Head Inn is (has a vent you can short cut through), that wall isn't entirely solid. If you sprint while looking towards the wall of the building the camera clips through

Cistern under Thieve's Hideout, the tunnel you reach for a gold plate underwater the tunnel wall on the inside curve as you pass through the gap in the bars lets the camera through

Inside maintenance shaft that goes up to inside the clock tower; stand up in bit of tunnel after the ladder and your head goes through the ceiling

Apothecary shop, jump on to the top of the work bench, right onto space between ceiling and shelf, crouch turn to face the shop and walk backwards to get out of bounds. You can see the spooky magic area with the half a shipwreck etc from here and the full layout of the sewers.

Torture Chamber, with rack directly to the left walk forward at the tool bench to fall through the floor and out of bounds. Allows player to see full sewer layout and bits of the mansion. You can clip back into the level in the sewers (near gate that leads up into the Marlow Manor basement) if you walk carefully in that direction.

Clock and upper chimney breast on ground (1st) floor of Marlow Mansion reception hall, the one highlighted by a spotlight, has no collision. Wall behind is solid though.  

Russell Square, accessible apartment next to entrance to mage tower; bed and shelves have no collision

Russell Square, Wall on ledge above vent to Factory Square has no collision

Phew, this has been a hell of a ride. I'll keep combing the streets for those elusive Hidden Loots and hopefully have a definitive guide to the events and secrets posted up here soon enough.

Once again folks, sterling work. 

Edited July 14, 2020 by Lzocast

[kingsal 592]

Congrats guys! This thing is one beast of mission and well worth the time. Lots of incredible scenery and just an enormous amount of exploration. Not too mention some unbelievable secrets. 

 

[Shaz 20]

I could really use hints for some things I am unable to find the key (or switch or what have you) to open:

Spoiler

1. Display in Harwoode's gallery

2. Thief's stash (have what I assume is the key for the trunk inside, but I cannot open the door)

3. Sewer door below Marlow's manor

Thanks much for either nudges or blatant answers, because I can't figure out any of those for the life of me!

[Bumbling Thief 3]

@Dragofer that makes sense, I don't know why it never occurred to me. Thanks very much!

I still have a lot to explore, and my only issue is that the map is so large and detailed that I lose track of where things are. I'll start making annotations on the hi-res map

This mission has really stuck in my head, it's been on my mind even when I'm not playing. Thanks again, it's fantastic.

[Lzocast 18]

@Shaz

 

49 minutes ago, Shaz said:

I could really use hints for some things I am unable to find the key (or switch or what have you) to open:

  Hide contents

1. Display in Harwoode's gallery

2. Thief's stash (have what I assume is the key for the trunk inside, but I cannot open the door)

3. Sewer door below Marlow's manor

Thanks much for either nudges or blatant answers, because I can't figure out any of those for the life of me!

Spoiler

1. Assuming this is for the emerald, the keyhole you need to pick is on the stand the case sits on. Crouch and look to the right hand side

2. Both key for door and chest are in the boss lady's bedroom

3. Look for a power/tool room then a work bench in Marlow's basement. They key is hanging up on that work bench.

 

Edited July 5, 2020 by Lzocast

[Shaz 20]

Thanks, Lzocast. I didn't check past the obvious door on the stand of the first one, but the other two, I scoured those locations for the keys. Two or three times each, because they seemed to be likely locations, but obviously unsuccessfully. Once more unto the breach!

EDIT: Found the keys, but I do have to say that sometimes TDM makes *seeing* keys pretty painful. The sewer key blended in so well to its background that I might have never seen it had I not been told it was there. I really wish keys could stand out more.

Thanks again, Lzocast. All that's left is for me to decide if I'm up for finding more Hidden Loot items!

Edited July 5, 2020 by Shaz

[mmij 19]

Congratulations on putting together this epic-scale map with some interesting and frustratingly, fun missions. I can tell a lot of work went into it from many different people.

I enjoyed the main storyline, the idea of the player being more than just a simple thief. And how you can choose the method of exacting revenge on the villain makes it more than just a Mario World level —collect coins, free the princess... Oops! She's in another castle.

 

And as much as I enjoyed the missions, I do feel the need to share my critic of the map.

 

Humans build cities based on a geometry for planned growth or asymmetrically for natural growth. This map uses neither and is difficult to navigate. All the buildings have near identical exteriors in the dim light, there are no landmarks to reference. And the street signs are dark placards sitting in the dark, of limited use on the ground, but definitely not helpful if you've gone vertical.

 

Another issue with the mapping is that, because of the hodgepodge of structures, there are many areas where you can literally walk on air (Hill Street is a good example), or get pushed sideways during a jump by an invisible wall. The latter is a feature found throughout the map. I have no suggestions on how to fix this other than through a walkthrough in Dark Radiant.

 

But about the layout of the city, I do have a suggestion. It's based on my past work within government public works. And I give it as advice, to be regarded or disregarded —not for me to be a know-it-all or an attacker. I know a ton of work went into this project.

 

Any building that was constructed by the government, a church, or wealthier faction should be part of a geometry. It can be part of a grid —polar or Cartesian— a militant triangle, star, diamond, etc. (as long as it's pointy), or your choice of polygon. Poorer areas, or places where the sprawl has grown with the city's population, are normally going to be like tree branches or rivers. The passageways flow around larger buildings (connecting to but not overpowering geometric ones) and natural formations.

 

So for this map, the area around the church, the clock tower, and all major buildings housing the wealthy or government services (electrical and water centers) should be on a geometric pattern. This includes the verticals. The pipes and lines should radiate out in the same pattern as the ground-level roads.

 

The "sprawl" is not random. There is a pattern to how sprawls develop, and often it grows like a tree. main branch of traffic forms, and the smaller branches bud out after that. If the sprawl is growing out of decay, the original large structures will look more like rocks in a river if you take a bird's-eye view.

 

In areas where geometrical growth meets asymmetrical growth, in a newer city (only a couple hundred years old) you often find its a no-man's zone. There's not really any established business or housing from either side that seems to be permanent. It's in flux. Older cities will still maintain the line, but there is a mix of well and poorly funded architecture.

 

Two of the biggies for navigation are the facades and the roads. In an area around a well-funded, high-profile project such as a church, the church will decide the look of the area. If its design is sedate and dark, many of the major structures in the neighborhood will to reflect that. And the road, which is normally funded by the builder, will be uniform in that area and wider than those found elsewhere.

 

So around our theoretical church, that's in an older city, the buildings should show signs of having started out from the same designer. The roads should all be the same material and wide enough for high traffic or parades.

 

A more recently built clock tower nearby our church will have it's own sycophantic buildings, but in better condition, and its own unique, wide pavements. If the structures' properties meet, then there is a distinct border. More often than not though, there is an intermediate section of sprawl that connects the two areas. Where sprawl sits closely between two properties, it leans more towards one design or the other.

 

This is not really important for smaller maps. Smaller maps are tiny sections of larger geometry or asymmetric growth and can be treated independently. There are fewer high-level patterns to consider, and the above topics won't affect a player's run. But on a large map such as this one, consideration to city planning and growth can drastically increase a player's ability to navigate.

 

One last note. This advice is given based the growth of a city considering material wealth only. Vying political factions and wars will change the footprint of various parts of a city in different ways than I described above. Asymmetric and geometric patterns will still arise, but density and direction will be different.