Alik'r desert

[Myzel]

I think I've seen that documentary. It shows that most deserts are really interesting environments. Not just endless sand.

Its not an area to waste aesthetics on: Its a desert like Arakis of "Dune". just big, empty, and deadly.

And boring. No offense meant, but I think you couldn't be more wrong. No player is going to enjoy walking through an empty sea of sand, even if they get jumped by monster after monster. An environment that is aesthetically interesting is a lot more fun to explore.

Of course we're not talking about just aesthetics here. Even if it'll be a strictly dune desert, players will expect to find things hidden in it. Dungeons, ruins, dunedweller camps, oases, quests, anything. An empty desert might have worked in ancient tes2, but games have changed a lot. The desert itself has to provide gameplay, or players will just 'fast travel' right across it.

[Fugu23]

If you've ever walked through the southern wastes of tes2 you'll see nothing but sand and mean monsters. Its a horrifying and ruthless place. Cities are sparse and the citizens are cruel. Its not an area to waste aesthetics on: Its a desert like Arakis of "Dune". just big, empty, and deadly.

Arakis isn't just sand though. There are a variety of rock formations, pillars, and landscapes, just as interesting as any. These need to be thought of. Deserts are deceptively simple, but can be surprising to pull off effectively. You need the whole aesthetic. It's not "okay sand texture we're done", just like Fallout isn't "okay everything's blown up we're done". And how can you 'waste' aesthetics?

btw here's that sketch, I left out a lot of details, and there's a better one I made today in class, but this'll have to do for the moment. This is just an idea.[url=http://img18.imageshack.us/my.php?image=basicsketchqw5.jpg][img]http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/8128/basicsketchqw5.th.jpg[/img][/url]
Repeated patterns of jagged, spiked rock, pillars of hard rock formed by exposed softer rock being worn away by the wind, which makes the sand. My explanation for the wierd shapes, at least. Basically hard rock walls and sandy crags about ten feet down in places, sort of like a maze, but not quite.

If you guys were to try this out the rocks would need to be made as statics, but the other sketch I have is simpler, just tall, wide, smooth stones with deep cracks and areas where sand takes over to make paths. Like I said, perfect for hiding ruins etc.

On an unrelated note, [url=http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/3131/senorsqueekscq4.png]here[/url] is senor squeeks.

EDIT: Oh, and can we steal those big static rocks from Fallout and just re-work them to the needs of a sand-worn desert? Those had a really great effect on me when I was playing the game.

[Lady Nerevar]

no, meshes cannot be moved from fallout since it breaks the EULA and stuff. there are some great rocks already avaliable for oblivion however, so im sure well find something.

[Hemitheon]

I don't think the Alik'r is anything like Arakis. The Alik'r will have plant and animal life for one thing. And geographically, only a small portion of the area would be a true desert which would be the centermost area. If Hammerfell were built full scale, then for sure the desert would be much vaster.

[Fugu23]

no, meshes cannot be moved from fallout since it breaks the EULA and stuff. there are some great rocks already avaliable for oblivion however, so im sure well find something.

Not if we use them as models rather than copypasting them into the game. I was talking about taking those rocks (since they're size-accurate) and just re-working the shape so that it's smoother or sharper or whatever desert architecture you guys are thinking of. It would be a lot faster and much more efficient.

Then again I don't really know the exact terms of agreement, but I'm pretty sure that's correct.

[Lady Nerevar]

nope, still illegal. nothing from fallout can be ported to oblivion, even if its modified. the only exception is user-made content (mods)

[Hannibal]

Actually i think large static rocks in the desert would ba a fascinating idea. you could use some of the large talon rocks from the daedric realms, smooth them over, change their texture and create some really interesting desert objects. one example could be giant rock 'henges' that are old and worn where that are barely jutting out of the sand. ion these rocks, one could have mysterious glyphs that bestow magical gifts--kind of like doomstones; or one could create an entire dume dweller camp located in the lee of a large isolated rock formation that conviently lies in the eye of the many sand storms that the desert produces.

[Four Greyhounds]

My ideas: I like the white sand desert formations, but not the white sand itself. Sandstorms I think would have to be a must. You could make 'em like the ash stroms in Morrowind, but I think they should also differ from those so that it wouldn't be too similar. Mirages sound cool, especially the imperial tower thing that disapears as you get closer. Sun damage and disabled fast travel also sound like good ideas, but does it make sense that you're walking around and then as soon as you enter the desert you start taking damage? Giant ruins are a must as well, and skeletons of huge ancient beasts would be an awesome asset to scenery as well. Certain creatures, like maybe fire and air spirits, as well as giant scorpions would be cool for day, but the more nightmarish and scary creatures could be more nocturnal, like the "Mad Hoosa." Those things are so cool!

[Sirch]

As time passes by, the sun damage should get higher and higher, and for sure not start right away. And you should have to take water with you or something, or else you start getting "dehydrated", and it shows it as like a spell effect. As you get more and more dehydrated, speed starts decreasing, the screen should get blurry and shaky like after you drink alcohol. It would also be cool to have random caravans passing through with camels and stuff.

A pure desert with only dunes and sand textures would be hard to pull off without it looking like a looped texture going off into the distance. Sand storms can cover that up half the time, but there has to be some other way to cover up the fact that it's one texture and all it is is dunes. The other parts of the desert shouldn't be a problem, there can be rock formations and stuff to cover, or trees and grass near the coast.

If you do make the dunes big enough, it would restrict the distance the player could view, if that could remedy the texture situation. Mirages could work kinda like fog, restricting visibility as well, or the distance can look like water all the time, just like on a road on a hot day.

[dirnae]

0_0 sounds cool...
Would a giant desert locust creature be too crazy?