Port Blacksand

Well, it’s officially the 1st of October here in Perth so that means I can start kicking off with some terrain.   I have a lot of ideas buzzing around in my mind and a lot I would like to get done so with that in mind it’s time to get busy.

With this little project, the aim is to incorporate a mixed set of mediums, 3D prints both purchased STLs and ones of my own making, traditional scratch building and possibly even converting of existing kits.

Port Blacksand.

Port Blacksand sits at the point where the Catfish River meets the Western Ocean. It is the home of many pirates, thieves, and brigands, and is divided into several Districts.

Execution Hill.

This district is named after the bleak windswept square at the top of Gallows Hill.  On the hill’s south side, the buildings are tightly packed together, and roads turn into steep flights of steps.

Harbour District.

This is the oldest district in Port Blacksand with winding, narrow streets and ancient, weather-beaten houses. The narrowness of the streets and the overhanging nature of the upper stories of buildings make the streets dark even during the day.  Lobster Wharf and Harbour Street are the main thoroughfares.

Garden District.

This district is named after the public gardens which dominate this area of the city. It is a wealthy district with many private houses, some of which are the offices of professional people, including court officials, musicians, and artists.

Fish Market District.

In this district, the smell of raw fish permeates the air, worsened in foggy weather. The buildings near the wharf are warehouses with many exotic goods stockpiled in them.

Merchant District.

This is the heart of Port Blacksand’s business district. It runs between the southern side of Market Square and the City walls. Here, you can buy anything. Approaching the Royal Palace, the small gloomy shops are replaced by large houses in which dwell the city’s richest and most devious merchants.

The Noose.

This is the most notorious district in the city named after its most notorious street. It is most famous as the home of the powerful Guild of Thieves. An atmosphere of crime and decay pervades the area. The area has many beggars. The Noose is also the site of the Market Square and during the day this is bustling with traders and customers.

Temple District.

Here are most obviously many of Port Blacksand’s temples situated on or near the Street of Temples, a wide, pleasant street. Most of the City’s armourers and weapon makers are to be found in this same district, in the block of buildings formed by the Street of Knives, Cutlass Alley and Dagger Lane. The rest of the area is made up of twisting back streets and alleys.

Population

Most of the Port Blacksand’s population are Humans, Orcs and Goblins.  Trolls and Ogres are also common, and many work for the Blacksand Watch. Small groups of Dwarves and Elves dwell here. Some of the more unusual humanoid species also dwell in the city.

Architecture

The architecture favours overhanging upper storeys and many strange decorative follies like towers, bridges, and interconnecting passages above the ground. The buildings of Blacksand are painted many colours and most shops have signs indicating their trade hanging outside. The streets are unclean, covered in mud and droppings. Back streets in the older parts of the town tend to be cobbled and some of them are stepped. Each district, except for the Garden District, has its own City Guard detachment and blockhouse.

Taking a look in the garage for stuff that I could use uncovered a load of partial, failed, and unloved 3D prints along with a large storage tub of balsa wood, plasticard and other bits and pieces that I had refused to throw away figuring they could come in useful sometime.  This could be that time…maybe…hopefully.

It’s been a long time since I read The City of Thieves, but I do recall that there was a wizard, Nicodemus, who lived under a bridge.  I love the idea of that, so it seems like a good place to start.

It looks like I have some bridge pieces that I can mess about with.  They all look a bit too pristine so I will have to dirty them up and make them look a lot more lived in.   I want the whole City to have that ramshackle feel with buildings on top of buildings, and twisting alleyways where you could get robbed at any time.

Looks like I will have to dust off old scratch-building techniques, failing that, lots of glue, dirt and grime to hide any lack of modelling ability.

So, this is my first test run at modifying a building to fit under the bridge.  (Hence, it’s a weird shape and has no roof.)  The idea is that there will be some steps leading down from the bridge onto a small walkway with a platform for the house to sit on.  I will add more scatter and assorted items around the building.  I imagine this Wizard to be a bit of a hoarder.

Quick test print for the house under the bridge.  The cork tile is currently just there to raise the building up a little and will be replaced by a proper floor.

I am pretty happy with how it came out for a first attempt.

I know that the bridges in the book are described as wooden, but I wanted something a little more substantial and something that I could reuse in other settings.

The bridge works out quite large but by keeping it modular, or at least as modular as possible, I can use it in different setups and even in different games.  Made of stone, and if I paint it similar to my other terrain it becomes multi-use.

As with just about all my other brickwork I undercoated the model with Army Painter Leather Brown spray.

In games bridges often become choke points and I want to avoid that as much as possible by making this bridge more of a feature in itself.  More details on that as we progress along with the project.

Any additional components I add to the bridge will be removable so they can be swapped in or out as the mood arises.

Started to paint up the brickwork on the bridge sections, a tower and some port walls.

Before getting to this stage though I inserted loads of magnets all over the place so that I could magnetise details to swap in and out.  Things like spikes with heads on, gibbets and gallows etc.  Then if I wanted to move the bridge over to my Gaslight terrain, I could add streetlights or statues.

the tower also has magnets hidden in the walls to add extra details and can also come apart so it can be as many layers high as I want.  Or just remove it completely from the bridge.

The port walls again are also modular, not just in the order they can be set up but both fronts and backs can also be swapped around.  The idea with these is that I will add warehouses that overhang the walls or are built into the walls.  The flat section is for a ship to unload its cargo.   So maybe a crane or winch system to go there.   One of the walls has a sewer entrance, which will be one of the possible ways adventures can enter the city if they are brave enough to navigate the twisting sewer network.

Making progress painting the brickwork, still a way to go.

I have also started on some modular bits and pieces including houses to line the bridge and looking at ideas for gruesome elements to deter unwanted travellers.

I am pretty happy with how well the magnets have been hidden on the bridge and tower and looking forward to getting some of the little removable bits done.