2014-01-14, 06:09 PM
There is currently a lot of talk about the upcoming MiniGames/Creative Servers that could be added to McTopia - opinions about them aside, a lot of people have said they would build/help build a spawn for these servers, so I thought I'd make a 'Guide' for building, considering that I'm not anywhere near being a professional builder by any means, I've decided to instead pool any knowledge that I DO have for you guys. Because this is just a pool of my knowledge, don't be afraid to include what you guys know!
Where to build
Deciding where to build is obviously important, building in the center of plains is okay and will make building easy, but anything easy has it's drawbacks. You'll have no amazing scenery to show off or theme your build around, but if you do happen to build in a plain, plant some trees and make some features like a nice looking farm or a small stream/pond.
If you're up in the mountains, have some parts of the building/s up high and some down lower so you can have a bit of variety, even build directly on the side of the mountain!
If you're a spawning rank, you can build fake 'biome props' such as mountains, rivers or valleys to make your surroundings more aesthetically pleasing.
It all depends on where you build, remember that - Use your surroundings to your advantage! That line isn't only restricted to Fighting.
" title="Smile">
Architecture
Remember that Architecture is a profession in real life, not just Minecraft. I personally cannot build without inspiration, so I look at real building that have been made and gather ideas. For example, how windows are placed in comparison to an entrance or where stairs are in comparison to the center of the building.
The shape of a building is very important.
My No.1 tip for shape is DO NOT BUILD A SQUARE.
Squares completely limit what you can do for interior or exterior and stunt creativity flow. One of my favorite shapes is an L shape as it allows you to express your creativity and use multiple designs.
Exterior and Interior
Many people think that one is more important than the other but that couldn't be more wrong! Both are VERY important when it comes to building, this is what makes it hard. Some people are good at exterior and some are good at interior designs, this is mainly what people struggle with when building houses. However, if you're bad at building exterior, you can hobbit hole into a mountain. This way you have no need to worry about exterior and solely work on your interior, if you don't feel like doing that, get some inspiration as stated above or look at some other techniques below.
Symmetry
If you're going to build in a symmetrical or asymmetrical fashion, show if off!
The most important thing to do when you start building is to decide whether you're going to build in a symmetrical or asymmetrical fashion, this is VERY important for designing your perfect house. It decides what you can do on your roof, walls and floor, but more importantly, it can decide how your entrances come together.
~Inserting Picture Of House Displaying Door soon~
As can be seen inside one of my homes on the server, then main entrance (Before the mountain was removed by McMan, lol) was 6 x 7 x 1. Unless I WANTED it to look uneven I had no choice but to use Double doors.
But one thing to be wary of, using complete symmetry on a house can make it look boring and really stop showing creativity. Generally square houses are forced to use complete symmetry or they look strange, thus, try to avoid them.
Don't think ahead
Don't create a house shell then fill it in, you will most likely be left with extra space that will be difficult to turn into something appealing to the eye, build as you go and build more space as you need it, nothing more.
Flat Surfaces
Never keep a large surface flat, it stops your design from being as good as it can be. For example, look at this simple stonebrick wall:
This is an okay wall, but by adding little extensions, it can look twice as good:
Adding detail is the way to go.
Complementary Blocks
When building a house, you can't just any blocks together, so, here are a few blocks that go well with each other:
Oak Planks + Stone Brick
Sandstone + NetherBrick
StoneSlabs + Smooth Stone
Pine Logs + Dark Oak Planks
Grassy Dirt + Oak Planks
Oak Logs + Oak Planks
Moderation
All the blocks above look nice, IN MODERATION. Using too many blocks or too many of A block will ruin the effect, remember to change it up or it'll look bland and uninspired but if you use a block, use it. Using too little of a block will make it look random. Try and hit the sweet spot!
Where to build
Deciding where to build is obviously important, building in the center of plains is okay and will make building easy, but anything easy has it's drawbacks. You'll have no amazing scenery to show off or theme your build around, but if you do happen to build in a plain, plant some trees and make some features like a nice looking farm or a small stream/pond.
If you're up in the mountains, have some parts of the building/s up high and some down lower so you can have a bit of variety, even build directly on the side of the mountain!
If you're a spawning rank, you can build fake 'biome props' such as mountains, rivers or valleys to make your surroundings more aesthetically pleasing.
It all depends on where you build, remember that - Use your surroundings to your advantage! That line isn't only restricted to Fighting.
" title="Smile">Architecture
Remember that Architecture is a profession in real life, not just Minecraft. I personally cannot build without inspiration, so I look at real building that have been made and gather ideas. For example, how windows are placed in comparison to an entrance or where stairs are in comparison to the center of the building.
The shape of a building is very important.
My No.1 tip for shape is DO NOT BUILD A SQUARE.
Squares completely limit what you can do for interior or exterior and stunt creativity flow. One of my favorite shapes is an L shape as it allows you to express your creativity and use multiple designs.
Exterior and Interior
Many people think that one is more important than the other but that couldn't be more wrong! Both are VERY important when it comes to building, this is what makes it hard. Some people are good at exterior and some are good at interior designs, this is mainly what people struggle with when building houses. However, if you're bad at building exterior, you can hobbit hole into a mountain. This way you have no need to worry about exterior and solely work on your interior, if you don't feel like doing that, get some inspiration as stated above or look at some other techniques below.
Symmetry
If you're going to build in a symmetrical or asymmetrical fashion, show if off!
The most important thing to do when you start building is to decide whether you're going to build in a symmetrical or asymmetrical fashion, this is VERY important for designing your perfect house. It decides what you can do on your roof, walls and floor, but more importantly, it can decide how your entrances come together.
~Inserting Picture Of House Displaying Door soon~
As can be seen inside one of my homes on the server, then main entrance (Before the mountain was removed by McMan, lol) was 6 x 7 x 1. Unless I WANTED it to look uneven I had no choice but to use Double doors.
But one thing to be wary of, using complete symmetry on a house can make it look boring and really stop showing creativity. Generally square houses are forced to use complete symmetry or they look strange, thus, try to avoid them.
Don't think ahead
Don't create a house shell then fill it in, you will most likely be left with extra space that will be difficult to turn into something appealing to the eye, build as you go and build more space as you need it, nothing more.
Flat Surfaces
Never keep a large surface flat, it stops your design from being as good as it can be. For example, look at this simple stonebrick wall:
This is an okay wall, but by adding little extensions, it can look twice as good:
Adding detail is the way to go.
Complementary Blocks
When building a house, you can't just any blocks together, so, here are a few blocks that go well with each other:
Oak Planks + Stone Brick
Sandstone + NetherBrick
StoneSlabs + Smooth Stone
Pine Logs + Dark Oak Planks
Grassy Dirt + Oak Planks
Oak Logs + Oak Planks
Moderation
All the blocks above look nice, IN MODERATION. Using too many blocks or too many of A block will ruin the effect, remember to change it up or it'll look bland and uninspired but if you use a block, use it. Using too little of a block will make it look random. Try and hit the sweet spot!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xDf-_8KvGM - I'm Ready to Go. P!ATD.
Remember - It's okay to not like things, as long as you're not a jerk about it!
~What What.
Hush Hush.~
Remember - It's okay to not like things, as long as you're not a jerk about it!
~What What.
Hush Hush.~
