City Building.

[Josh110691]

Hey guys in my novel I am creating a massive city which will be the capital of the Empire in the story, I have done concept designs but I am terrified as I don't want it to mirror Minas Tirith in lord of the rings, any advice or tips?

 

[Trick]

Your post is a bit vague. Do you think it is similar to Minas Tirith? is that where the inspiration came from?

 

[ThinkerX]

Your post is too vague on details to tell you much of anything.

So...

1) Has this always been the capitol of your empire? Or is it a relocation? If it is a relocation, what happened to the old capitol?

2) Is the city newish (built within the past 100-200 years) or has it been there for millenia?

3) Is your empire relatively peacable and tolorant? Are major riots a constant concern? Or does the empire have a longish history of aggression?

4) Has the empire been invaded? If so, where are the invading forces relative to the capitol?

5) Is the capitol where it is because of defenceability? Or just because it sat at a major intersection of trade routes (major rivers, port city, junction in the road system) Or is it some combination of the two? Or something else - like some Diety telling a long ago priest king to 'build here'.

6) What is the technological level? Swords and spears with little or no magic? Swords and spears with much magic in everyday use? Or have they made it to 'flintlock' / 'steampunk' levels of tech yet?

Think about these questions and come back.

 

[Mythopoet]

I've read a number of books with cities that reminded my in their description of Minas Tirith and it didn't bother me. (Actually, you could say that Tolkien was ripping himself off as Minas Tirith is not unlike Gondolin, another of his cities from The Silmarillion.) Tolkien was inspired by real world history and mythology. The overall design was by no means original.

But again it really depends on in what way you think your city might be too like Minas Tirith.

 

[Ireth]

(Actually, you could say that Tolkien was ripping himself off as Minas Tirith is not unlike Gondolin, another of his cities from The Silmarillion.)

I think that was intentional on the part of the characters, not just the author. More than one of the more "recent" kingdoms in the LOTR world were modeled after older ones. Thranduil's caves in Mirkwood, for instance, were built to resemble Menegroth, the Thousand Caves, home of Finrod Felagund; Lothlorien was inspired by (and named for) the gardens of the Vala Lorien, where Galadriel had often gone in her youth, when she still lived in Aman.

 

[Scribble]

Rather than focus on worrying whether your city resembles another... what makes it unique?

What are 3 rumors about the city that are true?
What are 3 rumors about the city that are false?
What are the 3 most notable places in the city?
Where is the "bad" part of town?
What festivals do they hold?
What is the historical significance of these festivals?

Once you start answering deeper questions about the city, you'll develop a flavor that outstrips Minas Tirith, which honestly, was not very well defined. Yes, you can do better than Grandpa Tolkien. /heresy

 

[Mythopoet]

I think that was intentional on the part of the characters, not just the author. More than one of the more "recent" kingdoms in the LOTR world were modeled after older ones. Thranduil's caves in Mirkwood, for instance, were built to resemble Menegroth, the Thousand Caves, home of Finrod Felagund; Lothlorien was inspired by (and named for) the gardens of the Vala Lorien, where Galadriel had often gone in her youth, when she still lived in Aman.

I agree, but I think one could still get that impression, is my point.

 

[Saigonnus]

1) Has this always been the capitol of your empire? Or is it a relocation? If it is a relocation, what happened to the old capitol?

2) Is the city newish (built within the past 100-200 years) or has it been there for millenia?

3) Is your empire relatively peacable and tolorant? Are major riots a constant concern? Or does the empire have a longish history of aggression?

4) Has the empire been invaded? If so, where are the invading forces relative to the capitol?

5) Is the capitol where it is because of defenceability? Or just because it sat at a major intersection of trade routes (major rivers, port city, junction in the road system) Or is it some combination of the two? Or something else - like some Diety telling a long ago priest king to 'build here'.

6) What is the technological level? Swords and spears with little or no magic? Swords and spears with much magic in everyday use? Or have they made it to 'flintlock' / 'steampunk' levels of tech yet?

I think this is a good start for fleshing out a city of any size. Other aspects include:

A) What sort of building materials do they have to work with? If they are far away from stone, most likely they will make bricks or use wood as the principal building material.

B) What sort of climate/environment is the city set in? This could give some idea of the architectural features (doors/windows/latticed screens etc) the city-dwellers would use for their buildings.

C) What sort of people live there? Generally a city gets it's personality from the folks that calls it home. If they are cosmopolitan for example (an assortment of races) you might see different architectural forms for the buildings within the city instead of one persistant style of buildings.

D) What type of geographic setting/ location are you wanting? if in a canyon, maybe recessed structures in the rockface (a la "the time machine". If in the mountains, maybe a warren of caves and caverns like the dwarves of old. I think you get the idea.

 

[CupofJoe]

And to be mundane...
There is the poo. How does fresh water get in and waste water get out?
I usually think of and learn about a real city [historic or current] that mine sort-of resembles and then start from there.
Looking at areas/cultures that are very different from what I'm used to is a help. I was amazed at how different cities in Asia and the Americas were to those in Europe [for similar populations].

 

[Mara Edgerton]

Ooh, lots of good advice and thought provoking questions here!

I like CupOfJoe's advice to think about the water supply. Cities are so often built on, near or around rivers for a reason. You should decide how close the nearest rivers or oceans are, whether your city includes a port--and, if so, how that port affects local trade, and whether the port makes your city more defensible or less so. (I like ThinkerX's questions along these lines.)

I'd also think about what your buildings are designed for. Are the biggest, tallest, most lavish buildings dedicated to religion, finance or the state? Answering that question can tell you a lot about a city's culture.

Speaking of the state, how do they keep the peace in this city? Is there a dedicated police force? Does the army of the Empire double as a police force instead?

And what is this city really good at producing? Are there noted glass-blowers or artisans of some other kind? Are there ship-builders and such? Is this city grand financial center as well as a political center? Are there arenas for sports? Do tourists come to gape, welcomed by locals who want to sell them souvenirs?

How many languages are you likely to hear in this city? If you sit in a restaurant, will a dozen different tongues float around you, or is one language dominant? And speaking of restaurants, what's the dominant cuisine? Or is there a hodgepodge instead?

Hope these questions help--good luck!

 

[Foah]

Most answers in this thread tackle the ideas of atmosphere and the general feeling of the city, and it's hard to tell from the original post what aspects of the city you want/need advice on. To add something more, I can give you some thoughts on the actual infrastructure and architecture of a city.

In all cases, with few exceptions, cities are a thing that grow over time and don't just spring up out of the ground. In many cities today you'll have "The Old Town" districts that tell you where the heart of a city once was. In cities and towns that didn't have to rely heavily on trading or outsourcing management and maintenance you'd also have some sort of water supply nearby, like a river. Not only did this give the benefit of another trading route, but it meant that a sewage system could be built.

So if you're gonna create a city from scratch on paper, I'd strongly recommend that you build the infrastructure in waves. You start small, with equivalences of a city hall, butcher's shop and Ye-Olde-General-Store-Or-What-Have-You etc. Once you have the very basics of a functional small town, add another layer. Think of it as building structures needed for 100 people, followed by 500 people, then 2,500 people etc. and just add layer after layer until you feel you've reached the size you want.

I hope this was of some help