Adventures In Minecraft - Part II: I Play So You Don't Have To!

So, hi! It's been a while, hasn't it? Nothing like a long weekend to get back into my blogging ways, I say. My absence is not without reason, and fortunately that reason is being hard at work on Chicken Jockey 2. If you haven't yet seen how development is coming along, drop by the Q-Kmbr Games Facebook page and take a gander at the beautiful artwork that Pete, my artist, has created so far. 

A race at Cluckston Lake (Chicken Jockey 2).

Visit the Q-Kmbr Games fan page by clicking here!

The game is coming along very nicely, and I'll definitely be updating that page with more content soon! While you're there, give that "like" button some love so you can stay up to date on how things are going! Those like buttons get sad when they don't get clicked. You don't want to make it sad...do you? Here's that link again, just in case: Q-Kmbr Games Fan Page

Lets get on with it, shall we? Today I present to you, "Adventures in Minecraft - Part II", the next iteration in the series where I document my play sessions through the brilliantly designed and compelling game of Minecraft.

In case you missed it, here's a link to Part I: Adventures In Minecraft - Part I

Day 2: New (Not Really) Beginnings - And By "Days" I mean "Entries"

What's with the weird titles? Meh...onward and forward.

I've played a lot of Minecraft since my last blog post, but because I quickly got into the multiplayer side of the game, I've been doing a lot of learning and experimenting and have forsaken the part where I'm supposed to be writing. Fear not, loyal reader, for I have returned with content that will once again be a feast for your eyes. Behold!

I think I'm at the point now where I have learned enough about the inner workings of this game to document the construction of a pretty epic project. The beauty of multiplayer Minecraft is that when you find a good server to play on, participating in community projects can be both rewarding and fun. With the experience I've gained through such projects, and due to the fact that our server has decided to start fresh with a brand new world, I've decided to build a town nestled within the mountains with the help of one of the guys that also plays on the server.

Using one many user-created texture packs, you can make Minecraft look dramatically different. This is the untouched mountainous area I found while exploring our server's map.

After exploring the area a bit, I got to work and started chopping down some trees. To keep the monsters that spawn at night in the area to a minimum, the first order of business was to build an entrance and light the place up so it is safe to work at night. Here are the results:

The archway, complete with a gate that, through a mod, can open and close. The Minecraft community is filled with talented people who create mods that take the game to a whole new level.

An aerial view of the inner area of the town, complete with a bridge over a pond formed from a man-made waterfall, not shown in this shot.

Some time later, after completing the lit walkway. Although it's dark, the waterfall can be seen in this shot.

When the walkway and bridge were done, it was time start constructing some actual buildings. Since space was limited in between these mountains, the idea was to build along the slopes of the mountain base. The first building that came to mind was a Town Hall. After a couple of hours of work, here's what we came up with:

When building with blocks, texture is everything. By adding protruding windows that use a different material than the building itself, you can really make it pop!

The source of these water fountains are two reflecting pools below the first floor windows.

The entrance of the Town Hall. The double doors to the right lead to a stairwell that goes up to the second floor, which contains a glass balcony looking down to the first floor.

The view of the first floor from the second floor.

The Town Hall (and town gate, to the right) as seen from the bridge.

So there you have it. This is just the beginning for this little mountain town. The next step is to finish the inside of the Town Hall and then move onto other buildings. Stay tuned, and thanks for reading!