United Cities/Building Guide
| United Cities Department of Housing and Urban Development | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Structure | |
| Committee Members | _Kastle, camelfantasy, InDev, mine_man_, and Derpy_Melon |
| Parent Organization | United Cities |
| Information | |
| Founded | December 26, 2016 |
| Dissolved | May 3, 2017 |
| Authority Under | UC Amendment 15 |
The Department of Housing and Urban Development was a United Cities committee consisting of _Kastle, camelfantasy, InDev, mine_man_, and Derpy_Melon. Its purpose was to assist United Cities in the process of progressing their towns through the ranks. Since it did not do much after creating this Building Guide, it was dissolved by resolution. However, this Building Guide is mandated to stay and may not be deleted.
Establishment of the Committee
The Department of Housing and Urban Development was established upon the passage of the United Cities Enacted Resolution 7, which states the following:
The President shall appoint a five-member committee, known as the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This committee will create a sub page under the United Cities wikipage that shall consist of advice regarding building techniques and city development to help attain higher ranks. In addition, the members of the committee shall actively encourage members to assist in city development by building houses and businesses. The committee shall also have its own Discord channel, #hud. The committee members shall be appointed at each new Presidential term, however there shall be no requirement for confirmation of members.
It was later dissolved when Enacted Resolution 15 was passed, which states the following:
"The Department of Housing and Urban Development is hereby dissolved and its discord channel #hud shall be deleted. However, the United Cities Building Guide wikipage shall not be deleted."
Player Advice
mine_man_
As an owner of a Governor town, a Senator town, and 3 Councillor towns, I know a lot about how to build cities which meet requirements for ranking up, whether that be to senator, governor, or maybe just mayor. Over my time on the server I have come across a few principles which towns usually must meet to be considered good towns.
Style
A good town must have it's own style, and towns with individuality usually rank up quickly. This could include the quartz and coal block schemes of Kenthurst, brick and sandstone buildings in Sealane, gem-encrusted buildings in Zaquar or the futuristic skyscrapers of Espil. This would have been the biggest mistake I made with Elecna Bay. Having an individual style means your town can be easily recognized and remembered.
Infrastructure
Most highly ranked towns include road networks, but that doesn't always have to be the case. I have two very different examples of my own. Elecna Bay, my Governor town, has a large grid of roads and avenues connecting districts together with a central A-road at it's core. Vegeta, my Senator city, has only a few roads going around districts with lots of pedestrianized areas in city centers with lots of squares and parks and the main A-road being underground. Roads usually provide a good way to also incorporate a style into your towns. Another thing you would have to consider is transportation. In my more rustic town of Vegeta, I have trams as public transport, however, Elecna Bay has a long network of metro tunnels and commuter rails as a way of getting about. Think of scale and what you are trying to achieve.
More to come later
_Kastle
Politics
Far more important than your actual town is how you deal with staff members. The promotion system is highly biased and generally places feelings about players above quality of towns. The staff are more likely to promote towns owned by people they like. So maybe instead of building your town, take a day to build free things for staff members. Another thing that helps is telling them that you're really impressed with their city, even if you aren't. The truth is, there really is nothing I can tell you about how to build your town. I can tell you how I like to build, but that doesn't mean that how I or anyone in this guide build is the "right" way to build. The most helpful thing I can tell you is basically kiss up to staff. They will of course deny all of this, but trust me, I'm helping you. In the words of the great Stephen Colbert, "You have to play the game."
Derpy_Melon
Hello people of the MRT! Here are a few tips I have for you while building:
- Whenever you use one block type for a large portion of a build, intersperse some other variations of that block.
- If you want to make unique skyscrapers, try to vary each floor instead of stacking one floor 10 times.
- A good block palette matters the most. Stay away from badly textured (In the default texture pack) blocks and try using blocks that look good together.
- Try to stay away from building boxes, make your builds have unique shapes that will fit the style that you are building in.
- Furniture is also very important. Look for inspiration in other towns, or even better, an IKEA (Just don't copy directly).
Camelfantasy
I have been to many towns on the MRT, and have noticed quite a few things on what would help to make a difference in a good town, and in a not as well built one.
- Planning
Planning a town is crucial to a well built one, and it may help to draw out a rough map of how you want your town to look in relation to the landscape, as well as different districts.
- Transportation
A good transit system is always helpful, whether it be bus, metro, or just plain roadways. Try to have the network cover the major parts of your town and as much as possible, while not overdoing or overcomplicating it too much.
- Buildings' styles
In general, adjacent buildings should not look very similar to each other to add to variety within the town, unless it is a group of buildings in a complex or a residential area.
- Roadways
Roads are key to any town regardless of its style. They should be wide enough to give a comfortable space between buildings, and a sidewalk with a decent width should be added as well.
- Inspiration
If you are ever stuck on building, it is always a good idea to look up some random pictures on the internet of buildings or ones you've seen, and replicating it in part or in whole.
- Help
Don't hesitate to ask for help from other people if you need it, they will most likely be willing to help you on some project and give you advice as well as a different perspective.
More later