Architecture in the mortal realms?

[Bray]

The Mortal Realms are weird, but they have cities that end up living with that weirdness.

How do y'all think the weirdness of the realms would influence the architecture of the realms? How do different races vary in architecture? How would you make houses and stuff for your battlefield that don't just look like generic fantasy houses?

[zilberfrid]

I'd make the timbers of Ghyran houses sprout new branches, pave the streets of Shyish in skulls (essentially just Warhammer style), make Aqshy houses from nonflammable materials and make metal houses inthat realm.

[JPjr]

I think one thing is to look at AoS as a Science-Fantasy setting (and conversely 40K a Fantasy-Science setting), so you're really free to go wherever your imagination takes you.

From traditional fantasy architecture or whatever (your standard Azyrite Ruins and tbh most of the existing kits) to gleaming twisted metal towers powered by science and sorcery to dome cities beneath the seas, or buildings made from giant trees shaped by magic to scrapyard cities built from junk and sat upon the backs of giant beasts.

Funnily enough now I think about it the absolute high camp classic Flash Gordon could provide loads of inspiration for various AoS cities. Damn, I might need to watch it again in fact.

[Baron Klatz]

Where buildings are realm-based i'd say just double down on that concept as it does in the lore. Ghur houses like those in the Excelsis port are made of monster bones, mud and dung, homes in Hysh lit by gemstones that are graceful and perfectly symmetrical and the metallic buildings of Chamon have seals or coverings to protect from the deadly rust storms or alchemical gases of that realm.

There's wilder stuff too naturally that doesn't have to be realm-based like cities that live on the backs of giant monsters that have hollowed out the back hairs for homes like the Crawling City does, living places built in the sides of gargantuan skulls or the backs of Aglorexi's mechanical constructs fallen in Aqshy during the Age of Myth or homes built on floating rocks that can range in textures from anything like the traveling volcanoes in Ghyran or the Sky Oaks in Ghur.

Another fun element is time period as you can focus on tribal homes during the Age of Chaos or Age of Hope with crude huts and signs of villagers worshipping daemons, God-beasts or defiantly worshipping Order and have natural defenses like Ghyran spike hedges, Ulgu toxic serpent-like plants or Aqshy fire stake trees grown around them.

Then more on the Age of Hope there's ramshackle architecture of quickly built places where the more solid constructs of the Stormcast or Duardin haven't touched yet as was/is the case of the over-expanding Hammerhal.

 

And then flash forward to more current set-ups where the Kharadron have established good trade and construction of sky ports throughout the realms and your buildings can be much more magical or metal looking thanks to all the imported realm materials. The new Soulbound art is a great example of what it's down for Brightspear city.

 

Edited October 9, 2020 by Baron Klatz

[DellaMorte]

I'm glad someone asked this, I've been wondering what style to base my Lumineth. From what I read about Hysh it looks to have all sorts of terrain but specifically mentions symetry so I thought cyrstals etc but only really seeing ruins (like what comes with Teclis' base).

Any suggestions? I don't even know with what style ground to go with for my soon to be Spartan-esque Lumineth let alone what objects I can customise with

[Gorthor21]

I wonder if they still are going to have buildings made of light in Hysh.  That also raised the question of it there would be buildings made of mist and fog in Ulgu that by magical means becomes solid and then can be taken down in a sense to be fog again to allow for towns/cities/encampments to be able to move when needed to avoid invaders or whatever.  
We can assume all azyrite built stuff will follow a formula as it would be very Order if it was. 
we have seen cities of bone and canvas in Ghur and the Living City in Ghyran and obviously the Ossiarch Empire made of bone but that has proven to not the norm and it can range from very familiar like Altdorf/Talabheim to whatever your imagination can conjure up.  We are definitely not as bound by imagery as 40K and you can really go with whatever idea you can come up with.

[Baron Klatz]

23 hours ago, DellaMorte said:

Any suggestions? I don't even know with what style ground to go with for my soon to be Spartan-esque Lumineth let alone what objects I can customise with

GW made a good article for that:

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2020/07/22/lumineth-realm-lords-our-models/

"I wanted the bases to really contrast with the bright, warm colours I had used on the models, so I used Astrogranite, Astrogranite Debris and layers of PVA glue to create a cold, barren shoreline. "

This would be great for your "Spartaneths" to hold the shores of Hysh's continents as they fight to reclaim their nation innerlands from invaders.

"The aetherquartz on the bases is another simple trick, as it’s just spare flying stands snapped into shards with clippers. Be super careful when you do this – it’s well worth covering the end of the clippers with a hand to stop bits flying off. When you get the hang of it, you’ll have some striking bases to compliment your high-contrast model, all nice and swift. Just how the Lumineth like it!"

This is good if you want lots of aetherquartz to show they're defending their homelands or magically shifting another realm's lands to be like their home in Hysh.

Another cool one was this:

Making the wheat into green plants and rocks & ruins into bright sun stones gives off a good vibe of how the Lumineth are healing and restoring the brilliance of the lands with their light and realm spirit communion.

21 hours ago, Gorthor21 said:

I wonder if they still are going to have buildings made of light in Hysh.  That also raised the question of it there would be buildings made of mist and fog in Ulgu that by magical means becomes solid and then can be taken down in a sense to be fog again to allow for towns/cities/encampments to be able to move when needed to avoid invaders or whatever.  

They should, Death has several buildings that shift around the realms already and more than half of the faction scenery operates the same way like the Fyreslayer forge forming from flung molten metal, the Flesh-Eater Throne growing from the remains of the Ghoul king's enemies, the Khorne Alter rising from the soil that sacrifices are laid on, the Deepkin shipwreck manifesting on land from the aether sea, etc.

Edited October 10, 2020 by Baron Klatz

[DellaMorte]

Awesome find Baron Klatz, thanks very much for such a detailed answer!I'm definitely going to spru(c)e up my bases with some aetherquartz and I love the idea of the plantation restoring glory. I think you've given me the idea to have small details like that coming out of what hopefully looks like battlegrounds to show hope in an otherwise bleak scenario (for my militaristic vibe). Cheers

[Baron Klatz]

Happy to help!

More on aelves,  I think a really cool challenge would be making houses that represent the Deepkin. We've gotten lots of great art of their elegant structures already.

 

Graceful buildings with lots of curved spines, fins and covered in coral would be great for battlefields where either the Deepkin are establishing a colony or surface realm forces have deployed magic force fields underwater so their troops can attack the Deepkin directly (if not something that wouldn't need air like daemons, Sylvaneth, mutant greenskins or undead).

 

[Popisdead]

I hope that we see a grand variety of architecture and to (mis)quote the great John Blanche "things exist in the space you imagine them"

Granted I don't want to see early 21st century concrete buildings with computers   hahah. 

[Baron Klatz]

I'd make the exception for 21st century stuff if they aesthetically upgrade them to be twisted things of monsters and magic like yugioh.

That'd fit a lot closer to say a Chamonite city that could use runes and magic to connect their technology (like some instances in Zelda:Breath of the Wild) together or a chaos corrupted version of Aglorexi engineers from Aqshy going over to Tzeentch for such technical knowledge to make monster machines for a pseudo-modern look.

As long as it's got a creative twist to it I'm game.

Edited October 13, 2020 by Baron Klatz

[DellaMorte]

On 10/12/2020 at 1:46 AM, Baron Klatz said:

Happy to help!

More on aelves,  I think a really cool challenge would be making houses that represent the Deepkin. We've gotten lots of great art of their elegant structures already.

 

Graceful buildings with lots of curved spines, fins and covered in coral would be great for battlefields where either the Deepkin are establishing a colony or surface realm forces have deployed magic force fields underwater so their troops can attack the Deepkin directly (if not something that wouldn't need air like daemons, Sylvaneth, mutant greenskins or undead).

 

Excellent post! Jeez it's not going to be easy for a beginner to make scenerey like that! I will though, somehow - thanks!

[Baron Klatz]

Long belated response but take it in small steps. Just some cottages with coral and barnacles before you try running with undersea palaces.

But the real reason I dredged this thread up from the Realm of Death is to appreciate the new Dawnbringer Azyrian architecture:

 

There's just so much grand majesty from Azyr's celestial cities on display here from the focus of the Stormcast and Azyrians using their native architecture for the new colonies. Certainly have come a long way from the ramshackle buildings Hammerhal first had after the Seeds of Hope campaign when mortals first tried reclaiming the realms.

Bonus points to the objective markers having architecture hints we've seen in Azyr like the horned gryph head.

 

The blue candles are nice too since that's Azyr's main color. It's even noted in lore Azyr stones naturally glow blue so nobles have them imported from the heaven realm so their personal palaces and vista's glow in Azyr's blue light.

The Hammerhal herald references that with it's "take a trip to the realm of light" poster since it's in a wealthy nobles quarter with blue stonework that Azyrians could afford.

 

So yeah, i'll be painting my scenery blue to show my Stormcast bodyguarded Azyr colonists are bringing their celestial home down to the wilds of the realms.

Final note that goes with the Lumineth poster, we got some eldritchly beautiful architecture and aethercrystal scenery in the new Corebook with them: