Server IP: mc.crafti.ca

I'm in the process of setting up a new build server at the moment that will make heavy use of Multiverse to enable players to work on specialized super-build projects in highly thematic worlds. I wanted to create a realm that would function as sort of World Lobby where players would spawn and have easy access to portals to each ancillary world. I brainstormed a little bit about what I wanted, and I came up with the general concept of having a gigantic Atlas-esque titan holding a continent aloft over his head, and putting the gateways to the worlds up on it. After a little while, this idea developed to include Atlas inside a giant oceanic bowl - I'll get to why in a minute.

Anyway, I started off by making Atlas, which was not actually as bad as it sounds.



Then I started making the continent for him to hold. Also, not as bad as it sounds, since there are a lot of good terrain editing tools for Minecraft.


The reason I put him in a bowl to begin with was twofold:

• I planned on making some sort of bridges from the landmass he's holding to peripheral islands around the rim of the bowl, which would serve as extra places to put portals to worlds if I ever run out or need to expand.
  
• I wanted the players to see Atlas after I put so much work into building him, so I figured first-time players on the server would spawn on one of the aforementioned peripheral islands and walk out from the rim of the bowl to the central landmass. By starting them out there and making them traverse this, I know that they get the full effect of "there's a big dude and an even bigger bowl!"
  
  

Then I came to the point where I had to build the stuff that goes on top of the continent, and my brain hit a brick wall and came to a screeching halt. This is where I need help.

I know I'm after the following general visual motifs:

• Ancient overgrown ruins, almost like an old city. I'm thinking sort've romanesque in appearance. I would try and integrate the gateway portals as best I could into the city's layout
  
• A bigass tree in the middle. Two reasons for this. The first is to serve as a focal point on the center of the landmass, because I think that's required. The second is because I think the root systems of the thing could provide a really interesting building opportunity. I want to have the roots from this tree sprawl all over the continent, over and through the ruins, and even hanging from the underneath of the continent. I did this once on my old Laputa project and it made for some really neat interior spaces where the roots had basically taken over.
  
  

The only thing I've found in my digging for concept art and doodles that has felt really 'right' so far has been this image:



I like the idea of having those arched bridges out to the peripheral islands, and having the base of the arches just crumble into nothing as they cross the gap between continent and rim of the bowl. However, the stuff in the central island just feels too nonspecific for me to take any queues from it while building, which has lead to me getting frustrated with this a bit.

What I need, then, are good builders who can help me figure out how to lay everything out. Ventrillo's a plus if you have it and aren't twelve years old. I'm also hoping to dig up someone decent at organics who can help me sort out the titan's toga, since I've been working on it and haven't been happy with my own results yet - I'm pretty badly out of practice. The overall goal is to have a overgrown, ruined, and ancient city where I can incorporate portals to each of the worlds (oceanic worlds, sky worlds, etc.) hosted on the server. To that end, I'd appreciate people hopping on with some fresh ideas that might help me get past where I'm stuck currently.

Note: This server is only being localhosted on my primary machine at the moment so that I can easily MCEdit things as required without having to take a server offline, transfer files, make changes, transfer files, and start it back up again every time. The final server's already online and waiting with a 100-man player limit, but I won't be moving everything over onto it until I have no further need for regular MCEditing.