It’s been a long while since I made a proper architectural update. Back to the Ayra Katrin Library, which is called “che keh-ah-bek-oh se ayra katrin le agwilcress” in ANP Kahwan (Agwil-Naryyd-Prerart language).

The two lower main floors of the library were constructed to artificially appear as being under ground and are enclosed by the perimeter road that forms the “tail tip” of Agwilcress. I’ve been building out these floor layouts to more thoroughly fill in the space. The main library and south tower are the only sections that rise above the third floor. The north underground section includes a first floor entrance and the kitchen. The south underground section includes a first floor entry into the south tower and bathing pools. Both sections also have restrooms, showers, and general gathering space. The are four residential sections, each with sixteen rooms accessed from a triangular atrium. The west and east sections are now officially dubbed the library’s wings. That’s where the latest major changes have taken place.

In this picture you can see the new layout for the wing, with bookcases that wrap around the buttresses and circular bookcase clusters to fill in the spaces between. The hexagonal space underneath the gazebo is now an enclosed reading room. New additions also include side passages that connect the wings to the underground sections. The wings initially only had one exit which went to the main library, but now they have three. There was also enough room to add a little alcove to each residence room that accommodates a private toilet and sink.

You can see in the first image of this post that there’s some unclaimed territory around the south tower, so I might be expanding its lower two floors. I’m not sure there is enough space to make something out of the slivers of space on each side of the underground sections.

Some more changes to the front area of the Ayra Katrin Library. There was an area of sloped terrain near the top of the stairs that has been replaced with some more patio area. A small room with a spiral staircase links the covered patio areas below with the new upper ones.

There is only a small layer of sand/soil at the top level of the library campus, with the top of the underground floors just below. Because of this, trees would not have enough room for their roots up there. I removed the trees from the area, but added a grove in the lower section to compensate.

Speaking of which, here’s a better view of the lower section. Small lamps were added to the walkways and some adjustments made to the shape of the walkway and railings.

A new design for the buttress pillars on the Ayra Katrin Library:

The new cylindrical design replaces what was essentially a placeholder that was copied from an old pillar for the city wall. Here is what those looked like:

In close proximity to these new buttress designs, the library’s lower floors are expanding to fill in the space between the main structure and the perimeter road. These areas are highlighted in green below:

Below is a construction image of this area, showing how the buttress and gazebo structures extend down two floors. I’m still working out how the floor plans are going to be laid out and what functions these side rooms will fulfill.

It’s my birthday and I decided to do some work on Agwilcress again.

The Veli Cliffs stretch across the region and pose a formidable barrier between the northern and southern areas. When the nations divided, the cliffs acted as a natural defense for the capital city of Cresselecapera against the Akelikans, preventing them from forming any kind of major assault. Agwilcress was in part founded to protect an access point up the cliffs near the Antalle River.

I’ve been bothered by the size of the cliffs for a while. They were somewhat underwhelming at a height of about 64 nwen (16.4 meters/54 feet). I’ve gotten around to correct this, and now they cliffs are about 160 nwen (41 meters/134 feet) tall. Here’s pictures to visualize the change:

Because of the change, the stairs and ramp previously existing to get up the cliffs were no longer feasible. Instead, the travel is made possible by a major Ayra Katrin Engineers project – the Great Elevator (working title). That’s the new big structure just left of center in the second picture. It has a large cargo lift and two smaller and faster lifts for people. It closely follows the design of the city walls. You can also see that Tama Point on the right side is a much more significant structure.

The Ayra Katrin Library was constructed with four main floors and and a small basement area in its center. However, the landscaping on top of Tail Hill ‘buried’ the lower floors, creating an illusion that the library is smaller than it actually is.

The set of covered patios in the lower part of the picture are a new addition to the design. There was only an empty, sloping hill where these now stand.

Here’s a rough idea of the extent of the lower floors at this point, highlighted in white. Underneath the big hexagon patios are some common areas, including the library’s kitchen. The four triangles adjoining the hexagons are open down to the bottom floor and connect to sets of personal rooms (the two sets of four rooms you can see by each triangle) . Both the main building and south tower have two lower floors that connect to the rest of the underground area.

A view inside the underground area under the hexagon. The pillar design was recently updated, making them thinner. This gave the area a more open feel. At the very right of the picture is where the Library’s kitchen is located.

Here is the entrance to the underground area, looking back from the hexagon. The doors on the side go into the covered patios, and the front door leads under the archway serving as the ‘official’ entrance to the library.

Dominating the terraced hill leading up to the Ayra Katrin Library is the Tail Hill Complex, which is called “pog get bekonah” in the Agwil-Narryd-Prerart language.

Up front are two office-type buildings and the entrance to underground storehouses and workshops. Above those are a patio and a park area. Behind the park’s semicircle fountain is big square opening above the underground plaza. On the next level up and new to this version are the lower Ayra Katrin dormitories. The arch roofed section in the middle is the commons area, flanked on both sides by the individual living quarters.

Below is the last version of the Tail Hill Complex posted (almost four years ago):

Besides the building upgrades, you can see another big change. The area in which Agwilcress lies is an arid area, so much of the grassy land is being replaced with dirt, rock, and sand.

Here is an orthographic view of the entire tail hill:

Starting from the lower left and moving clockwise, the complex is surrounded by the National Square and a collection of circular gardens, Civic Square, Civic Hill, the Ayra Katin Library, Agwilcress Grain Factory, and Military Square.

It’s been a long time… one big reason for the lack of updates is that I have started a career job, and it’s been keeping me pretty busy. I have managed to get in some work in on places like the library, though.