Building/Ship Glitch City

Since defeating the Ruin, much of my time with Starbound has been spent building, especially once I discovered the /spawnitem command. I've done various settlement projects, ranging from a homely cottage to a sizeable arcology. But looking at many of the Glitch, steampunk, steamspring and even Apex 'classic' assets, the Thief fan in me noted that it might be possible to make a Thief-inspired build. So, I set about my most ambitious project yet; a steampunk-Medieval Glitch city.

Firstly, I'd need a planet to work with. I chose a barren world, and proceeded to flatten a fair amount of it, though I'd end up needing to do much, much more later on. Then, I terraformed it into a lush planet, making it much more habitable and less meteor-y. From green grass to pine trees to a verdant background, it looked like a lovely place to settle. The monsters are a bit of an annoyance, though.

Next, I needed to think up the rough setup of the city itself. I eventually settled on a district-based approach, separating each with a canal. Said canals would be joined a couple of stories beneath the surface by a sewer, providing a dark yet mostly unobstructed means of quickly traversing the city. Eventually, I settled on four districts; the farm district (self-explanatory), the outskirts (holding industrial businesses and simple housing), the middle district (used mostly for residences and supporting amenities) and the upper district (containing the most important housing, businesses and amenities).

In order to make the city look a bit bigger than it actually is, I decided to put some 'buildings' in the background. I went with a different kind of block than what I'd used for the buildings, to help keep things distinct, but ran into some problems colouring it around ground level. In the end, I established a system where there is a sort of wall around each district, with some background buildings poking above it. I even used Shoji screens as mock windows, and put platforms on rooftops so I could actually use them to move around.

Now, without further ado, here's the grand tour.

Starting on the far eastern side, we have a guard checkpoint to protect against wandering monsters outside the city. There's also the beginning of the farms, with a couple of Mooshi corrals providing the city's milk.


Further to the west, we have a variety farms, mostly growing Glitch crops as well as wheat and sugar. There are also a number of farmhouses, protected from airborne monsters by gun turrets.


At the beginning of the city proper, just beyond the first canal, we have the inn. With two rooms rented by merchants and another room belonging to a live-in guard, it serves as a safe trading post just as much as a watering hole.


Here, we have an access hatch to the first stage of the city's sewers. There's even a mattress and barrel fire, creating a gritty feel. Especially when the inn's chef decides to sleep there, calling into question his establishment's health standards.


One of the most functionally important buildings in the city is the inventor's workshop, thanks to the presence of the city's only teleporter. The owner also has a range of steampunky goods for sale.


No self-respecting Glitch settlement is complete without a blacksmith. It's about what you'd expect; there's some crafting facilities available, as well as weapons and armor for sale.


Beyond the second canal is the largest apartment building in the city, holding the majority of its residents. Not terribly luxurious, but it's comfortable enough.


In the middle of the residential area is the restaurant, providing meals to much of the city's residents. It has a slightly different menu to the inn, but still plenty of the same metallic cuisine available.


Here's another apartment building. Smaller horizontally yet slightly taller, but still holding a smaller number of people.


One of the more eccentric residents is the plague doctor, who has a fascination with the occult and morbid. The setup was inspired by the necromancer's spire in Thief II.


The city's garrison is part fort, part police station. It houses most of the city's guards, as well as their supporting facilities.


Across the third and final canal is the bank. Besides the offices and records hall, it holds a vault containing the city's wealth, complete with a vault within a vault holding further treasures. The head banker lives in a lavish apartment on the top floor, while the security room joins onto quarters for a live-in guard. Yet another Thief II inspiration, this time from the First City Bank and Trust.


Next up is the church. Not overly sophisticated, but it's only appropriate that material distractions are ignored in favour of the spiritual. The priest is a lovely person who always offers me a banana, and spends much of their time paying their respects in the city's graveyard.



The tallest building in the city by far is the clocktower. It is maintained by a steampunk fan, who has an interest in steam-powered mechanisms appropriate for the job. I got the basic idea from the Stonemarket clocktower from Thief III, though the layout is original.


The estate is home to the city's leader, and is suitably well-furnished. The basement and kitchen is home to a servant, a guard and a chef. Above that is a dining room and ballroom, perfect for functions and gatherings. Next is a guest room set aside for myself, as well as another for an Apex ambassador, seeing as this was a joint Apex-Glitch project. They even claim that the MiniKnog cannot overcome compassion, indicating they're suited for the task. The top level contains the leader's quarters, as well as a rooftop garden.


Finally, the estate has its own garden, complete with gazebo and pond. There's also another guard post at the far end, protecting against roaming monsters.

So, there you have it. The biggest, most ambitious building project I've undertaken to date. I didn't get around to building everything I wanted, like a museum and library, but I didn't want to let scope creep turn the city into a sprawl that took 5 minutes to travel through. I still managed to get a lot accomplished, and I'm very pleased with the end result. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to have a shepherd's pie at Stormrake's restaurant.