ARCHITECTURE
As a metropolitan empire covering multiple planets and cultures, architecture in the Jade Empire is varied and displays multiple regional and cultural influences. However, certain methods and materials are common across the Jade Empire. General principles include the use of natural materials to conceal more modern elements.
Colourful lights and lanterns, both publicly and privately maintained, are ubiquitous throughout the Jade Empire and are a common hallmark of Jade Imperial settlements. Most municipal leaders operate a mandate or tithe by which all private dwellings are required to maintain some form of exterior lighting for the public safety, with varying aesthetic rules between jurisdictions.
The Ingenious style of architecture is most common across the Jade Empire. Used for the majority of new government buildings and colonies, it is signified by arching eaves, carved transoms, coffered ceilings, bevelled pillars and sliding doors combined with thin shoji walls to create a clean, elegant and minimalist exterior and interior.
Colourful lights and lanterns, both publicly and privately maintained, are ubiquitous throughout the Jade Empire and are a common hallmark of Jade Imperial settlements. Most municipal leaders operate a mandate or tithe by which all private dwellings are required to maintain some form of exterior lighting for the public safety, with varying aesthetic rules between jurisdictions.
The Ingenious style of architecture is most common across the Jade Empire. Used for the majority of new government buildings and colonies, it is signified by arching eaves, carved transoms, coffered ceilings, bevelled pillars and sliding doors combined with thin shoji walls to create a clean, elegant and minimalist exterior and interior.
THE INGENIOUS
The Ingenious place great emphasis on the value of a tranquil, beautiful home. Traditional buildings typically use wood for posts, lintels and walls, and tiling for the large, curving roofs with overhanging eaves. Stone is typically only used for the podia or foundations of a building, and interior walls are rarely load-bearing - instead they are constructed with paper-thin shoji.
In the larger metropolitan cities and for important industrial, military or technological buildings, the architectural style is typically retained by replacing the wood with polished metals and the shoji with tinted or transparent glass. |
DONG WU
Dong Wu developed city-states earlier than Ingen, and much of Ingenious culture such as its calendar, writing system and elements of Jade Shintoism all originated in Dong Wu. As such the two regions share very similar architecture though Dong Wu displays steeper curves and thicker lines than Jade schools of construction.
The grassy steppes of southern Dong Wu tend to see lower, wider buildings, as well as buildings modelled after the ancient yurts of the nomadic riders of Wu. |
YOKENEKO
Yokeneko were originally a species known as the felidaens, who migrated from the Katasian Ryk over the course of centuries. Their traditional architecture is proof against extreme sun and heavy downpours, with roofed balconies, cloisters and central courtyards protected by thick walls and tiled roofing.
Their public buildings make use of vast cyclopean architecture, and often contain elaborate watercourses and gardens both inside and out. |
THE SATTRANS
Neusattran architecture is markedly different from Ingenious tradition. Sattar District is has an oceanic climate that tends towards cold, with snow on the ground for at least four months of the year and frequent winds and precipitation in general. Sattran architecture makes heavy use of stone and timber, and Sattran homes are often built to a sunken-floor design, with the ground floor a metre below the surrounding landscape to reduce heat loss, improve structural stability and minimise exposure to wind.
|
THE SUEDIANS
Suedia and the other central districts of Neusattar are more temperate, with warm summers and rainy winters. They tend to build mostly in stone and plaster, with half-timbering common. Suedia in particular is home to many pre-Imperial castles, and its towns still boast walled 'Altstadt' districts, popular with tourists and movie producers alike.
The region is rich in limestone, producing the distinctive sandy appearance of many Suedian buildings. |
THE CALCARIANS AND ATHOINE
The sunny coastal climates of Calcaria and Athoi in southern Neusattar lend themselves to open homes with flat roofs and thick walls to keep out the summer heat. White plaster and paint is common, whilst larger buildings are often built in a neoclassical monumental style echoing the bygone days of the Calcarian Empire and the Athoi Confederacy. Many buildings in the region have broad porticoes and cloisters to provide shade whilst letting the fresh ocean breeze for ventilation, with marble walls and flagstone paving providing a clean feel.
|
All pictures sourced from Google Images