KnightWalker49
Notable Member
- Aug 24, 2018
- 327
- 9,233
Greetings, it is I KnightWalker49.
Today I bring you a new series called "Builder's Blog", where we learn building techniques and talk about anything related.
For this entry, I will be discussing depth and how you can utilise certain techniques to give your builds a bit of depth. This entry is aimed at beginners, or people who seem to have forgotten how to build. However you may still find it interesting so just read along regardless.
What is "depth"?
More often than not, when I use the term "depth" what I am referring to is the distance between the foreground and the background of a build; this can be the distance between the framework and the wall. Depth gives a build more shape, it makes it not look flat and mundane. When used correctly, you can make your builds look complex and interesting.
For this example, I will be using an oak plank wall (figure 1). Our goal is to make this boring wall more interesting.
fig. 1: Boring Oak Plank Wall
Let's start with a common mistake made by beginner builders, using only one block. It's hard building anything that looks good if you only use one block. Some players tend to forget that using a variety of blocks is better than only using one. If you look at figure 2-a, this is one of the most common type of builds that beginner builders tend to do; even with the new texture update, it still looks rather unpleasant in my opinion. Now if you look at figure 2-b, although the build still doesn't look that cool, it looks better than figure 2-a.
fig 2-a: A fine example of N00b Architecture in Minecraft
fig 2-b: A small rustic house
Now now that I've shown you a clear distinction on what not to do, let me show you two techniques that you can use to add depth to your build.
Technique 1: Framework
Framework, in the context of building in Minecraft, refers to beams and/or pillars which acts as essential supporting structures for a building. This can be made from any material depending on context, for this example I will be using logs (see figure 3). Framework can be made to be flushed with the wall as well, however in most cases I prefer having it a block ahead of the wall; and having it not flushed with the wall will add depth to the wall and can really help distinguish a part of a build from another, and it also makes the build look more structurally sound (meaning it looks stable and less likely to collapse).
fig. 3: Basic example of what a framework is.
For me, I use framework to divide a huge section into smaller chunks. This can help distribute the area in a way which will make working on it more easy, framework can also be used to highlight features of a build such as: doors, windows and aesthetic (such as pictures, banners or a logo on a wall). Remember that framework can be built in any shape, as long as it's reasonable; especially if you are going for realism. Build framework which looks like it will support the structure it's meant to be supporting, however if you are not going for more traditional themes and you aim to go into more abstract themes such as Space and Extraterrestrial then these rules may not apply.
Technique 2: Stairs and Slabs
Stairs and slabs are great for many things other than being used for stairs. They make brick walls seem more damaged, they make shrines more grand with curves and other unique angles, they are great when utilised to their full potential. Here's a side by side comparison on how you can use stairs to make a brick wall more weathered:
fig. 4: Old brick wall. The one on the right looks more detailed even if it's only one block thick.
Now, you can be creative with other blocks as well. You can use glass panes and glass blocks to give your windows more curve by putting glass blocks in the middle and panes on the side, you can add iron bars to a brick structure to make it look like it's slowly eroding, Minecraft offers a lot of blocks to choose from and it's up to you to be creative with them.
Now that you know what depth is, techniques to give your builds depth, let me show you how you could use them in a build.
Example to show what you learned!:
Let's build a simple window!
To start off, let's look at that oak plank wall I showed you at the beginning. I'll start by adding more blocks to make it more interesting, I added stripped oak log on the sides to make the wall not boring; remember that you should use a variety of blocks to your advantage. I added stairs to give it more curve and contribute to the overall depth of the structure.
fig. 5: Main wall layer. And apparently an egg as well.
Next, I will use spruce log as the framework (I know you can't see it, but bare with me it's there) to add another shade of brown to the build instead of only using light brown blocks, remember that choosing a good colour pallet will help guide you on which blocks to use for your build. Then, I proceeded to use spruce stairs and slabs as detailing inside the box highlighted by the framework, then I used oak stairs and oak fences to detail the spruce log framework. Did you notice anything? If not, look at how I used oak and spruce type blocks; I used them as a contrast to one another as oak is brighter than spruce and vice versa, so using them against each other will really highlight the detailing you are putting. And to add more colours, I will put a plant bed to put some flora onto.
And now that you know how to make a neat looking window, you can easily transfer what you know to make something like this:
Now that you understand the techniques used in the process of building this window, you now know how you use simple techniques to make something look complex. It's all on the depth and the blocks you use to give your builds depth, it's not about having the "best" texture/resource pack in the game. For more complex structures, builders often do about 3+ layers of depth, here's an example of a cool build by a player named Tommys on planetminecraft:
Source: https://www.planetminecraft.com/project/grandeena---castle/
Epilogue:
This took a while to make so I hope you found this article useful, if you learned something please share what you made down below. If you have any questions or suggestions on what I should cover next please leave them down below as well or message me on the Broken Lens Forum.
I hope you enjoyed reading this!
Like what I write? Read my previous articles:
Guide on Winning at PVP
https://brokenlens.xyz/forums/threads/information-a-guide-on-winning-at-pvp.86679/#post-681141
Identifying the Players of Broken Lens:
https://brokenlens.xyz/forums/threads/information-identifying-the-players-of-broken-lens.86356/
Boop
Today I bring you a new series called "Builder's Blog", where we learn building techniques and talk about anything related.
For this entry, I will be discussing depth and how you can utilise certain techniques to give your builds a bit of depth. This entry is aimed at beginners, or people who seem to have forgotten how to build. However you may still find it interesting so just read along regardless.
What is "depth"?
More often than not, when I use the term "depth" what I am referring to is the distance between the foreground and the background of a build; this can be the distance between the framework and the wall. Depth gives a build more shape, it makes it not look flat and mundane. When used correctly, you can make your builds look complex and interesting.
For this example, I will be using an oak plank wall (figure 1). Our goal is to make this boring wall more interesting.
fig. 1: Boring Oak Plank Wall
Let's start with a common mistake made by beginner builders, using only one block. It's hard building anything that looks good if you only use one block. Some players tend to forget that using a variety of blocks is better than only using one. If you look at figure 2-a, this is one of the most common type of builds that beginner builders tend to do; even with the new texture update, it still looks rather unpleasant in my opinion. Now if you look at figure 2-b, although the build still doesn't look that cool, it looks better than figure 2-a.
fig 2-a: A fine example of N00b Architecture in Minecraft
fig 2-b: A small rustic house
Now now that I've shown you a clear distinction on what not to do, let me show you two techniques that you can use to add depth to your build.
Technique 1: Framework
Framework, in the context of building in Minecraft, refers to beams and/or pillars which acts as essential supporting structures for a building. This can be made from any material depending on context, for this example I will be using logs (see figure 3). Framework can be made to be flushed with the wall as well, however in most cases I prefer having it a block ahead of the wall; and having it not flushed with the wall will add depth to the wall and can really help distinguish a part of a build from another, and it also makes the build look more structurally sound (meaning it looks stable and less likely to collapse).
fig. 3: Basic example of what a framework is.
For me, I use framework to divide a huge section into smaller chunks. This can help distribute the area in a way which will make working on it more easy, framework can also be used to highlight features of a build such as: doors, windows and aesthetic (such as pictures, banners or a logo on a wall). Remember that framework can be built in any shape, as long as it's reasonable; especially if you are going for realism. Build framework which looks like it will support the structure it's meant to be supporting, however if you are not going for more traditional themes and you aim to go into more abstract themes such as Space and Extraterrestrial then these rules may not apply.
Technique 2: Stairs and Slabs
Stairs and slabs are great for many things other than being used for stairs. They make brick walls seem more damaged, they make shrines more grand with curves and other unique angles, they are great when utilised to their full potential. Here's a side by side comparison on how you can use stairs to make a brick wall more weathered:
fig. 4: Old brick wall. The one on the right looks more detailed even if it's only one block thick.
Now, you can be creative with other blocks as well. You can use glass panes and glass blocks to give your windows more curve by putting glass blocks in the middle and panes on the side, you can add iron bars to a brick structure to make it look like it's slowly eroding, Minecraft offers a lot of blocks to choose from and it's up to you to be creative with them.
Now that you know what depth is, techniques to give your builds depth, let me show you how you could use them in a build.
Example to show what you learned!:
Let's build a simple window!
To start off, let's look at that oak plank wall I showed you at the beginning. I'll start by adding more blocks to make it more interesting, I added stripped oak log on the sides to make the wall not boring; remember that you should use a variety of blocks to your advantage. I added stairs to give it more curve and contribute to the overall depth of the structure.
fig. 5: Main wall layer. And apparently an egg as well.
Next, I will use spruce log as the framework (I know you can't see it, but bare with me it's there) to add another shade of brown to the build instead of only using light brown blocks, remember that choosing a good colour pallet will help guide you on which blocks to use for your build. Then, I proceeded to use spruce stairs and slabs as detailing inside the box highlighted by the framework, then I used oak stairs and oak fences to detail the spruce log framework. Did you notice anything? If not, look at how I used oak and spruce type blocks; I used them as a contrast to one another as oak is brighter than spruce and vice versa, so using them against each other will really highlight the detailing you are putting. And to add more colours, I will put a plant bed to put some flora onto.
And now that you know how to make a neat looking window, you can easily transfer what you know to make something like this:
Now that you understand the techniques used in the process of building this window, you now know how you use simple techniques to make something look complex. It's all on the depth and the blocks you use to give your builds depth, it's not about having the "best" texture/resource pack in the game. For more complex structures, builders often do about 3+ layers of depth, here's an example of a cool build by a player named Tommys on planetminecraft:
Source: https://www.planetminecraft.com/project/grandeena---castle/
Epilogue:
This took a while to make so I hope you found this article useful, if you learned something please share what you made down below. If you have any questions or suggestions on what I should cover next please leave them down below as well or message me on the Broken Lens Forum.
I hope you enjoyed reading this!
Like what I write? Read my previous articles:
Guide on Winning at PVP
https://brokenlens.xyz/forums/threads/information-a-guide-on-winning-at-pvp.86679/#post-681141
Identifying the Players of Broken Lens:
https://brokenlens.xyz/forums/threads/information-identifying-the-players-of-broken-lens.86356/
Boop
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