Tour of Mission Bay
January 10th, 2007
Mission Bay, Washington is a mid-sized city situated on the eastern coast of Puget Sound and directly north of Seattle. It is also the second-largest city in the Pacific Northwest and plays host to the largest private elven community in the western United States. The city was incorporated in 1870 although it existed as a settlement since 1849.
Many months ago, Jade asked me to post a tour of Mission Bay. Well, it took me awhile, but I'm finally getting around to it. Better late than never, right? Actually, the reason it took so long for me to get around to this is because I just finished finalizing the layout of the city over the weekend (this is the third incarnation of the city).
Let's see, a few technical facts before I start. The neighborhood map is Autumn Bay by Gethane. This is the original map I started with way back in February of 2006. I tried switching to a smaller map but then ended up coming back to this map as I like the layout of it so much even if it's a little too big for me.
Also, I think of this city as a visual representation of Mission Bay and not necessarily what it looks like in "real" life. I'm pretty sure my computer would curl up and die if I attempted to build the city of my imagination in the game.
Now that that's over with, on with the tour:
A view of the greater downtown area looking east from Puget Sound. The inlet to Mission Bay, guarded by Sentinel Lighthouse is in the foreground. Sentinel Point, which I forgot to get a picture of, is the piece of land in the lower left.
An alternate viewpoint, this one looking northeast from the Sound. They are kind of hard to see in the picture, but look at the houses just north of the city. The one with the green plumb bob over it is Tahlvin's house from Prologue 02.
The waterfront district. In the past, this area was home to canning factories and warehouses. After extensive renovation back in the 1980s, the area was reinvigorated and became some of the most expensive real-estate in the city. The waterfront street, named Cannery Row in remembrance of its past, is now made up of private residences, resturants, shops, parks and tourist attractions.
Looking northwest from Druid Lake (located east of the city). The private elven community can be seen in the distance. On the lakeshore is the water treatment facility and the electric company.
Looking directly west into the city. The Sodo district can be seen just left of center. The building with the satellite dishes surrounding it is a technomagic research facility.
Rotating around a little, we are now looking southwest into the heart of the city. The unassuming white building in the center of the picture is the world headquarters for the mercenary corporation Wraith Warriors.
Wraith Warriors Worldwide: I put the finishing touches on it over the weekend. The building design is actually based on a lot that my husband built back when he was playing the game.
Do you remember that picture I showed you awhile ago? It's just barely visible through the ground floor windows of the lobby. To the left of the lobby is the gym.
In my imagination, this building is much bigger and has many more floors.
Turning around and looking toward the southeast again, we can see Druid Lake and Druid Falls. Back in the 1898, angry human loggers pushed a number of bound and gagged elven druids over the top of the falls. The druids had been trying to stop the loggers from clear cutting the trees. It is said that the angry spirits of the druids still haunt the lakeside.
Looking northwest from downtown, here is a clearer view of the private elven community. It was founded back in the early twentieth century in reaction to the increased hostilities between the humans and the elves. In the past, it was heavily guarded by elven warriors and humans were only allowed to enter if they had business with one of the elves who lived in the community.
Over the years, although still watched over by its own private law enforcement and surrounded by stone walls, the restrictions against humans have relaxed. A human still may not own property within the community in his/her own name, but, he/she may own property jointly with an elven spouse. The community has enjoyed popularity as a major tourist attraction and is also host to one of the largest renaissance faires on the west coast each fall.
The historical guard house, in the foreground, is still in commission. Although all attempts have been made to maintain its historical look, state-of-the-art technology has been insinuated behind the scenes.
The castles in the background are the ancestral homes of influential elven families. In the late nineteenth century, during the Elven Diaspora, they were shipped over brick by brick from the homelands of the elves in Europe and Great Britain.
Directly east of the elven community, is the forest last seen in Prologue 01. The ruins in the foreground (also seen in the previous prologue) are of the old druidic mission from which the bay, and later the city, got its name.
In the foreground is the cemetary where Tahlvin buried his wife back in Prologue 02. This is a historical cemetary and only those families who have lived in the area since the city's incorporation are allowed to bury their loved ones there.
16 Responses to “Tour of Mission Bay”
January 10th, 2007 at 1:23 pm
Wow!….thats so cool!!!
January 10th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
What an awesome neighborhood, Kara! I really like the Wraith Warriors building… it's so cool looking. And those neat medieval walls are cool, too. It's really neat to see a 'behind the scenes' look at the scenery in the pictures!
I, unfortunately, have nowhere near an elaborate set up. I just have filler to make it look populated in my cityscapes. You guys and your neighborhoods… such patience!
January 10th, 2007 at 1:50 pm
Wow!!! Your neighbourhood is totally amazing. It really looks fantastic. It is so cool how much thought and time you have put into this story. I wish I could be so dedicated with mine. I really like making the sims, taking the pictures and making up the stories but I am not so dedicated with the building. Luckily at the moment my sims are living on ships so all the indoor sets are just wooden rooms. But oh the day when I have to start building castles =(.
Needless to say I am hugely muchly impressed by Mission Bay =).
January 11th, 2007 at 5:09 am
Isn't it funny how the sets are always a little different in one's imagination? Or else you imagine the character looking a little different, or something. Mission Bay looks really cool. I can't wait to learn more about Wraith Warriors-Maybe you'll set a scene in the inside of the building…?
January 11th, 2007 at 8:36 am
Oooh, how fascinating and beautiful! I love how we can see the lots where so much of the action took place – and naturally, being a huge fan of anything remotely historical, I was riveted by the History behind Mission Bay.
It explained a lot from the story so far – like why Tahlvin and Hale wore those odd, dated clothes to visit Sam's grave – and I now have formed a good image of what it might look like when fitting into your stories.
Thanks for the tour – it was lovely! 😀
January 11th, 2007 at 9:02 am
Thank you, everyone! I'm glad you enjoyed the little tour.
Jenny: Thank you! I'm just so glad that it is finally done. Well…I say that, but I'm sure I'll still be tweaking it here and there. I still haven't made a final decision on what houses Tahlvin and Hale should live in.
Mao: For some reason, the anal part of me just kept nagging until I had finished the neighborhood. Somehow, my mind just wouldn't accept that Mission Bay was a "real" city until I completed decorating the neighborhood. 😆
Verity: haha 😀 I hear ya! Actually, building is my least favorite thing too, which is why most of the houses and lots that I have in the game are made by other people. I think I've made a grand total of two from scratch (Brandee's childhood home and the Wraith Warriors headquarters).
Sydonie: Oh, I know. Imagination is so powerful that you can come up with almost anything. It's a little disappointing when you can't seem to realize that vision in the game. …At least it is for me. 😉 And, the Wraith Warriors building will appear in Chapter 4. So, you'll get to see at least part of it then.
Amalinaball: I haven't told all the history of Mission Bay yet. But I hope to be able to tell some choice tidbits as I introduce some future characters. The history of the Pacific Northwest provides some great fodder.
The clothes Tahlvin and Hale wore at the graveyard were their family's traditional dress. Each elf family might have a different type of traditional dress depending on: where they're from (originally), how old the family is, or what fashion period they may feel an affinity for. So Tavia, the matriarch of the Shadowtalon clan, has deemed their traditional dress to be based on Rococo fashion. Maybe more than you ever wanted to know about elf fashion. haha
January 11th, 2007 at 9:59 am
Wow, that's breath-taking, Kara! I love seeing the city as a whole, and the tour was great, too. It gives your stories even more depth now that we can envision the larger world your characters inhabit. I love the Wraith Warriors building! Really awesome. 🙂
January 11th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
Kara, it is really wonderful. Just when I think you can not get any more amazing in your Sims 2 world…
Thanks for the tour! I love hood tours.
January 11th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
Wow! your town is amazing! Great idea how you managed to bring together the elves and humans.
January 12th, 2007 at 6:12 pm
Wow, that looks awesome. I especially like the elven community and the shot of Druid Lake and Druid Falls. Just amazing.
I'm jealous of anyone who has that waterfall working in their game – when I place it, it just sits there and no water comes out of it.
January 14th, 2007 at 12:40 pm
Just a note to say it it fabulous, the whole site indeed. Many thanks to Jade's wondeful site that brought me here and into the world of sims worlds. Must admit I love the hood Autumn Bay myself. It will take awhile to read all the stories etc, but certainly a pleasure….
Hazy
January 14th, 2007 at 6:52 pm
Wow, that is amazing! That has to be the most awesome neighborhood I've ever seen! I love all the decorations, and of course all the thought that you put into the lay out and the decor! Simply beautiful!
January 15th, 2007 at 11:04 am
I take a weekend off from working on my story and return to find all these wonderful comments! Thank you so much! I'm glad that the tour was such a hit. 🙂
Carla: It's kind of tricky to get the waterfall to work. Sometimes you have to wait a few minutes until the animation starts. If you've waited a few minutes and nothing happens, then maybe the rock is positioned wrong—try rotating it and then wait again. If it's still not working for you then…well, I'm fresh out of tips. 😉 Hopefully, you can get it to work though.
Hazy: Welcome to the site!
January 15th, 2007 at 12:58 pm
This is amazing. I love the waterside the most.
February 8th, 2007 at 8:41 am
Hi! I just love the view of your SimCity! It looks almost surreal! I can't wait to get started on my 'hoods to add that personal touch to make it look almost as nice as yours and Jade's 🙂
Thanks for Sharing,
~LaTasha~
July 2nd, 2007 at 5:47 pm
those pictures are amazing.. you must have the best graphics card in the world