On Worldbuilding: Layout and General Description of Mount Glenn
AndrewJTalon
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General Layout
Mount Glenn is a planned city with a radial design, centered around Vorn Tower and organized into concentric zones for residential, industrial, and defensive purposes. The city spans both surface and subterranean levels, leveraging the valley's terrain and Dust vein.
Surface Level
Design and Features
Mount Glenn is a planned city with a radial design, centered around Vorn Tower and organized into concentric zones for residential, industrial, and defensive purposes. The city spans both surface and subterranean levels, leveraging the valley's terrain and Dust vein.
Surface Level
- Shape: Circular, with concentric rings of development radiating from Vorn Tower at the center. The city is divided into districts connected by Dust-powered monorails and wide boulevards.
- Outer Perimeter: Reinforced Grimm-proof walls (steel and Dust-infused concrete) encircle the city, studded with automated turrets and sonic barriers to repel Grimm. Watchtowers with early AI systems monitor for threats.
- Districts:
- Central District (Vorn's Vision): The heart of the city, home to Vorn Tower, public plazas, and cultural institutions. Designed to inspire awe with holographic billboards, fountains, and lush parks maintained by Dust-fueled climate control.
- Residential Districts: Radiating outward, these house settlers in sleek apartment blocks and family homes. Each district has schools, medical centers, and community halls to foster a utopian society.
- Industrial District: Located near the valley's edge, this zone contains Dust refineries, robotic factories, and storage facilities. It's less ornate but heavily automated, with robotic workers managing production.
- Transit Hub: A network of monorail stations connects districts, with elevated tracks offering scenic views of the city's spires. The hub links to the underground transit tunnels leading to Vale.
- Green Spaces: Interspersed throughout, with artificial forests and lakes powered by Dust climate control, creating an illusion of natural beauty within a fortified city.
- Dust Nexus: A massive reactor complex at the city's core, channeling the Dust vein's energy to power the city's infrastructure, defenses, and experiments. It's a labyrinth of pipes, generators, and control rooms, heavily guarded and automated.
- Transit Tunnels: Wide, reinforced tunnels for rail-based transport to Vale and resource extraction. These become death traps during the fall, when Grimm overrun them and Vale seals them with a train bomb.
- Merlot's Hidden Labs: Secret facilities built by Doctor Merlot beneath the Dust Nexus, used for his Grimm mutation experiments. These labs, filled with vats and containment units, are where the mutant Grimm originate, breaching containment to trigger the city's collapse.
- Vorn Tower:
- Description: A towering skyscraper of steel and glass, Elias Vorn's headquarters and the city's centerpiece. It features a penthouse for Vorn, research labs, and a panoramic observation deck symbolizing his vision.
- Design: Sleek and futuristic, with green and gold accents (Vale's colors). Holographic displays project Vorn's speeches across the city.
- Role in Downfall: Vorn's final stand occurs here, broadcasting defiance as Grimm overrun the city. He dies in the tower, crushed by rubble or killed by a mutant Grimm.
- Dust Nexus:
- Description: A subterranean reactor system, the largest of its kind, powering Mount Glenn's lights, defenses, and climate control. It's a technological marvel, with automated systems and glowing Dust conduits.
- Role in Downfall: Merlot's experiments destabilize the Nexus, disabling defenses and allowing Grimm to pour in.
- Central Plaza:
- Description: A grand public space with fountains, statues of Vorn and his family, and holographic billboards promoting his vision. Surrounded by cultural buildings (theater, museum, library).
- Role in Downfall: Becomes a chaotic evacuation point as settlers flee, later overrun by Grimm.
- Grimm-Proof Walls and Defenses:
- Description: Multi-layered walls with sonic barriers (proven to repel Grimm), automated turrets, and robotic sentries. Watchtowers use early AI to predict Grimm movements.
- Role in Downfall: Merlot's mutant Grimm bypass the sonic barriers, and the AI fails to adapt, allowing a breach.
- Monorail Network:
- Description: Elevated tracks crisscrossing the city, connecting districts and linking to the transit tunnels. Sleek, Dust-powered trains provide efficient transport.
- Role in Downfall: Monorails are abandoned as settlers flee on foot or via tunnels, which become overrun.
- Merlot's Labs:
- Description: Hidden beneath the Dust Nexus, these labs contain vats for Grimm mutation, powered by the Dust vein. They're secretive, with restricted access even to Vorn's inner circle.
- Role in Downfall: The epicenter of the catastrophe, where Merlot's experiments create unstoppable mutant Grimm.
Design and Features
- Aesthetic: A blend of fairy-tale optimism and industrial might. Soaring spires, glass domes, and green-gold color schemes evoke Vale's pride, while underground systems and heavy defenses reflect pragmatism. Parks and artificial skies create a utopian facade.
- Technology:
- Automation: Robotic workers handle mining, construction, and maintenance. Early AI predicts Grimm attacks, though it's imperfect.
- Dust Integration: The Dust vein powers everything—climate control for artificial weather, sonic barriers for defense, and monorails for transit. The Dust Nexus is the city's heart.
- Surveillance: Drones and cameras enforce the Citizen Contract, a pledge of loyalty to Vorn's vision, ensuring no dissent or outside influence.
- Cultural Features:
- Propaganda: Holographic billboards and Vorn's speeches promote Mount Glenn as humanity's salvation. Schools teach his philosophy, and art (inspired by Lila Flores) glorifies the city.
- Community: Designed to attract families, artists, and engineers, with promises of safety and prosperity. Unlike mercenary-driven colonies, it fosters a sense of purpose.
- Defensive Systems:
- Sonic Barriers: High-frequency emitters repel standard Grimm, a Merlot innovation.
- Turrets and Sentries: Automated weapons target intruders, but they're calibrated for normal Grimm, not Merlot's mutants.
- Underground Design: Subterranean districts enhance defense, with artificial day/night cycles to maintain morale.