NWF architecture

[jamesmanto]

Alrighty, so I'm building some hill forts and a curious but typical feature of them seems to be a ledge of wood, brush, branches that sticks out from the tops of the towers and goes around like some odd shelf.


hill forts 001 by Hotlead2009, on Flickr

Anyone have any idea what that's for? Is it left over from building the wall? Is it to keep the sun out of the firing loops? Is it where the misses lays out the washing and figs to dry?

James

[6milPhil]

My understanding is that those are the supports for the roof. The added planking is just a luxury I think, like you say for keeping the sun off. Have you got a picture from which you were inspired to mkae this from? If so please share

It's similar all the way from the NWF through the Middle East and into North Africa. Even see some examples in Mexican/ US borders. The great thing about having these in your scenic collection is you can use them for games across all those areas... that's a ton of gaming across hundreds of years.

[jamesmanto]

I was using the sketches in Col. Hutchinson's The Campaign in Tirah and photos from the Osprey NWF volume.

[sukhe_bator]

The projecting beams are the roof suports, the projections help shed rain off the mudbrick/plaster

[Sangennaru]

maybe the orthogonal planks can be used also for walking or reparation, when you have to lift something or various other purposes!

I think it's a good start, you will have to figure out the best filler for texturizing the various surfaces!

[jamesmanto]

The projecting beams are the roof suports, the projections help shed rain off the mudbrick/plaster

Cheers. That makes sense. And also explains why sometimes they seem to be wooden planks and other times made from thatch or sticks.

James

[sukhe_bator]

Wood size depends very much on availability - with the best timber going to the headman's house and the local mosque. With higher altitudes the diameter of available trees diminishes so brushwood and reed supplements the available timber in roofing materials.
Salting the mud brick makes it surprisingly fireproof, while a mud rendering is a quick and cheap material to bond/clad a wall with and thick mud walls proved particularly resistant to cannon balls and small arms fire, though not explosives and shells. Such houses are sturdy, but vulnerable to earthquake damage, but can easily be repaired.
Drystone walling, as with crofting, helps clear any available soil for small gardens where vegetables would be grown. Larger fields will be terraced to maximise available space and harness rainfall to best advantage.
Common with other lawless, highland areas, many NWF houses make use of the hilly terrain to have a first floor access by means of steps, and a secure ground floor level for livestock in winter. One trick I used on 15mm houses was to cant the floor at a slight angle. The eye doesn't spot it easily when viewed from above. You can emphasize the change in level by modelling stony outcrops and buttresses, and make room for steps etc. Doorways and windows will be small to keep in the heat and intruders out, and the windows with wooden shutters on the inside. Wealthier villagers may have houses with a small secure courtyard with sheds and storehouses against the walls. No windows will look outside except at high levels and there will be only one entrance to the yard.
The flat rooves are used for drying and in some instances sleeping in summer, and any shade awnings are invariably fabric, and common with mediterranean countries, no village would be complete without a tree or trees in the central market area and mosque precinct for shade where the old men would gather and watch the world go by.
There will also be drystone wall folds for livestock close by the houses and dotted around.
There will also be large stacks of dried dung everywhere for use as fuel.
There would be little in the way of sanitation, with simple gutters/rills in the centre of the alleys and roads, following the contours of the ground.

[jamesmanto]

"Wealthier villagers may have houses with a small secure courtyard with sheds and storehouses against the walls. No windows will look outside except at high levels and there will be only one entrance to the yard."

You mean like this:

hillfortfinish 005 by Hotlead2009, on Flickr
 

James

[Hildred Castaigne]

"Wealthier villagers may have houses with a small secure courtyard with sheds and storehouses against the walls. No windows will look outside except at high levels and there will be only one entrance to the yard."

You mean like this:

hillfortfinish 005 by Hotlead2009, on Flickr
 

James

Blimey, those hills are nice!

Very nice building too.

[Sangennaru]

I like the texture! approved!

[sukhe_bator]

Spot on,
If you look on the Wiki entry for tower houses you'll see references to all sorts in hilly, lawless areas including Afghanistan and Tibet, alos some excellent pics of villages etc.

[jamesmanto]

Indeed. The project had been hamstrung for a quite a while because I was thinking 'fort' and then I realized they were more akin to Scottish border tower houses and that helped unblock the creativity.

[thejammedgatling]

great idea..very nicely done

question..those planks that poke out from the roof..are they to 'repel boarders' or to protect the wall from the elements?

[jamesmanto]

They're to protect the mudbrick walls form the elements.

[Hobbit]

In the 1890s the British found these builings virtually impossible to demolish with either mountain artillery or 12-pounder field guns. This was due to a combination of thick walls and small rooms which confined the effectiveness of detonating shells. Demolition required extensive work by Sappers and Miners - and incidentally makes a good basis for a scenario!

Love the buildings by-the-way, but I'm sure I've already said that elsewhere!