Worldbuilding Project - Walking on Clouds - Spire City

[@someeejit]

I can imagine there’s strict laws around cloud harvesting for water in cities, like you can only get it from passing clouds at a certain height or only when it’s a certain temperature or time of year, imagine if there’s a history of whole cities collapsing or having to be abandoned because the excessive capturing of clouds had damaged the foundations causing the city to tilt. I dunno but I imagine there’d be hundreds of these cloud settlements and not all of them turn out okay

[@truedryad]

May the algorithm gods bless you. This is an amazing start.

[@amadeus9097]

You have an awesome vision dude, please continue this series!! Running into someone who's just as excited about this kind of stuff really inspires me to keep going with my own writing and doodling. It's long been my dream to share my ideas with others, so I hope yours reach many more eyes and ears, wherever you want to end up in life.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you! I appreciate this so much.

[@popculturegreece]

This is an excellent world-buidling idea, that takes a concept that was featured before as a component of worlds (floating cities) and expands it into its own world! Brilliant. Kudos to you. I hope you'll populate it with some indigenous fauna, adapted to the environment (perhaps some cloud-burrowing worms or something)!

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you! I have some ideas for fauna already that I will show soon!

[@mr_nothing.the_one_that_no9134]

Love the more gimiky world building projects like this. Just a simple idea alone could probably make something incredible like this

[@Greenman4890]

Idk why my youtube is popping up with people like you who are worldbuilding and combining it with art but I like it. Very cool seeing all the worldbuilders like you on youtube which helps inspire me to use my own new graphic tablet haha

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

I saw the idea on KZbin from Monstergarden and I loved it! It inspired me to get my own ideas out that way.

[@true_emu8333]

This is one of the most incredible examples of world building I’ve seen! The way you are able to start with a single idea and use it to create intricate and specific ways that this society would work is incredible and inspiring. Can’t wait to see what’s next!

[@Son_of_a_kitch]

Absolutely amazing!

[@raffdraws]

Wow, I had no idea I'd stumble across such a cool project. KZbin recommendations doing it right! I love seeing the creative process, it's a highly interesting concept. Love the way you explain your problem solving, reminds me of James Gurney explaining his world over on his channel. Keep it up

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you so much!! I really appreciate this!

[@brunobenkel2045]

I love your idea! It's interesting to think about how many mountain cities exist in media and yet so few portray the relationship between these civilizations and clouds. I'm very curious to see what comes next.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you!! I am excited to do more!

[@patrickterryjr4764]

You have my subscription! Awesome idea!

[@Insanity_TM]

First I saw monster garden and now there is another project. Exited for both : )

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you!!

[@jojodelacroix]

Not sure if anyone mentioned it, but dont forget the weather. For instance, clouds block a lot of radiation, so burning might be a bigger issue, and because of that, you could expect those living higher to possibly develop more melanin. Moreover, higher altitudes are harder to breath, like Denver, so people acclimated to it might be better off while the elderly or frail might not be able to handle breathing in these rasied areas.

[@kaicastle.]

I just saw your works in your website man, I'm in awe! More power!

[@peppapotato]

I wanna live there that’s so magical ❤

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you!!

[@MiroMaitland-Thoresen]

I'm so exited to see what this project blossoms into!

[@heisenbaki]

I really enjoy the idea and I think it has a lot of potential. One thing I thought is instead of the cloud cities being suspended beneath the clounds, it would probably make more sense if they rest on top of them. This would make them more stable and safe (the ropes could slip through the clouds), but also easier to defend since the clouds wouldn't be at risk of being melted by enemy projectiles or possibly cloud runners. This would also make it possible to somehow increase the size of the clouds (merging with other clouds) and, by extension, the city. It could at the same time turn into a mechanism for controlling the lift of the main clound, raising or lowering the entire city. But anyway, good job man!

[@Gyashonav]

For weaponry it would make sense for projectiles to be used, I'm not entirely sure how hard the clouds in this world are but if they are about as hard as a rock then maybe a cloud sling may work. [Edit]- ok, if I literally just watched 10 more seconds of the video I would have known that that idea isn't going to work, although, something like a salt gun or sand plaster may. If it wasn't for the fact that it wouldn't even work IRL. [Edit2]- anyways, shepherds in the (ok, sadly I forgot the name of the mountain range but it's the main one in South America) would use long pole that they would have plunge in the ground during a fall. Whilst falling they would slide down the pole like a fireman, saving them from the fall. Although I don't know how high of a fall it can take, I only seen a video of someone doing it from what looks like a 10 foot or a 3 and 1/4 meter drop.

[@jonnaarendse5888]

This is amazing I need this as an animated show

[@StephenDeagle]

Off to a great start. Just spitballing some random ideas, but maybe certain celestial alignments or other some other natural phenomena could temporarily harden the clouds even more? Or make them more unstable? These periods could be essential for cloudrunners and others looking to traverse them, affecting their schedules and routes. Maybe some sort of sport or racing event taking advantage of this unique environment? That might be a fun idea to delve into. Maybe certain fauna or flora that can only be found in these clouds, motivating hunters or foragers to explore them? Tons of potential in this idea of yours.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

These are great ideas, thank you! I have some ideas for sports and for weather patterns, hardening the clouds more is very interesting I want to think about that some more! I also want to get into the fauna, I have a few ideas already and I want to create more! I really appreciate the ideas!

[@JagoDoodles]

More. MORE.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

I will! Promise! What do you most want to hear more about?

[@saphter6440]

LOVE THIS OMG!

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you!

[@hermeticserpent8045]

Looking forward to seeing more videos. This was great!

[@dialog_box]

it goes without saying but this is amazing! regarding grappling hooks though, i feel like there might be a more believable solution. obviously we're already suspending our disbelief enough to say that people can walk on clouds. but a small, dense object like a hook feels like it might be pushing it, especially when you start to think about how hooks actually work. i feel like whatever "chunk" of cloud the hook catches onto would just separate from the rest of the cloud in an instant. instead, something closer to sails and fans might make more sense. like a large, light, canvas sheet with a frame and a rope. cloudwalkers would throw them like frisbees, or possibly even fly them like kites, trying to land one on a cloud where it comes to rest. you then tie the rope to a similar device on the cloud you're standing on, and carefully walk across the rope

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

I imagine the clouds having a certain amount of cohesion, if you throw wide grappling hook into the middle of a chunk of cloud, it would bring a decent sized chunk because of that. I like the idea of sails/frisbees, the main issue just bein portability. I think with the cohesion, nets would be useful as well, kind of like how fishing nets are thrown.

[@dialog_box]

@@jeffbrowngraphics in terms of portability, you know those collapsible laundry baskets that fold up on themselves? that could be something maybe. but still, who doesn't love grappling hooks

[@mastamas1124]

Love your style and ideas ❤ Help me understand the clouds and the atmosphere of this world, because that seems to be what its all built on. Why are the clouds so dense? Why dont they fall lower in the atmosphere? Why does the bad yellow gas/air stay lower, but the heavy clouds stay higher? I feel like the rest of the world building will logically fall into place once the main idea (how the clouds work) is fleshed out more.

[@orcishdad8075]

This is incredible! have you thought about city defense? I would think flame throwers would be useful to quickly melt invasion clouds, but the range wouldn't be very long. What about mirrors to reflect the sun like Archimedes is said to have done against Roman ships? Mirrors could also be lightweight enough to take on clouds for aerial combat. They could also be used for long range signaling. I imagine mirrors are used for al sorts of things in this world. Very useful in an environment with large open spaces.

[@bumblingBird-]

i love the architecture, its complexity is great!

[@McKaulick]

This is a great watch and also inspired me to step up my game in World building and also start sketching. Looking forward to the next video.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you! That is awesome to hear!

[@jeremyachristensen]

So awesome! Keep it coming. I'd love to see you flesh out a whole world

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you so much! I will!

[@TheDrIdot]

Given that clouds are very reflective in the same way that snow is, a form of snow blindness would probably be a very serious issue for people constantly looking out over the clouds. They would probably protect from snow blindness in ways that reflect their technology level. They would either need some form of tinted sunglasses or maybe even some kind of mask with two tiny holes to look through like what the Inuit people wore. Aviators wore aviator glasses for a reason, in fact, the US Air Force has at times even issued aviators to Air Force pilots. The physiology would also probably be greatly affected by this constant sun exposure regardless of their latitude. Constant sun exposure would probably darken the skin of the people who live there for many generations to protect from skin cancer. If there was some form of “Stone Age“ nomads living on the clouds, I would expect them to look like very skinny Inuit or Polynesian people. Their bodies would need to be a delicate balance between installation of heat via body fat, not being too heavy to make a living on the clouds difficult and the need to store energy because of the potential scarcity of food depending on the flora and fauna in the clouds. I can imagine wind carried plants struggling to survive because the lack of nutrients in the “not soil” of the clouds. Any that existed would depend on bird (and bat?) droppings for nitrates. Maybe some plants that resemble Tillandsia crossed with a Dandelion and a Pitcher Plant. Without plants animal life on the clouds would struggle. You have certainly crafted an interesting world to imagine living in.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Wow! This is very well thought out and extremely helpful. Thank you so much! Those are very good things to dive into and think about!

[@kingofhearts3185]

This was a really interesting idea, definitely subscribing to see what else you have in store.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you! I will be posting more soon!

[@RicksCreations]

What a cool idea for a worldbuilding project! I can't wait to see more about the implications such clouds would have on the societies of this world. Keep up the great work :)

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you! I look forward to doing more!

[@disgruntledbob2812]

What a cool concept executed excellently! I love the well thought-out way in which the cloud aspect is implemented, both for the cities and the cloud travelers. Ladder-spears and grappling hooks used to get around are just unreasonably cool. Would love to see more about these people, or even a specific cloud city! Keep it up (pretty please)

[@disgruntledbob2812]

Have another comment for the algorithm: Maybe these people domesticate/train various birds? Nomadic bird of prey hunters are just plain rad could fit the setting well

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Ooh this is a great idea, like the mongolian eagle hunters! That gives me tons of ideas!@@disgruntledbob2812

[@disgruntledbob2812]

@@jeffbrowngraphics Glad I could help give ya some tasty bird inspiration. And eagle huntin’ has to be the just the raddest kind o’ huntin’

[@shadow.7842]

Super cool project and I can't wait to see where else this leads. Amazing artwork and everything. I was thinking that clouds shouldn't always be so beneficial. as there don't seem to be many downfalls to it. I also was wondering that if in those lower down civilizations, people and buildings would be destroyed or pushed by the clouds as they pass through. Like how we have tornados and hurricanes but they have fast-moving dense clouds. Just thought that would be something that could be interesting, especially if there were these somewhat catastrophic events in which clouds had the power to destroy or damage the mountains.

[@ruralmason9729]

I was typing could you use a snowshoe design as you said they use shoes like snow shoes. Very cool design and idea, i look forward to following your project

[@DawnBooks]

I like the mushroom idea but hear me out: no wood. The air is too thin for most plants to grow over the yellowfog stuff. The only thing that grows is short grasses and mosses. Maybe they'd have giant root systems though to collect water from bellow due to not a lot of rain hitting up high. and you could use the roots for wood-like stuff? just an idea

[@abstract7452]

Damn this is great to watch so please make some longer vids

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

I will!! Thank you so much!

[@zynpkrdg]

ohh at first i thought maybe they used something magical to walk on clouds but the clouds have solidified a bit themselves! how and why though? clouds are just,, well, water vapor. (it doesn't have to be scientifically accurate or anything btw lol.) anyway i would love to watch all of your journey of designing this world, definitely subscribing!

[@Lickwater27]

Should make hierarchy of class based of height on spire

[@jacobusviharson9284]

This is really cool, and the visuals really add to that. I will say I'd be curious to know why all this is neccesary in your world, as constructing everything described would be a lot less convenient than conventional transportation/city building

[@StalxD]

Have y ever heard of One piece ? There is a location there called Skypia which is a town above/on clouds

[@zapmansi107]

I actually saw your dragon video first and came back to watch the others. Are there a lot of these cities or only a few? What does the day-to-day life of a lower-class person living below the city look like? Do humans utilize the dragons or steer clear of them? Will humans ever travel below the toxic cloud and if so, how will they achieve this? This is an awesome project, and I can't wait to see where you take it. I'll be looking forward to your next video.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you! There are lots of cities with quite large populations, humans and dragons mostly keep to themselves. Lower class people might live in the caves and harvest mushroom, make rope, or farm in the low levels. The low levels where food is farmed are dangerous because of gusts of toxic air giving them chemical burns. Humans will definitely travel below at some point, I think that would be a good story to write.

[@TheDungeonTomb]

cool ideas but also alot of questions. like if people have to move all the time not to fallto there death. how can a city just be standing still and not fall to the ground. but love to see more and i am sure the 344 other members are waiting for what is next

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you! I will have some more soon with explanation for that!

[@yarealno]

Have you considered making world's wiki online or website? To structure the lore and keep it in one place.

[@DamienZshadow]

I would be interested to know if there's any upward social mobility that allows for someone in the lower areas to move up higher in society and physically on the mountain. I can imagine quite a few euphemisms being used to describe the value of something based on how high it is. Likewise, saying someone's "head is in the clouds" wouldn't be an insult as much as it would be a description of their status.

[@jonech3920]

since clouds are semi solid do they erode the mountains as they buffer them? like a shelf of a sea stack. a cities main job may be protecting the mountain from damage with a city built in the cove.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Absolutely, that’s why the peaks are so steep, they also heat up and melt against the stone as it heats up during the day, creating rivers, deep ravines, and waterfalls.

[@Simon-is2xd]

I really love your idea, very interesting! But I have a few questions, like why would they choose to live on the clouds and not on the earth? Is the earth inhabitable? Cool concept, you've got yourself a new subscriber!

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

That’s a very good question! I will get into that very soon. Basically, because they can’t. There is a layer in the atmosphere below where they live in the mountain peaks that is highly toxic and will burn skin on contact.

[@ObscurhaArcanis]

Question if anything linked to the clouds slowly starts to sink through wouldn't that be the case for grappling hooks as well even if you were able to latch onto a cloud I fear by the time you were able to climb up in order to stand on the cloud the grappling hook would have slowly been working its way through the cloud as well falling back down?

[@coreym8580]

Sorry if you already answered in another video, but how do the ropes and grapples hold the clouds? If they're soft enough for people to slowly sink through, wouldn't they be soft enough for the rope to slowly cut through it as well? I'd love to hear what you've come up with as a solution for that! Like, maybe there's a substance harvested from the poison clouds below that can stiffen cloudstuff so the ropes are specially treated with that material. But it continues to give off poisonous vapors, so the cloudrunners can't use it to coat their shoes or anything.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

For sure, thanks for asking! They use nets and lots of ropes at different angles to spread the weight, even still they constantly are re-working the ropes and pulling in new clouds, it's a lot of work to maintain everything afloat, especially for merchant caravans full with goods. The clouds themselves, do somewhat try to hold together, a certain level of like with water surface tension, the ropes won't pull clean through as long as the weight is fairly evenly distributed, That's why cloudrunners usually wear cloud shoes (like snowshoes) to distrubute their weight and not sink in as much.

[@coreym8580]

Neat! And that definitely fits with the other stuff you've said about how the clouds operate. Now I'm imagining cloudwranglers as a guild or generational business where they have a ton of inside knowledge on keeping the clouds stable, but are fairly insular and don't much trust the farmers or merchants or other folks.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Yesss! That is great! @@coreym8580

[@cimmicacocoa2370]

Comment for the algorithm nice vud

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thanks!

[@phoebuslore]

Animals and plants adapted to these walkable clouds? What do the people in the cloud cities eat?

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

This is my next topic!

[@Artgalles]

Neat concept, what would be the peoples drive towards the clouds? Assuming the lowerworld is accessible?

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thanks! It’s not accessible, nobody is able to go below. If they were they would realize it would be better above anyway. Below it there are billions of giant insects

[@Artgalles]

@@jeffbrowngraphics Lovely stuff! Look forward to seeing more

[@ybm_678]

I have a couple questions. 1 - Do you intend to make this into anything other than art? e.g. a book, movie, etc.? 2 - Which drawing software do you use?

[@Tenraon]

This is wonderful. I love the idea of cloudrunners.Will we see the finished version ?

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Yes I will be doing plenty more videos!

[@RanOutOfSpac]

I lika dis. Very good yes.

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you dis. Very good yes.

[@skyguy713]

Nah

[@stupideronjupiter]

This worldbuilding project is exceptionally interesting. I'm curious though, how did humans get up to the spires in the first place? Did they evolve on the mountains or did they come from below the gas layer? Keep up the good work!

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you! I think either a leak from somewhere in the planet that let the gas escape, or a crash with a gas giant. But nobody on the planet would know that, a few people living in mountains survived.

[@jf4106]

How do the cities that hang upon clouds work if the clouds dissipate? That would make the city fall. And how do they move all of the city to another cloud when the old one starts to fade away?

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

They are usually fairly small - but they can get quite big, think between 10-1000 people. The heavier they are the more cloud they need. They are constantly pulling in new clouds / pieces of clouds, it requires a crew with grapples and usually ballista to pull in new clouds / pull the city/ships forward. They aren't meant to be permanent residences, it's mainly just for trade.

[@jf4106]

@@jeffbrowngraphics ooh i see, very interesting

[@AkameNii]

I really want to level design this if I can have your permission. This would make an amazing game

[@darreenmcgimpsey4420]

We're do they get the wood?

[@petershea6666]

This is so cool. How can you tell whether the Cloud you're leaping on to is going to be solid enough to support you? Are there different colors if they are more or less solid? Or different levels of transparency? I imagine there must be a way for experts to tell a solid cloud from a wispy clouds that will drop you. Or is it just a gamble every time?

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thanks! It's really based on height, they solidify as they rise, they will vary slightly but anything above the halfway like from the top of toxic gas layer to the top of the cloud line will be walkable, the lower the more difficult. At the lowest levels they would be like very thick clouds here on earth, definitely not walkable, but very good for farming through aeroponics.

[@petershea6666]

That makes sense. Do people have ways of keeping track of how high up they are? Do they carry some sort of altimeter or memorize the heights of nearby mountains? What about human-made clouds? Smoke from campfires or Steam from kettles. Are those also solid or is it only natural clouds? Thank you for answering my many questions. Your world is fascinating.

[@valentincaceresbernal2633]

how can i learn to draw like you?? i love to make worlds and i will like to star drawing them but i dont know whero to start learning

[@tumultuousforce6204]

do... do you get to the Cloud District often?

[@AntrozLPs]

What am I saying? Of course you don't.

[@edbolapie5074]

discord for more in-depth discussion?

[@martintheaquilanshield3917]

What art software do you use?

[@avixka7751]

This world building is just 🤌🏻 Really like the spire architectures. Also what resolution do you use for your canvas ?

[@jeffbrowngraphics]

Thank you! I think they are something like 7000 pixels wide