[OL-FB] Jiangkai dyers’ district

[Keymonus]

Jiangkai, El Oleonda, May 622

Jiangkai is a unique settlement: a little city that thrives on the very corner of the maps, a Lotii settlement in the Empire of Oleon. Sacked by Corrington and destroyed by the Lotii after just a few years, Jiangkai should no longer exist… but still there it is, stubbornly clinging to the strip of plains between the southern coast and the unexplored hills of El Oleonda. Instead of dying, the city is growing larger and more prosperous, in spite of the brigands still infesting El Oleonda and of the renewed menace from the Lotii Empire.

The most flourishing activity of Jiangkai is probably its the textile industry, that produces fine silk and cotton fabrics. Cloth is dyed in small brick tubs, combining the traditional techniques of Lotii artisans with the dyes typical of the New World, such as indigo or carmine. The hard work of stirring those -often awfully smelling- tubs is usually done outside the tiny stores, conveniently near to one of the many canals crossing the city.

The dyers' district is, therefore, one of the most busy area of the city: almost everyone in the city, for a reason or the other, visits this lively area, may it be to work in the dyers' shops, or to pick up a roll of cloth for a tailor...

...but also to eat something in one of the tiny, cheap "taverns", usually small wooden platforms built directly on the sidewalks...

...or maybe to buy something from one of the many merchants and peddlers: dyes and clothes are obviously the main wares, but almost anything can be bought at the tiny stalls, from medicinal plants to curiosities and trinkets, from old maps to cooking utensils. 

A unit of the newly formed Jiangkai tirailleurs patrols the streets of the city. Differently from l'Armèe de L'Orient, formed by soldiers of Lotii origin, but fully integrated in the regular army, the tirailleurs are organised as an auxiliary light infantry unit, similarly to the colonial militia of the most peripheral settlements.

The officers are not part of the Army, but are instead drawn from La Royale (the Royal Navy of Oleon), and usually have a past in the merchant fleet: this may be unhortodox, but they are probably the only officers who can fluently speak both Oleander and Lotii, at least until the first volunteers from Jiangkai will graduate at Breshaun Royal Academy.

Some of the heterogeneous inhabitants of Jiangkai. From left to right: an old Lotii merchant, an Oleonese trader, soldiers of Jiangkai tirailleurs, a Monomonto ronin, and a member of the Blue Dragon Society (young nobles supporting "modernization" of the Lotii society).

Several aspects of Jiangkai were heavily inspired by @Khorne‘s builds (including the design of the uniforms of the tirailleurs and the Blue Dragon Society, somehow similar to samurai during the Meiji modernization of real-world Japan).

I will license it as Medium Artisan in Jiangkai.

Edited May 8 by Keymonus

[Khorne]

AMAZING! I always love scenes brimming with life and this is no exception! Plenty of small interactions and scenes to look at. I like that the blue paint spilled over on the street, for example, but also the mixture of characters going from "Western"-themed to "Eastern"-inspired. The roll of cloth is great as well: simple yet very effective.

On 5/8/2022 at 2:48 PM, Keymonus said:

Several aspects of Jiangkai were heavily inspired by @Khorne‘s builds (including the design of the uniforms and the Blue Dragon Society, somehow similar to samurai during the Meiji modernisation of real world Japan).

Yeah, the BDS is visually definitely a nod to the visual style of the Meiji era. I liked the mixture of western clothing with Asian weapons and hairstyles, which I thought would suit certain people in Jiangkai who see Oléon as bringer of "modernization", compared to the more "traditional" or "out-dated" Lotus Emppire (in their minds) .

EDIT: Forgot to mention you did a great job on "sculpting" the lion statue too. Nice shapes there.

Edited May 9 by Khorne

[Fraunces]

A lot going on in this one, cool minifig-collection & a lot of well-picked details throughout.

[Justsomebrix]

Incredible work! I love everything!

[NOD]

That looks great, lots of interesting things to see! I see a head on a table, what is that?

[evancelt]

Nice job capturing the hustle and bustle!

[Brickwolf]

beautiful asian themed scene!

[Jeff of Clubs]

Crowded and hectic! It's wonderful. I enjoy seeing what a day in jiankai looks like and such a wonderful cross-section of the society! 

[Spud The Viking]

Super build, a great crowded scene with lots of variety!