Dark Oak - Delving into the Shadowy Forest
Designed by Cugo24
When venturing into the twilight world of a dark forest, you never know what you will find. Zombies and skeletons find refuge in the shadows, spiders lurk in the branches above, witches brew in the mushrooms . If you are brave enough to make this your home, a smart builder will look to the safest spot...the trees themselves
So, you laugh in the face of danger....
If building in a spooky forest is an idea that makes you smile, this is the colony design for you! This interconnected treetop set blends in to the surrounding forest, yet keeps your citizens safe at the same time.
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If you do not want to spend too much time clearing trees for building, a good strategy is to find the a dark forest and build along the edge, then plant trees to blend it all together after.
Start at the Beginning
The Supply Camp for Dark Oak is the perfect starting point for the colony. It has ladders to take you up to the first platform, as well as some basic starting supplies.
Establishing your new Forest Kingdom
Now that you have the Supply Camp down and found the TownHall block and Builders wand, let's stake your claim!
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Use the Builders Wand to preview the Town Hall, viewing it at the full Level 5 glory. Line the rear platform up to connect with one of the platforms on the Supply Camp. The 2 sections of platform should touch but not overlap. You will notice that the front of the Town Hall has a full stair down to ground level. (You do not have to connect the Supply Camp, honestly you can put it anywhere you like)
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Make sure the Town Hall block (outlined in red) is not inside a tree or anything, then click that checkmark. Click the newly placed town hall block, and start your journey.
The busiest citizen
Next you need to start your Builder. Nothing happens without them, and they need a good workspace. Maybe place this on the opposite side of the Supply Camp. Again, line the platforms up to just touch, make sure the Builder hut block is clear, and hit that checkmark. Hire a builder, build the hut, and off you go!
A good building needs space!
As you move on to adding more buildings to the colony, you will notice that if you try to always connect directly to the next hut things overlap and will ultimately break the build. This is where the next key to Dark Oak comes in - The Road Infrastructure.
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Using the Builders Wand, in the Decorations Menu there is a section for Road/DarkOak. This contains a wide variety of platform path options. Select one that suits the current need. Not sure what to pick? Start with the Long Walkway to the next building. You will need to have these "spacer" walkways between most parts of the colony to make everything work correctly. Pro Tip: Sometimes you will need to overlap sections to make everything line up, and that is OK!
Taverns are so useful!
The Tavern is always a good choice for the next building. It provides housing for your first 4 citizens, and will attract potential new citizens that you can hire (for the right price)
What next?
Keep building! Follow the prompts for what your citizens want, and make good use of the Roads to connect everything. Preview through all of the Dark Oak options available through the Builder wand Decorations. Plant trees back into the areas between buildings to merge back into the forest.
A University is a good building to start early on, as you will need to complete research tasks to unlock some building and make your colony work to its full potential.