Big Things Have Small Beginnings

[YoungerPrinceLothric]

Hello, all. This thread has not been abandoned, but some changes occurred in my personal life that made modding and playing video games in general fall to the wayside. I am still committed to this zoo and watching it grow. Over the last few weeks I built some new sections and added a few new exhibits that I am excited to share with everyone.

 

To start, here is the 'Highland Ungulates' Exhibit, belonging to Hawkkeye's Thorold's Deer, his Przewalski's (shuh-VAL-skee) Gazelle, his Kiang, and Borsato's Chiru. I built the exhibit as large as possible to accommodate each ungulate and any future offspring they may produce. 

Some overhead shots, with foliage enabled and hidden. The only functioning foliage seen here is the clusters of Himalayan Pine Tree. Everything else seen here is scenery-only and does not affect the animals' happiness and suitability. 

Here's a close-up of the barn, courtesy of Jane's shelter collection here on zoo tek.

Animal close-ups:

Other close-ups

These guys are great but more challenging to take care of. It took many alterations to their terrain height and increasing the amount of foliage before their suitability changed to green. I think they're worth it but it could be a deal breaker for other players. Would not recommend to more casual players. Highly recommend having a hack that enables you to delete trash and feces because the chiru go back into the yellow very quickly if there are only a couple poo piles in the exhibit.

Total # of Chiru: 3 (all adults, no offspring yet)

Total # of Przewalski's Gazelle: 4 (3 adults, 1 child so far. Slow birth rate.)

Total # of Kiang: 4 (3 adults, 1 child so far. Slow birth rate.)

Total # of Thorold's Deer: 4 (3 adults and 1 child so far. Slow birth rate.)

 

I also wanted to show off Goosifer's spinning ride! It's beside the multiplex theater.

It's surrounded by a lovely assortment of trees, and is flanked by two hot air balloons and balloon animal stands. So far, no one has bought a balloon animal yet, but I'm sure they will very soon.

 

Finally, I wanted to show off the farmer's market I built.

RDinFT's West European Market is scenery-only but creates a lovely illusion of a fully-stocked farmer's market and looks great next to Jane's souvenir shop.

Another favorite section of mine is Jay's food stands up against the market stalls here. I hoped to create the illusion that guests could go up to them and 'purchase' the various fruits and veggies on display. I placed wooden boxes beside them to further enhance the illusion that there were extra supplies. The building seen behind the dinosaur snack stand is from a pirate scenery pack. I placed one of the configured door mods up against it to make it look like the guests could go inside.

 

That's all I have for now! I've really missed sharing these screenshots with everyone and I can't wait to get back into it.

[pukkie]

They are absolutely gorgeous YoungerPrinceLothric Love the foliage choices too

Great exhibits sad to read about the slow birthrate we do like a couple of babies

[YoungerPrinceLothric]

Wow, a whole year without playing. A lot occurred between the last time I posted and now. Some good, much of it bad, and very private. There is a lot I do not think I will share publicly for reasons related to PTSD, but the important thing is I am here now and ready to share my love of Zoo Tycoon with everyone again. 

I built the entrance around the idea of fresh garden greenery, staff services and a bustling market. Many of you will recognize rdingft's AOE pieces right off the bat, and I personally don't think they get the credit they deserve for how beautiful these scenery pieces are. They are non-functional but help to create the illusion that the zoo market is more active than it really is.

 

To the left of the Staff and Service building, we can see a farm where much of the produce is grown. 

I had great fun with this section in particular. I wanted it to look as though the land were being diligently tended to and I think I achieved that.

 

Moving on to animals, I want to first zoom in on @Serpyderpy's Sinoceratops.

 

One of the reasons I always sink my dinosaur exhibits into the ground is because I'm paranoid of them bursting out once the fences get weak. It gives me peace of mind and helps me focus on decorating. (As a side note, I need to download some neutral-marked rock mods...)

The sinoceratops are very laid-back and easy to take care of. I had virtually no issue providing them with what they needed. The babies are adorable and the adults are intimidating and magnificent. I'm excited to see more from them. I'd highly recommend them to anyone who doesn't want a fussy species to look after. If you're easily overwhelmed, they won't give you any trouble. As these are herd dinosaurs, make sure you give them plenty of space. They like company.

When I learned that this was a Chinese-discovered species, I knew I had to put a rdingft scenery building in their exhibit. This building is called the "Temple of Heaven" and is probably my favorite of his mods as far as reconstructed temples go. I think the screenshot speaks for itself. It is to die for.

Total # of Sinoceratops: 4 (3 adults, 1 extra adopted baby. No births yet.)

 

Moving on, I want to showcase my favorite animal mod right now: @Buffzoo's Dinocrocuta. Hyenas are among my most favorite living animals, and I was ecstatic to discover that they made an extinct hyena - and a giant one, no doubt. Their exhibit, like the Sinoceratops above, was a labor of love. I cherished making this. I especially want to zoom in on the dead gazelle statue, which I believe came from an AOE2 statue pack. The reason for this statue's placement is that I wanted to create a more realistic setting for my carnivorous animals, which I have neglected in the past. Perhaps this "animal" was a fresh kill, a demonstration from the keepers to show interested zoo guests how the animal hunts and feeds. I hid the "carcass" in tall grass, to simulate how many extant predatory species will hide their kills to prevent other predators in the area from stealing.

(Some grass was deleted for better viewing)

I love these hyenas, and I'm very proud of this exhibit.

There is more, but I MUST go to bed. It is after 1 in the morning and I can't stay up any longer. For any interested, these hyenas were extremely easy to take care of. They gave me no issues whatsoever. Great animal for beginner players who want well-behaved, laid-back animals.

Total # of Dinocrocuta: 4 (2 adults, 1 adopted cub with the 'allow purchasing young hack.' 1 given birth naturally. Slow birth rate..)

That is all for now. Enjoy!

[Truly_happy]

I do like your well-tended grounds area. 

[(Admin)Savannahjan]

Bravo YPL, your zoo is stunning!  Each area is so intricately detailed, so natural and lush.  Excellent work. 

[Firehawke]

Beautiful building, YPL!  And gentle hugs!

[pukkie]

Love to see your screens Prince

They look amazing! The big savannah Rock in the left lower corner can you remember who made that and if in a pack what pack that is 

Iknow I have it somewhere but can't locate it in my download chaos and it needs to go in my favourite rock map 

[YoungerPrinceLothric]

Here you go, @pukkie

 

 

[pukkie]

Thank you so much

[DungVuong2108]

Hello Mr. @YoungerPrinceLothric, I'm currently get to know the mod available currently. I also admired for your build. It is so well-ornamented with great details. I would like to ask you for these mods that you used for the koi pond (as it looks so captivating for me and I want to learn your style to some extent). I also circled the mods that you've used belows. 

The first is the lotus. I have looked for some pad in the foliage so far but not the one you used. As I also saw it in the showcase picture of Lotus Hotel by Denova but I couldn't trace the foliage used. The second is the flower trail outside the oriental wall. For this I just want to ask did you use the quarter-tile planter and the edging fence covering outside. Or did you use some vine fences for that trails and could you share the mod's name please. If it was the planter I would find out for myself the perfect match.

And I also want to express a huge thanks to both the admins, designers in preserving the mods library. So vivid and lively for kids like me to have fun with! And hope you could help me, since my questions is a little bit lengthy.