Dancing Houses
Purpose / Function
The difference between buildings of non-dragon cities is the usage of material and construction design of buildings. Cities with dragon inhabitants have experienced rapid failure of building construction and avoided the usage of stone for many years. Stone buildings were unstable and required advanced technology. Many dragon cities used wood, bone, or lived inside caves to avoid collapse from a dragon's movements. With the use of magic, buildings can be made with stone and recent imports of wood have allowed buildings to be made of wood again. By combining these two methods, a building can be flood and dragon-feet proof.
Alterations
Dragon-Claw System
The roof and large eves of many buildings are supported by what is called, Dragon-Claw System. These supports located at the building's corners, are claw-shaped and there namesake comes from the use of dragon's bones for supports in older buildings. However, not all of these bones are from dragons and it is believed the technique might have been named to honor the Cuvar. Wood has replaced the use of bones as this resource has been used, located farther, or degraded. Buildings using this technique are triangle shaped and have crisscrossing beams. The eves of this building are shorter than eves of a square-shaped building, causing water to pool closer to the building. Beam ends are placed between the Claw's fingers, along each beam have a cross-beam groove and a peg, called the 'Talon' located behind the Claw, is placed through the beams. The Dragon-Claw technique went out of use for a period in time as the wood and bone sources declined, but this technique is having a resurgence with the imports of wood and desire for city appearance.Dry Stone Masonry
When wood and bone resources became scarce with the city's expansion, builders looked for another resources. The mountains forming a protective barrier around the city was used by the Cuvar and part of the city's populace for housing. The stone removed from the mountain was not used for building material. Stone buildings at the time collapsed from the tremors produced by the Cuvar's movements, causing piles of stone to plaque the city as more moved into the mountain-side. When magic became accessible to people, a builder using the Stone Spell discovered stone buildings could be built if the stones had an interlocking system similar to Dragon-Claw. These buildings could be rectangular and square shaped with rounded corners and a rapidly tapering roof. Solid stone buildings were built to replace and reconstruct over the Dragon-Claw buildings. With the resurgence of the Dragon-Claw technique and knowledge of it's flaws, these two methods are being combined in the construction of new buildings.Architecture
Stones stacked upon each other each locking the next into place, wooden walls set back leave a narrow walk around the building, and roofs that taper gradually to their tops. In the most recent years, a typical house is built upon loose stonework with large roofs shading past the base. The stone base prevents flooding of the building, stinking of the heavy framework, and move in opposite tandem with the building.
The whole building is constructed to allow it to "dance" with the dragon's movements. The wooden structure and the stone base allows the building to 'dance', when a dragon walks past the loose stones dance while the wooden building gently rocks. These buildings can have up to three floors, each floor will be smaller than the one before, and the flooring itself must 'float' on the beams to prevent it from cracking. The Dragon-Claws are to keep the roof from collapsing as the building moves.
Stone mortar is never used; it makes the base rigid, causing a cracked foundation and shifted building. Metal, or wooden, pegs are used instead of nails as they are believed to cause weakness in the structure. The roof is one of the areas where nails are used keep shingles to the roof. The roof should not be nailed to the support columns, or the Dragon-Claw system. The Dragon-Claw is designed to be interlocking, pegged, and uses the weight of the roof to maintain the system.
This system sits on top of the main columns set at the corners of the building itself. The columns have four holes through which long stones will be placed and built around as the base. There can be three, or four, main columns that support most of the building's weight. It is common for a building to have secondary columns without the Dragon-Claw system, which can be found inside and outside of the building. These secondary columns are built for buildings closest to the Cuvar's lair and the main streets where he walks.
Dry Stone Masonry Base
History
Old Dragon-Claw buildings have sustained damage to their walls from a lack of foundation, which would raise the building away from water and prevent falling walls from dragon movement. Historians from the Keepers of Knowledge have commissioned builders to build a foundation under these buildings to insure their survival.
Alternative Names
Dragon-Feet, Dragon's Claws
Parent Location
Owner
- Wood
- Stone
- Bone
- Cushions
- Low-set Fireplace
- Mat Beds
- Wall-Hooks
Glossary
Cuvar : the title of a bronze dragon that protects Torch Key WharfDragon-Claw : an interlocking support complex located at the corners of buildings to hold up a building's roof, when in place the four boards and a peg appears like a claw
Dry Stone Masonry : stacking of interlocking stones without mortar, or other adhesive
Stone Shape spell : a spell which can change the shape of a stone with ease
I can't say if it's because of my lack of technical knowledge and vocabulary, but I found the majority of the text difficult to read. I think on top of my confusion, it didn't help that several iterations of the building were explained throughout the text, older and newer buildings being explained. Perhaps it would make it easier on the reader to explain fully one type of building and explain other iterations of the building on the sidebar, for example. Aside from the technical stuff, I think maybe it'd be worth putting the reason why these are called dancing houses before within the text so that the reader can get an idea of what they are dealing with. For example, you have a "Purpose/Function" header, and I think the explanation of the dancing houses would go better in there (this paragraph: "The whole building is constructed to allow it to "dance" with the dragon's movements. The wooden structure and the stone base allows the building to 'dance', when a dragon walks past the loose stones dance while the wooden building gently rocks.") I really liked the content on the sidebar, and it definitely helped to make an otherwise dry architectural text come to life. And, as a reader, I definitely appreciated having a glossary. In regards to your question on having quotes, that's a definite yes from me, as it may help break up all of the technical text which is difficult to read for me.