Something most people don't notice.

SovereignVis - Sanctuary

I have asked this question to many people in the game and many different guilds, for over a year now. And most people don't notice this and even fewer know why it was made this way. So here is the question.

Why does both the sun and the moon in PW rise and set in the south?

So far I have only known one other person beside me to figure out why it was made this way. Now I want to see if people on other servers know about this and why they made it this way. Can you see it? b:sin

>Weird Sun Set< b:question

MANray_ - Sanctuary

Many people know about this and i've even heard theories about it ranging from Feng Shui to having the sun move from East to West being "difficult" or "expensive" to code... If you do know why please just tell us plainly.

Atomik - Raging Tide

MANray_ - Sanctuary wrote: »

Many people know about this and i've even heard theories about it ranging from Feng Shui to having the sun move from East to West being "difficult" or "expensive" to code... If you do know why please just tell us plainly.

Ditto that!

Anjiru - Sanctuary

I'd say it's because of the shadows.
Player's shadows would have to be even more dynamic and every object would have to get its own dynamic shadow.b:shocked

XXInvictusXx - Heavens Tear

'cause the lighting for everything on the map looks prettier with the sun/moon shining from those areas?

NightRage - Raging Tide

Because the game is dead.

RedsRose - Lost City

Am I the only one that never noticed?

I just do not pay attn to it I guess b:surrender

wingedfire

b:laugh I noticed that a long time ago. I've wondered about it, but didn't bother coming up with a reason why it sets in the south.

b:beg Tell us what you have figured out.

MANray_ - Sanctuary

RedsRose - Lost City wrote: »

Am I the only one that never noticed?

I just do not pay attn to it I guess b:surrender

Most players wouldn't, i was told. There are however a sufficient number of wannabe rangers out there that like looking into stuff like that. It's actually a trivial matter since it doesn't affect game mechanics, and i would consider it on the same level as people who are upset by mobs not attacking players on their line of sight or role players that get annoyed by fashion not matching the setting...

Developers probably felt at some point it would simply be easier to have the sun just be in one direction (no real reason for this, as the game's lightning system is detailed enough it should have been relatively simple to have the sun move across the sky) and likely settled on using South as being an "auspicious" direction in traditional Chinese Feng shui systems. Now, of course, this is my own theory... For all i know there might actually be an important reason concerning the game's storyline for the sun to only rise and set south. But i very much doubt it and until someone gets confirmation from a credible source this is just speculation on a largely unimportant issue.

vristion

Maybe soon duke will shout why the sun sets in that direction.

Michael_Dark - Lost City

Anjiru - Sanctuary wrote: »

I'd say it's because of the shadows.

Probably... ^^^ this.

Map object shadows are not dynamic, they are static. I haven't really checked to see if the sun lines up with them somewhat realistically, though I do notice much of the time they don't.

It wouldn't be hard to code the sun/moon to travel in the right directions, but it would be hard to code as well as very taxing on people's systems to render shadows in real time.

This engine is like, over 5 years old. It was designed to run well on systems then. Corners were cut. This is what we have to live with. b:bye

Silest - Sanctuary

Why does Raging Tide have a moon that never sets?

(I'm referring to the pretty blue one)

Elenacostel - Heavens Tear

The world is Pan Gu, according to PWI mythology.

Pan Gu desired to be able to see the sun in the morning. Thus, by having his feet point toward the sun as he sleeps, he sees it first thing when he sits up and gazes forward.

Thus, the sun rises in the south.

VerenKaunis - Dreamweaver

Elenacostel - Heavens Tear wrote: »

The world is Pan Gu, according to PWI mythology.

Pan Gu desired to be able to see the sun in the morning. Thus, by having his feet point toward the sun as he sleeps, he sees it first thing when he sits up and gazes forward.

Thus, the sun rises in the south.

Wait, so Raging Tides (the city, not the server) is down by his crotch? o.O

SovereignVis - Sanctuary

Silest - Sanctuary wrote: »

Why does Raging Tide have a moon that never sets?

(I'm referring to the pretty blue one)

That's no moon, It's another planet. b:sin
But the whole tideborn area is like being on another planet. b:surprised
I think they should have just put the whole tideborn area under water. That would have been kind of cool. And they are fish people anyways. b:victory

MANray_ - Sanctuary

Michael_dark - Lost City wrote: »

Probably... ^^^ this.

Map object shadows are not dynamic, they are static. I haven't really checked to see if the sun lines up with them somewhat realistically, though I do notice much of the time they don't.

It wouldn't be hard to code the sun/moon to travel in the right directions, but it would be hard to code as well as very taxing on people's systems to render shadows in real time.

This engine is like, over 5 years old. It was designed to run well on systems then. Corners were cut. This is what we have to live with.

May be, although already the current implementation (defficient or not) does account for different camera angles and there isn't much in the way in the way of shade in the landscape. I do agree with you it probably did come down to saving money one way or the other.

SovereignVis - Sanctuary wrote: »

That's no moon, It's another planet. b:sin
But the whole tideborn area is like being on another planet. b:surprised
I think they should have just put the whole tideborn area under water. That would have been kind of cool. And they are fish people anyways. b:victory

Mind telling us your theory on why the sun is south.

Solandri - Heavens Tear

I've wondered if it's not intentional. In traditional Asian cultures, the primary cardinal direction is East, not North. So if you look at the map and say up is East, then the sun sets in the West like it should. (Course AFAIK it doesn't rise in the East in the game.)

SgtSIaughter - Heavens Tear

Game must be getting really boring if people are staring at a fake virtual sun.


Protip: Theres one outside of your house IRL, i'm not joking.

Mizuoni - Dreamweaver

SgtSIaughter - Heavens Tear wrote: »

Game must be getting really boring if people are staring at a fake virtual sun.


Protip: Theres one outside of your house IRL, i'm not joking.

stare at that sun and watch yourself go blind/cause eye damageb:byeb:cute

Coraline - Lost City

SgtSIaughter - Heavens Tear wrote: »

Game must be getting really boring if people are staring at a fake virtual sun.


Protip: Theres one outside of your house IRL, i'm not joking.

rofll

Longknife - Harshlands

Because Han the Drunkard designed the map.

In reality, the City of Raging tides is in the northwest, not the southeast.

Michael_Dark - Lost City

MANray_ - Sanctuary wrote: »

May be, although already the current implementation (defficient or not) does account for different camera angles and there isn't much in the way in the way of shade in the landscape. I do agree with you it probably did come down to saving money one way or the other.

Actually there is quite a bit of shade in the landscape. Most notable would be over by city of the lost area... when you're flying to vol15 or from 15/16 to 17, as well as by FB untamed.. you'll notice that there is some on the ground below.

MANray_ - Sanctuary

Solandri - Heavens Tear wrote: »

I've wondered if it's not intentional. In traditional Asian cultures, the primary cardinal direction is East, not North. So if you look at the map and say up is East, then the sun sets in the West like it should. (Course AFAIK it doesn't rise in the East in the game.)

A plausible and interesting theory, although it would mostly contradict PW's climate map. The north generally does posses cooler climates with Tibetan valley climates to the West, snowed areas to the north and more forested, rainy regions to the north. Etherblade seems like a Manchuria of sorts with the Harslands perhaps representing a more sinocentric view of the East (the Hindu Kush) and the area around Swifwind territories associated with Mongolian culture. The area of Lost does resemble Sichuan and Archo could be compared to Beijing, Hidden Orchid resembling the more fertile and settled region of the Yangtze. Further south we go through a Shanxi of sorts in King's Feast and a Hubei in Tusk Town. To the West we've got the Zhe-Jiang with Sanctuary a probable Shanghai and to the Southwest Dreamweaver, with not only it's climate but it's pirate motiff strongly suggesting Guangdong. Plume seems to indicate a shift towards Southeastern Asian culture with some slightly suggested caricatures of foreign cultures at the Southwest corner of the map.

To me the map is an allegory of China and very much influenced by it's geography and culture, the sun setting on the south because of a priority given to the cardinal importance of the East would ignore this very important, almost intended aspect of the game. The sun setting, or rising, to the geographical south would turn the map upon it's head... The South being considered lucky, on the other hand, and having been chosen simply from a perspective of traditional beliefs seems all the more likely to me, although once again, i do believe that having the sun permanently oriented towards a part of the sky seems to me more a technical decission than one having anything to do with the game's lore. More than likely it was a decission made to save time or money (ultimately the very same thing for a developer) and South simply choosen as a lucky default.

Edit; I think i may have missed also plainly stating that the map is designed with a Northern Hemisphere perspective, climate gradually shifting from cold to the North to warm on the South. From this point of view it would make little sense to place the sun in the South if the map is meant to emphasize Chinese traditional culture.

Edit2; @Michael; You do make a good point and it may very well be the reason the sun was set as it is. Thinking of it however i'm not entirely sure the shadows really do correspond to the sun's position, nor that this would have been the deciding factor in the developer's decission.

__Nanayo__ - Dreamweaver

VerenKaunis - Dreamweaver wrote: »

Wait, so Raging Tides (the city, not the server) is down by his crotch? o.O

That would certainly explain why so many people consider those who play tideborn, tho' more directed towards assassins, to be a bunch of di-...

...

...I'll shut up. b:shutupb:beatenupb:avoid

CrowPrince - Lost City

__Nanayo__ - Dreamweaver wrote: »

That would certainly explain why so many people consider those who play tideborn, tho' more directed towards assassins, to be a bunch of di-...

...

...I'll shut up. b:shutupb:beatenupb:avoid

this is just the most epic response i have ever seen b:victory

Blindwiz - Sanctuary

My guess is that since the map is longer on the north-south axis than east-west axis, having a north-south solar path will provide sunlight to more area. Also if they add on any more territories to the south of map like tideborn area in future expansions, the possible new land can get sunlight too... Ijs

Anyway i don't think everything is explainable in a fantasy world, just like why Perfect World is flat and not round.

SaintToadElf - Archosaur

Maybe the PW planet has a strange orbit?

MANray, that just rocked.

Yindra - Sanctuary

Blindwiz - Sanctuary wrote: »

Anyway i don't think everything is explainable in a fantasy world, just like why Perfect World is flat and not round.

Geez, if it were round then people on the bottom would be falling of it. That wouldn't help at all.

Also, considering the roughly rectangular shape of the world... whoever created the world wasn't an idiot. He actually thought "well, if I make such a large world, then people will want maps, and in the future they will want to display it on TFT screens", and used a shape that matches the shape of a sheet of paper or TFT screens.

Blindwiz - Sanctuary

Yindra - Sanctuary wrote: »

Geez, if it were round then people on the bottom would be falling of it. That wouldn't help at all.

Off topic: U from Pluto? I don't see Australians or South Africans falling from Earth which is round FYI. Neither would players fall if map is round cos PW Sucks... As in Gravity of cos. Ijs.

On Topic: Maybe the sun rising and setting in the south attribute to a colder north like harshland and a hotter south like buried bones. Also maybe the gravity of having the sun and moon rise and set in the south is what makes the tide rage in tideborn area.

Curious about OP's answer.

ireseflamewielder

I'll give a shot in the dark. :-)

As Anjiru said, Dynamic shadows. The whole game world has pre rendered shadows of everything (they are visible even during the night) except for the npcs and player characters which are dynamic. Making the sun rising from an alternate direction would need to render more things which end up requiring more resources.

In the end it could be a limitation in the game engine.


I know an MMO where you can't jump or swim due to an engine limitation.


Other than that....I'll wait for the OP's answer.b:chuckle

NoImKrel - Heavens Tear

how come we fly so high in the sky and stil lcant get to the freakin clouds??