best methods to terraforming?

[chibby]

i recently reset my island and am starting fresh, so i’m looking to find the best ways to terraform. do you find that flattening the island completely then working from there is helpful? or is that completely stressful and time consuming? what do you guys find to be the most helpful when planning out your island’s design?

 

[Khaelis]

It is honestly different for everyone. Some people work better in small bits, while some prefer 'big' sessions. I personally flatten my entire island, and work on most of it at once.

 

[Splinter]

I wouldn't flatten it completely, that can be overwhelming. I reset for a layout I'd be happy with then I only changed what I felt needed to be changed. The river layouts... and added/took away a few cliffs. The rest of the terraforming was just little areas at the back of buildings/airport entrance etc.

I suppose if you wanted to completely design your island from scratch 100% and had the time and patience, flattening it might be a good idea. But it would take a long time before it started to resemble anything nice.

 

[moonlights]

usually i work on little bits at a time and remove whatever i see fit for the vision of my island

 

[deana]

If your design plan has some similarity to the natural state of your island, then being able to use existing features (like cliffs or river placement) would be a time saver, so consider that before deciding to flatten out.

I also used Happy Island Designer to plan some of the big ideas for my island.

 

[Serabee]

Personally, and this is just me, I've done minimal terraforming. I chose an island I liked the original layout of, and most of my terraforming has been to clean it up- smoothing or roughing up corners, moving rivers over slightly, extending cliffs a bit. But the overall layout is the same. I think I'd be too overwhelmed if I totally flattened in island... UNLESS I knew 100% how I was going to set it up afterwards. But if I just flattened it and started messing around, I think I'd really struggle with it.

 

[dino]

yeah, i would say focus on what you want most to be done and do it in segments. don't get overwhelmed by trying to do everything at once. so regardless of if you level everything, still limit yourself to sections - so for me that was my entrance, and the path to my town hall. i completed those bits and then did a cafe, did my large bridge, etc. it's all about what holds your interest and is most frustrating to not be done. good luck !!

 

[Leemaster777]

Yeah, I wouldn't completely blank-canvas your island. That's a huge undertaking, and can kinda leave you with a feeling of "where do I start?".

Personally, I do it in chunks. Find a section of your island that you have an idea of what to do in, and just edit that section. Like, finding a good place for your villagers/shops, deciding on the layout of your rivers and ponds, just big-ish jobs to start with, and work from there.