Category: Reviews

Oh Deer – click on any image for full size

Update, January 25th: Oh Deer has sadly closed, and Bambi is apparently taking a leave of absence from Second Life.

We made an early return visit to Oh Deer, the Homestead region designed Bambi (NorahBrent), after receiving news from both Miro Collas and Shakespeare that the region had been given a makeover.

Our first visit to the region was made in October 2017, when we found it to be rich in autumn’s charms, offering a mix of buildings and open spaces visitors were welcome to wander in and through. Returning in mid-January 2018, we found that not only has it been redesigned, but the clock has also marched forward, the environment settings perhaps suggesting a late spring morning; a time when the sky hasn’t quite made up its mind whether or not to let the sun in all its glory, but the air is warm enough to raise a morning mist from dew and stream.

Oh Deer

In this iteration of the region, buildings are conspicuous by their absence; not a single house or shop or any other permanent structure is to be found. Instead the land, split by a meandering stream, is given over entirely to nature, rich and greens and browns, with animals, plants and birds adding their own splashes of colour.

From the landing point alongside the single bridge spanning the quiet waters of the stream, visitors are free to wander where they please. Whether this be southwards, along the meandering track pointing away from the bridge, or north over the bridge to where the same track arcs around to take its own winding route south along the far side of the stream, is entirely a matter of choice. Or, if preferred, visitors can strike off the trails, and wander through knee-high grass and between the trunks of tall trees to where the mist hugs the ground, adding an ethereal feel to the landscape.

Oh Deer

Across the land can be heard the sounds of birds, crickets and the rat-a-tat of a woodpecker busy drumming on the stump of a fallen tree.   Squirrels frolic on the ground near the landing point, while fallow deer wander under the branches of trees, their coats as dappled as the sunlight filtering through the canopy of leaves overhead. Further afield, foxes might be seen, while cormorants , osprey, turtles and bear can be found scattered along the banks of the stream as it winds through the land.

This is, in a word, a tranquil setting; a place perfect for finding a little peace and forgetting the hustles and toils of life. To encourage people to tarry a while, picnic baskets sit on benches to one side of the landing point, while a little camp site hides behind the bowl of a tree on the other. It would be nice to perhaps have a couple of places visitors might rest further out from the landing point, where the peace of nature and the playfulness of foxes or rabbits or the wandering of deer might be observed, but this is a minor point.

Oh Deer

Simple and elegant in this iteration, Oh Deer offers a charming rip into the countryside, one suited to being seen in the cool spring light in which it is set, or under the blue skies of summer – as I’ve done with some of the images here. As always, photos can be submitted to the region’s Flickr group.

SLurl Details

• Oh Deer (Heavenly Waters, rated: Moderate)

Thor’s Land – click on any image for full size

Land of Thor is a huge setting designed by Thor (Anaadi Resident), who recently extended an invitation for Caitlyn and I to visit. Located on a Full region, it is one of the first places we’ve visited to make use of the additional 10K Land Impact allocation available to Full private region owners who wish to raise their overall total from 20K to 30K – and the additional allocation has been put to extensive use!

“The region is very loosely based on Norse Mythology,” Thor informed me when offering the invitation, “and has a lot of interesting places to discover.” Which, as it turned out, was something of an understatement!

Thor’s Land

The land itself, bathed in sunlight under a cold-looking blue sky and surrounded by tall, rugged peaks with flanks cloaked in fir trees, certainly has a Nordic feel – on arrival I was reaching for a woolly jumper. Roughly divided into four parts by river channels, the land is a curious set of contrasts, with each part named for one of the nine realms of Norse mythology.

The main landing point sit on the largest of these four parts: a huge table of rock occupying the north-west quadrant of the region. Sitting beneath a humped shoulder of rock from which rises Asgard, legendary home to the Æsir tribe of gods. Facing south, the landing point looks out over much lower-lying lands. A switchback path curls down to these lowlands from a slightly lower shelf of rock reached via stone steps, while a great waterfall plunges from a cleft in the great plateau.

Thor’s Land

Like its namesake, Asgard is surrounded in part by a (albeit low) wall, while smooth path of smooth stone snakes up to it from the west, where sits Yggdrasil, the mythical tree that connects the nine worlds in Norse cosmology. Travel north from the tree, and then west along the cliff edge of the plateau, and you’ll come by way of a grassy trail through avenues of trees leading east, to where a great stone arch spans a deep chasm, offering visitors a way to reach Alfheim (or Álfheimr, “Land Of The Elves” or “Elfland”). This is another highland area, rich in tall grass and where time seems to have stood still, sitting among low, pointed peaks of rock.

Below these northern heights sits Midgard, home of the humans in Old Norse, and for the region, the location of a modern-looking settlement broadly split into three parts: an open-air entertainments area sitting at the foot of the high cliffs of Asgard / the main landing point and separated from the rest of the town via a narrow channel. South of this, and straddling a small natural harbour, sits the rest of the town. Many of the houses are raised on stout wooden stilts, several of them brightly coloured, and fishing boats are tied-up at wharves, marking this as a working town, rather than a holiday setting. A large house – that of the mayor? – sits slightly elevated and a little separated from the rest, occupies the south-east corner of the land, and all of the houses are open to the public.

Thor’s Land

But this is not all; sitting under the plateau of Asgard, and reached via teleporter (look for the carved stone disks located around the region) or – for those keen of eye – via a hidden entrance curtained by water – is Helheim. Traditionally the abode of Hel, daughter of Loki, in this instance it is a place of winding tunnels and chambers. Easy to find one’s way into, but perhaps not so easy to find a way back out.

Helheim is sometimes linked with Niflheim (“land of Mist or “world of the darkness”), which is one of the locations only reached via the teleport system. Like its namesake, this a place of ice and snow – and home to another great castle-like hall, this one equipped as a club.  Also accessed via the teleport system are Jotunheim (or Jötunheimr, the land of the Giants) and Svartalfheim.

Thor’s Land

For Land of Thor, Jotunheim is presented as an oriental / Japanese environment, although at least one giant is present near the landing point. Cobbled paths run through the landscape here, linking points of interest, which include an interpretation of FLW’s Fallingwater, and floating islands reached via ropes bridges, as well as a pagoda rising from a nearby peak – also reached via rope bridge.

In Norse mythology, Svartalfheim is the home of the svartálfar (“dark elves”). Here, and while dark (being underwater), it has more of a sci-fi / post-apocalyptic feel to it, with a particular emphasis on a certain sci-fi franchise. It can also be reached without teleporting – for those travelling far enough through Helheim’s tunnels.

Thor’s Land

Even with all this description, I’m still only scratching the surface of Thor’s Land. There are paths to be explored, trails to follow, houses and castles to be examined, hidden walkways to be found, dragons to be ridden – and places to simply set and relax. There’s obviously a lot to photograph as well, for those so minded, and the region has a dedicated Fickr group to which images can be submitted.

Eclectic, eye-catching, detailed, and surprising, Land of Thor makes for an engrossing and worthwhile visit.

SLurl Details

• Land of Thor main landing point (Mirrors Edge, rated: Adult)

Ivy Falls – click on any image for full size

Miro Collas tapped me about taking a visit to Ivy Falls, an Adult rated Full region open (in part) to visitors to enjoy, explore and photograph, so we hopped over on a Sunday evening for a look around.

“It is a sim I built and share with my friend Rekka,” Kere Delcon says of the region, Rekka being Rekka Berchot. He continues, “Our private homes are on the north side of the land, but the rest is open and free for all to explore and use. Fair warning, though! It’s an adult playground designed for adults only to enjoy.” Ivy Falls is gay-friendly, and the Adult warning appears to reference the hints of BDSM which can be found in the region – nothing that is in any way blatant, but which can be found indoors in places.

Ivy Falls

Our visit began high above the majority of the land, atop a table of rock rising from near the centre of the region – although at the time of our visit, there was no set landing point. Not only does this offer a vantage point from which to survey the rest of the land and the surrounding mountains, it also provides an introduction to the region via a noticeboard, which  offers a general welcome and a few notices on visiting – particularly in reference to the private homes on the north side of the region.

There are two means for getting off of this plateau (not including jumping – flying is disabled by default): a teleport pad or a via a hang glider. The former is located by the welcome sign, and offers a quick route to any one of the major locations in the region. The hang glider can be obtained from the west end of the plateau (an empty glider will auto-rez as the previous one is used) and is fun to fly. use the arrow keys for banking or increasing / decreasing your speed, and the page keys to climb / descend, and simply stand when you are close to the ground.

Ivy Falls

The major locations open to visitors comprise the aforementioned lighthouse, a bar, a bath house / gym complex with a terrace before them, complete with a playable game of chess; a nearby bar and beach (with beach cabins, which have their own teleport option), a sauna a little more out in the wilds, a camp site, and a pier where sailing and rowing boats are moored. All of these destinations are within easy walking distance of one another across the south extent of the region, with the beach, cabins and pier to the west,  and the sauna up in the rock uplands to the east.

Most of the southern side of the land resembles a small resort town, nestled under craggy shoulders of sheer rock faces. This is the home of the elevated terrace and gym / bath house facilities (indoors and out), together with a small club house looking out over the snow-covered terrace. Beneath this, to the west, and linking it with the beach and pier, is a small commercial parade, with various businesses including a cosy café, a studio, a gentlemen’s hairdressers, the bar (through the door and downstairs), and what appears to be a gallery awaiting occupation. With cobbled paving and a small outdoor seating area with gazebo, fire pit and fountain, this part of the region is watched over by the red-roofed lighthouse.

Ivy Falls

It’s well worth exploring this side of the region carefully, as there are numerous footpaths winding their way around it. Some – such as the one leading under a rock arch to the beach on the west shore, may be obvious to the eye, other – such as those leading off the trail to the sauna – perhaps less so. The later in particular offer an excuse for a walk, and when followed reveal one or two more points of interest.

The private residences, as noted, are on the north side of the region, and physically separated from the rest of the land by a lake served by two channels of water – all of which are currently frozen in the winter setting. When exploring, it can be tempting to slip across the ice and continue wanderings on that northern shore – so please do keep in mind Kere’s request to respect the privacy of the residents there, and stay away from that side of the region unless invited.

Ivy Falls

Set in a perpetual winter evening’s light, this iteration of Ivy Falls makes for a pleasant visit with plenty of opportunities for the Second Life photographer, either using the default windlight or under assorted daytime settings – I opted to take some of mine under a morning setting.

SLurl Details

• Ivy Falls (Ivy Falls, rated: Adult)