Category: Reviews

Held by Bee Dumpling, Emerald is a Full region setting with multiple faces, all of which make for an engaging visit – particularly for those who enjoy Medieval / fantasy and combat.

The Landing Point sits on the ground level, located between The White Armory Apparel, wholly owned by Bee, and Silvan Moon Designs, a brand co-owned by Bee. The two stores sit within an open, semi-woodland setting, surrounded by mountains. A curtain wall of cliffs runs north-to-south across the region. It is cut through by an archway, separates the stores from a garden area designed by Gidgy Adagio (Gidgette Adagio).

As with all of Adagy’s designs, the garden is simply delightful, well-designed and very easy on the eye. Screened from the sea to the east by trees and shrubs, the garden is cut through north-to-south by a large pond and stream running southwards. A single bridge spans the water, a path of stepping stones laid out over the grass to link the bridge and the archway leading back to the stores.

Beyond the bridge, the steam opens into a small bay in which sits a stone gazebo, one of several places where visitors can sit and relax. Another might be found on the small dock extending over the water; a dock which might otherwise serve the little elven-style boat floating amidst the flowers on the water of the northern pond. Carvings and statues give the gardens an air of mystery, as do the tall mushrooms from which strings of lights are draped.

Colour is added to the setting by slanting rays of sunlight filtering through trees, the light playing off the waters, bursts of flowers and the surrounding mountains. These all combine to give the garden a further air of mystery and enchantment, both encouraging visitors to explore – and to sit and pass the time.

Located on a sky platform accessible via a teleport disk can be found several more locations, all of them – as with the ground-level stores – put together by Bee. They include a period village (the buildings of which are unfurnished), a Renaissance-style hall (which is set as a ballroom and sitting before formal gardens; a Tai Chi garden, a fortified hall and a walled castle – each with formal gardens, and various tournament / combat areas –  jousting, archery, training. Overlooking everything on a table of rock is an elven hall, reached via a natural path angling up the rock face, while  as with the ground level, mountains surround the setting, giving it a greater depth.

Region-wide the platform is well put together, the paved paths acting as boundaries to separate them one from the next, whilst still leaving room for water features streams, wild woods and  a memorial walk. These settings appear suitable for role-play – although to be honest, I didn’t pry too much in order to find out; the region is linked to The Last White Knights of SL, a private group with the description:

Charged with defending the principles of truth, honour, and kindness. To defend those who cannot defend themselves from those who would seek to cause pain.

But beyond that, I just appreciated the settings in their own right.

With a subtle soundscape available on both the ground levels and on up on the sky platform, and with plenty to catch the eye and the camera, Emerald makes for an interesting and photogenic visit.

SLurl Details

• The White Armory-Silvan Moon Designs (Emerald, rated General)

Sci-Fi fans are liable to appreciate the latest 80 Days build by Camila Runo) supported by ZamiTio Resident, paying homage to a popular franchise – as is evident from its About Land description:

IN A GALAXY is a dangerous place where good meets evil, dark meets light. Travelers, pilots, space knights and droids can be found here as well as pirates, smugglers and assassins.

from In A Galaxy … About Land

From this, it is pretty easy to determine the setting is related to Star Wars – although I admire the way Camila overtly avoids using that term or others associated with the franchise. However, for those who don’t get the hint, the landing point – sitting within a skybox – further makes it clear, particularly via the sign above the teleport disk.

The latter takes visitors down to ground level and a certain desert planet usually overseen by two suns. However, rather than taking its main cue from the franchise’s big screen outings, this setting draws on the more recent outings for the franchise through Disney+, with a fair focus on elements seen within The Mandolorian and The Book of Boba Fett – although other touches are present as well; such as the freighter of a certain rogue of a smuggler (complete his his shaggy-haired partner) and touches from the animated series and also – in a way – the upcoming Ahsoka live-action series.

The teleport drops visitors in an walled landing / repair bay bearing a resemblance to Peli Motto’s place from The Mandolorian. There is even one of the armoured comanndoes-come-bounty hunters present – although who it is is up to you to decide; the vessel in the bay is not  Din Djarin’s Razor Crest nor his Naboo N-1 fighter. Beyond the entrance to the bay is a short expanse of desert where the aforementioned freighter has landed, together with what might be a walled section of Mos Espa, Tatooine.

The latter can be accessed via a gate set diagonally across from the entrance to the repair bay, the sand leading to it well scuffed and unsettled by the passage of many feet. The streets of the town, are host to a number of indoor and outdoor spaces awaiting visitors. One of these is the local cantina, and while it might not be the one found in another Totooine space port, when you step inside you might find the music familiar; you might also get an answer as to whether or not the armoured character at the landing / repair bay is or isn’t Din Djarin

Further down the main street is another hint of Mos Espa. This comes in the form of a cantina / club reminiscent of Garsa Fwip’s Sanctuary. And while I didn’t come across either Boba Fett or Fennic Shand in walking the streets, I did come across  Ahsoka Tano and Ezra Bridger engaging with Darth Maul in a lightsabre duel.

While Fett and Shand might not be directly present, hints to of their presence – or at least to characters from the franchise on the big screen – can be found in one corner of the city setting, providing you go indoors, notably in the form of a couple of cabonite-frozen figures hung as war décor in what may have once been the city-side residence of a member of the Hutt criminal enterprise race.

There are more characters who may be familiar with the Star Wars franchise waiting to be found scattered around, including a couple who may well raise a smile given who has the drop on who – or possibly a thought that “Han shot first!” in reference to one of them. However, I let you find them and the others for yourself.

No formalised role-play is active within the setting, but the creators welcome casual RP visitors might wish to set in motion – and there are opportunities both within the settings and in the surroundings (just watch out for the characters up on the cliff paths; they might have ideas about who’s for lunch…). Also when visiting, make sure you have local sounds enabled or you will miss a lot of the ambience, including the aforementioned music.

A delightful and engaging build, rich in character and fun sci-fi fans will likely appreciate, and one which neatly brings together touches of the old and the new within the Star Wars franchise.

SLurl Details

• In A Galaxy… (Infinite Sprit, rated Moderate)

It is no secret that I’ve never failed to enjoy the various iterations of Bo and Una Zano’s (BoZanoNL and UnaMayLi) Elvion – hence why I’m again writing about it once more, just a few weeks after my last piece about it, as they have recently re-opened with a new design; one which is something of a departure from the majority of previous region designs.

Where Elvion tends to lean towards rural / mystical settings, laced with a deep sense of beauty and mysticism, this design takes us somewhere else entirely, as Bo notes in the region’s About Land description:

Enjoy beautiful vistas exploring this paradise island, situated between the Alps and the Mediterranean Sea. From stunning ocean views and forest trails, to detailed cities and interiors.

– Bo Zano, introducing his latest Elvion chapter

Whether the location is between the French or Italian Alps and the Med is hard to say; the houses suggest a sense of Tuscany, but really whether based on an actual part of the French or Italian landscape between mountains and sea isn’t important; what is important is that – as with all of Bo’s and Una’s builds – this is a setting that has been put together with a huge amount of love and patience to offer visitors a further engaging, charming and relaxing visit.

The landing point lies towards the north-west of the region, on a high shoulder of a hill. From here one can travel north and pass through a bun-like thumb of rock via a tunnel to a secluded headland overlooking the sea on two sides and where stone steps wind their way up to the to of the rock. Or, if preferred, people can head south and down and along a rutted track to the coast and a causeway leading to an ancient fortification.

Then there is east from the landing point, and a broad bridge spanning the local river valley to where the local town sits. This is built around a series of gated paths running between the houses, including one that descends southwards to where another bridge spans the river as it broadens to reach a wide plaza with more houses and a way down to the beach. From here the road runs north along the east coast and to a little waterside location which carries a suggestion not so much of France or Italy, but – to me at least – a touch of Louisiana.

The transition from the more Alpine seating to the touch of Americana is subtle; thanks to the way the road along the east side of the region is kept naturally separate to the rest of the region, adding a further depth of mystery and magic to the setting. Those exploring might wish to keep their eyes peeled for entrances into the local caves – there are several ways into these, so they shouldn’t be hard to find, while for those looking for another elevated look-out point should – as the landing area notes – head for the local water tower.

As ever with Bo and Una’s Elvion’s designs, this iteration is incredibly photogenic – be sure to look inside some of the houses as well, as a number are furnished – and there are numerous places to be found for sitting, cuddling and passing the time. I also recommend using the region’s own EEP settings, as they offer the region almost as a painting. All told, another setting not to be missed.

SLurl Details

• Elvion (Mirage, rated Moderate)