Beautiful zones and why are they beautiful?

I've been spending time in Katta Castellum lately. It's still a beauty to behold. Its design and layout is logical (except the unfinished stairs.) I like zones that have some explanation/reason behind their design.

Pillars is also jaw-droppingly beautiful. I like the nature levels and not the ones that look like mines.

What made me post this was someone was talking about how s/he liked artistically beautiful zones.

What is your favorite eye-candy zone and why?

*.Lee of Povar

Love this zone. Really gorgeous.

I love that zone, but man I always loved the Great Divide. All that ice and snow.

The wind .midi just chilled your bones too.

I always thought Shadeweavers Thicket was pretty in a twinkley star kind of way, but I am partial to Luclin zones.

Yes, Luclin has some great ones. I love the view of Norrath rising over Hollowshade Moor myself, and Paludal has a great humid, cramped cave feel to it.

Had a guildy who would just go sit on the Erudin docks to watch the sunrises.

Somewhere I have screenshots of Luclin rising over the horizon, along with stars and clouds going by overhead.

luclin has a lot of beautiful zones. Its just too bad the development team fell about halfway through. It could easily have been the best expansion eq ever had

Deathknell, Rubak, DemiPlane/Dreadspire and Plane of Fire are probably my 3 favorite zones overall.

• Deathknell because of the gorgeous windows that actually look like the sun is streaking through.
• Rubak because of the coloring and iridescent areas/pictures again.
• Demi/Dreadspire with the layout of the zone as well as the dancers/pathing of those. Haven't ever seen anything like it again.
• Plane of Fire because if you have the effects on and you're at the zone in, seeing all the trees on fire is a sight to behold. I used to come there after raids and just sit/watch.

Solteris.

Siren's Grotto!

Plane of Air, it feels like I'm playing inside the artwork of a Pink Floyd album whenever I go there.
Thundercrest Isles, I'm a sucker for the old eastern architecture and that zone really captures the feel of a an old eastern palace.
Stonehive, I always had the picture of what a fortress would look like if bees evolved into human proportions and capabilities, this place looks exactly like the picture I had in my head of that.

Morell's Castle, Miragul's Nightmare and Resplendant Temple.

RT is pretty incredible vertical design concept I think, I can't think of another zone like that.

I love Grobb and Kelethin, my two favs. I've always felt they were both perfectly done. It's exactly what i would expect the home of a troll and wood elf to look.

I think Plane of Mischief deserves a mention too. The design of that zone is just outstanding and the transitions from area to area, i really like it.

I really really like a lot of the old zones, the new stuff... just too busy for my liking, i realize it's more realistic but I find it hindering a lot of the time. All the short trees and hanging stuff. I miss the simplistic but well done zones.

For me, In order of release (not preference)

South Karana - East Karana - North Karana - West Karana (I love the open plains, sparsely populated minus the bandit/farmer etc outposts and guard towers. I want an LL revamp of East or South Karana!)
Oasis of Marr (original) (May be more nostalgic than beauty but..)
Greater Faydark (Kelethin specifically) (I absolutely loved the wood elf city, I used to wish i could live some where like that when I was younger. High up off the ground, suspended platforms and buildings. The music added to it's beauty)
Plane of Sky (The music was some of EQ's most captivating music and the giant islands suspended in mid air was a first for EQ, very breathtaking at the time.)
Firiona Vie (The statue awed me back then, and the Kelethin buildings <3)
Tower of Frozen Shadow (The outside is inpressive to me, the feeling of crystaline shadow, magical, with the interior ruined and haunting but hinting at a once beautiful appearance long since decrepit and corrupted, much like it's keeper Tserrina.)
Thurgadin A/B (A city largely crafted from Velium, again the music helps here too)
Plane of Mischief (Very "Alice in Wonderland". I love that kind of stuff.)
Grimling Forest (A giant fungal forest with massive mushroom trees, shrouded in darkness. I loved this zone, shame it didn't get a massive amount of attention then, let alone how forgotten it is now. Would love a LL type revamp of this zone too lol)
The Deep (Mostly bland but...dat bridge. I still love that thing. Yes...the one you can't cross)
Sanctus Seru (For how evil that man was...he sure knows how to make a glorious city)
Plane of Tranquility (Very befitting to it's name)
Thundercrest Isles (The large islands, Japanese inspired, filed with draconic images and drakes and stone giants. I loved this zone, still do)
Stoneroot Falls (Giant, GIANT caverns covered in long curling walkways made of coral. Used to lag the crap out of me back then but these days with a nice PC...I absolutely love it)
Arcstone (The feeling of an even more magical variant of Plane of Sky, the colors etc, it seems to define beauty)
Relic (A floating magical spire with platforms, moving parts, and spiral walkways, akin to the feeling of Stoneroot but in the sky not an underground cavern, with the beauty of Arcstone. As much as I hated fighting here I LOVED the look)
Stone Hive (Very flowery, flowing honey rivers. and a grand design for a race, which in and of themselves are kinda cute now compared to their grotesque predecessors :3, that you would normally think of making a bland paper hive filled with buzzing creepy creatures. The contrast while fitting that theme is amazing.)
Katta Castrum (A massive city, part intact and grand, part desolate watery ruin and grave. A symbol to a powerful empire now collapsed)
Solteris (Blindingly bright at first, imo second brightest thing in EQ after the Light tower in Pillars, but still always loved this zone, the sunlight flowing like water, beams of light and the red plantlife with the massive bronze buildings.)
Fortress Mechanotus - Steam Factory - Gyrospires Beza and Zeka - S.H.I.P. Workshop - Meldrath's Majestic Mansion (I love steampunk, nothing more to be said)
Crystallos, Lair of the Awakened (While I wasn't too fond of the new Kerafyrm model, I think the zone that he now calls home does him justice. The prismatic design, it's enthralling)
The Void (For a similar reason to Katta, the music, though short, is almost like angels mourning for the destruction of a world we've called home for 13 years, now quite literally a void, drifting around a dying star in the middle of space)
Toskirakk (One thing I have to give Rallos, he sure knows how to make a city fitting for the God of War)
Brell's Rest (An intriguing look for what is the center, or close to the center, of Norrath)
Erudin Burning (The fact that they pretty much stuck with the exact look of Erudin but with new reflective and less pixelated textures, right down to the blockier world mesh, is amazing to me. ALL ZONE REVAMPS SHOULD BE DONE LIKE THIS. NOT LIKE FREEPORT)
Al`Kabor's Nightmare (See: The Void. There's something about cataclysm and the way it appears in EQ that...I can't describe it)
Morell's Castle (See: Plane of Mischief. The sort-of "Alice in Wonderland" design again.)
Sanctum Somnium (See above. Also the awesome name helps, possibly my favorite zone name in Everquest)
Beasts' Domain (Very "Avatar". Like an acid trip with Wyverns. I love it)
Pillars of Alra (Or as I call it, "Rainbow Bridge Zone"! I love the design, the contrast in the towers)

Oh yeah, Stonehive with its Wonderland feel! And the place in Mesa where the fairies are and the trees sparkle, even before Avatar came out! Candyland is cool too. It always makes me smile. The Courtyard in Sanctum Somnium, agree. Very nice to turn on the bird sounds while you do other things. Yeah, some parts of Solteris are gorgeous.

Are you sure that wasn't Drinal? I was pretty sure Drinal was the visible moon, and Luclin was actually hidden from our sight for some reason (magic powahs by Luclin herself? )

My favorite zone, visually, would probably have to be uh...new freeport!!!! HAHAHAHAHA, yeah, no. That zone's awful and I wish they'd revert it.

Seriously, though...I loved the look of the elemental planes...even though I hate underwater zones, Coirnav did look pretty spectacular.

Luclin was only visable from... Plane of Sky I am good at EQ trivia heh

My fav zone to look around at is Neriak 3rd Gate call me crazy but I love the underground dungeon feel with water fointains and plenty of cool neon signs.
my #2 is probably Great Divide.

I like Kedge Keep. Very interesting and difficult zone design.

Velks Lab is great also.

You can see moon rise from any zone. Happens in pok to.

I think they mean Luclin versus Drinal.