Quote - I'd be tempted to split the mesh into seperate stones. That said, I'm getting lazy with 3d atm.

Mark, just for fun, I was playing around with a little free maxscript tool I came across a while ago, which I think addresses BOTH of your quoted assertions.  It's a Wallbuilder, which works to create walls from individual blocks automatically along any spline shape, and has fully adjustable parameters for the position, rotation, and placement of all the blocks.  It really is fast and easy to create individual blocked walls, etc.  I was originally thinking I might impliment this script to create the BASE of the alcove, but this totally takes away any ability to create recessed beveling or ornate designs in the mesh.  Looks great, though, if you want simple bricks or blocks for a building base.  Much better than say, a displacement or bump map effect.

Not going to utilize it for this project after all, but it's a really instant solution, if you're feeling lazy. ;)

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