A Calm Study in CaS.

[Ramus]

So, this is the start of little big, probably more than what I can bite, project-
Giving a bunch of characters "official" 3P, so what I wanting to do, is make thing credible that the character would use. More than what I have done I guess haha-

Note Viola- The colors came manly from Amy's 2P, the style was very solid in my head, it is not lolita based, I find to be rather "burlesque" based, I wanted to give her a look that came from something between a high level poker player and a card dealer. So basically I wanted something to be alluring.

Spoiler

Note Raphael- This will happen a lot, parental figure and child will have similar themes, I wanted the gentleman to be lured haha, I know it looks somewhat plain, but keep an eye on the shoulder piece, and the colors, the simplicity gives an solid upper class feeling.

Spoiler

Tira notes- Jester....sounded so obvious, the boots are a reference to Harley Quinn, the colors are made to be reference to her's SC III, also know as my favorite Tira's costume ever. Daggers cuz you know assassin and stuff.

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Notes Pyrrha- That was a tricky one, I would really hate to make her simply yet another Sophie's or Cassie's reference, so I decided to make one that showed Tira's influence on her, I kept the heart theme but the main theme is Pierrot, and not an "sexy" interpretation, simply a sad clown.

Spoiler

 

[Ramus]

New 3P batch, the class batch..........hehe
Instead of giving each character a specific note I will give all in one.
Hilde, Sieg and Z.W.E.I are the...Mercenaries Crew with a German name that is really hard to type, but I decided to twist this with Hilde influencing both with a more "elegant" approach....nevertheless I tried to keep each character as much loyal to its concept as I could with the given theme-Armor-Princess-Open Shirt.
Also the three adorns an rose with a chain, as well something original for each-Feather-Ribbon-Moon .
Not to keep you for long here they are. An Study in Elegant CaS.

Hilde-

Spoiler

Siegfried-

Spoiler

Z.W.E.I

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[Ramus]

I know....I am doing so much CaS lately, this is what happen when you are in vacation after one hell of a tiring year. "No flower brooches, no frills, no European.....who are you?" you must be asking yourselves. Well those are the Asian trio 3P. I would like to thank you all for the likes, and the attention that you gave to this thread, also especial thanks to @Le_Bello that is helping me out behind the curtains.

Xiba-
Never again.....I will do a 3P to this troublesome character, you know how hard is to do something that fit his original idea....it is hard my friends....is bloody hard. So I hope you like this tiger themed training vest.

Spoiler

Leixia-
I wanted a more classy approach for this character, she was in a palace for most of her life, so I think something like this would give her a more formal look, for some reason this also took inspiration on her's aunt apparence in SC IV, especially color wise.

Spoiler

Natsu-
I guess temples....something more formal....more something she could wear while doing something at a temple or something...also cherry blossoms falling gracefully....or something along those line.

Spoiler

EIDT: For some reason Natsu notes and images ended up in Leixia's spoiler tag, sorry for this.

 

[brucege]

Some of these 3P's are wonderful! I'll try to review some after my biochem final....ugh....

 

[Ramus]

Some of these 3P's are wonderful! I'll try to review some after my biochem final....ugh....

Thank you Bruce I look forward, good luck at your finals.

 

[Fitzy]

That lexia makes me think of mint berry crunch lol. It looks good on her

 

[ROTFLOLMFAO]

So, this is the start of little big, probably more than what I can bite, project-
Giving a bunch of characters "official" 3P, so what I wanting to do, is make thing credible that the character would use. More than what I have done I guess haha-

Note Viola- The colors came manly from Amy's 2P, the style was very solid in my head, it is not lolita based, I find to be rather "burlesque" based, I wanted to give her a look that came from something between a high level poker player and a card dealer. So basically I wanted something to be alluring.

Spoiler

Note Raphael- This will happen a lot, parental figure and child will have similar themes, I wanted the gentleman to be lured haha, I know it looks somewhat plain, but keep an eye on the shoulder piece, and the colors, the simplicity gives an solid upper class feeling.

Spoiler

Tira notes- Jester....sounded so obvious, the boots are a reference to Harley Quinn, the colors are made to be reference to her's SC III, also know as my favorite Tira's costume ever. Daggers cuz you know assassin and stuff.

Spoiler

Notes Pyrrha- That was a tricky one, I would really hate to make her simply yet another Sophie's or Cassie's reference, so I decided to make one that showed Tira's influence on her, I kept the heart theme but the main theme is Pierrot, and not an "sexy" interpretation, simply a sad clown.

Spoiler

I made an account just now so I could tell you how AMAZING that viola is! I also really love the Pyrrha, Tira, and Raphael! I don't even like Viola, but the costume you made for her was very impressive!

 

[Ramus]

I made an account just now so I could tell you how AMAZING that viola is! I also really love the Pyrrha, Tira, and Raphael! I don't even like Viola, but the costume you made for her was very impressive!

Well this is most flattering, thank you for the support.

 

[WindupSkeleton]

That Xiba has complete approval. You really nailed it my friend!

 

[brucege]

Viola: Elegant decorations on the hat. I'm kicking myself for never coming up with that idea, especially since I also specialize in feminine CaS. Very much in Viola's character too. The default Viola costume's gothic/baroque influence carries very naturally into the magician theme. Given how intricate/patterned the rest of the design is, you should consider changing the tie to a solid color. Probably red since you wouldn't want to complicate the pink/white/red color scheme. The pink also doesn't stand out enough compared to the white, so you could increase color contrast by either darkening the pink or increasing the saturation so that it's exactly halfway between the white and the red. Don't get me wrong though; I'm just nitpicking. She's already beautiful as she is.

Pyrrah: Intriguing Jester costume. The positioning of the hearts, patterns, and overall asymmetry work well in conjunction. Okay, so back to some of the old fashion criteria I used, she's currently lacking in rhythm/flow. While you have interesting patterns and ideas all over the costume, it tends to all meld into one homogeneous monochrome. Rhythm can be as simple as having a white shirt with black pants. This costume, on the other hand, just seems black and white all over the place. You could achieve this by favoring black in one general area and white in another general area. Or you can add some colors. Great concept, but incomplete.

Leixia: A solid foundation. The pink and green are tastefully distributed. The little bows on the shins are cute and princess-like. The whole color scheme is very light and subdued (which is a great way of offsetting clash as you did), but you need some vivid splash of color to shock the eyes. One option would be to darken all the pink/green parts of the outfit to really make the white stand out. Another is to introduce an entirely different color like bright red.

Xiba: Excellent use of tiger and fire motifs. And still very much in the wild, impulsive character of Xiba. Good use of the sash and the bandages to break up the heavy pattern/sticker work. The problem is that he's 80% orange and 20% white. You could either add more white or introduce an entirely new color to the palette. For example, that guardian's neckcloth (whatever it's called) could be changed to white or brown, since it's right between the orange shirt and the orange headband. The easiest way is to probably just change the headband, neckcloth, and sash to red and call it a day. The character design is superb, and with a few color adjustments, it'll be perfect.

Natsu: Miko-Natsu is a fascinating idea, but she should use some work. The layout is homogeneous (lacking in rhythm), since you have a section of red between two large sections of white along with red stripes on the white top. The red and white are somewhat overworked, so I believe she'd profit with a tertiary color. Typical Miko garb is usually in-your-face red, so it also wouldn't hurt to brighten and saturate the red.

In summary: I didn't mean to sound redundant, but yeah, the general pattern I see in your CaS is that you tend to limit yourself to binary (two tone) color schemes, forcing you to sorta just go back and forth between the two. This results in lack of rhythm, which is really better expressed as high longitudinal (or vertical) color symmetry. So, as I've said, the solution is either re-balancing the colors or adding a tertiary color. That being said, everybody has a different style, and you're already one of the best on the forums, so take what you will from the critique above and keep producing!

 

[Ramus]

Thank you @brucege as always you reviews are very welcomed, I am glad that Xiba problem is the color and not the costume itself. I guess I do not use bright colors too much because of my photophobia so the TV I use to play have brightness/color/ contrast adjusts in a way that the colors don't stand too bright.

I understand your argument some characters colors became a little too obvious, I will try and fix that for the next ones, but if you could please I would be interested in your opinion on Sieg and Hilde.

 

[brucege]

I can't say that Hilde or Sig are among my favorites, but here's some thoughts.

Hilde: I can tell you're trying to make an elegant one-piece dress, but it just doesn't work here. The shoulder poofs are way too bulky, especially when juxtaposed with the slim-fit, asymmetrical pareo. The hip ornament is pretty interesting though. I'd definitely make it bigger so that it stands out more.

Sig: Individually, all the parts are fine. You even have a blue rose necklace to add some accent to the outfit. The problem is that he's just got too many ideas going at once. The musician's coat is too classy, the cloak is too roguish, and the necklace is too ethnic. And then a random side shoulder guard on an otherwise entirely symmetrical design.

Don't lose hope though. It's just that you have some much nicer creations in your gallery than these two.

 

[Ramus]

So hey there, so before I get started with College I wanted to live things up here, so here it is some nice chars....I guess.

Marienbard and Giselle are the maids of Raphael Sorel, while he was away both of them kept their youth because he infected them, but Auguste fled long ago, one day while in the near village both found a orphan boy, of the same younger than their master's daughter, they took the boy in.
He was educated, as much education they could give to him, after looking at an oil panting of Amy, and observing her love for roses he started to work as a ground keeper so the roses would be always in bloom for when that young lady appeared.
One day Marienbard asked to the boy, who she named Anthony, to buy some food in the village, there he heard the story of a abandoned castle in the forest with three ghostly figures, afraid to be accused of being one of then Anthony run back home, where he found an horrible secret.

Marienbard green hair-
Giselle- Red hair
Anthony- The boy :D
Those are mainly color study characters, but I had fun, any questions on the designs, just ask
Sorry for not putting them on spoilers, I having a hard time to do it right today, sorry.

 

[brucege]

College?!? Congratulations! Your latest creations play to some well-established tropes, but you've done a good job of stylizing them with patterns, stickers, SpecEq, etc. Best of luck in college! Oh, I'm a chem grad student so if you need any help with chemistry, just let me know. NOW GO HAVE SOME FUN (and try not to hurt yourself too badly)!!!

 

[Ramus]

Hehe, I am doing laws, so thank you, but I will not need chemistry.
You see, here in Brazil college we just take the specified classes for the career that we will be fallowing, I don't know how it goes there.
But I took 3 years of chemistry, physics and biology, well and many other stuff haha.

 

[Ramus]

So....after this little hiatus of mine, I decided to make RPG class based CaS.
Here they come:
The Knight-Maria

Spoiler

[/spolier]

The Magician(Chaos magician, able to cast both black and white magic, but don't excel in neither.)
Oliver:

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Dance(Buffs and debuffs.)
Kain:

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The Thief.
Renatta:

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[brucege]

Maria: The grey and red color scheme with gold highlights is proportioned well. Taken in conjunction with the serious-looking face, she's a stoic main character kinda gal. I like how you add some femininity. The pocket stickers on the gloves is a nice touch. Everything works well together, but I'd do two things: slim her down and add more detail. I imagine you chose the DLC breastplate since it permits stickers, but I recommend you swap it out with the standard breastplate + armored undies. I also recommend using a tighter, shorter skirt (or go straight panties) since it shouldn't break the silhouette of the cape. The bulky greaves can also be swapped out for some leathers to match the leather gloves (since you're going for a mid-level armor). Also, try to use those special equipment slots for something: side weapon, armor details, hair extensions, etc.

Oliver: I like this "chaos magician" concept, hybrid of light and dark. The head build is cool. Covering the eyes is a classic mage trope. He uses a primarily green/white color scheme with patches of brown, but he needs something some accent, like a splash of orange or red. The feather stickers on the shirt is a good start, but try to add some clothing layers with equipment or bump mapping (like pocket stickers). This would also cut down a bit on the patterns, which are a bit excessive at the moment.

Kain: Excellent use of asymmetry with the belt, accessory, and mask. Strong middle eastern theme. Reminds me of Prince of Persia. You could try to play up the dancer theme by putting in more swirly clothes like Patrokos's cape-belt. That ornament on the hand doesn't really contribute much to the design so you could use the SpecEq slot to decorate his hat with a sphere (for a different pattern above) or a simple feather. Look into arm or chest tattoos to break up that large expanse of skin.

Renatta: This one has a lot of personality and potential. Very unusual combination of equipment, but it still has the cheerful, whimsical air of a trickster. Nice use of the blue flower for accent. I love the random eye patch. Fitting for a thief living on the streets. I'd look into using some stickers to extend the top towards the neck a little bit. You should also remove the thigh highs since you'll want the leg skin to match the forearm and neck skin. I'm probably gonna experiment with this one a bit later.

You've improved alot with this batch. I see bright colors, strong personalities, and good character design. I recommend that you try adding more clothing layers and using more SpecEq to add more details and personality cues to your characters. Keep up the good work!

 

[Ramus]

So here we have two new characters, and a little story with them.

Spoiler

In an unknown graveyard a lone girl sang for those who the bravery was enough to drive them to war, but wasn't enough to protect them from the fate of death. She could feel the heavy regret of the death, and the painful sacrifice of their choices, choices she sang out of mercy, Arcana Meiquer, the songstress of the dead. Singing a merciful requiem in choir to the brave.

The day was cold and silent, through the dark woods the sun started his slumber. After she stopped her singing she could hear footsteps not far away. Looking back she saw her brother, Terom Meiquer.

"My dear brother, words escape me, your presence alone give me feeling that words cannot express." Slowly she drew her blade, not waiting to give him a opening, her hand was trembling, but there was no way back now.

The Meiquer family, engulfed in insane aristocracy 19 years ago they had twins, one girl and one boy, both trained by masters from oriental arts, it is said that this family holds the secret tittle of Gravekeepers of the fallen soldiers, and so one child is trained in the art of the Requiem, a tradition of singing to the dead to bring slumber.
However the family was corrupted in the newer generations, asking tributes for the services. Because many couldn't afford the fallen warriors were revived by a vengeful lust of revenge.

Because of the new nature of her family, Arcana fled and started to sing on her own, to protect people from the undead.

"My dear sister, feeling and words are not at lack, but I can't afford to keep you alive, but don't worry I shall sing the most beautiful requiem to your corpse." Terom said in a apathetic voice.

And as the New Moon raised the sibling started to cross blades.

Terom Meiquer:

Spoiler

Arcana Meiquer:

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[Retrotator1]

I like the way you put a lot of theme into your characters. With Terom, I see you are trying some things involving adding extra detail.

 

[brucege]

Terom: The frilled shirt, sash, and long boots with the dark color scheme really fit his aristocratic/vampy background. I'm especially impressed with how you used that lumpy frilled shirt by shaping it with pocket stickers and pointed shoulder armor. It's not an easy piece to use, but you nailed it. The color balancing is also good. The somber black and red is punctuated by flashes of white and orange. A very Byronic look. Perfect for a Gravekeeper.

Arcana: Hmm....well it's a good start, but it could use some work. I'm really diggin' that mini pork pie hat, but I think that the bow and flower, which are both very close in size to the hat, kinda clutter up the hair. I'd save those SpecEq slots to decorate the arms or even the hat. Her colors are balanced well though, with black/red on the torso and white on the head and legs with orange highlights. I'd also prefer if you took the fishnet pattern the whole way up so that the legs keep a continuous flow. Cute design, but I think you could shuffle some things around here or there. I wonder if there's any way to play up the songstress angle. Maybe headphones or mike? That might be too frivolous. Maybe sheet music as scrolls or as those talisman SpecEq. Anyways, some ideas to look into. It's also somewhat unexpected that a songstress has sunglasses. Maybe she's a celebrity hiding from her fans.

Other stuff: It's fun to see how the siblings mirror each other in color schemes and overall gothic appearance. However, I think it'd be a cool idea to differentiate the two some more, since Terom's a cold-hearted prince while Arcana's a good-natured yet conflicted outcast. Let me know what you think!