HolyCarp: Imagination and Free Time (a CaS Gallery)

[HolyCarp]

I realise I haven't updated my gallery in ages, so here's something I was making for Pocky-Yoshi's Iron CaS Challenge but didn't manage to finish it on time since I was in another city celebrating a friend's birthday. But I got round to finishing her the other day.

I've made all sorts of CaS but sci-fi was a genre I'd never really touched. Though this creation is basically just influenced by Japanese Mecha :P

Sairen

Spoiler: Images

Spoiler: Bio

In a nutshell, it's supposed to be Greek Mythology meets Japanese Mecha. If you didn't guess, 'Sairen' is Japanese for 'Siren'.

Sairen seduces her opponents by singing to them. Her song poisons the mind of her enemy, causing them to hallucinate and imagine Sairen to be the person they love most. While her opponent is blind to her true form, Sairen attacks and kills her prey.

 

[HolyCarp]

Also, I made a CaS specifically for Matty82, seeing as he's such a big inspiration for a lot of the stuff in this gallery.
In case you haven't heard, he's been ill recently, so if you haven't already, you can send him your best wishes on this thread.

Here's the CaS I based my creation on:

Spoiler: Adam by Matty82

Original post here: http://8wayrun.com/threads/the-return-of-my-cast-of-freaks.13918/page-7

So I designed a partner for this creature. And I bet you didn't see this coming - I called her Eve.

Eve

Spoiler

I know I got nothin' on Matty's design, but I did my best to create a companion for Adam :)

 

[HolyCarp]

I really miss the CaS community. I'm gonna just pretend it's still alive and update my gallery again :P

Ayame

Spoiler: 1P

There is a pattern on the purple under-shirt and leggings, but the screenshots don't really show it...

Spoiler: 2P

Spoiler: Bio

Ayame was born with a condition that would cause her to inevitably become blind as she grew older. She was raised in a small Japanese village which held its traditional customs close and was home to the most beautiful and rare wild flowers. She fell in love with her own culture and grew to love the unique scenery filled with exotic plantlife. However, when she moved to Tokyo, she was disgusted by the industrial scars on the landscape. The last thing she saw before going blind was one of her village's native flowers being used as a source of fuel.

The flower inside the cogwheel was sorta meant to be symbolic of the plants being used as fuel, or some deep, metaphorical shit like that...

 

[Kamiaka]

HolyCarp? More like HolyShit! I had no idea you'd developed such amazing CAS's. You never use them in our sessions on PSN. Rylan Walker especially looks very professionally made - batshitinsane, thats what it is^^

 

[HolyCarp]

HolyCarp? More like HolyShit! I had no idea you'd developed such amazing CAS's. You never use them in our sessions on PSN. Rylan Walker especially looks very professionally made - batshitinsane, thats what it is^^

Amazing? Professionally made? Batshitinsane? Wow, thanks! :D
The only reason I never use them online is 'cause of the wonky hitboxes that CaS have. Also, I hate the CaS voices... But still, thanks again.

I realized I haven't commented either on your gallery and firstly - I freaking love everything in it! :D You have a strong eye for design and using the patterns/stickers effectively. But more than that, you know how to make a character appealing, I look at your designs and get intrigued.

Really hope to see more soon! :D

Aw thanks a lot. I'm glad you liked them that much. I noticed you went on a little liking-spree too, so the fact that you took the time to look at all of them is really cool, I appreciate it.
Hmm, I doubt I'll be making more since during the short times I'm at home with a PS3, I'll probably be focussing more on playing the game rather than CaS, especially now that the CaS forum has quietened down so much. But if I do make new stuff I like, I'll be sure to put it here. And I may have a couple of pictures I haven't uploaded yet, so I'll have to scour 'My Documents' soon :P

 

[HolyCarp]

A couple of characters I made based on mythology and folklore, and I was also experimenting with the Hanya Mask...

Triton

Spoiler: Images

Spoiler: Bio

In Greek Mythology, Triton is the son of Poseidon and is known as the messenger of the seas.

The Dutchman

Spoiler: Images

Spoiler: Bio

Once a sailor who was lost at sea, he is doomed to sail the seas aimlessly on a ghost ship that will never make port. His curse is an eternity as the captain of the Flying Dutchman.

 

[WindupSkeleton]

IN THE MORNING MEANS LIKE, 6 YEARS TIME.

So, holy ship HolyCarp. If you're not that best at surreal, weird CaS, than whoever is better at you is LYING. You've got a knack for the bizarre, and I can't figure out how you did HALF of what you did.

You're like the Tim Burton of CaS, only you're not fucking Johnny Depp and Helene Bonham Carter.

Please add The Duchman to my game somehow. Like, create a download CaS distribution service or something pls. D:

 

[HolyCarp]

Well, it's been over a year. I suppose it's time to update this thing...

Because this game doesn't have enough Greek characters already, I decided to do a take on the Greek Goddess, Persephone, who was the originally goddess of harvest until she was abducted by Hades and made queen of the underworld. So I've created her in three different forms. Animated gif, just because I can:

1) Goddess of harvest

Spoiler

She's usually associated with fertility and spring time, which I tried to convey in this form.

2) Captured by Hades

Spoiler

I tried to keep a lot of similarities between this costume and the original, but now with a darker and more subdued colour scheme. And if you think she looks scary now, wait 'til you see her unmasked...

3) Demon form

Spoiler

I left a few reminders of her original form, however at this point, I barely wanted her to be recognisable anymore.

Creating the horrific face was probably the most fun part. Her face and body gradually turn red as though she has some hellish disease spreading across her skin. And as well as the obvious costume changes, she also becomes skinnier with each new form, to keep with the theme of disease and death.

And no, it didn't take a whole year to make this. I've just been getting lazy with CaS (and couple that with the fact that I don't even have a console for the majority of the year). If anyone is still following these galleries, feel free to pipe up and say what you think :)

 

[brucege]

Glad to see you again, HC. Your literary background brings lots of personality and whimsy into your work. One of these days, I'm gonna review some of my old favorites from your gallery. Anyways, here's my thoughts on Persephone.

Persephone 1: Excellent use of floral prints and lotus stickers to emphasize her agrarian origins. Her straight bangs and fairy curls fits her image as a virginal beauty. A simple red/white color scheme, but you used plenty of intricate patterns to add detail to the design. The color scheme seems more autumnal than vernal though. I'm guessing you did this to facilitate her transition to full-on red demonic form. I'd also look into adding some more flowers using SpecEq to push the nature theme.

Persephone 2: Interesting direction. Like an iron maiden. I see that the theme is confinement. She keeps most of her original equipment, but now her face and arms are bound in iron armor. The reddish contamination also seems to be working its way towards the torso from the limbs. I think it'll look more consistent if you replaced the floral leg armor to something clunkier to match the face and arm armor. I'd also consider adding some chains with SpecEq to push that motif of confinement.

Persephone 3: Ah, so the mask was eating into her face! Looks like her nose popped off at some point. It seems she's burst out of her cocoon into supah demon mode. The fairy curls are gone, and her elegant armor's been replaced with skulls, bones, and spikes. She still retains much of the original's silhouette with her neckgear and skirt. The horns extend very naturally from the gothic sticker on the skirt. Connecting different stickers and parts via color and placement is the hallmark of skilled CaS artists. Grotesquely beautiful. Like a lich queen. Don't know how, but Hades is totally into that.

Overall: Even using these same old parts from 2012, you keep things fresh with your story-telling CaS, something that can't be replaced with technique or DLC. If you get the chance, try making an original without posting its background, and I'll use my forensic training to try to deduce its story. Anyways, keep up the good work, HC.

 

[Ramus]

Carp is probably one of the most "in style." CaS makers, they always have this twist that make then so, "Carpish." main reason why you can spot a CaS from you in the distance.

 

[WindupSkeleton]

ALSO SHE'S VERY PAINFUL TO FIGHT.

 

[HolyCarp]

Spoiler: Long reply to Brucege

Glad to see you again, HC. Your literary background brings lots of personality and whimsy into your work. One of these days, I'm gonna review some of my old favorites from your gallery. Anyways, here's my thoughts on Persephone.

Ooh, I look forward to that - your reviews are always insightful and fun to read. It's interesting that you refer to my literary background because I wouldn't say I'm even that well read. Though a lot of characters are influenced by novels, I think Persephone was kinda influenced by Tess of the D'Urbervilles. I shoulda put a red ribbon in her hair to make the reference stronger.

Persephone 1: Excellent use of floral prints and lotus stickers to emphasize her agrarian origins. Her straight bangs and fairy curls fits her image as a virginal beauty. A simple red/white color scheme, but you used plenty of intricate patterns to add detail to the design. The color scheme seems more autumnal than vernal though. I'm guessing you did this to facilitate her transition to full-on red demonic form. I'd also look into adding some more flowers using SpecEq to push the nature theme.

Nono, the autumnal colour scheme is just the method of foreshadowing: mirroring the inevitability of Autumn, or 'the Fall' following Spring/Summer which is a representation for the fall of woman and loss of virginity and the... oh... I'm not fooling anyone am I? Yeah, I designed the second one first, and didn't want to make the colours too drastically different.

Persephone 2: Interesting direction. Like an iron maiden. I see that the theme is confinement. She keeps most of her original equipment, but now her face and arms are bound in iron armor. The reddish contamination also seems to be working its way towards the torso from the limbs. I think it'll look more consistent if you replaced the floral leg armor to something clunkier to match the face and arm armor. I'd also consider adding some chains with SpecEq to push that motif of confinement.

Good idea, I did consider chains; not sure why I didn't go through with it. Most of the leg armour looks too bulky, but I do agree the ones she has look kinda incongruous.

Persephone 3: Ah, so the mask was eating into her face! Looks like her nose popped off at some point. It seems she's burst out of her cocoon into supah demon mode. The fairy curls are gone, and her elegant armor's been replaced with skulls, bones, and spikes. She still retains much of the original's silhouette with her neckgear and skirt. The horns extend very naturally from the gothic sticker on the skirt. Connecting different stickers and parts via color and placement is the hallmark of skilled CaS artists. Grotesquely beautiful. Like a lich queen. Don't know how, but Hades is totally into that.

Overall: Even using these same old parts from 2012, you keep things fresh with your story-telling CaS, something that can't be replaced with technique or DLC. If you get the chance, try making an original without posting its background, and I'll use my forensic training to try to deduce its story. Anyways, keep up the good work, HC.

Hmm, if I get any inspiration any time soon, I might do just that. Anyhoo, cheers for the reviews, I appreciate the honesty.

Carp is probably one of the most "in style." CaS makers, they always have this twist that make then so, "Carpish." main reason why you can spot a CaS from you in the distance.

Thanks! I've done so many genres I wasn't sure if I had my own voice, so that's pretty nice to hear :)

ALSO SHE'S VERY PAINFUL TO FIGHT.

Well she's the queen of the frickin' underworld, what do you expect?

Holy carp, I'm really impressed with your whole thread here. You made it interesting to read and too look at, I really enjoyed going through this thread altogether!

Your CaS are very unique and entertaining all around. Like I said I'm impressed, you seem to have pieced yourself one hell of a galery here. Great work!

Also just thought I'd note that I really liked how you presented pretty much everything, the witty captions are the best. =D

Glad you enjoyed looking at them as much as I enjoyed making them. Thanks for taking the time to look through the whole thing.

 

[TsunamiBye]

I guess the vets are coming out of hibernation. Good to see the witty holy carp return.

 

[HolyCarp]

I was originally planning on following Brucege's suggestion of uploading a CaS without the backstory so that you guys could try and work it out for yourselves. However, this one turned out to be less about storytelling and more about the sheer wtf-factor. Maybe I'll do that next time, but for now I present...

Janus:

Spoiler: Images

Following a similar theme to Persephone, this creation is based on the Roman God, Janus. Apparently he's the god of transitions and he's usually depicted with two faces. I've seen a couple of half-and-half colour schemes before, but I've yet to see something with two faces.

I was so busy trying to make a vase that I didn't even notice the two opposite faces in profile.

Nah, but seriously, I tried to place the stickers such that it's possible to see a single (if a little messed up) face, or the two in profile.

Spoiler: Previous Colour Scheme

Spoiler: Bonus: SC Colours

I feel like this would make a cool Algol custom.

 

[brucege]

Extremely ambitious work. The first time I've ever seen a two-faced original. Very clever how you merged the heart(?), horns, and mask to make two distinct moon faces. You maintained perfect balance by using all symmetrical pieces (other than the weapons), but what really makes Janus stand out is the actual transition from orange to purple with the flame stickers on the skirt and arms. The star pattern and flowing clothing gives him a mystical/nightmarish kinda look too. Reminds me of @ThePascuzzi's original, "Soul." Thematically consistent, head to toe. If I had to pick on something, I can't say that I'm completely sold on the color scheme. You might get a more natural blend if you chose colors a bit closer to each other like blue/purple (usually associated with magic). Right now, orange, as the brightest color, still kinda stands out from the rest of the outfit. But that's just me nitpicking. An overall excellent job. Keep up the good work!

 

[HolyCarp]

Extremely ambitious work. The first time I've ever seen a two-faced original. Very clever how you merged the heart(?), horns, and mask to make two distinct moon faces. You maintained perfect balance by using all symmetrical pieces (other than the weapons), but what really makes Janus stand out is the actual transition from orange to purple with the flame stickers on the skirt and arms. The star pattern and flowing clothing gives him a mystical/nightmarish kinda look too. Reminds me of @ThePascuzzi's original, "Soul." Thematically consistent, head to toe. If I had to pick on something, I can't say that I'm completely sold on the color scheme. You might get a more natural blend if you chose colors a bit closer to each other like blue/purple (usually associated with magic). Right now, orange, as the brightest color, still kinda stands out from the rest of the outfit. But that's just me nitpicking. An overall excellent job. Keep up the good work!

First, let me defend my colour choice. Apparently, one of Janus' faces looks to the past and the other to the future. I therefore wanted there to be a strong contrast between the two halves as though they're opposites.

And second, let me tell you how right you were. Blue and purple works much better. Sure I wanted a contrast between the two halves, but I also need to portray that he's the god of transitions, which requires two colours that can actually blend into one-another. So I have updated the original post with a new colour scheme.

 

[HolyCarp]

Let's play a game!

Following @brucege's suggestion, I'm gonna upload a CaS with no information about him whatsoever, not even his name. And it's up to you (not just Brucege, but anyone who's willing to chip in) to come up with some more info, or even a backstory, based on his appearance...

Spoiler: Images

I'll eventually reveal the background story I had in mind while designing him, but for now I'd be interested to hear what you guys can deduce from these images.

 

[brucege]

Let's see what we have to work with here...

The feathered beret combined with the gold-embroidered, frilly outfit dates the character to the Renaissance. His unkempt hair and stubby beard suggest he hasn't had the time to properly groom himself. The wrinkles around his eyes, despite his dignified expression, suggest that he's stressed. While his clothes are clearly expensive, the colors seem kinda washed out, implying that he hasn't changed clothes for a long time. Since his feet are somehow exposed to the elements, I'm guessing he's been out spelunking or wandering about. All this has me thinking he's a nobleman or explorer fallen on hard times, trying to maintain his appearance even as his shoes fall to pieces. Like a Christopher Columbus without a Queen Isabella to sponsor him.

P.S. I like how you used that centurion plume to add that ruffled collar and cover the top of the chef's tie. Very good work.

 

[Ramus]

Hmm, the headpiece reminds me of Italian Lights Period, the color scheme also takes me to Italy, but the choice for the lower parts kind mine my guess. The color scheme, being red, blue and golden, brings some class to him.

His face is badly treated, and since his character card his face is obscured by the hat, I suppose he may be hiding from something.

Since he is using opposite colors, I would say that he isn't doing a good job if his intention is to hide, nevertheless it shows that his personality is not too inclined for any side, guess he is a nobleman because of his fashion sense, the armlet show some battle oriented costume.

Well, I guess he is a rough person with no time for stupid things,

 

[HolyCarp]

I won't reveal the backstory just yet, but I'll at least let you know how much you've managed to guess right. And just in case anyone wants to make any more guesses without being influenced by what's apparently "correct", I'll put the replies in spoiler tags.

Hmm, this may be the first time I've ever used spoiler tags for actual spoilers...

Spoiler

Wow, I'm amazed. I genuinely didn't expect you guys to guess that much about him.

Brucege and Ramus have actually managed to identify a lot of important details about this character. You were both correct to place him in the context of the Renaissance in Italy.

The feathered beret combined with the gold-embroidered, frilly outfit dates the character to the Renaissance. His unkempt hair and stubby beard suggest he hasn't had the time to properly groom himself. The wrinkles around his eyes, despite his dignified expression, suggest that he's stressed. While his clothes are clearly expensive, the colors seem kinda washed out, implying that he hasn't changed clothes for a long time. Since his feet are somehow exposed to the elements, I'm guessing he's been out spelunking or wandering about. All this has me thinking he's a nobleman or explorer fallen on hard times, trying to maintain his appearance even as his shoes fall to pieces. Like a Christopher Columbus without a Queen Isabella to sponsor him.

I was so impressed by your deductive skills that I had to Google "Sherlock reaction gif" for my reply.

Spoiler

While he wasn't supposed to be an explorer, pretty much everything else you said is correct, particularly how you noted that he looks dignified with his expensive clothing, yet he appears stressed and now 'washed out'. You definitely picked up on the key features I wanted to convey.

Hmm, the headpiece reminds me of Italian Lights Period, the color scheme also takes me to Italy, but the choice for the lower parts kind mine my guess. The color scheme, being red, blue and golden, brings some class to him.

His face is badly treated, and since his character card his face is obscured by the hat, I suppose he may be hiding from something.

Since he is using opposite colors, I would say that he isn't doing a good job if his intention is to hide, nevertheless it shows that his personality is not too inclined for any side, guess he is a nobleman because of his fashion sense, the armlet show some battle oriented costume.

Well, I guess he is a rough person with no time for stupid things,

Damn, I already used my Sherlock reaction gif. Well you are also Sherlock - you can be the one played by Robert Downey Jr. But seriously, you've worked out quite a lot of stuff correctly. The only thing I'd disagree with is the suggestion that he's a rough person. However, the idea that he's hiding from something is extremely important to this character, and the fact that he isn't doing a great job of hiding is interesting too. Perhaps it'd be better to say that he's trying to hide something important about himself.


Also, Dumbledore dies...
What? I warned you there would be spoilers.