Rusted's Ringers, Gallery III: Original Character Designs

[Rusted Blade]

20 Minute challenge -- Cartoon Animal Sheriff:

Looking at a particular ExEq put a silly notion in my head and I busted this out in under twenty minutes. It's one of those cases where I don't think the concept would benefit from expanding upon much further, but despite the rushed job, it came off surprisingly well. This guy ended up looking like an Overwatch character or an 80's action figure, so I think I nailed the cartoon aspect pretty much dead on.

 

[VILARCANE]

Funny ideed, since you got ExEq left, why not add the afro haircut (dunno if it works with the race nor the hat) and the rabbit head as i did on KONGA, or go for another animal species.
It's a good start but lacks a clear art direction that would add so much wow potential (unless it's a RCAS of a figure i dunno about)
I understand it's a rush job of course, but think of what animals you could find in the desert of the western movies and you might get a great CAS with a tad more work...

 

[Rusted Blade]

Funny ideed, since you got ExEq left, why not add the afro haircut (dunno if it works with the race nor the hat) and the rabbit head as i did on KONGA, or go for another animal species.
It's a good start but lacks a clear art direction that would add so much wow potential (unless it's a RCAS of a figure i dunno about)
I understand it's a rush job of course, but think of what animals you could find in the desert of the western movies and you might get a great CAS with a tad more work...

Eh, I don't really see an afro suiting him in any event, honestly. I think he is roughly supposed to be a canine, so maybe a tail? But even that is pushing it in terms of cost-benefit analysis of pursuing the design further: as I said before, it was really just an experiment in using Emil's mask for the jowls and mouth of a cartoon character: one which was marginally succesful enough that I wanted to demonstrate the utility, but not resulting in a design I want to sink more time into. Besides that, I actually think that some concepts top out at a certain level of detail: if you want a cartoon look to a CaS (usually by virtue of it being a direct reference, but here just because I was shooting for that general aesthetic), then sometimes it actually makes sense to oversimplify, if you take my meaning.

 

[VILARCANE]

Yup i agree with keeping cartooney chars simple (eg. my HilDuck )...as for the rest, it makes perfect sense.
Emil's mask definitely has unlimited potential :)

 

[VILARCANE]

Yeah, totally missed end of P3...
I fo like your necro, facepaint does convey the decaying / rotten skin look. I like the work on the hands too, and the necronomicon is neatly positioned in the palm of said hand.
Maybe i would add some sticker work to the bland looking robes like runes (tab 3) or other skull based sticker (also tab 3 for the best ones).
You coud consider doing a face based on the skull stickers as i did on my Lich-lde and Hildevil, but i like what you did.
You have 2 ExEq slots left iianm, why not add another necromancer artifact : i would recommend a floating eye made of a ball and (guess which ExEq is best) for the pupil (slightly protruding from the front of the ball). I don't have the game as i am on vacation but i have a pretty good mental representation of how it could be done.
Think gradients and transparency if you go for my idea (you can have a look at my cyclops for some ref. but i am sure you don't need it and want to figure it out on your own)

Lizard recolor, ok, but i prefer the reddish version, if one needs tuning, using a cool gradient in the feathers could bring more depth to the CAS too :)

 

[Rusted Blade]

Yeah, totally missed end of P3...
I fo like your necro, facepaint does convey the decaying / rotten skin look. I like the work on the hands too, and the necronomicon is neatly positioned in the palm of said hand.

Thanks! That's good to hear about the hand: I've gone back and forth on it. I really like the necronomicon where it is in the left hand for purposes of the animations/postures, but in many ways it would make more sense if it was in the right, because that is the hand that I've been able to really give a super decayed look to (with the additional nice touch of the partial cloth wrap) by virtue of the //redemption leather armor//. Actually, if you look closely you can see the body decays more heavily on the right side in a majority of the variants (but not all). So it would be nice if that matched the side where the necronomicon is held. But I guess we might venture to speculate that the left side is realtively untainted because the necromicon has paradoxically preserved it? I guess that works as head cannon -shrugs-.

Initially I used a more encompassing sticker on the left hand, but I discovered eventually that I could create an effect that looks either like exposed muscle and sinew or some sort of taint spreading from the book, depending on the colour used, so I went with that. I've also done other variants where I used bandages or gloves and patterns/stickers to create a decaying effect similar to that which I used for the face, for both hands--but using that approach, I lose the awesome mostly decayed hand effect on the right hand, and I really like that. So I'm satisfied with the version you see used predominantly amongst the variant--decayed mummy hand right, left hand looks mostly as if it could be alive, but has peeling skin/a spreading taint from the necronomicon, which is grasped in that hand.

Maybe i would add some sticker work to the bland looking robes like runes (tab 3) or other skull based sticker (also tab 3 for the best ones).

I considered runes, but I ultimately decided they would make him look to pop-fantasy, whereas I wanted him to have a more classic dark wizard vibe. I did trial several versions where the robes were also showing signs of decay via discolouration, suggesting he had been undead a very long time, but I ultimately decided he looked more menacing in genuinely black robes. This also helps preserve the "how dead is he" question for some versions. But I did add some subtle blood red undertones to his robes in places in some versions, to create even more implication of blood magic--though I think this gets lost (like a lot of detail in the face) because of the somewhat low resolution of the images I have uploaded. I also used a subtle closely-related two-tone pattern on the robes to give them a slightly more lustrous and deep texture. I agree it needs something more to give it just a tad more detail, but I haven't yet figured out just what will serve.

You could consider doing a face based on the skull stickers as i did on my Lich-lde and Hildevil, but i like what you did.

Actually, while it is difficult (or virtually impossible in some cases) to tell, one of the skull stickers is used in some (but not all) of the face variants. But when it is used, it's always the bottom layer on the face, beneath 1-3 others. I actually don't find it creates a very realistic impression of a skull, even for more cartoony designs, let alone the more quasi-relastic look of a decayed/flayed face that I was going for here. But if you use it underneath certain other stickers with a deep crimson, it can help create that sense of underlying bone structure that pulls burnt/peeled/diseased/decayed/whatever look together. Or just another colour tone spaced out across the face in the more outright jackson-pollocked versions. Actually, I think it's part of the pastiche in one way or another in about 3/4 of the variants--although it's size, positioning, and colour actually vary considerably between versions.

You have 2 ExEq slots left iianm, why not add another necromancer artifact : i would recommend a floating eye made of a ball and (guess which ExEq is best) for the pupil (slightly protruding from the front of the ball). I don't have the game as i am on vacation but i have a pretty good mental representation of how it could be done.
Think gradients and transparency if you go for my idea (you can have a look at my cyclops for some ref. but i am sure you don't need it and want to figure it out on your own)

Unfortunately, I am out of ExEq in about 4/5 of the variants. The necronomicon is an object of course, but the exposed teeth on the right side of his face actually require two laboriously positioned white brims to create. And any versions which have one eye missing also require a flower brooch to block out that eye while creating the optical illusion of depth in order to simulate the empty socket. I also created versions with no eyes or distorted features to create the impression one side was wasting away, but ultimately my favourite versions are those where the face is completely ravaged but mostly symmetrical and maybe that of a living (if obviously diseased) person, and those where the face is mostly exposed (some of which also feature the one side more heavily decayed, missing an eye and or/having the exposed jaw or teeth.

Lizard recolor, ok, but i prefer the reddish version, if one needs tuning, using a cool gradient in the feathers could bring more depth to the CAS too :)

I did try a colour gradient at one point, but I just couldn't find a colour continuum that worked well with the overall scheme of the characters, so I ultimately just settled on using a semi-solid pattern with just dark flecks. I agree it kind of looks muddy as a result, though. Personally I can't tell if I like deep swamp shaman or volcanic badlands shaman more. I think they both wear the basic design pretty well. :)

 

[VILARCANE]

Ok now i see the exposed teeth, must have been a chore, but my question, does it look okay when the char actually speaks or does it reveal the (albeit amazing) optical trick.
You could probably achieve the same effect with a bit of out the box sticker thinking (and your good at that :) and use the ExEq for sthg else.
But again, i really like the teeth it's an amazing trick to pull off with that lady accessory and really looks like skelie teeth !...

Regarding the face paint, there is another way, did you consider the "black smear" facepaint, i used it sometimes to create the impression of a peeled off or decayed / burnt skin, you just have to use a color which is close but not same as the base skin. You could try it out maybe, and it works wonders even with added sticker layers on top...
Example below for a variety of burnt skin/clothe effect using facepaint and patterns (i can remove it later of course), you can do it with any other skin color...you can also use another race preset of course (like the one i used for KONGA) to get a wrinkled skin effect from the get go...

 

[Rusted Blade]

Ok now i see the exposed teeth, must have been a chore,

Un vraie corvee, oui! It took countless permutations to get the (essentially two dimensional) objects to protrude from the jaw just enough that they can be made to appear actually within the jaw cheekline (which also required further tweeking of the facial textures), while also getting them to overlap in such a way that they look like three dimensional teeth--a job made complicated by the fact that both objects had to be moved independently and had to be aligned where the teeth should be. But it was worth the work in the end--even though they can be easily missed on those low res images, they really pop in three dimensions and the manner in which that part of the face is made to look more stripped away really helps to sell the optical illusion that they are exposed from under the cheekline. So, I'm glad I took the time to add them (it sucks that they take two ExEq though, because I had all manner of other decayed features that I wanted to add). Anyway, I should make a quick video of the effect to share here because I think it sells the look better than the still images.

but my question, does it look okay when the char actually speaks or does it reveal the (albeit amazing) optical trick.

I had to actually load it up to check this, because I wasn't sure about the answer. The results are mixed: if you are looking at the character talking from the distances involved in an actual match (both the intros and the fights themselves), it looks alright and the teeth in the mouth even seem to have a continuity with the ExEq teeth (and the movement of the cheek further sells the image that the flesh is deteriorated around those further-back teeth). But the more you zoom in on the face while the character is talking, the more obvious it becomes that the upper and lower ExEq teeth are still pressed together/not moving independently, and that spoils the illusion a little. But given the distances and context in which his mouth is likely to be viewed, I think it works alright. Better than I was expecting after pondering your question, to be honest.

You could probably achieve the same effect with a bit of out the box sticker thinking (and your good at that :) and use the ExEq for sthg else.
But again, i really like the teeth it's an amazing trick to pull off with that lady accessory and really looks like skelie teeth !...

Yeah, id id consider that approach, but I really wanted a 3d effect on the teeth to make them feel more than painted. There was also the fact that I only get four stickers for the skin (well, five, see below) and they were at a premium for this design. I tried probably seven different objects to try to create the effect (starting with Emil's Mask, but I couldn't get the object small enough to not protrude through the face at odd angles, no matter how I positioned it) before settling on the white brims as pretty much the only way I could pull the effect off with the current tools.

Regarding the face paint, there is another way, did you consider the "black smear" facepaint, i used it sometimes to create the impression of a peeled off or decayed / burnt skin, you just have to use a color which is close but not same as the base skin. You could try it out maybe, and it works wonders even with added sticker layers on top...

Example below for a variety of burnt skin/clothe effect using facepaint and patterns (i can remove it later of course), you can do it with any other skin color...you can also use another race preset of course (like the one i used for KONGA) to get a wrinkled skin effect from the get go...

View attachment 77254

I did something very similar in some of those variants, using //Face Paint 65// to add a sense of rough texturing that helps sell the idea of decaying or peeling/layered skin. I also tried using //Face Paint 49// but don't think it ended up utilized in any variants that I kept photos of. But on your recommendation, I just went and swapped in //Face paint 46// (which I think is the one you were referencing) for //Face Paint 65// in a couple of versions, and you are right--it works very well for creating a kind of very granulated varaition on the decayed look. In fact, I've saved a photo of it to share with you later, because when combined with the teeth trick, it makes him look a little like the undead doppelganger version of Ash from Army of Darkness, haha! But it does lose some of the effect of the looking like different layers of flesh are peeling--in other words, it makes him look like the damage to his face was more by virtue of trauma than decay. Sheesh, what a macabre topic we have gotten on to! Anyway, like I said above, I think I really just need to make a video of this one: I think it would be much better for showing the details and how they were created.

Edit: Oh, and I did experiment with Darksider as a base, but even though it created certain advantages in creating yet more options/layers to the skin effects, there were just too many downsides hampering the design in other areas.

 

[VILARCANE]

I am very fond of your artistic thought and ideation process...and of the somber & maqabir (the arab origin if this word).

 

[Rusted Blade]

I am very fond of your artistic thought and ideation process...and of the somber & maqabir (the arab origin if this word).

Thanks Vil--likewise! :) For myself, CaS (like any artistic objective) often evolve in the making, so its always a balance between having a vision to realize and letting the vision have you--if you'll forgive the somewhat pretentious and nebulous phrasing. ;)

 

[VILARCANE]

What i find most gratifying is when you feel you have a great concept (for a CAS, a drawing, a poem) and therefore know everything will fall nicely into place and make your piece stand out or be wow-inducing (là c'est moi qui suis soit prétentieux soit conscient de mes modestes talents creatifs :)...

 

[Rusted Blade]

Slightly updated/polished versions of some originals here:

Counselor gets a new face:

And I'm still trying to get SCVI Tei into some kind of quality shape...but I just don't think she's going to come together unless/until we get the Bast Vizard back:

I suppose I could at least give some proper texturing/detail work to the armour.. Meh.

 

[VILARCANE]

heihachi mustache turned into a beard, of course, kudos !

 

[Rusted Blade]

heihachi mustache turned into a beard, of course, kudos !

Eh bien, tu connais sa signification, alors tu comprends pourquoi je n'ai jamais ete content de devoir utiliser ce visage fugly precedent pour avoir une barbe grisonnante. ;) Edit: Je pense que c'est vrai, maintenant; verbes irreguliers francais, quel casse-tete lorsque tu ne les utilises pas regulerement!