|
1 year ago ::
May 08, 2012 - 9:26PM
#1
|
Date Joined:
Dec 20, 2004
|
Dragon's-Eye ViewD&D Art Philosophyby Jon SchindehetteThis week, Senior Creative Director Jon Schindehette shows you what he's thinking about when it comes to the guiding philosophy for D&D Next art. Come read them, think about what he has to say, and perhaps provide some thoughtful feedback so that your voice and opinions are heard. Talk about this article here.
astralArchivist.com - 4e D&D house rules, homebrew, and story hours - now featuring ENWorld's Zeitgeist adventure path! Will Thibault is a winged, feathered serpent rarely found anywhere except in warm, jungle-like regions or flying through the ether. Due to his intelligence and powers he is regarded with awe by the inhabitants of his homelands and is considered to be divine.
|
|
|
|
1 year ago ::
May 08, 2012 - 10:44PM
#2
|
Date Joined:
May 12, 2009
|
I agree 100% with everything you said.Jon i think 
Yan
Montréal, Canada
|
|
|
|
1 year ago ::
May 08, 2012 - 10:54PM
#3
|
|
|
Great characters. I want to get away from throwaway characters who look like they were lifted from a cast of "usual suspects" in a bad fantasy flick. I want the characters to have flavor, backstory, and visually identifiable personas. Let's go beyond a generic fighter with cool armor and weapons, and instead delve into the space and role that the character holds in the universe. I want to give the DM something to build upon when they introduce an NPC into a campaign.
More of this please. Always more of this. :3
To be more specific, characters should emulate real people and real people aren't perfect. Have a picture of an adventurer, with an arrow sticking out of his/her eye, crawling away from a baddy. And instead of an expression that says, "I am an adventure, I am strong, and I will fight through this." Have them making an expression that says, "AHHHHHHHHHHH MY EYE!!!!!" Like how most people's faces would look if they got shot in the eye with an arrow. Ok, maybe not that exactly. But it would be nice to see some protagonists getting their **** kicked every once in a while. Like that huge pic on the first skills page in the 4e PHB, with that trap going nuts on those adventurers, that was pretty sweet. Things like that but with more good guy blood. Basically, you're planning the impressions you want the art to give. I would like it to sometimes give the impression that things can turn out badly for the party.
What I think the Wilder Design Goals should be. Psionic Homebrew Mk2! Changed core, Focus Points, Psionic Potentials, stuff! Very basic core stuff. :P Homebrew Psionics blog posts archive: Spoiler:
Show
UPDATED Dec/18/2012: BAMN! Random update with a modest amount of hard rules for Animal Affinity, Telepathy, and Telekinesis. ADDED: Discipline Burn and more "soft" ideas.
Dec/13/2012: Small Psionics Homebrew Update, now that I'm done with Finals.
Really old.
Nov/02/2012:
I'm working on a homebrew Wilder, and so a homebrew Psionics system. Here's a 3 part post with info on where I am in the design process.
Part 1, Hard rules/example soulknife discipline: Link.
Part 2, Basic ideas/goals on basic numbers and classes: Link.
Part 3, Direction/ideas I want to take with specific disciplines: Link.:3
|
|
|
|
1 year ago ::
May 08, 2012 - 10:58PM
#4
|
Date Joined:
May 18, 2002
|
Ok, maybe not that exactly. But it would be nice to see some protagonists getting their **** kicked every once in a while. Like that huge pic on the first skills page in the 4e PHB, with that trap going nuts on those adventurers, that was pretty sweet. Things like that but with more good guy blood.
Actually, that was pretty much the running theme of 2E art.
|
|
|
|
1 year ago ::
May 09, 2012 - 5:18AM
#5
|
Date Joined:
Aug 12, 2006
|
I agree 100% with everything you said.
Jon i think
+1.
|
|
|
|
1 year ago ::
May 09, 2012 - 7:01AM
#6
|
Date Joined:
Sep 26, 2006
|
Pretty accurate article, IMO.
Also important I feel is internal consistancy. If you've got a high-magic setting with elves, tiflings and warforged rubbing shoulders, then people aren't going to freak out about someone with wings. Or at least, not as much as in a realistic setting.
Likewise, the more magic there is the less practical the armour needs to look... and the more tailors resemble armourers.
I realise this isn't anything really new, but I feel it's worth saying.
You will fear my Laser Face!
|
|
|
|
1 year ago ::
May 09, 2012 - 9:55AM
#7
|
Date Joined:
Jul 17, 2008
|
He didn't address this directly, but it seems to me one of the big challenges is that artwork lends an atmosphere to the game, in the sense that you see very different art in a horror themed game than you do in a comedy themed game. But D&D is sort of everything-themed, isn't it? Some games are gothic, grim, or horror themed; some are high fantasy adventure; some are almost totally comedic; most take elements from many themes and come up with their own unique blend.
So based on all of that, what sort of atmosphere do you want the D&D artwork, particularly in core books, to evoke?
|
|
|
|
1 year ago ::
May 09, 2012 - 10:34AM
#8
|
- Forum Guide
- Hero Craftsman Gold Medalist
- Master Dungeon Master
Date Joined:
Jun 23, 2005
|
|
|
|
|
1 year ago ::
May 09, 2012 - 12:31PM
#9
|
Date Joined:
Jan 12, 2012
|
He didn't address this directly, but it seems to me one of the big challenges is that artwork lends an atmosphere to the game, in the sense that you see very different art in a horror themed game than you do in a comedy themed game. But D&D is sort of everything-themed, isn't it? Some games are gothic, grim, or horror themed; some are high fantasy adventure; some are almost totally comedic; most take elements from many themes and come up with their own unique blend.
Good point. I would personally like the artwork to illustrate different ways to play the game.
Apart from that I agree with Jon's post.
DISCLAIMER: I never played 4ed, so I may misunderstand some of the rules.
|
|
|
|
1 year ago ::
May 09, 2012 - 1:41PM
#10
|
|
|
I don't want to do change for change's sake.
This was the most comforting thing I read in this column. It sounds like the art direction is in good hands.
|
|
|
