Descent Into Darkness Campaign: Ghast Revision

[wayfarer]

If I see this well I know that I never really animated.

[Stern]

I have been tinkering with the Ghast a little bit and I have figured out how to fix the discrepancies in the original Ghast attack animation regarding kinematics and coloration. I think that working upon two attack animations is fruitless if only one is to be used when the Ghast is completed. Therefore, I want to consult the Wesnoth community from a "flavor" standpoint upon which of the two animations (A or B respectively) best matches the character of a Ghast. The selected animation will then be completed for the final Ghast Revision. (Please refer to the motion of the Ghast and ignore the coloration and shading which will be added later.)

Ghast Character Description for reference

"The ghast is a creature taken from humankind's most primal nightmares. Unlike their lesser cousins, ghouls and necrophages, ghasts are not patient enough to wait for their victim to die from poison before consuming the body. They attack directly with their enormous mouths, trying to rip the flesh straight from their foes. Once their enemy is defeated, they eat the rest of the body, gaining strength in the process."

GhastA.gif (7.33 KiB) Viewed 3920 times

GhastB.gif (4.7 KiB) Viewed 3920 times

*Edit: Repositioned animations for clarification.*

[Bad_Dog]

I vote B.

The reason is that A would be appropriate for the monster as seen from the viewpoint just in front, the way that as the mouth bites at its closest the head seems to come out of the screen towards the viewer and occlude the body behind. The Wesnoth map is seen from "on high," not from just right in front, so the pop-out towards the viewer doesn't seem consistent with that.

[Zerovirus]

I vote A for rule of cool factorization.

[johndh]

Animation A is terrifying. I vote A.

[boru]

I think it is possible that having animation B first followed by animation A, may lead to some confusion.

EDIT: Now I'm causing the confusion!

[thespaceinvader]

If you've fixed the problems that were with A earlier, then that one - but we could always use both

[lostnumber]

I prefer B myself because I think A has some major issues, but it seems like I'm in the minority here

[Deusite]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Spoiler:

Bigger mouth=more nightmare fuelish, and therefore better. Sorry about all the As, I don't know what came over me

[Trilby]

Safe to say A has always been well liked. I'll not disagree either.

Have you tried lining them up over a hex, to check angle of attack? Both are different, not sure which would align the best.

[thespaceinvader]

B alone would work best against a se hex. But A would work against both S and SE unless I miss my guess - but it would need to playing with offsets to make it work.

[em3]

How about A being the S attack animation and B being used for SE.

[thespaceinvader]

If one animation works for both directions, we'll use it for both directions.

[Speedbrain]

I like A better. It looks like he is attacking more with the mouth, whereas B looks like the attack is mostly from the claws. Based on your description, A seems to fit better.
Plus it looks cooler.

[Sangel]

If you've fixed the problems that were with A earlier, then that one - but we could always use both

Agreed. If both A and B work, then I would love to see both in the game. For instance, animation B could be used for regular attacks, and the nightmarish "devouring" animation A could be used for killing strokes (the Ghast has "feeding" after all).