Khalifate "Khalid" unit - did I miss something?

[kurt751]

The "Khalid" unit is carrying a longsword and a shield. Yet, the unit sprite art shows him holding two sabers.
What did I miss?

I found a thread about Khalifate (26 pages!). What I discovered having a quick look inside is that there apparently is/was some art made showing the Khalid with his actual equipment, back in 2010. I also saw (in that same thread) the birth of the current Khalid art with the two sabers, so what is the explanation? Two different units with the same name ending up as one?

[taptap]

Most likely what happened is: People make sort of realistic sprites with some exaggeration for visibility. You need more of it for the L2, even more of it for the L3 and at some point there are not enough ideas around for a visibly different L4 and you end with two-weaponing. This looks fairly similar to the current sprites already: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=23846&start=255#p435378 - one of the sprites called Khalid earlier became the L3 Shuja.

[kurt751]

I see.
Suboptimal though, given one expects the unit sprite to show the equipment the actual unit carries. (Or, in case the sprite has enough "wow" factor, the unit to carry the equipment the sprite depicts.)
Thanks.

[Gyra_Solune]

I think the Arif into Shuja line is sort of incomplete and from earlier depictions. Not in the least because the Shuja is the 'default' path that inherits the Arif's defining marksman-blade, but it looks nothing like it (and indeed, earlier it was the alt-promotion Mudafi that looked the most similar). If I had a magical thought into beautiful pixel art button I'd either make the Arif look more like the Shuja, or, more preferably, have the Shuja and its two successors look more like elite Arifs (since the heavy chainmail is a bit more distinctive and recognizable than 'a guy wearing clothes who has a sword'). The Khalid especially I'd actually think to emphasize the shield with - he's the royal hero type of unit, and probably the sprite you'd use when representing a 'Khalifate King'. Shields are much easier to make elaborate and royal looking since a really fancy one can be all embossed and engraved and given an insignia, like you see on the General and Grand Marshal. However, that route obviously merits the re-draw of three units as opposed to one and is as such more work, when the Khalifate has already gone through a lot of different revisions.

...I really ought to invest some time and get really good at sprites, at this rate.

[kurt751]

I solved my problem in the meantime; What I was looking for was an exotic-looking high-level visiting hero from far-away lands for my campaign, and the Khalid unit was quite fitting, except for the missing/misleading art.
So I ended up making a custom unit by taking the Khalid stats, the Ghazi sprite (frankensteined him a simple attack image since he's going to fight a lot) and borrowed a temp portrait (because there is a lot of dialogue) from the mainline scenarios which have gorgeous art...

Yes, missing art is definitely a problem: Part of the pleasure of playing BfW is the eye candy. Bad art definitely breaks the pleasure. And making good unit art, even simple, is quite difficult, I know, I'm trying (13 custom hero/monster units in my campaign...).