LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

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LordBob
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas

Post by LordBob »

I'm still working on those nagas. Extending the detour to some anatomy research though, which let's admit I'm doing mostly for fun. I'm sure most of ya folks can live without knowing what's on their backs, but I swear, it helps with the design ! :mrgreen:

A few notes : the larger scales on their back will be connected to the main backplates of the tail. Head and shoulders ought to get a sprinkling of those pointed scales that work rather well in the original portraits.
And of course there'll be the thin crest-like band of skin in between the dorsal spikes. I imagine that those spikes, much like a porcupine's, can be either hanging low when at rest or raised if the naga is tensed / aggressive.
Attachments
Naga_2.jpg
Naga_3.jpg
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shevegen
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas

Post by shevegen »

I like the artwork. I am not sure how Naga "should" look in Wesnoth. Perhaps they tend
to be a bit bulkier than on the portrait? Scales and stilts a bit less profound? But I have
to admit that I really don't know - my only impression is from sea-units within the
game itself.

This could always become a hero or main protagonist so the anatomy may not matter
that much if it is not the "average" naga per se. (I have no idea how the average
naga would look like either, though.)

The scales look a bit strange, but you explained that this is not done yet, so ok.

There is only one small-ish thing that confuses me a bit - the area between the
torso, and the head... it looks as if it is a human, with another head. Again, I
can not say how naga SHOULD look like, but if there are scales then perhaps
these should be a bit more profound on the upper body and arms too? But
as said, that is just an impression I have. Feel free to ignore that. :)
Pilauli
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas

Post by Pilauli »

That's a good point. The existing sprites (especially the Naga Fighter) appear to have plates running most of the way up their fronts, and scales all over their arms, which presents a unified appearance.

The Naga Hunter's portrait bugs me a bit because it does exactly what these models appear to be tending toward; the humanoid torso flows nicely with the snakey lower part, but the head looks like it's sort of grafted on there because the chest is a sort of skin-texture, and then the neck suddenly switches to having the belly-plates on the bottom and the large, bright green scales on the topside. I think a more gradual transition would look better.

(I also think the Naga sprites' round faces and large, red eyes are cute, although those, like the round-faced-with-large-eyes human sprites, are probably mostly an art style thing. The forward-facing eyes might be justified if they use tools (you have to be able to see what you're working on) and missile weapons, though...)
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas

Post by Kylix »

LordBob wrote: September 2nd, 2020, 1:55 pm I'm still working on those nagas. Extending the detour to some anatomy research though, which let's admit I'm doing mostly for fun. I'm sure most of ya folks can live without knowing what's on their backs, but I swear, it helps with the design ! :mrgreen:

A few notes : the larger scales on their back will be connected to the main backplates of the tail. Head and shoulders ought to get a sprinkling of those pointed scales that work rather well in the original portraits.
And of course there'll be the thin crest-like band of skin in between the dorsal spikes. I imagine that those spikes, much like a porcupine's, can be either hanging low when at rest or raised if the naga is tensed / aggressive.
Remember that naginis have neither avatars nor sprites on their own, while the naga needs only the Warrior portrait.
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LordBob
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by LordBob »

Has it been a month already ? Rest assured, I'm not dead yet.

A quick note on naga anatomy ; initially I tried to design the Hunter and those recent sketches based on the sprites and the 2 old warrior portraits, which honestly didn't give too much information so you'll have to excuse any inconsistencies. Anyway, I hear the need for a more gradual head-to-chest transition ; painting should improve that, but what will really make it work in the end is that the transition area is partly hidden on most armored nagas. :mrgreen:

Re: Kylix: I didn't follow recent developments, so I have no idea what the naginis are and in which faction they fit. You're welcome to develop.


Onwards to portraits now! I'm doing Inktober this year (annual challenge for artists the world over, draw one inked picture a day for 30 days) and decided to focus on Wesnoth stuff. This means there won't be any finished color portraits this month, but instead a lot of detailed sketches to pave the way for future work.
Got 5 done so far, I will post updates from time to time. And if anyone's curious, you can catch them daily (along with any other art I publish) on my Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/theartysquid/

Nagas are for the "naga with mace" line that Doofus suggested before. Humans are meant as sailors to represent the mechanical units (final paintings of these will have a rough boat background to provide context)
Attachments
5---Pirate.jpg
4---Captain.jpg
3---Sailor.jpg
2---Naga-warrior-upgraded.jpg
1---Naga-warrior.jpg
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beetlenaut
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by beetlenaut »

Secrets of the Ancients has a sailor without a portrait. These three are great (I love their attitudes!) but wouldn't work for 7-3 blade, I don't think. How would you feel about doing one more with a larger sword?
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sailor.png
sailor.png (1.13 KiB) Viewed 3497 times
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LordBob
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by LordBob »

You got it. Human figures are fun and easy to draw by now, I'll include that extra sailor in this week's batch. Couple checks beforehand :
- does gender matter for this unit/hero ?
- visually, should they lean towards outlaw (tattered clothes, dirty etc.) or loyalist (cleaner clothes, possibly an emblem of some lord they serve, ...) ?
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octalot
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by octalot »

I'm not Beetlenaut, but feel like collecting info:
  • The sailors are loyalists, crewing the regular ferry between the Isle of Alduin and the mainland.
  • There's already a portrait for the same ship's captain, in captain.png.
  • The ferry carries passengers including nobles, as well as cargo.
  • There's a single spoken line from a sailor, reporting to the captain immediately after finding a half-eaten dead crewmate.
  • In the scenario itself, the captain is going to recruit a dozen or so units, all of them sailors.
  • Gender seems unrestricted, including for the unit reporting the dead body. That reporter is a fake unit, so easy to make it match the portrait.
BTW, thanks for the great artwork.
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beetlenaut
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by beetlenaut »

Thanks octalot! I couldn't have said it better myself.
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Gweddeoran
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by Gweddeoran »

Isn't the captain portrait the same as the Duelist portrait though?
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beetlenaut
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by beetlenaut »

gweddeoran wrote: October 6th, 2020, 2:16 pm Isn't the captain portrait the same as the Duelist portrait though?
With different colors and a different hat, but yes. However, all the custom portraits for SotA are like that. The sailor is the only unit that doesn't have a portrait at all. I tried, but I couldn't find anything close that I had the skill to modify.
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by Gweddeoran »

I can understand- I was stating that in case LordBob was interested in looking for new portraits to do from SotA and he thought that the captain was already done based on previous comments ^_^ .
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LordBob
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by LordBob »

Heh, no I didn't think that, I do recognize the portrait the captain is based on since he is also one of mine. I am itching to provide original portraits for SotA eventually, however, the plan so far is to create finished sketches for those I already have planned in 1.16 and that includes the Dunefolk. So I'll wait a bit before adding a whole campaign to my plate :whistle: .
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by doofus-01 »

Those sketches look great, I really like the nagas. They are different enough from the existing ones to be interesting, but they are still believably part of the same crew.
LordBob wrote: October 6th, 2020, 8:01 pm Heh, no I didn't think that, I do recognize the portrait the captain is based on since he is also one of mine. I am itching to provide original portraits for SotA eventually, however, the plan so far is to create finished sketches for those I already have planned in 1.16 and that includes the Dunefolk. So I'll wait a bit before adding a whole campaign to my plate :whistle: .
For what it's worth, I've got a PR/proposal in review involving the captain's undead version. Maybe it will be accepted/rejected by the time you get around to this, but I just want to mention it so we don't end up with a collision.
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Re: LordBob's random stuff : Nagas and more

Post by Kylix »

LordBob wrote: October 5th, 2020, 11:54 pm Has it been a month already ? Rest assured, I'm not dead yet.

A quick note on naga anatomy ; initially I tried to design the Hunter and those recent sketches based on the sprites and the 2 old warrior portraits, which honestly didn't give too much information so you'll have to excuse any inconsistencies. Anyway, I hear the need for a more gradual head-to-chest transition ; painting should improve that, but what will really make it work in the end is that the transition area is partly hidden on most armored nagas. :mrgreen:

Re: Kylix: I didn't follow recent developments, so I have no idea what the naginis are and in which faction they fit. You're welcome to develop.


Onwards to portraits now! I'm doing Inktober this year (annual challenge for artists the world over, draw one inked picture a day for 30 days) and decided to focus on Wesnoth stuff. This means there won't be any finished color portraits this month, but instead a lot of detailed sketches to pave the way for future work.
Got 5 done so far, I will post updates from time to time. And if anyone's curious, you can catch them daily (along with any other art I publish) on my Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/theartysquid/

Nagas are for the "naga with mace" line that Doofus suggested before. Humans are meant as sailors to represent the mechanical units (final paintings of these will have a rough boat background to provide context)
Naginis are female nagas, are they called differently in your language?
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