[C+C] 16 12-bit colors swordsman

[spektre]

Final version (Yeah right):

Awesome! Sounds so cool :-)
Can't wait to see him hacking through some zombies!
Its good that you took the blue out because I'm assuming there will be alot of snow?

I can't wait either! About the snow, I don't know how much of it there will be.  Chances are he'll be spending a lot of time indoors or underground, but now that you mentioned it, it could be fun drawing some outdoor scenery.

Legs are much better. You could straighten the front shin a little to define it but it does give a good puffy fur-skin boot look as it is.
I like what you did with the back calf.
I think it would look better if back foot was firmly planted on the ground, at the moment it sort of looks like it is up on its toe but is a bit odd looking.
I went for flat foot also because of the weight of the shield.

Yup, looks better with the foot planted firmly on the ground.  I like that you get the fur-skin impression of the boots!

Here's another edit I did partly because he is fun to edit 
I tried to emphasise the chest again but maybe its too much.
Also tried to make the hair highlights instead of just all bright - top of head doesn't look quite right on mine but just watch out for how your version looks against black or a dark background.
<snip>

I'm really glad you like it, means a lot.  I think it's a bit much on the chest, I don't want him to be some Californian Governor kind of guy, I think his abs are just fine.  They are working muscles, not showing muscles.
I have the transparency channel as black in my editor, so I feel more ready for the dark backgrounds than the light ones actually.

I think I'm going to have to stop working on this and get my ass off towards the next one.

To be continued...

[Decroded]

looks great to me, dont forget u need to animate his idle stance at some stage.

[spektre]

looks great to me, dont forget u need to animate his idle stance at some stage.

Absolutely, he needs to be huffing and puffing and undulating away.  He can't just stand there.

[spektre]

First attempt at an animation frame, looking for some C+C on the general stance, feeling etc. before I continue.



I'm updating the OP too, for better overview.

[Decroded]

maybe i'm just lazy but I wouldnt walk around with such a bent elbow holding a heavy sword at that angle, I would let it hang more or hold it more upright I dont know exactly.

I like how u have the overall pose at a slight angle instead of directly side on, maybe just a touch more angle if u can. I think the shield position takes away from it if u move it forward it might help.
the height of the shield makes it look like he is holding it in his hand, I'm no expert but I always imagine some strap and handle combination that u  put ur arm through for more sturdy grip, in which case the shield would be a bit higher with a straight arm and much higher with a bent arm. A shield of that style should  also be more comfortable to hold higher with bent arm than a sword would because it is the whole forearm supporting it instead of just the wrist.

Hey if its cold I'm thinking steamy breath would look great.

[spektre]

New edit:

maybe i'm just lazy but I wouldnt walk around with such a bent elbow holding a heavy sword at that angle, I would let it hang more or hold it more upright I dont know exactly.

Not lazy; energy efficient.

I like how u have the overall pose at a slight angle instead of directly side on, maybe just a touch more angle if u can. I think the shield position takes away from it if u move it forward it might help.

I turned him a bit more towards us, makes sense when the back leg is put forward. I also moved the shield a distance forwards, it's probably too heavy to swing around a lote when walking.

the height of the shield makes it look like he is holding it in his hand, I'm no expert but I always imagine some strap and handle combination that u  put ur arm through for more sturdy grip, in which case the shield would be a bit higher with a straight arm and much higher with a bent arm. A shield of that style should  also be more comfortable to hold higher with bent arm than a sword would because it is the whole forearm supporting it instead of just the wrist.

Actually, here's a very good video displaying the viking round shield and the reason why there's no arm strap: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8SRaa33otU&feature=related

I'd like a second oppinion on the size of shield and sword in the sprite compared to that video too.

Hey if its cold I'm thinking steamy breath would look great.

Sure, that could be neat, but it's not a priority right now.  I'll keep it in mind though.

Again, thanks for all the input.

[spektre]

Touch up:


Going to move on to another frame now.

Also, a note: The walking sprite is saved with some kind of layer feature in the .gif-format through GrafX2.  If anyone is having trouble opening it, let me know.

[Joe]

Wait- if you're going to animate it, I strongly suggest you simplify him into solid colors and then animate that.  That way you can tweak it with minimal work, and then go back and add on the details.  It's much, much easier that way.

[spektre]

Wait- if you're going to animate it, I strongly suggest you simplify him into solid colors and then animate that.  That way you can tweak it with minimal work, and then go back and add on the details.  It's much, much easier that way.

Yes, yes I should, and I planned to do it that way (I really did), but then I was just going to add a bit of shade here and there to better see the shapes -- and then I couldn't stop.  After this one I really should continue the way you propose.

I do have the limbs, torso and head on different layers so editing isn't as hard as it would be on a flat image at least.

[Decroded]

Video is really interesteing, the shield looks alot lighter than I imagined.
So it looks like when ur guy is walking he is not quite really ready to block, rather it looks like he is going for a walk with no enemies in sight.
I just don't know if that would look quite right if u r going to have zombies every where or do u have other ideas?
I guess I'm interested in how the game will play, the pace of it, the frequency of combat etc to be able to give feed back on wether the sprites are appropriate.
Maybe its an intentional part of ur control scheme that he automatically blocks when standing still?