Some characters

[cels]

Definitely not pedantic, I'm just happy for all the CC and wary of turning down good advice, because I know the feeling of investing time in CC and then being ignored. And also, I tried to start this project of pixel art world building in 2015 and I quickly gave up because I realized I didn't have the skills yet, so I'm really thankful for the help to continue.



In 2015, I burned out and lost interesting PA for a while. Partially because of my own issues and partially because I felt like there was too much apathy in the community (being more apathetic myself probably contributed). Started pixelling again during the pandemic and now I can continue the project in 2021. I think I'd have been fairly pleased with my latest work if I could see it in 2015. And I'm only just getting started, hopefully. But there's no way I'd get to this level without heaps of CC and many edits.


(Some of these skirts / dresses don't make any physical sense at the moment, in terms of how the fabric folds, but I'm already on the case.)

Thanks for the tips, recommendations and edits. I like many of the things you did and tomorrow I'll get back to work and update some of my designs.

EDIT: Will work on improvements later. Just posting the character I did this morning while having coffee. Hoping to crank out one per day and I'll stop at 120 characters. Reference HERE.



EDIT2:



Thanks for the crits, fskn!
- Tried to improve the lower arm of the mason.
- Tried to find a compromise with the ginger lady's hair, also worked on her clothes and her arm. I don't want her hair to look like tentacles or thick braids but I think I do like something in between.
- I bit the bullet and added another colour for the hair. Maybe it's a bit too yellow. After looking at your improved versions, I looked at a bunch of references (should have started there) of shiny blonde hair and I feel like I have a better grip on it. When it's super shiny, hair looks almost like metal (which is also shiny, so why didn't I think of that?) and tends to reflect most light at its most concave rather than its convex parts. But I don't know if I managed to get that across. Maybe there aren't enough pixels to get it 100% right.
- Your edit of the archer's hand was absolutely Michelangelo's Adam level pixel art. Really amazing and I tried to recreate it without copying it. Good point about holding the longbow, I realize that I should have been looking at how archers in real life fire their bows instead of simply looking at that statue. And I do like the look of the partially transparent bow string but I'm not sure it fits with the style. On the other hand, maybe it looks daft to have no string. I'll have to think about this. I also looked at a lot of slow motion video of longbows (and recurve bows) and I didn't see any examples of super dynamic bow strings upon release. I think your version looks good and intuitive but I'm not sure I want to exaggerate that much. Choices, choices. I also updated the bow quiver. Nice detail of having one grounded arrow not totally vertical.

[fskn]

Thanks for the crits, fskn!

Glad to be of help.

- Your edit of the archer's hand was absolutely Michelangelo's Adam level pixel art. Really amazing and I tried to recreate it without copying it.

Damn, son, that's one hell of a compliment. 
Thanks.

Good point about holding the longbow, I realize that I should have been looking at how archers in real life fire their bows instead of simply looking at that statue. And I do like the look of the partially transparent bow string but I'm not sure it fits with the style. On the other hand, maybe it looks daft to have no string. I'll have to think about this. I also looked at a lot of slow motion video of longbows (and recurve bows) and I didn't see any examples of super dynamic bow strings upon release. I think your version looks good and intuitive but I'm not sure I want to exaggerate that much. Choices, choices. I also updated the bow quiver. Nice detail of having one grounded arrow not totally vertical.

Yeah, maybe the string doesn't work as well as I thought. But it's cool to give it some action. You could try adding a smear there, perhaps. Like, blurring the bow string, maybe the bow itself too... I don't know.

By the way I have to correct myself now that I took a couple seconds more to think about how arrows are shot (recalling when I did that some years ago). In modern days, the arrow goes on the opposite side of the bow, sitting on top of the bone of the hand that comes before (and connects to) the index finger.
In the middle ages that may have been different... There are medieval illustrations that show the arrow going over the thumb. But medieval artists aren't exactly known for accuracy, so...

Anyways, I worked on the buff dude mason some more because of his left arm.

I thought it looked a bit too patchy with the dark/reddish brown at the bottom of the biceps and especially in the lower arm, so I tried to connect the clusters, and ended up rotating his arm a little. I also felt that that soft part of the thumb should receive some highlighting...
The grey you introduced as part of the shading on the skin helped soften some parts, though I may have gone overboard again...



Doing that debuffed him a bit, so I gave him more definition here and there...

(I should be working on my stuff, but working on yours is so damn fun. )

---

Hm, maybe that biceps could be a bit thicker like you did before...



Eh. Now I think at least your shoulders look better. :shrugs:

---

Final edit, I promise*


(* for now, anyway.)

[dpixel]

Great thread! Great Characters! Great Style!

[cels]

@dpixel: Thanks! Hope to keep this rolling!

@fskn: Really great edits and I spent a lot of time looking at all the changes you made. Shoulders, chest, arms, etc, all very nice details and very helpful! Ultimately, it's very challenging to pull back from adding more detail because it often looks better when it's more realistic. But I still want to maintain some level of abstraction and stylistic choices (e.g. big black clusters) going forward, so it'll be interesting to juggle this.

I'm considering the current set of characters done now and moving on to the next batch. Set 3 of 8 for a total of 120 characters.

http://pixeljoint.com/pixelart/139682.htm

Here's 10 of the next 15. As you can see, only a few of them are near completion so I am very happy for any feedback towards any of these characters. Gestures, anatomy, shading, whatever can be improved.



But most especially, I need help with the birdman! He's inspired by THIS reference and I don't feel like the foreshortening is working in my version. Head might also be a bit big, really. But I am hoping someone can help me with the perspective and gesture.

All kinds of feedback very welcome, as always. And thanks for the help so far!

[fskn]

I'd push his shoulders back a bit, emphasizing the posture:





And a few other little thingies, like raising his lantern arm/elbow just a touch.
Not sure about what I did with the leg, though.

---

EDIT: Oh yeah, the head isn't necessarily a problem, as long as it is about the same size as the other character's heads.

(I think I'm going to start calling this kind of thing "oomphasizing". )

---

EDIT 2: Actually, I think I would tilt that hat back too. Just to make it a bit more natural.

[cels]

Thanks for the edit! I really like the change to the pose, it definitely looks more dramatic and natural. I've moved towards that direction, although I'm not sure I've taken it far enough. I will play around with this. Also good point about the arm length and hat tilt.

I'm not sure what to do with the leg yet. By keeping the shin more vertical, I think he looks more grounded. But I could be wrong.



EDIT:

Adding my viking-mongolian-novgorodian ginger-Conan conqueror king (I might change his title later)

 

My umbrella fetish has been replaced by people standing on things to assert dominance.

[cels]

Since fskn mentioned Fazetta, I'm just stealing his poses now. 

[fskn]

Haha, that's very nice!
I think her middle finger sort of gets confused with the index finger, though... Have you tried painting it with a darker color?

---

Oh, I hadn't seen the king in the post above. That's super cool!

---

EDIT:

Maybe something like this..?



Also, when in doubt, pinky out.

---

EDIT 2:



Left arm raised, legs further apart, stronger shadow under her chin... right elbow closer to her body in an attempt to make her seem more feminine...

---

One last edit.

[fskn]

So by now you guys should know that when I say "one last edit" what I'm actually saying is that I will keep on editing indefinitely.

No, I'm kidding, but I did find a couple more "solutions" for that hand (not that anybody asked for it in the first place, but still):



---

And the right hand...



Man, this palette has been really fun to work with.

[cels]

Wow, thanks, fskn! I realize now that I should provide a minimum of context for each character to indicate what I had in mind. Your version looks like an bad-ass sorceror lady ready to open a can of fireballs. Unfortunately, I was trying to pixel a trophy wife fantasy queen with no real abilities other than pointing at people to have them killed, so it seems more appropriate to have her feet together and her fist angrily clinched. But I am in awe of your ability to draw realistic hands at this tiny scale and I appreciate those different edits that I can use as references as I finish the other 75 characters I'm doing in the future. 

I did use your way of rendering fabric across the boobs and belly though. Very nice! Also gave her some defined shoulders, being a hard working trophy wife.



I'm now in the process of creating a mini-diorama with 4 fantasy infantry dudes.





My plan is to animate the wind blowing in both trees, also some of the clothes and the pennant. I will try to animate the characters to make them come a live a little bit, turning their heads, heaving breath, maybe turning a torso. The weird, unchanging texture on the trees is as I want it to be.

Their poses are quite stiff but this time it's actually intentional. I will come back to more dynamic poses in the future.



If anyone can give me some feedback and crits regarding the 4 idle dudes or the background, that'd be much appreciated!

EDIT:

This is getting out of hand. Now I have to learn how to animate water.