Tuesday, October 24, 2017

Inktober 2017 • day 24 • Zombie Hands

Inktober 2017: Day24
Zombie Hands


Nuff said.
#Inktober Day 24: Zombie hands reachin' for the sky!

Monday, October 23, 2017

Inktober 2017 • day 23 • Candy Corn Goblins

Inktober 2017: Day23
Candy Corn Goblins


The only thing that haunted me as a child was getting a bag of candy corn on Halloween. It has to be to most awful candy out there, far surpassing Easter Peeps and white chocolate. So it makes sense, something must be taking these triangular nightmares . . . Cause I certainly wasn't eating them!



#Inktober Day 29: Inspired by my sheer hatred of this novelty garbage candy. BLEH!

Original Ink image

Sunday, October 22, 2017

Inktober 2017 • day 22 • Morburt, the Mossman

Inktober 2017: Day22
Morburt, the Mossman


This character is one of the guardians of the Moss Fields. Not a real warrior; basically they try to look intimidating . . . But are often way too friendly to ever be in a fight.
#Inktober Day 22: Good Ol' mellow Morburt, the Mossman

#Inktober Day 22: The original inked image without the tones

Saturday, October 21, 2017

Inktober 2017 • day 21 • Scare D. Kattz

Inktober 2017: Day21
Scare D. Kattz

Bringing back an old character from several years ago . . . 
#Inktober Day 27: Scare D. Kattz in costume

Friday, October 20, 2017

Inktober 2017 • day 20 • Charli

Inktober 2017: Day20
Charli


Today's Inktober breaks the pattern - because today is my wife's birthday. So, I inked a character from a children's story I wrote called, WHAZZIT. The character's name is Charli, loosely based on my wife as a little girl. I had a pencil sketch I created some time ago, but never inked that image until now.
Inktober Day 20: The inked version of Charli from WHAZZIT. (Happy Birthday, Babe!)

Original Pencil Sketch

Thursday, October 19, 2017

Inktober 2017 • day 19 • Ghost Doodles

Inktober 2017: Day19
Halloween Ghost Doodles

Today's Inktober is just a bunch of ghost doodles (with a pumpkin basket thrown in.)
I used a very soft pen brush, hence the more shaky, sketchy and varying lines.
Inktober Day 19: Various Ghost and pumpkin basket doodles

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Inktober 2017 • day 18 • Teen Wolf

Inktober 2017: Day18Teen Wolf
This little guy was a concept design for a Trick or Treat bag. Basically, he's rising from the bag's base. I'll need to simplify this design because TOT bags are generally very graphic and iconic in today's market.

Inktober Day #18: Teen Wolf Surprise!

Tuesday, October 17, 2017

Inktober 2017 • day 17 • Go Fish! (Bunnies and Monstas)

Inktober 2017: Day17
Go Fish (Bunnies and Monstas)


Those who follow my artwork will probably recognize this image. I've been working on variations of this concept for quite some time. This is part of a calendar idea I've had for the last few years.
#Inktober Day 17: Yet another version of Go Fish from my Bunnies and Monstas collection

Character Designs for a Game: Part Four, The Minotaur

Here's the final design of the four characters I made for Steve Radabaugh's game, Dungeon Marauders: The Minotaur.
The final colored design of the Minotaur submitted for Dungeon Marauders
Of the four designs, the Minotaur was the one that needed the most changes. When I first did rough sketches, I was looking for the Minotaur to be different than the typical version we all know. So I made its face more beastly; like the main character from "Beauty and the Beast". And again, like the Ogre, I wanted to play around with a very top-heavy character with tiny legs. I sent the roughs to Steve for comments.

Quick concept pencil rough sketches of the Minotaur -- Trying to get a new look

This is where an outside critique really helps. As the designer who is constantly looking at the work, you sometimes lose focus and the perception of how others see your work. I didn't see what was wrong until Steve pointed it out. 

Tightened pencil sketch of the Minotaur which was off target . . . 

Steve felt that the sketch was off, especially around the face. While I was trying to be different, I was subconsciously omitting one of the most important features of a Minotaur . . . it's bull-like facial features.
 . . . The final pencil sketch with greatly improved Minotaur bullhead features!

Once the face was altered to be more bull-like . . . it seemed to all come together instantly. There was no question this was now a Minotaur!

The Minotaur design is seen with a drop shadow on a dark background
As Steve continues to develop his game, I hope to share his progress here with future posts about Dungeon Marauders.
Those interested can view the game's progress from his blog at 
www.radicalbomb.com
or look him up on Google+ at www.google.com/+SteveRadabaugh

Character Designs for a Game: Part Three, The Troll

Today's design is the Troll, which I have to admit is a complex creature because there are so many different versions in many world cultures. 
The full-color image on dark background with drop shadowing

Some are giants, while others are human size . . . Or they are long-haired, naked, googly-eyed imps as in the popular 70's dolls (which were re-popularized in the '90s.)
In D+D and fantasy games, they are often twice human size, slow-witted and regenerating menaces. Or, as in my Mother-in-Law's Icelandic traditions, they are 13 dwarf-looking brothers, who each take turns invading homes on the 13 days of Christmas. Some of the most annoying Trolls . . . are Internet Trolls. 

The many types of Trolls throughout the world
Some live under bridges, others live in the mountains, or as in World of Warcraft they are a dispersed race that has reggae accents. Some even turn into stone because they see sunlight.

But generally, there's one thing in common: they are ugly creatures.

Since this Troll is a role-playing game, I naturally had to focus on creating a more classic D+D gaming version . . . but keep it unique and original from all the others.
A few rough pencils sketches, which help me to explore, finding some unique (but recognizable) character features.
It was also important to keep this character different enough from the other 3 characters I was making for the game. As I previously mentioned, several of these creatures are interchangeable, where you may think a Troll might look more like an Ogre, Giant, or Orc than a Troll. Hopefully, with the main character features, props, and coloring, each of these designs will generally represent their legendary gaming creature.
The original pencil sketch of the Troll
Once I had the design cleaned and tightened, I decided to make a few color comps for the Troll's coloring using markers. The Troll was the only design of the four that I did a marker comp; I wanted to see how the coloring would affect the character. I gave Steve four color options, and again, he picked the same one I preferred . . . The yellow-green version.
Quick color comps I did with markers. Only one image was rendered on paper; then that was scanned into Photoshop, where the hues of the skin/hair were altered to create 3 more variations of color.

To help suggest the Troll's massive size, I gave him a heavy wooden club the size of a tree trunk.
The inked version of the Troll with his tree trunk sized club

 I still feel this character could easily play the part of an Orc, Ogre or Giant . . . But when comparing this to the other designs - hopefully, the traits of a Troll will be more apparent.