One thing I noticed when I looked at your promotional pics is that the backgrounds in those are so intense and busy that it detracts interest from your items which have mostly flat colors. I think this set could do a lot better on the workshop with promo pics that promote its strengths.
First of all don't bother much if don't go well in the workshop, happens.
I guess you could have gone further with the high poly sculpt, by adding a hard surface looks (specially in the gauntled and armor)
The promotion you could have done some cool lightning and try to "fake" the materials of the set (like metal, wood etc)
But the main "issue" in my opinion is the concept, it doesn't show cleary what you wanted. When I make my actual concepts I try to catch something in the hero's lore or try to imagine a good lore for the set, I mean what's the history behind the set? Why is he wearing that armor? With these questions you can make more interesting elements.
Alright, my set didn't really get so far - now I'd like to know what's wrong with it. What were my mistakes?
I have a few specific questions, but it would be great to get some feedback at all. Just bring on the truth - I don't want you to be nice, I want to learn!
Concept
Bad hero pick?
Does the set look too much like 6 random items put together?
As Mango pointed out this could use some work. To me it feels like you made some generic and tied them to the hero by putting ice on them
Sculpt
Are my details too small?
Is the execution in general too poor?
Maybe some of the detials could have been made bigger or cut deeper to read better in the normal, but there are more important aspects of the material that should be focused
Textures (pretty sure I can get a lot better here)
Are the colors bad?
Can my masks get better - what bothers you about them?
There appear to be some texel density issues, like the belt, buy my concern with this is the materials, and this is most likely tied to the masks. It looks like there is ice stone and metal, but it is not clear. The metals are not reading metal enough, and the fist reads somewhat like stone, but they kind of just wash together
Promotion
Do my published pictures make my set look bad?
What should I do differently?
As stated before your background images are not allowing the items to stand out. First glance it is too noisy and my focus is not drawn to the item. And like Mango said fake the shit out of it. All the best promos really push the materials lighting, and rim lighting with paint overs. Just a few min of paint over can make a huge difference
Hope this helps. Keep at it!
Edit: Example on the promo, did this quick and dirty paintover, no more than 10 min spent on this, but do you see how I brought focus back to the item, and some of that faked lighting could even be painted into the color map
I am not really a good modeller myself so I can't give you any advice method-wise but I think the concept was a little bit random. It's just my personal opinion but I like items that have a certain epic flair. Something that makes the hero appear more dangerous, elegant, brutal, fiendish or whatever other attribute fits his or her overall style best. Some kind of item which captures the theme better than the default look. I admit that this is difficult for a hero like Tusk. I think I would describe him something like "rough", in an bar-brawley sense of the word (does "bar-brawley" even exist? I hope you still get what I mean ), so anything from scars to impressive beards to vikings would do for me.
While I like the ice theme of your set it still makes me wonder a bit how, for example, his fist weapon, axe or helmet managed to get covered in ice that much and that one-sided. If he just came back from a long journey straight through a blizzard his items would be covered in ice more evenly or at least from the same side (not the case for the fist and the helmet also froze a bit like he wore it upside-down). Especially the helmet, the hatchet and the fist look a bit like he threw them somewhere in the snow, forgot about them and just hastily put them back on before the game started.
As I said, that's just my personal taste and tastes tend to differ but I assume this kind of thoughts are also why people are not really big fans of Alpine Ursa or this cat-ear Drow. It just doesn't fit the respective hero's style or if so, then very vaguely. I do in no way intend to say that your set even comes close to their abhorrence but I think the concept of your set didn't quite get your intention behind it across to the players so for most of them it probably looks a bit random. Or rather not outstanding enough.
They use a small and simple lore for the set, not just random pieces. "Why would pudge wear that stuff?" The lore explains, and the design fits him very well!
@darkkyo, Mago, kite and Automedic
First off, thank you for your feedback! I am very glad I have this forum to talk to people about my work!
Concept
It seems to me that here is where the biggest issue comes from.
I had an idea for a set of items that Tusk enhanced his armor and weapons with his ability to cast ice (see the ice shards skill). Moreover I wanted to make him feel more like a soldier and less of a brawler, which I think suits the lore since he is off to find the greatest battles and prove himself as the greatest warrior.
Sculpt
I got the feeling that I was on a good track here, but could have done more to polish my items.
Textures
This is my weak spot (at least in my opinion).
The masks need a lot of work, especially since the metal doesn't read as metal.
The textures lack that hand-drawn style and could bring more lighting effects.
Promotion Fake the sh*t out of them is what I heard. ^^
I totally I agree with what you all said and I am glad to know this for the next time! @kite Thank you very much, your picture helps me a lot!
New questions
- @Magno and Automedic, you both said something similar: I think the concept of your set didn't quite get your intention behind it across to the players
Do you mean that the stuff I show in the workshop doesn't make clear what the lore behind this set is?
If so I agree, but I don't see any way to bring it across to the players. I tried explaining it in the item descriptions, but honestly I think hardly 5% of the visitors read that stuff.
- @kite: Would you mind telling me what you did exactly (is it just new layers with colors or are there some effects)? You say it took but 10min,but I could have sat there for 2-3hours and wouldn't have gotten that far.. =(
- Should I try to rework this set or should I just let it go and move on to new things? (read as: do you think this set has a chance if I rework it?)
- What's the threshold for valve to say: we want this in the game? I guess you definitely need 5 stars, but is there some value that you know from experience?
New questions
- @Magno and Automedic, you both said something similar: I think the concept of your set didn't quite get your intention behind it across to the players
Do you mean that the stuff I show in the workshop doesn't make clear what the lore behind this set is?
If so I agree, but I don't see any way to bring it across to the players. I tried explaining it in the item descriptions, but honestly I think hardly 5% of the visitors read that stuff.
- Should I try to rework this set or should I just let it go and move on to new things? (read as: do you think this set has a chance if I rework it?)
- What's the threshold for valve to say: we want this in the game? I guess you definitely need 5 stars, but is there some value that you know from experience?
1. What I'm telling is: the "lore" should be done before the set happens. You can show You can show tusk as a warrior, but you need to show the "theme" that you are looking for. Like there is a hunter tusk, a viking tusk and there's a oriental traveler tusk. They sure don't need much description because the set has a good theme, so people can figure out anyway.
2. don't try to remake things for now, it's exaustive, you will learn more doing new stuff and when you are more experienced, you can try to remake with new knowledge.
3. Tricky question, Valve only adds what they want, there are many controversial stuff being added while there are top notch itens left in the dark.
- @kite: Would you mind telling me what you did exactly (is it just new layers with colors or are there some effects)? You say it took but 10min,but I could have sat there for 2-3hours and wouldn't have gotten that far.. =(
The background image is from the profile backgrounds used by Dota. I think this was from Ancient Apparition. I placed the item above this in its own layer. In a layer below the item I painted a flat color outlining the item to give a rimlight effect. Then in a layer below that, I used the circle gradient to further add a glow effect. the gradient was set to 9% opacity to make this subtle. I also used the gradient on this layer to tone down the brightness of some areas of the background. Then on a layer above the image is where i painted in the highlights all over the item. usually sampling a color from the item, and then making it much brighter. I did not save the file otherwise I could have shown the layers better. These are the brushes I use for this and texturing. http://www.shaddyconceptart.com/download
The main brush I use for work like this is the Joffery brush, and for my textures I LOVE the Tyrion brush for most of my work, and will use Joffery and Kahl brushes with this for some really good results
- Should I try to rework this set or should I just let it go and move on to new things? (read as: do you think this set has a chance if I rework it?)
I am all about moving on. The only time I would rework something is if Valve asks me to, and trust me they will ask for things like this if needed
- What's the threshold for valve to say: we want this in the game? I guess you definitely need 5 stars, but is there some value that you know from experience?
There are tons of factors here. They do look at community interest, but at the end of the day its up to Valve. Items that have only 4 stars and a few hundred votes have made it in.
I've been wanting to respond to this post ALL day. Postmortems jazz me up, and this is 100% effective way to make your next piece kick ass.
First and formoste, I want to prefice this with "no one knows the workshop formula." I've talked to alot of people aboutthis, and there is a huge thread about what drives the workshop, and where its going and it's worth reading to get some footing on how the workshop "works" per say. But the long of the short of it (in my opinion) is that you want to have..
a) A solid item. Really, really solid.
b) eye catching marketing
c) not offend anyone
d) Valve notices it and likes it.
Past this it never hurts to post around on facebook, polycount waywo threads, reddit, ect. Getting them views and up votes any way you can is good.
I also personally think that you can't really "expect" too much with the workshop. I find the attitude of "alright, I made an awesome piece of work I am proud with, and I am glad I made. " You can only control so much, so try not to worry about the rest.
Do you mean that the stuff I show in the workshop doesn't make clear what the lore behind this set is?
I think that lore is a good way to inspire a set, but it isn't really mandatory for making a piece. It should fit with in the confines of the dota lore for sure, but I don't personally believe that having a 6 page backstory is going to win any extra votes. Where the lore really shines in making a piece is guiding a lot of your conscience choices about materials, construction, silhouette, and theme, that's for sure.
I think that having "conceptual integrity" for your piece all the way through is necessary and mandatory as well. Reading through your thread, you made a lot of changes to the set when you were well along in the modeling process, and not small changes but drastic bits that went in a largely different direction of when you started. It's best to mindmap your thoughts in the conceptual phase and really nail out the specifics and stick to your guns as you work your way through. They are YOUR choices, and there was a reason you went with A over B, and it's not just because it was "cool".
Would you mind telling me what you did exactly (is it just new layers with colors or are there some effects)?
There is a really slick tutorial in Belkuns thread about producing awesome marketing shots. When you do anything marketing related, you always want to have your eyes drawn to your piece. It's the star of the show. It's what people should care about the most. If at all you are distracted by anything in the shot, get rid of it. Make your items the most bitchin thing on the page.
- Should I try to rework this set or should I just let it go and move on to new things?
Never rework after its submitted. It would look weird to resubmitt a couple weeks later. As the saying goes "It always gets better the second time." So just press on and take everything you learn here and apply it to your next set.
- What's the threshold for valve to say: we want this in the game? I guess you definitely need 5 stars, but is there some value that you know from experience?
You dont really need 5 stars. You just need Valve to notice it, like it, and put it in game. Votes dont matter, views dont matter, favorites dont matter. If valve likes it it will go in. Don't sweat the workshop, it is no doubt that having a popular item WILL help it get exposure, however nothing in the workshop guarantees anything to go into the game.
The way I think about it with my items, when they hit 5 stars, I am happy. I am glad of the time and work I put into a piece, and I am damn proud of what I do. After it hits the workshop it's out of my hands, and I know I've done the best I can. When they hit 5 stars, I figure that's the best case scenario and that's what I strive for. I've driven myself crazy worrying if stuff would go in, so it's not really worth it.
Just make bad ass art, smile when people like it, try to understand why people don't, and repeat.
The first workshop piece is always the toughest, and the fact that you want to go through a post mortem about the process shows that you are dedicated enough to have something in there soon, just keep at it man!
New questions
- @Magno and Automedic, you both said something similar: I think the concept of your set didn't quite get your intention behind it across to the players
Do you mean that the stuff I show in the workshop doesn't make clear what the lore behind this set is?
If so I agree, but I don't see any way to bring it across to the players. I tried explaining it in the item descriptions, but honestly I think hardly 5% of the visitors read that stuff.
- Should I try to rework this set or should I just let it go and move on to new things? (read as: do you think this set has a chance if I rework it?)
1. What I'm telling is: the "lore" should be done before the set happens. You can show You can show tusk as a warrior, but you need to show the "theme" that you are looking for. Like there is a hunter tusk, a viking tusk and there's a oriental traveler tusk. They sure don't need much description because the set has a good theme, so people can figure out anyway.
The thing is that people should instantly recognize the theme or idea behind the set. The Pudge set mentioned earlier is a good example. People will know the lore right now but later on and ingame they will have to recognize it by nothing more than the style of the item and maybe the name of it. The pillory and the long beard is a good example of that.
I for example didn't get the ice shard reference even though it's fairly obvious now that I head of it. It still leaves the strange question of why he would attach ice-shards to his helmet or enhance his axe with ice at the very top rather than along the blade for example. I'm not sure how one would get this concept across to the player without pushing him too much in a spellcasting direction. Spontaneous (and probably crappy) ideas: Maybe with a runed offhand artifact surrounded by levitating shards? Or by carrying a bag full of ice shards instead of the shield?
For now I decided to work on my drawing skills. I'm good enough on paper, but I'm not used to using a tablet at all yet.
Here's a Rubick concept. I tried to give his attire a oriental flair, how did I do? (I also tried to use some of the things I learned about promotional images, but I did that a little half assed..)
Before I start working on a new project I will probably post a few more concepts and choose one to work with. The rest will probably be up for collabs (unless I fall in love with them and want to do them all myself...:)).
I've decided to finish a few single item ideas of mine and maybe participate in the monthly competition. Also you probably won't get to see my concepts anymore, since I don't like the quality. I can't get myself to bother for more detail since I can work with my sketches just fine.
Now I have a few technical questions:
What custom brushes, matcaps etc do you use and recommend?
I use 3dsmax, zbrush and photoshop.
Now I read somewhere on the forum (I can't find it anymore though..) that there's a matcap for Zbrush that makes your polypaint look like ingame right away. Anyone got a link to something like that? =D
Now that I started writing this, I think a lot of newbies would be very glad to have such a list somewhere in the resources sticky...
I don't recommend you to get 50000 brushes, because they really don't matter in a way, and having a HUGE variety will confuse you more than help.
I don't use photoshop, so I can't help much here. I use "manga studio" standard brushes only, just regulating the density/opacity/amount of painting. If you are more familiar with traditional painting I can recommend this one.
I don't recommend you to get 50000 brushes, because they really don't matter in a way, and having a HUGE variety will confuse you more than help.
I don't use photoshop, so I can't help much here. I use "manga studio" standard brushes only, just regulating the density/opacity/amount of painting. If you are more familiar with traditional painting I can recommend this one.
I agree. You can have hundreds or even thousands brushes, but it doesn't matter if you don't know how they work and it can indeed be confusing. I like having a bit of variety, even though I don't use them all, but some collections are better than others for specific stuff.
But yeah, learning how to create and more importantly how to use brushes are way better than just get several packs, because it won't make you paint better if you don't know how to.
But yeah, learning how to create and more importantly how to use brushes are way better than just get several packs, because it won't make you paint better if you don't know how to.
I agree as well! But there are single burshes/matcaps that are ridiculously handy. I don't want to know how bad my sculpts would look if I hadn't gotten my hands on orbs scratches. It just takes the work of a ton of strokes with different brushes and makes it work with almost a single stroke.
I just find it much easier to find the form I'm looking for if I have brushes like that.
I'm not going to get myself a huge confusing library of brushes. I just want to know what more experienced people use and then I take my pick.
Thank you, belkun, it's nice to have access to your favourites! I haven't tried them all yet, but time will take care of that.
I've got my eyes on the MAHcut Mesh brushes right now, since I'm unstatisfied with the standard Zbrush hardsurface brushes.
I've tried myself at sculpting hair, here's a WIP. Please give feedback, especially on the bushy ends - I don't really like the look, but I don't know how to improve it.
I found an old sketch of mine and spent some time on it. A new halberd for abaddon.
Something still bothers me though, but I can't put my finger on it.
After quite a break I continued working on my lich set, but I have trouble skinning it:
The Horns are skinned to the head, which works just fine. The rest was skinned to lich's spine which worked nicely, too.
Now I changed the skinning of the shoulders to another bone, but it doesn't do it ingame.
Does anyone know of a bug like this or some mistake I made?
I went back to skinning (3dsmax), added the new bones to the list, painted weights accordingly and exported my armor with the used bones as SMD. Then I imported it in dota2 client.
Replies
I guess you could have gone further with the high poly sculpt, by adding a hard surface looks (specially in the gauntled and armor)
The promotion you could have done some cool lightning and try to "fake" the materials of the set (like metal, wood etc)
But the main "issue" in my opinion is the concept, it doesn't show cleary what you wanted. When I make my actual concepts I try to catch something in the hero's lore or try to imagine a good lore for the set, I mean what's the history behind the set? Why is he wearing that armor? With these questions you can make more interesting elements.
I have a few specific questions, but it would be great to get some feedback at all. Just bring on the truth - I don't want you to be nice, I want to learn!
Concept
Bad hero pick?
Does the set look too much like 6 random items put together?
As Mango pointed out this could use some work. To me it feels like you made some generic and tied them to the hero by putting ice on them
Sculpt
Are my details too small?
Is the execution in general too poor?
Maybe some of the detials could have been made bigger or cut deeper to read better in the normal, but there are more important aspects of the material that should be focused
Textures (pretty sure I can get a lot better here)
Are the colors bad?
Can my masks get better - what bothers you about them?
There appear to be some texel density issues, like the belt, buy my concern with this is the materials, and this is most likely tied to the masks. It looks like there is ice stone and metal, but it is not clear. The metals are not reading metal enough, and the fist reads somewhat like stone, but they kind of just wash together
Promotion
Do my published pictures make my set look bad?
What should I do differently?
As stated before your background images are not allowing the items to stand out. First glance it is too noisy and my focus is not drawn to the item. And like Mango said fake the shit out of it. All the best promos really push the materials lighting, and rim lighting with paint overs. Just a few min of paint over can make a huge difference
Hope this helps. Keep at it!
Edit: Example on the promo, did this quick and dirty paintover, no more than 10 min spent on this, but do you see how I brought focus back to the item, and some of that faked lighting could even be painted into the color map
I am not really a good modeller myself so I can't give you any advice method-wise but I think the concept was a little bit random. It's just my personal opinion but I like items that have a certain epic flair. Something that makes the hero appear more dangerous, elegant, brutal, fiendish or whatever other attribute fits his or her overall style best. Some kind of item which captures the theme better than the default look. I admit that this is difficult for a hero like Tusk. I think I would describe him something like "rough", in an bar-brawley sense of the word (does "bar-brawley" even exist? I hope you still get what I mean
While I like the ice theme of your set it still makes me wonder a bit how, for example, his fist weapon, axe or helmet managed to get covered in ice that much and that one-sided. If he just came back from a long journey straight through a blizzard his items would be covered in ice more evenly or at least from the same side (not the case for the fist and the helmet also froze a bit like he wore it upside-down). Especially the helmet, the hatchet and the fist look a bit like he threw them somewhere in the snow, forgot about them and just hastily put them back on before the game started.
As I said, that's just my personal taste and tastes tend to differ but I assume this kind of thoughts are also why people are not really big fans of Alpine Ursa or this cat-ear Drow. It just doesn't fit the respective hero's style or if so, then very vaguely. I do in no way intend to say that your set even comes close to their abhorrence but I think the concept of your set didn't quite get your intention behind it across to the players so for most of them it probably looks a bit random. Or rather not outstanding enough.
[ame="
They use a small and simple lore for the set, not just random pieces. "Why would pudge wear that stuff?" The lore explains, and the design fits him very well!
First off, thank you for your feedback! I am very glad I have this forum to talk to people about my work!
Concept
It seems to me that here is where the biggest issue comes from.
I had an idea for a set of items that Tusk enhanced his armor and weapons with his ability to cast ice (see the ice shards skill). Moreover I wanted to make him feel more like a soldier and less of a brawler, which I think suits the lore since he is off to find the greatest battles and prove himself as the greatest warrior.
Sculpt
I got the feeling that I was on a good track here, but could have done more to polish my items.
Textures
This is my weak spot (at least in my opinion).
The masks need a lot of work, especially since the metal doesn't read as metal.
The textures lack that hand-drawn style and could bring more lighting effects.
Promotion
Fake the sh*t out of them is what I heard. ^^
I totally I agree with what you all said and I am glad to know this for the next time!
@kite Thank you very much, your picture helps me a lot!
New questions
- @Magno and Automedic, you both said something similar:
I think the concept of your set didn't quite get your intention behind it across to the players
Do you mean that the stuff I show in the workshop doesn't make clear what the lore behind this set is?
If so I agree, but I don't see any way to bring it across to the players. I tried explaining it in the item descriptions, but honestly I think hardly 5% of the visitors read that stuff.
- @kite: Would you mind telling me what you did exactly (is it just new layers with colors or are there some effects)? You say it took but 10min,but I could have sat there for 2-3hours and wouldn't have gotten that far.. =(
- Should I try to rework this set or should I just let it go and move on to new things? (read as: do you think this set has a chance if I rework it?)
- What's the threshold for valve to say: we want this in the game? I guess you definitely need 5 stars, but is there some value that you know from experience?
1. What I'm telling is: the "lore" should be done before the set happens. You can show You can show tusk as a warrior, but you need to show the "theme" that you are looking for. Like there is a hunter tusk, a viking tusk and there's a oriental traveler tusk. They sure don't need much description because the set has a good theme, so people can figure out anyway.
2. don't try to remake things for now, it's exaustive, you will learn more doing new stuff and when you are more experienced, you can try to remake with new knowledge.
3. Tricky question, Valve only adds what they want, there are many controversial stuff being added while there are top notch itens left in the dark.
The background image is from the profile backgrounds used by Dota. I think this was from Ancient Apparition. I placed the item above this in its own layer. In a layer below the item I painted a flat color outlining the item to give a rimlight effect. Then in a layer below that, I used the circle gradient to further add a glow effect. the gradient was set to 9% opacity to make this subtle. I also used the gradient on this layer to tone down the brightness of some areas of the background. Then on a layer above the image is where i painted in the highlights all over the item. usually sampling a color from the item, and then making it much brighter. I did not save the file otherwise I could have shown the layers better. These are the brushes I use for this and texturing.
http://www.shaddyconceptart.com/download
The main brush I use for work like this is the Joffery brush, and for my textures I LOVE the Tyrion brush for most of my work, and will use Joffery and Kahl brushes with this for some really good results
- Should I try to rework this set or should I just let it go and move on to new things? (read as: do you think this set has a chance if I rework it?)
I am all about moving on. The only time I would rework something is if Valve asks me to, and trust me they will ask for things like this if needed
- What's the threshold for valve to say: we want this in the game? I guess you definitely need 5 stars, but is there some value that you know from experience?
There are tons of factors here. They do look at community interest, but at the end of the day its up to Valve. Items that have only 4 stars and a few hundred votes have made it in.
First and formoste, I want to prefice this with "no one knows the workshop formula." I've talked to alot of people aboutthis, and there is a huge thread about what drives the workshop, and where its going
and it's worth reading to get some footing on how the workshop "works" per say. But the long of the short of it (in my opinion) is that you want to have..
Past this it never hurts to post around on facebook, polycount waywo threads, reddit, ect. Getting them views and up votes any way you can is good.
I also personally think that you can't really "expect" too much with the workshop. I find the attitude of "alright, I made an awesome piece of work I am proud with, and I am glad I made. " You can only control so much, so try not to worry about the rest.
As for you questions...
I think that lore is a good way to inspire a set, but it isn't really mandatory for making a piece. It should fit with in the confines of the dota lore for sure, but I don't personally believe that having a 6 page backstory is going to win any extra votes. Where the lore really shines in making a piece is guiding a lot of your conscience choices about materials, construction, silhouette, and theme, that's for sure.
I think that having "conceptual integrity" for your piece all the way through is necessary and mandatory as well. Reading through your thread, you made a lot of changes to the set when you were well along in the modeling process, and not small changes but drastic bits that went in a largely different direction of when you started. It's best to mindmap your thoughts in the conceptual phase and really nail out the specifics and stick to your guns as you work your way through. They are YOUR choices, and there was a reason you went with A over B, and it's not just because it was "cool".
There is a really slick tutorial in Belkuns thread about producing awesome marketing shots. When you do anything marketing related, you always want to have your eyes drawn to your piece. It's the star of the show. It's what people should care about the most. If at all you are distracted by anything in the shot, get rid of it. Make your items the most bitchin thing on the page.
Never rework after its submitted. It would look weird to resubmitt a couple weeks later. As the saying goes "It always gets better the second time." So just press on and take everything you learn here and apply it to your next set.
You dont really need 5 stars. You just need Valve to notice it, like it, and put it in game. Votes dont matter, views dont matter, favorites dont matter. If valve likes it it will go in. Don't sweat the workshop, it is no doubt that having a popular item WILL help it get exposure, however nothing in the workshop guarantees anything to go into the game.
The way I think about it with my items, when they hit 5 stars, I am happy. I am glad of the time and work I put into a piece, and I am damn proud of what I do. After it hits the workshop it's out of my hands, and I know I've done the best I can. When they hit 5 stars, I figure that's the best case scenario and that's what I strive for. I've driven myself crazy worrying if stuff would go in, so it's not really worth it.
Just make bad ass art, smile when people like it, try to understand why people don't, and repeat.
The first workshop piece is always the toughest, and the fact that you want to go through a post mortem about the process shows that you are dedicated enough to have something in there soon, just keep at it man!
I cracked this code a while ago, and shared the results in the main thread :poly142:
Of course, how could I had been so naive.
I can't wait to post my next project and see how that goes
I think Magno sums it up quite nicely:
The thing is that people should instantly recognize the theme or idea behind the set. The Pudge set mentioned earlier is a good example. People will know the lore right now but later on and ingame they will have to recognize it by nothing more than the style of the item and maybe the name of it. The pillory and the long beard is a good example of that.
I for example didn't get the ice shard reference even though it's fairly obvious now that I head of it. It still leaves the strange question of why he would attach ice-shards to his helmet or enhance his axe with ice at the very top rather than along the blade for example. I'm not sure how one would get this concept across to the player without pushing him too much in a spellcasting direction. Spontaneous (and probably crappy) ideas: Maybe with a runed offhand artifact surrounded by levitating shards? Or by carrying a bag full of ice shards instead of the shield?
Here's a Rubick concept. I tried to give his attire a oriental flair, how did I do? (I also tried to use some of the things I learned about promotional images, but I did that a little half assed..)
Link to the pic
Before I start working on a new project I will probably post a few more concepts and choose one to work with. The rest will probably be up for collabs (unless I fall in love with them and want to do them all myself...:)).
I've decided to finish a few single item ideas of mine and maybe participate in the monthly competition. Also you probably won't get to see my concepts anymore, since I don't like the quality. I can't get myself to bother for more detail since I can work with my sketches just fine.
Now I have a few technical questions:
What custom brushes, matcaps etc do you use and recommend?
I use 3dsmax, zbrush and photoshop.
I was lead to a nice collection of Photoshop brushes already. thanks again, kite!
And I was told about Orb's scratches, too. It's one of my most used brushes now.
Now I read somewhere on the forum (I can't find it anymore though..) that there's a matcap for Zbrush that makes your polypaint look like ingame right away. Anyone got a link to something like that? =D
Now that I started writing this, I think a lot of newbies would be very glad to have such a list somewhere in the resources sticky...
Photoshop:
A collection of amazing brushes for concept art and illustration
DanLuVisi's Brushes
Concept Cookie basic brushes
Essential Illustration Brushes
JonasDeRo Brushes (one of my favorites)
ZBrush:
MAHcut Mech Brushes - Some really great brushes for hardsurface
Selwy's Cloth Brushes
Pixologic Matcap Library
Gnomon Matcaps
ZBro matcaps
Dota mat
I don't use photoshop, so I can't help much here. I use "manga studio" standard brushes only, just regulating the density/opacity/amount of painting. If you are more familiar with traditional painting I can recommend this one.
I agree. You can have hundreds or even thousands brushes, but it doesn't matter if you don't know how they work and it can indeed be confusing. I like having a bit of variety, even though I don't use them all, but some collections are better than others for specific stuff.
But yeah, learning how to create and more importantly how to use brushes are way better than just get several packs, because it won't make you paint better if you don't know how to.
I agree as well! But there are single burshes/matcaps that are ridiculously handy. I don't want to know how bad my sculpts would look if I hadn't gotten my hands on orbs scratches. It just takes the work of a ton of strokes with different brushes and makes it work with almost a single stroke.
I just find it much easier to find the form I'm looking for if I have brushes like that.
I'm not going to get myself a huge confusing library of brushes. I just want to know what more experienced people use and then I take my pick.
Thank you, belkun, it's nice to have access to your favourites! I haven't tried them all yet, but time will take care of that.
I've got my eyes on the MAHcut Mesh brushes right now, since I'm unstatisfied with the standard Zbrush hardsurface brushes.
Something still bothers me though, but I can't put my finger on it.
Done!
Black Mist Halberd for Abaddon
and for the March Contest
Shattered Boulder of the One for Elder Titan
Feel free to throw some post-mortem feedback if you have any!
Any kind of feedback is welcome of course! (as always)
After quite a break I continued working on my lich set, but I have trouble skinning it:
The Horns are skinned to the head, which works just fine. The rest was skinned to lich's spine which worked nicely, too.
Now I changed the skinning of the shoulders to another bone, but it doesn't do it ingame.
Does anyone know of a bug like this or some mistake I made?
I went back to skinning (3dsmax), added the new bones to the list, painted weights accordingly and exported my armor with the used bones as SMD. Then I imported it in dota2 client.
Thanks!