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Sketchbook: BlueBlankey

polycounter lvl 6
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BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
Thought this would be a good place to document model progress, if a literal snail in a marathon counts as "progress".

I don't really have plans for working in the industry, but I do have some animations floating around in the head, and will do what it takes to get them.

[all models are made exclusively with Sketchup, since apparently I have the patience to work with low-level geometry but none for software with learning curves]
Things I've been working on for quite awhile (but not quite finished)-











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  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Starting new mech model, this one will actually be completed rather than being suspended in limbo (hopefully)

    Old model just for kicks
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    4th mech progress, this one will be a 'plasma' skid siege dreadnought
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    More 4th mech progress, some work on the thorax
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    in other news, making a consorted effort to get ue4 game happening, first one will be vehicular combat with entirely procedural elements (tanks, cities/buildings, roads, landscape, crewmen with procedural animations, etc.)



    This one makes a turret of a tank based on parameters like tapers/curves/geometric iterations/ smoothing type and things, idea is just enough options to replicate real world tanks, then let the player loose to make anything in between (which means wacky shapes for the wacky inclined)
    Players will be able to place cannons/crew/ammo at any arbitrary location as long as it's able to function. Procedural movement of the crew to other positions in the tank would be nice, but may not be worth the effort, we'll see


    render target based decal system- in real life you're usually not aiming for previous bullet holes, but for gameplay's sake armor deterioration will be a 'thing' (so low pen guns at least have a chance if they keep hitting the same spot)


    parallax offsetting to fake armor thickness- still looking for a geometric alternative, but that may be beyond my skill level (looking at you r6siege..)


  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Lost in the sauce of the flying spaghetti monster


    This one is the 3rd version of the turret generator with actual UV coordinate calculation. There are some seam problems between sections and isn't optimized to my liking, so I guess back to the drawing board.


    Delicious tracks. It's the first time actually using function libraries to stay modular with the algorithms, and also writing out pseudo code beforehand; so I'm making the wild assumption that that's the way I should approach everything else.


    Random variations, in-game they'll be based on chassis configuration and desired movement characteristics rather than random nonsense. They generate fast and update their suspension with little performance impact, so that's pretty cool.

    Also gratuitous mech progress


    Faceplate, jaws with fang/incisor/molar cannons, banana human for scale

  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Extenuating circumstances barred a lot of progress (one being my degenerate lifestyle- eat trash, play video games), which is frustrating. I sure hope to grow a brain sooner rather than later.

    Also seeing as though these mech models are taking an obscene amount of time to make, I made another attempt at procedural generation. Houdini looks like the best choice but I'll have to "get it together" before attempting a new software interface, so I stuck with Ue4.

    I certainly wasn't going to get any motivation on my own, so I went and participated in some informal contests on Reddit. Replacing lethargy with a deadline+panic mentality is ONE way to get somewhere I guess.. but it was 10x as unhealthy and probably shouldn't be my go-to in any future escapades.


    Generator download (100mb, may be tough on GPU): https://drive.google.com/open?id=14q09hZSIm6LDxrqF8dpbRQSB19w358Pk
    Blueprint mess for those interested: https://imgur.com/a/00AQNmU
    This one had a happy ending in that it actually won.

    In other news haven't given up on the super destroyer, it'll still be awhile before it's even close to done unfortunately. The key thing is that it will never be put into limbo like the others.

    (haven't given up on the tanks either, more on that later.)
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    I'll probably put the super destroyer in its own thread since it'd be a crime against humanity to not finish it, and littering its updates amongst other nonsense is just inconvenient.

    Procedural Tanks





    As far as the tanks go I feel it's gone far beyond its original scope, it's waaay too complex and unoptimized to continue on
    https://imgur.com/gallery/jJJzdz6 (some horrible blueprint messes)

    I made an executable version to prove it can work on other machines, it's 136mb and not for the feint of hardware




    Inktober 2019


    - In other news, when October started I saw a lot of inktober stuff flying around and thought why not, 1 model + render per day would be cool. NOPE, even if responsibilities didn't get in the way the thumb/ trigger finger weren't having it.




    Twinmotion makes nice fast/ cheap renders. I should be happy it only took 3 days to make all three, but it really just bums me out knowing how much I could be doing :/

    Sketching


    I'm kind of pivoting away from a procedural tank sandbox- real life is just too hard to replicate for an isolated and uneducated shut-in. I feel it might be better to stick to my strengths and focus the game on the world I'm creating.





    Some sketch concepts, starting with shadow machines then Xio tech

    +More hecking unfinished model concepts


    This post is already incredibly long but I can't resist




    (personally getting kind of bored of the untextured stuff)
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Just putzing around starting more than finishing.. I guess as long as the cogs are turning it doesn't matter what it is.


    New mech: a creature would be predisposed to make a machine in its same likeness, so it would make sense the Xios would have their own version


    (I'm sorry I suck at 2d art)




  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Don't even know anymore... life is too dependent on the expectations of others to go "all in" and make a serious effort on anything. What I need is a few months alone to tie up all these loose ends.

    +more unpolished nonsense that don't require braincells



  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Actually made something drivable rather than just blueprints and chill

    It's time for an actual attempt at making a game- but without all the procedural hype. Knowing my track record that's also probably too much but we'll see.

  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Extremely slow progress is very discouraging, looking around at so many great things people make and wondering if I should have gone to college..


  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    This took longer than it should have.. UV will be a nightmare :#


    Also unearthed this cute screenshot from back when I was goofing around in Ue3



  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    This one took longer than it should have, x2.
    Going from zero to 175,000 triangle, optimized game-ready, mechanically viable model without a prior concept in software meant for architecture is probably why. I really need a lifestyle mixup.


    Animating is going to be its own can of worms, it has some pretty odd joint setups and movement/attack modes. It'll be physically reactive in-game so it'll need a good rig too, not the barebones trash I'm used to making.. I sense frustration in the near future.



    Also stepped outside my comfort zone with some organic modeling.. with an initial concept of all things.
    Not poly-perfect but a lot better than I was imagining it would be.







  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Messing around with edge styles in Sketchup on some old and new cyborg models




  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Another entry in the series of unfortunate detours- challenged myself to model a sketch line-for-line


  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    The putzing around never ends




    Was thinking this whole "sketchbook" thing is kinda weird, everyone's on their own little pedestal looking at everyone else from a safe distance, with only frontpaged things getting tangible affirmation that anyone saw it, and only a few comments here and there.

    If you have doubts just keep flying your flag, I look through every sketchbook and you all are awesome artists :3
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Just another random post-and-run, I have time now but the weather is too warm to focus on the big stuff. veeeery frustrating.





    ^ older re-rendered animation
  • DavidCruz
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    DavidCruz interpolator
    Going from zero to 175,000 triangle, optimized game-ready, mechanically viable model without a prior concept in software meant for architecture is probably why
    Well seems you can do a lot with that application, whatever it is, congrats on getting so far.

    Maybe though look into blender and give that a go? seems to be the next big thing, a lot of people are moving to so get on it before it becomes the new hotness and it leaves everyone in the background.  It is usually what happens with trends and its free (for now.)
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    @DavidCruz Thanks, I've taken a few looks at blender and remain entirely unconvinced- it's nice but trendy things really aren't for everyone. I'm thinking Modo might be more my speed for finally switching to something besides Sketchup, and I'll probably stick with 3dsmax for animating. (Houdini looks awesome but maybe a little too complicated)
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    ~ made a spiderdog to prove to myself I can see things through from start to finish. Up next is an actual gameplay prototype before doubling down and finishing the other mechs.





  • carvuliero
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    carvuliero hero character
    There are few good design but most are so busy leak and unappealing even not functional I suggest you spend a bit more time on thumbnails and design to ensure that all this hard work is not put to waste no amount of details will save weak design
    Maybe check thumbnails and concept art of John Park he has bunch of mech a machinery stuff still fictional with ton of details  but looking functional and appealing balanced and so on , learning few design principles will go a long way
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    @carvuliero Thank you for the critique, I probably would greatly benefit from pre-planning and concept thumbnails, a lot of time is wasted making a design while in the process of modeling. I'll probably try this in the future but I'd rather finish what I started before moving on.
    Looking through John Park's art I can see the difference, his is clean, balanced, and with a clear sense of space and fundamental shape grammar. Objectively his art is superior and mine looks unappealing in comparison due to this skill gap. He also uses real world mechanics for inspiration and creates a more believable design.

    I have to clarify that my designs are not meant to work in the real world, it's sci-fi fantasy- they only make sense in the context of their universe and each other. They will make much more sense (and be more appealing) when they interact with each other in a mechanically believable way, whether it's physically impossible or not. It's also my opinion that designs created in the same process will inherit similar traits to one another; many artists produce very similar art and can't be easily separated from one another. So ironically this lack of fundamental understanding has led to the creation of a unique aesthetic, and if refined would become subjectively superior.

    ~So I know that the workflow could be improved and a better understanding of fundamentals would improve the designs, but it's not a requisite of my current goals. It will be later on though so it's a good thing to keep in mind.
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Finally got the living situation in a good place and regained my step, to prove it I went ahead and did some things for others rather than myself

    ^ Some things for https://www.reddit.com/user/d_marvin and his film project, was nice to branch out and do some new morphology

     A house for my friend's dungeons and dragons campaign

    Also did some experimenting in VR (gravity sketch), haven't got the hang of it yet but it could end up being really useful

    And in other news have started streaming the modeling process of "The Beast" to stay committed to it.


    I can say I'm actually improving finally =)
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    There's a thing called "March of robots" where you make a robot everyday for the month of march, I think I'm ready this time.
    I'm not as skilled as the vast majority of the people participating but that doesn't matter as long as I stick to it.



  • BlueBlankey
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6


    Reverted back to just making models, forcing myself to draw is starting to get pretty tedious
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Continuing on, pretty stoked I'm actually able to focus enough to do a daily thing


    Went ahead and actually started following the official prompts, this one is "Wheel"




    "Bubble"


  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    "Flower"


    "Staff"


    "Tool"


  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    "Home"


    "Sand"



    "Patch"


    Responsibilities are getting in the way so may just have to do every other one, don't want to give up the full renders since I'm learning a LOT about texturing.
    (also may go back and compress some images, this thread is getting stupid long)
  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    "Sound"


    "Box" (an older render I dug up that fit the prompt)


    "Extend"


  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    March of robots was a great way to break out of the rut I was in, kind of fizzled out towards the end but 20/31 isn’t bad (13 renders 7 sketches, last attempt only made it to 3 renders)





  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    It's been a few months, but here's what's going on-

    I've recently broken out of my shell and started making things for others professionally, so I guess I'm "part of the industry" like I said I wouldn't do :# It's still small stuff and I haven't been able to engage or collab with other creatives yet.

    I'm backtracking and building the fundamentals that never happened, focusing on completing smaller models rather than never finishing huge ones. It's a slow burn, but we're on our way up in a more sustainable way.




    (beggars can't be choosers, I'm sticking to sci-fi where things make sense tyvm)


    +some re-renders, I'm hoping making things for others won't interfere with my own stuff.. I don't want to make just models forever







  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Made some things for a Tron flavored RTS







    On on unrelated note, hope everyone had a good Halloween


  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    Recently unearthed a bunch of renders from back when I was messing around with Minecraft, I'll post my favorites and leave the rest on Artstation


    Also made some more sketch-to-model exercises, wanted to be double sure I can follow my own references







    ~Also actually starting on ""the game"" finally, going to try and make a consorted effort at a semi-procedural base construction system to start off. Hopefully all these years of fantasizing pre-production won't be for nothing, it's already pretty rough going just deciding which directions to take.





    Might start a blog or something to vent the thought and frustration being thrown at it, not sure how to do that or where a good place for that would be- any suggestions are appreciated. A place to discuss gameplay ideas would be even cooler.

    Also wanted to address the pile of incomplete giant mech models (looking at you, beast)- I found out how to channel the willpower to complete them (through doing commissions) by treating them as a job rather than a hobby, at the same time though I'm seeing I'll have to know exactly what their capabilities are in-game before committing to a model layout paradigm. This is serious business now.


  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    Researched around and found some good ways to make a blog and proper a game design doc, but I'll stew on it until I have something actually useful to say, this one is good enough for now.

    -I found out forcing myself to do my own things just doesn't work, it just makes more anxiety with no payoff. Having a goal oriented/progressive approach rapidly outstripped my actual skill level. It was worth doing though to open my eyes to where motivation actually comes from, and that I totally forgot why I started doing this in the first place.

    I see now I need a "producer" mentality rather than a "consumer" mentality. Give to the world just because; stop being so stuffy/pedantic and just make cool stuff. Still serious business, but all in good time.

    +some old and new stuff to get the creativity going


  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    Spent some effort making a mechanimal at the "target aesthetic" for testing how many polys I can actually get away with in realtime. It's poly ready for UVs and rigging so it'll be something actually nice for once.

    It might be too high poly for the gameplay I'm going for but it'll be a good platform for experimental dynamisms.



  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    The UV mapping was a nightmare but the worst is over- test render to celebrate and figure out material direction

  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    Long time no post, a lot has happened in the last few months. I've finally pulled the trigger and uprooted myself and started college, a short 2 year degree for game design just to jump start what I should be doing at this point. I apologize for putting so many renders per post so I'll keep it short.


    I've resolved to change my lifestyle and center it around the completion of large projects in a structured way this fall. It's a never ending cycle of supposed epiphanies and frustrating realizations, so I no longer hold claims as promises. All I know is that the planets have aligned and this could be what I've been searching for a very long time.

  • killnpc
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    killnpc polycounter

    i like it, it's a lot of fun. i look forward to seeing how this type of approach grows. you most certainly are exposed to lots of useful challenges and technique discoveries all at once with densely detailed models like these.

  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    @killnpc Thanks, the modeling process I've leaned into is low-level and automatic. It offloads a lot of decision making willpower but has a problem with making things polished or usable. I tried applying more willpower to the process but it slowed it down too much, and I tried just making things for fun but then the models lacked meaning or direction.

    I finally got the space I need to treat this more like a job than a hobby, so what I think will work is finding a way to mix and habitualize both low level procedure and high level planning. Kind of like authoring a well planned word prompt for an AI generator, or prepping a windup toy and carefully pointing it in the right direction.

    I have lots of theories on how to split it, but one of the things I've learned from everything so far is that planning and improvising are not mutually exclusive. It's better not to pen yourself in and structure everything ahead of time, wind up the toy and trust it'll find its way 🙂

  • killnpc
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    killnpc polycounter

    some begin with pencil, some ink, some clay, some through art history, comics, video games, anime, some graffiti. the best art teachers always said, the natural process was the best process. every ingress, into art, has a strength and a weakness. what matters is to be creative with what you learn.

  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    This thread is very difficult to load but I haven't found the time to consolidate it, and I should be making long posts like this on a personal website but haven't found the time for that either. Either way though, things are going exactly as I'd hoped with a large amount of experiences and connections in a short amount of time. It's invigorating to finally be on the right path 💚


  • iam717
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    iam717 greentooth

    Cool mechs, look super complicated, with all these works, you should make a game around the world you created here already. All the best with your direction, last one looks HQ perhaps there is a market for that kind of work.

  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    @iam717 Thanks, I'm studying game development and will make a prototype before assembling a team/studio. I've done a few commissions and the market is definitely there, but I sidetracked it to avoid becoming "too specialized" for now. These are all pretty procedural and I'm looking forward to some more cerebral/larger things soon.

  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    Perhaps a single image will be a nice change of pace, wanted to try some actual worldbuilding

  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6

    Hit a few month snag with covid/depression/loneliness the usual human roadblocks, school is proving to be a lot easier than I was expecting so I'll take it as an opportunity to resume finding "hills to die on" as it were. I had my first true taste of success by being flown out to multiple places involving the things I've been making, but I'm still temporarily rejecting the role of concept designer in pursuit of being an indie developer. I'm hoping I can prove it to myself and others again by finishing something big.

    (One more small thing)

    "The game" will start with its movement system, beginning with one of its more mobile characters to prototype gameplay without the need for vehicles

    The vehicles are more complex and will have to be done later with what's learned from simpler mechs, they will all use Unreal's in-engine rigging and procedural systems for limb placement

    I was about to pull the trigger on "the beast" to force a completion, but opted instead to focus on it's antagonist first to tie multiple projects together (the link between movement system, beast, castle)

    One of the largest antagonist machines will have gameplay loops relevant to the end-game, so it will have to be part of the prototype

    I invested in an RTX 4060 to get decent frames in Ue5 with dynamic lighting, with the target being to make a modular kit for assembling moving cities. This one will have to wait until after what's learned from the antagonist, then it'll be a tossup between this one and the beast, unless a level design project intervenes.

  • BlueBlankey
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    BlueBlankey polycounter lvl 6
    My brief two year stint of college is over. I feel like I've come full circle, and even though I accomplished a great deal in a short amount of time, the thought that 'the one-eyed man is king in the valley of the blind' steals most of the victory away. I've learned that success is action through ownership of oneself, not destiny through conviction. Control of the world lies in arranging its laws into a pattern that can be understood; passion is inherent in the system, and not a catalyst. There's no such thing as pain when it's a mode of being, and the acceptance of oneself sets the path forward.

    "The game" did start with its movement system, but instead of being a piece of a larger project, it was a one-month speedrun to create a game for SkillsUSA. (a college productivity competition cult of some kind). It won state and moved on to win nationals, but the conditions that surrounded it were traumatizing to say the least.

    I've focused far too long on speed and not on quality, so the next few months will be a good time to try for portfolio-grade material.


    I continue to make different flavors of machines, but their purposes are dubious at best. I may have to focus only on the ones that matter.


    Management and coding have received more attention than the visual side of things throughout my time in reformation. Organization is a joy in itself, but progress is in the execution. There will be sacrifices to be made, and they should be chosen rather than allowed to their devices.

    I see now my purpose is to provide the framework rather than the substance, but how that manifests will have to be discovered through process- there's still a lot of things I don't know.

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