Doyce T. said:
Thread has been stickied for reasons that should be obvious.
Thank Doyce! I wish I had time to be more active on this project, but I finally got in more of my stuff and well…
Duty (and a high aversion to clutter) calls.
Luckily, we got the important stuff all unpacked and setup. Priorities.
author: Mike
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5816376
I meant it was stickied because it’s awesome and I want to be able to find it easily. 
Not because of any lack of awesome material.
author: Doyce T.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5816596
Hey, I’m done moving. Guess what that means.
So I think I’ve been neglecting some of the women in our game, mostly because I’ve been focusing on the team and that means just Ghost Girl. I decided to rectify that some.
So Charlotte… I’m still playing around with her skirt (and this had originally started a series of art studies to try and figure out the best way to represent the idea I’d had) but I think it’s starting to come together. Still working on it though. Expect a couple more iterations over the week/coming weekend.
Alycia is… weird. There’s already a pretty solid image of her, so I’m mostly just playing around with details more than any overarching design (though I did add in some Aeryn Sun just because they’re already really close in costume design). That gauntlet is where I’m going to put most of the design creativity, so I need to mad science it up. Also, are the tattoos from the Plotagon part of the design, or is that there just for flavor? I could decide and left it out for the time being.
This is my first pass on Pneuma and I feel like I went too much into Distaff Counterpart territory. I really wanted to make sure that there were design similarities between Pneuma and Link (and Otto) since they’re all designed by the same person and use the same tech (and combine together), but I don’t think I added enough to the design to make it not just feel like “Lady Link.” Going to need to work on that some.
Now for some tiny variations.
The biggest change: For some reason I am very taken with the idea of Alycia wearing an old military coat (Dr. Chin’s from some job with a two-bit dictator most likely). It says “I miss my dad” and tells some family history (people Dr. Chin worked for). It also seems like something a teen would think is really cool. I’ll need to re-read some of Dave’s fiction to get some more appropriate designs than this sort of generic greatcoat.
I desaturated GG’s colors a little here. I wasn’t expected it to grey her hair so much, but that’s an easy fix. Better, but still think there’s some better design to be discovered to help this look out.
And then I darkened Pneuma’s hair to play around with it a little. Doyce made a suggestion for a darker skinned Pneuma a few pages back and I wanted to try it out to see if it made the design pop out more. However, since I was making these changes on the finished image instead of going back into my Photoshop file (sort of lazy on my part, but this was a last minute “oh, I made changes to everyone else” thought) so while darkening the hair was no issue, easily changing the skin tone to something vaguely human was not. Expect a better attempt on my second pass on the armor.
author: Mike
url: Community Forums: Art Thread | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop
Mike said:
The biggest change: For some reason I am very taken with the idea of Alycia wearing an old military coat (Dr. Chin’s from some job with a two-bit dictator most likely).
And then I darkened Pneuma’s hair to play around with it a little. Doyce made a suggestion for a darker skinned Pneuma a few pages back and I wanted to try it out to see if it made the design pop out more.
author: Bill G.
url: Community Forums: Art Thread | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop
1. The tattoos for Alycia were an intentional choice in the Plotagon. When I first showed the model to Doyce, I commented in the email “Because of course she has tats. Something her father would have had her banished to his Greenland base had she done it while he was still around.”
2. I [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [HIGHLY REDACTED] Aeryn Sun, so, yay.
3. I’m mixed on the uniform greatcoat. On the one hand, that “clinging to to something from Dad’s era” totally has a charm. On the other hand, I see her as an incredibly hands-on character who spends half her time under the WarCrawler she’s retrofitting with a new main weapons arrray, thus the whole cargo-pants-and-tank-top look.
In one of the earliest discussions of Alycia videos I suggested (which might inform her outfit):
(I have this thought of Alycia still in charge of her father’s vast science criminal empire, such as it is, but mostly to drain its resources on her vendetta and letting her father’s lead henchfolk still run things day to day …
“But Mistress Chin, we need your approval --” “GO AWAY, I’ve just about figured out this carrier wave thingie.” “But the Americans will get to the crash-landed alien vessel --” “Fine! Bring it here! I can use the technology for my killer robot.” “But we could sell it to the North Koreans, intact, for twenty-five–” “I don’t care about that, get me that ship, and get the hell out of my lab!”
… leading eventually to either a palace coup where she’s kicked out violently because she’s not focusing on whatever efforts were previously making them rich henchfolk, or else an attempted coup where she is confronted with actually having to kill the advisors who are railing at her to “get your head in the game,” a la the drug lord’s accountant in License to Kill, or John Bigboote in Buckaroo Banzai. I have no idea whether, faced with actually killing someone, she could/would; that particular probability cloud hasn’t yet collapsed with having to happen.)
(Of course, I can also see Alycia living solo, effectively living on the corpses of her father’s schemes, moving from one of her father’s safe houses to the next, basically living in science bunkers for weeks on end and eating e-rations and developing her schemes. That wouldn’t lead to a very healthy mental attitude, either.)
If still running the Chin Empire, having her dad’s greatcoat to throw on (or over her shoulders) when commanding an operation would be perfectly reasonable (Chin’s love of cravats notwithstanding). If living in safe house bunkers, it seems less likely, though she might use such a garb as a blanket rather than run down the fuel cells to keep the place warm. Since neither of these probability clouds have collapsed, it’s hard to make a final call. 
author: *** Dave H.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5833954
Playing around with the Pneuma design. Going from “Not much different than what I did before” to “Playing up the robotic design.” In hindsight, #2 totally looks like Madem Masque from Marvel comics. Unintentional, but making her skin gold (playing up that Metropolis robot design) really clinched it.
Also, you might notice that the sketch it much rougher than what I normally go for. Helps the iteration process when I’m not bogged down with details and can focus on strong design. Expect to see more of that as I do these really quick designs.
author: Mike
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5836616
Also iterated an Otto design.
I don’t know why, but flame decals seem like something Otto would do (his own personal teenage rebellion). I also like the idea of his front and back windshields making an actual shield and his doors making a protective pauldron. And that fourth wheel should totally be used offensively.
The design doesn’t really scream powerful (in the Otto, Pneuma, Link triangle, Otto is totally power) but I think we’re on our way there. Another iteration is called for with both Link and Pneuma in the same shoot so we can compare and contrast the designs (again, they should look similar and share design elements, but they shouldn’t look the same).
author: Mike
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5836869
Otto, as a transforming and combining car robot who likes things like football and rock music, jokes that he’s a combination of Japanese import and American muscle. Something like the flames is very in keeping with that spirit.
author: Bill G.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5837021
Mike said:
Playing around with the Pneuma design. Going from “Not much different than what I did before” to “Playing up the robotic design.” In hindsight, #2 totally looks like Madem Masque from Marvel comics. Unintentional, but making her skin gold (playing up that Metropolis robot design) really clinched it.
I dig Nier Automata’s 2B and the other androids, so the hair style and color, and the masks on 3 and 8, work great for me personally.
I don’t know if you intended this, but the skirt effect on 1 and 5-8 reminds me a little of AOA Hawkeye’s coat and Matrix Reloaded Neo’s cassock, the latter of which especially gave a clerical feel. That feels fitting for the spiritual journey Pneuma started on, and it seems like an element that’s good to keep in some form. If/when Leo incorporates EMdrive levitation and other flight systems into her body, the skirt could be under her active control, as flight control surfaces for maneuvering. See also here: http://www.ph9.jp/images/009_NEOWING.jpg
author: Bill G.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5837745
Huh, hadn’t considered the similarities to 2B (I haven’t played any of the Neir games) but now that you’ve pointed it out, it’s noticeable. Not a bad thing mind you, just unintentional.
The skirt effect was intentional, just not for the same reasons that you mentioned. Compare 7’s design with Pneuma’s look in the Link Meets the Internet comics you’ve made. Then groan in irritation a little. 
author: Mike
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5838360
It’s always a toss up with character designs until you see them in action (different poses, different backgrounds, etc). I think the Link, Otto, Pneuma designs held up pretty good. Enough shared elements where you know they were build by the same guy but don’t look like the exact same design. I still don’t think Otto’s done, but it is good enough to work from.
author: Mike
url: Community Forums: Art Thread | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop
Very nice.
author: *** Dave H.
url: Community Forums: Art Thread | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop
I may let my ambition get away with me on this one, but since I have what I think are solid designs for almost everyone (minus a few tweaks and changes here and there) I think it is about time to work on the group picture. So I figured I’d share the rough sketched.
BTW, the “letting my ambition get away with me” part is how I interpreted “group picture”
As you can see–even in the sketchy beginnings of this–I went total cast explosion. So much so that I had to make a key to keep everyone straight (mostly so I don’t get some of the Ponies mixed up, more than anything).
So, this means I’ve only left out a handful of NPCs that appeared in the first fifteen issues of the game: AEGIS Press Conference Guy, Lil’lycia, Mr. Vigil, Dr. Dawes, (and the other teachers from Adam and Leo’s school but I didn’t have names for them), Rawhide and Ghost Armor, and (the biggest disappointment for not being able to easily fit them in) Iconoclast. I also kind of wanted to fit in some generic HCPD officers just since I imagine in the TV show of this game, we’ve got like four officers (and Adam’s dad) who just rotate on who shows up in a given scene. Probably the same for AEGIS agents, but they’re much more infrequent (I think they only showed up at the press conference and to pick up Ghostheart after questioning).
So how to do I fit them in? Lil’lycia’s easy, she can go up on the QuillDisc with the rest of the mass-less individuals and Jason. (I mostly just forgot about her until I was writing this out. Forgive me, but this is a ridiculous number of characters to keep straight and forgetting a one-scene wonder is easy.) I could tighten up the AEGIS agents and try to fit in another one with a cuffed Iconoclast. Rawhide and Ghost Armor could be swirling around Pandemonium maybe. Regardless, I’m up for suggestions, including moving people around. I feel like I’m under-using the vertical space and putting most of the people on the ground-level when a lot of my inspirations for this picture use the vertical space rather well, so if anyone has ideas on that I’m all ears. Also, if I forgot someone or something (dammit, I’ll fit in key props where appropriate) let me know.
author: Mike
url: Community Forums: Art Thread | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop
Like a smart person, I’m tackling this in segments. Have some Amaris (with uninvited guest Solaris up in the corner).
Only the lineart and flats for now. I figure any shading I might do here needs to be done all at once or I’m going to have uncertain light sources all over the place. Also, I decided to limit the number of indy comic references I worked into this family to only two, so I picked two of my very favorites. Points to whoever finds them.
author: Mike
url: Community Forums: Art Thread | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop
15. Rossum-bots, flanking their “master.”
16. Rossa Rook, eyeing Otto
Thought 1: “Except it’s Rosa Rook [quick verifies]. It’s Rossum that’s spelled with two S’s.”
Thought 2: “Uh-oh.”
Lil’lycia’s easy, she can go up on the QuillDisc with the rest of the mass-less individuals and Jason. (I mostly just forgot about her until I was writing this out. Forgive me, but this is a ridiculous number of characters to keep straight and forgetting a one-scene wonder is easy.)
Li’lycia’s had a tremendous impact (or conversational presence) for someone who has had no lines and who showed up in one brief scene, stuck her tongue out a few times, and disappeared.
All that said, this is astonishing stuff, sir. I doff my hat.
author: *** Dave H.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5866041
Reworking some sections and made a good pass on the villain-of-the-week section. Also, having a little too much fun with detailing the HCPD officers.
Seeing some issues already, but this thing is going to be huge and I’ve only got 18% of the characters on the canvas after like ten hours of working on it, so I’m definitely trying to follow “finished, not done” here.
author: Mike
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5869872
Very nice.
author: *** Dave H.
url: Community Forums: Art Thread | Roll20: Online virtual tabletop
Ghost heart and iconoclast are fantastic.
I mean everyone is, but those two made me laugh.
author: Doyce T.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5869938
The secret is character and visual storytelling.
Ghostheart is fairly easy. They’re a cartoon character in a lot of respects. They’ve got a major tick that you know is going to get hit in whatever scene they’ve in. Hit that tick, but don’t go overboard. You can just hear them screaming “don’t touch me” from that image. One-dimensional sure, but then again Dr. Dinosaur is my favorite villain from Atomic Robo, so not saying one-dimensional is bad.
Iconoclast is a bit subtler, mostly because I have head cannon. Most villains scream “I’ll get you next time!” when they flee. With Iconoclast, however… well, someone on my Discord chat put it best with this meme’d up screencap:
I totally think she has a Youtube vlog where she spouts her rhetoric and funds her tech through a GoFundMe. This just amuses me to no end. I would love if the next time we see her in like Kill Devil Prison, she’s got someone in the visiting room filming her on a cellphone saying something like, “Thanks to xxSuperHeroFailure920 for all the well-wishes and the huge donation on our Patreon! Remember Patrons, if we get up to the $2,000 a month level I will perform at a protest selected in a poll by the Patreons each month… so long as I’m not currently incarcerated!”
author: Mike
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5870008
So you need to finish the picture just so everyone can start writing their captions on it in one of the Roll 20 screens
author: Doyce T.
url: https://app.roll20.net/forum/permalink/5870060
