| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Ulrik |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 00:09:15
Still gearing up for a new campaign. i've been going over the stacks of faces that i printed out some years back from the archive of PC portraits on the WOTC website - in case you haven't seen it (though i imagine most of you have):
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/arch/pc
As great a resource as that archive is, i'm afraid that i'm running out of faces to use - i typically have a large number of recurring NPCs in my games, and i use the pictures as tools to help the players keep track of who is who...
There's hundreds of faces, and while there are many suitable heads, some just aren't appropriate to my campaign, or else they're just not a good fit. And i hate to keep recycling faces that i've used in other games, if i can avoid it. Most of the players in my upcoming campaign are new (to my games) but i don't want others to be distracted by the picture of the trusty innkeeper who bears an uncanny resemblance to the villain from their last adventure...
So i'm looking for more resources like the that - archives of D&D, or otherwise fantasy-appropriate "headshots". i'd prefer:
B&W - especially line art, as i like to print them out and color them myself... fully painted faces (like the ones used here in the Candlekeep Forums as avatars) are nice, but i might see a face that works perfectly for an NPC if it only had white hair instead of black (for example).
Public Domain, or else pics that the artists are okay with being printed out and used for this purpose. i certainly have no intention of trying to make money off them (or pass them off as my own) but i don't like the idea of just ripping stuff from the internet... i might if i'm desperate, but i'd feel guilty for doing it...
Example: DeviantArt is a great place to find fantasy art BUT, the pics are often fully colored (not easily alterable) or else they're not really head shots... also i don't like to steal. If i see something i like, i might e-mail an artist to beg for permission, but again, a huge archive of ready-made head shots would be better.
Also, decent quality art would be nice. Doesn't have to be Lockwood-level, but i'd prefer them not to look like pre-schooler scribbles...
i know there are a lot of artists out there that will do commissions, but with the large volume of heads that i go through, i wouldn't have the time (nor the money) to get what i need - also, it's kinda nice to just pour through pre-made faces... sometimes i'll get discover that a previous look for an NPC that i had in mind isn't nearly as good as one that i have on hand - and sometimes i've been so awestruck with a face that i'm inspired to create an NPC based on it!
i found a couple of "Fiery Dragon" PDF CD-ROMs on sale for super cheap a while ago, and there were some nice faces to use, (even though they're pre-colored) but i'm still looking for more!
Can anyone direct me to more portraits? i can use anything from adventurers to commoners. Please help! Thanks.
p.s. - i'd draw them myself, but i've lost a lot of my artistic talent since college  and any time that i have to devote to game-crafting mostly goes into writing/NPC-creating/dungeon building, etc.... yeah, i do have time to color between writing - usually a good way to take a break or rattle new ideas in my head... but drawing from scratch would just frustrate me to no end... |
| 20 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| muddy_chickn |
Posted - 25 Dec 2010 : 14:52:05
I can maybe do some portraits for you...I wouldn't think of charging anything, I'm not near that good.
http://www.renderosity.com/mod/gallery/member.php
The link has some of my work. I don't have a lot of free time, but i can knock out a few generic pictures, especially if all you want if face shots. |
| Ayrik |
Posted - 23 Dec 2010 : 05:03:42
If you want sources then just follow up on any of the artists or links posted in this thread ... |
| Alystra Illianniis |
Posted - 23 Dec 2010 : 03:14:43
They were originally printed in various issues of Dragon, though I don't know which ones. It might be a place to start looking, though. |
| Ulrik |
Posted - 23 Dec 2010 : 01:02:21
Well, at any rate, commoners (farmers, fishermen, bartenders) tend not to strut around half-naked, brandishing the most oversized weapons this side of a Final Fantasy game...
Also, what's with all the pretty faces? i'd like to see some harsher, brutal mugs in fantasy art, and not just on villains. Especially in grim environments like Warhammer - i imagine many characters, both hero and commoner alike to be "well-worn".
BTW - any sources, kids? i found several pages of portraits that i had downloaded and printed out a few years ago by Tony DiTerlizzi. Some of his art can be found in the WOTC archives, and i obviously discovered more somewhere else, but i cannot recall where. The pages that i printed out have his website address: http://www.diterlizzi.com/ but the PC portraits don't appear to be there any more - if that is indeed where i got them... |
| Ayrik |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 22:06:16
Larry Elmore has some good art ... I also like Steve Stone, Clyde Caldwell, Lorenzo Sperlonga (probably nsfw), but - perhaps my fave - Michael Komarck. |
| Alystra Illianniis |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 21:58:16
Whelan also did cover art for a few of the Incarnations of Immortality books from Piers Anthony. I've also seen a few yearly calendars from him too. Great stuff. Not as familiar with the others. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 21:48:48
quote:
Originally posted by Alystra Illianniis
Meh. I'm more fond of Michael Whelan. Did most of the covers of the Dragonriders series, and also cover (and inside) art for two albums of my favorite musician- Meat Loaf.
I've liked some of his stuff. I've mostly seen it on the covers of Pern books, and also on some of the Meat Loaf album/single covers.
A lot of the art when I first got into D&D was by the trio of Jeff Easley, Clyde Caldwell, and Larry Elmore. Larry's stuff has always been iconic, for me.
Keith Parkinson had more that a few covers back then, too. His stuff was also good.
Oh, and the interior art by Valerie Valusek... Wonderful stuff! |
| Alystra Illianniis |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 21:41:48
Meh. I'm more fond of Michael Whelan. Did most of the covers of the Dragonriders series, and also cover (and inside) art for two albums of my favorite musician- Meat Loaf. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 21:28:23
quote:
Originally posted by Alystra Illianniis
*snickers* I can imagine. Incidentally, they have a calendar together that comes out every year. It's well worth a few bucks to find the 2011 edition, just for the art. They are my two favorite fantasy artists, and Boris has been a staple in the fantasy art scene since '78. He's done cover art for many well-known series, including Conan. The cool part is that each calendar also tells a story.
I've checked out his art before. It doesn't do me.
My fave fantasy artist remains Larry Elmore. |
| Alystra Illianniis |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 20:57:47
*snickers* I can imagine. Incidentally, they have a calendar together that comes out every year. It's well worth a few bucks to find the 2011 edition, just for the art. They are my two favorite fantasy artists, and Boris has been a staple in the fantasy art scene since '78. He's done cover art for many well-known series, including Conan. The cool part is that each calendar also tells a story. |
| Ayrik |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 20:24:12
quote:
Alystra Illianniis
Tiberius Clausewitz Drusus Nero Germanicus- um, Gezundteit?
He does sound pompous and mighty, doesn't he? But his arguments are rational, he (mostly) seems to know what he's talking about, and he gives good examples.
Alystra, good thing those Vellejo/Bell characters are wearing sturdy armoured Princess Leia bikinis, otherwise they might get seriously hurt when the swords, arrows, magic, and dragonbreath start to fly. 
I do sort of wonder where they would carry their magical treasures, though. Pickpockets might inadvertently commit other crimes while trying to grab for gold.
[Edit: Mental note, be sure to attend Renaissance Fairs, SCA, and LARP events if the females are attired thusly.]
[Edit 2: Be sure to not attend if the males are wearing similar costume.] |
| Alystra Illianniis |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 19:48:50
Tiberius Clausewitz Drusus Nero Germanicus- um, Gezundteit?
I'd imagine that most adventuring females would be dressed just as completely as their male counterparts, and certainly not wearing armor from Victoria's Secret.
Wooly, apparently, you've never seen the art of Boris Vallejo or Julie Bell.... Links:
Boris:
http://hebuss.free.fr/img/image.php3?img=1980/boris_vallejo_80goldenwings.jpg
http://hebuss.free.fr/img/image.php3?img=1981/boris_vallejo_81demoninthemirror.jpg
http://hebuss.free.fr/img/image.php3?img=1982/boris_vallejo_82redsonja.jpg
http://hebuss.free.fr/img/image.php3?img=1983/boris_vallejo_83redamazon.jpg
http://hebuss.free.fr/img/image.php3?img=1983/boris_vallejo_83captiveofgor.jpg
Julie:
http://www.fortunecity.com/roswell/price/12/bell/julie20.jpg
http://www.fortunecity.com/roswell/price/12/bell/julie72.jpg
And so on. I hope this is not too "risky" for CK, but it certainly illustrates that if you're a bad-a$$ female, you obviously don't NEED armor. Or clothes, for that matter.... |
| Ayrik |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 13:37:14
Male breastplates were typically sculpted to make them appear more manly and muscular. Batman is notorious for this. I've read that one of the Roman emperors had Klinefelter's Syndrome and always wore an armoured breastplate which helped disguise his blurry gender (although there seems to be no historical documentation of this, so maybe it is just a legend or fiction).
Examples of historical breastplates with (1, 2) and without female form (1, 2), and some modern replicas. (As in, actual functional armour, not this sort.)
An interesting article about female breastplates, written by Tiberius Clausewitz Drusus Nero Germanicus (a would-be conquerer and something of a self-imposed scholar on medieval and military things). |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 12:05:01
I agree with Arik and Ulrik. I'm all for looking at exposed bits of attractive females, but almost all fantasy artwork that shows women puts them in ridiculous attire -- particularly Clyde Caldwell's art. I'd imagine that most adventuring females would be dressed just as completely as their male counterparts, and certainly not wearing armor from Victoria's Secret.
Something I was recently complaining about: in fantasy art, women's breastplates are almost always form-fitting across the chest. I seriously doubt it's really practical to armor a woman's cleavage. I'd expect that it would be better not to have the armor molded to protect each breast individually, instead of just putting some more room in the chest area for woman of any cupsize to fit into. |
| Ulrik |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 06:44:59
quote:
Originally posted by Arik
Female adventurers are apparently a lot tougher than the males. It looks like they don't need to wear any armour or much protective clothing - even when standing in windblown arctic wastelands, scorching deserts, or near pools of flaming lava.
Oh man, you aren't kidding! i mean hey, chain mail bikinis are nice to look at and all, but also completely ridiculous! In an over-the-top, super sexed-up anime RPG, that sort of thing is okay, but i like my FR to be a bit more grounded.
i had the worst time with a Warhammer Fantasy campaign i ran a couple of years ago. FR certainly has some room for that sort of thing, but Warhammer is definitely not the setting for sexed-up female characters (unless you're playing a dark elf).
A sorceress is one thing, but trying to find an seriously armored female fighter is a challenge.
Again, i've nothing against sexy characters, but sometimes that's just not what i'm going for. Fortunately, i rarely use full body poses, just head shots... |
| Ayrik |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 05:40:42
Female adventurers are apparently a lot tougher than the males. It looks like they don't need to wear any armour or much protective clothing - even when standing in windblown arctic wastelands, scorching deserts, or near pools of flaming lava. |
| Alystra Illianniis |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 01:03:59
Here's another, who might be willing to do portraits for your NPC's (Incidentally, she's the one who did the portrait of my bard in my siggy link!) I don't know if she charges for commissions, but but you could ask her. Mine was a favor, as we both RP on another site. http://sylinde.deviantart.com/gallery/ Tell her I sent you!
And one who mostly does drow art (no, can't tell MY art tastes...) with a few otehrs. Might give permission to use. Don't really know.
http://darrkestdrow.deviantart.com/gallery/ |
| Ulrik |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 00:57:51
Ooo, fancy... kinda out-classes the art i'm using now 
i will definitely keep this artist in mind. i often give my players character-related gifts. In long-running campaigns, i've given out dice sets that thematically match their characters, special character sheets, painted minis... this time i'm considering commissioning high quality art for each PC... maybe... 5 characters might cost more than i can afford... we'll see... |
| Alystra Illianniis |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 00:30:08
hmm, I may know of a couple of artists on DA that have good stuff you can use. They do commissions, but have some free-to-use stuff, too. Let me see what I can dig up.
Edit: Here's one, there are several free-to-use sections in the artist's gallery. I'm sure there are others but this one's the first that I could remember. May be useful. May not.
http://direwrath.deviantart.com/gallery/ |
| Ulrik |
Posted - 22 Dec 2010 : 00:13:30
Also, i can't use fantasy art that was drawn/painted for recognizable characters of fiction. Not even considering the copyright issues, i don't want my player's going "Hey, isn't that the guy from (insert fantasy novel/comic/movie here)?" |
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