I apologize for the lack of posts yesterday -- Black Friday got the best of me. We were out of the house early, and it was meeting friends and family the whole rest of the day. By the time we got back, I just didn't get to posting. Consider it a vacation day!
Also, consider this an open thread for whatever you'd like to talk about since we didn't do a Sharing Day yesterday.
Who would win? Kratos or Wolverine? Let’s look at the attributes first. Also, let’s assume that Kratos is the one in God of War III, since he became much more powerful since the first game, and Wolverine is the one in the X-Men films, since that’s all my knowledge of him. (Sorry, X-Fans.)
Strength: Kratos pounded Zeus to death with his bare hands, stopped Cronos, a Titan that is the size of Galactus, from crushing him between his fingers, utterly crushed Poseidon and his Hippocampi, ripped Helios’ head clean off his shoulders, and crushed Hercules’ head in with his own gauntlets. Wolverine crushed Sabertooth, thrice, in two separate movies, decaffeinated (Hot Fuzz pun) Deadpool, and literally mowed through several superhumans throwing bone knives at him.
In terms of scale and examples, Kratos wins.
Abilities: Kratos has two chain-blades attached to his forearms that he can swing at a distance of at most ten feet, not to mention they are engulfed in flame whenever he uses them. He also has several other weapons such as the Nemean Cestus, the boxing gloves of Ancient Greece, the Claws of Hades, and the Nemesis Whip. He can swing on hooks and grapple enemies. Wolverine has two sets of three adamantium-laced claws embedded into his arms, three on each arm. They can cut through anything and everything, he can deflect projectiles, he can heal from any wound almost instantly (including having his body nearly disintegrated), he has superhuman senses including smell and hearing, and he’s virtually indestructible.
Given the credentials, I say it’s a tie.
Endurance: Kratos climbed a mountain for three days without stopping or slowing down, he fought his way out of the Underworld at least four times, he survived for several minutes from being impaled by a giant stone pillar that would normally be an instant death, he can survive in both freezing and boiling hot environments with no complaint whatsoever, and he has to deal with constant psychological trauma. Wolverine can survive literally anything short of complete disintegration, can resist several tranquilizer darts, can push against Dark Phoenix’s telekinetic blasts, and survived the adamantium bonding process.
Endurance goes to Wolverine.
I’m sure there are other categories but these are the ones I thought of the most.
I worked on this piece last weekend and wanted to get some creative criticism on it.
http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/8463/mrqferaljungledesign.png
I positioned the spot patterns to begin and end at a certain point. Used some insignia circles to fill in broken spots and cover up spots that didn’t fit where I wanted it. I used the masking technique to give her a cat-like nose. Was going for a look that resembled the photos in the following link.
http://www.screamteam.com/feral.php
It was one of those “light bulb” moments while messing with HM3. My few complaints on this is that I wish I made her nose smaller and reworked the feet and toe claws to better match her hands.
I would greatly appreciate your comments and suggestions on how to improve on this design. Thanks for your time.
Mr. Q
Mr. Q (2): It’s a pretty good pic, really; only subtle things would benefit from changing.
I’m sure that forehead was hard to do,and I’m not sure how to create the effect from the photo. But the substitute plan you’ve got seems to work fine. At most, you could slightly lower the eyebrows, and/or bring the eyes closer together….. little stuff like that. The washboard abs, while logical, are also a little distracting; the leopard spots are enough.
I’d suggest matching the size of her hands & arms better: the hands seem too big, Shrink them, perhaps, and rotate the palms inward, just a little bit, for a more natural position. Also consider one of the claw-legged/raptor-like leg designs, just as an expereiment.
You’re off to a fine start. Don’t give up!
@Debochira(1): Kratos and Wolverine are just way too radically different for a head-to-head. Take away all his enchanted weapons, Kratos is essentially The Hulk. Memory serves, there has been many a battle that Wolverine and Hulk have fought to a standstill.
@Mr. Q(2): Really like the face. The hands and feet could use a little more angle. May be give her more of a pose? Some action to offset the stiffness.
Anyone else think it’s hilarious that a scene in the new Twilight triggers seizures or am I wrong to find it funny?
@Debochira, I would have to say Wolverine, but I love him and know him more.
@Mr. Q, I like it but I feel like I have seen this character before, needs something different to really own it.
I went to Walamart for “Black Friday” and it was crazy there. Im surprised nowadays no one tries to complain that the name is racist, I would think it would be called “Green Friday” for all the green we spend. There were people pushing me and then looking at me like I was the A-hole, I was pushed into some lights and they fell and busted so I thought I would shoot though the crowd and disappear before any staff came. My wife was shoved into a clothing rack. I had to squeeze by a woman and she got all upset but there was like no room to go anywere and people were pushing behind me. That was the first and last time I go shopping on that day. I heard in Cali there was a woman that maced some people just so she could buy something before them. There are other stories people hae heard of by now I’m sure.
So on a different note, what do you all think about my character?
http://i1224.photobucket.com/albums/ee363/cameron_stanley_84/My%20Characters/TOOL-Shaman.png
@ Tool(5): Not bad at all! There are some very good things in there, with regards to color & texture, and some inventive bits of positioning: the hand on the dino’s head, the claw on top of the staff. All he really needs is the right background to set him off. (And maybe a cool backstory.)
Also, with regard to the “seen it before” complaint against Mr. Q’s(2) very well-made drawing, here;s a simple suggestion: a radical change in color. A sort of BLACK leopard, for example, or red or blue or green, would distinguish her surprisingly well from other characters in the same vein, without having to kill oneself redrawing her.
@Nick Hentschel, Thanks for the comments. Im still developing my background skills but I am good at writing. I think that your right about Mr. Q’s art, if he doesn’t mind me saying, some change in skin texture or color to make her look feline like but not completely. I do like the toe claws, face, and spots. I just thought it reminded me of some others I have seen.
Ugh! Ok I just looked back at my photo enlarged and if you look at his left side by his belt, the leg came up some and looks off. I liked the dimensions but it stuck up and I was just going to white out a square and cover it but I forgot.
Atomic Punk (4): Seriously? That’s Awexome! I’m using that as my excuse not to take my fiancee to see the new Twilight movie then.
Debochia (1): I want to say Kratos, because, well, MAGIC!! But effectively it’s a draw, given that both characters ate effectively immortal (Wolverine due to healing factor and hack-kneed writing, Kratos because, GoW3 aside, he manages to escape the Underworld every time he dies).
Oh, and no worries Jeff. Surprisingly I did not freak out about the lack of updates yesterday because I imagined you doing more or less precisely what you actually did.
Hey check out what I just found.
http://therproject.org/wp/look-what-i-found/real-life-superheroes/
@tool (#5) You are a far braver person than I am. There isn’t enough $ on the planet to get me in wally-world this time of year (I try to avoid the place on principle anyway). At least 90% of the Black Friday wierd s%!t stories I’ve read seem to take place there.
Phatchick (12): Luckily for me, I don’t even have one NEAR me!
I made this OC about a year and a half ago. Well, at least that’s when the concept came about. Finally got most of the kinks worked out 6 months ago. I just need to know which costume to use.
The name is Death Stalker: he’s a former Green Beret who was nearly killed in an IED blast and became a cyborg mercenary. I don’t actually have a civilian name for him, but these are potential costumes.
http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/7404/nightstalker3.png
http://img819.imageshack.us/img819/8687/nightstalker4.png
http://img607.imageshack.us/img607/2489/deathstalker.png
http://img821.imageshack.us/img821/2489/deathstalker.png
@Phatchick, oh no my wife made me go LOL. I heard one year back when there was the tickle me elmo fkr on sale there were parents fighting over them. I heard another time a lady snatched something out of another ladies basket. Some people are bad. I won’t go again, unless she holds “it” over my head in which case I will give in to get “it” LOL
This is Sable Claw, a character from a novel I’m working on:
http://www.mediafire.com/i/?16l189m507ycuc1
The problem I’m having with her is how not to make her look like another Black Cat/Catwoman clone. Suggestions?
@D(15): Try to use a dark color other than black or purple. As far as I know, Black Cat wears black and Catwoman has worn both. Maybe a dark brown or blue. It would be a first visual cue that the character is different.
Neither has a tail. Maybe some way to show that the tail is also a gadget, prehensile, or perhaps used in combat to snatch weapons or trip opponents.
Knock Wal-Mart all you want. I bought the all the Farscape DVDs new for less than $50. Some places still want $180! That doesn’t even include the PK Wars finale.
@The Atomic Punk, I’m not saying the prices were bad, just some of the customers were nuts LOL We saved around a hundred as well. I like that show as well.
McKnight57 (14): I like the overall costume and color scheme for the 1st figure the most, with it’s “flak armor” quality and well-coordinated colors. But I preferred the cyborg “mask” on the 3rd version: it was far more grotesque, and made him seem genuinely deformed by his “accident.”
By the way, is he a hero or a villain? I’m leaning toward, “villain,” myself.
@The Atomic Punk (#17) Sorry, AP but my dignity (not to mention my personal safety) are worth a lot more than $180! Walmart is frakkin’ dangerous this time of year!
Somehow this turned into a Black Friday rant…
Anyway, D, I like it. She looks sorta like she’s got two noses, and the eyes look a bit high up, but the rest is alright. Like The Atomic Punk said, you could try changing the colour and emphasizing the tail. Maybe have a dart-gun on the end or something?
One more minor niggle, just a personal preference really: I would have the lips a shade or two darker. Think about it.
@McKnight57, I like all 4 and I agree with Nick that the mask is cool. Combine the mask with the costume from the 1st one and you’ll have it. 🙂
You think it’s dangerous for you, Phatchick, try being an employee! *shudder*
Our store isn’t actually that bad. No pepper spray, not much broken, no trampling incidents–and, company-wide, no deaths in three years! Which means we get to call it Black Friday again, instead of the The Event! …but it will probably be ten before we officially go back to calling it Blitz.
And incidentally, TOOL, you don’t have to run when something’s broken. Even if had been your fault, which I think any idiot would understand it wasn’t, nobody would (or even could) make you pay for it. In fact, we appreciate a heads-up so we can sweep up the broken glass before people take the opportunity to hurt themselves. In our store, they used to like to show the security footage of a woman carefully inserting her foot in between the slats of an empty pallet before toppling over sideways in an attempt to break her own ankle.
@TOOL(18) & Phatchick(20): I bought the DVDs last October using In-store Pick-up. Order on-line, walk direct to the counter, clerk hands you the swag, pay cash, then get the flip out. Not just Wal-Mart, any store.
I don’t shop Black Friday. Don’t need more reasons to dislike people. Just saying, I got a really great deal from Wal-Mart and a very pleasant shopping experience. Yes, pleasant! Convenience of on-line shopping with a credible (and accountable!) brick-and-mortar store.
I was burned by Amazon once. Soured me on internet outlets. My brother swears by eBay. Craigslist? The preferred bait of serial killers!
@TOOL(5): Shaman is good. Right side seems offset. The staff doesn’t align with the hand. Standing on the rock looks uncomfortable. The tattoos really work. The eyes are great. The dinosaur chilling on the rock is a nice touch.
@McKnight57(14): nightstalker3 works. Don’t know about the “space platform.” Gives the impression that he is a space opera character not a former Green Beret. The other two Platform Nighstalkers say “space opera.” For those reasons, I would say the Rooftop Nightstalker. He looks contemporary.
In the platform pictures, he’s smiling. After being hit by an IED then grafted to metal, he seems pretty content. Is he shellshocked, under the influence of cyber-programming or drugs, or is he geniunely happy?
What if Rooftop Nightstalker is upbeat? You can’t tell because you can’t see his smile. He looks menacing and takes out bad guys. However, he calls mom every Sunday and donates school supplies to orphans. Along the lines of Ben Grimm / The Thing.
@Myro(9): Yep, search “twilight movie seizures.”
Nick Hentschel (19): He’s a villain…for a while anyway.
Kaylin88100 (22): I’m working on a slightly different, less Doctor Doom-looking mask.
The Atomic Punk (24): I used the platform sort of the same way that Cyborg and Static from DCnU have their own modes of transportation. It’s less genuine happiness, than a malicious smile. Think Joker mixed with the Super Friends version of Lex Luthor. He’s mostly thinking of new ways to torture his nemesis.
Here’s a better photo, which also shows off how much of his face got screwed up, which is the reason he needs the mask.
http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/620/deathstalker2.png
@The Atomic Punk (15): Thanks.
@kaylin (21: Didn’t notice the “two noses” thing. That could be the mask though; I got it from the HM3 Custom thread on the forums.
@X-stacy, I see your point, I wouldn’t want anyone to getr hurt but I think I will just work an OT and get the presents ahead of time next year LOL
@The Atomic Punk, I see what your see now, thanks for the comments