Phew. I haven't been keeping up with this since I came home for Christmas. I doubt I'm gonna be able to update much more either due to helping mum get ready for Xmas (tree, presents, Xmas shopping....oh God, Xmas shopping....) but I'm gonna line out what I hope I shall achieve this break.
1) Get some texture/colour studies done. I collected a vast amount of different snake textures and tried to create a snake siloheutte made out of different scale textures but it was an amazing failure. I just tried looking for said travesty but I think I may have deleted it. Maybe it's on my Norwich PC? Anyways, I'll probably have to present my textures in a more conventional way T_T
2) Do more drawings. Although you can research something all you want, you need to get down with the nitty gritty and get doing some doodles. I've got a sizable amount but I want to do more ('tis 90% of the reason I'm doing this). Hopefully I will come up with more mask/headgear designs and Swimmer designs.
3) Research The Endless Forest. This is something MC pitched to me and I've got to say, it's bloody bonkers but in a delightful, New-Age sort of way. I intend to try and get it to work so I can have a rummage and hopefully create my own "deer". The headcrest designs for special occasions (Halloween etc) are really genius and hopefully will inspire me.
4) Keep up the research generally on mythology - it's a much bigger subject than Crypto zoology (been round for yonks longer I guess) so I need to put more effort in. I'm onto eastern mythology now so I'll be looking at Shinto/Hindu/Buddhist creatures. I recently discovered Ananta - a snake with a thousand heads that Vishnu rested on before creating the universe (as you do) and Vasuki, a serpent-like creature that the gods used to churn the ocean of milk. I love mythology - it makes no sense ^_^
Anyway, that's what I'm hoping to get done over the holidays. I will post though if I discover something I must share.
Merry Christmas!
Friday 12 December 2008
Sunday 30 November 2008
Scale Textures
Well, today I decided to finally do some more work ^_^ I'm trying to finish up all my RPGs at the moment so I can play Persona 4 is peace come Christmas. I want that game SO BAD.
Anyways, did some more visual research today and got myself some nice skin textures. I'm planning to do a small collage using all my textures to create something artistic but necessary. I've got 32 textures, but they're a bit small - maybe I'll need some more.
Wish me luck!
Anyways, did some more visual research today and got myself some nice skin textures. I'm planning to do a small collage using all my textures to create something artistic but necessary. I've got 32 textures, but they're a bit small - maybe I'll need some more.
Wish me luck!
Saturday 22 November 2008
Just some pretty snake pictures
Thought I'd post some visual research I've been up to. People assume it's easy to get images off Google Image Search or something, but in reality you really have to look. You also have to source it and all that crap. This is some of the snake work I've been up to.
Green Anaconda, the heaviest snake in the world (some argue the overall biggest) next to the Reticulated Python. It lives in the Amazon and swamps/jungles of South America and so needs adequate camoflage (although it has few natural predators). Again something I need to look at when designing my None Walker - she'll be swamp/tropics based so maybe I'll go for a similar look? I also want to give her some head crests of some kind.
Anyone remember Anaconda? I remember watching that.....and laughing at it. Still, the animatronic snake in question did win quite an award and I do remember it being a little scary (stalking them through the Amazon and eating them). I found a few storyboarding pieces and the one above shows the final scene in the film (Jon Voight uses Jennifer Lopez and that guy (?) for bait to lure the anaconda). It's a huge creature but obviously not that big in real life.
This is a really good picture of a real anaconda as you can clearly see its distinctive marking s and the snout with the eyes clearly on the top of the head. The fact that snakes can climb almost anywhere still amazes me, having no limbs and all. This something I want the player to be able to do in Abeo... - climb over branches, under tree trunks, just generally slink about like snakes do. Being anaconda-based, you'll obviously be able to swim underwater as well.
Green Anaconda, the heaviest snake in the world (some argue the overall biggest) next to the Reticulated Python. It lives in the Amazon and swamps/jungles of South America and so needs adequate camoflage (although it has few natural predators). Again something I need to look at when designing my None Walker - she'll be swamp/tropics based so maybe I'll go for a similar look? I also want to give her some head crests of some kind.
Anyone remember Anaconda? I remember watching that.....and laughing at it. Still, the animatronic snake in question did win quite an award and I do remember it being a little scary (stalking them through the Amazon and eating them). I found a few storyboarding pieces and the one above shows the final scene in the film (Jon Voight uses Jennifer Lopez and that guy (?) for bait to lure the anaconda). It's a huge creature but obviously not that big in real life.
This is a really good picture of a real anaconda as you can clearly see its distinctive marking s and the snout with the eyes clearly on the top of the head. The fact that snakes can climb almost anywhere still amazes me, having no limbs and all. This something I want the player to be able to do in Abeo... - climb over branches, under tree trunks, just generally slink about like snakes do. Being anaconda-based, you'll obviously be able to swim underwater as well.Deep Sea Beasties
I've been doing a lot of research on deep sea organisms over the past few days via researching science articles (new species are being discovered all the time), images and watching the great David Attenborough documentaries Planet Earth, Blue Planet and Life in Cold Blood. They're so beautiful and I cried at Life in Cold Blood.
Through this research, various creatures from the deep have piqued my interest - I'm thinking of going for an eel/cephalopod type creature.
I feel so weird typing this with gloves and jumper on whilst it snows outside T_T
This is the Vampire Squid - a deep sea cephalopod. I couldn't find out why it was called the "Vampire" squid exactly but I guess it has something to do with the spiny cerri on the underside of it's tentacles. When threatened, the squid turns its tentacle "cloak" inside out and becomes a spiny mass (this is called the "pineapple").
This is a really cool defensive manouveur and certainly one I'd like to incorporate into my designs. Imagine being able to turn yourself inside out in-game *_*
This beauty is the Gulper Eel - it says it all on the tin really. The mouth can swallow other creatures the same size if not bigger than the eel itself and the stomach can expand to 10 times its original size. The eel has no teeth unlike the deep sea angler but doesn't need any if it can just swallow its prey whole (and alive...eew).
This is the Abyssal Cusk Eel - this picture doesn't do this beautiful creature any justice, so click the video below to see just how wonderfully it moves.
The way it moves is another thing I'd like to incorporate. I just like the way it is pure white and moves so gracefully - somewhat angelic. This element of grace is something lacking in lots of deep sea creatures (fab creatures, but not exactly pretty, are they?) which is what attracted me to this eel. As Animus - in her water guise - is still female I'd like to design something feminine.
This - from what I can find - is a Chimaera pup (there is a Chimaera in the above video) that was washed up during a recent tsunami in the east. Notice how it's body looked bruised and darkened (it's obviously dead, but would have died in this sort of pressure if it had survived being washed up. I feel sorry for it). There seem to be quite a few shark-looking creatures in the twilight zone and beyond (some measuring 8m long!) - if my creature is to survive the dark zones of the ocean, she will need to either be the top predator or be well equipped to deal with other predators. Deep sea creatures are constantly on the look for either a) food or b) mates and the player won't want to end up as option a.
Through this research, various creatures from the deep have piqued my interest - I'm thinking of going for an eel/cephalopod type creature.
I feel so weird typing this with gloves and jumper on whilst it snows outside T_T
This is the Vampire Squid - a deep sea cephalopod. I couldn't find out why it was called the "Vampire" squid exactly but I guess it has something to do with the spiny cerri on the underside of it's tentacles. When threatened, the squid turns its tentacle "cloak" inside out and becomes a spiny mass (this is called the "pineapple").
This is a really cool defensive manouveur and certainly one I'd like to incorporate into my designs. Imagine being able to turn yourself inside out in-game *_*
This beauty is the Gulper Eel - it says it all on the tin really. The mouth can swallow other creatures the same size if not bigger than the eel itself and the stomach can expand to 10 times its original size. The eel has no teeth unlike the deep sea angler but doesn't need any if it can just swallow its prey whole (and alive...eew).
This is the Abyssal Cusk Eel - this picture doesn't do this beautiful creature any justice, so click the video below to see just how wonderfully it moves.
The way it moves is another thing I'd like to incorporate. I just like the way it is pure white and moves so gracefully - somewhat angelic. This element of grace is something lacking in lots of deep sea creatures (fab creatures, but not exactly pretty, are they?) which is what attracted me to this eel. As Animus - in her water guise - is still female I'd like to design something feminine.
This - from what I can find - is a Chimaera pup (there is a Chimaera in the above video) that was washed up during a recent tsunami in the east. Notice how it's body looked bruised and darkened (it's obviously dead, but would have died in this sort of pressure if it had survived being washed up. I feel sorry for it). There seem to be quite a few shark-looking creatures in the twilight zone and beyond (some measuring 8m long!) - if my creature is to survive the dark zones of the ocean, she will need to either be the top predator or be well equipped to deal with other predators. Deep sea creatures are constantly on the look for either a) food or b) mates and the player won't want to end up as option a.
Tuesday 18 November 2008
What the hell just happened?
I have no idea what just happened but those last two posts below? Swap them around and THAT'S how they're meant to be read.
As in read "Story concept and game..." THEN "Some sketches and thoughts".
Stoopid intarwebs T_T
As in read "Story concept and game..." THEN "Some sketches and thoughts".
Stoopid intarwebs T_T
Story and Concept of game - Abeo Animus ut Animus
Right, I finally came up with my game concept properly a few days ago. Here's an extract from my Game Treatment that illustrates my idea:
...the overarching story concerns the character Animus – a character that the player never sees in human form, but who has the ability to transform into a multitude of different creatures (the creatures the player are able to play as). She is part of a dying race called the Obtineo and must traverse the world’s harsh environments to discover why her race is rapidly dwindling and why various settlements are going dark. In her various guises, Animus will be able to talk and interact with other characters/objects and the player will be privy to her inner thoughts. This will hopefully create an emotional bond from player to Animus and make the player want to see the conclusion to Animus’ story.
Yeah I like Latin ^^ I was pretty pleased with the game title which basically translates as "I go from one to another" which I thought fitted the character's morphing ability quite well (wow, morphing.....anybody remember Animorphs?). I decided on a female character as - being a female myself - it would be easier to make her creature forms (hmm I need a good Latin word better than "creature forms") more feminine. I had the idea of creating a sort of emblem on her skin or face (tatoos or make-up for example) that stay when she transforms so that you always know that YOU (the player) are still controlling the same character. Think of it as like an imprint or symbol you'll get used to and feel familar with.
...the overarching story concerns the character Animus – a character that the player never sees in human form, but who has the ability to transform into a multitude of different creatures (the creatures the player are able to play as). She is part of a dying race called the Obtineo and must traverse the world’s harsh environments to discover why her race is rapidly dwindling and why various settlements are going dark. In her various guises, Animus will be able to talk and interact with other characters/objects and the player will be privy to her inner thoughts. This will hopefully create an emotional bond from player to Animus and make the player want to see the conclusion to Animus’ story.
Yeah I like Latin ^^ I was pretty pleased with the game title which basically translates as "I go from one to another" which I thought fitted the character's morphing ability quite well (wow, morphing.....anybody remember Animorphs?). I decided on a female character as - being a female myself - it would be easier to make her creature forms (hmm I need a good Latin word better than "creature forms") more feminine. I had the idea of creating a sort of emblem on her skin or face (tatoos or make-up for example) that stay when she transforms so that you always know that YOU (the player) are still controlling the same character. Think of it as like an imprint or symbol you'll get used to and feel familar with.
Some sketches and thoughts
I've been more organising my research than actually DOING research over the past few days >.< It's hard organising drawings to scan in, drawings to brush up in PS, which to colour (if any) and then rough skecthes that show your development and all that. Then you have to put them all in corresponding folders....bleh. Anyways, I decided to give my two current creatures - Jersey Devil/horse/dragon thing and snake/naga/goddess thing - names. With added picture goodness!
This is my Jersey Devil-based creature. I decided to give her the WIP title "Forest Walker" as her natural habitat will be the deep forest. This comes from the fact that the JD lives in the Pine Barrens, a pretty dense, creepy forest in in New Jersey (hence the name), USA and the old Pagan legends of unicorns running around in forests etc. I'm want to make her very horse-like (long face, hooves, difficult-to-draw legs T_T) but give her qualities that raise her above being a horse creature. For example, I'm thinking of making her bipedal (but also able to run swiftly on all fours) and that her front two "feet" will have hooves that snap back and reveal very human-like hands. As this is still the research phase, I'm still not thinking very seriously about her design but it's good to start somewhere.
This is my snake creature which I have dubbed "None Walker" (hey I thought it was clever). Her habitat includes the dense, thick pungent swamps and rainforests of the world. Her serpent-body allows her to weaves in and out of huge tree roots, under rivers and streams and basically areas creatures with legs can't go. Notice the thick black markings around the eye and face - I'm starting to think about the tatoos or markings I mentioned earlier. For some reason I started drawing Egyptian-ish symbols (such as the Scarab's wings) on Animus' poor confused face.
I'm still researching my deep-sea creature. Watched the Blue Planet the other day (I love David Attenborough) one concerning "The Deep". There's some crazy stuff at the bottom of the sea, like lakes.
Yes, there are lakes at the bottom of the Abyssal Plain. Look it up.
This is my Jersey Devil-based creature. I decided to give her the WIP title "Forest Walker" as her natural habitat will be the deep forest. This comes from the fact that the JD lives in the Pine Barrens, a pretty dense, creepy forest in in New Jersey (hence the name), USA and the old Pagan legends of unicorns running around in forests etc. I'm want to make her very horse-like (long face, hooves, difficult-to-draw legs T_T) but give her qualities that raise her above being a horse creature. For example, I'm thinking of making her bipedal (but also able to run swiftly on all fours) and that her front two "feet" will have hooves that snap back and reveal very human-like hands. As this is still the research phase, I'm still not thinking very seriously about her design but it's good to start somewhere.
This is my snake creature which I have dubbed "None Walker" (hey I thought it was clever). Her habitat includes the dense, thick pungent swamps and rainforests of the world. Her serpent-body allows her to weaves in and out of huge tree roots, under rivers and streams and basically areas creatures with legs can't go. Notice the thick black markings around the eye and face - I'm starting to think about the tatoos or markings I mentioned earlier. For some reason I started drawing Egyptian-ish symbols (such as the Scarab's wings) on Animus' poor confused face.I'm still researching my deep-sea creature. Watched the Blue Planet the other day (I love David Attenborough) one concerning "The Deep". There's some crazy stuff at the bottom of the sea, like lakes.
Yes, there are lakes at the bottom of the Abyssal Plain. Look it up.
Monday 10 November 2008
Level 70 Aerodactyl in yo' face YEA!!!
Yeah, I'm pretty proud of my Aerodactyl ^^ I named her Ayla ( a cookie to anyone who get's the reference).
Which leads me nicely into my Thunderbird research - some more digging around shows that some people think aforementioned bird is actually some sort of Pterosaur. Not actually "flying dinosaurs" as people incorrectly see them, but a completely different species. The only recorded creatures that had a wingspan of 20ft and beyond are the pterosaurs from 65 million years ago - could some have survived? But the scale of these things blows me away - they're truly awe inspiring. Check out Hatzegopteryx.
I mean, what the hell? That's mental. I'm wondering whether to make my Flyer (WIP title) that big or not. Concerning stealth, I suppose it could just fly higher in the sky to avoid detection or have Chameleon skin. Interesting how the artist has chosen to depict it as furry/feathery rather than the traditional scaled skin.
Researching the Colossal Squid and other krakens
Found an article recently stating that the eye diameter of the colossal squid's eyes "are as big as dinner plates" - 40cm on a live specimen.
As one of my three creatures is definitely going to be a squid/deep sea creature of some sort, this is pretty important - the stereotype of deep sea creatures is that they don't need eyes in a near-pitch black environment, but this is obviously wrong. As such my creatures gonna need massive eyeballs.
Interestingly, a lot of the websites I've read say that squid as a species are very aggressive and wrestle with Sperm whales. This is what might have given rise to the Kraken legend as colossal/giant squid are more likely to have surfaced in eyeshot of humans rather than an octopus or anything else. I really don't know about them attacking ships though.
As one of my three creatures is definitely going to be a squid/deep sea creature of some sort, this is pretty important - the stereotype of deep sea creatures is that they don't need eyes in a near-pitch black environment, but this is obviously wrong. As such my creatures gonna need massive eyeballs.
Interestingly, a lot of the websites I've read say that squid as a species are very aggressive and wrestle with Sperm whales. This is what might have given rise to the Kraken legend as colossal/giant squid are more likely to have surfaced in eyeshot of humans rather than an octopus or anything else. I really don't know about them attacking ships though.
Thursday 6 November 2008
Did some PS work.
Spontaneously did some Photoshop work today, which is unusual because I usually avoid it like the plague. Came out better than I thought as I was using a new brush (a really jagged one) and I think it's really helped with the texture. I decided to work into a Jersey Devil idea I posted here earlier.
Sunday 26 October 2008
Pokemon
Whilst playing through Pokemon, I've come across some designs that I think are inspired by urban legends and myths around the world.
This is a Pokemon called Lucario - his design (or at least his head) looks like it was influenced by the Egyptian god Anubis. Although Lucario is not associated with the dead or embalming in Pokemon he does have strange, almost god-like powers (reading the auras of others). It could be argued that Lucario is just modelled on a dog/jackel but his colouring and the jet-black stripes down and across his face tell me otherwise. This is a good example of how mythology can still be used in a game/cartoon for a younger audience. Lucario is also a popular Pokemon (see here).
Another Pokemon that is inspired by myth is Frosslass (below). Her design and demenour immediately made me think of a geisha (her red bow is commonly seen on a Japanese kimono) and as she is a Ghost/Ice type Pokemon that maybe her origin is something based in Japanese myth. After some research, my hunch was right - she is based on Yukki-onna a female spirit in Japanese folklore. Again, it seems even cartoons have their origins somewhere in myth.
This is a Pokemon called Lucario - his design (or at least his head) looks like it was influenced by the Egyptian god Anubis. Although Lucario is not associated with the dead or embalming in Pokemon he does have strange, almost god-like powers (reading the auras of others). It could be argued that Lucario is just modelled on a dog/jackel but his colouring and the jet-black stripes down and across his face tell me otherwise. This is a good example of how mythology can still be used in a game/cartoon for a younger audience. Lucario is also a popular Pokemon (see here).Another Pokemon that is inspired by myth is Frosslass (below). Her design and demenour immediately made me think of a geisha (her red bow is commonly seen on a Japanese kimono) and as she is a Ghost/Ice type Pokemon that maybe her origin is something based in Japanese myth. After some research, my hunch was right - she is based on Yukki-onna a female spirit in Japanese folklore. Again, it seems even cartoons have their origins somewhere in myth.
IS screenshots
Playing through IS on PSP is useful, so I got some screenshots of the characters and their Personas.
Basically, a Persona is "another self" that likes deep beneath the subconciousness that reveals itself when the person is threatened. Hence, in battles and equally dire situations, the Personas of the character spring forth and fight (this is an RPG afterall). Every Persona is based on a character or being from mythology ranging from Greek, Egyptian, Japanese, North American and many others. These screenies show in-game footage (remember this is a psone game).
Rhadamanthys was a Greek judge of the dead and associated with death (his Persona type in the game is Death).
Maia is of Greek origin and was one of seven daughters Pleiades (the eldest) and was worshipped by Roman women. She is a earth goddess, simialr to Gaia.
More info on IS here.
Basically, a Persona is "another self" that likes deep beneath the subconciousness that reveals itself when the person is threatened. Hence, in battles and equally dire situations, the Personas of the character spring forth and fight (this is an RPG afterall). Every Persona is based on a character or being from mythology ranging from Greek, Egyptian, Japanese, North American and many others. These screenies show in-game footage (remember this is a psone game).
Rhadamanthys was a Greek judge of the dead and associated with death (his Persona type in the game is Death).
Maia is of Greek origin and was one of seven daughters Pleiades (the eldest) and was worshipped by Roman women. She is a earth goddess, simialr to Gaia.
More info on IS here.
Been playing too many games lately.
Yeah, the patch for Persona 2 Innocent Sin came out and I've been playing that religiously for the past few days. One of the best PSX JRPGs ever - play it! Fable II came out as well so everyone's been playing that lol. Add that with Pokemon Pearl and mine and Matt's current Oddworld obsession....you get the idea.
Anyways, ordered this book off Amazon the other day - the Hamlyn History of Mythology. It's a truly beautfiul book, and it's theoretical too so it's quotable ^^ There's so much stuff in it from primal chaos (how different mythologies interpret the beginning of existence) to the end of the world (Ragnorak and such). It's even got stuff like Zoroastrian mythology in it which is pretty difficult to understand nevermind rare to find in a book. I've ordered another one but it hasn't arrived yet.
Fittingly I found the info on this book on the Allegory of Whatever website - the number one port of call for Innocent Sin help and such. The guy who runs it's put up a list of interesting mythology books, as the Persona series derives a LOT from lots of mythologies around the world.
So yeah, playing Persona 2 = research ^^
Anyways, ordered this book off Amazon the other day - the Hamlyn History of Mythology. It's a truly beautfiul book, and it's theoretical too so it's quotable ^^ There's so much stuff in it from primal chaos (how different mythologies interpret the beginning of existence) to the end of the world (Ragnorak and such). It's even got stuff like Zoroastrian mythology in it which is pretty difficult to understand nevermind rare to find in a book. I've ordered another one but it hasn't arrived yet.
Fittingly I found the info on this book on the Allegory of Whatever website - the number one port of call for Innocent Sin help and such. The guy who runs it's put up a list of interesting mythology books, as the Persona series derives a LOT from lots of mythologies around the world.
So yeah, playing Persona 2 = research ^^
Tuesday 21 October 2008
Jackpot!
Looking around for Monster Hunter artwork (the monsters in it are pretty cool looking and I'm a massive fan of it myself. Bring out 2G Capcom!) I found loads of scans of Frontier! Artwork is pretty hard to find for these games and I found quite the treasure trove.
There are even some alternative designs for the Kirin (as it's spelt in the game) in MH. The design for the Kirin here stems from it's eastern origins, the unicorn influence and the quote "its hooves rarely touch the earth, for it dwells amongst the clouds and behind the winds". Hence the Kirin here is of the Lightning/Wind element.
What Capcom have done is similar to what I'm trying to achieve - taking a mythological creature (the Ki-Rin), mixing it up with others (the unicorn) and creating a creature that has obvious references to it's development (the unicorn's horn, for example) and creating something original. The Kirin here is actually scaled and quite dragon-like - I shall try to get some PSP screenshots to better show what I mean.
There are even some alternative designs for the Kirin (as it's spelt in the game) in MH. The design for the Kirin here stems from it's eastern origins, the unicorn influence and the quote "its hooves rarely touch the earth, for it dwells amongst the clouds and behind the winds". Hence the Kirin here is of the Lightning/Wind element.What Capcom have done is similar to what I'm trying to achieve - taking a mythological creature (the Ki-Rin), mixing it up with others (the unicorn) and creating a creature that has obvious references to it's development (the unicorn's horn, for example) and creating something original. The Kirin here is actually scaled and quite dragon-like - I shall try to get some PSP screenshots to better show what I mean.
Sunday 19 October 2008
Some Research Images
I realised that in my last post I mentioned Kelpies and Ki-Rin - there's some good information here on Kelpie/water horse myth but I just wanted to post some images I've been using.
This is a Kelpie designed by Kazuma Kaneko, who does a lot of the art for the Shin Megami Tensei series. His designs are immensely precise and basic, but clever.
This is a picture I actually found in a place I didn't expect - it's an artists depiction of a Ki-Rin a chinese dragon/unicorn hybrid said to be even rarer than a unicorn. I liked the scaly look of the beast and want to work on some textures for my Jersey Devil/Kelpie/horse......thing.
I need to think up a name for my beastie >.>
This is a Kelpie designed by Kazuma Kaneko, who does a lot of the art for the Shin Megami Tensei series. His designs are immensely precise and basic, but clever.
This is a picture I actually found in a place I didn't expect - it's an artists depiction of a Ki-Rin a chinese dragon/unicorn hybrid said to be even rarer than a unicorn. I liked the scaly look of the beast and want to work on some textures for my Jersey Devil/Kelpie/horse......thing.
I need to think up a name for my beastie >.>
Some Sketchings
Over the past few days I've been getting some Jersey Devil/horse monster designs down on paper. Before I even started this project I decided to create some sort of horse hybrid (because I'm not very good at drawing them and this stands as good research) so here are some quick sketches.
^ These were some very early designs for a horse creature. After researching the Devil, I kind of merged the my design and the appearence of the Devil together. I came up with these below.
^I'm going for a vicious Jersey Devil/Kelpie hybrid. I quite like the Ki-Rin/Kelpie appearence of scaled, somewhat dragon type features so I gave these designs teeth and clawed "hands".
^ These were some very early designs for a horse creature. After researching the Devil, I kind of merged the my design and the appearence of the Devil together. I came up with these below.
^I'm going for a vicious Jersey Devil/Kelpie hybrid. I quite like the Ki-Rin/Kelpie appearence of scaled, somewhat dragon type features so I gave these designs teeth and clawed "hands".
Friday 17 October 2008
The Thunderbird
The Thunderbird is a bird cryptid said to be at large in Pennsylvania and the Central States. It is a giant bird which exceeds the largest scientifically known wingspan - the Wandering Albatross has a wingspan of 13 ft whilst the Thunderbird is said to exceed 15 ft sometimes 20ft. It is sighted often and is always described as having the same distinctive colour - black or dark brown with a white marking around it's neck, hawk-like in appearence.
On July 30, 1977 John Huffer, an ex-marine and photographer, took a 100 foot roll of color film of two birds taking off from a tree in an inlet of Lake Shelbyville. I have tried to find the film but the only one I could find was no longer avaliable. I did find this still.
On July 30, 1977 John Huffer, an ex-marine and photographer, took a 100 foot roll of color film of two birds taking off from a tree in an inlet of Lake Shelbyville. I have tried to find the film but the only one I could find was no longer avaliable. I did find this still.
The film is said to be of good quality and has experts stumped.
As a concept design, this already has a lot of it's on game mythology. Rocs and other large birds are used time and time again in games along with the more god-like birds (see Quetzalcoatl) which I personally remember appearing in Final Fantays VIII as a Guardian Force. Mixing up the various legend of big bird, mythical birds (Garuda perhaps?) and my own imaginings culd make for some interesting sketches.
Last Few Days...
For the past few days I've basically been doing research - more research into monsters (cryptids mostly), playing some games and reading up. I discovered the Giant Squid (which could be an interesting avatar to play as) is only the longest squid in the world, the Colossal Squid is larger and have been researching the Thunderbird, Mothman and more horse-related beasts (Kelpie, Unicorn etc). The Collosal Squid and Thunderbird could be interesting designs so I think I'm going to focus on them.
A Teratorn, a bird thought to be extinct that could be still alive.
Collosal Squid (right) and Giant Squid (left)
A Teratorn, a bird thought to be extinct that could be still alive.
Collosal Squid (right) and Giant Squid (left)Friday 10 October 2008
The Sucuriju Gigante
Sniffing around for more of the less known myths and oddities, I came across the Sucuriju Gigante or Giant Anaconda. Whereas an Anaconda - the heaviest snake in the world - grows to about 30-35 ft the Sucurii apparently grows to way over 60ft in length. The Amazonian tribes also regard it ("her") as the being who created the Amazon. The pictures underneath was taken by a Colonel Rene van Lierde of one of these creatures.....from a helicopter.
The Sucuriju is basically described as a huge Anaconda that preys on the tribesman and large animals. It's a simple but cool concept for a controllable avatar in a game - put into the body of a huge snake-like monster, you can slither about in the undergrowth and rivers of some deep, dark forest, maybe gathering information and hunting prey when you get hungry (just a concept). It could be the more stealthy of your gaggle of monsters you directly control. I had an idea about the Jersey Devil - it being the offspring of a witch and such, it could be the magic-orientated character of your group and maybe reconnaissance as it's wings could come in handy for gliding and spotting enemies.
I don't have my game idea pinned down for definate yet, but these are just some quick thoughts.
The Sucuriju is basically described as a huge Anaconda that preys on the tribesman and large animals. It's a simple but cool concept for a controllable avatar in a game - put into the body of a huge snake-like monster, you can slither about in the undergrowth and rivers of some deep, dark forest, maybe gathering information and hunting prey when you get hungry (just a concept). It could be the more stealthy of your gaggle of monsters you directly control. I had an idea about the Jersey Devil - it being the offspring of a witch and such, it could be the magic-orientated character of your group and maybe reconnaissance as it's wings could come in handy for gliding and spotting enemies.
I don't have my game idea pinned down for definate yet, but these are just some quick thoughts.
Researching
I've spent more or less the whole day on the internet today researching various monsters. I spent a little bit more time on the Jersey Devil but instead started looking more at horses and their body structure - there's not a lot out there on the Devil except maybe some bad films.
Whilst researching I stumbled upon the a Cryptozoology exhibit (Ctrl+F centaur) - cryptids, in this case the Centaur, are presented in the style of a museum i.e. making the exhibits look like they actually exist. This relates to one of my ideas as trying to draw the bone structure of my chosen creatures - I would love to go see such as exhibit but it seems these sort of things only go on in the States.
Whilst researching I stumbled upon the a Cryptozoology exhibit (Ctrl+F centaur) - cryptids, in this case the Centaur, are presented in the style of a museum i.e. making the exhibits look like they actually exist. This relates to one of my ideas as trying to draw the bone structure of my chosen creatures - I would love to go see such as exhibit but it seems these sort of things only go on in the States.
Wednesday 8 October 2008
The Jersey Devil
Whilst playing Pokemon Pearl today (I love Pokemon, the idea of monsters being able to evolve is an interesting one and anyone who says Pokemon is for kids obviously hasn't played it. Ever heard of IV training?) I had an idea and decided to visit a long forgotten website www.Monstrous.com. This brilliant website basically is your in-depth Wikipedia for all things weird and wonderful. The new stories are just....well, read them yourself.
Anyway, I came across the urban myth of the Jersey (or Leeds) Devil. Apparently the 13th child of the witch Mother Leeds and the Devil, the story goes that the child was born deformed, killed the midwife and scrambled up the chimney. There have been over 2000 sitings for the last 270 years and there are a few features of the Devil that are always the same:
- Horse-like head, sometimes with red eyes
- Long neck and tail
- Large leathery wings
- Cloven hooves
- High-pitched, human-like scream
This being a cryptid, there's not a lot of compelling photo evidence but that's not the point of what's interesting about it. It's backstory and appearence, as stated, could make for a good design.
Direction
For my project, I'm going to look at and research the various monsters that have ingrained onto the social psyche through time. By this, I basically mean the "standard"monsters we've all become used to seeing in film, game, literature and the media. Griffins, unicorns, dragons, devils, centaurs and the like. I want to see if I can create some "original" monsters, taking reference from mythology, the human imagination and cryptozoology - the study of animals that have not been scientifically proved to exist yet. A good example of this would be the Chupacabra.
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