Warframe: Depowered (Medieval Frame) [6/26: Warframe: The Iron Age Sneak Peek! Ember, The Pyromancer]

[HinuRoly]

pls never stop.

 

the design choices you've made are really great and it shows you studied armor well.

 

*praises*

[Calayne]

A quick redo of the Grin'ea Lancer. This is the bulk of the elite army. The grunts are equivalent to the butchers, something I'll be drawing later.

A little lore, though: not all the soldiers of the Grin'ea are clones.

Haha, and thanks for the compliments, guys! I'm flattered ;) how's the new design?

[TimberEyes]

Amazing work.

[Axeroix]

really like the style in this one u were really able to capture the grineer feel

[Tengu147]

Hmmm... Was kinda expecting you to use the default colour schemes (or at least ones that are close to) of the Warframes. Other than that, it's look pretty great. Keep up the good work. Edited December 14, 2014 by Tengu147

[iamablocker]

I was wondering...

 

With the influx of the Syndicates and new NPCs, how are you imaginging them?

 

Though I am now designated as Waste, I have particular interest in how the Cephalon Suda would look like.

 

Or Baro Ki'teer, aka that peddler of exotic wares that only shows up for a few days at a time and has poor taste in fabulous this strange taste in clothing.

[roee3x]

Wow!

You're amazing! Great work!

[DAttila]

Do you take critique on the weapons for these designs?

[Calayne]

Do you take critique on the weapons for these designs?

 

It depends. Can you design one that I'd like?  ;)  

 

They're intentionally made plain, except for Excalibur, and his titular weapon, and Volt, who's more fancy than everyone else. You're free, as all men are, to offer your suggestions, of course! 

[DAttila]

I study European martial arts and some of the weapons are not fit for purpose. :)
Everything looks good, but here's a list of reasons why some of the gear would be more of a burden than a boon to its user:

Volt

 I can see you were going for a dual-wielding duelist style here. They did, indeed, use daggers in the off-hand to a sword, as large shields became phased out in favor of bucklers, and a dagger with a sufficiently large handguard could still be used to effectively parry attacks.

 In this style, the combatant would use a sword for offense at long range and a dagger for defense, and once having closed in, they would switch to the dagger for the killing blow.

 

 However, the dagger you chose is too front-heavy with its fat blade to have a guard that can protect the hand wielding it to parry, and the blade is cumbersome, as well as prone to chipping if you tried to parry with it. Volt already has a sword to slash with, so a slashing dagger would be redundant.

 

Frost

 Pretty visible 13th century crusader here. Armed with a shortsword, shield, and, oddly enough, a bearded hand axe. I'm guessing you wanted to keep the dual zoren's vibe that was introduced with him.

 

 There's two flaws I see here:

 - The hand axe looks like it would be better for chopping wood, than actually killing people. Axes are notoriously unwieldy and you'll always be at a disadvantage against someone using something nimbler, like a sword. Real-life axes made for killing people with had a significantly smaller, lighter bit, since a single hit with an axe meant certain death. You'll want a razor-sharp edge, with a small enough bit to focus all that weight on a single cavity. Overall, the axe bit would need to be at least half of its current thickness and a third of it size. And the pick on the other side of the head is in need of a weight loss diet as well, it doesn't need to be very long to puncture through a chink in the armor and cause a nasty wound. Then it can be made thinner to make the weapon wieldier overall.

 As long as the centerpoint of the weapon rests somewhere 1/3rd of the way along the haft beneath the head, it'll do its job.

 

 - Frost's shield is a cavalry shield. Infantry shields meant for close-range combat were typically worn on the fist (i.e. round shields of the vikings). The cavalry kite shield we see here was designed to protect the wearer from arrows and the odd spearhead/cavalry lance. You didn't really have time to actually wield it, so it had straps you could have it hang on your elbow with while you held the reins of your horse in your off-hand.

 Its shape was also that of a kite so it would taper at its base, where you would have your horse under you. This way, it wouldn't interfere with the horse's natural motions.

 

 However, in a foot slog, you might as well drop the shield and run for dear life. In combat, shields are never used to actually absorb your opponent's blow. You will tire out after one or two good hits and then you're as good as dead. What you need to do is intercept your opponent's blow with your shield before they can build up their full momentum for the swing. You can batter, shove and generally bully people with the shield. You can also strike with your main-hand weapon in such a way that your opponent never gets a chance to even see the hand holding it, much less strike at it. You can obscure your opponent's vision and build up an attack that they're unaware of.

But with a kite shield, you can't do any of these things, because the thing is too damn close to your body, you can't parry against low blows against your legs or guard your head properly because you just can't extend it far enough with it being locked on your elbow.

 

Loki
 Just his throwing dagger. For throwing weapons, you DO want a flatter, edged blade. The dagger here is way too thin, its point could break off, rendering it unusable. Thrown weapons typically land on a sharp angle on their blades, so it's good to have them slightly rounded to increase the depth it penetrates and subsequently, the more vicious bleeding it inflicts.

 

Excalibur

 Excalibur seems to be adopting the late-medieval longsword/bastard sword. These weapons were created to be as multi-functional as possible, since in the late medieval period, where more and more people began using armor, swordplay began shifting more toward stabbing. Thus, the longsword and its associated half-swording techniques were born.

 This style has its user wield the longsword in one hand while keeping their off-hand free for either grappling/punching your opponent, parrying using your gauntlet or taking your longsword by the blade in order to use various half-swording techniques.

 These users typically had a dagger to go along with their sword, but these daggers were purpose-built for when the fight was at its end. This is where the dirk surfaced. You would only draw your dirk, ideally, when your opponent was already on the ground and you had straddled him.

 A dirk is a dagger made for one thing - stabbing as hard as you humanly can. It's long, ending in a point and has either a single- or double-edged blade to cut the insides along the way. Finally, dirks typically have a flat pommel so that you can grasp it in one hand and punch it home in the other, bringing your entire upper body weight down on your foe. No one survives that.

 

 I hope this has been helpful, and if you have considerations on weapon choices, I'll gladly offer input. :)

[tnccs215]

That Excal is really great, and I think you got the essence of frost downright perfectly, as a heavy sword user.

However, I dont like Loki much. I think Loki is about stealth and cunning: more agility and less armor. Your version is too much Hardened Knight of Skyrim (cause, those horns....), and less the "right behind you" guy I picture. I think you Should give him more cloth, and less armor. But Thats just me :)

[Calayne]

To DAtilla:

 

Haha, very observant, regarding Frost. Yes, the hatchet is a little too broad to be fighting blade, but it doesn't look very impressive on paper if I had to draw one line for the axe's head. The thing to note is that the weapons are sometimes designed to adhere to the character, or what I think would be appropriate, as well as for aesthetics. 

 

In the case of Volt, he's actually using something that could categorically be classified as a sidesword, though he uses it more like a rapier, thus making it (primarily) a thrusting weapon. The dagger he uses is a stabbing/slashing weapon for close-quarters, and I'm sure you know the benefits of having an additional, shorter weapon, even if it performs the same function as the weapon in your main hand. 

 

Interesting point about Frost's shield, however. You're right that dueling shield tends to be fist-held, but it's also easier to lose in a battle, since all you need to do is to let go, and it will fall to the ground. Then again, it's also easier to break your hand if you strap it to your arm. I actually wanted Frost to have a tower shield, like the German's tear-drop shaped ones, but felt it was too long. So I settled on a slightly larger kite shield, which would still help fend off against many frontal attacks, allow shield-tackles, and around-the-shield attacks from your main hand.

 

Also, kite-shields are generally associated to knights *Cough cough* so I went with what was most aesthetically pleasing. There's really a lot of different ways to use either the centre-grip shield, or the forearm-strapped one, so in the end, it largely depends on your preference.

 

Loki's daggers are actually not throwing knives. He's just playing with it. He could throw it if he wants, like any weapon can be thrown, but it's his primary weapons, after he exhausts all his arrows. Seems rather Legolas-ish, come to think of it, but I rather like him as an unorthodox fighter: Quick on the draw, not the centre of attention, crafty and versatile. 

 

Good observation on Excalibur. Yes, it's definitely a long-sword, and he does have a dagger. He also has an arming sword, which may seem redundant, but it's the central theme of the character who's named after a sword. Though, arming swords tend to be far more nimble, so there are times when he'd choose to forsake one and pick the other, especially if you want to grapple someone.

 

Once more, thanks for your input. I can see you've put in a lot of time for that response. It's all pretty fantasy-like, though, so you'll have to forgive some inconsistencies for the sake of aesthetics. 

[Calayne]

That Excal is really great, and I think you got the essence of frost downright perfectly, as a heavy sword user.

However, I dont like Loki much. I think Loki is about stealth and cunning: more agility and less armor. Your version is too much Hardened Knight of Skyrim (cause, those horns....), and less the "right behind you" guy I picture. I think you Should give him more cloth, and less armor. But Thats just me :)

 

Actually, Frost is using a one-handed sword with his shield. :P

 

I designed all of the Ten'ou to match their expectations to enter into combat; As you can see, it's expected to be pretty often. All of them are armoured in one way or another, and Loki is actually one of the least armoured of them all. He doesn't have a breastplate, doesn't wear chain mail, but still has fore-arm guards, spaulders, and knee-pads. Even his boots have no armour. Basically, he's the scout of his Ten'ou cell, but even with his role, he expects to get into trouble. I would think that any kind of armour would be dearly welcomed, in a fight. 

 

Still, I think only his horns give that "Skyrim" feel. It's not a stereotype that I can easily break away from, considering how hugely popular it is, and the fact that the name "Loki" suggests something from the Nordic myths. Would be a shame to skip the horns just to avoid the tropes. 

[Calayne]

Here's two quick 30-minute sketches of the next two members of the team! Mag, and Rhino!

 

Mag: 

 

 

 

The sniper of the team. Travels light, and carries a rifle. Mag is the only person so far that carries anything resembling a gun. She's an excellent marksman, and is modeled after Swiss mercenaries! She's rumored to be such a good shot that she's never missed any target, at any range, so long as she can see them. But even if enemies come close, she's handy with her small sword, and she'll have a very nasty surprise waiting for any who come close enough to taste the sting of her blade.

 

And now... for Rhino! :

 

 

 

 

As his namesake suggests, Rhino wears a bronze helmet shaped like a Rhino. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lol nah. 

 

 

 

 

 

Rhino is an African warrior, famed for his fearsome might, and his reputation of what seems to be utterly impenetrable skin. Steel blades ricochet off his hide mysteriously, and his massive frame moves with such speed as to shock even the most careful of opponents. Massive hands and ankles thick like a tree suggests that his namesake is more than just a name his parents gave him at birth; It's a badge, given in honor, and worn with pride. 

[Calayne]

I realise I forgot to draw Rhino's weapons.

 

LoL!

 

He uses a massive spear and shield, and also carries with him a wooden club and dagger. But really, even if he's got nothing, he could rip almost anything in two and beat everyone around him to death with the halves of his enemy's corpse.

[MechaTails]

Mags is adoroburu lol

[Calayne]

Mags is adoroburu lol

 

Didn't want to detract too much from the original in that regard.  ;)

[Axeroix]

Love Rhino his look gives him a Heavily Armored feel but he doesnt look as if that is the only source of his strength

As someone who has successfully been able to transition from Traditional to digital media what Advise do you give for someone trying to make the transition

[Rhekinos]

They look great and I like the diversity. From crusaders to african warriors.

 

This is just my opinion but I don't think guns should be considered fantasy but that's just how I think XD

[Calayne]

They look great and I like the diversity. From crusaders to african warriors.

 

This is just my opinion but I don't think guns should be considered fantasy but that's just how I think XD

Oh, here's a hint: it's a fantasy only Mag can enjoy. Anyone else holds that rifle, it is simply a wood and iron club.

[Calayne]

Love Rhino his look gives him a Heavily Armored feel but he doesnt look as if that is the only source of his strength

As someone who has successfully been able to transition from Traditional to digital media what Advise do you give for someone trying to make the transition

Actually, I don't think I've "successfully" made that transition. But digital media is a lot easier in some ways. You can use layers as safety nets, amd you can play around with brushes and pen styles. Pretty easy to learn, but I'm like a kid with a new box of crayons.

It's just plain messy.

[Ionus]

Oh, here's a hint: it's a fantasy only Mag can enjoy. Anyone else holds that rifle, it is simply a wood and iron club.

Magnetic bullets?ಠ_ಠ

I love it!

[Aimop95]

I would shell out plat if DE asked to use your art work as skins.

[Autopanzer]

These are pretty awesome, keep em coming!

[RahuHordika]

I know that Oberon, Nekros and Zephyr might be the easiest ones to adapt, which makes me wonder why they haven't been done yet. Are you trying to surprise us?

'Cause I'm really hoping for some of dat mesoamerican Zephyr <3 (If you're going for that style that is)