[Warframe Concept] Artemis, The Archer (3-D Images + Development Timeline) (Critique Encouraged)

[DaganEldr]

Hello, fellow Tenno! Nice to see ya! Now, before we start, yes, I know that it's probably humorous that I'm writing this post during a devstream that revealed a little bit of a heads up about a certain something (if you missed it, my mouth is sealed)! ;)

 

For those who DO know/did hear (and know what I'm talking about):

I am totally aware of this, and won't lie, for the fact that it was revealed within the same week that I was set to finish my concept, I was a tinnnny bit discouraged, but no, it will not keep me from uploading this project! The show must go on, right?! So, on with the show!

 

 

 

I present to you not only my first Warframe concept, but my first Manga Studio project, Sculptris project, AND first Zbrush project as well, the Archer, Artemis! She's has been the main concept I've focused on creating for Warframe, and has been a steadily developed work of mine that I've been building on for roughly a year. It has been TEDIOUS, but I refused to quit. Between drawing out several rough concepts on paper, migrating to drawing her out digitally (2-D), reworking her digitally (2-D), and then migrating to 3-D, and reworking her features several times more WHILE working with a program I had absolutely no experience in, it was the first time I ever rage quit an art program, but with patience (and plenty of stubbornness), I prevailed! (Take THAT, evil Zbrush UI!)

 

When I say my concept started out as a sketch, I'm talking about what's in the spoiler tag below. In it you'll find MANY alternate versions that I constantly updated over time, eventually leading to what you will see at the base of this post. This spoiler tag is a 'development timeline', if you'll accept the terminology. And it's a very long spoiler box. You've been warned, BUT, if you want to see how the concept was born, I encourage you to check it out!

 

This is the original sketch that started it all:

 

 

 

Eventually, I looked at that concept, and went "What was I thinking?!" because it didn't really match up to Warframe's unique style in my eyes. I then moved on to sketch 2, focusing a bit more on a predatory/hunter look for the frame--something with an intimidation factor that you DEFINITELY wouldn't want to run into when you're alone (I know I wouldn't!):

 

 

 

 

While I liked that concept a bit more, it wasn't enough, and thus it was left unfinished. I needed to be able to constantly alter things I thought could be improved on the piece. I then stopped progress on this drawing, and moved on to digital 2-D, with a new physical concept worming its way into my brain meanwhile.

 

This is what came of that project:

 

 

(Yes, I'd cheat. In order to find a a good color combo, I took a screenshot of the picture and use color sliders until I found a color combo I liked. Hey, it works! You'll just have to excuse the oddly fashionable task bar and UI. :p)

 

 

 

With that concept, Artemis finally started to settle into a style that I found a bit more suitable for her theme. She not only had a bow (with energy string!), but still gave me the sneaky hunter/predatory feel that the earlier concept had.

 

HOWEVER, this STILL was not enough.

Being almost obnoxiously picky about detail, I needed to be able to view every angle of the frame. A flat, non-rotating sketch wouldn't give me that, so after building up some courage to face the complexities of 3-D rendering, a good friend directed me to a little 3D program by the name of Sculptris. I LOVED how simple it was. This is was the beginning of a new field of art for me, and I have Warframe to thank for the motivation and inspiration to delve into it (also for allowing me to meet said-friend that introduced me to this program)!

 

Before that derails into mushy 'thank you so much' stuff, I'll get back on track with mentioning that Sculptris allowed me to carve out the helmet concept that I made in the sketch prior, and with relative ease. But there was a problem....

 

What was this problem, you ask?

 

 

 

EW!

Yes, there were plenty of bumps in the road. The helmet looked so much better in 2-D than in 3-D, so of course, that meant it was time to rework the helmet once more. This is what it became:

 

 

 

I didn't necessarily think it looked 'bad', but after completing the full body, I realized that all the tiny details really threw off the balance of the frame's decor, and I still had trouble accepting it into her theme. Here is what I'm talking about:

 

 

This is the basic concept that anchored its way into the finished product for the most part. This is also where I made the daunting jump from Sculptris's simple UI, to Zbrush's Narnia of settings. Ack! Roadblock! This took most of my time, as it was a LOT of trial and error. And I mean a LOT. To start, my PC had a bit of trouble handling the render, so I was waiting 3 minutes for one brush stroke to process at first. Getting tired of that, I got brave and dipped into the settings, allowing it to run a lot more smoothly, but I still had to accomplish the task of learning how to work the UI. After a while, I'm proud to say I've gained a general knowledge of quite a bit pertaining to Zbrush.

ANYWAY, after reworking the helmet (for a.... fifth time?), I had finally settled on how she looked. Her overall persona is very assassin/rogue-like physically, in my opinion. Keeping this in mind, while working on the helmet, I started adding more details around the body. And sorry, the bow sitting on the arm like that? Nope, not happening.

 

The warframe eventually evolved into this:



100% satisfied. B)

From here on, it leads to things that could be put OUTSIDE of the tags, so this is where the spoiler tag stops!

Alright. Tossing aside the spoiler tags for the moment, we're getting into the final product.

And here she is (all those polys later)!

 

 

To start out, some close-ups showing a bit more of the detail:

 

 

 

If it's hard to see, the heel is a split wedge fashioned after deer hooves. Within the spoiler tag is an unpainted version for better visability, and a paint/sketch of deer hooves for comparison!

 

I want to emphasize that it is the heel, and heel only, not the entire foot. The front half of the foot was given more of a padded 'predator' style (while trying to retain the humanoid appearance). Fleeting as a deer, yet stealthy as a predator on the hunt.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now for a full view!

 

 

 

 

I do apologize for the quiality of the pictures. I may update this with some better ones if I can get fraps to not be stubborn.

Anyway, I'll take this moment to  explain a little about my inspiration for Artemis.

 

Theme Inspiration

 

As I would hope of a frame with more of a huntress/assassin theme, I envision this warframe as quick, sharp, and lethal. Imagine something of a venomous snake that has spotted prey, lying in wait silently, ready to strike at the first sign of vulnerability.

 

What is my inspiration for her name and design? Well (aside from the beginning concept), if you're familiar with your mythology, Artemis was known as the goddess of the wilderness and hunt. Her symbols, of course, were the moon, stag, and a silver bow and arrows. Her sacred animals ranged from hounds, to deer, to bears, to snakes. She was also known to have a pack of hunting dogs. Having various symbols to work with, I took full advantage of brainstorming on this between the time that I moved from pen and paper to sketch tablet and computer screen.

 

Bow/Quiver Functions

Now, being as I've attempted to implement this identity with the presented design, crossing this over with a Tenno, on the left wrist, I have made a dispenser-like quiver that creates energy arrows at the flick of her hand. The created arrow would then slip in-between her index finger and thumb, allowing for a quick nock and more practical aim/shot (or at least as much of one as I could get with this style). This is what I'm referring to (paper and tape to the example-rescue!):

 

I added the bow to her right arm. It attaches and unfolds at the wrist, and could be seen in the sense of a crossbow that unfolds when used, like so (and as with the quiver, excuse my attempt at a budget bow as I display an example of what I'm getting at):

And yes, for all of you curious archers out there that may read this, the concept frame I've made is technically left-handed with a bow. ;)



Stats And Abilties

Anyway, regarding her durability, I tend to look at it more along the lines of Loki. Archers aren't generally close-range fighters, and won't have much for armor. Considering this, a friend of mine took the chance to help me out with some durability/ability ideas, mentioned here (the following ideas for stats and abilities that are hilighted in red are all his):

Artemis;  shield and health medium, armor low, speed high.

Passive ability: reload speed doubled with bow weapons.  

Abilities 1) marksman stance (very fast toggle). Assume a kneeling posture. Cannot move but accuracy and critical hit chance of weapons is greatly improved  

2) Rain of feathers (duration on target location). Pull out energy-bow (or use bow in hand), shoot one arrow into the sky. At target location, a withering hail of arrows sleets down. Arrows do damage and enemies that are hit have a high chance to take impact status.   

3) Chase (duration buff on self)   While active, periodically create short lived decoy images as you run, or every time you jump or flip.  Decoys work like Saryn's, with shorter duration.  

4) The Hunt (duration summon). Summon 5 spectral dogs. Dogs do no damage, take no damage, have extremely high threat generation. Enemies that are "bitten" get confused, dogs can also "howl" to scare.


When it came to abilities, I had an especially rough time due to updates over the span of this concept's development. As with the physical design, I had to clean the slate and start over. Prior parkour 2.0, this frame had originally been based on a balance of offense, defense, mobility and support. The following abilities were some of the thoughts I had for a warframe based on the goddess of the wilderness:

 

Springfoot: Sends Artemis into (x) amount of leaps forward. If contact is made with anything, Artemis will 'ricochet', gaining substantial height on the jump, allowing for quick evasion, or access to higher grounds (which I would find suitable for archery, but this idea was developed prior parkour 2.0, which made it absolutely obsolete)!

Lunar Surge: Boosts ally defenses for a short time while increasing Artemis's agility (Okay, so that was probably a bit off-the-wall for an ability either way).

Feral Cry: Releases a piercing cry that shreds nearby enemy shields (this acts much like Phorid's cry, but I figured it would probably be weird since vocal-themed abilities are a bit more likened to Valkyr's style, and not a super sneaky ninja archer. :p)

Piercing Barrage: An energy arrow is shot into the air based on where the player is aiming. After it hits it's highest point, it bursts into a shower of many more arrows, picking away at any enemy unfortunate enough to be caught within it's range.

 

Another idea I had was an unnamed possibility that might have worked in a similar manner to Nova's Molecular Prime, but instead of slowing enemies, it would slightly slow projectiles. Enemies would continue at their normal pace. However, I have no knowledge as to whether or not something of this nature would even be possible script-wise.

 

 

Ability additions:

 

It was previously discussed that it would be interesting for her to have arrows that create a zip line as seen on page 2, but will not go into details for.... reasons! ;)

Well, that pretty much concludes what I have so far. I refused to let myself touch a backstory/questline, because for one, lore is still mostly a mystery.

There's also the fact that I'm a HUGE fan of the Stalker and would probably find some way to tie this frame's story to something related to everyone's favorite king of edge if I could, BUT that's another discussion. ;p *Coughmovingonnow*

And last but not least, thank you, friends.

 

If there is one thing I definitely can say, it's that I was not alone with the development of Artemis. While they respectfully go unnamed for privacy's sake, I want to thank each and every one of the friends that have endured the plethora of progress pictures, and pleas for critique, making sure I didn't miss even the slightest detail. I don't think Artemis would have turned out this way without your feedback, which means a LOT to me. Seriously, thank you. I can't say that enough.

 

Heh, well, I'm very happy that I've finally fiinished this this piece after working on it for so long. I think I've put more work into this concept than I have for many other things, and no matter what, at the very least, I hope you all enjoy what you see. :) Thank you very much for taking the time to check this out!

Edited November 17, 2015 by DaganEldr

[locojuan]

OMG. took you long enough daganeldr!! hahaha.

 

i need to congratulate you for your exceptional work, tenacity and dedication. i've seen your progress from early stages and what you have accomplished this far... well i must say it is, at the very least, inspiring. I can't wait to see what else you can do. Now more than ever with all that you have learned and the upcoming workshop.

 

Sooo.... Congratulations on a spectacular job!!

May this wonderful piece of art reach the office and blow some DE minds. i know it blew mine.

We are lucky to have you among our lines tenno. *deep bow*

Edited October 16, 2015 by locojuan

[--MZez--]

Very nice done! , please give it to me already, u get my upvote!

[AEP8FlyBoy]

Is this where the idea for the Archer Warframe depicted at NYCC came from?

Or... is this just something else? Either way, really cool concept.

I myself use Manga Studio for illustration and the like, it's really cool to see someone else using it and then taking that huge step over to 3-D via Z-Brush.

Very good work, DaganEldr. Very good indeed.

I'm quite impressed.

Edited October 16, 2015 by AEP8FlyBoy

[DaganEldr]

Is this where the Idea for the Archer Warframe depicted at NYCC came from?

I don't think so. I have been working on this a long time, and did share it to a few close contacts (in relation to Warframe), but unless that got passed on without my knowledge, I believe the concept shown at NYCC was all Mynki's design. I had to laugh at some of the slightly similar traits, though!

Haha!

(And as with your updated post, I will update mine as well)

 

Manga Studio is AMAZINGLY useful. I love how easy it makes it to shade pieces. :) I've been a fan of it for a while, as I've watched friends use it for school-related projects, but never sat down to give it a try myself. I was not disappointed!

 

And thank you very much. I'm quite glad you like it!. :)

Edited October 18, 2015 by DaganEldr

[AEP8FlyBoy]

I don't think so. I have been working on this a long time, and did share it to a few close contacts (in relation to Warframe), but unless that got passed on without my knowledge, I believe the concept shown at NYCC was all Mynki's design. I had to laugh at some of the slightly similar traits, though!

Haha!

I was wondering... Ha!

 

Just curious. :3

 

I do hope that they use the name Artemis for their side of this 'Archer Warframe' concept. It's a great name for a frame of this type, and lore like that is always good. :)

Edited October 16, 2015 by AEP8FlyBoy

[Draven_Luv]

There is so much dedication put into all of this, I seriously applaud you!!

 

I'm also glad you decided to post this even though the new archer warframe has been reviled. If anything, you should totally try out working with that whole new steam workshop they're going to release soon. 

[AEP8FlyBoy]

There is so much dedication put into all of this, I seriously applaud you!!

 

I'm also glad you decided to post this even though the new archer warframe has been reviled. If anything, you should totally try out working with that whole new steam workshop they're going to release soon. 

I totally agree.

Perhaps a skin for her?

[Rhekemi]

The design looks like it could be dropped right into Warframe without a hitch. I like the abilities overall, though they could use a bit more oomph...power...something. Perhaps more versatility, though her main role is a stealthy hunter/assassin, is what I'm looking for. She could use more stealth in her kit, I believe.

 

How about using her pack of dogs strategically? Hounds scare and flush out foxes (which seems to be the intended use in her abilities/the inspiration), they could do the same for her here. Maybe while they are active, and until Artemis fires or engages, her armor activates a kind of active, hunter's camouflage. The dogs can distract guards away from objectives, or chase and corner a target until Artemis can reach them and take target down. (This may require adding a set of commands for the pack. Four simple ones could be bound to the number keys: Distract. Corner. Flush (like hounds do for foxes in cover). Attack (the bite you mentioned).

 

But again, the design is the real wow-factor. The helmet, layering and color-scheme are highlights, as is the bow that's part of her armor/energy.

 

No matter what happens (and who knows what could happen?), congratulations on completing this, and thanks for sharing the journey. It's an inspiring feat.

 

Good job, and I look forward to what you do next.

Edited October 17, 2015 by Rhekemi

[Coatduck]

Oh my god. My brain is exploding I . . . This is incredible, please god let this be a skin for the archer

[FelisImpurrator]

The design is overall a bit strange, but NOT in a bad way - it's sort of alien-looking, with an aesthetic that's a bit different from the usual style of Warframe, and overall the effect is straight up badass - cool and mysterious. I can imagine this frame stalking prey through the jungles of Earth and looking all stylish while doing so (and being a Fashionframe aficionado, stylish is a huge deal for me).

 

Ability set could use a bit of tweaking from the quick skim-read I've had, but I would love this as a skin for the Archer - or if her final kit doesn't quite line up well enough, maybe somewhere down the line a little rework as a different sort of Huntress, with a greater focus on the Dogs of War (also, yes, I'm calling them that now, and one ability must be called "Cry Havoc"!)

 

Also, thanks to LocoJuan for linking me this thread, awesome sort of thing to wake up to.

Edited October 17, 2015 by FelisImpurrator

[Hydroxate]

Awesome work Dagan! The colours tie into her theme perfectly! 

 

The energy quiver would need to be a bit closer to her palms so the arrow would actually clip into the string and be near her eye when she's firing but otherwise it's perfect!

[Goddo]

So much Greek frames.

With Greek names.

[xBomber]

I gotta say the first thought that came to me when i saw this was "This is F*ckin Awesome". The final product is a bit different from how i would imagine an archer warframe to look like but it doesn't change the fact that it looks amazing. If it ends up being a skin, ill buy it no matter the cost. Also, your hair looks flippin amazing p.p/

[DaganEldr]

Wow... Thank you so much for all of the great responses! I appreciate it very much. I'll respond to each comment when I manage to get the time. :)

 

As an update, because the poly count is so high, I'm going to go back in and see if I can obliterate some unneeded polygons. Let's be honest here... That final number is insane! On the bright side now, for the the fact that this was my first project, it taught me to be very mindful of the polycount! I'll make a point in the future to avoid such crazy numbers ever again. :)

 

 

Edit: And I MAY or may not be working on an alternate helmet idea. ;)

Edited October 18, 2015 by DaganEldr

[FelisImpurrator]

Also, for the record: Seconding the love for your hair. And also for outfit in general.

 

Now that I think about it, this would be a perfect Steam Workshop candidate... if only they'd add the Archer to it.

[DaganEldr]

OMG. took you long enough daganeldr!! hahaha.

 

i need to congratulate you for your exceptional work, tenacity and dedication. i've seen your progress from early stages and what you have accomplished this far... well i must say it is, at the very least, inspiring. I can't wait to see what else you can do. Now more than ever with all that you have learned and the upcoming workshop.

 

Sooo.... Congratulations on a spectacular job!!

May this wonderful piece of art reach the office and blow some DE minds. i know it blew mine.

We are lucky to have you among our lines tenno. *deep bow*

Yeah, I know, it took me quite a while! Haha. Maybe now that I understand these programs a bit more, it won't take me as long as it did before. And trust me, I'll be putting that to the test with some weapon concepts and other ideas I have!

But honestly, you're one of the people that I owe a tremendous amount of thanks. To think I would have settled on that crazy green and the other weird helmet style if you hadn't helped me out there. That's a scary thought! :p

 

Whether DE sees it or not, it was a very long, but fun road to learn. Making this concept taught me a lot of things. :)

Anyway, thank you. I know it would not have come out this way if there weren't awesome people like you to help me out with it!

[FallenWolfJ]

Wow Dagan!
This is truly an amazing concept, the final colors work rather well, and the overall design is such a change from the first sketch. 
It simply shows how hard and long you've worked on this and that shows true dedication. 
 Thank You for sharing this master piece with the Community. 
It truly looks Amazing. 

I think the Gifs to show how the quiver and Bow function were also a very nice touch. 

Even if the DE's Do not see this, and even if it doesn't become a skin automatically, When that workshop comes out, this needs to be one of the first things on there, and you know for a fact, I'll Definitely be purchasing it.

Great Job, Dagan. 
Proud of you and Congrats, Keep up the great work! 
:P 

[BaSiLB]

MZez brought me here i gotta say u have a very nice concept of the archer well done ;)

[(PSN)Crackle2012]

Amazing!  I love it!  The design is really good and you can tell that alot of thought went into it as well as the abilities.  All my yessss to the rain of arrows!!!  :-)  (I really hope the Archer coming to the actual game has a rain of arrows ability - or atleast a barrage arrow shot of some sort!  )

 

Love the energy quiver attached to the wrist as well!.

 

I had thought of sort of a beastlord type frame at one point (while laying in bed, rofl)  but yeah..  it was just a thought.  To see that this is a mix between archer / spectral beast summoner is really cool as well!! :-)

 

I like to think that some of the older frames have male/female similarities as far as "looks"  (IE. Excalibur and Nyx for sure)  also, to me Saryn has always looked like Rhino's counterpart.  This -- if I had to pick one.. with the Deer Hooves as inspiration and everything -- would be Oberon's Counterpart which is really awesome as they both have the Earthy / Forest lurker / Druid / Archer theme going on!

 

Awesome Job DaganEldr!!!  

[Burntoutt]

This is really good and I can see a lot of effort has been put into this so mad respect for that. a pity about the timing haha but maybe de can still get some ideas from this in some way

[(PSN)TrollyThyTrinity]

impressive i always wanted an artemis

[DaganEldr]

Very nice done! , please give it to me already, u get my upvote!

Haha, thank you! I would give it to you if I could, but ultimately, I think we all know the real decision would ultimately be up to DE (though I definitely wouldn't complain if they used it!)

But even if after almost an entire year of work, it doesn't make it, it's still almost an entire year of experience that I can use to get even better at this.

 

And even if this does not seem like a successful concept/design to DE, I am still glad that the community seems to like it. That makes it worth it to me. I consider this concept as a 'thank you' gift to both DE and the community for being so amazing, so ultimately, I'm just happy that I can finally allow everyone to see it.

[seniledark]

Awesome work man

[Q-Nel-974]

Nice job !!!!!!!!!!!!!