Stalker's concept ideas

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 12:42 pm

Because I can't call it art. Well basically I have tons of ideas in my head but due to my unability to draw and lack of pencil or eraser in my nearby vicinity to even try to I'm going to do it in Photoshop hoping that if idea is good it will be drawn by somebody skilled.

Anyway here goes the first one:
[url=http://img62.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bouncer5fj.jpg][img]http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/3558/bouncer5fj.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Codename: Bouncer
Populates Alik'r. Non-agressive. Never attacks or moves. He feeds on dew. He has one thing for self-defense - when somebody or something steps on his he sends it aiborne by by "arching" himself. The effect is somewhat simular to those organic jumppads found in Xen in HL1.

PoHa! · Post by **PoHa!** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 3:07 pm

That's a great idea, Stalker, or so I choose to believe.

Would be quite a surprise to be walking through the desert, (or better yet, chased through the desert) and suddenly spring up into the air. Well, if that's what you had in mind, of course.

Makes me want to draw it... I'll have to see if I can get that blasted scanner to work

[edit] ... and my scanner works now... drawing commencing![/edit]

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 3:16 pm

Well yes, the main idea is that it stays concealed until you (or somebody else) steps on it. Makes the desert even funner at night with its snakes and scorpions.

For those who are worried about tech side - I can make it on MW engine with some smart scripting (invisible platform) so it won't be a problem.

Adanorcil · Post by **Adanorcil** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 5:12 pm

Stalker wrote:Because I can't call it art. Well basically I have tons of ideas in my head but due to my unability to draw and lack of pencil or eraser in my nearby vicinity to even try to I'm going to do it in Photoshop hoping that if idea is good it will be drawn by somebody skilled.

Anyway here goes the first one:
[url=http://img62.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bouncer5fj.jpg][img]http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/3558/bouncer5fj.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Codename: Bouncer
Populates Alik'r. Non-agressive. Never attacks or moves. He feeds on dew. He has one thing for self-defense - when somebody or something steps on his he sends it aiborne by by "arching" himself. The effect is somewhat simular to those organic jumppads found in Xen in HL1.

It feeds on dew. Now where have I heard that before?

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 5:19 pm

English vocabulary ? :p

Silverwood · Post by **Silverwood** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 7:58 pm

Is it large like a basketball, or is it sort of small, like an enlarged version of a protis or something? It seems to have the basic look of a bacteria or monera, sort of like a volvox.

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 8:23 pm

It is topdown view. Basically it's flat and very thin. And a bit Y-like shaped. PoHa! is drawing a better sketch currently.

PoHa! · Post by **PoHa!** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 8:37 pm

A better sketch? How can you tell without seeing it yet? It might be completely different from what you had in mind... hmm... maybe I should show you what I've come up with, eh?

Side view:

[url=http://img519.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bouncerconceptside1gt.jpg][img]http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/7912/bouncerconceptside1gt.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Top view:

[url=http://img374.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bouncerconcepttop3zw.jpg][img]http://img374.imageshack.us/img374/954/bouncerconcepttop3zw.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Survey says?

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 8:48 pm

I love it ! The only thing is the part which is supposed to be above the ground is waay smaller because it'll be harder to arch and bounce something as heavy as the player with this huge blob underneath of you

Of course ingame it will be more flat actually blending with the landscape that it's shown on side view but PoHa got the general idea right.

Morgoth · Post by **Morgoth** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 8:51 pm

Survey says great art, but I was thinking it would be flatter. More like, if you took a dinner-plate, placed it on the floor, and turned it upsidedown. That sort of shape. Just guessing, of course.

PoHa! · Post by **PoHa!** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 8:59 pm

Hmm... an upside-down dinner plate? That wouldn't be very good for gathering water towards the pores in the center... unless I've misread something?

But indeed, the side view of the bouncer would definately need to be "flattened" so to speak... I might see what I can do with it in Photoshop.

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 9:13 pm

Yeah, it'll be flatter. More like a flat plate or something to that extent.

Asylum · Post by **Asylum** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 10:08 pm

i love it

what sort of materials is it made off, hard / soft,
and what colours does it have?

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 10:13 pm

It tries to disguise itself so the colour would be sand-like. Materials - hard for claws and veins and soft for membranes and central part.

Lutemoth · Post by **Lutemoth** » Mon Jan 23, 2006 11:31 pm

That is just too awesome, Stalker! Would it avoid sun radiation with a clear membrane skin, or is it's surface thin enough not to be effected by water-loss? Stuff like this pushes me to apply more oddity in animal creation. I can't wait to see more ideas

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Tue Jan 24, 2006 12:12 am

Well his membranes apart from being very durable only serve to send the water down to the center.

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Wed Jan 25, 2006 6:30 pm

Another un-art from me. The pinnacle of uglyness ! No man has ever done something looking so lame ! But at least I never claimed to be able to draw either

Especially with a mouse.
[url=http://img84.imageshack.us/my.php?image=tentacle1nn.jpg][img]http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/7682/tentacle1nn.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Codename: Tentacle

It looks just like a regular rock in the desert. But this "rock" is actualy soft thingie covered with sensors (mainly for smelling stuff). When you get close the rock splits to uncover the tentacles itself which will attack you with that scorpion-like claw on the back to paralyze and poison you and when you'll die it'll happily such the blood outta ya (that's what it feeds on). The size, shape and any other parameter of the rest of the body underground is not really matters because you won't see him wandering around.
As Morgoth said when you're in the desert and see some dead bodies - watch out !

He also wanted to turn it into actual concept art so I'll reserve the right for him now.

Gez · Post by **Gez** » Wed Jan 25, 2006 8:22 pm

Reminds me of the [url=http://82.110.105.16/adventuresgate.com/images/news/roper.jpg]Roper[/url] from D&D.

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Wed Jan 25, 2006 8:32 pm

Looks nothing like him if you ask me :\

Morgoth · Post by **Morgoth** » Wed Jan 25, 2006 8:40 pm

Sure, thanks Stalker, I'll get right on it. Great idea, as was said before.

Also, will any part of the tentacle or sting be of value or alchemical use?

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Wed Jan 25, 2006 8:49 pm

I guess either his sting (finally remembered the word) or a piece of his flesh.

Resadyn · Post by **Resadyn** » Wed Jan 25, 2006 11:31 pm

Holy Crap stalker! If these all get implented you reaaaaaaly have to watch where you step in the desert!

Adanorcil · Post by **Adanorcil** » Thu Jan 26, 2006 8:41 pm

Here's one of my own designs for a more plant-like version. It would probably grow in a vale between hills or dunes. On this picture, you only see one branch of roots, but it sprouts roots all around. Most other info is on the picture.

[url]http://www.maj.com/gallery/Vahiku/Avatars/hammerfell0003.jpg[/url]

Morgoth · Post by **Morgoth** » Thu Jan 26, 2006 8:44 pm

Wow, that's a well thought-out design. Could you draw a top veiw?

Mr. Sorry of Balmora · Thu Jan 26, 2006 9:46 pm

so Stalker you first one is that supposed to be like a huge sand dollar? looks alot like one to me....

anyway if it is the movement should not be for it to just "spring up" but the sides "shoot up" encasing the poor victem inside kinda like an upside down starfish and then munch on the person, or anamal since were working with OB.

Macar · Post by **Macar** » Thu Jan 26, 2006 10:17 pm

My question is how bouncer avoids getting burried in sand. But then again that gets me wondering how desert plants do it.

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Thu Jan 26, 2006 10:30 pm

He bounces the sand off him. That's why he has bouncing feature anyway. To bounce.

Morgoth · Post by **Morgoth** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 2:36 am

Stalker wrote:He bounces the sand off him. That's why he has bouncing feature anyway. To bounce.

I'm sigging that.

Lutemoth · Post by **Lutemoth** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 4:56 am

And, as it would be a waste of valuable energy to shake off sand every other minute, it would develop stronger motor skills to propel larger amounts of sand (perhaps after a storm ) when it measures and detects too much weight. Hence, after thousands of years of adaptation, it would have the inadvertant strength to launch an adult man/mer. Certainly a speciment that blurs the definitive line between flora and fauna

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 10:19 am

Yeah, but I planned him as fauna actually, not flora.

Adanorcil · Post by **Adanorcil** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 11:27 am

Lutemoth wrote:And, as it would be a waste of valuable energy to shake off sand every other minute, it would develop stronger motor skills to propel larger amounts of sand (perhaps after a storm ) when it measures and detects too much weight. Hence, after thousands of years of adaptation, it would have the inadvertant strength to launch an adult man/mer. Certainly a speciment that blurs the definitive line between flora and fauna

Yes, it was my original idea to have it shake of sand and other objects (like people). The fibres connecting the membrane to the "center" would show a kind of automatic loosening reflex when there is too much weight on the membrane or a sudden increase of pressure.

I think the step from fauna to flora is not very hard to make. On the other hand, creatures that do not move in the desert are doomed anyway. Sustaining nerve systems and organs and who knows what requires great amounts of water and nutrition. Apart from some plants, I think autotrophic organisms are very rare in the desert. So, all the possible biological categories this organism could belong to would be:

- animal, though with a very strange and uncharacteristic look for an animal, plus it never moves.

- plant: read above

more specific:

- lichen: Though very big and very complex for your average lichen.

- Two symbiotic organisms: I wouldn't know which is which though.

Macar · Post by **Macar** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 3:31 pm

maybe it could be burried in the day but shake the sand off at night. That would protect it from the sun. I dont know about implimenting that, though.

Mr. Sorry of Balmora · Fri Jan 27, 2006 3:42 pm

do you know how strange that would be Macar being in the middle of the desert at sundown an these things just jump up all around to keep sand off at night?

sand, like snow, its a natural insulation.

The thing keeps cool under the sand in the day but warm in the freazing night of the desert.

Macar · Post by **Macar** » Fri Jan 27, 2006 5:53 pm

well it has to come out of the sand at some point or it cant collect dew. I figured it could come out at night and be ready to collect dew at dawn. But anyhow, I think this deviates from stalker's orignal vision.

PS. All this talk of dew makes me think of stalker's "dewmer" -the slight moisture elves. ROTFL

Adanorcil · Post by **Adanorcil** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 11:14 am

A thin layer of sand should be enough to still allow sunlight to shine through and at the same time camouflage it. If we are talking about a plant after all, it would require sunlight to do photosynthesis. If not, the membrane itself could be the color of the sand. I don't think they should so well camouflaged they can not be seen though. Being invisible to most animals and to unexperienced travelers would be more than enough in my opinion. I would imagine an inhabitant of the Alik'r would be able to spot them without trouble.

"Lucius, I don't think you will want to put your bedroll over there."

-"Why not?"

"Trust me. You don't want to do that."

do you know how strange that would be Macar being in the middle of the desert at sundown an these things just jump up all around to keep sand off at night?

It would make a rather interesting spectacle, in my opinion.

Stalker · Post by **Stalker** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 11:31 am

Well if you have tech point in mind it'll be impossible to put sand over him ingame. But I guess shaking the sand at the dawn could be made as a special animation because it will be really a spectacular view.

PoHa! · Post by **PoHa!** » Wed Feb 01, 2006 3:52 pm

Hey, I nearly forgot about this, until Stalker updated the concept art section...

I did a quick top down color of it in photoshop... something about it, I don't quite like, but I'll let you be the judge.

[url=http://img99.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bouncertopps6ez.jpg][img]http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/2882/bouncertopps6ez.th.jpg[/img][/url]

Adanorcil · Post by **Adanorcil** » Thu Feb 02, 2006 4:26 pm

That would be close to what I imagined, but I would say the light parts are above the actual roots. But that's just my idea.

Mr. Sorry of Balmora · Thu Feb 02, 2006 5:23 pm

Stalker wrote:Well if you have tech point in mind it'll be impossible to put sand over him ingame. But I guess shaking the sand at the dawn could be made as a special animation because it will be really a spectacular view.

see dawn in the deasert is a diffrent story than night, so i agree with Stalker

***The sun starts to rise in the Alik'r desert. A lone traveler wanders about looking for the nearest town when suddenly POP! POP! POP! the things spring up all around the traveler. The traveler is stuned and awed at the magnificence of these creatures that the traveler rests 23 hours just to see if the event will occur agian and guess what, It Does!!!!

Andres Indoril · Post by **Andres Indoril** » Thu Feb 02, 2006 5:27 pm

These concepts are really nice...

I personnally hope there will be the forcejump command in Oblivion's Cs too and this time it will work on creatures too...

I think that the bouncing creature would need that...

Tamriel Rebuilt

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