In general, I need a face/costume in mind before I write an NPC (portrait sharing)

Black Vulmea · April 20, 2017, 11:30:12 AM

Quote from: Dumarest;958376Do you use any if those little origami ships they made (or maybe still make)? I have abouf a dozen waiting for a pirate-type game.

No, never did.

Shipyard Locked · April 20, 2017, 01:32:27 PM

Quote from: ArtemisAlphaI've been using Obsidian Portal to host a number of my campaigns recently, and I've gotten a bit addicted to finding character images for all of the various NPCs that the PCs encounter. Here's an example, for my ongoing Shadows of Esteren Campaign:

Cool. Do you have any method for finding what you need, or is it just memory and haphazard google searches?

Quote from: Black Vulmea;958374I like some of April Lee's work, but I wasn't able to use much of it for my campaign - 7th Sea looks more like the English Restoration, about fifty years later than my Flashing Blades campaign, so the styles were wrong for the period in which we were playing.

What do you think of William O'Connor? I liked his earlier work, but some time around 4th edition D&D I feel he got too slick and lost something.

Nexus · April 20, 2017, 01:35:47 PM

Quote from: Shipyard Locked;958368I'm hesitant to actually show NPC portraits to players, as I feel my groups would mostly be distracted by trying to figure out their source. I mainly use them as a personal mnemonic - once I see a portrait I used to generate an NPC, I remember all the details I wrote for them.

I'm just the opposite, I love having illustrations for NPC, objects and scenes. But I like to generate a clear mental image of what the world around the player characters is like as I consider myself there senses. And I've found it saves time when everyone is close as possible to the same page. It just makes things more fun, IMO and one of best boons of the internet. I've tons of stuff now.

Black Vulmea · April 20, 2017, 01:43:27 PM

Quote from: Shipyard Locked;958390I liked [William O'Connor's] earlier work, but some time around 4th edition D&D I feel he got too slick and lost something.

I agree.

RPGPundit · April 23, 2017, 10:37:02 PM

I really find it odd to use anime video-game style headshots as the visual inspiration for NPCs...

Dr. Ink'n'stain · April 24, 2017, 09:49:10 AM

I recently discovered Pinterest, and have been using it to collect character and environment visuals for various games I'm interested in, currently D&D, Traveller and Würm. Lots of chaff to filter through, though. And I wish it would top offering me pics I've already pinned.

Just for characters, one easy way would be just google for 'Baldur's Gate portraits' or 'Neverwinter Nights portraits'. Lots of fan-made stuff thataway.

Shipyard Locked · April 24, 2017, 01:01:07 PM

Quote from: Dr. Ink'n'stain;959124Just for characters, one easy way would be just google for 'Baldur's Gate portraits' or 'Neverwinter Nights portraits'. Lots of fan-made stuff thataway.

Yes, those are pretty sweet. I've made good use of them, but they do tend to lean toward badass when sometimes you want something more humble or restrained.

Quote from: RPGPunditI really find it odd to use anime video-game style headshots as the visual inspiration for NPCs...

I suppose it depends on the style of the game. I wouldn't find them appropriate for a historical campaign or Warhammer Fantasy, but as far as I'm concerned they fit right into the generic D&D aesthetic.

Nexus · April 24, 2017, 01:43:16 PM

Finding art that fits the tone you want can be a chore.

RPGPundit · May 01, 2017, 10:56:05 PM

The only times I do something like this is when I'm running Amber/Lords-of-Olympus. There, I will scour random sites of fantasy-themed art for character images that look interesting and pluck them out as needed for characters; sometimes I'll have a character in mind and then pick the image to go with it, and other times the art itself will inspire the character.