Character design

[lemonschtic]

Hey guys! I've been lurking around the forums for a while and I think I'm finally ready to get slandered
I made a design for the main character in a possible rpg game. I was aiming for something simple and memorable. She's a fearless frontliner who fights by sending wind power through her hammer.
I'd love to hear your suggestions on her design! Thanks for reading

[TinyBird]

Well, she does have clear and memorable elements to her, but you might risk her becoming a pale blob while posing, as there's little to differentiate her hands from her clothes for example (you know, if he's posing so that her clothes and hands overlap and they're both almost white), especially if you are thinking of 3D models. Also I can get if she's brave and powerful, but her overall appearance is pretty frail on all accounts. Even the hammer (which I mistook for a flag) has a handle so thin it looks like it can be broken with a snap, if she has powerful magic and channels it through her hammer, then I'd say in this propose the hammer should look powerful too.
Also considering you have established the spiral motif in the hair, I wouldn't say no if you tried expanding it further in the design (after all it can symbolize whirlwinds/tornadoes).

Also I'd check the pose/anatomy, it looks awkward for her to have her knees bend like that, and her feet are so small (and the shoes shaped so oddly) that I'm not sure if she's standing on her toes or something.

[lemonschtic]

Thanks for the reply, TinyBird! You're totally right about the paleness - I'm planning for it to be a 2D game actually, but nonetheless it's something I've been struggling with. The biggest issue is that I'm having trouble making changes to her outfit. I tried just changing her dress color, but everything other than white looks strange. I also sketched out some alternates; I like some of them, but at the same time I really want to refrain from cluttering up her outfit. My inspiration is Laharl from Disgaea - super simple, but instantly identificable. I think I just need some fresh input because I've been fixated on this dress shape for too long ಠ_ಠ
I agree on the hammer as well - I made it bigger and the handle thicker. I think it's okay for her to be skinny in comparison though, because I was going for a small-girl-with-giant-weapon motif.
Thanks for pointing out the issue with her knees. It's a pretty awkward stance in general and I'm definitely planning to redo it as soon as I finalize her outfit.

[lemonschtic]

The more I work on this, the more it feels like I'm just throwing random elements together.
I wonder if simple black sleeves would solve the problem D:

I also went ahead with a pose for a new reference picture anyway. Is it strong enough?

[LightspeedChump]

Hi, I would just say that composition wise you should give the background a darker tone so it frames your character a little better, or even give her a darker costume. I agree with the first replier though, it is a very refreshing design.

[lemonschtic]

Thank you! Yeah, putting her against a light blue background probably wasn't a good idea
I think I finally have something acceptable, though I'm still iffy on colors. I was stuck because I was just afraid to try something new. How about this one?

[EagleGrove]

Just wanted to point out that her arms are way too long in those thumbnails. Her fingertips would reach her knees. That being said, I quite like the last one, especially the green one. I would still like to see more repeating elements in the dress and the hammer to combine them, like a pattern. The clothes are rather uniform (in a good way), but the hammer looks like something she found in a native american crow tribe smithy (to me, at least). How about you try a total redesign of the hammer using the elements used in the clothes (red dots, rhombi, wing shoulder guard, green)? Since you're imagining a 2D game, the hammer doesn't need to be too complex, it's better to have a nice general shape than a lot of small details. Look at Laharl - what makes you instantly recognize him is the big red scarf and the two blue hair antennae. They aren't very complex, but still defining.

Keep in mind that these are just suggestions

[Elwell]

It's not that her arms are too long, it's that her torso is too small.
Also, you've commented on the randomness of the design elements, but the one thing that hasn't changed through every iteration is those lace-trimmed bike shorts, which seem to me like the most arbitrary, non-character dictated detail of all.

[lemonschtic]

Thanks for catching me on the arms/torso; I have a bad tendency of doing that. I made a more detailed reference of her outfit and hopefully fixed that problem.

EagleGrove, it's funny that you mentioned the likeness of the hammer, because I was deliberately preventing them from being too similar. I wanted them to share a few of the same elements, but overall be separate entities, because otherwise neither of them would stick out. I completely agree about simplifying it though - I'll post some ideas on a new hammer soon!

Elwell, the shorts were designed for ease of movement, but the lace was an artifact of my silliness. They were meant to add some detail/cute, but I guess it doesn't go further than that

[Eldinga]

I get that it's a preliminary color sheme, but I don't really like what I see. There is too many details for the eyes to rest on. You've got a paleskinned character wearing black, and you've got extremely cold colors (greens and, in this case, yellow) clashing with extremely warm colors(red and orange). White-contra-black and red-contra-green are not necessarily bad concepts on their own, but do keep an eye open for when you clutch these things together.

Go back and check that image of Laharl again. You'll notice that he will have colors of a relatively small color spectrum, namely blues, reds and purples (all colors athat are 'related': if you mix blue and red,purple is what you are going to get). In fact, that is a feature that nearly all Disgaea character I know of share with each other.

If you want to go with this design, I would suggest making her outfit much lighter in color. You've got a lot of opposite-colors here. I would tone them down to a primary oppositesclash (like the red and green for example) and then perhaps have some more muted colors such as the orange and yellows. I think you should decide whether this character should have a cold or warm 'base' and have the details clash with that rather than the major features.

[Velocity Kendall]

i think your getting good advice and doing well!

maybe it would help to vocalise what her character is about, like who is she, wheres she going, what are her motivations and history.. plus it would help us make suggestions that might help you further represent those things in her design. OK so shes 'She's a fearless frontliner who fights by sending wind power through her hammer. ' cool, but is she rich or poor, fashionable or nerdy, city girl or hayseed, smart or dumb, patient or impulsive, fast or slow, greedy or selfless, etc. how do they combine to form the outard expression of her character.
and if youre shy, dont write it here but think it through yourself, i know shes your character and youve been thinking about her for ages, but outlining her role in the game in clear terms should help calrify your thoughts and help you focus on what you need to do and show. is she a playe character or just a computer drone? can she power up? can she turn evil?
good luck and keep pushing!

[lemonschtic]

Thanks so much for the advice, guys! Sorry I disappeared, was drowning in finals earlier.

You're absolutely right about the color contrast. I think I just have a bad color sense, because I get drawn toward strange and obnoxious color schemes.
I played around with the colors too long and now I don't know if any of them are good D:
Also, tried out some alternate designs for the hammer. I still like the original, but maybe it's just me being too attached to that design.

Well, I am a shy person, but not about describing my character! Her name is Perplexi - she's the unofficial captain of this pirate-like ragtag nomad clan, and they travel around on various adventures. She's totally reckless and loves to throw her clan into exciting and dangerous situations. She has a big heart, likes to help people, and trusts her friends in battle. She's a live-for-today kind of person, so she doesn't like to think too hard. She doesn't have much of a fashion sense, but she wishes she were more girly ... ? Her hammer is good for area of effect damage and is also pretty fast (for a hammer) but her precision is mediocre. She excels at wind magic attacks. And yep, she's totally playable. The game will be a tactical strategy game.

[self-epidemic]

Maybe you should look at Windrunner in Dota 2, she has similar colours to your newest design

[lemonschtic]

Thanks, self-epidemic! Although she's not as pale, maybe black isn't so terrible after all?

Well, I've run into a bit of a readability issue. I tried pixelling the new outfit and the crossing fabrics didn't come out very well, even after taking out the beads. I wouldn't mind as much usually, but she is the main character But having the original dress in green doesn't seem like such a bad idea now.

[Eldinga]

Personally, I like that sprite. The concept art looked a bit cluttered, while the sprite looks... well, clean. It will be difficult to get any additional details into a sprite of that size.

Don't forget that if you plan to add a hammer to that sprite, you will have a character that have more than enough detail.