C.O.W. - #057: Secret Of The Bermuda Triangle

**_Urchin_** · August 17th, 2006, 09:52 PM

Ack! That's kinda what I thought too. I guess I'll work it for this piece but an interesting side discussion might be what makes things look scarey? I don't seem to have a grasp on this. I did do something for the orange sea leviathan but abandoned it cause "leviathan" to me says scarey, and mine just looked like you would give it a treat and rub its belly.
I even tried a zombie once but it just looked like it was in the throes of uproarious laughter instead of screaming like was intended. AAGH!

**Simon Boxer** · August 17th, 2006, 10:28 PM

Originally Posted by Stephan_R

See, it is a "wip" because I added little tendrils by the face

hah, now I'm seeing French creatures with long, twirly moustaches.

**Moai** · August 17th, 2006, 10:42 PM

Since you guilted me with your "aww", Ninth, maybe I will do something. It turns out I do have a speck of free time, so I'll give it a shot. Don't expect something jaw-dropping, though. I'm still a beginner in photoshop. And I'm using a mouse.
I'm abandoning my dimensional-breacher idea. I'd imagined something bursting into this dimension, unleashing EMPs and gamma waves and generally causing all hell to break loose for any human technology in the area, but it just never came together in my head. Now I'm thinking of a quasi-intelligent something that communicates with telepathy. This telepathy overpowers any humans nearby (us weak-minded creatures) and causes them to loose their minds. Not a good thing to do when flying an airplane.
I'll see what I can do.

PS- Cognition.sb, here's the thing I drew that I thought was kinda similar to your idea. However, looking at them side by side, I think that they're different enough for me to pursue this idea. Plus, I don't think mines going to be jumping out of the water at planes any time soon.

**Ninth** · August 17th, 2006, 10:49 PM

@Urchin: What makes things scary? Alien qualities, for one. If something looks unreal and impossible it's bound to trigger a fear response, since we humans are naturally afraid of what we do not understand.

Your creature has a seahorse tail, turtle/whale flippers and a disgruntled fish face, so it's all familiar. And in addition, it's round and pudgy. So therefore I feel at ease looking at it. On the other hand, brokk's concept creeps the crap out of me since those things look so... augh. Creepy.

It's an interesting topic, and if anyone else wants to jump in, please do!

@Maoi: Bwahahahah.

**Simon Boxer** · August 18th, 2006, 01:22 AM

Originally Posted by Ninth

@Urchin: What makes things scary? Alien qualities, for one. If something looks unreal and impossible it's bound to trigger a fear response, since we humans are naturally afraid of what we do not understand.

Mutations, too... I find the scariest things are super-agile and have human elements. Malnourished things, creatures that look like they're in pain when they move, and things that look contagious. If something's scary enough it should make gamers run back (not just because it looks stronger), hesitant to use melee.

Leaving parts to the imagination makes them scarier. If you know something's looming around, but can't give it a solid identity.

These are my views on the epitome of 'scary', however not all can be applied to creature design without making a humanoid.

**KaWaii** · August 18th, 2006, 07:52 AM

Alright, my comments so far (don't hate me):

Supervlieg: Nice start, what can I say more? lol. Can a ship really break like that?

Michael Jaeks: I like your new concept, just wondering how the worms can get their feets on a plane. Also, can they kill a plane fast enough before it leaves the area? I'm really looking forward to see what you'll do

Xplode: Woa, you chosed quite a hard scene for your first time. Drawing stuff above the sea and underwater in the same piece is hard. Furthermore, I think the monster still looks kinda flat. If you look carefully, it looks like a page of a book. Go for it hehe

Brokk: Nice work so far, like the creature and your wip, it's cute

, keep it up XD

Moai, Chuck Wadey, Urchin, MegaDublitably & HugeHarHar: Not very far, still need to see more to give comment.

Jtho: Nice start for your first time, looking forward to see the Final.

Cognition.sb: Woooo, nice wip, definetly the most scary creature till now.

Blue_Tiger: Indeed 100% the most funny creature(s) till now

Bruce Jensen: Most cutest creature omg ! Wanna hug it XD

Cloister: Quite nice so far hehe. Btw is it me or what? The male looks A LOT more chubby then the "sketch" version :/

Ninth: Looking good, but it's so small, make it bigger?

I still can't see the creature though :/

Stephan R: It's great

. What can I say? I want to try eating one of those hehehe... looks tasty to me

**Simon Boxer** · August 18th, 2006, 08:12 AM

Cheers, I actually decided to work on a new entry. I've added it to my first post.

People (myself included) seem to like my spontaneous work more, but the 2nd entry's more refined. The concept's definately an improvement... Might still tweak stuff though.

Open to crits.

**Michael Jaecks** · August 18th, 2006, 12:26 PM

I updated, but I'll probably still tweak it a bit before the deadline. I think I've started to answer your questions, Kawaii. Though I've yet to finish the wording of the actual description. More before then end.

**Bruce Jensen** · August 18th, 2006, 01:09 PM

Thanks for the kind words about my leviathan sketch. I'm glad it gave off the right vibe. Ninth nailed it. Here was some reference I assembled to keep me on target:

I gave up on it though because the creature design itself really wasn't working for me. It just wasn't distinctive enough. (btw- I posted in an attempt at humor fearing a landslide of sea monsters this week. Glad to see that was unnecessary)

I like the new entry a lot cognition.sb. I can see what you mean about the freshness of the 'paint' in the 1st- but I think you're doing the right thing moving on. Digital painting makes it easy to do all kind of cool 'loose' effects, but wrestling with the more refined work will pay-off. You can still incorporate some of the same technique you use for speed-painting. It's a back and forth process ultimately.

brokk pretty cool- You're stuck between a drawing thats 'colored' and a 'painting' though imo. You could de-emphasize the line work to bring it to a more finished state. Is the big guy on a layer? If so, tilt him forward instead of back. That triangle at the top is very eye catching, and it's placement feels very passive.

Stephan_R Nicely realized. probably the best finished piece so far. Using a group of 'dragons' is what's keeping me on-board with the sea serpent like design. One big guy rendered the same wouldn't have been the same at all.

Ninth You're such a tease. ( And talented.) I can't wait till you post your final over here. It's FABULOUS. Did I mention how talented you are?

Michael The saturation, looks fine. Interesting take going small. I liked your original idea too though.

**Stephan_R** · August 18th, 2006, 01:26 PM

Cognition I like the new entry as well. It seems to lack a little punch for me though, maybe brighten the lightning, clouds and plane? Is that a huge muppet nose? It makes him a little creepy! What if the suction cups on his body were more like those found on octopus tentacles?!

Cloister I really liked your description and white outline drawing, but the creature appears more like a tree to me than mating, magnetic eels (such a cool idea)

Btw, thanks for the comments guys... it's a pleasure to find them.

**Chuck Wadey** · August 18th, 2006, 01:44 PM

Cognition - I'd spend more time on the airplane - it's the only thing getting in the way of perfection with your Sarlong piece. The wings don't agree on what perspective they're in. Don't give us that little mistake to focus on when there's so much goodness all around.

**yAdam** · August 18th, 2006, 07:05 PM

Great entries so far! stephenR, cloister, cognition, like your's a lot...

The creatures named the Bulwark are considered to be part of the Earth, sustaining themselves directly through underwater volcanoes. Survivors from attacks have seen them rise to devour planes, so initial reports stated that they were at least 1 mile in length. Further attacks and research have concluded that they are closer to 5 miles. Most of the attacks have been on the Puerto Rico trench, which is why people believe they are undetectable. They contract and, considering the appearance of their skin, could be disguised as mountains below the water. The reasoning behind their existence is still unknown, but the most popular theory at this time is that they are a defence system of some kind, possibly protecting a larger organism, or habitat deep under the ocean.

**Vampire Ninja** · August 18th, 2006, 11:27 PM

Chuck Wadey, I really like the drawing, but I think the image is focusing TOO MUCH on the person, not the creature.

**ArtZealot** · August 19th, 2006, 03:08 AM

First time doing one of these threads, here goes:

The below is a creature known as a dewdosk. The dewdosk is a creature who is the flesh embodiment of habit. Every day at 7am (pacific time), 12pm, and 6pm on the dime it descends from the stratosphere to hunt for wood or metal which is what it's diet consists of. The dewdosk can consume and be nourished by saltwater, and dirt but hasnt tried either because being such a creature of habit, it would rather keep eating ships and planes that cut up it's insides every time he consumes them, than try something new. It doesn't intentionally kill humans but has ruined many sightseeing flights, and devoured hundreds of immigrants trying to escape cuba on wooden rafts. The dewdosk has lived in the bermuda triangle for centuries, again, being a victim of habit, it doesn't leave the three hundred yard area it has been circling for the past thousand years. Instead, it would rather just keep doing what it's been doing than try something new. The government has known about the dewdosk since the invention of satellite imaging, but would rather not bother it, and just let it control the immigration on the southeastern side of the united states. The dewdosk is three thousand twenty two years old and has two children (not pictured)

**Simon Boxer** · August 19th, 2006, 03:13 AM

Thanks a lot for the crits and comments, guys.

Put up an updated final - It's flipped since my last post (which is actually the way I produced the image). The last image was also tilted, which probably affected the plane perspective a little, but the wings were off (cheers, Chuck). Hopefully the plane's looking better now? Drawing tiny vehicles is always a pain...

Added more lightning, tweaked a few little things such as the little holey bits. Made them a bit 'suctiony'. hehe

Chuck - great drawing, very dynamic. You've sure got skills, looking forward to the final.

**Cloister** · August 19th, 2006, 05:32 AM

Kawaii: Thanks. I think it is the close-up that makes the close-up look chubbier... but I see what you mean. It would be an easy thing to change the sketch but... no.

Stephan R: Thanks. Yes, I know it looks like a tree. (Roots, twigs, crown and all...) But I sort of like that sturdy feel about it. I initially considered going for a more agile look, in an action scene, but the size of the thing, and the time available (for me) made me reconsider. An under-water scene would hide most of the creature, unless the water was impossibly transparant, and a jumping-out-of-the-water-scene felt too classical, too used recently by "Orange Leviathan" and again the enormous size would cause artistical challenges which I didn't have time for. So... I ended up with this "science-book-look"-presentation, which is rather stiff... and tree-like, if you wish. Who knows, maybe its a stuffed specimen... with some lightning placed inside... yeah, sure!

Cognition. sb: That is a really weird creature, you've come up with. I've got really mixed emotions about it. It is very intriguing... and too far out at the same time. I'm not sure it's my cup of tea, but it's certainly interesting.
Something about the veins on the "head" disturbes me. Too distinct perhaps? The rings around the "open-flower-tentacle-end" made me read those "open-flower-tentacle-petals" as an airplane propeller for a moment.

**Beastmaster Fred** · August 19th, 2006, 08:45 AM

Looking good so far, guys! Very good indeed.
This could go either way but right now my favorite one is yours, cognition.sb.

**chaosrocks** · August 19th, 2006, 09:42 AM

Artzealot--- wowwie!... great first post...goes a long way to reinforce my cetain belief that ANYthing could be hidden down in the ocean.....

chaos

**Ninth** · August 19th, 2006, 06:24 PM

ArtZealot: GIANT FLYING BAG OF FLESH AHOY.

The government has known about the dewdosk since the invention of satellite imaging, but would rather not bother it, and just let it control the immigration on the southeastern side of the united states.

Thanks for the chuckle, mate. XD Nice entry; did you use a photo for the water and boat?

Bruce Jensen: Finally, having nothing but soda flavors on my brain has finally paid off.

Cognition: Your new entry is considerably more freaky, which could benefit you considering the topic. Both pictures in your post are still delicious.

(I updated with my final entry.)

**fughi from yuggoth** · August 19th, 2006, 07:40 PM

now here is my entry after a week of creative emptieness
very nice work so far

COW#057:

...and the old seaman in tortuga finishes his story.
drunken from the bottled rum i paid my bill and tried to return to my hostel through the storm coming up from the south.
the wind was so powerfull that the palm trees were pressed down to the ground and the wall of clouds in the south was coming closer and closer from the ocean getting the sky darker and darker.tired i fell to bed without undressing myself. last thing i remember were the little window shutters falling loudly onto theier frames.i sunk into dark dreams where the faceless horror from the fisherman's narrative again appeared in my hunted mind...

....zzz...

peace was brought with the awakening next morning.i get up and with drunken tunnel vision i looked through the broken window frame.first moment i thought that i was still dreaming but within the moments going by i realized that this huge cadaver on the street seemed to be existent.getting a shock still coming up when i see the november storms coming up and the lightnings hit the palm trees i recognized that this entity was nearly the same the old spokesmann described last night...

**Michael Jaecks** · August 19th, 2006, 07:49 PM

Thats slightly awesome.Love the raw cyan and magenta with the muddy greens underneath.

Reminds me a little of the time Chuck, mate did the kids crayon line drawing of an asymmetrical ant critter with a lens flare filter.

"Smolar half"

I think I laughed for about ten minutes when I saw that.

**brokk** · August 19th, 2006, 08:52 PM

Wow Ninth! Awesome final image!

Bruce, your crits on my entry were spot on, thank you. I updated it (in a bit of a rush). Your crit on the composition was very spot on. About looking half way between a colored drawing and a painting, yes, its something I've been struggling a bit for some time now. More study and practice for me it is

Thanks again.

**Moai** · August 19th, 2006, 11:36 PM

Ninth, your update is amazing.

**Simon Boxer** · August 20th, 2006, 12:57 AM

Holy hell, Ninth for the win!

Dude, screw college - just go straight for a job.

**Stephan_R** · August 20th, 2006, 01:38 AM

SNAP! your avatar doesn't do ya justice Ninth, hehe jk. Fabulous update

Great mood, lighting and most of all character (i love the shedding skin thing) I like your updated as well Cog.

Inspiring stuff!

**Cloister** · August 20th, 2006, 02:15 AM

Ninth: You bastard! I'm sorry, but that is beautiful! I think I'll go shed my skin...

**fughi from yuggoth** · August 20th, 2006, 07:33 AM

Ninth:omfg

**Supervlieg** · August 20th, 2006, 12:20 PM

Updated, on page 1.

Ninth! That is an amazing scene!

Cognition.sb: Both are really excellent, the first one because of the looseness of the sketch, and the second one because the total scene looks awesome.

The rest is turning out great as well, cant wait to see them all together in the voting.

**Cloister** · August 20th, 2006, 12:51 PM

Supervlieg: Thanks for making the voting interesting! That's an amazing angle... and creature - looks really prehistorical. I think you should continue this one, put some more work into the airplanes, which feels a bit plastical, and the clouds. Still very amazing, though!
You've made me realize I must find a hell of a lot more time if I am ever to win one of these COWs.

Question to anyone who knows: Are the new topics always posted at the same hour, every week? Is it always on a Sunday? I'm sort of hungry for the next one...