Monday, June 14, 2010

Fantasy swordsman ... GIMP brushes .. a touch of romance




UPDATE: these renders were done in June, 2010. See the 2015 re-render in LuxRender here.

The swordsman -- going back, today, to the ronin who rescued the princeling in this week's series of renders. I'm actually fascinated by this character ... the exotic wildness of him. These shots would be before the first renders where you saw him (in this post, entering by stealth the camp of the warlord who abducted the prince).

In these renders, he's jut discovered what he's going to have to do ... and it's going to be dangerous. Like the Samurai of old, he gets the last rites before going to battle, he's technically dead when he goes out to do the job, so what does he have to lose? And part of the preparation for doing a job this dangerous is the "moving meditation," a bit like Taoism -- a sword kata that clears the mind.

I really like these characters and this scenario. You know, I'm almost tempted to write it ... except that I'm not much of a writer. But then again, if I did it as a graphic novel... Hmmm. Let me think about this a little! In case you're wondering, the backdrop is not Bryce; it's a work done entirely in gimp brushes. There's a terrific set, from Renderosity, Mystikal's Clouds. Best set of clouds I've ever seen.

Jade, 15 June 2010

UPDATE: this is what's going on in 2015...!