DC Media Contest -- Now Live!!!

[Tarlanon]

You heard correctly! The 2nd DungeonCraft Media contest is now LIVE!

All the details can be found here :

http://home.earthlink.net/~dcvote/

Now everyone fire up those creative engines!

[manikus]

Can I post this over in Yahoo?

-manikus

[Tarlanon]

Absolutely!

Also, if anyone cares...I've already received the contest's first entry. =)

[Dinonykos]

Hello!

In my opinion, the Default Art of Dungeon Craft especially lacks of icons of weapons and spells used during combat. Wouldn't it therefore be an option for the art contest to include a "combat weapons and spells" category or something like that?
The most challenging graphics however are sprite pictures for the 3D window during an encounter (at least I think that), because it's very difficult to draw the proportions of approaching NPCs/monsters/missiles rightly. On the other hand these pictures give a special atmosphere to adventures, so perhaps it would make sense to have such a category, too.

Well, perhaps it's not ideal to have too much categories, but who wouldn't like to see an approaching black pudding during the game or a flying throwing axe during combat?

[manikus]

If you're interested in some spell effects, you should check out Kaltasura's, they are pretty darn cool.
http://www.angelfire.com/dragon/kalt...ll_Effects.htm
He's also got some cool missile icons.
http://www.angelfire.com/dragon/kalt...sile_Icons.htm

-manikus

[SilentThief]

Currently, the DC program is lacking so much art that any and every piece will be welcome. We have only 1 sprite (to my knowledge), and that is a hill giant or ogre looking character in the classic 3 step format. I also mention that I've only seen 1 alternative to the frame for the viewing window and likewise to the frame/border of the stats and text.

I don't know if I'll have time to make entry into this contest or not, but I hope so. But its good to see DC still going!!!

SilentThief

[Tarlanon]

Dinonykos,

Your comments are something I wrestled with when organizing this (the 2nd) DC art contest. I decided to stick with the categories I did (and not every art category all at once) for several reasons :

1) each successive category requires much more work and mgmt, and I have only so much time.
2) DC is not by any means finished, and this contest is not meant to be the one that statically defines what the DC default art set is going to be.
3) I decided to focus on the 'showcase' items - Small pics, walls, combat icons, sounds - etc. that make up the bulk of the eye-candy in designs. I won't argue that the other items - borders, map art, etc. - add the ambience to a design, but those items can be tailored very specifically to a particular design and might not be as useful from a broader perspective. I cannot speak for everyone, but for me playing a design with a nice wallset/backdrop and cool icons is much more important than a fancy border around the text areas. So it was a bit of a personal choice when picking some of the categories.
4) I actually was planning to have another art contest for DC right after this one, which focused on all those other 'little' things which didn't make this one. I won't deny that they are important too. But because of the reasons stated in #1, I pulled it from this contest.

Hopefully I didn't offend anyone with those choices, but if you wanted to know why this contest is the way it is, well, now you know.

[manikus]

I think the sprite that comes with DC is a conversion of the FRUA hill giant sprite. Now, I know what I can work on for DC contest #3.

-manikus

[Dinonykos]

Tarlanon,

you have totally convinced me.
And it's good news that we all can hope for a third contest (with a hill giant sprite from manikus?)!

[manikus]

It won't be a hill giant, but I will definitely be ready with a sprite. but, I think that I may start working on a hill giant this week.

Now, I've just got to get on the ball and finish up my entries for this contest. (I'm about a third of the way done.)

-manikus