D&D General Art in D&D

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[Theo R Cwithin]

Pants don't actually add to AC, so why bother?

 

[billd91]

I've hated halfling art since 3e started the mini elf look. But 5e made them Lovecraftian horrors. If I saw one I would impulsively attack with fire.

To be fair, I think poorly rendered halfings come up a lot and in multiple editions. There were some bad examples in 2e too. Lots of people get the proportions weird with enormous heads (the main halfling entry in 5e being an example).
There are some good renditions of Lem, the iconic halfling bard, in Pathfinder.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

To be fair, I think poorly rendered halfings come up a lot and in multiple editions. There were some bad examples in 2e too. Lots of people get the proportions weird with enormous heads (the main halfling entry in 5e being an example).
There are some good renditions of Lem, the iconic halfling bard, in Pathfinder.

That is much better than the one in the 5e PH for sure, or the 3e stuff. Looks like a hairy footed hobbit!

 

[Nebulous]

Sadly, I found 4e art revolting, with exceptions.

That was mostly my opinion of 4e art as well. Some of it was good, but I mostly greatly disliked it.

While each edition had good art, and 5e is the best at representing diversity, there hasn’t been any art that really dropped my jaw since 2e. I don’t think there are that many truly iconic images since 3e. Like Emikrol the Chaotic. Or the cover to Mentzers basic set. Or a paladin in Hell. Or Elmore’s dragon slayer party.

I agree. While 5e art is overall excellent on all fronts, I struggle to think of anything as Iconic. The covers for the three core books, while good, do not jump out at me as amazing. I have incredibly fond memories of the 2e PHB with the horserider, but that's probably because at the time I ran that far more than I ever did 1st edition.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

That was mostly my opinion of 4e art as well. Some of it was good, but I mostly greatly disliked it.


I agree. While 5e art is overall excellent on all fronts, I struggle to think of anything as Iconic. The covers for the three core books, while good, do not jump out at me as amazing. I have incredibly fond memories of the 2e PHB with the horserider, but that's probably because at the time I ran that far more than I ever did 1st edition.

I wonder how much nostalgia is impacting our tastes, as I don't find that piece iconic at all.

 

[Salthorae]

I wonder how much nostalgia is impacting our tastes, as I don't find that piece iconic at all.

I find it the 2e PHB iconic because of nostalgia. That was the first edition of D&D that I played. I don’t think the art itself compares to 5th edition though.

 

[Nebulous]

I wonder how much nostalgia is impacting our tastes, as I don't find that piece iconic at all.

Probably quite a bit of nostalgia.

 

[Sacrosanct]

I still think Jeff Dee did the best rendition of halflings for B/X

And Bill Willinghams version is second place

 

[generic]

So, I was able to distill my distaste, and possibly the distaste of others, for 5e's Halflings down to a few components.

- Halfling skulls: The weird, elongated, xenomorph-esque skulls are the real problem. Why on Earth do they look like that? Who thought that giving Halflings flat skull bases, long skulls, and small faces with exaggerated features was a good idea? Overall, it makes them look like a mildly racist caricature from a bygone era.

- Limbs: Halfling limbs look out of proportion with their bodies, usually too long and spindly for their often-larger-than-average torsos. Their feet, too, are too large, almost weirdly so, giving the impression that Halflings are modeled off a chart of Human nerve concentrations.

- Inconsistent ears: Sometimes elf-like, other times entirely human, I don't get it.