QuentinGeorge
Legend
I never noticed at the time how 80s the hair on Elmore and Easleys women was...
D&D General Art that exemplifies D&D to you.
- Thread starter Reynard
- Start date
teitan
Legend
I think why the early editions art strikes me is the contrast when you get to 3e. Early art in 1e was very much showing these things as a threat. The adventurers were in a dire spot and struggling against their foe. Or just mauled. Or very fantastic and beautiful weird landscapes.
then in 2e you had these wonderfully executed quiet moments like the party with the baby dragon. They are triumphant but what’s coming for them now? The orcs in my previous post? Where are they going? these are images to inspire a DM to come up with a great story.
I initially loved the 3e art but it hasn’t aged as well, it’s like JNCO pants. it’s superhero art and very 90s superhero art. It’s Liefeld and Lee on steroids. I love Reynolds, don’t get me wrong but there is a time and place implied by that style and I think Pathfinder’s waning is because the art hasn’t evolved with the time. Paizo seems to be very stuck with that Dungeonpunk aesthetic. My favorite 3e era artist was Todd Lockwood and hetook off fairly early. But the images from 3e & 4e are that same aesthetic. Very in the action, in your face.
5e kind of steps into the middle of the two styles and approaches but leans more towards that action oriented approach.
then in 2e you had these wonderfully executed quiet moments like the party with the baby dragon. They are triumphant but what’s coming for them now? The orcs in my previous post? Where are they going? these are images to inspire a DM to come up with a great story.
I initially loved the 3e art but it hasn’t aged as well, it’s like JNCO pants. it’s superhero art and very 90s superhero art. It’s Liefeld and Lee on steroids. I love Reynolds, don’t get me wrong but there is a time and place implied by that style and I think Pathfinder’s waning is because the art hasn’t evolved with the time. Paizo seems to be very stuck with that Dungeonpunk aesthetic. My favorite 3e era artist was Todd Lockwood and hetook off fairly early. But the images from 3e & 4e are that same aesthetic. Very in the action, in your face.
5e kind of steps into the middle of the two styles and approaches but leans more towards that action oriented approach.
teitan
Legend
because it was the late 80s and early 90s!
happyhermit
Adventurer
I will be the boring contrarian here I suppose and say a lot of 5e art exemplifies what D&D is to me. A lot of my favorite art from the past either leans more towards what D&D was or doesn't really portray "D&D" so much as a single character in a heroic position (obviously there are reasons for this).
5e art is a bit more inclusive (there were always examples of course), a bit more stylized, a bit less dark and gritty or edgy overall. I think "D&D" is now those same things too.
It would be interesting to see a "D&D that exemplifies the art" for a lot of images or artists. Ie; Wayne Reynolds D&D;
"Mending" does not exist, 90% of fabric encountered while adventuring is tattered and/or frayed at the edges.
In addition to tattered fabric, one can tie ribbons or other danglies onto weapons, clothing or anything really, to gain a stealth bonus (ghillie suit) or a charisma bonus.
"Spikes" is a tag that can be applied to objects and body parts for a bonus ie; hair, giving a wide variety of bonuses; AC, Intimidation, etc.
5e art is a bit more inclusive (there were always examples of course), a bit more stylized, a bit less dark and gritty or edgy overall. I think "D&D" is now those same things too.
It would be interesting to see a "D&D that exemplifies the art" for a lot of images or artists. Ie; Wayne Reynolds D&D;
"Mending" does not exist, 90% of fabric encountered while adventuring is tattered and/or frayed at the edges.
In addition to tattered fabric, one can tie ribbons or other danglies onto weapons, clothing or anything really, to gain a stealth bonus (ghillie suit) or a charisma bonus.
"Spikes" is a tag that can be applied to objects and body parts for a bonus ie; hair, giving a wide variety of bonuses; AC, Intimidation, etc.
dave2008
Legend
Conversely, it is images like that one that turned me off of Easley.
Tales and Chronicles
Jewel of the North, formerly know as vincegetorix
Easley is the ''dragon inspired from cats'' guy, right? The Dragonborn/half-dragon on this painting is cool, but Tiamat looks like 5 house cats joined at the hip with different paint jobs, especially the red and green heads.
dave2008
Legend
Not sure if his dragons are inspired by cats, but IMO, he does draw a lot of bad dragons. The Tiamat in that image is one of the worst I've seen. I mean the teeth are the same color as the scales! He does have a few really good ones though:
Tales and Chronicles
Jewel of the North, formerly know as vincegetorix
Yes, that one's good. I love the frills and spike of the dragon (not a big fan of Ariarkas as Bane from Batman, tho
). Weird that those 2 version of red dragons are so different.Similar Threads
