Avatars by Sialia

[Sidekick]

While we're waiting, why don't you both tell me about your avatars, and what they mean.

Hey Sialia, the Eagle clutching the Arrow is the traditional symbol for Kukjae Hapkido, the martial art I am a student of and dearly love. Kukjae translates to 'International' and hapkido is a Korean eclectic martial art. The eagle is the king of birds, powerful, swift and alert while the arrow represents incomming attacks that Hapkido teaches us to aviod and control.

Hapkido comes from the same place as Aikido: Dai-Aki-ru-Jitsu (a Japanese art). So it involves locks, throws, break etc. But because of its Korean influence we also practice long distance attacks & defences.

Anyway that's my completely non-RPG avatar! If anyone reading this goes, hey that sounds like fun, Hapkido is HUGE in the US with 90% of the grandmasters (9th degree and above) in the States... Kukjae Hapkido is only in NZ as it is the formation of Grandmaster Lee (9th Hapkido/9th TKD) and due to his experience with TKD has more emphasis on kicking form and patterns than most Hapkido's.

Oh and Sialia. That avatar looks awesome. I cannot wait for the final product!

 

[Andrew D. Gable]

I already got my avatar, as you see (thanks, Sialia!), but I may as well add a post and share what it means. Basically, my middle name is Dylan, which is a Celtic sea god (and father of the Lady of the Lake), my last name is German for fork. Hence, the sea god's fork, hence a trident.

 

[Sialia]

This is way cool. Thank you very much for sharing your stories and concepts--it makes it more fun for me to understand why I'm drawing what I'm drawing.

Andrew, I'm wodnering if the avatar is a bit too dark, now that I see it from a different computer. Would you like me to lighten it up a bit, or do you like it as is?

 

[Andrew D. Gable]

Andrew, I'm wodnering if the avatar is a bit too dark, now that I see it from a different computer. Would you like me to lighten it up a bit, or do you like it as is?

I think it's fine the way it is.

 

[Angcuru]

I'd gladly tell you the significance surrounding the imagery in the avatar you made for me, but it would take a LONG LONG LONG LONG time to fully explain it.

But, to violently simplify it...

The pic signifies several key aspects of the main character in a story I'm writing (who is also named Angcuru, for now at least). His people had 'evolved' to be identical to humans, save for a somewhat longer life span, and total ignorance to the 'negative' aspects of humanity I.E. hatred, anger, greed, etc. and simply put, finding love and being happy is all that matters to them. Certain circumstances lead him to leave his people for a time, during which he first encountered violence, killing, and specifically, humanity. He had to learn to defend himself, and as was his custom, he found the most direct and precise way to do so. The whole purpose of combat is to remove your opponent(most often by killing), and so, the only weapon specifically designed solely for combat was the sword. So he studied the sword, and the surgical, sudden-death precision of his strikes lead him to select the 'perfect sword'. Single-edged, molecule-diamond sharp for killing, and a rounded blunt opposite edge for subual/non-lethal strikes.

Long story short, he discovers that he is technically immortal(much to his chagrin), his people end up being either slaughtered or otherwise lost to him, and his life generally goes to hell. This is where to flowers and suchlike come in. Amber was the color of his lost & undeclared love's hair and eyes, so he dwells on the color a LOT. Ivy is signifying fidelity and marriage, something his people held very dear, and something that he will now never have. So by intwining the blade, it is symolic of the drive that causes him to keep going, doing whatever it is he does. The anemone flower signifies 'forsaken', which he very much feels he is, and at the base of the sword hilt, it is the fury which drives him in battle. Forget-me-nots symbolize true love, the meaning of life for his people, again something he believes he will now never find. Honeysuckle for devoted affection, something he wants to give and to feel, again, never will. And finally the Lily of the Valley is symbolic of Return to Happiness, which he hopes to find, but doubts he will.

It may seem a tad long, this, but it really is violently simplified.

 

[Sialia]

Oh! (smacks head) A sea eagle. Stellars Sea Eagle, as found in Hokkaido.


Right. Nix the brown and white plumage then. Replacing with black and white, with yellow feet and beak.

Closer.

Here is draft 3.

Perhaps still some cleanup work to do, but I don't think I'll have time to get to it for a bit. Use this in the interim, and check back occasionally for updates.

 

[Sidekick]

Hey Sialia, I can't seem to click on the Eagle that you just just posted.

Th elittle hand thing isn't coming up at all. I'll try again later from home though.

 

[Crothian]

What is it with the fashion for transparent things that are so darn hard to do?

The book and slime thing has me a bit stumped. If there was a previous version of this avatar, I'd like to see it. I've tried the book from several angles, and it just doesn't seem to be "reading" well.

There was no previous one, I had an ooze before but it wasn't transpoarent and there was no book in the picture. It wasn't that good of one so the avatar didn't last that long.

I wenjt with transparent becasue I thought it would be cooler to see part of the book inside the ooze, but it by no means needs to be transparent if that's causing problems.

 

[Sialia]

Update to the eagle. The head is still wrong, but I've fixed some of the anatomical impossibilities of the wings. Intro'd others, but fixed the first set anyway.

Getting there, but that's all I have time for tonight.

 

[Ferret]

That is the size that it is. You only need to click when it is bigger then a specified size. To see it in a new window, either right click on it, go to properties and copy the address and paste in a new window, or if you use Firefox, right click then got to view image.