Dark Sun art: Disappointed

[WanderingMonster]

Don't tell me how it's different. Show me.

I am fan of Dark Sun and have been eagerly anticipating the 4e release. Today I got the books from my FLGS (a Premier store). I've only had time to skim the actual content, and I won't be answering any questions since there's already a thread for that. But one thing I can say is that the art content is all across the board from awesome to WTF???

The original DS really owed a lot of it's flavor to the amazing artwork of Brom. The illos described a brutal, ravaged, and dangerously beautiful world full of brutal, ravaged, and dangerously beautiful characters. At it's best, Brom's art in DS made you want to be in that world (crazy as that may be!). Even Tom Baxa's art (which I find to be hit and miss with my tastes) spoke on a primal level that helped define the character of an Athasian campaign.

In this edition, the art does very little to spark the imagination. 4e has its typical art direction, which as far as I can tell is "have one, maybe two, characters doing a cool thing. Easy on the places unless it's super cool. " It's not necessarily a bad direction, but I don't think it fits with Dark Sun, which is as much about the where as the who.

The Dark Sun Campaign Setting is very light on actual vignettes of Athas. There are a couple of really nice illustrations in the latter half of the book (and there ARE maps...oh yes there are), but far too few to be of much note. But what strikes me is that there are several illustrations of characters-doing-a-cool-thing that leave me scratching my head. These illustration could have easily been pulled from Eberron or the Realms. Most of these offending pictures happen in the Character Theme section, and usually illustrate a paragon path associated with the theme.

Don't get me wrong: these are quality illustrations. The design is great. But the direction is just...wrong. I'm anxious to hear what people think as more and more get the book. I know some folks don't care about the art in a book at all. I'm not soliciting that opinion. If the art IS important to you, how successful do you think the campaign setting's art was?

As for the Dark Sun Creature Catalog...YUM. Great design and art direction. I love seeing all the monsters (and Sorcerer Kings!) rebooted. Nice!

 

[AdmundfortGeographer]

I can't wait to get them tomorrow and compare.

 

[Knightfall]

The art in DSCS is okay but not mind-blowing. The city maps are what shine in this book; although, the maps could have been bigger.

The art in the Creature Catalog is very good. The art for Nibenay rocks!

However... one nitpick.

Too many of the "heroes" have weapons that look like they are metal.

 

[AdmundfortGeographer]

In your opinions, how much art is informed by Brom's aesthetic?

 

[Mouseferatu]

The only picture I have any specific problem with is the Chapter One spread. I realize that the intent was foreshortening, but the effect makes it look like the human is much, much bigger than the goliath. (Also, if they're going to justify putting women in skimpy leather bikinis because it's hot, then they shouldn't put that same woman in what has to be a sweltering thigh-high leather boot. )

In a more general sense, while I like most of the art as individual pieces, I do agree that the aggregate should lean a little more toward landscapes and vistas. But then again, I think all D&D books could benefit from having more landscapes and vistas.

But again, that's as a whole. Individually, I think most of the pieces are pretty good.

 

[WanderingMonster]

In your opinions, how much art is informed by Brom's aesthetic?

The cover of the Creature Catalog and several pieces within it. Almost nothing in the Campaign Setting.

[Edit] Oops! Not completely true. Check my post below for some Brom tribute examples.

 

[WanderingMonster]

The only picture I have any specific problem with is the Chapter One spread. I realize that the intent was foreshortening, but the effect makes it look like the human is much, much bigger than the goliath. (Also, if they're going to justify putting women in skimpy leather bikinis because it's hot, then they shouldn't put that same woman in what has to be a sweltering thigh-high leather boot. )

In a more general sense, while I like most of the art as individual pieces, I do agree that the aggregate should lean a little more toward landscapes and vistas. But then again, I think all D&D books could benefit from having more landscapes and vistas.

But again, that's as a whole. Individually, I think most of the pieces are pretty good.

Like I said, I don't have a problem with the quality of the pieces, but how they depict or express the Dark Sun aesthetic.

Let me cite some examples: p. 39 of the Athasian Minstrel, p. 40 Arms-Troubador, p. 41 Unwelcome Guest, and p. 56 Mind General. These are the great offenders of which I speak. I don't think they merely have less of the flavor of Athas, they are not informed by it at all.

To be fair, their are some pieces I really like: p. 64 Master Defiler (and a Brom tribute, yay!), p. 135 of Tyr, p. 183 of the Southern Wastes (and another Brom tribute!), and the Chapter 6 spread.

I realize this book will try to show all tiers of play, so some characters might have more metal and better crafted armor. But if you're an art director and trying to sell the idea of a post-apocalyptic world where metal is rare and blood runs in the sand, you *might* want to back off on the steel blades/armor and perfect complexions.

And once again: Creature Catalog art is awesome.

 

[erf_beto]

In a more general sense, while I like most of the art as individual pieces, I do agree that the aggregate should lean a little more toward landscapes and vistas. But then again, I think all D&D books could benefit from having more landscapes and vistas.

Dear god, I miss those!

I haven't seen the new DS art (nor remember much of the old, aside from a couple of Spellfire cards I still have in my closet), but I think I can understand where the OP's concerns are coming from.

I love 4e art. Really. But I find they are not awe-inspiring as I'd like them to be, for a fantasy roleplaying game. I'd like to see something that stirs my imagination and helps me paint the world I'm "living" in. I wouldn't mind seeing some adventurers not killing things or threathened to death once in a while. Actually, I'd like to see farmers working the fields, children playing in the street markets, non-adventurer dwarves still drinking and laughing in a tavern, while everyone else is drunk asleep over the tables, with the barmaid so tired and so angry they won't go away even though it's so very late...

The only image that got close to that in my Core1 books, is the Fallcrest spread - and even then, the whole scene is about the adventurers, not the townspeople (unless you count their obssesion over the heroes).

 

[Keefe the Thief]

Strange. Somehow i feel that the content of the thread and the op doesn´t really mesh with the thread title. "Disappointed in Dark Sun" = / = "Some artwork isn´t as good as Brom." Well, Brom was a major discovery AND lets not forget that Baxa "painted" most of the pictures inside the books (though i cannot really call what he did painting).

 

[WanderingMonster]

Strange. Somehow i feel that the content of the thread and the op doesn´t really mesh with the thread title. "Disappointed in Dark Sun" = / = "Some artwork isn´t as good as Brom." Well, Brom was a major discovery AND lets not forget that Baxa "painted" most of the pictures inside the books (though i cannot really call what he did painting).

Weird. I though "Dark Sun art: Disappointed" was an appropriate title for the thread. We'll wait here while you check that again.

I'm not looking for imitators of Brom. I'm looking for artists (and art directors) that *get it*. I want the art in a book to inspire me beyond the words printed on the page, or at least support them. I feel that the art in the Campaign Setting didn't live up to that expectation. Hey, Brom set the bar for artwork in the setting. It's a high bar for sure. Comparisons will be made.