D&D General How do you picture your D&D game in your mind?

[Oofta]

I use images a fair amount, this art is pretty typical of what I show:

On the other hand, I suspect this is what actually emerges during play:

 

[payn]

I can see it, but some of those outfits are so... outlandish and busy.

Like the female mage in the 2nd row, scream Warcraft to me. same with the female barbarian at the bottom. And a few others. Possibly dipping into a realistic anime outfits

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The iconics certainly have a style. Though, Golarion setting has a pretty wide variety of art types.

 

[Vaalingrade]

Steampunk by way of anime.

All of the steampunk aesthetic but also the over the top exaggeration of action and expression of anime.

Anything trying to be realistic is summarily burned for fuel.

 

[Charlaquin]

I can see it, but some of those outfits are so... outlandish and busy.

Like the female mage in the 2nd row, scream Warcraft to me. same with the female barbarian at the bottom. And a few others. Possibly dipping into a realistic anime outfits

View attachment 278341

These are definitely not Warcraft-style in my opinion; Warcraft has a particular sort of bombast (characterized most clearly but not exclusively by the giant armor) that I think these lack. They are definitely very busy designs though, which is something I personally like in my D&D art. I mean, just look at the typical D&D character’s equipment list! If their designs weren’t busy as heck, they wouldn’t be adequate representations of the fiction! That’s something I appreciate about the “dungeon punk” look, it actually makes an effort to depict all the random crap adventures carry around on their bodies instead of just letting it all disappear into abstract hammer space. That’s a huge part of what makes this style feel particularly D&D to me.

 

[overgeeked]

Sword & sorcery, science fantasy, action-adventure. Pulp magazine covers. Black & white line art. Erol Otus. Sanjulian.

 

[Thourne]

I choose the first option but lean more towards The 13th Warrior. Mosty for it's complete mix and disregard for what was geographically or historically appropriate for the cast to be wearing. lol

 

[Scribe]

I can see it, but some of those outfits are so... outlandish and busy.

Like the female mage in the 2nd row, scream Warcraft to me. same with the female barbarian at the bottom. And a few others. Possibly dipping into a realistic anime outfits

View attachment 278341

This is the one. A bit more subdued if I'm honest, but I'll take PF1 every single day of the week, over any other style if I have to pick one.

 

[DarkCrisis]

These are definitely not Warcraft-style in my opinion; Warcraft has a particular sort of bombast (characterized most clearly but not exclusively by the giant armor) that I think these lack. They are definitely very busy designs though, which is something I personally like in my D&D art. I mean, just look at the typical D&D character’s equipment list! If their designs weren’t busy as heck, they wouldn’t be adequate representations of the fiction! That’s something I appreciate about the “dungeon punk” look, it actually makes an effort to depict all the random crap adventures carry around on their bodies instead of just letting it all disappear into abstract hammer space. That’s a huge part of what makes this style feel particularly D&D to me.

Busy is like Rob Liefeld adding 400 unnecessary pouches and guns to Cable of the X-Men. Having random belts and spikes and shoulder wings and whatever is like, how long does it take you to put that mess on? I get its just a style choice, but damn like it must take you forever to get dressed.

Does the manager from the Applebees-like restaurant in Office Space keep asking all those characters "Where is your flair!? Bob the Barbarian has on 30 pieces of Flair! Don't you want to be like Bob?"

 

[Thourne]

Busy is like Rob Liefeld adding 400 unnecessary pouches and guns to Cable of the X-Men. Having random belts and spikes and shoulder wings and whatever is like, how long does it take you to put that mess on? I get its just a style choice, but damn like it must take you forever to get dressed.

Does the manager from the Applebees-like restaurant in Office Space keep asking all those characters "Where is your flair!? Bob the Barbarian has on 30 pieces of Flair! Don't you want to be like Bob?"

I completely agree on most! Except the pouches. You may be right. I think I would need an inventory of them all to determine if they were indeed necessary or not.

I don't understand, I'm wearing 15. Isn't that enough?

 

[Vaalingrade]

Busy is like Rob Liefeld adding 400 unnecessary pouches and guns to Cable of the X-Men.

That'd be too busy.

There is a level of detailed that's very satisfying to some people like @Charlaquin or myself.