Today WotC released the Art Gallery for the CC; I have to admit I'm quite impressed. If the CS art is on the same level, it's bound to be one of the 4th edition books with the best overall art quality so far.
A few questions/notations:
- is the art #13 the Dragon? I guess so, but I wanted some confirmation. I'm a bit thorn about him.
At this point we sort of have 3 images of Borys: the cover of the "Valley of Dust and Fire" from 2nd edition, the cover art for CC and the specific art for him in the CC.
Picking a favourite is fairly hard. I really like the CC cover one because it completely captures the alien nature of DS monsters; however, he lacks any sort of epicness compared to the two other art pieces. The specific CC pic is... very nice I guess. I like the design, but it's an hybrid between ordinary dragons and the traditional DS feel. It gets almost everything right, however in a way I feel the other two pieces are superior because they feature some details (like pieces of cloth) that give a better idea of the nature of Borys. And than there's the Brom art - I'm so fond of that, but showing it to people is quite hard. My copy of VoDF is completely worn, and all I can find on the net is puny resolution stuff. Does anyone have a link to a decent resolution pic I could print for people?
- is #52 Hamanu? If so, it's quite amazing in my book.
- what's #45? It should be around the "N" letter, so I'm guessing a radical re-interpretation of the nightmare beast, or some new epic tier monster?
- is #32 the entry for Humans? That piece of art doesn't really strike me as DS. My brother will rejoyce for having evidence he can wear full pants, tho...
- is #24 the psurlon? I didn't catch any other "similar" picture so far.
- is #30 the entry for halflings? It looks too tall, but the order seems to suggest so.
Thanks for the eventual answers.
#52 is Tectuktitlay. Hamanu is #49, and Andropinis is #48. The other SK's are pretty obvious.
#32 is a Human, yes.
#24 is the Gaj. #41 is the Psurlon.
#30 is, indeed, the Halfling.
#13 is, indeed, the Dragon. I prefer the CC cover image, though.
#52 is Tectuktitlay. Hamanu is #49, and Andropinis is #48. The other SK's are pretty obvious.
#32 is a Human, yes.
#24 is the Gaj. #41 is the Psurlon.
#30 is, indeed, the Halfling.
Oh yeah, it's a Gaj. But the psurlon doesn't look like a psurlon at all.
I'm afraid to ask, but is #53 Dregoth? I'm not sure I've seen compatible art elsewhere.
- what's #45? It should be around the "N" letter, so I'm guessing a radical re-interpretation of the nightmare beast, or some new epic tier monster?
Since it immediately proceeds the Silt Runner, I'm guessing it's the Silt Horror.
53 looks like Dregoth. As in, exactly like a human version of the art from the front of City by the Silt Sea. But that would put him... out of order?
I'm confused about 63 (gnoll?) and 71 (it's a goliath/half-giant, but nowhere near H or G) though.
#13 is, indeed, the Dragon. I prefer the CC cover image, though.
#52 is Tectuktitlay. Hamanu is #49, and Andropinis is #48. The other SK's are pretty obvious.
#32 is a Human, yes.
#24 is the Gaj. #41 is the Psurlon.
#30 is, indeed, the Halfling.
Oh yeah, it's a Gaj. But the psurlon doesn't look like a psurlon at all.
I'm afraid to ask, but is #53 Dregoth? I'm not sure I've seen compatible art elsewhere.
The Gnoll is in the section for DM's who want to adapt other creatures for Athas.
The Goliath is a named NPC, Mearedes, the Sentinel of Shault.
- what's #45? It should be around the "N" letter, so I'm guessing a radical re-interpretation of the nightmare beast, or some new epic tier monster?
Since it immediately proceeds the Silt Runner, I'm guessing it's the Silt Horror.
53 looks like Dregoth. As in, exactly like a human version of the art from the front of City by the Silt Sea. But that would put him... out of order?
I'm confused about 63 (gnoll?) and 71 (it's a goliath/half-giant, but nowhere near H or G) though.
I actually like the art in the catalog but Dregoth is not very menacing.
Sand sharks!
The Silt Sharks are, indeed, awesome. Yet another example creature in the Adapting for Athas section.
Yeah, he's got weird gargoyle hand-wings and a horseface.
I actually like the art in the catalog but Dregoth is not very menacing.
Sand sharks!
I really liked the golem art, the dragon is F'ing scary and the drakes are pretty cool. I'v only seen the gallery art, so I'm not sure what some of the art is. Like the snake head thing, or the green color scheme dude with the orb. (eberron style)
I'm very disappointed with the lack of avangion art. Here's hoping for some in the CS. I just don't feel like the DSCC artwork is on par with the artwork found in the monster manuals. I simply don't find it as good. For lack of a better word, I find it less "serious".
I gotta say, while I like some of the artwork like. But overall I'm disappointed with it. The rampager beast is ugly, doesn't look good in the least (IMO) and it's big human-like nose is comical.
I thought the same thing. It just looks silly.
Hamanu (49?) is holding a damn staff, while I enjoy the art itself, it just doesn't say "warrior-king" to me.
Really? I got just the opposite impression. It looks exactly like what I would expect a warrior Sorcerer King to be.
The silk worm looks neat, great color scheme, but it looks cartoony.
The silk worm is a deliberate homage to the 2e art for the creature.
The braxat also made me sad.
The Braxat pictured is a Juvenile Braxat, so it's supposed to look babyish. That said, looking at it still makes me want to punch an artist. Hard.
I really liked the golem art, the dragon is F'ing scary and the drakes are pretty cool. I'v only seen the gallery art, so I'm not sure what some of the art is. Like the snake head thing, or the green color scheme dude with the orb. (eberron style)
Snake-head thing is a Beast Giant. Green color scheme dude with the orb is an NPC.
I'm very disappointed with the lack of avangion art. Here's hoping for some in the CS.
There is an image of an Avangion in the CS. I have mixed feelings on it. I do like the design more than the 2e art, but it doesn't convey the otherworldliness of the beings as well.
I just don't feel like the DSCC artwork is on par with the artwork found in the monster manuals. I simply don't find it as good. For lack of a better word, I find it less "serious".
I dunno... There are some serious high points in the DSCC's art. The Eladrin is freakin' fantastic. It, alone, made me totally reverse my position on the whole "Eladrin don't belong in Athas" argument. The Dune Reaper is creepy as all hell, as is the Zombie (#61). And the Silt Sharks make me want to run adventures by the Silt Sea.