What does the scepter of fire look like?

[zookeeper]

Yes, there's the item image. To me, however, it looks a bit...odd. It's short as heck, for one. How is one supposed to hold it, from the middle or somehow from the bottom? How big is it?

The reason I'm asking is because I started doing some alternate frames for Konrad and Li'sar when they have the scepter. Since I need them to actually hold and use it in the frames, I lengthened the shaft a lot, as you can see in the attached images. This still looks a bit big, but I don't think that's a huge problem.

Anyway, if the scepter is really supposed to be so short as in the item image, then I guess I can try to make it such in the unit images as well, but unless it's not that important, I'd make the images with a scepter of about this size and length (well, maybe shrink the ruby a bit).

EDIT: Changed the scepter to be smaller and shorter. How about now? I don't think you can shrink the scepter much more (some, but not much) without it starting to look tiny and silly.

[JW]

Those look good.

[scott]

I don't think it needs to be so long. It's a scepter, not a staff. Shortening it would make it look out of proportion to the business end, so you would also need to make the ruby part smaller. Either way you're going to have to shrink the ruby since it appears to be roughly the size of his head at the moment!

[Jetrel]

The glaring fault in the item icon is the size of the sceptre head, but - I *do* want the ruby to be bizarrely big for a sceptre. Easily as big as a head. What I think I'll do is revise the way the metal wraps around - e.g. lose the cage surrounding the sceptre.

I can also provide zookeeper with a sprite-sized version.


To make a long story short - the ruby itself was much older than any intention of it making its way onto a sceptre of any sort. And this isn't a stone you can cut smaller, nor would anyone be foolish enough to try doing something like that to a priceless and irreplacable object.

[zookeeper]

The glaring fault in the item icon is the size of the sceptre head, but - I *do* want the ruby to be bizarrely big for a sceptre. Easily as big as a head. What I think I'll do is revise the way the metal wraps around - e.g. lose the cage surrounding the sceptre.

I thought the point of the cage is to shield the user from the ill effects of the ruby, so it would make sense to have some similar construct in the scepter.

[turin]

I thought the point of the cage is to shield the user from the ill effects of the ruby, so it would make sense to have some similar construct in the scepter.

Some campaigns claim so, but I for one have never bought that explanation.

There's a drawing by Jetryl in my campaign SoF of the SoF, if you want some info on what Jetryl thought it looked like a year or so ago.

[zookeeper]

The glaring fault in the item icon is the size of the sceptre head, but - I *do* want the ruby to be bizarrely big for a sceptre. Easily as big as a head. What I think I'll do is revise the way the metal wraps around - e.g. lose the cage surrounding the sceptre.

I can also provide zookeeper with a sprite-sized version.

I'd like to get these done and in before 1.2, so...any news on this (I assume you've sort of forgotten)? I'd just like to know whether I should wait a bit or finish the set I've started in the same style for 1.2.

As for the cage - I find it the best way to represent the shielding of the ruby. It doesn't make much sense to me if the staff part of the scepter somehow managed to shield the otherwise completely exposed ruby. It doesn't have to be a cage, but at least one "ring" around the ruby would be nice...

[Jetrel]

etc:

Thoughts?

[zookeeper]

I'm not sure...somehow, it actually looks a bit silly to me. Like the ruby was wearing a hat or something. I'm trying to make some sketches of my own right now to see if I can come up with any better ideas. We'll see in a while...

EDIT: Attached are three simple ideas I had. They all look quite a lot like your average fantasy magic scepter, with my favourite probably being the one on the right. The middle one is weird, but maybe the idea could be salvaged for something. Obviously, these are just drafts/sketches and do look very flat and 2D. The middle and right one should probably have three of those "spikes" instead of two, but of course they still have the problem of taking up a lot of space because of the "cage" structure.

[Zhukov]

I have to say that Jetryl's scepter strikes me as looking more like a lamp then anything else.
Of zookeepers edits, the one of the left appeals most to me. No particular reason.

[/$00.02]

[turin]

I have to say that Jetryl's scepter strikes me as looking more like a lamp then anything else.
Of zookeepers edits, the one of the left appeals most to me. No particular reason.

[/$00.02]

Ditto.

[scott]

etc:

Thoughts?

Did you recently change this image? I think the hat is new, isn't it? The other one was good, though. Zookeeper's look weird shrunk down.

Edit: I mean I think the image changed in the same post.

[Jetrel]

etc:

(Unlike the previous attempts on my part, I suspect this one might be a winner, so I've included a version of it without any lighting overlays.)

[zookeeper]

Yay, thanks. Looks good.

And no, I'm not too committed to making scepter variants of Konrad and Li'sar before 1.2 anymore, but we'll want to have them eventually anyway so I'll work on them when I feel like it (might be soon, might be later).

[zookeeper]

And thus it indeed wasn't sooner, but later.

Scepter variations for Konrad (as commander and lord only) ready, as r22388. Shouldn't take me long to do the same for Li'sar, hopefully.

EDIT: These don't include any red glow overlays, btw. I might add them last when I'm otherwise finished with all of these.