ShastaB24's art thread

[shastab24]

Never thought I'd make one of these, or at least not until I started getting down and creating actual sprites for my characters, but I decided to fiddle around and quickly drummed up a sprite edit of one of the MUGEN Multiverse Hulk's sprites, to make my character, Sparkle:



Larger size because that's how I happened to do it.  And GIMP doesn't shrink things right, anyways.

Now, you might wonder who she is.  Well, obviously she's a character I created, and seeing as I used a Hulk sprite to do this, one can easily tell I draw correlations between her and the Hulk.  The short of it: she has Hulk-like powers, as she has super strength which, along with her size, increases with strong emotions.  She has no "Bruce Banner" form, and her base form is weaker than the Hulk's base form.  Also, she has a learning disability to begin with, but her intelligence goes down as her body bulks up (as her brain does not increase in size--less blood flow to it the bigger she gets).  In all, while in her base form she's smarter than the Hulk, she has the possibility of becoming more mindless, while at the same time likely never matching his strength at a similar level of rage.

I may edit this later to get in the sparkles that surround her when her powers are actually going.  It's why she calls herself what she does.  And for those of you who might wonder, the reason why I used a male base and didn't even try to make it look female is because that's part of who she is--she's transgender, but her power makes it so she can't look feminine, though she'll try her darndest to be.

Well, onto details of the image (so much to talk about with one simple sprite edit): the black lines are because, simply, I couldn't figure exactly how to translate all the dark green lines into more flesh-tones but the same shading.  The skirt was simple enough (not as easy as the top--that was a very simple draw, no matter how poor it looks), as well, and I'm glad I could actually make it look decent and remove so much of the pants.  The hair--eh, it's fine, I guess, but a lack of lines around it does make it blend in to the forehead (the problems of having a blonde white character sometimes, especially when one doesn't know how to do hair all that well).  I think the bow looks like crap, yet still better than I was expecting.

Any feedback?  I'd love to hear it.  I don't think I'll do much spriting overall, but it's always nice to hear when things can be improved or when they worked.

[shastab24]

Okay, so I guess I turned around and did more than I thought I would.  All these sprites are actually the right size!  Anyways, first up is Supertrans:



Obviously an edit of Toni's Supergirl.  Supertrans is a self-insert character, being myself as a superhero (Superman-like powers granted by a ring), in an outfit I actually have all the pieces to.  I'd hope she'd never be a Mary Sue.

Then we have Sparkle's best friend, Astral:



This one's an edit of Hannibal and Kal-Elvis's Superman.  He can astral project into the above form, getting super strength, durability and flight.  I kind of think of his powers as like a cross between Captain Marvel and Negative Man.  The sprite itself could be better, but eh, that's what happens when you don't know what you're doing quite as much.

Finally, it's my character Flame Thrower:



Obviously an edit of Jhfer's Firestar.  This sprite turned out rather poorly, I think.  It's mainly the chest logo, actually--it just doesn't look right.  But Flame Thrower has pyrokinesis (localized in the hands--hence the name), flight and, being 1/4 dragon ancestry, resistance to temperature extremes.  She's the first superhero I ever created.

But, as this is an art thread, I thought I'd show what these characters look like when I draw them, too, to know what I was working from.  Sadly, not all the art below is completely current, so there are quality differences amongst them.  They're spoilered due to size.

Sparkle:

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Supertrans:

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Astral:

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Flame Thrower:

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[shastab24]

Okay, this can actually be a tad addicting.  I didn't realize it would be.  Anyways, I have a load of sprites below:

First is the Swimmer

Obviously, she's an edit of Fire (maybe obviously, it's possible she looks like an edit of Rogue, because that's who Fire draws most sprite stuff from).  Anyways, the Swimmer has the ability to make the air be like water, letting her swim through it, but also letting her do things like make a fleeing enemy have it like they're running underwater (and other such nifty stuff).

Next is Eiderdown

Edit of Birdy.  Now, this one isn't terribly representative, as Eiderdown has more curves.  At first it was a belly, but she's gotten more fit and the fat redistributed to her hips.  She has the power to control feathers.  Not the greatest power, but that's part of the fun of writing her--finding ways to still make her effective as a character (she can turn into feathers, and a bit of instinct with it makes her bulletproof; she can create wings for herself; etc.).

Then is the Runner

Edit of the Atom.  He's from a race of fish-people (might be obvious) and, unlike his kin, has the ability to withstand any pressure and extreme temperatures, which allows him to be able to make it to the surface (his people live deep in the sea).  He carries gadgets from different undersea civilizations in his pouches, which he uses to defend himself.  Amongst my superheroes, he's one who doesn't consider himself a superhero, just someone who runs into fantastic circumstances.

Next up is Multiblades

Edit of Ten.  She's another one that could stand to have a little more weight.  She has the power to create jagged, rock-like shards from the air (hence what she's holding).  This is the first character on here that's not transgender.  Yes, all above are, because that's the way things go with me.  She's in a relationship with Flame Thrower.

And now it's Michael

Edit of the Atom (he's so simple to go with, as there's little to edit out of the picture, mostly recoloring the sprite).  This is Multiblades's identical twin.  One might gather he's another transgender character.  He has the ability to cover his body in the same substance that Multiblades produces (she can't do the covering, he can't do the shards).

Following is Pinball

Edit of Dr. Manhattan (if one couldn't tell--this is my laziest edit, really).  Pinball has the ability to create portals to other locations (either between universes or within the one the character is in).

Then it's Rearranger

Edit of MUGEN Multiverse's Wonder Man.  Rearranger has the ability to manipulate subatomic particles.  Very powerful.  He's in a relationship with Michael.

Finally for this update it's Split

Edit of Kitty Pryde.  That sword looks bad, but such is as it is.  I don't alter the sprites that much.  Split has the ability to trap the souls of the recently deceased within her psyche, where they can manifest as alternate personalities, with the powers and abilities they had in life.  She can't access these powers, only they can.  The base personality knows Tai Chi.  She absorbed her brother at an early age (car accident--she was in the car with him).  He has hydrokinesis.  Another of my transgender characters, because that's how I do.

So, you wanna see what they look like otherwise?  Well, check below.

The Swimmer

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Eiderdown

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The Runner

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Multiblades

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Michael

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Pinball

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Rearranger

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Split

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Ignore the cat.  Actually a different character there that I'll do later.  Yes, Split isn't drawn by me.  This is a HeroMachine picture.  I've generally only done her in text stories.

[shastab24]

Yep, there might be a bit of an addiction here.  More edits below:

I did my character named Dispawn

This used Caliban as a base.  And it sucks.  I didn't like how it turned out, and wanted to re-do him anyways (especially the freaking wings) even before realizing there was a better base out there for him.

This time I used Hulk 2099.  Plus, I think I made the wings look much better.  Anyways, Dispawn is Flame Thrower's father and is half-dragon.  He can spit fire, fly (if the wings weren't an indicator) and is immune to all temperature extremes.

Having done dragon wings, I felt okay to do another winged character of mine (with completely different wings), Arianna

This uses Invisible Woman as a base.  Arianna is a human-sized fairy (might be obvious) and a telepath.

On the kick of actually doing some more changes to the sprites than usual, I moves on to my character B.A.D.

Edit of Batgirl here.  It was quite interesting to actually give her a belly.  B.A.D. is a telepath and, despite the outfit, is not a ninja.

So then I moved on to some of the public domain characters I use (their origins are public domain--their looks and some backstories have changed).  First was TNT

Edit of Scorn.  TNT is another transgender character of mine (she wasn't in the source, mind, but I can't help myself).  More info about the original here.  My version keeps a similar origin, but reveals she's transgender during my comic and starts to transition.  She also developed gloves that can shoot energy blasts, as well as rocket boots to fly, though she still carries the gun around, just in case.

Then Electric Ray

Edit of Plastic Man.  Go here to find out more about the public domain version.  Mine has learned to control his power and actually doesn't wear the gloves anymore, but I still decided to put them on the sprite.

Followed by Amazona

Edit of Wonder Woman (kind of seems obvious, really).  More info about the public domain version here.  Nothing has changed power or ability-wise with her from the original.  I was fine with her the way she was.

Then Koi Lusa

Edit of the Flash.  And just thinking about it, I forgot his tail.  Anyways, he's my version of the Golden Age Black Panther, with the name changed because Marvel has their own Black Panther.  I made him Native American, though kept his abilities the same.  He's like the Batman of my versions of the public domain characters.

And since Amazona's the Wonder Woman and Koi Lusa's the Batman, I figured I'd do Wonderson

Edit of Astonishing Cyclops.  This is my version of the notorious Will Eisner-created Wonder Man (name changed because of Marvel).  He fits with the previous two as the Superman of the group.  His power has changed slightly (his ring heals him, through magic--the strength and durability are byproducts of the magic, as it causes gravitational distortions that Wonderson controls instinctually without fully understanding; it's an excuse to try to get him to fly at some point), but for practical purposes, it's about the same.

And, as I do now, here are pictures of the characters non-sprited:

Dispawn

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Arianna

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B.A.D.

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TNT

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The character was first redesigned by a webcomic artist I'm working with, Chris V of Victory.

It's from there that I took the character to do my own thing with.  Below is a page I drew with her current look.

Electric Ray

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Another design by Chris V.

Amazona

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Oh hey, look, another Chris V redesign!

Koi Lusa

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Yep, Chris V redesign again (though I give him a different skin tone and keep the tail on the costume he had in the original--well, I also keep the original gloves)

Wonderson

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Chris V again (sense a pattern with the public domain ones?)

[shastab24]

More sprites?  And I still have many more characters to go?  Dang, I might need to go into recovery.  Of course, I never get responses to this.  Am I the only one involved in this?  I was kinda hoping for feedback, after all.  Oh well, shouldn't complain.  I'm used to most everything I say in a forum either killing a topic or being ignored.  It's like a curse, really.  If you're out there, enjoy more newbie sprites:

Marksman

Edit of USAgent.  Marksman is yet another character lifted from the public domain.  See more info here.  I didn't change really anything for my version (except the costume, but that's actually not my doing--see the post above to get an indication who did the redesign), but I did add more to his story, like him being gay (the original never precluded it, and I kinda do that sort of thing) and making his father a bit tyrannical in raising his son to be the perfect weapon (forgoing naming him, even).

Jaguar Man

Edited from the IMT Batman.  It was due after so much MMV stuff to do one that's actually from the boards I frequent most.  Another public domain character, and the last of the bunch (they're all on a team together), you can go here to check out information about the original.  Might get around to an Ebony sprite at a later point.  My Jaguar Man is bisexual and an incorrigible flirt.  I put him in all the fanservice poses usually designed for women in the comics (or I try--my art isn't exactly what you'd call "good").

Tempore

Edit of Captain Universe.  Yes, I know there's no shading and the like, but I am always using the original sprite's shading, and Captain Universe doesn't have any.  Still a good pose for him.  Anyways, Tempore is a guardian of cosmic order, a being with a morality not of "good" and "bad", but of "order" and "chaos".  He can fire energy blasts, create energy constructs, create portals to other universes, and see how events are "supposed" to happen in all the universes in the multiverse he protects (and can extend this to the universe he's occupying if he enters another multiverse), as well as when there's a deviation from this path.  These deviations are what he attempts to correct, as they are the cosmic chaos, often in the form of physical chaos agents.

Red Mind

Edit of Spy-Dama.  The first side-character I decided to do.  He's interacted with Eiderdown on some occasions.  He is a telepath, telekinetic and precognitive (though he can't see his own future).

Protean

Edit of Namor.  Protean is Split's best friend/love interest.  He can turn into any non-human mythological creature (no mer creature, elves, fairies, or the like, but pegusi, griffins, dragons, etc.).  He also has schizophrenia.

Noggin

Edit of the Kaine Scarlet Spider.  Noggin's another telepathic character.  He's a side character from the same universe as Sparkle and Astral.

Technica

Edit of Agony.  Another side character, also from the same universe as Sparkle and Astral.  She's a technopath and generally not an action-oriented superhero, hence the lack of superheroic costume.  Also why I felt okay keeping the heels.

Fractal

Edit of the Kyle Rayner Green Lantern that's floating around out there (who's himself an edit of Tomar-Tu, of course).  Fractal is Eiderdown's best friend/sibling figure.  This was an interesting one to do, as Fractal is always in flux, changing gender, race, height, weight, etc. all the time (I tried to keep some of that aspect by drawing in a single breast on the sprite, as if you caught Fractal in the middle of a shift, but it's hard to see).  The costume may keep the same overall form, but it's constantly in flux as far as what it displays, always different fractal patterns (and if you notice, each piece has a different pattern--that's the way I always do it).  Fractal has the ability to create fractal-patterned energy constructs, a lot like Green Lantern, but doesn't have said character's ability to fly (though it is more of a problem of concentration--Fractal has to think more to do something like that than a Green Lantern would).

But let's get into what they really look like.  Sadly, I don't have pictures for all (nothing for the side characters--I generally have only done a lot with my lead characters), but here's what I have:

Marksman

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Chris V design again!

Jaguar Man

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More Chris V!

Tempore

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Protean

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HeroMachine due to him being in a similar boat to Split

Fractal

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Uncolored costume only!  Because... how else would you draw the character's reference?

[shastab24]

Here's a new batch for you guys:

Ebony

Edit of the lioness/cougar from one of Vixen's openings.  Ebony is Jaguar Man's companion, a black panther.  Figured she was as much a part of the team as the other members, so I decided to sprite her.

Sparkle again

I decided to do her at the right size this time.  In the short time since my first post, my technique has slightly altered, so the shading looks different.  I prefer the length of the skirt I did earlier, as this shows the flaws in me editing the lower legs, but oh well.

Locomotive

Edit of Wonder Woman.  Locomotive is another one of my supporting characters.  She has Juggernaut-like powers: the longer she's in motion, the faster and stronger she gets (never Flash-level speed, though).

Fires of Hell

Edit of the Human Torch.  Very lazy edit, at that.  He controls hellfire, ending up very much like the Human Torch, just with a more devilish origin to the powers.

Heat

Edit of MMV's Human Torch (though the fire "hair" is from Firestorm).  Heat's a pyrokinetic (kinda in his name, really).  With his siblings (below--Gaia, Hurricane and Wave), he's part of an elemental-based team.

Whallop

Edit of Puck.  This was not an easy one to do, as Puck's done weirdly--but he's the only character I have that can fit the bill, as Whallop has dwarfism.  He's in peak human shape but doesn't have any powers.  Still, he's strong for a normal person.  That bar's a weight bar (they weigh 45 lbs), and he is easily able to use it as a bo staff and to vault with.

Bear Man

Edit of Beast.  Bear Man has super strength and possibly some animalistic secondary powers.

American Cowboy

Edit of the IMT Captain America.  I hate how I did that hat, but oh well.  American Cowboy hails from the Old West and due to a healing factor, survived to modern times.  There is a canonical reason in my comics why his outfit looks so much like Captain America's.  May change it, nonetheless, later on down the road.

Hurricane

Edit of Catwoman.  Heat's (and Gaia's and Wave's) sister, Hurricane can control the air.

Gaia

Edit of Catwoman (again--she and Hurricane are identical twins, so it makes sense).  Gaia can control the earth.

Bolt

Edit of Mystique.  Bolt's a speedster, hailing from Jamaica, but on a team with US heroes.

Poltergeist

Edit of Hope.  The head looks huge, so I know I did something wrong.  Anyways, Poltergeist is like my Robin, tied to Black Wraith, who's below.

Wonder Super

Edit of the Hal Jordan Green Lantern.  While Wonderson in a previous post is like Superman, Wonder Super is who I truly consider my Superman analogue.  Luckily, they're in different comics and different universes, so there's little cause to think of a redundancy here, especially as they are quite different character-wise.

Dispawn again

Minor tweaks: added the tail after I remembered I had one, I altered the pants to be more defined and I also made the claws white instead of green.

Koi Lusa again

Figured that since I gave Dispawn his tail, I may as well give Koi his tail.  Koi Lusa's tail isn't part of his anatomy--just his costume--but it should have been included.

Sucrosa

Edit of Bionic Woman.  Sucrosa has the power to control sugar.  She fell into superheroing because of Bolt (above) and isn't sure she even should be considered one.

Madame Fatal

Edit of Rorschach.  Click here to see more about the public domain character.  I've used Madame a good amount, and thought it only fitting to do the character.  My version has started using gadgets, disguised as the ordinary items an old lady would carry around with her (a blinding flash from the top of her cane, laser lipstick, etc.).

Wave

Edit of the MMV Human Torch.  Looked for a reference in my characters for a while before realizing that, as Heat's (likely fraternal) twin, I could simply use the same reference for him.  Hydromancer.

Black Wraith

Edit of Legends Batman.  Fitting, as Wraith is my Batman analogue.

Silveron

Edit of Rogue.  Silveron has heightened senses and can create silver weapons from the air.

Blue Flame

Edit of the Hydra minigame.  Blue Flame was a one-off character in a script I wrote, intended to be just that, but I've been deciding to do more with him.  I'll especially do so now, after doing the sprite, as in doing so I officially created his look.  It's based on the Golden Age Flame, but with blue instead of yellow and red.  I did alter the look rather than just recoloring, of course, adding shorts and changing the cape to look a little flame-like.  Really, I do like that cape.  Oh, right, I should talk about powers: he's another pyrokinetic, but his flames are blue.  I know I'll develop him further now that I've decided to use him more.

I've decided to forego putting up the actual pictures of them because I really don't know if anyone cares, anyways.  Not that people care about the sprites, either, but oh well.