Community Designed Unique: Item Art

News
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Hello Travelers, and welcome to the fifth week of the Community Designed Unique event!

Last week we posted the poll for what the item’s Unique Effect would be. For this poll, the community came up with some really exciting ideas. I saw a lot of people talking about theorycrafting and different potential routes each of the unique effects could take really showing just how great these unique effects were.

As the poll came to a close, it was decided that the unique effect will be:

Volcanic Orb is converted to Void damage
+Directly Casting Volcanic Orb grants a stack of Corrupted Heraldry
+Chance to gain a stack of Corrupted Heraldry when hit by Volcanic Orb Shrapnel
+Gain X% movement speed, X% increased mana regen, and +X spell void damage per stack of Corrupted Heraldry
+All stacks of Corrupted Heraldry are lost upon using a movement skill

This unique effect has some very interesting prospects a number of community members have already been discussing. It really takes the application of a “spear” in a very interesting direction, where it’s acting almost as a flagbearer’s spear over a traditional spear. The buff from shrapnel hits encourages keeping the player in close combat to continue getting more stacks as Volcanic Orb shreds down enemies, leading the charge. This allows Volcanic Orb to either be used for its direct effect, or be specialized to be a buff generator for other skills changing how the skill can be used in combat.

For today’s poll, we’ve had our art design team come up with three options for what the item will look like. Being based around the Lost Refuge, these designs incorporate the makeshift direction of weapons given the final stand environment, as well as the incorporation of several Eterran cultures as everyone took refuge here, and finally the corruption of the void creeping into the weapon. However there’s three amazing options here for what this item could look like - and it’s up to you to decide. What will this Community Designed Unique look like?

0 voters

We’ve almost finished designing this community Unique item! Next week will be the final set of polls, where we will decide the Name for the new unique, as well as the flavour text for it. So keep those ideas coming, and remember to leave a heart on the suggestions you enjoy the most to vote for it being included as a poll option!

Lastly, again every Friday, you can catch us live on Twitch 2022-05-06T08:00:00Z to ask questions about the poll, the game in general, or just hang out!

April 8th - Community Designed Unique Kick Off
April 15th - Community Designed Unique: Item Type
April 22nd - Community Designed Unique: Item Theme
April 29th - Community Designed Unique: Unique Effect
May 6th - Community Designed Unique: Item Art
May 13th - Community Designed Unique: Item Name and Flavour Text
May 27th - Community Designed Unique: Reveal!

11 Likes
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Option one does seem to fit better. It looks a bit like Shrapnel on the end of the spear and void being pulled down to where you hold it (at least in my head).

All three look nice though, great work on them.

1 Like
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Rest in peace my meteor dream… Art looks sick!

4 Likes
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I like Option 1 as a better overall design, but I find the use of the seashell & antlers a bit odd… almost like its more primalist than mage… would think that something more like a cracked jewel or piece of ore from the caves or something would be better than a seashell…maybe a claw instead of antlers… The void corrupted “foot” is good, just feel it shouldnt be restricted to the bottom…

anyway…

6 Likes
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Well damn, the art team sure is super talented. I’m at a loss of which one to pick :joy: All look amazing!

Idk how feasible it is to ask, but could we perhaps get a view of the items how we’d see them in game (like top down)? Like what if Option 1 wins but then looks janky as hell in game at that angle and Option 3 would have been better?

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I’m still left with the feeling of “This is just a pointy staff.” Especially if a bunch of void spell damage gets slapped on as an affix.

6 Likes
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I’m sorry if people get upset but…these option are ugly as hell, could be better.

4 Likes
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I agree :slight_smile:

They did say it’s thematically more of a flagbearer than a spear, so why not incorporate it in the design? Perhaps a significant cross-guard thing at the top? Maybe the tattered remains of the Last Refuge/Rat City flag?

2 Likes
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None of these fit the uniques design but #1 does look the best

1 Like
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Yeah these are more void/abyss/orobyss spears instead of Last Refuge spears, which should be more like traditional metal spear being corrupted (more similar to Trident of the Last Abyss) rather than the bone and stone spears we have here. The ‘flagbearer’ mentality should also be represented on the art if that’s what the design team sees in it.

1 Like
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For clarification: The unique effect is a community member’s suggestion, and it being a “flagbearer’s spear” is an interpretation of how the unique effect works - it’s not coming from our unique design team - as we might normally mention the intention behind the design had we designed it. The art is something from our team, which is based on The Lost Refuge being a combination of many Eterran cultures creating makeshift weapons as a last stand against the void.

1 Like
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Not a single rat, this is an outrage!

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All 3 are cool designs, but I don’t think any of them really fit the whole “Volcanic orb turned to void, related to Rat City”. Expected something maybe like a volcanic rock with red hot veins, slowly transitioning into leaky purple stuff. Perhaps strapped to the end of a stick because touching it yourself could be dangerous.

I chose 1 like many just because it has purple and red on it, but the shell, antlers, and fur looks more like something you’d find around Heoborea or the Wengari Camp.

The second option is really pretty, but again, I’d expect it to relate Lagon, not there. The third has a similar problem: very cool, but also has that coastal look to it.

I’d like to see all 3 eventually make it into the game, but these feel like the developers made them long ago and anticipated different choices winning. I’d rather see this poll again in like a month with proper concept art that better matches the item as designed so far, and these 3 made into something else.

7 Likes
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Bummed the meteor effect didn’t make it. Volcanic orb is just meh. Unless it’s made spammable this unique will have a hard time “stacking” buffs. The spear art is cool but I think if we had visual void tendrils growing out of it per stack it would really shine and would make it worth using even if it doesn’t perform endgame.

2 Likes
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The last refuge isnt its own location/culture, its in the ruined era which takes place when all of humanity is fleeing the void and fighting in the last bastion of humanity the lost refuge. Thats why it has shells, antlers and other things. Lagon AND heorots people are in the last refuge fighting together to fend off the void.

The whole volcanic orb thing is just sorta unrelated tbh, Thats just what the item does. The item itself is not related to its effect. Remember that we voted for Ratcity/Lost refuge before we even chose what the item did, That means you could have a ratcity meteor on crit item. And it most likely would not have art that evokes meteor spear. it would have art that invokes humanities last struggle as a group against the void.

1 Like
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I think the design should be more “mad max” ish… messed up, broken, cobbled together pieces of various cultures showing the slow void corruption creeping up it… Its far too “clean and pretty” for the supposed Rat City/Last Refuge theme for me… I think the designs need to be run through a trash compactor for one or two cycles to be more true to the theme of an amalgamation of the last remaining cultures…

1 Like
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I like the “flag bearer” type idea.

I imagine the spear has strips of fabric tied to the shaft. Each strip of fabric represents a fallen ally. Fallen to the void. As the soldier carrying the spear fell, the next would step up to hold the banner high and leading in battle. Rallying others behind. Letting the others know that all those who have fallen are still behind them in spirit. All those lost to the void, yet the brave from the Lost Refuge persevere to the last of them. (I picture the uncorrupted spear similar to the martial arts types with the tassels that whip about with the motions of the spear, but makeshift in design.)

As the spear itself is corrupted by the void, the strips of fabric begin to take the shape of sick void ooze tentacles, seemingly flowing about as if they had a mind of their own. (I picture the Princess Mononoke boar that was corrupted by the chaos).

In a way, the void tentacles represent the Volcanic Orb Splinters, and the tip of the spear the Orb itself. While I don’t know the extent of the coding, it would be neat if the VO void splinters wriggled outward instead of in a straight path.

9 Likes
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Cool beans!

Reading the comments, maybe the look can be somewhat explained by the name and/or the flavor text? With that said, this is what was being discussed in the theme thread.

My only critique to the options is that they are very similar. Like, it is what you would expect when giving 3 artists the same directives. It would maybe have been slightly more interesting with 3 different interpretations of the theme instead of 3 takes on 1. If that makes sense. I think they all look good anyways.

Suggestions:

Forgotten Hope

Delirium of the Lost

Alloy of the Desperate

I think it would be fun if the flavor text somehow referenced that it is a community item, and/or the process.

“At no point in the grueling weeks of the Voids siege did the community of the Lost Refuge lose their Hope”

“Communities from all over the world defended the Lost Refuge against the Void for weeks. They combined all their knowledge and ingenuity in order to hold on. They fell, but some things live on.”

Come on people, lets see some suggestions! :muscle: :muscle:

1 Like
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My name idea: Flame Antlers of Javelin

1 Like
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Refugee’s Plight

“In this precarious situation against the Void, The Lost Refuge takes their final stand to protect the last remnants of humanity. There will be no repose until they emerge victorious.”

3 Likes