OotS-Stick-Art (aka the Wallpaper is awesome) [Archive]

Copperdragon

2013-06-04, 06:57 AM

It's very nice to see where pure stick art can go with the current OotS-wallpapers. Just for a moment: Imagine the comic being this detailed? :smallbiggrin:

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/Wallpapers.html

It's pretty interesting how even a simplistic form to draw can turn out into detailed, living art. Rich did some really great work there and I really hope, that if the kickstarter backlash over, we might get to see an OotS-short-story in that style.

oppyu

2013-06-04, 07:03 AM

ghoul-n

2013-06-04, 08:53 AM

Anyone thinking that this might be a bit of foreshadowing about, for example, Durkon being ressed at some point in the future (since there was no such landscape for our heroes to pass through all the way back to Darth V arc)?

Or sometimes it's just a cigar?

Sunken Valley

2013-06-04, 08:56 AM

Dr. Gamera

2013-06-04, 09:37 AM

Don't think we will. I think Rich has lost his power to do such great art after he bust his thumb.

Wha...?!

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0887.html

BenjCano

2013-06-04, 09:37 AM

Don't think we will. I think Rich has lost his power to do such great art after he bust his thumb.

Confused BenjCano is confused. The planned release of a series of ten wallpapers proves that the artist can't do that great art since his injury?

NerdyKris

2013-06-04, 10:03 AM

Don't think we will. I think Rich has lost his power to do such great art after he bust his thumb.

But... He just made this wallpaper...

nogall

2013-06-04, 10:05 AM

I don't know if Sunken Valley is making a reference to this comment from Rich's update in the kickstarter page:

"I have five of them already (mostly) done from before I got hurt[/URL], and I had been waiting until they were all finished before releasing them. But I recently realized I don't need to wait, right? So here's the first wallpaper."

But, in any case, I strongly disagree with his view - even after the thumb accident, the Giant has been constantly improving his style, as Dr. Gamera pointed out.

Kaed

2013-06-04, 10:58 AM

So... who can name all of the monsters in the wallpaper?

I feel kind of geeky, but I can name almost all of them and the ones I can't, I at least remember from the monster manual.

FlawedParadigm

2013-06-04, 11:19 AM

Yeah, now I feel greedy 'cause I want the other nine so I can set up rotating wallpapers every couple of hours or so.

On a side note, is there a set of OotS sounds? Really, I'd like a whole OotS Windows theme. I got sick of my last set of sounds (partially because an annoying one would go off every time my mouse's USB cord jiggled) but I think something that sounded like it would be OotS style might be less annoying.

Although no guarantees. I don't think I want every boot to be "Start, start, start, start your computer up!"

jere7my

2013-06-04, 11:38 AM

So... who can name all of the monsters in the wallpaper?

I feel kind of geeky, but I can name almost all of them and the ones I can't, I at least remember from the monster manual.

I think I see a cranky galeb duhr and a bit of purple worm on the left, and an ankheg and a pseudodragon on the right. If I'm right, not all the monsters are perilous—pseudodragons and galeb duhr are friendly folk.

quasit

2013-06-04, 11:41 AM

Goblins, Orcs, Troll, Dragon, Pseudodragon, Dire wolves, :belkar: ankh keg, carnivorous plant, harpy?, something birdlike-legged concealed behind the harpy?, hill giants in the background, something that definitely isn't a normal rock but rather a sort of rare?(no simbol displayed) earth elemental, chimera, lot of troglodites, domestic housecat, pixie, imp/mephit/quasit/whatever, super-advanced flying stealth dinosaur, basilisk, yet another reptilian tailed creature hanging from the leftmost upper tree(bet for a wyvern), a burrowing giant worm type monster that could be anything but a nightcrawler (luckily), MiTD with a conjunctivitis and Xykon's long-lost quintuplet.
Not sure if missed something :smallbiggrin:

ChristianSt

2013-06-04, 12:03 PM

Really awesome wallpaper. Normally I have a rotating wallpaper, but I'm pondering whether to just stop that and only use this! (In addition to using it as my phone unlock screen).

The most awesome thing that there is a ton of monsters/npcs, but the scene doesn't lock crowded - heck there would be enough space to add more stuff.

Also another confirmation that the OotS should really hope that they never need to succeed with a Spot check :smallbiggrin:

Giggling Ghast

2013-06-04, 12:58 PM

So that's what harpies look like in OOTS-style. Nice.

It looks like he's changed some monsters from their usual depiction to be a bit more 'art-y,' since his stick figure troglodytes don't usually look as sleek.

Porthos

2013-06-04, 01:56 PM

Gorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous. :smallcool:

Kancsar

2013-06-04, 02:04 PM

awesome. this needs to also be an art print in poster sizes.

edit: clarify: would like to be able to buy heavy-weight poster sizes

maxon

2013-06-04, 02:06 PM

aka the Wallpaper is awesome.
Yes, yes it is. Thank you Giant.

Edit to say: love the MitD

Silva Stormrage

2013-06-04, 02:46 PM

The wallpaper is beyond awesome XD. The only thing is that it should be called "Failed a spot check" but thats just in my opinion XD.

Amazing work Giant!

ChristianSt

2013-06-04, 02:47 PM

Yes, yes it is. Thank you Giant.

Edit to say: love the MitD

I don't think that is the MitD (wrong color of Eyes), but it is possible that is one of the same species (although quite unlikely as the MitD seems to be quite rare).

sam79

2013-06-04, 03:16 PM

In no particular order:

From what I understand from the author's posts on the matte,r his injury primarily affects the speed of production, and not the quality. See recent strips for evidence of this.

Wallpaper is awesome.

'Failed a Spot Check' would indeed have been a great title.

Not sure its MitD, though that would be quite cool.

Seeing the whole Order (inc. Durkon) together again makes me both happy and sad.

Question for people with more D+D knowledge than me; just how badly screwed are the Order here? It looks pretty bleak to me (outnumbered, surrounded and surprised=world of pain, right?). Are they going to kicked totally curb-stopped in three rounds' time, or could they live to fight another day?

BalorArchon

2013-06-04, 03:18 PM

Just thought the wallpaper should be renamed "Another Failed Spot Check" since that's been such a big shtick in the comic (maybe more instead of another? iono).

Porthos

2013-06-04, 03:26 PM

quasit

2013-06-04, 03:49 PM

Question for people with more D+D knowledge than me; just how badly screwed are the Order here? It looks pretty bleak to me (outnumbered, surrounded and surprised=world of pain, right?). Are they going to kicked totally curb-stopped in three rounds' time, or could they live to fight another day?

Provided that each and every monster here is out to get the order, pretty much screwed. If they do attack at once they would experience some issues: most could panic, being struck shaken and/or flee at the sight of either the dragon, the big worm/snake, the undead spellcaster(if it's actually a lich) and perhaps the red-eyes-take-warning monster. If some of them don't know about others, would voluntary step out of the fight either realizing that they're on another leage or to avoid becoming the next course. Also breath weapons and spells tend to cause a lot of friendly fire too so in the end, if they manage to exploit monster infighting, they would stand a good chance, but seems very hard to actually archieve that (which would be an epic win, thought :smallbiggrin: )

Nazzo, the 102nd

2013-06-04, 04:20 PM

Just thought the wallpaper should be renamed "Another Failed Spot Check" since that's been such a big shtick in the comic (maybe more instead of another? iono).

Maybe the name is a reference to this wonderful explanation of game "mechanics" (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0145.html) by Vaarsuvius. So, no (more) encounters today, even though the road is full of dangers...

Defiant

2013-06-04, 04:58 PM

To be honest, I feel like the "failed spot check" joke is grossly overdone by now. It may have been original many, many years ago, but it no longer is so.

Sunken Valley

2013-06-04, 05:02 PM

Just thought the wallpaper should be renamed "Another Failed Spot Check" since that's been such a big shtick in the comic (maybe more instead of another? iono).

Rich doesn't like that joke anymore. He thinks it is pathetic

Bird

2013-06-04, 05:15 PM

It was cool to see some of the stuff from "A Monster for All Seasons" pop up here.

brionl

2013-06-04, 05:41 PM

It looks great, but I can't help but think it looks familiar too. Is that an homage to some semi-obscure sort of famous painting?

brionl

2013-06-04, 05:44 PM

MiTD with a conjunctivitis and Xykon's long-lost quintuplet.
Not sure if missed something :smallbiggrin:

If you talking about in the cave, on the other side of the road, I don't think that's the MiTD. The eyes are too mean looking, besides being the wrong color.

EmperorSarda

2013-06-04, 05:48 PM

Rich doesn't like that joke anymore. He thinks it is pathetic

Did he say that in one of the books?

Sky_Schemer

2013-06-04, 05:54 PM

Did he say that in one of the books?

Not in this exact manner, so "sort of".

An alternate paraphrasing would be that he feels now that the early strips relied too heavily on rules jokes for their humor. While he's not above making the occasional rules joke, he's focusing more on letting the humor come from the story rather than the game.

davidbofinger

2013-06-04, 06:38 PM

he feels now that the early strips relied too heavily on rules jokes for their humor. While he's not above making the occasional rules joke, he's focusing more on letting the humor come from the story rather than the game.

Technically the "failed spot check" joke is neither of these but a third category that might be labeled "metagaming". It's about players abusing player knowledge - the character shouldn't know they failed a spot check but because the player does and is a bad role player the character behaves as though they know. It would make as much sense in nearly any system so it's not really a rules joke.

The humour of the early strips was fine for a while but it isn't as interesting as what came later and it definitely had a use by date.

jere7my

2013-06-04, 07:01 PM

a burrowing giant worm type monster that could be anything but a nightcrawler (luckily)

That's clearly a purple worm, insofar as it is purple.

oppyu

2013-06-04, 07:03 PM

That's clearly a purple worm, insofar as it is purple.
It's the long-awaited return of the phallus worm (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0689.html)!

oppyu

2013-06-04, 07:19 PM

Did he say that in one of the books?
He wrote a detailed, comprehensive, profane rant about why that particular joke is pathetic, and then sent it to all of his favourite board members. What, you didn't get one? :smallsmile:

NerdyKris

2013-06-04, 08:10 PM

Rich doesn't like that joke anymore. He thinks it is pathetic

You keep making a lot of definitive statements about the author lately. Do you have some sort of inside track we don't know about, or are you just making a lot of assumptions?

I assume in this case you're referring to his statement on rules jokes, which didn't call them "pathetic" at all.

Chad30

2013-06-04, 08:45 PM

I think it's a great wallpaper. I made it my desktop background.

EmperorSarda

2013-06-04, 09:11 PM

Not in this exact manner, so "sort of".

An alternate paraphrasing would be that he feels now that the early strips relied too heavily on rules jokes for their humor. While he's not above making the occasional rules joke, he's focusing more on letting the humor come from the story rather than the game.

Ah, so you mean what he was saying a few weeks back about the comic not being about D&D so much than the story and the characters. I got you. I thought for a moment he said somewhere that he hated the "I failed my spot check" running gag.

He wrote a detailed, comprehensive, profane rant about why that particular joke is pathetic, and then sent it to all of his favourite board members. What, you didn't get one? :smallsmile:
No... That must have been the month where I didn't pay fee. Curse my wallet!

Fitzclowningham

2013-06-04, 09:43 PM

I'm kind of interested in the art style, particularly as it relates to Xykon's "quintuplet". This being a wallpaper, the backgrounds are upgraded, we're seeing new perspective-type things (the rightmost dire wolf in a rear 3/4 view), and everything just looks more detailed. However, goblins still look like goblins, orcs like orcs, chimeras like chimeras, etc., etc. The only thing that looks completely different from how monsters are usually drawn in OotS is the skeleton.

Of course, Rich can draw whatever he likes, however he wants - I'm not questioning that. But the stylized Xykon-type skull has consistently been his thing; I'm surprised he changed it. There was that slight modification of the normal style when he showed Girard's corpse, but even that was fairly consistent (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0846.html) with his previous renditions.

I'm not saying this means anything like Xykon's going to get a makeover, but it was the one thing that stuck me about the wallpaper, aside from its general awesomeness.

pearl jam

2013-06-04, 09:48 PM

The choice of style for the skeleton guy piqued my curiosity, as well.

Happy Me

2013-06-04, 10:11 PM

Porthos

2013-06-04, 10:45 PM

It looks like the little spider is holding a green bow in its front legs. Or something odd is going on there. I dunno.

Very nice, I forgot about these so this was a nice treat to find! And nine more to come!

*blows up the 3360 version*

Wow, you're right! :smalleek: That is definitely a little bow there. Just like all of his other compatriots in the war party have.

Great find! :smallcool:

ghoul-n

2013-06-05, 02:27 AM

Here's the list of creatures I managed to see so far for all who are interested.

From top left to bottom right:

1) A tail of some lizard-or-dragonlike creature, probably legless since the tree isn't that huge.
2) An acid-breathing (green head) chimera standing on hill.
3) Two orcs hiding in the bushes.
4) Some kind of evil-glaring rock, probably either small or medium earth elemental.
5) A huge worm moving underground.
6) A pair of evil red eyes in the cave near chimera, which look as same as MitD's here (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0023.html), except red.
7) On the next tree: some type of impish creature (probably air mephit) and some kind of 6-legged lizard, which I fail to identify, but probably it isn't a basilisk (or it's a baby basilisk which developed a habit of sitting on trees).
8) Two large shapes on background near the tree, one holding a club and one holding a stone, probably ogres.
9) A party of 7 goblins hiding behind the tree, two of them are riding worgs. Goblin hunter on the left has a tiny pet spider which has a bow too :smalleek:
10) Some kind of buried skeleton underground, which has a dweomer around his hands, so I'd say it's a lich regenerating near his buried phylactery.
11) A dragon soaring in the sky above the party.
12) Company of 12 or more lizardfolks in the cave under the party.
13) Orc hiding behind the stone which Roy is about to pass by.
14) Another orc and some kind of evil koala creature on\near the next tree.
15) Leprechaun and some non-worg-like wolf creature sleeping behind the next bushes.
16) A troll hiding behind the tree :smalleek:
17) Same tree has two harpies on it and either brass, copper or dirty black wyrmling.
18) Carnivorous plant near the base of a tree.
19) Two more orcs hiding behind another tree.
20) An ankheg underground in the bottom right corner.

That's all, I believe.

quasit

2013-06-05, 04:56 AM

If you talking about in the cave, on the other side of the road, I don't think that's the MiTD. The eyes are too mean looking, besides being the wrong color.

Not meant to be taken very seriously. Anyway, MiTD displayed those kind of wicked eyes on his first appearance. (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0023.html)

That's clearly a purple worm, insofar as it is purple.
Could be, but the desert (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0688.html) and the crayons of time (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0277.html) worms had a more vivid purple colour, like the official ruleset's illustration
(and the latter being a purple worm, indeed). So, not so sure.

quasit

2013-06-05, 05:05 AM

14) Another orc and some kind of evil koala creature on\near the next tree.

:nale: : "Fiendish tree sloth attack".

Belkar<3

2013-06-05, 07:44 AM

Props to the wallpaper, it is very beautiful and detailed.
It would be cool if the goblins started looking like that.

SaintRidley

2013-06-05, 07:58 AM

I love the chimera mostly because it lets us see what Trigak would look like if he had been introduced now, and shows quite clearly the improvement Rich has made artistically since the early days.

Rich doesn't like that joke anymore. He thinks it is pathetic

You're really good at putting words in Rich's mouth. It's like a talent. You should get paid.

Unkillable_Cat

2013-06-05, 08:04 AM

I like the fact how the trees are the only thing not poised to attack the party, yet we all know what Durkon's first words will be.

Chad30

2013-06-05, 08:05 AM

An alternate title could be Killer DM on the loose.

FlawedParadigm

2013-06-05, 09:24 AM

An alternate title could be Killer DM on the loose.

Not really. V could wipe out most of that entire setup with Cloudkill. The chimera, magic-using skeleton, and assuming those are ogres or giants with the hefted boulder, they'd do alright. Unless said skeleton is actually a lich, there's nothing there they haven't handled before (except possibly actual giants.)

This is why V gets written out of a lot of fights. :p

Chad30

2013-06-05, 11:21 AM

I didn't mean to imply they'd get curb stomped by that. It's just something that popped into my head. That's probably about what it would take to be a good threat to them.

Porthos

2013-06-05, 01:59 PM

Not really. V could wipe out most of that entire setup with Cloudkill.

If V could cast Cloudkill, your observation might be correct. As it is, since Conjuration is one of his barred schools... :smallwink:

Chad30

2013-06-05, 02:20 PM

Yeah, I don't remember him ever casting cloudkill. If it's in his barred school, that would explain why. I just recently noticed there's a dragon flying around in the top center. The more I look at it, the worse the odds get.

The largest one shows more monsters than the smaller ones do. This really is Killer DM on the loose!

jere7my

2013-06-05, 06:13 PM

4) Some kind of evil-glaring rock, probably either small or medium earth elemental.

That still looks a lot like a galeb duhr to me.

5) A huge worm moving underground.

A huge, purple, worm, yes. :smallwink: Whether it's a huge purple worm or not is still up for debate, apparently.

some kind of 6-legged lizard, which I fail to identify, but probably it isn't a basilisk (or it's a baby basilisk which developed a habit of sitting on trees).

I'm voting for basilisk, because that's what six legs on a lizard tend to signify in D&D.

8) Two large shapes on background near the tree, one holding a club and one holding a stone, probably ogres.

More likely hill giants, since ogres don't canonically hurl boulders. Could also be two ettins that have both been in terrible accidents.

12) Company of 12 or more lizardfolks in the cave under the party.

Or troglodytes, which fits with their subterraneanity.

some non-worg-like wolf creature sleeping behind the next bushes.

Does that "wolf" have more than four legs? Sure looks like that to me. Could make it an aurumvorax, though it's fur isn't golden.

either brass, copper or dirty black wyrmling.

That's a pseudodragon. You can tell by the scorpion sting.

That's all, I believe.

Well spotted.

KillianHawkeye

2013-06-05, 06:39 PM

Does that "wolf" have more than four legs? Sure looks like that to me. Could make it an aurumvorax, though it's fur isn't golden.

Yeah, it does indeed. Not sure what it could be, though.

brionl

2013-06-06, 12:19 AM

12) Company of 12 or more lizardfolks in the cave under the party.

Or troglodytes, which fits with their subterraneanity.

Looks more like the Lizardfolk from 413 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0413.html) to me.

Nimrod's Son

2013-06-06, 04:10 AM

But the stylized Xykon-type skull has consistently been his thing; I'm surprised he changed it.
Not that (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0036.html) consistently (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0595.html). :smallwink:

Looks more like the Lizardfolk from 413 (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0413.html) to me.
Curiously enough, those lizardfolk bear much more of a resemblance to the troglodytes that appeared in Origin than to any of the other various lizardfolk we've seen.

pearl jam

2013-06-06, 05:16 AM

But the stylized Xykon-type skull has consistently been his thing;

Not that (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0036.html) consistently (http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0595.html). :smallwink:

Those skulls are not exactly the same as Xykon's, but they are very similar and vastly more similar to Xykon's than they are to the style in the wallpaper.

Nimrod's Son

2013-06-06, 05:59 AM

He probably didn't want the speculation that it is Xykon.

oppyu

2013-06-06, 06:31 AM

He was probably murdered by his evil twin Hcir Burlew when he had completed the entire drawing minus the skeleton, so the skeleton was then filled in by the replacement Hcir, which is the only reason why the Giant would ever draw a random skeleton differently from his general random skeleton design.

*gasp* That's why he stopped for so long! So that Hcir could learn how to properly mimic Rich's art style! I knew he was lying about the glass thing!

JosephOrJoe

2013-06-06, 08:45 PM

I set this as my desktop background last night. Upon seeing it this morning, my 5 year old son declared: "Whoa! Whoa! That's awesome!".

He then proceeded to try to identify all of the monsters with middling success.

WindStruck

2013-06-12, 02:23 AM

Wait! What is that cute little elf thing behind the trees! Someone called it a pixie, but I see no wings... (also, it would probably be invisible). Someone else called it a leprechaun... maybe a brownie? Although another problem with that would be, I wouldn't say these particular types are evil, so I don't know why they'd be there conspiring with all the other monsters.

Psh, but just cause you're in the monster manual, that doesn't automatically make you a monster. :smallwink:

By the way, for all you guys counting all the, er.. "monsters". Don't forget the trees. I know they are conspiring against Durkon.