Dark_Respite

I still play with the music on, even after going on four years. Some zones, I just really enjoy the music (especially the Praetoria stuff, but still some original zones). What really surprised me, though, was the cutscene music from Adair's arc. When I first heard it, I was amazed - it gave it a whole new level of awesome.

Then you've got the 'GET THE HELL OUT OF THE BUILDING' music from the end of Leonard's arc, which also totally rocks...

Add another vote to getting OminousVoice to do music for the game...

... failing that, I'd love to hear what Chance Thomas can do with COH.

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

In addition to my trailers, I sometimes do music videos. This one was a Christmas/birthday present for a friend, but I wanted to share it here. I think it's a rather poignant reminder of how matters of heroism and matters of the heart can sometimes be conflicting, and more often than not, painful.

(And FWIW, it also briefly references characters and events from THE COURSE OF SUPERHERO ROMANCE...)

City of Heroes - A Heart Divided (YouTube version)
City of Heroes - A Heart Divided (highrez download version)



Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

A new music video by Samuraiko Productions...

A Heart Divided (Music Video)

(Also available for download from the Samuraiko.com/Videos.html page, as per usual)

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

Actually, he's pretty smart. All the other Longbow stand around with each other, which renders them instant targets by heroes who need insps between fights and don't want to zone. He's the one Longbow going, "Oh, yeah? You wanna take on MY mob? Look who I've got with me!"

Either that, or he just got called on the carpet by Statesman for pointing out that Ms Liberty is finally doing what she's best at, and the arrival of the heroes pre-empts a major a**beating.

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

I like the idea of all the cutscenes being available somewhere for viewing. (The problem with demorecording a cutscene and playing it back is that at least half the time, it won't play back properly - which is damned annoying actually... otherwise I'd go back and try and get several of them.)

Or maybe some variety in them? One time we see Aeon doing his rant and rave, another time... imagine...

[SCENE CUTS TO A CLOSED BATHROOM DOOR, WHILE AN ARACHNOS SOLDIER STANDS OUTSIDE POUNDING ON IT]
Arachnos Grunt: "Sir, you need to hurry! We're being attacked by heroes!"
Dr. Aeon: "WHAT?! Oh all right, I'll be right- WHO USED THE LAST OF THE TOILET PAPER?!"

Or on another one...

[SCENE CUTS TO DR. AEON FIDDLING WITH SOME MEGACOMPUTER THAT LOOKS LIKE IT HAS A VALUE OF THE GROSS NATIONAL PRODUCT OF BURMA]
Dr. Aeon: "Excellent, and with this one final adjustment, absolute power shall be-"
[IN COMES RUNNING AN ARACHNOS GRUNT]
Grunt: "The heroes! They're attacking!"
[CUE A LOUD EXPLOSION FROM THE MEGACOMPUTER, AND DR. AEON WAVING HIS HANDS IN FRONT OF HIS FACE]
Dr. Aeon: "Heroes?! I don't have time for this! Look what you made me do!"

Not knowing which cutscene you'd get might add a nice touch of variety.

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

Apparently the first commercial for CA is being aired during the Super Bowl...

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

You're welcome, I hope it helps!

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

There is now a small but increasing-in-volume voice in my head that says for this year's April Fools Day, I must use this as a basis for a 10-minute-long video guide to COH. *laughing*

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

Let's see...

When Agent Andrea Blake was given her artifact by Trapdoor, he didn't give her the original. Oh, he thought he did. So did she. But instead, he gave her its shadow. And when she touched it, it suffused the darkness that has been inside of her ever since she died with the power of the Well. And as far as she's concerned, even if the Well does whisper to her, it's just another voice like the ones she hears in her head thanks to her connection to the Netherworld...

Agent Sorina Tavarisch, on the other hand, found herself holding blueprints. But these were more advanced than anything she'd ever seen. For a split second, she understood them fully, could explain how the infinite power of the Well could be distilled into human science, the flow and harnessing of energy to nearly limitless levels... and then the knowledge faded. She still has the blueprints, but must now unlock them, little by little. She has already modified her gauntlets using the theories she has deduced from the blueprints, and the increase in her abilities is noticeable.

Then there's Cluster Flux. Incarnate, Shmincarnate. She just went along to 'help' as she usually did. Then Trapdoor handed her something. And like almost everything else did around her, it broke. Or at least she thought it had. She didn't even really have a chance to study the thing before there was a flash, a puff of smoke, and a crackling staticy sound before it disintegrated. She's not sure if it actually did anything... so she's just waiting to try her powers on something even bigger. Rumor has reached her ears of something called a Goliath War Walker, and she can't wait to see if she can break that, too.

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

Okay, back. Sorry to make you wait.

All right, greenscreening can be a bit tricky, but once you get the hang of it, it's damn useful. You'll need a couple things for this:

a) access to a base that you control
b) Leandro's Splasher Program (download and install this before we get started - it's free, it's easy, and it's small)
c) Paint, PhotoShop, or some other graphics program on your computer


Okay, here we go. Bear with me, coz this can get complicated. But you can do so much with this, it's worth the hassle. Thank God I'm a tech writer by profession...


Part One - Create Your Filming Stage

1. Pop into your base, and create a room for filming use. Depending on how far away you want your camera, choose the appropriate size. A 3x3 room should be more than sufficient.
2. Remove as much of the floor and ceiling as you can so there's a LOT of height to work with in here.
3. Apply the Hirano style (pick one and be consistent) to the entire room, floor to ceiling (AND ONLY TO THAT ROOM, don't wreck your base doing this).
4. Exit out of the base builder, and then out of the game for a bit.


Part Two - It's Not Easy Being Green

5. Open Paint, PhotoShop, whatever, and start a new graphic - 720 pixels wide by 480 pixels high, RGB color scheme, JPG format.
6. Fill the graphic with solid green - if you have access to the RGB color smear as I call it, set it for R = 0, G = 255, B = 0. Save the file as GreenBackground.jpg.
7. Create another jpg, same settings, but this one will be grey. Access the smear, and set it for R = 127, G = 127, B = 127. Save this one as GreyBackground.jpg.


Part Three - A Splash of Change

8. Open Leandro's Splasher program, and click the Textures tab.
9. Next to Input File, browse to your GreenBackground.jpg file. Leave the Alpha Mask area blank.
10. Under Destination, check the box next to Apply to all textures in the selected category. Then, next to Category, drop down to Supergroup Base Style: Hirano.
11. Click Save Texture.
12. Now change your Input File to your GreyBackground.jpg (leave the Alpha Mask blank), change the Category to Supergroup Base Style: Hirano (Bump Maps), then Save Texture again.


Part Four - Lights... Camera... WHOA!!

13. Now, log back into the game, pop back into your base, and head into that room. Green! But we're not quite done yet...
14. Open Edit Base again, head back to that room, and click the Lighting Tab on the Room Identifier menu (not the base items Lighting tab). Click the white square to the far right on each row to crank all three sets of lighting up to max brightness, and then adjust it down from there to suit your needs.
15. Lastly, solid wall space. Here's where we get sneaky. Under Room Details, pick a very, very small item (like the "clear bottles" item), and place it on the floor next to the wall, close enough that the trim disappears. Put one set of bottles at the far LEFT of one segment of trip, put another set of bottles at the far RIGHT segment of the adjacent trim. You now have two pieces of wall trim gone, and the bottles (hopefully) outside your view.
16. Position your character against that wall and swing the camera around to the front (you might need to angle it a bit to avoid seeing the juncture between floor and wall).
17. Turn off your UI, click PrntScreen, and voila!


Part Five - But What If My Character is Green?

That's easy - just change the color from Green to something that's NOT in your costume. Purple, yellow, red, blue, whatever.

(FYI, to restore the original base textures, just reopen Splasher, go to Textures, select the Hirano stuff, and click Restore Default Texture. Next time you enter the game, it'll be back to normal.)

*****

So there you go. Emote to your heart's content against a green background, then you can import the graphic into PhotoShop and greenscreen with ease.

This, by the way, is how I managed to create THIS little video. Easy? Meh. Worthwhile? Hell yes!

Good luck!

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

And why in the world they didn't use the No_Ring models is beyond me... I may have to recreate that using the alternate models for DW, LG and Apex.

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

Stargazer has been there for a while - I have it on several characters, actually.

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

A one-on-one correspondence course of understanding ragdoll physics in democode.

Failing that, the removal of the War Walls so Paragon City flows like Praetoria does.

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite

Best and worst experiences as a Community Mod?

Best qualities for a community moderator (for them's that want to get in the biz)?

Michelle
aka
Samuraiko/Dark_Respite