Crashfreeze's Guide to making an AWESOME costume
By
Antaean,
Posted on: 2007-02-14 14:17 in Player Guides
[ QUOTE ]
You ought to let people acces the pictures if you want us to view them 
Some of us are load to register at a new site just to look at them.
Poul
[/ QUOTE ]
It's asking you to register at werewolf? Or at creyindustries? I logged out of both of them but it was still letting me access the pics.
Werewolf requires registration.
Pinnacle
Glowworm * Brrr * Lilinoe
Protector
Kid Trance * Ms. Impala * Red Helen
Virtue
Pooka Pete
[ QUOTE ]
Werewolf requires registration.
[/ QUOTE ]
Grrr. Okay, I'll find another place for them and edit the post. Thanks.
Edit: URLs changed, you should be able to see them now.
I enjoyed this guide as some great suggestions about making costumes. Unless the name/Theme says otherwise, I tend to go for the classic golden-age or silver-age hero. To me, however, it all starts with a name, which is frequently a pun of some kind, and the choice of powersets.
For example, I wanted to make an Ill/TA,as I love the Illusion set, but had never tried the TA set. I thought they might synergize well. OK, now the name. An Illusionist who carries a bow. Hmmmm. An illusionist is an entertainer . . . so "Beau Geste" became "Beau Jester." Backstory? He's got to be a reformed Carnie, since they have Illusionists. That works!
With a name like that, I focus on the Jester part. CoH does not have a Jester hat, unfortunately. White face with a silly smile, Purple top hat, purple and green suit, with touches of white and black. He slightly reminds me of the Joker . . . Hmmm, the Top Hat just does not look silly enough, so lets add some longhorns with some Yellow . . .
And the first reaction I get from my buddies on Ventrilo when they first saw him was, "Oh, jeez, look at that! <laughter>" BINGO! Just what I wanted!
LOCAL MAN! The most famous hero of all. There are more newspaper stories about me than anyone else. "Local Man wins Medal of Honor." "Local Man opens Animal Shelter." "Local Man Charged with..." (Um, forget about that one.)
Guide Links: Earth/Rad Guide, Illusion/Rad Guide, Electric Control
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Color Wheel - The triangles are good, but complimentary colors my shiny metal behind. Orange and Blue ? Only if your a Cobra Urban Viper or DeathStroke. Purple and Yellow ? Yeah just like..no wait.....yeah there pretty much isn't anyone in comics running around in purple and yellow.
[/ QUOTE ]
Madcap
[/ QUOTE ]
and he looks like a j4ck4$$ doesn't he ? 
IRON MAIDEN
http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/4...nmaidenmz9.jpg
Der Wehrmacht
http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/6...hrmachtol3.jpg
Guardian Golem
http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/3...angolemkz8.jpg
Centinull
I love this guide! I think it helped to make my main character's costumes look much better. Here's some (admittedly mediocre) before and after shots:
Taumaril's main uniform:
Before
After
Taumaril's alternate uniform:
Before
After (Front) After (Back)
Actually, her alternate costume is quickly becoming her standard. I don't know about any of you, but I like them.
[ QUOTE ]
I love this guide! I think it helped to make my main character's costumes look much better. Here's some (admittedly mediocre) before and after shots:
Taumaril's main uniform:
Before
After
Taumaril's alternate uniform:
Before
After (Front) After (Back)
Actually, her alternate costume is quickly becoming her standard. I don't know about any of you, but I like them.
[/ QUOTE ]
Honestly, I liked your original versions better.
Well, in the interests of getting opinions on my toon, I will post here. My main is in the sig. Tear down, or build up as you will.
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I love this guide! I think it helped to make my main character's costumes look much better. Here's some (admittedly mediocre) before and after shots:
Taumaril's main uniform:
Before
After
Taumaril's alternate uniform:
Before
After (Front) After (Back)
Actually, her alternate costume is quickly becoming her standard. I don't know about any of you, but I like them.
[/ QUOTE ]
Honestly, I liked your original versions better.
[/ QUOTE ]
Not me! I liked the changed versions much better.
LOCAL MAN! The most famous hero of all. There are more newspaper stories about me than anyone else. "Local Man wins Medal of Honor." "Local Man opens Animal Shelter." "Local Man Charged with..." (Um, forget about that one.)
Guide Links: Earth/Rad Guide, Illusion/Rad Guide, Electric Control
[ QUOTE ]
Honestly, I liked your original versions better.
[/ QUOTE ]
I'm in agreement.
The original outfits look like something a woman would actually wear.
Centinull
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Honestly, I liked your original versions better.
[/ QUOTE ]
I'm in agreement.
The original outfits look like something a woman would actually wear.
[/ QUOTE ]
For me, I guess it boils down to a sense of purpose. An all-white outfit might not be as "exciting" as a bunch of colors, but, for better or worse, it's focused. The designer has a point he's trying to make (which might be inappropriate for the character's concept, but that's another issue).
Making your blue with orange stripes just because they're complimentary colors is, well, pointless.
Superman wears bright colors because he's a symbol, originally of America, but also just a symbol of clarity, honesty, and responsibility. His colors reflect that purpose.
Batman is a creature of the night. He wears dark colors not because of Wayne's attitude's and personality, but because dressing in black or dark colors is tactically beneficial.
Spider-Man originally started out as an entertainer, so his costume is a little frivolous. When they introduced the black costume back in the 80s, a lot of people liked it simply because it made more sense than his red & blue one (which was red & black, originally, but then the 60s happened to it). It didn't make perfect sense, because of the big white spider, but it was better.
When I design a character in CoX, I try to think about the practical use of his costume. Why is he running around in blue spandex? Who in their right mind would do that? Why the hell does Superman wear red underpants over a blue leotard. Were I deconstructing the character, I'd take the hint suggested by the first movie and have his costume be derived from some kind of Kryptonian fashion or uniform.
Why does your character want to dress the way he dresses? To grab attention? Okay, but why does he want to grab attention?
If you woke up tomorrow with super powers, would you suddenly start wearing green and red spandex? Maybe your powers can only be contained by your outfit, a la Positron. So then your outfit should at least suggest that it's some kind of containment system. Maybe some cooling pipes, or vents, or reinforcement, or something.
When I see a CoX character all in white, regardless if it's traditional or "pretty," I think that that character is well-integrated. The player obviously has a concept in mind that is supported by the all-white costume (I could be wrong, the player could have just done it arbitrarily, but that's my first impression).
When I see a CoX character in red/blue/yellow primaries and a very standard "superhero" underpants-on-the-outside style costume, I think the player has no real idea what he's doing and only did that because that's what superheroes are "supposed" to look like.
I have a problem.
My Robotics Mastermind is a robot himself - just a robot, pure and simple. He has his regular costume and two empty costume slots. I'm getting a feeling this will end up being a one-costume character. I mean, what would a robot, manufactured to be just what he was manufactured to be, have as an extra appearance? Robots don't have capes or clothing or multiple color scheme "outfits"... or anything like that. I just can't think of anything else to do with him.
I'm totally lost with this character's costumes.
Trenchoat + pants + fedora = incognito!
What shall claim a Sky Kings' Ransom?
PPD & Resistance Epic Archetypes
[ QUOTE ]
I have a problem.
My Robotics Mastermind is a robot himself - just a robot, pure and simple. He has his regular costume and two empty costume slots. I'm getting a feeling this will end up being a one-costume character. I mean, what would a robot, manufactured to be just what he was manufactured to be, have as an extra appearance? Robots don't have capes or clothing or multiple color scheme "outfits"... or anything like that. I just can't think of anything else to do with him.
I'm totally lost with this character's costumes.
[/ QUOTE ]
Try making a Gold/Brass version . . . or Orange/Copper.
I have one character who has a similar dilemma -- my Earth/Rad Controller is "Brown Dirt Cowboy." (I already have a Capt. Fantastic, and he's the sidekick, based on the old Elton John song.) He's a Cowboy . . . dressed in Brown. Not much else I could do with him. How did I vary his costume? I just changed his shirt color under his jacket. That's it.
LOCAL MAN! The most famous hero of all. There are more newspaper stories about me than anyone else. "Local Man wins Medal of Honor." "Local Man opens Animal Shelter." "Local Man Charged with..." (Um, forget about that one.)
Guide Links: Earth/Rad Guide, Illusion/Rad Guide, Electric Control
[ QUOTE ]
I have a problem.
[/ QUOTE ]
Try giving him a human form disguise.
A robot villain woudl have a hard time fitting in a human community. A fleshform disguise would allow him to travel with a minimum amuont of scrutiny.
Or, he could just decide that since other villains wear capes, etc.. to intimidate the humans that it is only logical that it do so.
Or, he just upgraded to new parts or repaired battle damage. Armored sections, bigger shoulder pads, different robotic limbs choices, etc...
One of my bot charecters has the clunky 3 fingered hands and feet with a visored helmet with antenna and such for his first costume, a more evolved terminator endoskeleton for his second slot, and a human form disguise as his third.
Centinull
[ QUOTE ]
I love this guide! I think it helped to make my main character's costumes look much better. Here's some (admittedly mediocre) before and after shots:
Taumaril's main uniform:
Before
After
Taumaril's alternate uniform:
Before
After (Front) After (Back)
Actually, her alternate costume is quickly becoming her standard. I don't know about any of you, but I like them.
[/ QUOTE ]
My advice.. stick to the originals
[ QUOTE ]
Trenchoat + pants + fedora = incognito!
[/ QUOTE ]
Wait a minute, are you a robot?
No sir, why do you think I have this hat and fake mustache?
You're right.
[ QUOTE ]
I have a problem.
My Robotics Mastermind is a robot himself - just a robot, pure and simple. He has his regular costume and two empty costume slots. I'm getting a feeling this will end up being a one-costume character. I mean, what would a robot, manufactured to be just what he was manufactured to be, have as an extra appearance? Robots don't have capes or clothing or multiple color scheme "outfits"... or anything like that. I just can't think of anything else to do with him.
I'm totally lost with this character's costumes.
[/ QUOTE ]
It's kinda hard to say anything w/o the costume, but what about a battle-ravaged outfit? Going up or down the tech-ladder would work towards the same effect.
What if he redesigns/modifys to fit to a patron or ally? The strategic reasoning would be there.
Sweet!! One of the best guides I have read so far!
Something I wanted to add to this. When doing colors, try to make 'triangles' of colors. If you have a red mask, make the gloves red as well. Or the boots match the belt. Things like that.
How'd you get such a good picture of your various characters?
@Oblivion Herald
Nicely done. Kudos, keep up the awesome editing. : ]
Here are my various costumes for critique. I'm pretty "serious" about my looks . . . not trying to be humorous hehe.
Khranium
Snap Frost
Cordite A
Cordite B
Cordite Main
Critiques?
Centinull seems a bit cynical towards conforming to aesthetics yet his characters are all color coordinated fairly well. Metal is like khaki, it goes with just about anything.
I think this guide is very helpful to a majority of players that lack the creative talents of an artist. I would say that I use this method subconsciously every time I create a character and I spend a lot of time molding it into something unique. Most people don't.
I would say most people choose the powers they want and the breeze through the character creation screen with a few basic selections that like without considering aesthetics and then plug in names until it goes through. This guide should help those people who may be overwhelmed by the number of selections available and come up with something before they even log into a server.
Here is a picture of my robochicken. Yes it's not completely original but it shows how creative one can be with the character creation.
Robochicken
My suggestion for creating unique characters is to think about a concept before you even log in. Once you have an idea completely fleshed out, try to go into the character creation and mimic your concept. It may take awhile to get it right or even close but it's amazing what people can come up with by combining costume pieces. Something I have been playing around with lately is taking animals or mechanical devices and making them into a character. One example is my character Fire Bottle. I tried to use whatever I could to mimic a fire extinguisher without making it look like a disaster. I think it turned out pretty well. I will post a pic on here to show you what I mean.
Fire Bottle
Just to touch on what my thinking was behind this. I wanted a fire extinguisher that was assimilated by nano-bots. I thought of the arms as hoses and the head was like the top valve and handle, the body and legs are the bottle portion and the feet are just robotic and a silver color so it doesn't detract from the bottle portion. I used a fin for the head to simulate a handle and eye plugs to continue the metal industrial feel. I also added a yellow barbed wire neck piece to simulate that plastic tie that is in place that you have to break in order to use the extinguisher. The chest is just a fiery comet emblem over the diamond chest emblem background. It's basically an ice blaster for powers.
I am not suggesting that everyone goes out and do what I am doing but you can find the most simple thing to use for inspiration and then use a thesaurus to find an alternate name besides the obvious that is already taken.
[ QUOTE ]
Color Wheel - The triangles are good, but complimentary colors my shiny metal behind. Orange and Blue ? Only if your a Cobra Urban Viper or DeathStroke. Purple and Yellow ? Yeah just like..no wait.....yeah there pretty much isn't anyone in comics running around in purple and yellow.
[/ QUOTE ]
Madcap