Makeover the Freedom Phalanx and win influence! 2.1 billion in prizes!

Okay here they are, these aren't necessarily the best, but I did have ideas behind them and they are getting my foot in the door.

CITADEL:

Seems like everyone is really swerving hard to bring Citadel further toward being a robot. Although he's an android, upgrading him toward looking more human isn't terrible. I went with this design to suggest that he's his own hero now, not necessarily the same Bastion or using the (terrible looking) powersuit handed down by Horatio. I tried putting in an emblem, but it really distracted from the very basic, clean look of the costume.

If I did a Tron-based Freedom Phalanx, this design wouldn't change.




SYNAPSE:

For someone who's supposed to be a hyperkinetic speedster, Synapse doesn't look all that active in portaits. His costume just doesn't come out and grab you. I decided to go with this to highlight the idea of a man brimming over with internal energy, maybe even a coherent mass of living energy. The shock of hair was just for fun. Still have the visor/goggles though. Getting bugs in your eyes cramps your heroic composure. Side panel shows the "streaking star" design I figure takes place of a chest emblem




NUMINA:

As everyone's said, Numina really is one of the better designed NPCs in the game, which makes sense since she was designed by a fan/player. I liked that other people were using the closed-eye supernatural face on her, so I sorta did something similar with the eye-concealing cowl, suggesting that her vision is something that's more than physical. I figure this is a bit more of a Mid-Bronze Age look at Numina, with the extra drapery necessary to indicate a woman of mystery and action.




SISTER PSYCHE:

Full Disclosure: I positively hate the way Sister Psy looks in the game. Especially since she looks really great in the non-game model portraits of her (the loading screen, the COH Main Page, other promo materials). While it's not revolutionary, I really wanted to design a version of Sister Psyche that actually looks like the version we see in these other media. Also, that old hair HAD to go. The other portraits of her suggest that she has her hair out of her face most of time and I love that a full-length shot of her reveals that she wears platform shoes! See, Manti, you're not so short when she's out of uniform. Um... That sounded wrong. I waffled on keeping tights vs. pants, but I think she looks better with the pants, really.




More to come later, I have some themed sets in mind. Just got to struggle with them in the creator and then cox my machine to allow screenshots (grumblevistagrumble).

I got another set ready, but my comp went wonky today, and gave me the gift of three BSOD's, so I'll have to wait till I get to work to upload it.

BONUS IMAGE!



STATESDEATH! More pouches, random guns, knives, grenades and bazooka! TO THE EXTREEEEME!

Here's another entry:


Statesman & Posi, a New Golden Age look

Back Alley Brawler, a former Negro League slugger, turned streetcleaner & Manticore, a girl inspired by the tale of Robin Hood. She now looks to take back the streets from the Family and other crime syndicates.

So as soon as I got my first idea posted, the seed of a second idea germinated, and I had to do it, just for the fun of it. Introducing the FREEDOM PHALANX - FILM NOIR STYLE!

Great costumes everyone! I think the judges have their hands full for this contest.

The Freedom Phalanx is gone! No one knows where to. No one knows if they're coming back. The torch is waiting to be passed, but no one is handing it off. It's up to these eight teenagers to take it for themselves. Are they ready to step up and live up to the name?

Get ready for Freedom Phalanx: Gen Now!

Here's what I got, the gentlemen of the 'Surviving Eight', all handsome and charming in their new garbs!

Positron

Back view.
For Positron, I decided that reducing bulk was my primary task. After that, I wanted to give him a major overhaul with coloration, befitting the changing times in which heroes thrive in. That being said, I gave him a lot of unpainted, glossy gray metal elements. However, I wanted to leave behind aspects of his former suit. I accomplished that by retaining quite a bit of gold elements, along with a single strip of blue on his belt of nearly the same hue as the auxiliary blue lines on his prior armor.

Synapse

Back detail. Note flames.
I wanted Synapse to remain fairly unchanged, because his costume was already iconic and hero-esque. That being said, I gave him a snazzy jacket to match his wild personality and need for speed. His colors have been honed down slightly darker; and flame elements have been added to his gloves and boots for an unpredictable, speed-demon feel. I also gave him some facial hair to denote the passing years.

Manticore

Back view.
Manticore I wanted to change quite a bit. I figured that marriage and a new crime-fighting partner meant he could lax on the full-suit a bit. So, he now sports a sleeveless top and visible hair in addition to a very tactical display.

Back Alley Brawler

Back view.
Like Synapse, I figured Back Alley Brawler wouldn't change his costume to some polar extreme. His jeans are now a more denim hue, to begin with. I used Vanguard boots to add a sort of "steel-toed boots" feel to his rugged nature. Lastly, his power gloves now extend up to his clavicles, providing more protection and power. Also, the progressing years have given him some more refined facial hair in the form of a goatee.

And last but not least, the star...

Statesman

Back view. Note cape pattern.
Statesman was my pride and joy. I knew from the start I wanted to make his costume the most grand, the most conservative, and the most iconic. Preserving his patriotic red and blue, I added some gold elements to demonstrate his excellence as a hero. His cape is also less ostentatious than before, although it too contains a patriotic expression with stars running down the back. Last but not least, he now dons the insignia of the Freedom Phalanx. This is not only a sign of his devotion to the exceptional supergroup, but it also lends a final piece of flare to his patriotic soul.

Wow, this is a popular thread! Lots of great designs, can't wait for next week!

Alright, so for my final entry...I went with the regular old update. Sorry, Teeth.






So, my final lineup...
Statesman: I hate his faceplate. It's so silly, being just a faceplate with no back to it to make a proper helmet! So I went with a small mask, kept his design simple, changed the cape.
Sister Psyche: Rogue inspired, with the jacket over the tights.
Positron: Glowy bits are fun.
Back Alley Brawler: The streetwise gladiator, with a bit more armor than a tank top.
Manticore: Wears a full helmet now to protect his beautiful beautiful face from harm. (He will not have it!)
Numina: As ever, tough to improve upon what's already in-game. I do like the braids.
Synapse: I like the cockiness of the huge goggles, and the dagger pattern gives a speedy look. A little greased lightning doesn't hurt either.
Citadel: I decided, as an android, his strength and abilities don't depend on his size. So, I made him smaller, and a bit more human looking. The skin tone hints at his robotic nature, a la Data.

Well, what a fun ride, and now I'm out of entries. (There goes my space pirate theme...)

What someone said up above about his own personal takes got me thinking about given the backstories, what costumes would I do?

STATESMAN


POSITRON


MANTICORE


BACK ALLEY BRAWLER


CITADEL


SYNAPSE (VENGBAIT)


It's my belief that most superheroes look best with the huge skeleton.

FREEDOM PHALANX: FANTASY EDITION

You may wonder... what do the members of the Freedom Phalanx do during their downtime? Well, believe it or not, sometimes they get together in the back room of The Wizard's Well, and War Witch runs a little D&D session for them...

Awesome.

I think (one of) the best criteria that can be used for judging this competition is whether you would want to play the presented character or not. That said I realize that the Liefeld Phalanx has no chance of winning, but I didn't really expect it. I also realize that I'd like to play almost all of the Fantasy Phalanx characters.

Yay!

Ok, time to stop lurking and actually post this stuff I've been mucking about with.



I started with the Back Alley Brawler. He's turning 50 in a few months, so I figured to celebrate I'd give him a little more grey. I tried to make him a bit more down to earth, give him some darker colours, more suited to beating people up in alleyways. The fists in particular have always bothered me. They're awesome and all, but the Back Alley Brawler has always seemed to be a guy who walked out of the PPD and onto the streets. Something impromptu like some chains he had lying around seem like the perfect thing for him to carry. For the record, I'd also make him Willpower, since he has no powers. Other than that, I didn't really change him a lot.



With Numina, I tried to start with hair and build outwards. With the hair I was trying to find something from the 60s, since that's what it would have looked like when she died. For scales, I tried to reimagine her as being slightly larger than the average athletic heroine, since a lot of her work is likely reading and studying. Not to mention that she could possibly fly using her magic. Why walk when you can prove power over gravity?

In terms of ghostlyness, She's as pale as I could get her without it looking too horrific. I ditched the purple, because even though it's neat and I'm risking making her another version of Swan, I felt the white was a better look for a ghost. I've also added the auras that I'd want her to have in the second shot, though it seemed like a shame to leave out the costume I'd made her, even if the auras do make her look awesomely ghostly in my opinion.



Ok. Manticore. I really do like the hood that people keep mistaking for hair, but I wanted to give him a bit less of a showy feel, since that's more Synapse's department. The secret identity part is well served by a low-slung hood, along with the mask and eyepieces.

As I was making this, it was feeling a little bit busy, but the more I considered his lack of powers, the more I wanted pouches and pieces of ad-hoc armour all over the place, wherever he could fit another one on. I wanted the flared boots because I never, ever get an excuse to use them. I wanted to add a bit more black to head back towards the same thing I was working on with Brawler. I figure Manticore strikes from the shadows, so a darker red might not go astray, especially when a bit more black is added. The laser sight bow is a bit of a standard for him, because it looks technologically advanced.



Citadel was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed experimenting with different pieces and the ability to give him a metal mohawk and claim it was some kind of vent was even more enjoyable. This design spawned something of a story. YOU WILL INDULGE MEH.

Synapse looked at Positron's latest work on Citadel over for the fifteenth time. The scientist and android looked at him anxiously, waiting for an opinion.

"It just seems like something is wrong." the speedster stated, a quizzical look on his face as he dashed a series of laps around Citadel. "It's like... won't the public think of him as a bit of a streaker walking around nude like this?"

Positron stared at his colleague, a serious look on his face. He tried to speak a few times, dumbstruck before finally managing to croak out ".. He's a robot"

Synapse dashed back and forth around the robot, darting from spot to spot. "So? This is the public we're talking about, not logical people. He needs cool pants and I know just the place to get them."

Citadel opened his newly redesigned mouth to speak for the first time. "This suggestion may indeed be an acceptable one. Purchasing clothing will give me a further opportunity to study humankind."

-- hours later --

"No, no, no." Synapse shook his head with exasperation. "You need something cool. Something that will endear you to the public."
"How will I know if a garment is cool beyond my analysis of the thermal qualities?" the android asked, throwing another pair to one side, still confused at what he was supposed to be achieving.

A hand raised to Synapse's forehead. This brilliant idea was more frustrating than he was expecting. "Look... you just know, alright?"

Citadel frowned, getting his new mouth a little more under control. Just knowing was not quantifiable. He held up another pair. This one was a red pair with white flames dancing up the legs. "Is this... cool?"

Quicker than lightning a hand shot up, pointing at the latest pair and crackling with energy. "... That's perfect."

Premise:

After "Going Rogue" hit Paragon by storm, both the City and the Isles seemed to be in a shade of gray. Heroes turned evil and started to populate the once downtrodden Port Oakes & Mercy. Villians turned Do-Gooder suddenly saw the light and started to clean up the mean streets of beautiful Atlas Park & Galaxy City. The open portal into Praetoria seemed to allow in all sorts of riff raff to both sides. What Paragon needed now was a lighthouse of virtue, a pillar of light, a pressence to re-emerge as the becon of Hope in this darkened gray world of "heores."

This remake of image also came as a rebuilding of their brand of sorts. The Freedom Phalanx saw a need to show those who were fighting the good fight that they arent alone, that those who came before them are still around. Meaner, badder, and with less politics and public opinion. The Freedom Phalanx comes back in force, no hold barred, tearing down those who are looking for mere opprotunity over the greater good of Paragon. The time for training and sidekicks was over. It was time to reclaim their City.

"The hero business isnt about popularity anymore, its about setting the world right one crook at a time.... by any means neccessary." - Back Alley Brawler


Positron: With new developments from Rikti technology at his fingertips, Positron unviels his "Posi-tech" line of enhancements. This ultra rare line of "upgrades" transforms the scientist into an inventor who can help evlove the aging Freedom Phalanx to help fight back against a bigger, badder crime element out there. With new power mastery over his "condition", Positron takes to the skies to battle like never before, with a force unleashed that rivals near nuclear threat levels.


Back Alley Brawler:
With new Upper Extremity Posi-tech enhancements, the once "fists of power" harness a new techno-power that puts a new kind of hurt in Galaxy City. A sudden influx of Superdine has forced BaB to unleash a beat down unlike Paragon has ever seen. The "Right of Might" embodies a spirit that won't bend or break to anyone trying to flood his streets with 'Dine. He has personally led the charge to bring the fight to them. Progress over Reaction.


Manticore & Synapse:
Watching the world as they knew it start to de-evolve before their very eyes, a unique bond of sorts was made between these long time friends. With the thought that working together in a consistent, one-two punch type of style, thier efforts and rewards will be doubled. Seen by many as vigilantes now, these two have started to loosen thier ties to the original 8 as to not bring heat down on thier very public efforts. But together they have made a major dent in the crime throughout Paragon. Taking back the night one broken rib at a time.


Sister Psyche:
After a much sought after retreat to Oroborus to look within herself and come to terms better than before, Sister Pschye returns to us with a focus unlike we have ever seen. Championed by her new found mental toughness, she sets forth to correct the wrongs that are so plentiful in Paragon. She has been known to even put new "heroes" to the pavement with a look if she suspects they are here to reap the rewards of the hero lifestyle.


Citadel:
The once nuturing AI of Citadel has been upgraded. He no longer looks out upon Talos Island as a sentient robotic pressence. Instead he has chosen to evolve. To start to take on a more human look, to better understand the people, the culture, the reasoning behind thier actions. And as the curiocity unviels itself, so does an urgent need for action. His recent "Doomsday Algorithm" has predicted a full War Wall malfunction and an impending breach of peace within the next 2 years. He forces himself back into action to help prevent this from coming true.


Numina:
Spiritual guidence? Lend a hand? How about a nigh indestructable force that very few villians can even comprehend whats happening before they are drooling masses lined along the gutter of the street. And those that can actually attack a living free formed spirit are in for a very rude awakening... that is, if they can ever escape the nightmarish hell that she just mentally put them in.


Statesman:
"Politics have wasted enough time. What we need now is to fight back. I will no longer let City Hall dictate what we can and cannot do. The Freedom Phalanx is active again, and we are going to call an all out war on those who threaten our way of life. Plaster it on every billboard, every TV screen and internet blog you want. If you are in my City and trying to change OUR way of life... Prepare For Pain..."

This was the last we have ever "heard" from Statesman. No longer does he contract out high end super missions to those willing. He now has taken the war to the streets, to those who try to take advantage of Paragon City. No crook or 2 bit thief is safe anymore. There is no power in numbers. Just a growing list of incarcerated, injured, and missing in action.

I planned to go for a cheap visual joke but I'm too lazy to bother doing it in the costume creator. So if I had it would have been.

Statesman with a dollar sign symbol replacing the star.
Synapse with a target on his chest.
Citadel with sleeping pill on his chest.

Don't know if Im too late but here are mine.


Statesman

Positron

Citadel

Synapse

Manticore: In case an explanation needed on this one, I was trying to make him fit with Wyvern.

Sister Psyche