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Fantasy
  • Okay- since the continuation of Baptiste's "adventure" here isn't all nudes, I'm adding the rest here instead of that thread.  XD

    Title: Trolling

    It had been disappointing, trolling the seven levels of Torrence. Once part of the 'new and improved' living structure base, it had in the last decade or so fallen well beyond seedy- something that had on more than one occasion proved beneficial to Baptiste in these sort of moods.

    Today, however, had not ended in a lucrative manner. Neither for his wallet or other baser pursuits.

    He had harbored some small micron of hope for the last building on the seventh level, situated right before the loading bays, but once Baptiste rounded the corner that took him from the lift to the deck told him that micron of hope had been wasted. Even as he walked past the litter, trash barrels and the whore on the second level above him he eyed the well armed Patrol on the stoop of the section that used to house one of the more fruitful 'trade' spots in Torrence.

    Evidently it had been sterilized. Beyond the alcove the papers that covered the door screamed legalities of how, why, and who closed the establishment down. He kept the cursing in his head as he nodded and passed by the Patrol to the beaten up dispenser that the bot had been fiddling with while Baptiste made his way along the deck.

    As the crates were moved into the loading dock behind him, Baptiste fiddled with the newly "fixed" machine- It was best to be inconspicuous when the Patrol was concerned, he was simply wanting a Carb. Even if the damn dispenser still didn't work. He shoved the machine, cursed, and headed back the way he came just as any normal, disgruntled person would do.

    Perhaps it was time to hit more familiar ground. Com with a familiar person. Maybe he'd get a break and a bit of luck.


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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • Another Character- Lucius Duchene

    A man with no history, no background to nearly everyone. A runner as well as a Com engineer, he had connections where most professional runners could not dream of getting; the outer Cities. Most Com's between Cities were sketchy at best, worse than Morse Code at it's worst. Somehow, someway, Lucius could gather intel, get in and out- with the goods- every time he was paid to do so.

    Known to disappear for a half of a year or more on any given occasion, nailing him down to one particular place could and would prove difficult if not impossible should he want to remain unseen. It was the way he wanted it and there wasn't a damn thing anyone could do to stop him.

    Many times he and Baptiste ran teams together to either find, procure, or be rid of certain goods that other runners could not find, steal, or barter for. It was an arrangement that suited both very well; by nature and to their pockets.

    Things had started to change in the past year, however. It wasn't something Baptiste could put a finger on, but the air's energy shifted into a direction Baptiste wasn't so sure he wanted to figure out.

    Personal sh*t just wasn't his forte.


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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • Title: Not Your Toy

    The next afternoon after the few errands Baptiste needed to finished finally were, he set about heading to a very different quarter of the City than was his norm. It was older. Almost refined if you could look past the decay and sheer age of some of the buildings in this quadrant. All of the aging beauty of the structures and statues that were left were ignored as Baptiste made his way down certain streets, hidden alleyways and to a well tucked away building that happened to be his primary target.

    He hadn't even topped the steps to the large double front doors when one swung open. The slightly surprised expression on Lucius' face probably matched the one Baptiste wore-before the slant of a smirk took over and changed the expression to something that hinted at predatory.

    "Headin' out?" Lucius gave him a slight squint and a nod as he took a lean against the still closed door to his side.

    "Yes. Have something to attend to. You didn't Com, I wasn't expecting you." Lucius' tone was almost guarded, the intel beyond vague. That wasn't anything abnormal when the two came across each other's paths in a public setting.

    "Well." Baptiste arched a brow as Lucius took that pose against the door. "Thought you might have some time.. Pick up a bottle. Maybe have a little fun."

    Lucius' expression hardened...maybe it was just the way his eyes darkened? Baptiste wasn't given too much time to contemplate either when Lucius stood straight and took a few steps closer to the edge of the steps that led into the hall behind him. "No."

    The challenge was almost too much to pass up.

    Baptiste took one slow step up to near Lucius' position and was brought to a halt by an index fingertip shoved just under his collarbone below the Cell Skin shirt he wore. He glanced down to the finger jabbed into his torso before eyes angled back up to Lucius. "It's just a little fun. Tell me you haven't thought about it." He put a little of that challenge, the temptation, into those two sentences.

    It wasn't enough. "I am not your f*cking toy, Baptiste. I will never be one. The answer was, is and will be 'no'. You want that, find it at the Pit." Lucius' voice spoke volumes more than the upfront and straight edged answer-

    Baptiste wasn't going to get his rocks off here.

    He said nothing as he stepped aside to let Lucius pass and head down the stairs to the cobblestone street that almost gave up the ghost of being a street at all. He stayed silent while the door swung shut behind him- the mechanism automatically closing and locking it behind Lucius' departure on the designated time. It wasn't until Lucius turned a corner and was out of sight when Baptiste gave a disgusted sigh, turned, and prowled away in the other direction.

    Maybe he will go to the pit.

    Maybe Lucius one day will take the challenge.

    Too many maybe's for one damn day.


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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • Thank you for the character portraits and the story bits. :)
    Looking forward to more.
  • Thank you!  Well, it's gone this far. lol I don't think I'll be quitting on this run for a while- the upcoming events that these two get involved in just means more complex settings and processing that I've yet to attempt.  Figures it'd be this run that gets me pushed into more.  ;)
    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • Having something you're interested in doing is the best way to make yourself do more isn't it? image
  • And/or frustrate the living hell outta me.  XD  Been piddling with the scene idea in Carrara- just props, no figures yet.  Trying to see if I can get the lighting I want prior to anything else.  This is the test run- so far.  Going for overcast early afternoon sort of lighting.  I loathe outside lighting.  XD  There is an HDRI set up, matched to the sky settings, distance and sun light.  Rendered with skylight/ambient settings in Carrara, along with raytrace, improved edges, and separated into two rendered layers- the main and the depth cue.

    All in all- it was set up to render around ten this morning and finished about six-thirty.



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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • Looks pretty spot on, from where I am sitting.
  • Only one thing to say: watch your textures on scene clutter. In the last aerial shot, the first aid box jarred quite a lot with the grimy grunge of the rest of the scene, and that was really a shame.
    Oh, will there be trains running through those tubes?, please say yes,
  • I noticed the same with the box- and didn't want to re-create it since the damn scene crashed after I exported the render.  I'll be keeping an eye on that, yes. ;)  

    As for the trains- I'm not sure.  I have to see if I still have the one that I THINK either fit or came with the tubes, but I'm fairly certain there wasn't a train to go with them.  If that's the case, I'll be keeping an eye out for a freebie one to use for the tube in the background.

    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • I am sure I got those tubes, too. They are a freebie add-on for an existing set. Possibly a coflekgnorg one, not sure.
  • Just came across it: 3-D-C
  • Dar! Thank you for continuing with these guys!  Love the teasey bits.
    * A child of five could understand this. Fetch me a child of five!
    * Isn't it wonderful how cute weapons of mass distraction can be?
    * Those are my principles. And if you don't like them, I have others.
  • I just did too, have that metro set so ...Yes!  There shall be trains.  XD  

    Nan!  So glad you're enjoying!  *grin*  Oh, there will be more. Yus.  

    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • More Magely Research: Carol MacAlister

    image

    Slice o' life, here: When Carol first came to Gotth Hill, she carved out her own corner of their library for a study. Later, Meri and Alex moved her into the Colonial-era former kitchen (restored), since it was less likely to burn the mansion down if there were...accidents. As Carol's master, Taeiv, always says, "We learn from our mistakes--so we can go out and make bigger and better mistakes!"

    Mind you, Taiev declared Carol's journey work satisfactorily concluded in 2007, about the time she met Alex and the Gotth Collective (as they sometimes style themselves). So, she's quite the able Magistra at this point and seldom burns her lab down. Alex and the guys are quite sure that she could turn them into newts if they displeased her excessively. Fortunately, Carol is a pretty mellow person.

    If she looks a bit like Ian and Ariolas--that's because she's another of Ariolas' grandchildren. Ariolas (or Ri, as we call him hereabouts) is the head of the Sophic school of magick--and he, Taeiv, and Carol are pretty much the only surviving members of it. So they have clubhouse meetings in Alex's kitchen and try to work their way through the Gotth wine cellar. With Alex's help, of course, since he's also Carol's (unofficial, as far as Christians are concerned) husband. One of them, since she's part of his Coven, too.

    And we see that one of the Zebrats is helping her, as is Entwhistle. The faerie considers herself assigned *officially* to Julian (you've seen him elsewhere in my gallery), per some ancient treaty or other that none of Julian's family is quite certain about. E just attaches herself to the most powerful Witch of the current generation of the Machliec family and does her thing, sometimes "helping" and sometimes just getting the hell in the way and eating off their plates. She must be dolled up for some occasion...she's not usually this well dressed, the little punk. Carol's all made up, too, so maybe this is a bit of last minute fiddling before they all go to dinner.

    Production notes: Carol is V4 with my own character and the Eirwen skin (lovely!); Baires Liberty top; Artisanne jewels. Jack Tomalin's Library is the set; the nice big book is Jim Farris' totally awesome 60-page poseable book. (Yes, you can TURN THE PAGES. Get the 20-page version at ShareCG! Now!) Noggin's Zebrat is wearing my bow collar. Other books from Kelley Lodge and LukeA's Sorcerer/Wizard study. Entwhistle is V3 worked with the Sarah Spriteling character tools, wearing a miniature blue cowboy hat! And Noggins butterfly's wings. Coffee cup by Pappy. Hair, magic, and scholarly perplexity done in post.

    Coffee refill? Hell no. It's too late at night for that stuff...
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    * A child of five could understand this. Fetch me a child of five!
    * Isn't it wonderful how cute weapons of mass distraction can be?
    * Those are my principles. And if you don't like them, I have others.
  • Small addenda, for those who are wondering:  The 60-page book isn't yet available (Nan got an Advance Copy).  I haven't yet decided whether I'll market it or just make it a freebie.  The 20-page book (smaller version) is available on ShareCG, however.  It's available here:

    http://www.sharecg.com/v/66786/view/11/Poser/20-Page-Poseable-Book
    Jim Farris, Author, Science Fiction and Fantasy
    Jim Farris, Author, Science Fiction and Fantasy
  • Thank you for rating the 20-page book 5-Star, Dar. =)
    Jim Farris, Author, Science Fiction and Fantasy
    Jim Farris, Author, Science Fiction and Fantasy
  • Ya kidding? It's awesome!  Thank you for that, Jim.  Can't wait to get it into a render, along with the others.  :D


    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • Xaa said:

    Small addenda, for those who are wondering:  The 60-page book isn't yet available (Nan got an Advance Copy).  I haven't yet decided whether I'll market it or just make it a freebie.  The 20-page book (smaller version) is available on ShareCG, however.  It's available here:

    http://www.sharecg.com/v/66786/view/11/Poser/20-Page-Poseable-Book



    Go rate that puppy!  It's worth the two seconds it takes to make stars.  :D
  • Guh. I got ahead of myself with the 60-page version--which is such a magnum opus. The 20-page version is just as good. Sorry for the confusion. Post above ammended.
    * A child of five could understand this. Fetch me a child of five!
    * Isn't it wonderful how cute weapons of mass distraction can be?
    * Those are my principles. And if you don't like them, I have others.
  • Been working on an idea with Owl over on DA.  Working on a Tarot deck based on a gothic/fantasy theme.  These are just testers, ideas.  They have post work done by Owl added to what I've posted as well (but didn't save to my hd like the idjit I can be.  ;) ), just wanted to show what's been going on lately.  ;)  As you can see, the boarder hasn't been decided upon fully as well, so we've been experimenting.  
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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • Looks like a good start.
  • Holy Carp, Grim! Those are fabulous.
    * A child of five could understand this. Fetch me a child of five!
    * Isn't it wonderful how cute weapons of mass distraction can be?
    * Those are my principles. And if you don't like them, I have others.
  • Thanks!!  I have the compilation of the few that we've managed to finalize- there are a few others still in process. I don't have the updated Magician, High Priestess or Judgment in these yet.
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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • Those cards are really nice. I've often thought it'd be excellent to make your own Tarot cards. I've got Crow's Magic though and I have an actual crow so I don't know what he'd think if I abandoned my cards for some other deck.

    There was an image here. I deleted it, because when I looked at it again I saw that I really needed to do better :)

    Next time I'll look at it for a while before I post it, sorry about that.
  • Once you've uploaded your picture file, if you roll your mouse over the thumbnail you'll see a link option to insert the image. :)  I edited the last post for ya.
    * A child of five could understand this. Fetch me a child of five!
    * Isn't it wonderful how cute weapons of mass distraction can be?
    * Those are my principles. And if you don't like them, I have others.
  • Nanobot said:

    Once you've uploaded your picture file, if you roll your mouse over the thumbnail you'll see a link option to insert the image. :)  I edited the last post for ya.




    Thanks! I hadn't allowed the scripts on the page, I think that's why I wasn't seeing it.

  • Nan, I gotta say- THANK you for all of those lovelie freebies. I've been getting quite a run out of them with this series I've been working on, not to mention a lot of my other works.  I wanted to share- this is the raw, test render of the Devil for the cards.image
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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • and...since I'm sharing... High Priestess.  Yes, it's V4, male-fied.

    image

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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • And the test run for Judgment; pp isn't finished yet.
    Judgment PP.png
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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • GRIM said:

    Nan, I gotta say- THANK you for all of those lovelie freebies. I've been getting quite a run out of them with this series I've been working on, not to mention a lot of my other works.  I wanted to share- this is the raw, test render of the Devil for the cards.



    I never thought of the Devil quite that way before. Now I'll have difficulty thinking of him any other way... you make sin so attractive :D
  • GRIM said:

    And the test run for Judgment; pp isn't finished yet.



    That's quite scary!

    The High Priestess reminds me of somebody. Can't work out if it's somebody I know or somebody famous. Biological female person anyway. He looks like a caning headmistress.

  • MiaoShou said:

    GRIM said:

    And the test run for Judgment; pp isn't finished yet.



    That's quite scary!

    The High Priestess reminds me of somebody. Can't work out if it's somebody I know or somebody famous. Biological female person anyway. He looks like a caning headmistress.


    "Caning headmistress" Does indeed make an appropriate Judgment given the other art we've been shown.
  • lol- thank you, Miao and Terre.  As for making sin attractive, it seems I have a way about that?  :D  


    Caning Mistress, hm?  Kinda like that idea!

    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • These are striking, Dar! Wow. What a great place for the freebies. Yummy Devilness!
    * A child of five could understand this. Fetch me a child of five!
    * Isn't it wonderful how cute weapons of mass distraction can be?
    * Those are my principles. And if you don't like them, I have others.
  • Thank you!!  Here's the finished product after Owl and I worked on the PP together, as well as the Tower I just finished.
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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • The tarot cards look fantastic Grim!
  • Thank you, Elynda!
    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • That they do. The tower looks quite impressive.
  • Playing with dragons at the moment.
    So who says dragons can't adapt to the frozen, snowy wastes. ;)
    This one likes to collect raw crystals and breathes something akin to liquid nitrogen.
    image

    And whilst I was waiting for the render to finish, decided to postwork this comic strip that I started for a challenge in the Daz forum back in 2010.  Challenge was to create a 4-frame cartoon strip or comic page. I created the frames but got stuck with the layout and adding the text. :-S
    Here I've added an extra frame to show a close up of the map.

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  • Lol, excellent comic! I like - that's all I am to you... opposable thumbs :)

    Like the ice dragon's hair. It's kind of beardy as well, isn't it? Must keep its brain warm for thinking.
  • Thanks MiaoShou.

    I was trying for a lion's mane sort of effect with the dragon's hair. I did consider putting some hair on his body but didn't want it all over and I need a bit more skill with the plug-in to be selective about where to put the hair follicles, so settled for a few tufts around his joints.
  • The ice dragon looks rather Oriental with that mane! I like it. :)
    * A child of five could understand this. Fetch me a child of five!
    * Isn't it wonderful how cute weapons of mass distraction can be?
    * Those are my principles. And if you don't like them, I have others.
  • He does..
    ....and the backward horns look somewhat like a hat :)
  • dyla, did you use the Garibaldi hair system for the dragon hair?
  • Hi Elynda, No I used the Look At My Hair plug in. I'd already bought that one before the Garibaldi one came out. They look to do pretty much the same, albeit with a different interface, although the Garibaldi one might be more comprehensive/easy to use. I don't find the LAMH one very intuitive... too many complex key/mouse combinations to get at functions!
  • Whelp- I did another contest.  This one for a personal challenge since I normally don't do this sort of thing.  It's over on DA; Land of the Sky.  It's for a Wacom Tablet, which I could really use a new one.

    Had to choose two characters in the comic and picture a relationship of sorts between them.  I chose protector and protectee...and made the anime semi-realistic in this one.  It was harder than I thought, but I'm happy with the results. 

    "There's nothing to fear." Is the title.


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    "I didn't attend the funeral, but I sent a nice letter saying that I approved of it. " Mark Twain.
  • Beautiful characters Grim. Good luck with the competition :)

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