mog madness also-rans: anti-paladins of the Old Gods

Unless I have a very clearly-defined idea of what I want a Transmogrification Template Kit to look like when I start working on assembling it, I usually end up with several possible ideas. Even when I do have a good idea of what I want, I generally produce at least a few variations on the theme, of which I have trouble deciding which one I like best. This final round of Mog Madness was no different, and once again I find myself wondering if the judges might like one of my other ideas better than the one I actually presented as my entry.

I almost submitted this iteration as my entry, until I decided that the bloody Kalimdor’s Revenge was a better EVIL ANTI-PALADIN!!! weapon than the teal tuning fork.

Greathelm of the Voracious Maw (heroic), Emerald Saint’s Spaulders (10N), Adamantite Breastplate, Belt of the Forgemaster, Warleader’s Leggings, Fireskin Gauntlets (heroic), Arachnaflame Treads (heroic), Master’s Cloak, Sword of Justice

These two variations use the Bloodcraver Pauldrons and Hematite Plate Gloves. I like how the color of these shoulderplates matches the color of the rest of the items better than the Emerald Saint’s Spaulders, but they seem a little too plain against the baroque frills of the helm.

Left: Royal Qiraji Belt
Right: Lofty Breastplate

This Antipaladin is definitely hearing the Voice of the Deeps.

Brackenshell Shoulderplates (LFR), Festergut’s Gaseous Gloves (10N), Gurthalak, Voice of the Deeps (normal)

The only things this set has in common with the others are the helm, the cloak, and the sword. I do love the Symbolic set exceedingly well.

Pauldrons of the Great Ettin (normal), Hardened Elementium Hauberk, Symbolic Belt, Terrastra’s Legguards (normal), Symbolic Gloves, Symbolic Boots

Finally, by switching the color of the helm for the rusty old junker car normal version and bringing some coordinating reddish-plum tones into the rest of the ensemble to evoke the crystal formations in Silithus, a minion of C’thun appears.

Greathelm of the Voracious Maw (normal), Pauldrons of the Great Ettin (heroic), Hardened Elementium Hauberk, Warmaul Belt, Terrastra’s Legguards (normal), Warmaul Gloves, Warmaul Greaves, Massacre Sword

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mog madness also-rans: filling up the Trophy case

Mixing things up a little, I’m going to present my “also-ran” ideas for this round of Mog Madness first and reveal my actual entry for the contest later. The Mog Build criteria for round 4 were pretty challenging. I made multiple Transmogrification Template Kits for each armor type, then picked my favorite out of them all for my contest entry. It was a tough choice, and I’m still not quite sure I chose the one with the best chance of getting me into round five.

Shadow of Affliction
cloth, modeled by Kivrinne

Mag’hari Ritualist’s Horns, Bloodstained Surgeon’s Shoulderguards (normal), Cat Lover’s Vest, Cord of the Patronizing Practitioner (normal), Darkweave Breeches, Bracers of Dark Blessings (normal), Delaris’ Gloves, Boots of Duress, Thalassian Wildercloak, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Heartshiver, Telestra’s Journal

Karabor Voodoo
cloth, modeled by Kikimaia

Venomshroud Mask, Pads of the Venom Spider, Cat Lover’s Vest, Feralfen Sash, Darkweave Breeches, Greenweave Gloves, Vinerot Sandals, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Webbed Death, Forsaken Ball

Decontamination Specialist
cloth, modeled by Kelilla

Green Tinted Goggles, Mantle of the Tribunal, Chillwind Tunic, Ivycloth Sash, Darkweave Breeches, Delaris’ Gloves, Boots of Duress, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Vengeance Staff

Darkmoon Wanderer
cloth, modeled by Khrissalys

Shadowbrim Travel Hat, Mantle of the Tribunal, Chillwind Vest, Ivycloth Sash, Darkweave Breeches, Delaris’ Gloves, Boots of Duress, Syrannis’ Mystic Sheen, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Staff of the Four Golden Coins

Lament for the Ata’mal
cloth, modeled by Kandrista

Crown of Burning Waters (heroic), Mantle of Nefarius (heroic), Cat Lover’s Vest, Belt of Arcane Storms (normal), Darkweave Breeches, Supplicant’s Discarded Bracer, Delaris’ Gloves, Boots of Duress, Periwinkle Cloak, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Terokk’s Shadowstaff

Deadly Messenger
leather, modeled by Kelisanna

Other-Eye Patch, Dark Leather Shoulders, Wild Leather Vest, Crystallized Girdle, Gypsy Trousers, Madwolf Bracers, Ranger Gloves, Mud Stained Boots, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Shard of Azzinoth, Heartshiver or Webbed Death for off-hand

Jumblebeary Pie
leather, modeled by Kilannas

Emblazoned Hat, Dark Leather Shoulders, Dark Leather Tunic, Crystallized Girdle, Huntsman’s Leggings, Clefthoof Gloves, Clefthoof Wanderboots, Hibernal Cloak, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Wildfury Greatstaff

Dreamstalker
mail, modeled by Kerithian

Unyielding Helm, Spaulders of the Protectorate, Green Dragonscale Breastplate, Lifecycle Waistguard (normal), Green Dragonscale Leggings, Green Dragonscale Gauntlets, Auchenai Boots, Green Workman’s Shirt, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Tracking Bow

Shadowmoon Shocktrooper
mail, modeled by Keshona

Malefactor’s Eyepatch, Krom’gar Champion’s Mesh Pauldrons, Thick Netherscale Breastplate, Lifecycle Waistguard (normal), Bloodmail Legguards, Formidable Gauntlets, Formidable Sabatons, Green Workman’s Shirt, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Blood Fury, Maimgor’s Bite

Dark Retribution
plate, modeled by Khitka

Warleader’s Crown, Talonguard Epaulets, Chromite Chestplate, Symbolic Belt, Chromite Legplates, Symbolic Gauntlets, Symbolic Boots, Thalassian Wildercloak, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Sword of Nefarian’s Hand

Spectre of the Black Temple
plate, modeled by Karaveline

Horseman’s Horrific Helmet, Dreadmaul Pauldrons, Chromite Chestplate, Symbolic Belt, Chromite Legplates, Emerald Gauntlets, Emerald Sabatons, Recovered Cloak of Frostheim, Green Workman’s Shirt, Trophy Tabard of the Illidari, Lava Spine, Netherwing Defender’s Shield

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MOG MADNESS round 3: the Element-Tamer

Amateur Azerothian, Effraeti, and Tome of the Ancient have teamed up to bring Mog Madness to the WoW blogosphere! There will be five rounds, and each round will have a different “Mog Build” prompt. For the third round, the Mog Build criteria are these: mail, shoulder armor must be the Wavemender’s Mantle.

Persona-wise, I thought of an Elemental Shaman who has spent her life out in the wilds dealing with truculent elementals, so I looked at staves and axe/shield combinations for the weapons. In an effort to avoid cross-contamination by influences from the ensembles presented in Round 2, I decided immediately to use the bronze/brown tones of the Wavemender’s Mantle as the main color for my ensemble, keeping the blue as an accent color in very small amounts. And as soon as I’d decided that, I knew that I wanted to use the Battle Scarred Leggings for the pants. I loved how the Helm of Pilgrimage interacted with the shoulderpiece as soon as I saw it; although this helm may bring “Val’kyr” most immediately to mind because of all that time we spent in Northrend, its design is actually quite similar to the classic Tier 1 Earthfury Helmet, making it very appropriate for a Shaman.

My junior Shaman, Kryztalya, Kilauea, Kjerstin, Keshona, and Kermione, will be the models for this round.

Helm of Pilgrimage, Wavemender’s Mantle, Veteran’s Armor, Vicious Gladiator’s Links of Accuracy (ilevel 371), Battle Scarred Leggings, Gloves of Foolish Innocence, Earthen Netherscale Boots, cloak hidden, Icecore Staff

Some alternate weapon choices:

Ruthless Gladiator’s Battle Staff; Spell Axe of the Farseer (Alliance Shaman-only) + Lost Pavise of the Blue Flight (Normal)

Frostbite (Horde-only) + Grunt’s Shield; Frostbite + Zom’s Crackling Bulwark

I won’t be making an “also-rans” post for this round, because I didn’t come up with any dramatically different ideas for the overall ensemble, and the variations for this one are limited to the weapon combinations shown above and the two alternate chestpieces shown below.

The Circuit Design Breastplate (Heroic) looks made to go with the Battle Scarred Leggings, even though one first appeared in Cataclysm and the other in Burning Crusade! The Battle Scarred Leggings & Earthen Netherscale Boots also have a matching pair of gloves, the Murkblood Oven Mitts, but those did not work well in the context of the rest of the outfit. Although a matching chestpiece style is available in BC, it only comes in blue, and not in bronze.

The necklace of teeth strung across the Cuttlefish Scale Breastplate gives it a rather wild sort of appearance.

Round 3 Results!

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mog madness also-rans: Maroon Wizard and Greenwitch

These Transmogrification Template Kits are derived from ideas I iterated through but ultimately discarded as not really fulfilling my vision for a rustic or Vrykul-inspired caster look for Mog Madness round 1.

Maroon Wizard
I used the Simple Blouse and Colorful Kilt in my failed attempt to imitate the garb of the Vrykul Runecasters.

Starfire Tiara, Consortium shoulders, Simple Blouse, Gatewatcher Belt or Vindicator’s Silk Belt, Colorful Kilt, Pigskin Gloves + Crystalline Cuffs or Vindicator gloves, Oilfoot Slippers, Crimson Silk Cloak, Star Shooter + Watcher’s Star or Hotshot Cattle Prod + Elementalist Star

Some other good wands to use with the red version are Olakin’s Enchanted Torch or the Tirisfal Wand of Ascendancy. Other good wands to use with the purple version are Draenethyst Wand or Scribe’s Quill.

Greenwitch
This was my first attempt at a “Wise Woman” outfit. I liked how it came together, but it didn’t really fit the image I had in mind.

Sylvan Crown, Elunarian shoulders, Conjurer’s Vest, Nightsky Sash, Wandering Healer’s Kilt, Councillor’s Gloves, Vinerot Sandals, Grovekeeper’s Drape, Firestarter, Blossom of the Earthen Ring

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then and now — with a twist

Before I remembered that I had printouts of my oldest screenshots that I could scan for Vidyala’s “Then and Now” challenge, I thought perhaps I would use these drawings instead.

This is one of my very first WoW-inspired doodles, from about fall 2007.

I was playing with some new Pentel V5 pens, trying to use every color in the set. I hadn’t yet played enough of the game, or paid enough attention, to remember that Trolls have long, pointed ears and had to correct the picture later.

This one is from mid to late 2008, I think.

I still hadn’t grasped quite how long Night Elf ears really are, and I didn’t have the right angle for Blood Elf ears internalized yet, either. I really like the profile Night Elf face, though.

My most recent (early 2012) iteration upon the theme.

I was again playing with some new pens and wanting to use every color in the set. I’ve finally managed to get the ears right, but I still need to study the profile & head shape of the various races more carefully.

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a conversation with Kaprikka

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art post: family portraits

A couple of pieces of gift art I’ve done recently.

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Millya, Vidyala, and Vosskah

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the Ysiel’thar sisters, Saxsy and Traxy, from I Like Pancakes

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a mask for all occasions

Kelisanna the Rogue is a Farstrider spy. Someday, she hopes to rise to the level of Anara or even Thalodien. For now, she is working on mastering the art of disguise.

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She did get a few of these masks from Handfuls of Candy, but most of them she just bought with Tricky Treats.

Yes, you can look wicked, hot, cool, and smart all at the same time!

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gratuitous art post: the Prophet speaks

I have this very clear memory from when I was about seven years old, living in Provo, Utah, of entertaining myself while we listened to General Conference on the radio by playing “switch the talking head”. I drew a picture of a headless suit standing at a pulpit with a microphone and a handful of differently detailed and colored equine heads (perhaps they were even My Little Pony heads) which I cut out and put tape on the backs of, and I changed which head was stuck on top of the suit with each new speaker.

Remembering this childhood pasttime while listening to General Conference over the internet this morning, I wondered what I might draw if I were doing the same thing today. And then, of course, I had to draw it.

I considered using Medivh, but the mental image of squid-face Velen was funnier — and probably more instantly recognizable as deriving from WoW.

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Sword and Sorcery

Vidyala commented,

It turns out I should have asked you for your opinion for a dress for Millya, since this is what I ended up doing yesterday for funsies — Still a work in progress, ridiculous amount of fun. >.>

“This” being a completely adorable paper doll of Millya.
The dark red, hooded dress reminded me of Kestulefa. Perhaps Complex Actions‘ resident pyromaniac was indeed Vid’s inspiration for that outfit, perhaps she wasn’t — in any case, I decided to see what I could do about putting together an in-game Kestulefa costume for Millya.

Vermillion Robes of the Dominant, Felcloth Hood, Elementalist Cloak, Sawbones Shirt, Silver Cufflinks
The robe has elbow length sleeves, so I added the shirt because Kestulefa’s robe is long-sleeved. I then added the Silver Cufflinks to coordinate with the dark grey rows of trim elsewhere in the robe. Using the Scarlet Filigreed Doublet would produce a similar, though somewhat brighter, effect. Sadly, neither shirt mimics the belled sleeves of Kestulefa’s robe.

Another great pyromaniac robe is the Bloodfyre Robes of Annihilation, shown here with the Authentic Jr. Engineer Goggles.

There’s a robe in this style to suit every Mage spec — this robe, obviously, is for Fire; the blue Will of Edward the Odd or Frozen Shadoweave Robe would be for Frost; and the purple Robe of the Elder Scribes or Masquerade Gown would be for Arcane.

For Millya’s faithful companion Vosskah, I’ve put together this very practical, very Warrior-like and not at all Paladin-like, set consisting of Linken’s Sword of Mastery, Alabaster Shield, Overlord’s chest bracers gloves and boots, Imperial Plate belt and pants, Grimscale Pauldrons, and Frostpaw Helmet. Although I don’t think much of the LK designs for cloth robes, I like the Northrend plate helmet designs quite a lot.

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