Sub-Race Photoshop Mockups

[Maxilian]

Highborne night elves could use different skin tones, markings/tattoos, and voice clips (a bit more haughty or humbled but calling back to their glory days). Leper Gnomes could be playable with the excuse of some of the lepers being captured and treated enough that their sanity is restored, although they remain irradiated. Worgen could have a night elf subrace; it was a major plot arc in the Gilneas comic miniseries. Humans could be given high elves by copying the blood elf model and recoloring their selectable skin tones, hair colors, and eyes.

Mag'har/Dragonmaw could be excusable as members of those subraces who joined the rebellion. Mag'har could also be further justified as Frostwolves from the Alternate Draenor who join the Horde in our timeline, crossing the Dark Portal. Undead could have skeletal models a la the Northrend skeletons, who already have multiple equipment slots and can be mildly customized. Goblins could get gilblins; unlikely but it'd be pretty hiliarious.

Undeads could get the undead blood elf, like the dark rangers or maybe something like the Darkfallens...

[Deventh]

I really want to play a female blood elf Dark Ranger right now...

[Linkedblade]

I'm surprised no one has said anything about the Human model, other then mentioning the way it looks. Perhaps we can get alternative human looks from the different human nations? Kul'Tiras human? Lordaeron Human? Alterac Human? Perhaps the mock-up of your human using the undead structure could be the model for the Lordaeron human male?

So for Recap:
Orc: Mag'har, Dragonmaw, Fel/Shattered Hand, Mok'nathal (The skull faced, You were saying Iron Horde), and Blackrock
Dwarf: Dark Iron, Wildhammer, and Frost
Tauren: Grimtotem
Undead: Elven
Gnome: Semi-Mecha, Leper
Human: Lordaeron

I really like this thread, makes me happy in so many ways lol.

[shoc]

I posted another thread on the forums detailing how exactly players would go about unlocking these features, as well as a number of other possible features here!

[Alpharius]

I'm surprised no one has said anything about the Human model, other then mentioning the way it looks. Perhaps we can get alternative human looks from the different human nations? Kul'Tiras human? Lordaeron Human? Alterac Human? Perhaps the mock-up of your human using the undead structure could be the model for the Lordaeron human male?

So for Recap:
Orc: Mag'har, Dragonmaw, Fel/Shattered Hand, Mok'nathal (The skull faced, You were saying Iron Horde), and Blackrock
Dwarf: Dark Iron, Wildhammer, and Frost
Tauren: Grimtotem
Undead: Elven
Gnome: Semi-Mecha, Leper
Human: Lordaeron

I really like this thread, makes me happy in so many ways lol.

Lordaeron humans should look almost exactly like stormwind humans.

[Yig]

If you're still up for requests Shoc, I'd like to see this San'layn model recolored to look like a living healthy Blood Elf.

With blond hair and healthy tan or fair skin in crimson and gold robes in the sunlight, like this.

I like the extreme sort of smug or severe angular features of elves like this, I'd like to see a blood elf with this much expression.
It reminds me of this.

[Steampunk]

I see San'layn being a Blood Elf option, but they would start in the Forsaken starting zone. That's the kind of thinking I see necessary for making these ideas fun and interesting without needing too extensive of a background and excuse to implement these things.

You make a Wildhammer, You see your dwarf in an intro like usual when you make a new character, only you see him scaling the steps of Aerie Peak the Hinterlands, hopping on a grphyon, and flying to Ironforge before being dropped off in Coldridge Valley. Just simple little tweaks like that would be cool. With a new beginner's quest using quest text to explain a bit more about context.

There is precedent for almost every option we have here being playable arguably. I'm all for the most depth Blizzard wants to inject into the project lore wise, but I wouldn't care if they didn't add anything new at all and just let us have the options.

The people who actually care about this from a lore standpoint should have enough knowledge of the lore and imagination to come up with their own explanation that fits canon. You'll never get rid of the people who want to make outlandish special snowflake nephews of the main characters, so it's not worth worrying about them.

Exactly!

Well said! This could seriously be a reality if Blizz deemed it worthy.

And I'd totally be fine with just sub-races without huge in-game story. I make my own fiction for Azeroth on a daily basis, playing the game.

[Zathrendar]

Undeads could get the undead blood elf, like the dark rangers or maybe something like the Darkfallens...

I think there's a pretty good case for the Darkfallen, Felbloods and Wretched models to go to the blood elves, as they are exclusive to this race. The undead could get spectral models (probably the hardest to do but Blizzard is paid to think about this stuff) and undead high elf models. It's not like there's a lack of stuff to go around for them.

I like the extreme sort of smug or severe angular features of elves like this, I'd like to see a blood elf with this much expression.
It reminds me of this.

Agreed entirely. It has much more to do with their WC3 feel, and their concept art in general. I don't know why Blizzard deviated from it, and went for the idiotic "lol elfs r so camp xDDD" stereotype, when their TFT "funny" aspect was their mana addiction. I'd go further and say they had little creativity in designing the race's racials.

Now, transpose the imagery below on a felblood or San'layn, and even more awesomeness shall ensue. Paradoxically, the San'layn in-game models are already very good. If only they had done something more like that for the playable BE.

This, to me, is what the blood elf should look like:













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They look smug, attractive and powerful. The harshness/angularity of their features distinguishes them from humans, much as it should for NE too. This would translate to something like Disney's original Maleficent for the females, although I think the mage above is a pretty good example of what an elven female should look like. Certainly not round- or pixy-faced.

[shoc]

If you're still up for requests Shoc, I'd like to see this San'layn model recolored to look like a living healthy Blood Elf.

With blond hair and healthy tan or fair skin in crimson and gold robes in the sunlight, like this.

[Shadowtwili]

Oh wow! they actually looky pretty damn well as living Elves!

Now I want as a Undead Sub-species and a Sin'dorei Sub-species!

And are you planning on doing more "mock-ups" when they release more models, or do you keep it at this?

[shoc]

Oh wow! they actually looky pretty damn well as living Elves!

Now I want as a Undead Sub-species and a Sin'dorei Sub-species!

And are you planning on doing more "mock-ups" when they release more models, or do you keep it at this?

Heck yeah I will

[Netherspark]

With blond hair and healthy tan or fair skin in crimson and gold robes in the sunlight, like this.

I just noticed, that Illidan/Blood Elf has his toenails painted...

[Yig]

His demon hunter nails are just ruddy and charged with fel energy
I will kill if the Night Elf looks half this cool as well.


Thanks for that, Shoc! /slow clap


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I went ahead and edited your edit to give the blood eld male less of a pale pallor with a more tanned skin tone and darker gold blond hair like you often you see in much of the Blood Elves concept art. It helps to distinguish it more from the San'layn in my mind's eye.


Your original edit


Now with my added tweaks (more tanned skin tone and darker gold blond hair. Optional Fel Runic tattoos) . ^

Using Grand Magister Rommath and Demon Hunters as an example, I created a rough concept of a Blood Elf Warlock with fel runes tattooed on his arms. I really like the Silvermoon Guard model, I know it's never going to happen but I wish they were used somehow in the update with that posture or something like the San'layn.


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Not a fan of the female San'layn. I do however like the female Blood Elf, and pretty much just want to see her with more facial expressions and curves in place of angles.
This is my ideal blood elf player model.

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Here is a San'layn based Blood Elf with Blood Elf ears, as Blizzard gave the San'layn slightly more Nosferatu inspired ears to show their cannibalistic vampire thing.

[Illdian]

just wow 10/10 great job

[Zathrendar]

Very nice work Yig, and I wouldn't say "never". We just have to be sufficiently demanding as paying customers and not put up with any minimal effort crap they put out or the excuses that they resort to.

I still think the female blood elf could do with a bit more flesh and facial features more befitting of an elf, rather than a pixie-faced human. The concept art captures how they ought to look quite well. The same goes again for female NE, they should have regal features, as in their concept art.

I suspect the reason they didn't go with that golden blonde hair is fel corruption, which darkens the hair or makes it paler, but golden blonde is already one of their existing hair colours, so it fits well.

[Deleted]

Hello,
I've read this topic and I think that the mockups are great. I also wanted to make some, and you've inspired me by your arts of the Blood Elves. I've made the pair of them, and also the pair of the draenei ones. I hope you'll enjoy.
The some of Vanilla races (the ones that wasn't made yet by Blizzard - humans pair and NE pair) are being prepared.



Greets,
Arcane-Villain

[shoc]

Wow Yig that's pretty cool! Though I don't think there would be normal skinned San'layn, as they would resemble the Blood Princes/Blood Queen/Sylvanas, which would be the whole point of offering them as a bonus skin option!

Dark skin + Red eyes + Hunter + With or Without You = Dark Ranger

inb4 massive surge in female blood elf hunters.

Zehiir, those are amazing! Definitely captured the smug, 'savage' feel of the artwork blood elves, hopefully its something we'll see when we see the next wave of model update previews

[Yig]

Wow Yig that's pretty cool! Though I don't think there would be normal skinned San'layn, as they would resemble the Blood Princes/Blood Queen/Sylvanas, which would be the whole point of offering them as a bonus skin option!

Dark skin + Red eyes + Hunter + With or Without You = Dark Ranger
http://static.diary.ru/userdir/3/1/8...9/74279022.jpg
inb4 massive surge in female blood elf hunters.

Zehiir, those are amazing! Definitely captured the smug, 'savage' feel of the artwork blood elves, hopefully its something we'll see when we see the next wave of model update previews

I think you might be missing my point. I don't want normal skinned San'Layn. I'm showing here that the San'layn make better representations of Blood Elves from the game art than the actual Sindorei player models we have do.

I don't want them as an option. I want the updated Blood Elf player model to look more like the San'layn I edited. San'layn are cool and all, I just want an actual edgier and cooler looking Blood Elf like we see in Samwise Didier's and Wei's and Rayne's concept art.

I think the San'layn makes a perfect base model for demonstrating what that looks like. Savvy now, friend ?

And I think Dark Rangers are a natural choice as well, no need for a hero class there when we could just have the option for undead or blood elf hunters.

I think people need to do one thing here, stop acting like every single race HAS to have balanced subrace options. Subraces should make sense, not be given to us as token options to appease the weirdos in this fanbase who hate one race and love another. THis should be for people who love ALL Warcraft lore. If someone wants to cry about favoritism, let them sit in the corner and grow up a little bit.




THis isn't a variant I want to see, it's what I want the updated Blood Elf player model to resemble more, though I doubt they will stray too far from what's been established. And no, not because they are lazy or giving excuses, because they are right not to pull the rug out from people who like the model they've had for 6+ years, though giving us options makes a lot of room there, but there truly are only so many resources to go around with a game with annual and monthly deadlines on projects.

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I think the key to the design of the Draenei is a very awesome idea. They wanted to take an archetypal demon (Pretty much based on pagan imagery of Pan and mutated with Christian mythology hybridized with animal features, red skin, pitchfork, pointed tail, hooves), and give a demon divine and angelic features. As if a demon were a holy being. Blending Hindu mysticism with demonic iconography, they took serene and divine blue skin over demonic red, gave them glowing runes and halo like visual themes, and it was a really cool concept in my opinion I'd never seen anywhere before.

A very cool twist on demons. It's a shame all that get's overlooked when the "spacegoat" meme get's shoved in your face the moment you enter this community.

As if Diablo is just a Hell Goat-lizard thing.

I can't wait to see Draenei with more detail in their horns and facial growths.

[shoc]

Oh, my bad! And yeah, I totally agree that the San'layn models do the artwork Blood Elves justice over the current in game ones, theres something about the posture and physique that is way more befitting of a Horde race than the current Blood Elves. Only the new previews they promised for the new year will tell (:

If they were to ever implement new customization features though now would be the perfect time, while they have the whole character redesign team together. Just adding 2-3 skins for each race (many on them are being created anyways, ex. Dark irons, Dark Rangers in UC) would open up a ton of possibilities for some lore friendly sub-race skin unlock solo scenarios or something in a later patch.

And your analysis on the Eredar is pretty interesting, in Warcraft III, the Draenei were the Broken, and the Eredar were a separate race altogether. The Eredar being the biblical cloven hoofed demons, complete with red skin and horns and sharp teeth, you can imagine people WTF'd big time when they retconned the Draenei as uncorrupted Eredar for the Burning Crusade. I definitely want to see more beards, and better animations are desperately needed lol

[Yig]

Yes! Wouldn't the Blood Elves look freakin' cool if they looked more like that San'layn Model with our edits?


And ah, the Draenei debacle,...Oh, I was there playing WOW at the time. I remember the birth of "lolore" with Metzen's retcon. I don't think it changes the visual inspiration and concept for what the player Draenei are, but I suppose it's worth addressing.

Truthfully the aspect of the retcon was blown way out proportion in my opinion, it doesn't matter if Sargeras corrupted the Draenei or if the Legion's inevitable victory drove him to corrupting the Eredar,... the point is, a faction of Eredar ended up being more than 2 dimensional black and white stereotypical bad guy demons, and they created an interesting story within the realms of the lore to explain it, connecting the Draenei and the Eredar in a way nobody ever saw coming that still makes an interesting kind of sense and falls directly inline with a number of common tropes and themes in myth and legend while being a prett original twist on what a demon is usually designed to look like.

Looking at mythology, the fallen deformed stunted offspring of the accursed, the divine holy and pure origin species, the twisted fallen evil monsters who embraced that power. We see it in something like the Dark Crystal with the Mystics and the Skeksis, or in Christian mythology itself with angels, fallen angels, and demons.

The retcon was unfortunate, but meh, it could have easily been explained without the retcon and still made sense. Embellishing isn't retcon, otherwise 95% of this game's lore is all bullshit that wasn't in the minds of the developers during Warcraft 1.

People need to stop acting like we're trying to be tricked into thinking Blizzard had everything planned all along, because uh,... it's real, and all this really happened
Truthfully the retcons barely exist that people call retcons, most of the accusations seem to be from people who don't like the way certain embellishments have tweaked the precedent regarding tone and other aesthetics, but they aren't retcons, they're embellishments after the fact. Just because you can tell or suspect it was after the fact doesn't mean it's alters any established precedent. The Draenei were one of the few actual retcons, but they didn't even require it, it was a slip of the mind. Just a pet peeve of mine I take any chance to comment on Don't mind me.

BEARDS AND ANIMATIONS! I'll drink to that.

I wish my Pandaren brewmaster had a permanent keg on his back instead of being forced to only use the Brewfest item. But that's a tale for another thread

Can't wait to see what you do with the new previews Shoc, almost as much as I can't wait for the previews them self.