ORIGINAL THREAD HERE: www.mmo-champion.com/threads/655893
Welcome to the Signature/Wallpaper/Banner Request Thread!
Let's get started then. Have you seen those awfully pretty graphics that appear after someone posts, just about anywhere upon these forums? Well, this is the place to be if you want a custom made one! Who cares about your character's health or mana, when you can have your ingame character looking awesome? Or what about an image where you can have your character looking all sexy in their epics, posing on your desktop or phone? Or what if you're just looking for a cool banner to place at the top of your guild website? Whether you're a Draenei or a Forsaken, a Gnome or a Pandaren, anything is possible.
So, shall we get down to that gritty business? I would just like to take a last mention that before we get started, for you all to thank the wonderful signature makers here. These people spend their free time creating these for you, for no charge at all, for your own personal use. I beg that you to show them the adequate respect.
We do not ever allow monetary transactions on this forum, whether they're for in-game money or real-life money, no matter what the item or service is.
Charging or offering money for requests is not allowed in any form.
_________________________________________________
Important information for requesters!
- So, how does this thread work, and how do I submit a request?
It's really simple! If you would like to request a masterpiece from one of the designers here, you make a post in this thread. In that post, you describe your request in as much detail and with as much information as possible. Here are some templates for all of the requesters to use, which all have simple layouts, and they are extremely helpful to the designer that is making your signature, banner or wallpaper. Just use the appropriate template:
Signature:
Visible text: (What text do you want on there? Would you like your character's name, maybe your server?)
Armory link (We do need to see your face, you know!
Gear set: (What do you actually want to wear? Tier 14? PvP Season 3? Dungeon Set 2? Or perhaps your Transmog set off the Armory?)
Helm visible: (Do you want it showing, or not? Yes, or no?)
Cloak visible: (Do you want it showing, or not? Yes, or no?)
Your pose: (If you're a caster, do you want to be shown casting a spell? If you're a melee dps, do you want to be seen swinging your weapon in rage?)
General colour scheme: (Are you a green, nature-loving Druid? Are you a Paladin, bathed in yellow light? Or, are you a Death Knight, with the air around you cold with a blue hue?)
Any extras: (Being a user of nature magic, do you want leaves visible? Or, do you wish to have your Raven Lord mount watching over you, in the background?)
Wallpaper:
Resolution: (Tell us the resolution of your desktop, so we know what scale to work to! Or, if it's for your phone, what size does that require?)
Visible text: (Name? A quote? Something else?)
Armory link/Facial screenshot: (We do need to see your face, you know! Alternatively, you could supply a screenshot of you face, if the Armory isn't clear enough. If you're unable to post links, just break it up with a few spaces.)
Gear set: (What do you actually want to wear? Tier 10? PvP Season 2? A custom designed armor set, like your Transmog gear?)
Helm visible: (Do you want it showing, or not? Yes, or no?)
Your pose: (If you're a caster, do you want to be shown casting a spell? If you're a melee dps, do you want to be seen swinging your weapon in rage?)
General colour scheme: (Are you a green, nature-loving Druid? Are you a Paladin, bathed in yellow light? Or, are you a Death Knight, with the air around you cold with a blue hue?)
Any extras: (Being a user of nature magic, do you want leaves visible? Or, do you wish to have your Dark Phoenix mount watching over you, in the background? Would you like anything else unique, that portrays your character in a special way?)
Banner:
Size: (How big should it be to fit your website's preferences? Alternatively, give us a link to where you want the banner to be, so we can work it out.)
Visible text: (Do you want to display your guild name? Server? Faction?)
Logo: (Do you have a logo that you wish to adorn your banner with? Or, a certain crest, like that of your faction or of a specific race?)
General colour scheme: (What colours do you want to display? Do you want the cold blue feel of Northrend? Or a green and tranquil forest? How about blood red, like on a battlefield?)
Specifics: (Do you want a few select people to be on the banner? Do you want exploding sheep? If your guild's name is <Purple Flying Elephants>, do you want purple flying elephants/elekk? Or, would you want a certain location in your background, like the Jade Forest, for example?)
Twitch:
What you want for your page: (An offline image? A background image? Info boxes? Or if you want some privacy, how about a chat box overlay?)
Dimensions: In pixels, or include a screenshot of your UI
Visible text: (Do you want to display your guild name? Server? Faction? Or what did you want on your info box image?)
Logo/Character: (Do you have a logo, either for your guild or faction or even race, that you wish to adorn your customised parts with? If not a logo, perhaps a character? If a character, please provide an Armory link and information about equipment, etc.)
General colour scheme: (What colours do you want to display? Do you want the cold blue feel of Icecrown? Or a lush and peaceful forest? How about blood red, like on a battlefield?)
Specifics/Extras: (Include any extra information here that you may have missed before. Did you want any additional characters/pets/mounts on there? Or did you want a specific zone in the background, like Deepholm or even Nagrand?)
Note: The bracketed text are my examples. You don't have to copy those.
If you do not follow these templates, you can be refused a signature/banner/wallpaper by any of the creators here. Since we're doing this entirely for free and for fun, a lack of respect can lead to a complete decline of your request. Alternatively, if you are requesting something non-WoW related, please adapt the template as necessary (but ensure you provide enough information!).
- Ok, I have posted my request. Now what?
If you have followed the template, you can now play some World of Warcraft, walk the dog, go back to sleep or anything else. Since the designers are doing this completely voluntarily, it may take some time (and pages!) before your request is being picked up. Depending on who's available, it may take 5 minutes upto a few days before your signature/banner/wallpaper is ready. As soon as it is, it'll be posted in this thread.
- Can I contact the signature makers for my request?
Yes, it is possible that you contact them directly, as long as they explicitly stated to do so. If they posted that they will not process any requests made by personal message, do not even bother. Some creators receive more than 40 requests in as little as 12 hours time. As you will understand, they are busy enough as it is and they will not handle your request for a long time, if at all. Also, please do NOT post a request on the forum AND send a message to one of them as well. This leads to longer queues, more work and less quality/quantity overall. You also have the risk of multiple people making your signature, and this results in wasted time for one or more of the signature makers involved.
- If you decide to send a PM request, make sure it's only to one maker!
The talented designers here do have lives, you know. Some are parents, some are students, and some have hard working jobs. We do this in our spare time, for fun. If you send your request to multiple designers, not only will some of them waste your time, but you will hold up other peoples' requests. These people have waited the same amount of time as you, or even longer, but sending your same request to multiple people not only delays the chance of them receiving theirs, but you will also be seen in a bad light. Please refrain from doing so.
- Has your request been skipped or do you want to re-request? There's a signature requesting cooldown.
This applies to two specific cases:
- Sometimes, peoples' requests get skipped due to an influx of requests (or if they don't grab a signature maker's interest).
- We also have had certain cases of people requesting signatures, getting them made, and then one or two days later, the individual is requesting a brand new one. The designer in question put their time and effort into making your signature. Asking for a brand new one, for something that you knew was eventually going to happen, is extremely rude. Even if it wasn't initially expected, we expect requesters to be considerate. This includes faction changes, race changes, name changes, main character changes, and smaller changes (like changing an armor set or weapon).
These are the cooldowns associated with each specific thing made (generally depending on how time consuming they are to make):
Signatures: one week cooldown.
Avatars: no cooldown.
Banners: one week cooldown.
Wallpapers: two weeks cooldown.
Twitch Layouts: two months cooldown.
Please abide by this, because it is fair upon signature makers this way, and results in a controlled flow of requests, or the signature makers themselves not feeling as if their time has been wasted. If you are seen requesting a new signature or anything else in this thread before the cooldown is up, your request shall be ignored and/or deleted by a moderator.
- Someone made me a signature. How do I use it on these forums?
This is very easy! First thing you need to do is copy the image location by right-clicking the signature and selecting "Copy image location" (the exact text varies per browser). Alternatively, right-click, and select Properties. Now, check the address, and copy that. Next thing to do, is to visit where you can edit your signature. This is found by clicking here. On this page, you will see a large textbox. Right-click inside the box and select "Paste". The signature image location will now be put into the box, and you are almost ready to show the world your great signature! All you need to do now is put [img] in front of the image location and [/img] at the back.
- Anything I should know about signature rules?
As a matter of fact, yes you should. Keep in mind that in order to use the image on the MMO-Champion forums, images may not have a height over 100 pixels, width exceeding 500 pixels, and file size exceeding 50kb. Of course, you are free to request a signature for your own guild or realm forums. For more information about signature images, click this link to view the signature rules. The moderators tend to allow a 100px height signature with two lines of small text above or below, but no more than that.
_________________________________________________
Important information for signature makers!
- Fancy doing one of the requests? Claim it before you get started!
Occasionally, something annoying happens: you get more than one person working on the same request from this thread. There's a simple way around it by warning your fellow signature makers: claim it before you get started! It's simple, really. Just quote the specific request, and type up the word "Claimed." below it. This'll help not only you, but any other signature makers that had planned on starting it. It stops those annoying duplicates and reduces the amount of wasted/unused end products in general.
- Do I have constraints that I have to work within?
Yes you do. Keep in mind that in order for someone to use a signature that you've made on the MMO-Champion forums, they have to adhere to strict sizing guidelines. They are the following: images may not have a height over 100 pixels, width exceeding 500 pixels, and file size exceeding 50kb. Of course, you can make them larger if the individual is requesting it for other forum use, but if it is for this one, make sure it's within the limits. For more information about signature images, click this link to view the signature rules.
- Is someone being inconsiderate and not reading the first post? Ignore them!
Sometimes, we have people that don't read the title, and as such, don't read the first post. That's sort of rude, when they can't spare a few minutes to just use the template from the first post (at the very least) for something free. If you see a post where someone hasn't used the template/hasn't provided enough information, please ignore their request. They shouldn't be rewarded with your hard work for their ignorance. Remember: respect is a two way street. If they aren't considerate enough to glance over the first post, they shouldn't be given what they want. Just ignore them till they get the hint (or tell them where they've gone wrong!). Although, if they are requesting something non-WoW related and the template isn't sufficient, they should at the very least still provide a reasonable amount of information to get their request done.
- Serious help is wanted, no "MS Paint images" please.
If there's a requester that made a sketch of their desired signature in MSPaint, that's ok. But should you want to contribute by making signatures, please be serious about it. We have all seen various MSPaint images, motivational posters, lolcats and whatnot more. Please, we actually want to be productive here. Don't waste our time by posting juvenile attempts at signature design made in MSPaint. Obviously, if you see such a post, please report it by using the link on the right of said post. The moderators/administrators will gladly remove this post, or even the user, if s/he is persistent in this childish behaviour.
_________________________________________________
Want to give this a shot yourself?
Below is a brief(ish) clump of information telling you how if you want to get involved yourself. Needless to say, if your question is not below, it is advised you first try to find an answer by using Google. Should you not find an answer that way, your question can be posted in this thread. I'm sure that one of us can help you out.
- What software are you people using?
Most of us use Adobe Photoshop to create these images, which is free to download for evaluation purposes from this website. Alternatively, some prefer to use the free GIMP. Additionally, all signature/wallpaper/banner makers here have picked up a copy of WowModelViewer to recreate characters out-of-game and have them pose for the creation in question. You can download a working copy of modelviewer by clicking this link. Just find one that matches your system's specifications.
- How can I make nice signatures myself?
First of all, you obviously need to have some experience. If you think Photoshop will do the work for you, you should think again. You need to learn to work with the software, experiment and play around a lot to get used to it. If you are entirely new to the program, you should definetely follow some tutorials. Just Google for "Photoshop beginner tutorials" and find some that you like. Additionally, many tutorials have been made by the vastly gifted signature makers upon this forum: Drael, CrazyTaco93, Eruionmel, Caiti (Video Part 1), Caiti (Video Part 2), Caiti (Image), ElyPop (Photoshop), ElyPop (GIMP), ElyPop (Wallpaper), Ferous, LRCollier, Sokogeka (Video), Nicolette, Vervaine, Geekissexy, Dubbelbasse, Mipeo (Photoshop), Mipeo (GIMP), Brienna, Aryiana (Video), Axalicious, Engelen, Shyama, Shyama (Text) and Shyama (Wallpaper). Courtesy of Sokogeka, here is an amazing Photoshop guide, including detailed information ranging from obtaining renders from ModelViewer, to making phenomenal signatures and wallpapers: Working with Photoshop (Downloadable PDF + Example PSD files). Here are two excellent hair tutorials made by the wonderful Caiti and Shyama and a tutorial on signatures by Winter Blossom.
- How do I get such cool background, effects and images?
For backgrounds, brushes, patterns and more, you can simply search the web for them. Visit some websites, download some brushes and play with them. If you don't like them, you can always delete and try new ones. The same obviously goes for fonts, shapes and other attributes you can use with the software. As far as the Photoshop effects are concerned: Tutorials will learn you a lot about all of the various effects. For a good source of Photoshop Brushes, check DeviantArt, and for fonts, check Dafont.
- What about ModelViewer? What is it exactly?
WowModelViewer is a piece of software that reads the game-files and allows you to pull the models of all in-game items, spells, characters, creatures and other objects out of them. Once you load a character, you can gear it using a few simple buttons and play all the available animations. Want a male Blood Elf kneeling down in front of the camera? No problem! Need a female Goblin facing the left of the screen while wielding Thunderfury? No problem! ModelViewer allows you to gain control over characters while not being in the game.
- I have a problem with ModelViewer!?
As with most programs, ModelViewer is quite buggy. All I can do is to direct you towards their official forums, found here. Should you need further assistance with it though, please feel free to ask in this thread. We're happy to listen to your issues.
- I made an image, but how can I share it with others?
To share them, you need to upload them to a webhost. the most easy way to do this, is by using a free hosting provider which is dedicated for images. Examples are IMGur and PhotoBucket. Alternatively, you can always search the web for "image hosting" and pick any of your choice.
- I have... other questions!
As suggested before, please use Google to find an answer.
If you have not found anything sufficient, you may contact me or anyone of the signature makers in this thread for help.
Recent Blue Posts
Feedback: Mage Updates
Feedback: Mage Updates
What WoW foods do you think would smell the best?
MMO-Champion
Recent Forum Posts
Originally Posted by Winter Blossom
There is an option in WMV to up the quailty of the model based on your graphics card. Also, I save my model in a very big size (length is, like, 8132) and then scale it down in Photoshop while holding down shift to keep the proportions.
Keep up with the eye candy, wonderful artists~!
Reply With Quote
