Unit Pictures

[Robear]

[I'm not including complete quotes so that these posts don't become ridiculously long and hard to read. Today I'll get back to posting real updates.]

Can you include a screenshot?

Yeah, so, earlier in the thread people were discussing about the trilobite-looking things on the walls here;

They could be part of the walls, or they could be some unnamed Zerg strain that lives in buildings. They aren't larvae or cerebrates. Either way, doesn't affect the unit drawings.

All that said - to remain completely valid, you should do both the old and new ultralisks. Put in the torrasque too.

I plan to, but you could also say that to be completely valid I need to draw 5 different vultures, 3 different firebats and marines, 2 different medics, like 10 different zerglings...
If Blizzard's given the designs different names I can use (Gantrithor/carrier, torrasque/ultralisk, Behemoth/Minotaur, Arclite/Crucio, Medivac/Dropship), I'll draw the different versions. While it'd be cool to compare every different zergling design (which I'll do sometime for fun), it would just take up a lot of space on the chart without showing people more information on the sizes, and it would take forever for me to finish. I would have to redraw all the units I've done like 3-4 times. >_<

Leviathan stuff

I know the ingame model differs from the concept art, I wouldn't base my drawing solely on either design anyway. I'm hoping that before I work my way up to the Leviathan, they'll release HotS screenshots showing the Leviathan from the outside during the campaign cutscenes, like the Hyperion in WoL. Not only will it be totally awesome, but then I'll have enough references.

So are you agreeing or disagreeing/agreeing to disagree/nodding in an affirmative maybe? [about lurkers]

I happen to agree, but it was a little irrelevant; speculating on how big things should be doesn't matter if we have an actual Blizzard reference showing us.

about immortals

We know Immortals don't outnumber dragoons, because Immortals are just the leftover dragoons that survived BW.

Before the loss of Aiur, crippled Protoss warriors could volunteer to continue their service by transplanting their shattered remains into Dragoon exoskeletons. Tragically, the technology to continue this practice was lost in the rubble of their fallen homeworld. The remaining Dragoons, now known as Immortals, have been refitted with Twin Phase Disruptors and hardened energy shields...These ancient warriors are a dying breed willing to sacrifice everything for their people. Soon none will remain.

(from the SC2 site)
I know you wrote a lot more stuff than that, but it's nothing I can really comment on, and it doesn't affect my drawing. :P

Observer is fairly small (smaller than a zealot at least). I'd say its expensive, however, because they're relatively few in number. Didn't they exist to survey other planets (like... one per planet)? They're so good at their job, that the market for them stagnated.

See, this is back to being complete speculation. In the original manual (but also repeated on the SC2 site), we learn that observers are "small drones employed to survey vast wasteland areas or observe and record battles." If they were some planetary satellite I would think they were much bigger. While they are sometimes deployed in space, their original role as a desert surveyor/battle recorder makes me agree with your assumption of small size.

Just like most other protoss hardware - existed for probably hundreds of years.

Keep in mind that all of our Protoss characters have also existed for hundreds of years. :P

Also, ravens and void rays don't appear in cinematics because they're boring

Yeah, if they were in cinematics I would already know about it. :P What I want is concept art. It's bad to only have the ingame units as references; I like to have a few different sources and make a composite:
-All of the in-game models have exaggerated proportions to make them easier to see
-They're not to scale
-They're usually not detailed enough to draw the scale from the design. For example, vikings and phoenix and things have cockpits, but on the bigger ships you can't see any windows or anything, leaving their size ambiguous. However, concept art is more detailed, even when the design doesn't match up to the final unit:

I can see the bridge of the Nomad, so I can estimate how big it is. But, of course, I don't want to draw the Nomad; I want to draw the Raven and void ray. So if anyone has ever seen any concept art of it, it'd be really helpful, even if it's a weird proto-version of it. I'm happy to make up details, but I wouldn't want it to turn out that there was a detailed Blizzard reference and mine's just inaccurate.

Anyway— Back to drawing!

[Gradius]

http://sclegacy.com/images/phocagallery/cimg3149.jpg

Leviathan picture. There's a leviathan floating in the sky in the grey planet of that hots prerendered cinematic. Either way it's gigantic and the concept art is probably what you should go with for the size.

I always assumed that the Protoss inside dragoon exoskeletons were just heads in tanks, but then the immortal portrait shows an entire torso, as does the concept art.

There's are plenty of slides in Frontline showing Immortals in reference to zerglings & other protoss. I also don't understand why a protoss torso couldn't fit into a dragoon. Here's an image from SC: Ghost.

The making of a dragoon was more somber. It was a last resort for those especially commited to their zealoutry - which explains why the dragoon facilities were abandoned so quickly. Their weren't very many to begin with, because they were (to put it harshly) a gimmick for the devoted. It existed for quite a while - there were probably devout followers that wanted to see it have an expanded role, but the times were against them. As a result, dragoons were humbled - and you can tell by all of their in-game quotes.

That's too broad of an assumption. A more precise assumption, however, would be that those are the majority of immortals - younger non-dragoon protoss that have recently been horribly maimed. The preludes and WoL entail a lot of conflicts. So immortals most likely outnumber dragoons. Dragoons were few to begin with - slow production rate eventually wore down whatever big numbers they had on Aiur.

Not sure why you think dragoons had to be few in number, but the facility was abandoned because it was lost to the zerg on Aiur and it was technology they can't replicate.

[Turalyon]

Not sure why you think dragoons had to be few in number, but the facility was abandoned because it was lost to the zerg on Aiur and it was technology they can't replicate.

I've always thought that Immortals were only just upgraded existing Dragoons and NOT just a completely different way to make Dragoon-like constructs. The ability to physically make more Dargoons/Immortals was lost because of the Zerg conquest of Aiur. Couple this with the constant warfare, I assume that's why they're both few in number.

[Gradius]

I've always thought that Immortals were only just upgraded existing Dragoons and NOT just a completely different way to make Dragoon-like constructs. The ability to physically make more Dargoons/Immortals was lost because of the Zerg conquest of Aiur. Couple this with the constant warfare, I assume that's why they're both few in number.

We see a new Immortal being made in a Frontline story. According to the SC manual, dragoons are bonded to their suit by essence translators. My theory is that these were made at the shrine on Aiur which was "lost" but they still have a few remaining essence translators salvaged from other cybernetics cores (where the essence translators were kept). So Immortals/Dragoons can still be made, but in a while they will start going on the decline. But all that is beside the point since we don't know how many dragoons there originally were. 70% of Aiur's population that died could have been converted for all we know.

[Turalyon]

Hmmmmmmm... I guess the flavour text/background of the Immortal (on their homepage no less) is not worth a grain of salt then I take it.

Before the loss of Aiur, crippled Protoss warriors could volunteer to continue their service by transplanting their shattered remains into Dragoon exoskeletons. Tragically, the technology to continue this practice was lost in the rubble of their fallen homeworld. The remaining Dragoons, now known as Immortals, have been refitted with Twin Phase Disruptors and hardened energy shields. These heavily armed and shielded fighters give critical support by eliminating enemy artillery and ranged attackers, although they are vulnerable to rapid assaults from lesser foes. These ancient warriors are a dying breed willing to sacrifice everything for their people. Soon none will remain.

[Robear]

There's a leviathan floating in the sky in the grey planet of that hots prerendered cinematic.

That cinematic is going to be the best thing ever. I'm going to watch it at least hundred times, I swear.

Anyway, sorry it's been a while since the last actual update, but here's the tentative newest version (new additions are the lurker, SC2 queen, and infested terran):

[solidsamurai]

I plan to, but you could also say that to be completely valid I need to draw 5 different vultures, 3 different firebats and marines, 2 different medics, like 10 different zerglings...

Well, pretend its like your contributing to the development of a game (I'm actually writing a starcraft rpg, but I digress).

The marines only have one suit of armor. Everything else is effectively aesthetic differences (halo's permutations) - the suit might operate differently but it provides the same over all advantage. Medics basically wear the same armor as marines, with the exception of a shield which gives a greater advantage (more hp, or armor or whatever; in a game, I'm thinking of calling it protection which feels a bit more universal).

Firebat (SC 1) armor is actually bigger, but that's necessary because it needs added thermal layering - resultingly, the entire bulk is larger and firebats take a bit more cutting effort.

The new firebat armor (SC 2) is larger all around. The suit model isn't modified - it's a completely different model and the unit even counts as 'armored' instead of bio. The pilot sits in a seat, which is a semi-cock pit of sorts. The head is receded because the pilot is hoisted up, so that their head fits into the round helmet at the top.

The marauder wears the same model of suit, but the suit has been modified internally so that it supports different forearm weapons. The SC 1 firebat can be assumed to have less modding work because it's only involved an addition of hard points for his weapons.

----
What I'm trying to say is you only really need one marine, medic, etc. You draw two of something only when there's an obvious contrast between two things that you've seen. That'd create some slight fanon, but you'd only be doing it where necessary.

And technically you're entire effort is fanon, so it's okay (at least in my book).

Hmmmmmmm... I guess the flavour text/background of the Immortal (on their homepage no less) is not worth a grain of salt then I take it.

Well maybe, they're referring to the dragoons. Production quota for immortals hasn't really kicked up in the lore yet and they might be lost to other interests before the war is over.

Not sure why you think dragoons had to be few in number, but the facility was abandoned because it was lost to the zerg on Aiur and it was technology they can't replicate.

I'm not saying they were few - I'm saying they got whiped out. They were on the front lines acting as shock troopers for other shock troopers (the latter in greater abundance). Dragoons are harder to come across than zealots (everyone in the templar caste is at least training to be a zealot, I figure; martial arts equivalent - you have to be nth degree master in an art/variety of complex and exotic arts, to serve in the military).

If they were some planetary satellite I would think they were much bigger.

Not really. A satellite is technically any orbitting object.

So, thinking in pure physics - an observer can stay put and create its own gravitational lagragian points. It would become a satellite if not for its anti-grav inertial drive/thingy. Or maybe it already is, since it's technically being pulled and just isn't yielding.

For that matter, is the ISS a satellite? It doesn't orbit earth - it sits at a lagragian point, so that everything is stable.

Keep in mind that all of our Protoss characters have also existed for hundreds of years. :P

The ones with positions of command and with the most experience mind you. The crafters that run the equivalent of defense companies, too. Nonetheless, tech is dated, maybe for that reason.

I don't want to draw the Nomad

Yeah I don't care enough to ask you about that. Nomads suck. :P

[Robear]

Well, it looks like the site I was using for image hosting is dead, but, never fear, I'll find a new one for tonight's update, which is including some air units.

[Gradius]

Just use photobucket or imageshack.

[Robear]

Well, here we are. Both the wraith and the banshee are pretty roughly sized based on their cockpits; if anyone has any reason for them to be different, please say so.
Much as I'd love to show you the Protoss and Zerg I'm working on, Terran are a lot quicker to just get out there, mostly because there's a lot more reference.