HighTechOger

Year: 2022

  • Vignette28 PhotoBook Vol 2 – now available

    Vignette28 PhotoBook Vol 2 – now available

    With the help and support of a lot of creators and creatives we managed to release volume 2. The Vignette28 PhotoBook Vol 2 – now available as free pdf (download, ca 100mb). Thank you to everyone who was part of this undertaking and who supported the release.

    Cover of the printed version. Cover art by Jan Závěšický @icono.cybernetica

    Here’s some stats:

    • We have some 40 creators, who entered up to three of their works.
    • Volume 2 has over 100 pages of awesome Vignette28s.

    Once again that has been a challenging project and I’m happy that – despite a lot happening in 2022 – I can finally call it done. The Kickstarter rewards have mostly arrived, all backers had early access to the pdf. Now it’s time for you to enjoy this great collection of Vignette28 artworks from creators and creatives from all over the world.

    The Kickstarter included two versions (the now available print and a deluxe edition).
    The high quality print (left) and the deluxe edition (right).
    One of the amazing entries by Frederic Faulhaber @a.tale.of.grimdark
    Preparing the shipment of the Kickstarter rewards.

    Finally one remark on the deluxe edition: the deluxe edition was only available as a limited Kickstarter reward.

  • A Lost and Confused Lady

    A Lost and Confused Lady

    The Weald Eyetoad Challenge 4 requested to roll on a table with two dice. The outcome was what you had to create. The second condition of the challenge was to place said outcome within the town that may or may not exist in the Weald. My dice said to create a lost and confused lady.

    Part 1 – Grave-Eye Flint

    Grave-eye Flint, Terror of the Blackened Copse

    This time it was different. It was not a single fire like normally when the humans prepare for the night. This time it was multiple fires. And loud noises. The gnarly things were attacking something. Most likely humans. Screams were filling the dark. Grave-eye Flint, Terror of the Blackened Copse, was hesitant. But hunger drove it towards the lights. Inevitably.

    Part 2 – Her Durchlaucht

    Her Durchlaucht with her pet Ronald

    Her Durchlaucht had a terrible night. It did not turn out at all the way she wanted to. After she had received a letter from her husband, His Durchlaucht, she had decided to join him on his little adventure in Hollar. Two wagons, a couple of guards and some servants were quickly ready for departure. A not too uncomfortable road over the mountain range. They followed some road signs. On the eleventh night the guards were making too much noise. And the maid was annoyingly crying. It did not turn out the way she wanted. Now all those unthankful guards and servants had left her alone. She stumbled through the woods. There was a town nearby. But she couldn’t figure out if she really saw it or just wished it to be there. At least she was not completely alone. During the night she found Ronald. He was without his leash. Unthinkable of what could happen to him, alone, on his own. Lucky Ronald now was led by Her Durchlaucht through the pastures, slowly approaching the town which may or may not exist.

    Vignette28 Prints

    Go to Society6 where I sell these Vignette28s as awesome, high quality prints in various sizes. Check out the print of Grave-Eye Flint and the print of Her Durchlaucht.

  • Knights of Embersworn

    Knights of Embersworn

    Transcendent Decay; Nocterra; Knights of Embersworn, House Hohentäuffen – the Wanderers Lost in Time

    Foraging party led by the knight’s squire.
    A wounded man at arms dreams of the Lady of the Lake.
    A veteran leaving the battlefield.
    A Corporal drags his wounded comrade while a Gnarl tank is shooting at them.
    The knightly retinue is advancing.
  • exhausted

    exhausted

    Leaving the battlefield after all is spent. No munition, no energy, no water left. The air is filled with the smoke of the explosions. The trees are burning. Nothing left. The sun is dying, too. Back to the camp.

  • Rotting Ancient Shrine

    Rotting Ancient Shrine

    Here’s my entry: the Rotting Ancient Shrine – the third Eyetoad Challenge of the Weald

    The Challenge Rules

    The rules are as follows. Roll 3d6 which determine the topic of your entry. The entry will be a piece of terrain with a diameter of less than 12cm. Another limitation (or motivation) is that you need to include a piece of nature which you found.
    So my kid took a dice and rolled three times: 3 for Rotting, 5 for Ancient and 6 for Shrine. Next I went outside and found a nicely shaped piece of wood in my pile of chopped wood. And then I started staring at that piece of wood. For quite a while. Slowly turning it in my hands, inspecting it from all sides when creativity hit me. Given the topic I new I need something rotting, but didn’t know how to deal with that yet. So I start with Ancient Shrine. My interpretation was a an old shrine used by different worshippers with different habits.

    One of these groups would have set up grave stones. Luckily I had these amazing 3D-printable gravestones which accidentally also had a version with tentacles growing. Which was a fit for the Rotting part. Another group, probably taking over after the gravestone group would place holy relics in beautifully shaped containers. Yet another group, the latest maybe, would use the place to sacrifice whatever beings. Until the rot came. In the form of tentacles growing from below the tree. This is also when the mushrooms started growing.

    Building and Painting

    First step was placing the piece of wood. The majority of the building process was printing parts from various vendors. Gravestones, cages, relics. Of course I’ve printed a lot more than I needed in the end. Once every item was ready I test fitted their positions on the shrine. Some places needed some adaption (like creating crevasses and flat surface areas) that the items had a better placement.

    The tentacles and mushrooms I created with Milliput. Once that was dry I primed the whole piece and tried to figure out a colour scheme. Lucky me we just had a Weald Workshop about colour theory which helped me creating my palette within a couple of minutes. That being worked out I painted the shrine. Tufts, leaves and some pigments were the final touches and I was almost ready. Why almost?

    Shooting the Shrine

    There’s no need to say that I never would create such a build without putting it into a Vignette28. I made the concept sketch even before I started building the shrine. And after the built was done began working on the collage. But the scene lacked the impact I was looking for. It took a bit of editing time before I realized it didn’t work out the way I had planned. Therefore I dumped all the stuff, made a new setup, took a few shots and once again learned new things in photo editing (for example how to increase the field of depth beyond the camera’s capabilities with PhotoShop’s stacking algorithm). And of course all of my own Photography tips apply here as well. So here’s the new Vignette28.

    His Durchlaucht and his Warden retinue wonder if they will find any loot at the Rotting Ancient Shrine. But they don’t know what is waiting for them.

    The Weald

    The Weald is a fantasy skirmish game with a lively community. For inspiration head over to Instagram following the #weald28 hashtag.

  • Wall Section U221 – Day 435

    Wall Section U221 – Day 435

    The DropTroops are arriving. Decending from their hovering drop ship. It all seems quiet.