3432 Blood Hand A Lucas And Cadugan Mystery
on January 27, 2021
A new era, a new style! Experimental at the moment, so do please let me know what you think.
Also introducing a new story collaboration! This story co-written with our own t!
Enjoy!
-Rich “BK” Morris
Cadugan seems to be shorter than Charles.
Half-Elf.
I know that’s not good enough an explanation, but Cadugan has been shorted than just about all adult humans, so it’s not a surprise that a young adult Charles is taller than him
Much easier to read today. I assume this is Cadugan’s "town" outfit, & he has something more practical to wear when he’s off rangering in the woods?
The artwork has a more “polished” look to it. No trace of the sketch foundation of the strips.
I always liked that distinct style
The art looks simoler? Plainer? Not in a negative way, more trying to ascertainif that’s what i’m seeing.
Giggling at the brotherly button pushing lol
Looking forward toa mystery, and even more to a collaboration between you and t! How long have you been plotting this?
That should read as simpler, not simolar… Apparently i need to calibrate this touch screen…
It appears ‘simpler’ because I’ve removed the roughs. When I originally started the comic I drew only roughs with no or minimalist backgrounds. They were drawn exclusively on paper and in black pencil. Later on I switched to making colour roughs (often red, purple, green or blue) with black pencil ‘clean’ lines on top of the original artwork, scanned in and adjusted in Photoshop. These new strips I’m doing only roughs in colour, scanning them in and cleaning them digitally in Sketchbook Pro, deleting the rough layer. So the main difference is that there’s no rough here at all and the line is digital and cleaner.
I know the construction lines have been my signature for many years now, but I thought I’d experiment with something a little more… finished. If everyone hates it, I’ll step back a bit. But I felt it was good time to try something new.
My initial thoughts on it are that it would certainly be a distinct and interesting way to tell us definitively that this is a new era! So thematically it works!
Nothing wrong with an artist trying something new, give it ten years and see if you still like it 🙂
So, as long as one person likes it (I like it!), you’ll keep this style?
Mind you, I’m not yet sure if I like it more than your previous style, but that’s just because I tend to be resistant to change. I’ll almost certainly get used to the new style in a short while.
I kind of miss the pencils. Not so much because of the loss of the roughs, but because you always ended up with a lot of shading, and there’s less shading.
> Looking forward toa mystery, and even more to a collaboration between you and t!
Thanks!
> How long have you been plotting this?
Since April 2009!
t!
Likewise, t!, I’m eagerly looking forward to seeing what you and Rich have concocted for Lucas and Cadugan.
Thanks to you as well!
Now that it’s underway, I should probably finish plotting it…
t!
Man, am I looking forward to this one, too. A collaboration between you two? Twelve years in the making? It’s going to be absolutely amazing!
Calling you big? Slightly bowing to talk you? Clarify brother
Swinging through the window perhaps?
Anyone else getting a ‘Link’ vibe today with Cadugan? What with his hairstyle and the shield on the wall?
He got every younger siblings wish of growing taller than the older sibling.
Charles has the clothes for a proper swashbuckling story although we’ll have to see if he uses an actual buckler.
Heh, Cadugan does not look very pleased, and I bet half the reason is that he HATES those more restrictive and formal cloths and shoes and wants to wear them for as short a time as possible. And exasperating brothers, of course. Charles has some rogue to him I think.
The new style looks great on Charles, and likely will on most of the other nobility as well, but I don’t see the elves and half-elves being that willing to change that quickly, not unless there is a good reason. I mean, if the climate had changed, you could convince them to wear warmer or cooler clothing, most likely, but I have the feeling they will not feel themselves slaves to the fashions of the less long-lived courts. (Though it will be interesting to see if the decrease in magic has caused the elves to be a bit less resilient to nature, causing at least some changes in their clothing. Perhaps something more flowing and fanciful.) It will be interesting to see if the peasants have changed how they dress as well, at least a little, copying the nobles, and what the more tribal people have done. I could easily see the Orc and Goblinoid styles changing somewhat, as they come to a new balance between their cultures, and those of other exiles in the goblin lands.
The title suggests something happening with the Bloodhands. I hope everyone is okay. I am sure we will see with time.
The other aspect of the new style, the lack of the sketch lines, I am not sure about yet. I liked the clean tidy look of this strip, and the lettering was much easier to read, but the sketch lines were also a mater of character. I will have to see more to decide whether I like it better with them, or without them.
Looking forward to the mystery. 😀
Keep me posted on your feelings about the new art style. I’m wavering myself, but I feel it’s important to hone my cleanup skills too.
I would say stick with it for a while. This isn’t enough to make a proper comparison. Later, after this has gone on a while, I will compare it to older work, and tell you my conclusion. I don’t dislike it at all, it just feels different… but if there was ever a good time to make such a transition, doing it with a time jump and change to the in-world clothing styles would be such a time. 🙂
Oh, and I quite like the lovely violet banner for the chapter at the top. 😀
Actually, this could be a nice Patreon bonus, that those above a certain threshold get to see the "roughs". Regular readers don’t lose out, and those that support you get a nice little bonus!
Yeah, Cadugan must be already annoyed about having to wear dress clothes rather than good, decent forest gear. Definitely getting a Versailles vibe here. I like it; after all, not everyone will like how the times are a-changing.
I wonder if the other races will adopt different styles. Maybe the elves could go Irish, with leiné and ionar doublets, dwarf tribes as highlanders, the Arabian nations adopting Ottoman looks, the fashions of the time are quite wondrous and varied!
Oooh… Not relevant to this strip, but it just occurred to me, I hope Clover and Eric had more kids! I would so love to see a halfling princess that takes after her mother and is training to follow her as a rogue-assassin-spy chief! Though she would only be nine or so as most currently. Still want this though! What an asset to any kingdom.
I love the new look. I think it is a marked improvement.
Whoa. No preliminary pencil lines. Not sure how I feel about this.
Well, drat. Shoulda thought of that.
I find myself in the awkward position for the next while of being able to comment only on the Art!
I think part of the reason you’re wavering is that you’re still settling into it, basically re-learning how to illustrate this strip. Bumps in the road are to be expected. It’s an admirable decision, airing the early work in public like this! My recommendation is, unless you come to really dislike it early on, to commit to this style for a month. It saves you the agony of self-doubt on a daily basis. After 30 days (12 strips?) you’ll have gotten better and you’ll have a larger body of work to evaluate.
I like that the cleaner lines reflect the New, cleaner Era, but I was also very fond of the old style. So I’m on the fence at the moment, too.
t!
Just my thoughts. It looks very good and polished, but maybe too polished. The exclusively hard black lines are just too consistent, all the edges are very hard and harsh having some grayer lines softens things a bit I think. hard to say on some other stuff as everything in frame is well white or black… there is no sense that anything is a different colour like there is with some gray tone. Shadows as well, with it so clean it really begs for them. Could also be that it has stopped looking like a lived in world and looks a bit like an 80s cartoon? Anyway that is my 3 1/2 cents.
The new art style does have a cleaner look to it, but it was the pencil style that was one of the things that first attracted me to YAFGC.
As t! and Eolhin have suggested, give this style a month and then consider how you feel about it.
One question: is Lucas hiding behind the curtain? or in the bushes?
He is listed in the cast, but I can’t see him… (did he get some ninja-stealth training?)
Maybe he’s the one calling for Charles in the 1st panel? The voice seems to be coming from outside, while Cadugan is shown inside.
I thought of that, but then why would Charles answer to Cadugan?
Is Lucas still a werewolf?
Yes, doubt they would be able to find a cure now, with limited access to magicks (and what is left is being used to light candles)
I like the cleaner look for the new era.
I will miss the old style, just as I’ll have nostalgic feelings for the old era.
However: it’s your comic. You should do whatever you want first. Your fans wil get used to a new look.
My tentative reaction to the new style is that it looks rather flat. The construction lines gave a greater impression of depth and solidity (for example, by hinting at the curves of the head or, in https://www.yafgc.net/comic/3428-the-baker-and-the-sailor/ panel 6, giving the impression of Amy’s skirt folding around her legs).
The construction lines also provided a sort of minimalist shading, hinting at shadows (intentionally or otherwise). The new style looks as if it’s waiting for shading, and is incomplete without it.
My apologies for the criticism, I hope at least it was somewhat constructive 🙂
Having said that, the characters still have all of their old dynamism and poise, looking like real people subject to gravity (which many webcomic artist fail to do well). I expect within a little while I won’t notice the shift in style at all.
THAT’s it. Was thinking what seems to be missing and yes, the construction lines were giving the feeling like it’s shaded (even when it wasn’t).
Otherwise, I guess we will need to wait for something which would be neither white nor black to see how it fits …
Mh, the cleaner style is certainly different. Of course as he artist, you can change your style however you like. Overall I like it but the one thing that throws me off are the black filled in areas such as Glons beard. They appear a lot flatter than they used to when they were "pencilled". But maybe it’s just a matter of getting used to it. Still love your work and can’t wait to read more adventures.
Hmm, you are right, in that first strip of the new set, the grey apples, and the two night panels really stood out because they had that softer tone. The pure black and white approach is cleaner, but looks… less lived in. The pure black of Glon’s beard caught my eye as well. The final panel where it got colored in was great though, that added back in all the shading and depth. We can’t ask him to color everything though. *dry chuckle*
"I hate it when you do that" – "That’s why I’m doing it".
I must admit, I did notice, that the strip looks somewhat different than usual, but had to read your comment to realise what it was. I think I got so much used to the pencil lines, that I kind of stopped to see them.
I would also say to give it a few strips try, and see how you feel about them. Thing is, if you keep using it, we will get used to it, so if you like it, do it. 🙂
Are we SURE Charles isn’t actually LUCAS’ little brother??
Well we don't know who Lucas's mother was, so no, we're not *sure* that he isn't. It really ought to have come up by now though, since his father and Flannet should have met at Christmas.
As to style? Its good, although a bit of shading would be kind of nice…
Yeah, you’ve got it exactly right, it does come across as "simple" compared to the work we’re used to with the roughs included. Most of that is just we’re used to your old style. I’m betting that once we get used to this cleaner style it’d be hard to go back to having the roughs included. Shading would be nice, but NOT if you’d have to do fewer strips because of time constraints. Overall, getting rid of the roughs gives a much more polished look IMHO. Thumbs up! (Thanx for all the strips over years BTW!)
As a former draftsman, allowing the rough lines to remain always annoyed me.
Adding some shading and varying lines to show texture would be a good move.
I’m quite enjoying the new look, the cleaner lines making it all crips and fresh, though I’ll always have a place in my heart for the old look with the rough lines, makes me appreciate the work put into it as I know I don’t have the patience to learn how to draw properly
I’m also loving that Charles has developed more of a Rogue skillset in the time skip.
Bravo sir, bravo.
I’m totally on board with changes of style, honestly. And more so on comics with a large lifespan.
The cleaner style showcases your skill in 2d animation, but I always appreciated character the roughs gave.
This style looks Disneyish. Not sure it works, but whatever. The story has promise.
I like the old style better but it’s your comic do what you want to do.
It looks like Charles has done that rope swing from the roof stunt more than a few times. One of these days he will misjudge his trajectory and smack the wall near the window instead, maybe bang his knee like Tory Belleci did on a fire training tower, testing the Hang Tough myth.
The pure blacks and whites is a quite harsh style, it might be worth experimenting with adding a mid-grey as well.