Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
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Originally Posted by
zeedale
Michael, your maps are beautiful! Just wondering why you choose Xara over other vector programs. That is, what Xara features do you enjoy using and why? And how does it help you progress quickly when creating your works? I'm curious because I'm not sure if I'm fully taking advantage of Xara's potential. I have Xara Designer Pro and other vector programs installed on my PC, but I often deliberate on which ones to use for certain tasks.
,
Good question! I find Xara to be superior on a number of levels. First of all redraw/save/export speed, Xara is not a memory hog and I can do various complex operations and maintain high speed in creation - which is important to me. While I like creating artistic and effective maps, my one speed is very fast, if the application can't keep up with my production process, it doesn't work for me.
Secondly, you'll notice extensive use of beveled shapes like buildings, mountains, river banks, canyons, and I find Xara has a large variety of bevel types (I use several for specific purposes) and the beveling is done better than some of the other vector apps I use. (I own Micrografx Designer - which is an old, no longer supported vector app originally competitve with CorelDraw, eventually bought out by Corel and dumped, but it's still loaded on several of my PCs. And I still use it, for large drawings for EPS export - I find it does EPS export to sign cutting software <one of my needs> better than Xara.)
Transparency - I do deranged things with Xara and transparency. Sometimes I apply a fractal cloud transparency to show underlying surface detail (for example), then I group the single object (I know one would normally not group a single object), but once it is grouped, I can apply a second different transparency such as a linear one - while this wrecks the design for reverse corrections, it adds further graphic capability than what any other software offers me.
Finally I use Xara everyday in my graphics shop, so I am very familiar with it, and very fast in it's use. I find it ideal to accomplish that which I need it to.
I've used Adobe Illustrator, but have never been a fan, far preferring Xara to Illustrator or many other vector applications.
I don't know if that will help you in your decisions for vector app preference, but those are my reasons for using it. The primary benefit, is speed most of all.
Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
Thank you. That information will be very helpful in improving my technique in drawings. I will look at your tutorials and others to increase my use of Xara's features, especially for speed. Again, your maps and other drawings help showcase the tremendous potential of Xara's capabilities. I look forward to your further posts.
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Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
I am finding that doing illustrations like my Frozen Wind illustrations do a better job, than my hand-drawn stuff. I've got to create several illustrations for my upcoming product, Way of the Samurai, for Kaidan.
This is an illustration for my Nitojutsu Sensei (two swords master) Samurai archetype - I used a movie poster as a reference.
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Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
Next illustration (yes, I just did this since I uploaded the last image) - the Onmyoji (origami wizard archetype).
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Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
Not as exciting as illustrations or maps, these are Samurai House Crests (kammon). I intend to include 36 examples for inclusion in the publication. These are based on actual house crests, though I don't plan to assign specific samurai houses for each crest, rather making them available so individuals can choose one for themselves, or as their own house crest.
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Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Gamerprinter
Not as exciting as illustrations or maps, these are Samurai House Crests (kammon). I intend to include 36 examples for inclusion in the publication. These are based on actual house crests, though I don't plan to assign specific samurai houses for each crest, rather making them available so individuals can choose one for themselves, or as their own house crest.
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These are fantastic, and system-neutral. Anyone playing Blood & Honor (or Sengoku, for that matter) would love to have these available.
-- Ben
Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
That's always a secondary goal, to create a product though designed for one game, offers ideas or content for other similar themes, as in Japan based. I am happy for the resources I have that give me access to content that is both interesting and useful. I am always hopeful that users of other game systems can get use out of content I create. One of the reviewers of my Frozen Wind free adventure used it with a conversion for Legend of the Five Rings and found the adventure perfectly suiting to his needs. All he did was change the NPCs and monsters, but kept all else as is. I chose Pathfinder as the system for my game material, but I don't mean it to be exclusive for that.
Michael
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Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
The next illustration for those wanting to play a gunslinger in Kaidan... the Teppou Bushi
Michael
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Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
Great stuff Michael, I really like the illustrations.
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Re: Fantasy maps created using Xara Xtreme
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Originally Posted by
a4hire
Great stuff Michael, I really like the illustrations.
Thank you, sir, I am getting better at the illustrations - Xara style!
Next illustration (I wish I could find a better reference pic with the entire horse...) - the Kuge Samurai archetype. The Kuge has higher station than the standard samurai given more courtly and diplomatic training and less martially skilled than other samurai. This one is destined for a high bureaucratic position in Kaidan society.
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