CHARACTERS
01
Character Cloth Dynamics:
The Chosen Path
Crafting the dynamic elements of our characters, such as the flowing tattered cloth on the Executioner, involved experimentation across several approaches. We tested cloth simulation, traditional hand-keyed animation, and a custom bone/joint-based dynamic solution. After some initial profiling, comparing the performance and artistic control of each method, as well as consulting with the engineers, we ultimately opted for the bone/joint-based dynamic solution. This approach offered us the precise level of control needed to achieve the highly stylized, yet organic movement crucial for Impaled's visual identity -all while maintaining optimal performance. The result, as seen in the accompanying video, showcases the dynamic range and dramatic flair we aimed for. While our initial explorations included a keyframed Red Death and Cloth on the Executioner's loin cloth, the bone-based system proved to be the suitable choice for our final vision. Below, you'll find examples demonstrating the joint-based dynamic solution applied to character fabrics, such as the hero's cape and the Heretics' tattered robes, which areflowy, while the cape shows weight.
The Heretics
Driven by a desperate ambition to either halt the temporal decay or master it, The Apostate performed unholy rituals, binding herself and her most zealous followers—now known as her Heretics—to the very chaotic energies that warped their reality. This act of defiance twisted their forms, transforming them into grotesque, tattered mockeries of their former selves, but also imbued them with dark, unnatural vitality. The skeletal zombies that fight alongside them are not mere thralls, but the reanimated husks of those who succumbed to the Chrono Shatter and the Abyss's corrupting influence, stirred into tormented action by The Apostate's blasphemous will.
In the wake of the Chrono Shatter, as reality fractured and time unraveled, whispers of forbidden knowledge promised salvation—or power—to those desperate enough to listen. The Apostate was once a respected figure within the doomed civilization that erected the colossal Romanesque and Art-Deco structures, now crumbling ruins. As the Abyss Current consumed their world, she rejected the tenets of the old order, seeking solace and control in the raw, mutating energies of Chaos.
The Apostate
Weapons super-charged
Character Zoo
The Whisperer - Concept
