It seems like im gonna have to start on my old crusade again! The point about things looking too real all the time...like full plate yeah its fine and i wouldn't change all of them but wouldn't it be nice to have some that looked more sexy or fashionable. I'm not talking like having a steel thong for plate or a bikini for robes...not at all. I'm talking more like Antonia Bayle is wearing its revealing i suppose but still classy. Everquest 2 always sells itself on these sort of things look at the front cover art on the games expansions and things! Like i say i don't think it should go too far but i think some fashion should be put in after all what do you care about stats if you look great! On the other hand what do you care about stats if you look like a clown? Point being that these armors would be great because they wouldn't have to be great to be desirable. An example http://members.aol.com/skovde/aribeth_breeze3.jpg Its not too revealing...i mean she doesn't look cheap but she still has plate on. So be adventurous with designs show abit of flesh and things! I mean i love the idea of male Beserkers going around like Conan the Barbarian! However for obvious reasons that wont happen. Maybe there are items like these i just haven't seen them? I seen the clothes and i was VERY disappointed the designs were all the same but diffrent colours. So really show abit of flesh let the young dress like the young and show themselves off and give your cardigan back to your grandma!
Well, you already know that you are not the first (and hopefully won't be the last) to ask for an art design shift in this direction. It doesn't hurt to add your 2 copper to the discussion though. And, with the new option to have a different "look" then the gear you are wearing for stats - it is time to revive this subject.
I'm not ultra impressed with that particular armor. But it's far FAR from the worst I've seen posted on these sorts of threads. It actually appears functional rather than the spike heels and tin bras that often get posted. I don't personally have much issue with the actual coverage of the armor we have currently though, I'd just like to see it more ornate. If they went in the direction of that kind of armor you posted I'd not cry a river though, like I said, it doesn't look like some of the more ridiculous fantasy flesh art.
Here is a rare picture of what the the Paladin armor used to look like in the early Beta stage. Somewhere along the line the artistic direction of the game changed and toons stopped looking like the art on the box. This is one of the reasons why EQ2 failed to live up to its' original hype. We were promised sexy and stylish high fantasy but they delivered the tin man from Wizard of Oz instead.
Novusod wrote: Let me rephrase that. "They promised sexy, naked flash und delivered armor which is actually usefull for a warrior". And thats one points I like about EQ2. Unlike other games (WoW) armor, especially female armor stays armor at higher level and does not become bikinis. The protection value of the paladin "armor" in your picture is about 0.
Ixalmaris wrote: Not so in a fantasy world. Fantasy game.....fantasy armor. They kind of go together!
Youris@Antonia Bayle wrote: No. Just because something is a fantasy game people don't have to wear bikinis to protect themself.
Have you ever seen Conan? Or Xena?! Harken back to the old pen & paper days of D&D, what did the armored toons wear? Ye gods, man, check out some artwork by Frazetta or Boris Vallejo! Now that's fantasy armor. And, if you want something historically accurate for armor design, take a trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Armored knights falling on their backs were easy prey for footmen with long knives, jamming them into the gaps in their armor at the joints (neck, armpits, groin), as they couldn't get back up without assistance. If you're going to factor in the 'protection value' with the way the armor looks, then you'd need to take into consideration that any character getting knocked back would need somebody to help un-turtle them. And the idea of a Paladin kicking somebody in the middle of combat ... he'd teeter right over. http://www.metmuseum.org/
Ixalmaris wrote: I would'nt actually demand, or expect anyone to dress their toons in anything but the articles of clothing, and/or armor that they choose.
Bloodfang@Nagafen wrote: Please, a bit less urban myths. Knights, even in full plate were quite agile in their armor. Of course not as fast as an unarmored ones but standing up and even swimming wasn't a problem for them. A full plate armor weights about 30kg. Thats less than what the soldiers currently in iraq are carrying on equipment.
Ixalmaris wrote: Please, it's not about urban myths, or weight. It's about not having fully articulated joints. Thanks for playing, have a cookie on your way out.
Bloodfang@Nagafen wrote: No matter what you want to make us believe, knights were rather mobile even in full armor. They could stand up, they could run, they could climb on their horses without help and they could even grapple quite well. Sure their joints were vulnerable points, but having a few vulnerable but still protected points is way better than having striptease armor like on the picture which offers no protection at all. Knights wore armor because they were useful, not because they looked nice you know.
Bloodfang@Nagafen wrote: Umm, not true. Several TV shows (not Mythbusters, but shows of that type) have tested this and found that a relatively athletic individual with a bit of practice can do cartwheels in well-made plate armor. Furthermore, a good suit of plate armor only weighs about 70 pounds. Ironically, this is about the same amount of weight modern soldiers carry into battle in the form of ammunition. It's just that the focus has shifted from defense to offense (and is now shifting back to defense in the form of modern body armor). That being said, EQ2's armors are far from historically accurate and, in many cases, totally impractical. For example, vanguard armor with the metal flaps in front and back would prevent a fighter from sitting on a horse properly. The chainmail suits that are laced up the back are just begging for someone to backstab the wearers. And the skin-tight suits of platemail and chainmail make no sense whatsoever. So, from my perspective (majored in History, most of my electives related to medieval/Renaissance Europe) EQ2's armors are just as ludicrous as that beta-era paladin's bikini. So it's silly for people to resort to the "realism" argument. In any case, it's a fantasy world: there's no reason that magic couldn't be used to make the more revealing armor "practical." Some things I'd like to see: chainmail coifs that look like chainmail coifs (i.e., a hood made of chainmail) chainmail hauberks that look like chainmail hauberks (i.e., reach the knees) breastplates that look like breastplates (i.e., not skin-tight, with things like bevors that protect the throat)) a variety of helmets (i.e., armets with visors, sallets, bascinets with crests) surcoats a variety of robes (i.e., something other than a colored potato sack with a belt) doublets tunics (these things generally reach the hips, they don't stop at the waist :^P) and yes, some more interesting attire for female characters If you don't want everyone running around in bikinis, make the revealing stuff expensive (have to pay the mage to enchant it to be more protective) and require some combination of crafting level, adventuring level, and guild level. The opulent gold blouse/skirt set is a perfect example: you don't see it all the time because it's relatively expensive and has both guild level and character level requirements. Why should orcs, brawlers, and Antonia Bayle be the only ones who can dress down and show their navels?
Ixalmaris wrote: And this is still a fantasy game, in which armor can both protect it's wearer, and look good. That's why we play this game, as opposed to dressing up in real armor, and chasing each other with swords.
I have a better idea. The revealing stuff should offer no or next to no mitigation. Ooop, such things are already in the game buyable from city merchants and tailors who craft social clothing.
If SOE would have kept the high fantasy aspect in EQ2 rather than going for "realism" in armor, I dare say this game may have done much better subscription wise. Much of EQ2's armor, particularly many of the leather sets look more appropriate for a hockey goalie than high fantasy. Still wiil never understand why they use high fantasy attire on the box art, I assume in an attempt to attract customers, only to do a 180 and decide that the very same customers really do not want that in the game.
