Topic: Tholia drafts... HELP!!

[Brezgonne]

I'm almost at my wits end trying to make this stupid sphere look nice. Soo... I'm going to post a composite of all the drafts so far with the hope that you guys can give me some suggestions or ideas.

[Brezgonne]

n2

[Brezgonne]

n3

[Red_Green]

Whoa these look awesome.

[markyd]

I like them all... my fave is n2 top left!!!! 

[Chris Johnson]

I don't have a favorite, I'm in awe... It'll take me a while to think about it rationally and figuring out the Tholians for myself... I like 'em all!

[Brezgonne]

This is what happens when I get frustrated. I end up with 11-12 models that all work in SFC and I still have most of them.

Do you guys want me to keep saving all the draft models even If I personally don't like them?

[Brezgonne]

That reminds me.... did you guys want this? Re-hardpointed planets

I made them like last month and forgot I had them. They'll serve as a good test of the SFC-U file system to.

[Dizzy]

You know which one I like Brez. Needs more colored crystals tho.

[Brezgonne]

Ya ya... you like the sea urchin one.

[FoaS_XC]

Number 2, Upper Left
OR
Number 3, Lower Left.

[Reverend]

I like n3 bottom ones... but, they are all very cool!!

what is the SFC-U system?

[Rod ONeal]

Nice work! 

I like n1(?) top left because it looks like it's surrounded by web, like Thol bases are, and n2 top left because it just looks real good.

[Brezgonne]

You guys are allowed to say what you don't like about them. It's hard for me to improve on them if I don't know what you guys don't like.

Also, if you think that a certain set of parts on one version would look better with parts from others, lemme know.

[FoaS_XC]

okay, ill list what i dont really like about them, but even though, they all rule.

1)
Upper Left) Im not really a fan of the color, not big on orange
Upper Right) I actually kinda like this one. Something about the outter shell seems off
Lower Left) Its kinda dull
Lower Right) The colors are neat, as is the idea, but it comes across more as a living thing - it doesnt seem very practical for a homeworld/station-thing
2)
Upper Left) I Like this one
Upper Right) This one looks more like a space station
Lower Left) The Repeating textures kinda turn me off to it
Lower Right) same as Upper right
3)
Upper Left) Interesting Concept...are the two sections split apart? - if so, i think i like this one too
Upper Right) Too disorganized...again, doesnt seem practical as a homeworld
Lower Left) I like this one
Lower Right) it seems a little too jumbled on the inside, maybe a little less on the crystal core/conduits.

But I LOVE the direction this is going.

[Chris Johnson]

I don't know what not to like.  But I will help choose the best one in my view, but it'd take thought.  Perhaps to help, could you tell me the ones you like, Brez?  Since you're the expert at Tholians, I figured I'd choose within your taste. *shrug*

[Brezgonne]

I don't really like any of them. It's why they are all drafts and why I have like 12 versions hehe

Yes, I'll save the drafts and include them in the zip file so you guys can pick and choose what you use.

[Julin Eurthyr]

Set #1, bottom left world, is the closest to Tholia's "Dyson sphere" in design.  The one beef I have with that world is the texture.

No offense, but it looks like one or 2 "squares" of a texture-pattern repeated multiple times in a "band" pattern across the surface, looking like a mechanical Jupiter...

Somehow, and I think the colors you've chosen are influencing this, I see Tholia being a cross between a Borg ship and the Death Star.

I know it's a hard thing for me to explain verbally, trying to get the various "repeating" patterns of piping the Borg use "squished" and re-edited into a full-planet "random" texture to represent Tholia's surface... Come to think of it, the textures on set #3, bottom right (the one that has a crystalline center spiking out to metal strips) comes close, perhaps darken it up and add a few crystalline spikes etc. to pipe ends etc...

The Crystaline masses don't do it for me.  Mainly because they don't have that spherical "planet" look to them.  While it doesn't sound "original", making Tholia with crystalline "faceted" land masses in seas of magma might work, especially if you can find ways to make the planet luminescent, slightly brighter than a planet but not quite as bright as a sun...

You can even use color / textures to represent different aspects of crystalline life...

[Klingon Fanatic]

  I like picture number one lower left hand corner as, it actually looks like a Dyson sphere. Now, perhaps you could make it so we could fly inside of it a la Moonraker's Earth Space dock (i.e., the ST: III spacestation).

While your on the topic od crystalline urchins, do you have the time to make a new crystalline entity?

Thank you fro sharing these.

Qapla!

KF

[Chris Johnson]

You could demonstrate Tholian web tech around the planet, Brez.  An deadly yellow-orange grid to enemies... I like the more-crystalline ones though, they seem more unique and not your average generic Trek species.  Something crystalline and speaks Tholian to the world, and many do that.  Some, although doesen't does so as much, seem like a nice concept.  I hope my two cents helps, Brez.