What I've Learned From Bad Character Design

[@Girl_Delinquent]

To the people who keep getting this video recommended or shown to them for the first time, don’t give me any feedback. Lucin has already been redesigned so leaving your thoughts on this design is pointless. Instead go watch “The Art of Taking Feedback” on my channel where I talk about his new redesign and leave your feedback there. EDIT: Apparently this is a rude and controversial request. Not my intention. Leave a comment on the old design if you want, I literally cannot force you to do otherwise. And I don’t want to. It’s still good for engagement 👍. But just know it does not help me improve on the design since you’re giving feedback on an outdated one.

[@burntbeansoup]

People can still give their thoughts on old designs.

[@Girl_Delinquent]

@@burntbeansoup sure, but it’s not helpful to me. And they’re usually leaving those comments because they’re trying to be helpful. But it’s really not when I’ve already moved on

[@burntbeansoup]

@@Girl_Delinquent If you want people to stop commenting on it, take the video down. Even if they realize you made a new design, they still like to give their two cents. That's what youtube is about, and telling people to straight up "stop" is really weird.

[@Girl_Delinquent]

@@burntbeansoup I disagree. I don’t think it’s weird. I’m just telling people to leave their thoughts on the updated design. And I’m not taking this down. I get a lot of people telling me how helpful this video is or was to them. And this is a small minuscule reason to take down the video, anyway. It has a lot of advice. It’s not just about the design. Not sure why you’re trying to pick a fight about this, but just leave it. I said what I said, we’re probably not gonna agree, and you’re overthinking it anyway.

[@burntbeansoup]

@Girl_Delinquent As long as the video is up, people will comment on the old design. I wouldn't take it down either, as it is indeed a helpful video (maybe canceling the comments is an option) but just because it annoys you that people still comment on it doesn't mean it's wrong. The reason I replied is because telling people to stop doing something that this platform was made for is illogical to me.

[@acejascent]

I think mixing up some of the rules (especially shape language) can be really good. Like having sharp angles not CAUSE of being a villain, but as a generally sharp character personality wise, i.e antagonistic/aggressive but not an antagonist, or looking innocent but that’s to mislead, so shapes can tell SO much and not just for the sake of basic story telling

[@nextombz]

Or perhaps a fast/swift thinking character or a character that specializes in swift movement, for example, sonic, he's got spikes for a reason

[@FernzyFernz]

I have cat ic who has circle fur feature but her body feature is 📐

[@kerri6011]

or to slightly mislead the audience so they make a general false assumption about said character than later subverting their expectations

[@cheese__cake]

​@@kerri6011Kyubey, from Madoka Magica.

[@Fleta_Maughner]

This is the comment i was looking for. My art style consists of a lot of straight lines, which leads to many sharp edges, so i would have to depend on colour palette, silhouette and body language instead

[@jaderoze9156]

I honestly could care less about giving heroic characters "villain" looking designs, nobody can tell me what to do >:3

[@IrisRanelle1328]

I want to like your comment more then once 😂 I agree so much!

[@shellysebell3889]

Was literally thinking this lol. I think a heroic character who looks like a villain would be fun and interesting.

[@jaderoze9156]

@@shellysebell3889 I have tons of those lol

[@VaporwaveLover2000]

Yes agreed Personally I think that one of your main characters can have sharp angles and still be one of the good guys or something, maybe they're just more rude in nature

[@chaoticcow4357]

Well to be fair, being a hero or a villain has nothing to do with shape language. Being a hero doesn't mean you are nice or soft, being a villain doesn't mean you are mean or rough. I think people are misinterpreting shape language as telling your audience in clear English who and what your character is, which is false. The audience relies on actions and expression, not a character's shape, the shape language is used to accompany a character, not define it. Take Ralph from Wreck-It-Ralph for example, he is VERY blocky, but that doesn't necessarily mean his character is well formed, infact the movie says everything but that about him. Instead, the squares no longer represent being held together, they represent being held *down*. See how the character is the one actually defining the shapes? Its simply put: The character is the independent variable The shapes are the dependent variable.

[@venus_rivers]

personally, i think the big baggy pants would be hard to swim in, so i would instead suggest maybe shorts or swimming trunks with tights/thin breathable pants under those, and a bag or backpack to replace all the pockets on his pants. though i might've misunderstood something and my suggestion would be irrelevant lol but overall i think he looks great, very spunky and fun looking

[@Vibing_Colors]

What if it's those convertible cargo pants? The ones that can zip into being either shorts or pants. Or would that be too fancy in a post-apocalyptic world

[@kero6298]

I was thinking the same thing. Maybe he could be wearing like one of those diving suits underneath, and then he just puts the cargo pants on when he’s on land?

[@sneakerdoodle0612]

Now I'm reminded of Lana from Pokemon Sun and Moon. She wears baggy clothing but underneath she has a swimming suit just incase she needs to dive if she goes fishing

[@bluesapphire170]

Agreed on the pants idea, But like, made from breathable organic material so it’s like second skin. It would also be cool if the material changes if it’s dry or wet.

[@CaspiDrako]

My thought exactly

[@rat7791]

Might be a bit of a bold assessment, but I think that you might be limiting yourself a bit. The new design is still very similar to the old one. When I was a lot more inexperienced my bad habit in redesigning was changing the bare minimum and just being super attached to the original even when I knew it could be better. He's pretty good now, reasonably you've addressed all the key problems, but all of your concepts are really similar. You say this yourself already, to try variations and sacrifice nolstsliga for quality, but mabye it could benefit you to take wider, bolder swings with concepting, like to go as far as designs that look like different people to explore all the possibilities! Again it's just my personal experience, but my favorite design is one that is almost a 180 from the original.

[@jjj7790]

I agree and mostly because I noticed that the face shape and body type remained pretty much the same before and after.

[@reiphas]

And I for one don't feel that way, but I see where you're coming from. I think Lucien's new design is a step in a right direction and overall the main issue I think there was with the original was that he didn't look like lived in an environment he did, and his design didn't tell his story. If I was the person to redesign him, then sure, he would have looked like a completely different person, but I don't really see a need for rebuilding the character from the ground up completely, because he works just fine without that. Also, once you get the redesign train going, it will keep moving, slowly but surely.

[@Typus803]

something that could help is something I learned in school : create axes. What I mean is choose multiple (idealy 3 or 4) main themes to do your design, and try like 3 or 4 idea for each axis, so you have signantifically different approaches to the same project and can explore so much possibilities

[@iamakumquat]

To be honest, i really dislike shape language. Not only do i feel it kind of puts people of certain ethnic features in a category of "good" and "evil", but it puts so much limitation to character design. And i also find it very unrealistic. I understand its purpose, and maybe if I decide to pursue an actual career in art I will need to incorporate it, but until that day I personally dont think Im ever gonna consider shape language.

[@Specter_1125]

In my opinion, some of the character design fundamentals don’t work all that well with more realistic styles. Specifically silhouette and shape language.

[@spaceyberry]

Same. I think it only works with overly cartoonish art styles, not realistic or anime ones.

[@DriftPiss9000]

"puts people of certain ethnic features in a category of "good" and "evil"" Holy yeah I always thought this as well omg

[@rvfflez]

Fr, and if every "evil" or "good" character uses the same shape, color pallettes, etc, won't every hero and villain in media eventually look the same?

[@pinky_pepper]

imo shape language isn't as Huge as its made out to be. i like his old hair and i dont rly think adding more curved lines really changed my perception of him. i mean, its not like having spiky elements makes your character evil!! it really just depends on the context of the intersecting elements. the rules don't rly have to be followed so closely anyway, i think it just comes down to what you're going for, like the emphasis on strong silhouette came from industry demands for Marketability and stuff. so just do whatever u wanna for personal projects !!

[@pinky_pepper]

sorry for saying this but life hack: the easiest way to make a character look nonhuman but conventionally attractive is to make them a furry. don't shoot me 😭

[@sillyspider]

yeah, i feel like the whole "character has sharp shapes, so therefore must be evil." or "character has round shapes so must be silly and fun" thing just leads to repetitive character designs. media is just not as interesting when all characters have to fall into the same predicable moulds. like obviously shape language does have some uses and benefits, dont get me wrong. but it's just so overused and relied upon that it removes all meaning. there's so many other ways to show a characters personality and even some backstory through design that isn't just shape language.

[@pinky_pepper]

@@sillyspider i agree 100%!! it's really freeing when you look outside convention, esp if its just for fun

[@emackenzie]

@@sillyspider it's useful in simple animation where characters really are mainly just a bunch of shapes thrown together, but in more detailed styles it isn't as imperative. And there are definitely _bad_ uses and interpretations of shape language, like giving bad characters large noses and small eyes compared the "big doe eyes" of the "innocent" character

[@chaoticcow4357]

I think people are kind of misinterpreting what shape language is. Shape language doesn't define your character, your character defines your shape language. Blocky shapes can mean A THOUSAND THINGS, so can sharp shapes, so can round shapes! Jolteon for example is SUPER sharp, but its meant to make it look sporadic and fun, not evil! And i'd also like to argue marketability has nothing to do with strong silhouettes, strong silhouettes are there to help your shape language speak and not be muffled. If i made a character who had the silhouette of a block, but had all these different shapes inside the silhouette then i'm completely muffling and undermining other parts of my shape language! Its no different from building a wall infront of a masterpiece. I'm all for doing what you want because afterall, its art, but to say "actually, none of this matters at all" is only going to encourage people who want to improve to well.. not improve. Sometimes what other people do is the best way to do it, I mean, everyone walks with one foot infront of the other, it'd be a little illogical to not do the same. Its not becoming some part of a herd, its learning from others' mistakes and successes.

[@saturnawa2607]

"One thing I do like about Lucin's old design is that I did a decent job of making a conventionally attractive character that didn't look human" - only thing I disagree on, I'm sorry, but Lucin is literally a human with pointy ears, different skin color and a tail. Other than that, love the vid! Might use some of the tips you mentioned :0

[@pitbullfan1483]

agree, its very human

[@Cinnabun9]

The design is very human

[@any.user.allowed.]

I agree.

[@awesomeeliam7882]

Indeed. One thing that put me off was the ears. I mean, reptiles don't even have visible ears, so why's a reptilian fellow got some? Then again, they could be explained as tiny neck frills, like the ones some lizards have. Still, a good redesign, but quite human.

[@ghoultooth]

Literally just a grey elf

[@unicornslayer9742]

Here's my design feedback: His shoes look difficult to take off or swim in. Shoes aren't really worn when swimming due to the weight they can add when wet. But taking the shoes off whenever they go into the water seems like a hassle that shoes would simply have adapted to. When designing a shoe, my recommendation would be to look at water shoes that actually exist and what features make them good. Specifically, things like grip, how they deal with water, whether you can wear them for a long time, and how they protect the foot. Currently, your shoes have an open toe box, which is typically avoided in workplaces where the risk of something scuffing or falling on your foot is high. That or give him lizard feet.

[@SkylarDanni]

Bagels

[@Phiggi]

ong Bagels

[@YenNguyenhai-rb1ej]

Bagles

[@ungabunga5789]

Baegls

[@Usrr11]

Bagles

[@veebot75]

Butter

[@Finnngrxy]

I feel like since he lives in a region that consists of mostly water that he could wear trinkets that he finds whenever he is adventuring out in his region or in general whenever he is adventuring out in the other animal classes regions. Maybe he can have necklaces or random pieces of jewelry/gems in his pockets or maybe in his hair that makes him more of a person that keeps things that hold value to him, even if to others they are just a piece of gold. Maybe even in the story that you are writing that those trinkets that he keeps to himself can be a small plot, to show his character in different lights/perspectives. I also feel like adding the trinket detail could be a good idea whenever/if you add an angst bit of your story, maybe the trinket that he holds can connect to something that happened in his past, or maybe even someone? Therefore his personality can switch up, he can get defensive whenever someone questions him on something he may be sensitive about.

[@Girl_Delinquent]

Thank you for your really thought out suggestion on the character! I loved reading it. He does get defensive at some point in the story but it’s about a photo, not a trinket. But I think I’ll use your idea instead since I’m not sure how he would even get a photo of the person. It was plot hole I hadn’t worked out yet. But a trinket or object makes more sense 👍. For your collecting idea, I think that would work better for a different character in the story. Lucin is a mess in almost every aspect of his life but ironically can’t stand clutter outside of his work spaces.

[@Finnngrxy]

@@Girl_Delinquent Youre very welcome! I cant wait to see how this story plays out, and thank you for reading my suggestion!

[@tuc-kaankaraayan]

^^^^ Agreeing with this a 100%!

[@Hoverfishlover]

i think im a little based on my take since i like more monsturous designs for humanoid creatures, but i think making him less human would help convey the reptilian side more, things like eyes a little too seperated, a mouth that goes a little too far back or shoulders bigger than usual, subtle things that keep him attractive and "human" but giving him that uncanny feel that tells you he didnt evolve from monkeys like us. or idk maybe its a lore thing (highly likely)

[@DungEnjoyerr]

Interesting🤨

[@chaoticcow4357]

I think the facial features is a bit too far as thats usually what people look at first, HOWEVER, i think his hair could use a change, maybe make it more like the spines of say, an iguana. Or, we could even say maybe they got some feathers in (considering how birds are reptiles) and make the hair out of feathers.

[@yume5441]

​@@chaoticcow4357no. let the lizard man look like a lizard man. crazy eyes and all.

[@arttrashbystoicjewel8769]

Very cool concept and design! Only critique i have is his ears. His ears are pointed and stick out, which remind me more of dark elves rather than a sea creature or reptile. Maybe try to give him some gills? Scales? I just mean make the ears less elf-ish

[@Girl_Delinquent]

Thank you! The ears are kind of a guilty pleasure. Fun and easy to draw. I knew they didn’t make sense but was trying to convince myself it wasn’t that bad and I could keep it. But now that someone else pointed it out, it definitely has to go 🙃

[@galacticpotato607]

@@Girl_Delinquent Oh!! idea!! maybe you could keep the overall ear shape design & give it to the mammal guy if u change the reptile guy's ears? (edit for clarity)

[@elokin300]

⁠@@Girl_Delinquent One thing that I do when I really like a trait but it doesn’t fit a design is that I give it to another character! Sometimes it ends up not fitting into any of the characters but it’s nice when it works out :D

[@elleh8353]

​@@Girl_Delinquent instead of ears, you could turn them into fins sticking out from his cheeks? That kinda keeps the og shapes but makes the design more grounded

[@Leadego]

​@@Girl_Delinquent i actually don't think the ears are a bad design choice? They're a unique shape, and were one of the first interesting details I noticed about the character.

[@chiara_pros1297]

i think he is still designed with human clothes in mind: be bold, he is not human, you should get out of that comfort zone. like the fact that he has hair is kinda weird, he could have like like a mohawk (since he is a punk) made of a membrane, you can even use it as an expressive method and it would let him have a bolder silhouette. Or he could hace some of his garments made from his own old scales, and a more technical suit for swimming: an idea could be to give him a suit under his clothes so when we had to swim he can drop them and stay in the suit.

[@mysryuza]

I like how some shapes can hint what kind of character the… character is like, but I absolutely LOVE designs that subvert expectations. Like a character with smooth shapes being hot tempered and a character having sharp shapes, but is a soft-spoken character. It can imply that the person knows the rules, but choose to do a twist on the idea. I have a Splatoon character who has round shapes, long sleeves (to hide her longer-than-average arms), and long hair, but she’s a short-tempered, sometimes violent, and has a bit of a resting b face while having another OC that also has long hair, soft, round shapes, and long sleeves, but is actually more chill and more positive. I also had a Beyblade OC who is a tomboy, but has no problem with rough-housing while wearing puff-shouldered, cutesy dresses because cutesy stuff makes her happy rather than reflecting what she does. It’s pretty much a more drastic form of “I know she shouldn’t wear this when battling, but screw the rules, what if I did it anyway!” 😂

[@DungEnjoyerr]

Me when I like designs that subvert expectations:

[@dementedpersonality7475]

honestly as a character designer the biggest problem i think your character has is its too generic he looks like he could be in almost anything if i saw him i wouldn't be able to tell him apart from plenty of other characters i think he needs something that distinctly his a visual that's unlike any other character like jinx with the blue hair in the braided excessive way or probably the best example mickey mouse with the three circles for the head but that can be a bit hard with your art style because its very similar to so many other works all im saying is when you see spongebob you know its spongebob when you see spider man you see spiderman your character no offence looks like he could be from anything that to me is the worst thing a design can be unrecognizable sorry if i was a bit harsh but to me its so important to me and so few art channels get that but thats just my take

[@yourtrashtalkingbro9118]

true

[@ferretbutnot2881]

very fair, but please use punctuation :'')

[@dementedpersonality7475]

@@ferretbutnot2881 yeah sorry i suck at that wasn't educated the best

[@everyonesplace1267]

@@dementedpersonality7475try thinking about where you’d pause irl. think about each sentence you’re saying. you know what a sentence is, right? i sure hope so. let’s take the example WITH a comma. “you know what a sentence is, right?” “you know what a sentence is right” implies that it’s all straight speaking, no slight pauses. however, it’s supposed to be read like this: “you know what a sentence is (slight pause like what you would do when there’s a comma) right” since there is a slight pause, which is where a comma would be, we add a comma. “you know what a sentence is, right” there’s also the fact this sentence is a question. it is checking if *you* know a what a sentence is. checking, in this case, is asking. so, instead of putting a period at the end, we put a question mark. a question mark also gives a clue to what the tone is like. questions generally have the speaker end with a higher pitch. we end with… “you know what a sentence is, right?” this is a correctly punctuated sentence. there are two other types of punctuation you’ll commonly use in text: the semicolon and the colon. ; and : the semi colon is used like a colon (:) except you pause. it is often used to add an explanation for something. for say, “i don’t like lobsters; i once went fishing as a child and one bit me.” a colon is used to demonstrate something. i would actually use it right now! such as, _for example: this sentence!_ there are parentheses. they are ( and ). parentheses are used to add an unnecesary thought or example to a sentence (such as right now). in the last sentence, i used parentheses to indicate a time where i might use parentheses. you can read sentences with or without parentheses, however they are nearly almost read with everything. parentheses can function in speech like a comma, or they can have no effect on the way you say the sentence at all. now, there are quotation marks and whatever the other one is. i don’t know what the other one’s called yet. (“ and ‘.) quotation marks, “, are used to _quote_ or paraphrase (taking the general idea of someone’s words and modifying it to how you’d phrase it or how you remember it) what someone said. for example, if a kid named james said “i really, really, really like apples!” the quotation marks function as indicating the text inside them is what the person said. now, these, ‘, function a bit differently. they are used to refer to a term that _wasn’t_ said when you use it. if i said “use the word run.” i would write it as “use the word ‘run.’” they are also used as quotation marks IN quotation marks. for example, “she said ‘i hate jenifer!’” markus recounted. the little -let’s just call them dashes even though that’s not the correct name for them- function as quotation marks. however, since they’re already inside quotation marks, we didn’t use the actual quotation marks. we used the dashes! i’m pretty sure you know what an exclamation mark is used for. it’s used for a sentence meant to be said/read with any strong emotion, such as anger, surprise, or joy. there’s the slashes, /. they take the place of ‘or.’ then there’s the _actual _ dashes, -. used in twos, they function similar to parentheses, however, are not unnecessary. i don’t know much on how to explain them. literature (a fancy way of saying written words) is the best for learning grammar! especially formal writing, they help you a lot with formal grammar. less formal wording can often have less formal or even partially incorrect grammar, so informal writing isn’t the best choice. however, it can help you with using parentheses a lot! (parentheses are often viewed as “less formal.”) also, if you’re writing a paragraph for something formal or for business, such as school or work, you indent the first line! an indent is the spaces i put at the beginnning of this sentence. an indent can also be replaced with a tab on a computer/laptop! that’s basic punctuation. sorry if i bothered you!

[@dementedpersonality7475]

@@everyonesplace1267 wow um, thanks you put more effort into that youtube comment than any of my teachers had in the last twenty three years did, still i am gonna have to practice that, but thanks for the help.

[@euuropium]

another big thing is ethnicity. i have a hawaiian oc, and his original design was NOT hawaiian, it looked more brazilian. so editing small details like eyes or face shapes helps a lot

[@knoniezzimlou2193]

HELLO I'M POLYNESIAN AND THIS WILL. SOU D REALLY WEORD BUT I APPRECIATE PEOPLE WHO MAKE POLYNESIAN OCS 😢😢😢😢TYSMMM

[@euuropium]

aw thanks !!🙏 @@knoniezzimlou2193

[@isabeloliveira5230]

Bro, brazilians don't have a specific ethnicity 😭

[@GustavoGomes-nn5np]

​@@isabeloliveira5230yeah, "he looked brazilian" i can name 10 people who look nothing alike ethnicity wise but still are 100% brazilian lmfaooo

[@emiliesafsaf6429]

I disagree. You cannot actually look like a certain ethnicity unless you're a walking stereotype (which isn't necessarily a bad thing, stereotypes can be used in a humorous way or if it's relevant to the plot). Human's face structure and morphology are very varied due to genetics, mutations and the mother's eating, drinking and consuming behaviour during pregnancy. Ethnicity and physical appearance are not linked.

[@EpicFanCovers023]

I'm definitely sticking this in my art playlist! I'm not that good at character design, and this actually helped me understand character design more! ^-^

[@angelikaking1560]

Just remember, the reason we have rules about shape language or use of color is so we can break them! I’d say actually go even sharper! In my opinion I think the sharp features would 1. Be more reptilian, but also 2. He’d give off that scrappy feral vibe. Maybe even give him some crazy eyes or a pointy tongue I like this design tho! You did a good job and I do like the second color palette much better :]

[@Sawblade-Bleh]

Also If You're Drawing An Animal-Like Character Including The Animal's Main Features, Like Gills or Fins, Can Be Really Good For Worldbuilding.

[@irisblink]

i think this video is very good !! personally, i feel like your oc's ears don't look very aquatic and more elfish, and i think the outfit wouldn't be very good when swimming. i also feel like his satchel could be changed to something else, maybe a backpack like another commenter said or something else. other than that, i think your oc's design is pretty solid and nice to look at. good work !!

[@kinccho]

I think a pop of another color in his design will look really nice! Love the video and will be looking out for the next! 💗

[@soggiest_oreozzz77]

Maybe to the clothing?

[@SirenOfStyxx]

If you wanna add more crocodile to his design maybe try adding a ridge to his tail or making it more flat. Reptiles that swim have flatter, paddle like tails, instead of the typical tail most lizards have. The croc ridges also can be similied into really good shapes. Great video and great redesign!!

[@MystamiSalami]

My solution: Be a writer so your character designs can be as creative as you want and you can break as many rules as you want because you don't have to draw them for comics or animations. Just for sometimes. And sometimes is fun.

[@Juupitrr]

so your solution is be a completely different audience for this video

[@matiisme]

@@Juupitrr fr lol. I wanna write a comic, not a book.

[@Juupitrr]

@@matiisme innit lol tf

[@Skykristal]

no but I agree with this a lot actually. I myself enjoy it exactly this way. I'm not a fan of making my ocs look a super specific way. I find this too themed and I'm not into heavy theming in designs, as I like more realistic oc designs, while I don't have the most realistic world. Drawing them is something I do extremely often, almost daily. and I honestly couldn't care less if they look exactly like their world building.

[@BlackSheepBagel]

I love your art and I love your channel, so please take this with a grain of salt, but I feel like he looks a bit worse now. Firstly, the skin color contrast is pretty majorly off. It instantly draws attention to his chest and neck instead of his face or clothing and It’s too light on the underbelly compared to everything else in the design. It ends up heavily clashing with the design in the bad way. As for the outfit, I feel like it’d still be very impractical for swimming! There are lots of little bits and bobs like the cropped shirt and the gloves and the little sash/belt(?) thing with the pack around his waist that look like they would get soaked in the water. Things like that would also likely be an inconvenience for going quickly in water because of adding drag. Plus there’s the added fact of multi-layer clothing taking longer to dry, how the cropped shirt could potentially fly off if he swam too fast, and how the pants would still be cumbersome because of their size and shape. The outfit doesn’t give off “swimwear” vibes as a whole. What I’m trying to say here is: 1: the skin tone contrast is drawing attention to the wrong things in the design 2: your character to me looks like he’s wearing someone else’s outfit instead of something he picked out himself. It doesn’t look like it would suit his overall complexion- (which can be a problem if he’s supposed to be a confident pretty boy)- or his needs. Keep in mind though: this is just my opinion as a fellow character designer, and if you think the design works for your purposes, then you should go for it! That’s all, I hope you have a nice day

[@Girl_Delinquent]

Thank you for the criticism! I definitely feel like I can get something better with his clothing. Your comment made me realize Lucin is actually really hard to design for. He’s a mechanic too and it’s hard to combine that with the swimmer element. The outfit he’s in now is his work attire. He wouldn’t wear that normally, maybe that’s why it feels like someone else’s clothes? I’m not aiming for swim wear vibes though. Personally, I like the contrast of his skin but there are still a lot of improvements to be made. Again, I appreciate the criticism and I’ll take it into account 👍

[@marcog.verbruggen674]

@@Girl_Delinquent This turned into a longer comment than I thought. So first off, first time seeing your stuff - great video, like your style, and cool design! I think you can definitely still further refine it, but also definitely agree with your assessment that you've made good improvements :) Will definitely check out more of your work now that've run across this, and would very much like to see your design process for this guy's love interest (whether you redesign him or not. If you don't plan to, and you already go over that design on some other video, ignore me, I'll find it soon enough lol) i find that when you have that kind of contrasting elements (in this case, the utilitarian ideals of a mechanic's work clothes versus the sleekness and watertightness of swimwear) you end up having two options: iterate over and over and over to find the right compromise, or simply sacrifice one in favour of the other. not EVERY aspect of a character needs to be communicated in design - a good character should be too deep for that to happen anyway - and if a character gets to have multiple canonical designs (as you mentioned, the ones in the video are his *work clothes* so they should first and foremost communicate what his work is and how he goes about it/perceives it in relation to his life at large, other outfits can communicate other aspects of him more or less) I've not actually encountered your channel before so I'm going just off the little you mentioned in this video, but it *sounds* like he's working in a terrestrial, but generally humid, environment with close proximity to, and occasional encounters with, large bodies of water. With that in mind, I think his outfit is mostly fine. He looks like a mechanic, he looks like he's prepared to get dirty and messy, he generally looks like he could step in a deep puddle of mud and keep working fine. The only thing I think classifies as a genuine mistake or error of this design, is that he should NOT have uncovered toes. If he's likely to step in big pools of water, he needs waterproof footwear, and more importantly, as a mechanic, construction worker, metalworker, tinker, enginner - basically anythign along those lines - YOU. WEAR. SOLID. BOOTS. Or risk losing your feet. That's real life advice folk - watch them toes Now, here's my suggestion for a possible improvement: give him a pair of big waterproof overalls and boots, like the kind you'd see on dock workers, modern day fishermen, people working in sewage infrastructure, and the like, with something sleek and swim ready underneath. Covers the utilitarian needs of a mechanic's clothes, keeps the general shape and style of his current outfit, and is practical in case he needs to jump in waist-deep water for some repairs along a riverbank or something. if he needs to fully swim, he's got the more swimwear-like layer underneath, and if he needs to outright dive that would be an extreme enough situation that he'd need to change into a proper set of diving gear rather than just be ready to do it at any given time in his standard work clothes. You can style the outer overalls to suit the vibe of the current outfit while making it seem more appropriate for work near volumes of water, and you can maybe even use the skin layer for some extra styling to show the non-work focused aspects of his character a bit - if the overalls cover most of his chest, maybe he'd risk wearing a top that he actually likes and would wear out of work without being afraid it'll get completely filthy. that said, i think the real winner here would be for you to get *really* out there with this stuff. As others have said, I disagree with your assessment that you've successfully made him look more inhuman. You absolutely succeeded in giving him a more defined vibe - the pectoral discoloration in particular does a great job of communicating "aquatic" , and the pattern you used for the borders between the colours communicates reptilian scales quite well I think - but he still looks mostly like a funky human imo. I get that it's a romance so him being cute is important (and approved! :3) but you could keep the cutie's face lookin the same while still using his body to both solve some of the clothing issues AND highlight the "inhumanness". I mean, think about it - if his species is supposed to be naturally predisposed and adapted to a semiaquatic life, why would he need waterproof clothing? Humans need it cause water makes us soggy and we dont do well with that kinda thing, but he's supposed to live in it! and what's an oil smear or two gonna do to a reptile's skin? it's not like the scaled are gonna stain, and reptilian scales dont have any gaps in between like fish do, it's one solid continuous layer, like a scalie bodysuit around their whole bodies from hair to toe. The only thing his work clothes need to protect him from is any potential actual harm to his body. No need to have his outfit show that he does well in water if his *body* does that! Which it should since that's apparently a major part of his species' native habitat that they would be adapted to. Other things you could do for the "inhumanness" without sacrificing his cuteness too much (obviously these are all suggestions in theory, so dunno how much of this would actually look good/right for your work) 1. Make his nose more reptile like. Not quite Voldemort levels, but maybe the general shape of a human nose but with more slit-like nostrils, sounds like a good compromise 2. Sharper eyes. Specifically, make them narrower, and highlight the slit pupils more. This seems like it would go with his general personality as well, from what you described. I know you were concerned with your shape language giving him too many "antagonist traits" but honestly, I think you've picked that up from a bit of bad advice that I also have fallen for - sharp edges and triangles don't necessarily communicate "bad guy", just aggression, or abrasiveness, or distrust... it depends a lot on the exact shape and position. very acute angles imply more danger, more aggression, more threat, because of their resemblance to piercing implements (teeth, daggers, spikes, etc) where as more obtuse angles are more about tension and "edge" since they look almost like a normal line or curve, but distinctly are not, and instead have a noticeable sharpness to them. And either of these types of triangles can be used very effectively on all kinds of characters in all kinds of roles. 3. Ears need work. Reptiles dont have "ears" at all, and often have instead a little flap over their earholes that they can use to seal them when underwater (this is exactly what crocodilians have, which seems to be your main inspiration for his current look). If you really want him to have ears (which is fair, I'm not sure how he'd look with a mostly humanish face and missing a pair of ears...) I suggest making them look even more like some kind of webbed appendage - highlight one or two bones or pieces of cartilage at the edges of the ear's shape, with the skin between being pulled taught. Make them go flat over the sides of his skull when he gets in the water like those crocodilian ear skin flaps, or make them flap about once in a while to make it seem like he uses them for cooling his body or something. Ooh! Roll that into a cute romance scene! He's getting flustered over something, and instead of sweating like a human might, his ears start manically and adorably flapping back and forth! 4. Speaking of crocodilians, and back on the topic of eyes, a secondary membrane. This wouldn't necessarily be something you should (or possibly can, really) make apparent at a glance, but make sure to include it here and there in your comic when appropriate. Crocodilians and other aquatic reptiles have a second set of transparent eyelids which they close to see underwater without irritating their eyes. Having a relevant scene where you highlight the feature would do wonders to make him more inhuman and take advantage of your unique setting in a way that I don't see very often, without losing ANY of his vibes and attractiveness of his core design. That second pair of eyelids would just live rent free in your fans' heads every time they think about his cute little face, even though they can't see them usually lol. 5. Hair. Reptiles with hair... I mean, I get it, hair is kind of an important thing for us humans, and his IS very cute, so this is probably the most "who knows, might work" of my suggestions. But see if there's a different way to achieve what you're looking for. Maybe some very long and thin spikes? like, imagine the little spiky crests that some reptiles have, and picture a more hair-like version of that? or perhaps a more hair-like version of the neck frills and folds of some other lizards? Not sure, would probably take a lot of research and trial and error to figure out something that works. 6. The scales you gave him look great, so go even harder! Give his face a nice little pattern of scales - maybe around his eyes, along his brow, nose, cheekbones? any combination thereof? obviously this raises the detail on his face whish can be a problem if you're doing a comic, but i'm pretty confident you could come up with something simple but striking. You have a good start with the discolored jaws and darker cheeks but i think you might be able to take it further and make look really really neat without making the detail TOO unbearable Now obviously it's up to you how far you wanna go in the inhuman scale and if you actually like the look you get from implementing any of this, but these are my thoughts based on the goals and lore/backstory/description you mentioned in the video. Hope it's helpful!

[@dokchampa9324]

Imma be honest, the design doesn't say "chaotic" to me at all. He looks like a builder guy, a construction worker, not a rebel and definitely not a punk nor a troublemaker

[@trees.grow.on.pineapples8969]

i can say time is such a major role in my character designs, i’ve never sat down to do concept art yet but built characters as i drew them not limiting myself to just one design, this has helped character design and world building with backstories, e.g. my main romance the ml i drew him once with his hair short and just thought this is it and a year later its weaved into his character. I created some of my characters 2 or 3 years ago and only recently felt comfortable with designs and story, time is such a key factor for me in character design

[@kidklein6897]

Something I do just for fun, but has ended up helping me a lot. Is drawing them in different styles, because it makes you simplify the character and only take the main parts of it.

[@wrenworthy4935]

Thank you so much for making this video, I was having some struggles with a character I made back in middle school and was keeping too much of her old physical traits, despite the changes that have happened with her character. The idea of letting go of the nostalgia of the design helped me realize what was bugging me about her old design.

[@gummywasp7174]

I really like the new design! Short and simple; so, I was thinking: 1. Those dangling things in his ears, I think maybe change the color of the tip. Maybe the same color as his underbelly, so it doesn't blend into his skin as much (Unless it's suppose to e like that). 2. Maybe add the spikes on his tail bigger (larger near the tip) making his tail look like a croc's tail, so he can swim using his tail as well and his legs and arms. 3. Maybe add a little orange to his outfit to contrast the blue. Doesn't have to be a lot. Overall, I really like your design! I completely understand the trails and errors of making a new design for your OCs. My OC looked to basic forever, and then 11 years later, he's looking fine~

[@zigzagzagoon]

i think youve done a wonderful job here, and as someone who does a lot of character design i think your tips are really good and easy to understand! its important to make changes you feel are best even if theyre different from how you initially pictured. its all part of the journey! you really nailed this design and its much more solid than the original, even if you had to change things you were already comfortable with. especially since hes a main character, good on you! those are the hardest designs to alter, for me at least

[@thepredman9lol266]

This video was so incredibly helpful thank you! I'm at an intermediate stage where I've been drawing for a few years now and I've already got the characters down but i need to work on a few of my character designs. All the other videos are either for beginners or experts but this was very down to earth and relatable, like how you said you have nostalgia for your old designs. Same! What you said about sacrifice and taking your time was exactly what i needed to hear. Thank you

[@carbo-hydrates]

I definitely enjoy this character a lot I suggest maybe lowering the eyes a little as it looks a little off anatomy wise aswell I think a good idea would to study reptiles a bit more and maybe give him snake or crocodile like eyes which would be really cool overall so far I love the design mostly

[@elokin300]

One thing that u should know is that shape language can apply to the overall hairstyle and even though you put sharp points and curves in the hair, it has an overall square shape. Same with the jaw, yes it does have a point, but his face shape is square. Same with his pants. Those can affect the overall shape language, despite the details being very circular or triangular

[@Brightly-Colored_Goth]

Something that helps me get into the mindset of making more distinguishable silhouettes ( I have a habit of dressing my characters similarly) and make sure I can easily replicate it, is doodling a little chibi version somewhere nearby. I know: silly, but this genuinely helps me figure out what are the noticeable traits that define this character from others, especially when I simplify my style & can only fit in what actually matters.

[@LumaSloth]

*OMG Lucin looks like Lifeweaver!* _I NEED A LUCIN SKIN FOR LIFEWEAVER_

[@Dead_Bunnie]

I know you mentioned how the colors of the body(the main blue color and the white underbelly color) would make the character stand out out more or do better for his design, but i think it would help for the underbelly to just be a little bit bluer(not completely like before though) because right now it looks more like he has white spots than him looking crocodile-human. Ik you went over is already, but i hope this helps😅

[@spicydevilartz]

Character design is so fun, but oh god it’s hard with world building, most of my ocs are for fandoms but the odd ones that come from their own world is hard, I’m in the process of redesigning and working on a group of ocs cor a comic since at least two out of the main 5 don’t really fit

[@username_69807]

Step 0: learn to draw

[@MykaPlayer2]

Yep

[@jaydedepato6995]

Fr fr that's what I was thinking 😭

[@peepysprite]

The lighter belly look is called countershading btw :)

[@Girl_Delinquent]

That’s cool! I did not know there was a more technical term for it 😊

[@rosinka-.-7725]

I have a twist villian, so she has round shapes, but sharp details. 💅

[@Girl_Delinquent]

Little nuances like that in shape language are so cool and clever. I feel like it forces your audience to pay closer attention and analyze more. Also I love female villains 💅

[@kimmshuuchan]

This tip is actually helpful. I also struggle with the character designs of my oc and I try to explore new ways to make their design look better, and how I wanted them to look like, along with their personality. It's good to experiment on your oc's design and how you can improve.

[@cheesyfries239]

i’ve watched so many videos about character design but this one has helped me understand and improve my drawings in a way no others have, thank you!!

[@gabriela_xy]

I'm working in my first indie game and I was STUCK in this particular part. Your video came to me like a blessing. THANK YOUUU

[@reiphas]

This is all great advice, and I agree wholeheartedly, as a fellow dummy who also just recently started grasping character designs. Especially the bit with spending time on your design, and not pushing yourself to do well in one sitting. Just recently I've done new fits for my old OCs, because I came up with their designs (boldly speaking) when I was like 13 and I hated drawing clothes back then, so I just put them in polo shirts and jeans and was like "peak character design". One design I mostly nailed in one sitting, but there are still small things I wish to improve on, I was just overworked at the time, but the second took me like two weeks of imagining, reimagining, deleting, recoloring and so on. It was a nightmare, but in the end I'm glad I spent so long on it, it probably wouldn't look as good as it does. But at the other side of the spectrum there are those designs that you make for fun, on accident, not thinking at all and they turn out perfect. Again, a few days ago I was redesigning an OC of mine that I created when I was just making my first steps in the world of fanfiction and fanbases, and a secondary character at that. I needed a design accurate to the updated fancanon and holy shit, he turned out so good for no reason in doodle stage. And then got even better in coloring stage. I am so proud of how much I've grown, no kidding.

[@phenioxflameanimations2380]

I love Lucin (sorry if I spelled it wrong). I do have at least one suggestion for his design. You could add a mark that shows his element that caters to his species. I don't know, I just sounds cool.

[@Girl_Delinquent]

That’s how you spell it! Do you mean like a mark that represents his race’s empire or something else?

[@phenioxflameanimations2380]

@@Girl_Delinquent yup.👍

[@caki4695]

Coming up with a bs design helps because then all you had to do is add, subtract, and change while you have some bits you enjoy and don't want to alter at all. I've never consciously done that I don't think but my favorite designs tend to be the result of doing this

[@blossomanimegirl]

I don’t know if you did it behind the scenes in the video but at 03.43, you say explore different concepts but you show the same outfit just variations of details that does little to explore the outfit itself. You’ve managed to get across that he’s a mechanic but lost his aquatic nature, those pants for example fit into a mechanic aesthetic but they’re definitely not for swimming. What if he had some trinkets from the ocean, maybe? People comment his ears looking elf like but I think he’s really just missing other features that come across like an ocean creature, maybe add gills or those webs between hands. His reptilian features should also be more obvious, maybe slit eyes and more sharp edges on his eyes would come across more playful and sly than round eyelids. I definitely think there’s room for improvement but you definitely did a good job starting his character design!

[@peachiheartz]

I honestly love love love the new design!!! At first all the colors threw me off, like how there were so many different yellows and blues and purples when u look closely. Now I think it adds to that sort of "chaos" as a character and I find it very endearing:)

[@coffee-ouji]

this is pretty helpful video! it inspires me to get to drawing my own ocs lol. I always knew these "rules" but never how to properly approach them, so these tips help a lot :3

[@BuckBlaziken]

Sometimes breaking the mold is a good idea. Have someone with sharp angles be the protagonist. A good example of this is Final Fantasy 7. Cloud Strife has a lot of sharp angles but he’s the protagonist. Sephiroth has a bunch of smooth curves and he’s the most messed up villain in video games. The secret to this is that the artists balanced out these angles and curves with the clothing. The folds of Cloud’s sweater give him a friendlier appearance than the tight and menacing trenchcoat that Sephiroth has. Another thing that balance out their angles is their poses. Cloud has a heroic pose with a wide leg stance in most of his official art. He seems strong and able to hold his ground. Sephiroth on the other hand looks menacing and looms with a wide or asymmetrical upper body stance. It conveys he’s an ever present threat that’s always scheming something. Cloud’s sword is behind his back, while Sephiroth’s sword is always front or to the side appearing if it’s always ready to be used. Character design isn’t solid and linear, it’s meant to be experimented with. It’s a huge balancing act. With the knowledge that character design is a balancing act, hopefully people don’t feel pressured to make characters fit solely into one stereotypical look or concept.

[@noctarin1516]

Did youtube read my mind??? Right when I got an OC idea this video popped into my recommendations

[@shramp8513]

I love the final design!!!! It's so much more coherent and your advice is very helpful :D I too am struggling to let go of design aspects i came up with as a kid

[@lisaderooij5423]

i barely ever comment on videos but i just wanted to come in here and say that this video significantly cleared up some things about the rules for good character design like shape language and silhoutte. i feel like i understand it alot better now so thanks for that :3 hope you make more videos like this so i can learn, enjoy, and get to see these characters all at the same time !!

[@void6292]

I struggle with design so much! Most of the times, I can make a decent, readable character that works just the way I want it after making just a few iterations and a bit of tweaking. But if the idea I have is either too vague or too precise it'll take me 3-8 pages in my sketchbook and 10 layers in Photoshop completely filled with sketches to get to what I want the character to look like - and still I'll likely doubt that it's ready to be the final design. Quite possibly it's because I can't get rid of the features that "stick" - once I really like something I just can't bring myself to get rid of it right away, changing pretty much anything but it, even if I don't feel like it'll contribute to the character's readability

[@__irina___]

Even without knowing the character's story, you can tell by his design that this guy is not to be trifled with. The only thing is that it will probably be more difficult to tie the reader(?) to such a protagonist, but I definitely like his design. It's really nice to see one that doesn't contradict the character's occupation😭

[@viro_the_sheep]

Really great! My only ideas is that he could have gills or special merman ears?

[@king-davidhughton6058]

I needed to hear alot of these, especially the part about letting go of nostalgic elements of the design. Great video 👍👍👍👍

[@maybe0rdinary]

Hey, what’s the deal with KZbin only showing the worst comments??? I love your dissertation in his design, your attention to detail and openness to change is something that stumps a lot of folks making a believable design, lord knows I do NOW. Lucien is very much a pretty boy, and I’m personally quite glad you kept his long hair because it suits him ALARMINGLY well, and the patches of lighter color really gave him some pop!!!

[@Girl_Delinquent]

Thank you! His design has changed since this video and I’ll really reveal it soon in the next one but thank you for being kind about it

[@serenityartofficial]

Great video. This is just me but since Lucen (if I'm spelling that right), is reptilian, wouldn't it make more sense for his "hair" to be more scaly to emphasize his reptilian features more? I was kinda thinking of Cecilia from Monster's Inc. and how she has a Medusa-like hair with the snakes and them being somewhat scaly. Also, as some people pointed out, the ears do look elf-like rather than reptilian/aquatic.

[@coyoteclockworkstudios3140]

Great video! Changing the skin and belly color really helped him read reptilian. I love me some archosaurs, so feel free to look into dinosaurs. They are endotherms, not cold-blooded like reptiles. Could give him some spikes or feathers or stripes, or introduce some dinosaur elements into their larger society. Also maybe some very small, simple scales on his forearms? Mike Mignola is very good at drawing like, three hairs and making everything look hairy. So an idea for "reptile people", they can have like three scales and look scaly.

[@Gold_Pup]

I’m incredibly surprised to see just how underrated you are. I watched this entire video, and then I looked at your subscriber count expecting to see a larger number, but you only have 3.4k??? Insanity I found your video to be pretty interesting! Keep up the good work!

[@hihyunjin556]

Maybe give him hair accessories? A pretty boy would care about his appearance and since you said hair means a lot to him, I think hair designs would fit his character! In my mind, I'm thinking about "hair accessories for braids" because I feel like he'll be adventurous with his hair~~ :)

[@x-mighty7602]

There's nothing I hate more when I'm writing a story than designing a character when I introduce them. I just wanna move on with the writing but having to describe the appearance of the character is annoying. Thank you for this video.

[@emackenzie]

Don't describe their entire appearance in their introduction or your readers will be just as annoyed. Pick out the things that would be immediately noticed when someone first looks at them, then slowly introduce other features later

[@tavrosnitram1529]

@@emackenzie yes yes yes yes, this is my favorite thing when reading and new characters are introduced. its such a chore when the entire character is described in one go, its not natural and clunks up the story. describing a character in a way that anyone else would naturally see someone for the first time is so much better

[@x-mighty7602]

@@emackenzie Thanks

[@xdani_thethinkingneko]

Wow this is so informative. Thank you SO much. 💗 This broke it down for me better than anyone ever has.

[@smelly4498]

i definitely think you're moving in the right direction but there are a couple things i have some notes on. i think the contrast of his color palette is a little off. the saturation and value of the hair and skin is pretty similar especially when zoomed out and it makes the shapes a little hard to read. there's also a lot of mid to dark tones without any saturated or lighter mid tones to balance. it depends on what style/type of media this character is for but i would also recommend a third accent color for his design somewhere. deep cool greys, the pop of yellow and cream, and maybe a more saturated rusty red or bronze color to harken back to his steampunk-y engineer aspects. as other people have mentioned, his clothes don't lend themselves super well to the idea of his city. the baggy pants would cause a lot of difficulty swimming and would take a while to dry. especially if he's more reptilian than human it could also be potentially dangerous to be wet for so long, as he may have trouble maintaining his body temperature (if that's not the direction you wanted to go with it i totally understand but i figured i'd bring it up anyway) if you're really attached to his design and the idea of an aquatic city for him you could make it so he engineered his own secret way into the city, like a secret lever in a pile of junk or something. it would show off his tinker-y side and could also highlight how important his own vanity is; he'd rather make his own way in than change his clothes to something more practical. it would also differentiate his clothing and design from the rest of his people which would help him stand out while also showing his rebellious side. i would also say he doesn't really appear reptilian at first glance. if you wanted to go more animalistic rather than humanoid you could do some studies of reptiles and find patterns and colors that look cool, it would add more shape language to the background characters too. keep in mind that at the end of the day they're your characters and story and unless you're trying to pursue a professional art career you don't have to worry too much about pleasing others with your art. drawing should be fun and if trying to make everything perfect or complicated makes the process not fun then you shouldn't do it. not to say criticism isn't important or anything, just that a lot of people get burned out trying to perfect one story or artwork instead of having fun and improving by trying new things. neither approach is better or worse than the other, but if you find yourself feeling stuck don't be afraid to stick a pin in it and branch out. sometimes it's just what we need to get that inspiration for a story back :)

[@DoctorNumber10]

Personally I think it just needs some contrast. Since all the colors are muted cool or cool adjacent nothing really sticks out or is striking. I wonder if changing the hair to blonde/yellow or adding some reds somewhere would help.

[@pixxeldust]

I love the new colours for the skin and underbelly, I think they contrast well and look really good! I think I’m pretty lucky with character design in that I tend to have a very solid, thought out idea from the very start so usually the only iterations I need to do are for hair and clothes. I have no idea how you find the motivation to spend so much time on every detail lol but I really admire it

[@floof6105]

Me that still uses my first OC's that I made in elementary school as my mains, they changed a lot, some physically, mentally or both, but I think people should not feel forced to change their oc looks, if you want to do it go for it owo,this video is really helpful! I love how he turned out!

[@Baghead-gr3mx]

I don’t know what going on here but thanks for the advice.

[@Girl_Delinquent]

You’re welcome, but can explain what was confusing about it so I can consider it for future videos?

[@Baghead-gr3mx]

@@Girl_Delinquent well, I didn’t watch the full video, so…….. I’ll finish it later.

[@LittleShyKoi]

This is so inspiring. I think your video poped up at the perfect timing for me. Thank you for your work!! Good luck in you further artist journey

[@friend_of_the_birds8455]

This video was super entertaining to watch

[@sleepy.timaeus.arts.]

the random film cooper sound “yeah everyone WANTS to make out with me, i just dont WANT to be alive” took me out 😭 i had to pause

[@ArtAngelMouse]

Idk I think it looks fine. "Its a reptile" Oh....with hair and stuff? Aquatic reptile? Its definitely no iguana. Hmm...okay yeah. I see what you mean. Not an elf or orc or something hmm... Well, I think the design is a nice cute orc design. He seems crafty, a bit of a worker. Reptiles can be really vibrant. Current color scheme keeps him feeling camouflaged. He just doesn't feel like a reptile yet. Don't really feel like he swims either other than his ears kinda has a fin look to it. He looks like someone that goes exploring in a jungle or maybe in the army and he's gotten into rough things.

[@UrodaOdile]

i love this video ive been watching it non stop while redesigning my own character! its so helpful! hope you upload more vids like this! merry christmas btw!

[@nyandoge987]

sorta kinda not related but i absolutely LOVE the world building behind your ocs its so cool!

[@07Emil]

Nice video!! I really loved your idea about letting gp of some design choices that just don't match .. I have a lizard guy oc (but more humanoid, just a tail and some scales on his face) who I really loved, but I put him in a new universe, and even after bending the universe to fit his existence, it just doesn't feel right. I think I'd be better I'd he just became a regular guy, and even though it's hard to let go of that it's important xd I also really love your new design for your oc (my dementia kicked and I forgot the name 💀💀 sorry), can't wait for the next iteration!

[@yukiara1350]

He gives off shark vibes

[@sierranicholes6712]

when it comes to trying out different little variations and looking for references, i like to make characters in picrews or character creators since it's a more restrictive environment in some ways but also has things that you might not otherwise think of, so it allows for some fresh creative ideas !! literally something as simple as "oh idk why i didnt think to give this character freckles but it makes them feel way more complete"

[@SLStrawberry]

I think you could check out some game character designs for the clothes. There are quite many under water ones that could make it look even more suitable for water. Also I think he would have some waterproof boxes/poutched instead of pockets. Also just a side note, I have swimmed clothes on and I noticed that anything saggy will get heavy underwater so best avoid that kind of design.

[@mirrodox9529]

Okay, why wasn't this recommended to me sooner?! These are some goodass advice that boggled my brain a bit while hearing the tips (and call outs of designing in one sitting...), mentally analyzing how tf my characters fit in those design criteria and having flashbacks of their old concept art. This is a great vid, tho I've already known those tips, but never really applied it intently than I should've. Boy *cracks knuckles* Time to redesign yet again (actually taking my time fr). Thanks for making this vid! Its really helpful! 8:D

[@Andreeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa]

I absoulutely love the new ending design! It's more detailed, you can tell it's actually a kind of reptile! And I love your artstyle!

[@starlighttheorist2683]

I really don't think the greyer tones were bad character design, adding the yellow underbelly even though you didn't want to wasn't needed per se, you really could have kept it the way it was.

[@RigelBB97]

Or they could’ve made it instead of yellow make it more of a desaturated blue

[@Recyclemeplease_]

For feedback on your oc’s design: Things you’ve mentioned is how his hair is a very important part of him, and how him as a character would never want to cut it. Another thing you mention is how his species swims in the water a lot, keeping that in mind I would say that maybe you could have his hair up in a ponytail or man bun, because usually when you’re swimming and you have long hair, it kinda gets in the way a lot. This is also a good thing to keep in mind if your character is a sort of engineer or mechanic, as if you have longer hair it’s best to put it up so that it’s not in the way. Overall I think your character is super cool :]

[@pastelisacolor]

I loved this video! The layout, the editing style, the art- was very fun to watch while drawing :]

[@velvaetalt]

your ideas about silhouette actually help me so much. i’ve always heard “you need a recognizable/strong silhouette” but i’d never been told what that actually means. keeping things from bleeding into each other is infinitely more helpful.

[@IocteNocte]

he looks much better. good job!

[@alexandramilos392]

While generally for moust characters following the "rulebook" of how to design them is ok, aperances can be deciveing and I love characters that look edgy/evil/bad/like a villain but turn out to be the sweetest best ever beacose of the fact that it breaks stereotypes and it can be a nice plottwist, and again it shows that aperances can be deciveing. I find it wired to say that "it's bad character design" beacose it doesn't follow a classic stereotype, if anything the best moust interesting best designs I've seen out there are the ones that break the monotone classic idea of whatever they are trying to achieve. Like that purple Minotaur from Fosters Home for Imaginary Friends (I foregot his name). They aren't bad design, they are a nice breath of fresh air. Yes good design could make you understand the character just by looking at it, but good design can also decive you into thinking a character is something they are not, it just depends on the context and character, their personality and the point of their design or role in the story. It's just that those type of character designs are more niche, but that just makes them more loveable beacose they are more rare to find. Also we could say that the "classic made by the book" character designs are bad too beacose they literally are stereotypical and overused and boring, the argument that it's bad character design can be used for both types of character design witch to me makes it not a good argument in any situation. Both types are good, "by the book" or "looks decive" both serve their roles well. If you don't like one or you prefer the other it doesn't make it bad automatically, that's just an opinion but not the absolute truth and shouldn't be taken or sold out as such.

[@thebreathinglad309]

This video, and your character specifically reminded me of one of my OCs, YM. He's an undead Dragon with a darker colour palate. The video helped my think of how I will change his design over time. Starting with sharper edges, a cloak to hide his skeletal appearance and a the primary colours of his body being a dark, very dull almost grey blue and dull, dark yellows. And over time showing more bone with his clothes, smoothing out the edges a little, and having a more vibrant blue with a shiny gold as the primary colours to show how he's slowly coming to accept himself for who he is and that he's being more open to others coming into his life (or unlife?) I think I'll also have him go from empty eyeholes that don't change to having some small wisps in there and having the sockets show different expressions. If anybody has any thoughts on how else I could improve the design then let me know.

[@Girl_Delinquent]

@@thebreathinglad309 I love this characters design so much, or at the very least how you describe it. I do have a suggestion based on a book I read. It was a monster romance in which the monster had wisps like you describe but they changed color based on emotion. Green = envy, yellow = happy, etc. I don’t advise trying to find the book as it was very explicit but maybe you could put your own twist on this idea. Anyway, cool concepts all around, love how the design changes with his character growth 💀🐉 Edit: you could have the empty sockets for when he’s sleeping, that’d be cool. Also from the book, I think

[@sarahallred]

Finally! A tutorial for intermediate artists! It's so frustrating that all art advice is either "draw a circle" or it's "draw the rest of the owl." These are fantastic tips, thanks for sharing!

[@Joy-zz8wz]

Sharp angles for a protagonist is good actually. I didnt watch the video but the thumbnail left me with an opinion. Have a good day!

[@pastelplacesblocks]

whenever i think of like water or whatever i think of fish (duh) and how their body is made to reduce drag in the water. like swimmers put a cap on their hair for that reason. when i see those pants i go mmm slow swimmer. idk how youd exactly make them look not so heavy, but thats just what i thought. (:

[@DefeatedMelon]

My story is post apocalyptic too but growable food like fruits and vegetables took their place instead :) cus during the nuclear winter and war, somehow genetics mixed and matched between humans and these foods alot. Happened most with farmers.

[@Girl_Delinquent]

That’s cool! Maybe I’m misreading it but is it sentient fruit and vegetable people or was the world just overgrown and taken over by fruits and vegetables almost like the Last of Us with fungi? Either way, I think it’s interesting. Thinking about the earth without humans usually is

[@DefeatedMelon]

@@Girl_Delinquent fungi remain that same way, only a little of them became human but most remain like they used to. They don't appear in the story of my protagonists though. This also does have an impact on the story, like carrots although having night vision are also very sensitive to light. Beetroots tend to be very bitter, potatoes are very energetic, etc. Corn people tend to be farmers, but they are oftem killed off because they can create pop corn husks that can fly and gangs use them against other gangs. They are called palomas (doves in spanish)

[@DefeatedMelon]

@@Girl_Delinquent Also, flytraps were also impacted but they turned to 2 legged horses with wings.

[@Girl_Delinquent]

@@DefeatedMelon I can’t exactly pinpoint what this reminds me of but I like it 👍 Sounds like a really unique world/setting. I just wish there was concept art. Out of everything described, a two legged horse is somehow the most hard for me to imagine 🙃

[@DefeatedMelon]

@@Girl_Delinquent Can't blame ya 👍💯

[@crystlannwhitsett360]

So I just got done watching some jojo's b. Adventure and couldn't stop laughing, came to KZbin and the music and voice clips broke my face. Can't wait for the next character redesign. And funnies

[@Ticidioz]

This helped so much thank you 😭

[@a._.randomeperson]

I know you get this a lot, but this helps a lot, I tend to get overwhelmed and just throw whatever at the charters and hopes it sticks, but this helps me break things down and figured out what I need and don’t need for my characters

[@bunny8372]

One rule i found on the internet, in a video of character design its: reserch and know how it works the thing you wanna design. Taking this video for example: if you doing a water/fish inspired character, know how the anatomy adapts to water and implement that in the design. My case, as another example: i was designing a character that has a straitjacket mixed up with religious robes but i couldn't make it work, soo i ended up looking how a straitjacket work and what i needed to keep in mind while designed one. And another thing: ask for feedback. Sometimes we think one concept it's better because we spend so time focused in one design or characteristic that we might pass details or didn't appreciate enough other concepts that work better.

[@sharpieton]

i like how you did the scales

[@mentallyillfroggie_uwu]

He reminds me of Baron Draxum from ROTTMNT Asides from that, you are my god now. In your moment of greatest need I will be there. I can never thank you enough for making this video. This is not an exaggeration.

[@mentallyillfroggie_uwu]

Also also, I think you really fixed the stuffs in his design, and he looks more interesting and appealing to readers. I like how you put in factors of backstory and all that into his design, because as you said, before he didn’t really look reptilian.

[@lexfiles721]

Thanks for the tips! I've been wanting to make a web comic for a while now, but there are some characters I've been STRUGGLING to make designs for ;-;

[@Doctormakiart]

First:your doing very good job My problem is my story is in real word and don't have fantasy so make design that be on memory and make sense is hard but i relly love work on it

[@Girl_Delinquent]

You could try thinking about what the character personally likes to wear and what they can afford to wear. That’s what I think about with my modern stories. Plus age and personality. Have you tried Pinterest?

[@Doctormakiart]

@Girl_Delinquent yes I try but omg I never think about it like that big thanks.your art amazing btw❤️❤️❤️

[@Girl_Delinquent]

@@Doctormakiart thank you ❤️ good luck on your design process