Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Montre)

For posting new and revamped pet colours on Subeta.
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Officer 1BDI
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Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Montre)

Post by Officer 1BDI »

We got spoiled today with 5 Steamworks pets:

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Image (gorgeous large art here)
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I think my favorite of the group is the Pherret. It looks so inquisitive!
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Re: Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Mon

Post by Sunwolf »

My favorites are the Feli (such detail on the feet!) and Montre (love the wings!). The Pherret has a fantastic pose, but I'm not fond of the fact that it appears to be falling apart.
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Re: Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Mon

Post by thelonetiel »

I dislike the joints of the front flippers on the Chelon. They look awkward to me. It looks awesome otherwise, bold and seaturtley, with Blastoise like shell protrusions, and a crystal core. But I can't get over the flippers.

I really like the Pherret. Enough that I'd consider getting one if I start spending more time on the site again. I love the sleekness (though I wish there was a touch more definition between the head and body). I also like the wires, mostly because they do a great job of taking up the white space, which I think would otherwise be really bothersome.

The Chai is pretty standard, very nice art, good pose.

The Montre and Feli I'm not feeling, I think the head feels too big on the Feli (and the pose doesn't help that impression) and the Montre looks so sad, like it is cowering.

I agree, very spoiled to get so many pets at once though, and nice ones at that!
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Re: Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Mon

Post by Ierosbats »

Steamwork has quickly become my least favorite redraw colour, but this is actually a pretty good batch!

The Chelon is great, although it doesn't look very water-safe. I was expecting something more like a submarine, although maybe they're saving that concept for the Tutani or Torrent. I agree with Tiel, my mind instantly went to Blastoise.

I like that the Pherret actually looks like it could be a functional machine, but the metal looks a bit dull, I think. In general, though, it's nicely done, especially the limbs and tail. I like the long, loose wire.

The Feli is cute, though I wish it had been playing with the key, rather than a random bolt. I can't quite figure out what the eyes are supposed to be, though. Lightbulbs? They almost look too organic. I really like its little wings.

The Chai is easily my favorite. The head-cables are very clever. I like that its arms and hands look like popsicles. The body has the shininess I wish the Pherret had. And are the ears sieves? Very cute. I'm surprised to say that if I were ever to get a Steamwork pet, it would probably be this one!
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Re: Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Mon

Post by Rah »

Ierosbats wrote: The Chai is easily my favorite. The head-cables are very clever. I like that its arms and hands look like popsicles. The body has the shininess I wish the Pherret had. And are the ears sieves? Very cute. I'm surprised to say that if I were ever to get a Steamwork pet, it would probably be this one!
The ears are tea strainers! And the antennas are electric kettle plugs and teaspoons. And the lower half of the body is a kettle xD I kind of went as far as I could with tea related jokes for the chai c; (The chai is actually my favourite of my steamwork pets now, I think. I just was happy with the depth/3D feel I gave it)
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Re: Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Mon

Post by Runic »

That Montre is actually really nice, even though someone commented on Subeta that it technically wouldn't be able to fly (something about missing hinges).
BUT, this "issue" could result in a good story, or an explanation as to why maybe this Montre appears to have a saddened expression (even though it's a robot...thing).

I'm loving it more and more, and now I know what to do when i get my 5th Loyalty Box; use the colour totem, cause I'm actually broke right now.
Have the Montre; no funds to paint though. xD

Chai is cute. Love the gear wheel on the chest with the standard necklace charm. =)
Chelon is...huh. It's flippers are odd but I guess it's dragging itself around, cause wouldn't it rust in water?

Feli. DUDE. Completely realistic as a cat despite being a robot...thing. I love seeing the Feli acting like a normal cat would (Glade: cleaning itself; GY: Feral/street cat). I hope all the other, older special colour ones get revamped, I'd LOVE to see more typical cat behavior. It amuses me cause I'm reminded of my nutty cats, especially my high-functioning mentally handicapped one.

The Pherret is perfect, except it's missing some of the shininess. It's very cute, and that face is melting my heart. He looks so sad! Why?
Don't be sad little Pherret. I love you.
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Re: Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Mon

Post by Ierosbats »

Rah wrote:The ears are tea strainers! And the antennas are electric kettle plugs and teaspoons. And the lower half of the body is a kettle xD I kind of went as far as I could with tea related jokes for the chai c; (The chai is actually my favourite of my steamwork pets now, I think. I just was happy with the depth/3D feel I gave it)
Aww, I hadn't even noticed the spoons! And if the strainers hadn't already won me over before, I'd certainly be sold now. It's smart little details like those that really set a pet apart from being a generic robot. Well, that and the fact that all of its parts look like they can actually move how they're supposed to. Like you said, the whole thing has a fully 3D feel.

I already have a pet who makes teas (don't we all) but this charming little guy is seriously making me consider creating a second!
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Re: Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Mon

Post by AngharadTy »

Love the chai--super clever, and the ears are the best. I never realized how much tea strainers could look like ears!

I also love the pherret, except for one part, which is the bottom of the tail. It looks weirdly drippy with cables. However, the rest of the pherret is wonderful. The feet and ears are adorable and the mask has that delicately "fluffy" edge that works beautifully.
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Re: Steamworks Everything! (Chai, Pherret, Chelon, Feli, Mon

Post by Secretary »

Steamworks is such an unfortunate colour- it's near-universally cluttered with colours that make it difficult to discern individual parts, and the pets suffer from being robots where the artists are generally adapted to drawing purely organic creatures.
In fact, that's an issue with nearly all the posted pets- the artists in question have drawn poses for organic creatures, and they don't mesh well with the robotic nature of the steamwork concept.

http://images.subeta.net/pets/chai_steamwork.png
The chai suffers from a lack of understanding of perspective; the foot on the viewer's left is drawn as though it is standing directly beside the other, with the knee jutting up towards the chest. This has the effect of making the entire pet look unbalanced, as well as giving the impression of uneven leg lengths.
Additionally, that foot is drawn and shaded as though it is curved upwards, whereas the foot on the viewer's right appears to be curved downwards. It's a minor flaw, but it is something that should really be addressed and corrected by using perspective to widen the front part of the foot and narrow the the back of the foot, while redrawing those lines to curve downward like those on the right foot.

The chai's claws are presented as short, useless little nubs, and the construction of the forearm/hand does not allow for any real movement. Grasping an object should be impossible for that construction, and the chai should really have been given flexible palms, or at least longer fingers/claws if the key was necessary.
The arm holding the key is also very awkwardly positioned, but it at least shows signs of being connected to the body; the forearm by the chai's side doesn't not appear to be properly attached to the upper arm, instead floating in space and joined to the body by a pair of wires.

http://images.subeta.net/pets/pherret_steamwork.png
The pherret, whose inspiration is apparently a ferret, once again possesses the legs and general anatomy of a dog. Obviously these are fantasy creatures, but it seems rather a shame that those who draw the pherret tend to eschew the short legs and long body that characterise the pherret's namesake, and instead opt for a doglike form.

The pherret, too, suffers from a lack of perspective use/understanding, which results in an awkwardly bent form. The rump needs to be moved down to a level even with that of the head, rather than rearing up above it. The tail also shows no sign of actually being attached to the "spine", rather appearing to drift out from the creature's hind leg.

http://images.subeta.net/pets/chelon_steamwork.png
The chelon is a little unfortunate; its head and fore flippers are very difficult to distinguish from the rest of the body. Once again, a lack of perspective is an issue, with the flipper on the left being jammed up beside the skull as though the artist had run out of room. It appears as though the creature was drawn specifically to fill the entire canvas, and while that's an admirable goal, with a horizontally wide creature such as the chelon needs to be given more space to stretch out rather than forcibly crammed within a square canvas.

The chelon would really benefit from utilising an accent colour, such as the blue on the shell's gem; the issue of the head and flippers blending with the shell would be solved with a lighter colouration on the head and a few touches of that blue, perhaps in the eyes. As it is now, the prevalence of brown and bronze muddies the pet to near incoherency.
Aside from the odd positioning of the fore flippers (which is believable with the joints illustrated), however, the chelon is the most believably robotic creature in this release.

http://images.subeta.net/pets/feli_steamwork.png
The most predominant issue with the feli is the left forepaw; while the front left leg is presented as being made purely of hinge joints, which do not rotate, the left forepaw is twisted to present the underside of the paw to the viewer. This pose is both impossible for something without ball joints, and extremely awkward (as the foot is twisted too far around, presenting what would be a broken wrist in an animal and must be a loose or broken connector in a robot).

The darker metal along the lower half of the feli's face is also confusing; while the line of darker metal is reminiscent of a jaw, the feli's muzzle is already comprised of both upper and lower jaw, so this section doesn't appear to serve any purpose. If it's decorative, then all it manages to do is blur the line between the face and the shoulder, making the two seem like one connected piece.

The ears are floppy and doglike, and fall across the feli's face as though they aren't properly connected. Additionally, the artist seems to have no understanding of feline expressions; a curious cat will perk it's ears straight up, while an annoyed or concerned cat will lay them back. The ears here are very uncatlike, instead seeming to draw from dogs with ears that are too large/heavy to perk properly.

The wings and the body are the same colour, and this makes it very difficult to discern the position of the wing that isn't held out against blank canvas. The overall colouration is muddy and blends the body together, giving the impression that this is a solid, immobile statue rather than an automation. In addition to that, the undulating lines on the feli's rump give the impression that the material it's constructed of is melting.
Last but not least, the curve of the tail is far too sharp for something made of interconnected pieces of metal of equal size and shape.
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