Campaign Inspired Art

[Sepulchrave II]

It’s been a little while since I updated my story hour, so I thought I’d make a thread of art inspired by the game.

I’ve used DALL-E and DreamStudio to generate the images over the past several months, which has been an interesting and sometimes frustrating experience: I must have prompted and tweaked thousands of images. Some (only a few, to be honest) were an immediate “Yes! That’s it!” Most exist as the twentieth, fiftieth or hundredth iteration of an image, as I’ve striven to understand the weird syntactic rules which these programs seem to follow, and coax them into rendering an idea into a picture. It’s also been annoying to navigate the rather restrictive censorship protocols which the AIs seem to be burdened with, although the term succubus is understandably problematic.

The images are presented in more-or-less chronological order as regards the story hour.


1. Nwm Arrives at Kyrtill's Burh

The castle from the southeast with the main keep on the right, the bakehouse and servants' quarters on the left, and the Steeple visible in the background.

2. Despina's Petition

The courtyard of the Ducal Palace in Trempa.

3. Feezuu Assassinates Archbishop Cynric

The temple orangery, Morne.

4. The Trial of Eadric of Deorham

Temple court, Morne.

5. Judgment of the Curia

Temple court, Morne.

 

[Sepulchrave II]

6. Nwm Addresses the Bagaudas

Uediian rebellion gathering at Groba

7. Nwm Routs the Templar Army

Nund Meadows.

8. Mulissu

Air Savant.

9. Hlioth

The Green Witch

10. The Necropolis of Khu

Shûth. Site of the showdown with Feezuu.

11. The Arrival of the Ninth Host at Khu

The cascade invoked by Mulissu

 

[Sepulchrave II]

12. Rimilin

Acolyte of the Skin and outcast Wyrish wizard.

13. Jovol the Grey

Ogre Mage. Wyrish wizard and architect of the Second Injunction

14. Gihaahia and the Articles

An abomination, bound as the Enforcer of the Wyrish Injunction.

15. Titivilus, Nuncio of Dis

Eadric's official tempter.

16. Shomei the Infernal

Her first iteration, before her reembodiment by Nwm.

17. Loquai Hunters

Umbral sidhe; denizens of the demiplane of Afqithan

 

[Sepulchrave II]

18. Irknaan's (later, Ortwine's) Palace

Demiplane of Afqithan.

19. Nhura

A corrupted Lillend.

19. Nothing Becomes

Eadric's first encounter with Soneillon

20. Ainhorr and Heedless

An advanced and heavily armored balor. Chief captain of Prince Graz'zt, with the slaadi sword Heedless.

21. Graz'zt's Army Assails Throile

Prince Graz'zt's attack on the Abyssal domain of Queen Soneillon

22. Soneillon's Entreaty

A battered Soneillon requests help from Eadric

 

[Sepulchrave II]

23. The Web of Motes

Mostin examining possibilities.

24. Mostin's Comfortable Retreat

As situated in the forest of Nizkur.

25. Portrait of Mostin the Metagnostic and Mogus

In Mostin's study.

26. Murmuur's Tower in Afqithan

A devilish planar nexus later acquired by Mostin

27. Eadric and Ainhorr

Confrontation in Irknaan's throne room

28. The Ennui of the Adversary

Hell.

 

[Sepulchrave II]

29. Nwm Meditates

Somewhere on the plateau of Tun Hartha

30. Eadric's Remorse

The library at Kyrtill's Burh

31. Ortwine the Sidhe

Ortwin(e)'s third incarnation

32. Cheshne Observes the Creation

The dark goddess witnesses the beginning of time

33. Teppu and Nehael

In Qinthei, after Nehael's magnification

 

[Sepulchrave II]

34. The Dromond of the Cheshnite Immortals

The ship bearing the immortals arrives in the Thalassine

35. The Temple of Cheshne at Jashat

Raised overnight by epic magic.

36. The Adversary Inspects a Scion of the Yew-ludja

The Temple in Morne.

37. The Academy

Shomei's former abode, southwest of Morne

38. Irel, Who Smites

Celestial prince, an exalted deva.

 

[Baron Opal II]

Delightful!

Any advice on coaxing out images you want? Or is it largely trial and error?

 

[Sepulchrave II]

Any advice on coaxing out images you want? Or is it largely trial and error?

I haven't been able to discern anything approaching a coherent formula, and there's a lot of trial and error. That said, I generally use something along the lines of:

[Scene with descriptors][Period][Actor with descriptors][Action][Subject of action with descriptors][comma][general mood descriptor][comma][mood descriptor][comma][detail level][comma][art style][comma][camera angle]

E.g.:

A yew tree in hazy diffuse light. A titanic angel kneels before a tiny slender maiden in a white peplos and offers his greatsword, dynamic, detailed, digital art

Enitharmon submits to the Eleos.

This is around the 100th rendering, though, and I think it could still be better. Tiny is included as a descriptor to emphasise the size difference, otherwise the contrast in proportion would be far less.

This was using DALL-E; DreamStudio is much more finicky, and seems to carry over shapes from previous renderings into wholly different images, although I've still had some success with it.

 

[Sepulchrave II]

Cheshnite immortals.

39. Idyam

A demilich.

40. Temenun

An Ak'Chazar Rakshasa

41. Guho

The Worm-that-Walks

42. Choach

A lich.

43. Prahar

Death Knight and Ur-Priest.