Robbing from the rich; the Forestmen return!

[ED-209]

A few weeks ago I'd made a tutorial topic about designing torso images in Illustrator, and reproduced the Collectable Minifig forestman as an example. At the time, I'd made a few alternative colours/designs with the intention of posting them in a separate thread rather than in the tutorial. I had a total facepalm moment when I realised only now that I'd forgotten to ever post them!

So anyway, here are the modern-styled forestmen (the first one being a straight-up repro of the official one):

Will Scarlet, is that you?!

I made sure to include black, blue and red variations as these were the colours used in the original line:

http://www.bricklink.com/catalogList.asp?catType=M&catID=288

And here's the link to the tutorial in case anyone's interested in how I made them:

http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=67532

As always, any feedback, suggestions or requests are most welcome!

[K-Nut]

You are awesome. Stunning work! I like the last two the most, since they look just like the classic ones accept in the modern design and detail. I will be using these very soon.

[ED-209]

You are awesome. Stunning work! I like the last two the most, since they look just like the classic ones accept in the modern design and detail. I will be using these very soon.

Cool, thanks! The updated classic is exactly what I was aiming for!

[Piranha]

These are all very nice designs that do pay homage to the classic Forestmen. My favorite would have to be the black and tan designs.

[CMP]

Awesome. Your decals never cease to amaze me. Perhaps you should produce some in a green/dark green/brown/dark brown/black tone, ala Dark Forest.

[The Joker1]

Nice work. I like the blue one.

[ED-209]

Thanks guys!

Awesome. Your decals never cease to amaze me. Perhaps you should produce some in a green/dark green/brown/dark brown/black tone, ala Dark Forest.

Ah, that's a good idea. The Dark Forest was during my dark ages, so I must admit I'd not even thought of that!

Here are some darker themed styles, let me know if there's anything specific you'd like to see!

[CMP]

Those are even better. :thumbup: The last one really emphasizes the studs on the belt, but the fourth one might have to be my favorite. You've nailed what I think the Dark Forest was, story-wise: a combination of Wolfpack and Forestman. Fantastic work.

[Scubacarrot]

These are once again very awesome, my favorite of the last bunch is the last one.

But now I am wondering, how do they look like applied? I don't have the time/patience/tools to apply decals myself, but these look very awesome. If you have any pictures of these (Or even more of the wolfpack ones you did) I would love to see them!

[K-Nut]

I really like that 2nd to last one in the new batch. Great job!

[The Blue Brick]

I agree, these are great. I never got into forest men that much, but I might need to print some of these out.

[Shadows]

These are very nice, I've always appreciated a blending of the old and the new to create something that fits both well, so I was glad to see this officially released, and now you've provided some nice recolours to give us variety.

On that note, it wouldn't be hard to adapt these to pirates, the straps/belts are perfect already, imagine a vest and shirt instead of the existing tunic.

[ED-209]

Thanks again everyone, I'm always glad when people like them!

But now I am wondering, how do they look like applied? I don't have the time/patience/tools to apply decals myself, but these look very awesome. If you have any pictures of these (Or even more of the wolfpack ones you did) I would love to see them!

I'm afraid I'm guilty of being something of a daydreamer - I make far more designs than I apply!

I haven't applied these (or the Wolfpack ones to be honest!), but I tend to use sticker sheets and a colour laser printer. I just wait until I've got a whole A4 sheet filled up, then print them. It doesn't look quite as good as a waterslide decal, but the results are quite reasonable and it's substantially easier.

These are very nice, I've always appreciated a blending of the old and the new to create something that fits both well, so I was glad to see this officially released, and now you've provided some nice recolours to give us variety.

On that note, it wouldn't be hard to adapt these to pirates, the straps/belts are perfect already, imagine a vest and shirt instead of the existing tunic.

I'm alway's a fan of the joining of old and new too, that's probably why I do a lot of updated versions of Classic Castle factions!

Hmm... I hadn't thought about doing pirate ones, I might have to look into that...

[NickAb]

Nice work as always.

Let me put my two cents in. Just in case some of your forestmen will need a shield:

All images are 600dpi

Stroke variations:

• No stroke around brown border
  
• Light brown stroke around brown border
  

Round-shield (the small one ∅1.6cm, like this one from collectible minifigures):

Ovoid shield (simple and enforced):

Also available in vector. You can edit it in InkScape to replace triangular shield with round one, change colors, etc.

Small round shield SVG

Triangular shield SVG

Ovoid enforced shield SVG

Edited April 30, 2012 by NickAb

[ED-209]

Nice work as always.

Let me put my two cents in. Just in case some of your forestmen will need a shield:

All images are 600dpi

Stroke variations:

Round-shield (the small one ∅1.6cm, like this one from collectible minifigures):

Ovoid shield (simple and enforced):

Also available in vector. You can edit it in InkScape to replace triangular shield with round one, change colors, etc.

Oh wow, the shields look wonderful!

You should do a flag/banner with the stag too!

[NickAb]

Oh wow, the shields look wonderful!

You should do a flag/banner with the stag too!

Thank you very much.

I saw your boar's head fraction template. Very nice.

Here are banners based on your work:

And one without ovoid background can be found here.

Edited May 2, 2012 by NickAb

[ED-209]

Thank you very much.

I saw your boar's head fraction template. Very nice.

Here are banners based on your work:

And one without ovoid background can be found here.

Very nice! I prefer the banner without the ovoid myself. Have you tried outlining the antlers in a darker colour? Darker than the main antler colour I mean.

[NickAb]

Very nice! I prefer the banner without the ovoid myself. Have you tried outlining the antlers in a darker colour? Darker than the main antler colour I mean.

I tried using darked stroke. It definitely highlights antlers better than light stroke.

And SVG version can be downloaded here for any derivations.

Edited May 3, 2012 by NickAb

[coot83]

Hey guys, not trying to necro a thread here but I have been trying to get the green right for the forestmen with this type of template with MS paint. Mine are always a tad too bright to match, does anyone know the proper green color that would match these? Thank you ED for the great tutorial and the beautiful torso creations that you have created!

Coot

[LuxorV]

As far as I can tell by trying it, with MS Paint you have to set the RGB values to: R= 0, G= 74 and B= 45. Hope this helps you.

[coot83]

Luxor thanks for the quick reply! I just tried out that green combo, but when I print it seems to be a shade darker. I have a canon printer and should I make sure before printing that I have certain settings on it? I recently printed in the "best" setting. Thanks for your help!

Coot

[LuxorV]

The result of your print may depend on different things: printer setting, ink, paper type. There is no global solution which works in every case. It's a trial and error process. You'll have to try manually lightening your decal's colour(s) until it(they) match what you want once printed.

You may find it a bit easier by adding the decal to a Word file and use the 'lighten/darken image' option in there as a start. Once you find the right setting you can try to replicate it on the original Paint file.

Or you can look for some more advanced graphic program, like Inkscape or similar free ones. MS Paint is a good starting point, but has somewhat limited options and tools.

Finally, you may also find some more tutorials in the MCW Index.

[coot83]

Luxor, I tried to use the color your recommended with some brightness and contrasts to it. I think I might have the color about as close as I can get to making it on MS Word. I was curious if you would be willing to see how "close" I got? The brightness I got was 20% and the contrast was 25%. I know that we dont have the same printers, but maybe MS word is somewhat universal?

Coot

[LuxorV]

Yes, MS Word is (or should be, supposing we share the same version) universal in its basic settings. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said about screen settings (not to mention the human eye itself and the way each individual detects smaller hue and tonality differences).

Anyway, I don't think you need someone to confirm your job; you just need to be satisfied with it yourself. If you're not mass producing these as a commercial product, what suits your personal needs and requirements is what you want to achieve.

[coot83]

Luxor, I understand and thanks again for your input. It seems to me that I can get the color close to it, but I cant get an exact match. Do you know if decal paper will cause a slightly different presentation from regular paper? Im just wondering if many customizers achieve the perfect color match or do they just get it close and move on? I have no means of mass producing this, just wanting to make the best custom that I can of an updated forestman. Thanks for all your help.

Coot