Design a new weapon for Empyreal!

This is one of the concepts I wanted to share and managed to draw. I think the image should make it clear what I was trying to depict. I would like the shield and the mace to light up during attack or defense, with the animation resembling a steam of sunlight. 😊

It is the mace with a fire damage shield and an ice damage glaive

I hope there's no problem with sending 2 weapons, and I really wanted to send all 3, but I couldn't think of how to design the electric damage cannon with this aesthetic.

My idea is a style for all weapons inspired by cartograms of ruins with lots of vegetation, and each weapon has a story similar to this: "A very strange formation where a tree begins to grow over a gem of primal power (fire, ice, or electricity), and thanks to the power of the cartogram and the hopes of those who decide to risk exploring it, a powerful weapon is formed over hundreds of years."

I imagine something like this scene: "You defeat a boss and you arrive at a room where you see a majestic tree with a spiral formation. In the center, you see a glaive, and for some reason, you feel it calling to you. When you grab it, you see the leaves of the tree begin to fall and the trunk begins to crumble, but at the same time, you feel a great power running through your entire being."

The glaive is in the center of the spiral

The glaive is a polearm of considerable size and weight. Believed to originate from Wales, the weapon consists of a curved blade, typically with only one edge, mounted on a long pole. Some glaives even had hooks or thorns on the non cutting side of the blade to break armour or pull enemies of their horses.

So, for this challenge I wanted to get to know a bit more about these weapons, so I dug up some info. After reading up, I took a closer look at the ones used in Empyreal and noticed a few things. Empyreal glaives are symmetrical and posses two cutting edges. They do not seem to have hooks or thorns, but have several glowing parts.

Then I got to work with a first design and decided to make a sketch to get the lines right.

After I was satisfied with the basics, I scanned it and started working in Gimp.

I used screenshots of the other two weapons available to keep me on track for the proportions and general art style. First I made one half, then I mirrored the image and managed to get a nice symmetry.

After a while, everything came together and I decided to see how my new blade would fit into the world of Empyreal.

I managed to paint out the original weapon, using two overlapping screenshots. Thank you to the Devs who made this a lot easier by keeping a clean movement and idle animation!

Now I only had to add my own blade and tweak some last spots on the hands.

I am quite satisfied with how it turned out! My general inexperience in working on projects like this one still shows in the end result, but I am happy I got this far. Maybe I can add a list of stats in the end.

Ok, this was a pretty long break down, it was a fun challenge to learn and improve for this result! :)

I wanted a magical staff because I’m terrible at close combat. I imagined a staff with a medieval vibe and an eye in the center, inspired by the Eye of Sauron — but purple, since it’s my favorite color — to give it that strong and mystical feel. To make it functional for melee, I added a blade on each side, resembling a double-headed axe. At the end of the shaft, there’s a spear-like blade to complete the look and show that it can also be used for defense.