Design Spotlight: Hagal October 26, 2015 20:17

Hi folks, and welcome to another week’s spotlight.  Last week we talked about Sven, and this week we’ll be chatting about our newest addition to the Zephyri: Hagal.

Hagal is a bit of a departure from our usual design process.  Normally we (and the artists) are the only ones obsessing over every detail of the design.  In this case we not only were focusing on the equipment and intended playstyle, but the original character, Aitch Parker. 

Some of you may recall one of our very first promotions was a Facebook competition where we asked folks to show us their best Gladiator Face.  It was a fantastic success, and it really got people in the spirit of the gladiator theme leading up to our Kickstarter campaign.  Aitch was one of the eventual winners of that contest, for which the prize was an Arena Rex model fashioned in his likeness.

When we were considering a character that might fit best, part of the equation relied on his feedback.  He even went so far as to send a fantastic character blurb, which we have since re-worked, but was right in line with our starting point as well. That feedback lined up really well with what we were already kind of thinking for his character, and I think we covered the bases pretty well on this front – the original list follows with notes:

• Blood Brother [the original working name for the Zephyri] or lone fighter – Check!
• Jupiter – Check! We were thinking the Zephyri could use another bruiser even at that time
• Axe and sword – Pretty iconic, and great for an offensive focus. Check!
• Cloth and Leather – Fit in with the aesthetic we were already looking at for the Zephyri. Check!
• No helmet – Got to show off that Gladiator Face, so check!

One thing we struggled with for a while was the name for this new entry in the world of Arena Rex.  It struck me one day that the original had taken a single letter as his moniker and made it his own, so why not check out some runes?  It was such a perfect fit that we couldn’t let it go, and Hagal’s concept was complete.

We turned to Bagus Hutomo for the wonderful art, and Stephane Nguyen van Gioi gave a us a great sculpt with some excellent detail (I always love his maille-work).  Benjamin Williams always does an excellent job, but his tattoo freehand really completes the feel on this model. 

Thanks again for joining us, and as always I hope you enjoyed reading.  Next week we’ll continue our journey through the Zephyri with their original bruiser (and tongue-twister), Bjarrhvit!