Development Diary #19
Immacus Comes to Life
The Domains for Kingdoms of Immacus are done! It took over a year of hard work, but my artist finally finished the long list of domains for the game. For the first set, there are 18 domains total, 3 domains for each kingdom. I won't post them all here; instead, you can find all the images in the Immacus Archives and the World section under the Kingdoms of Immacus tab on the website. In those sections, you'll be able to see larger pictures of each domain, what they do, and a little bit of lore about each one.
World First Problems
Since the domains see the most use, it felt important to get someone to work on those first. Also, it makes it easier for other artists to build around the world with their paintings if there is a world already built for them for reference. It is very difficult to explain where characters come from without knowing the world those characters belong to. Having the regions they live in has been immensely helpful when working with other artists on how things should look. I was lucky enough to find Pierric Sorel that was able to capture the essence of what I was trying to build in the art briefs I provided him.
Playtesting Perfection
With the domains done early in the process for the Xizeks and the Ethereals, it really brought playtesting sessions to life. Having art instead of a large white space on the card allowed me to look at the world I was building and guide me in the direction of the feel of the game. Having the art also spawned several iterations of the domain card face as the original concept card faces took up way too much space away from the art (more on this in a later post). Having the art made it easier to make the art the focal point of the domain cards.
If You Give A Designer Some Art...
The problem with giving me art to work with is much like a mouse and its cookie, I'm going to want more. I had a taste for world-building art, and I wanted to go overboard with art contracts during this time. This resulted in me spending more on things outside of necessity than I should have. I also toyed with the idea of alternative art for the domain cards, which I forced myself to back away from. Making a card game this large requires some budgetary restraint, and though additional art for the realm versions of the domains sounds nice, it currently isn't feasible. This is something that could be achieved with Kickstarter stretch goals, but I'll have to cross that bridge when I get to it.
An Empire in Retrospect
I am so very proud of the domains in their final form and their role in Kingdoms of Immacus. These 18 pieces really give KoI the springboard towards reality it needed. Please take a chance to check out the domains and the world they help build. The beautiful digital paintings paired with my assets feel unified, which was an original concern of mine when working with other artists. As a point to other artists or designers, I think opening up your world to other people only makes your IP stronger. This is coming from a person who has the unrelenting urge to do everything myself. At the end of the day, the goal should be to share your vision with others, and what better way than starting that with other creative people.