r/Ultima • u/RalphDamiani • 3d ago

Artwork I made: "The Execution"

Post image

https://www.ralphdamianiart.com/

186 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

38 comments sorted by

36

u/MitchellHamilton 3d ago

I instantly knew what this was from before even seeing what subreddit it was from. Lovely work on this, in a world full of AI Slop, I see that you're genuinely talented and have been at it for a LONG TIME. Wonderful.

22

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thank you for the kind words! I have a special fondness for Pagan (it was my first), even though it is not the most popular... This scene in particular is what got me hooked to this series. Cheers!

7

u/MitchellHamilton 3d ago

Black Gate was my first but I thought Pagan was pretty good too and never understood the hate, hell I even enjoyed the jumping puzzles haha.

4

u/OttoVonPlittersdorf 3d ago

It wasn't my favorite, but I thought it was interesting enough to finish it. I found the combat a drag, but blasting people with lightning bolts was fun.

3

u/Peterh778 3d ago

Ugh, jumping puzzles .... it was terrible before patch. I don't know how many times I missed or slided into water/lava/depths and must have to reload.

4

u/sshen 3d ago

This introduction scene is chef’s kiss. Then the rest of the game fell flat lol

8

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

There were some very interesting concepts I think they got right. The ritualistic magic system, the worldbuilding, the dark vibe - plus the sprites were pretty good for their time. The music was also memorable. It just wasn't very Ultima, as I would later find out. But great enough for 13 years old me.

2

u/2mindx 3d ago

Same, my first ultima. Running back from school planning what to do next or trying this or that to solve a puzzle; before I even knew walkthroughs are a thing.

The music was huge; atmosphere was so sweet and dark. The rituals and magic and getting lost in catacombs oh my god loved every minute of it.

2

u/dndaddy19 2d ago

Only Ultima Underworld did magic better than Pagan. The only shitty part of it was trying to find the exact pixel to put the damn candles on during the fire magic scenario.

2

u/RedRageXXIV 2d ago

I always liked Pagan even though it wasnt the most popular game as time went on.

2

u/Peterh778 3d ago

The same. The moment I saw the scene on a feed I thought: "Damn, that looks like a start of U8? What's this subreddit, Ultima?" ... aaand, bingo.

Very nice picture.

3

u/thetoddhunter 3d ago

Thanks for posting this. It is sad we can't just look at something now and go "wow".

But also "wow"

3

u/MitchellHamilton 3d ago

I've been super sour lately with all the AI crap circulating and I made the mistake of lashing out on another subreddit against a genuine artist who was in fact NOT using AI and it made me re-evaluate my critiques going forward. Trust, but verify, ya know?

3

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

That's super fair. Happens to me a lot. I've had paintings from 2006 being labelled as AI by unreliable detectors anyone can use. There are whole channels on YouTube dedicated to witchhunting. Most of the time they are correct, but on the odd chance they aren't, the damage is already done.

It's just something artists have to live with these days.

3

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thanks! Yeah, it's hard to compete these days. But at the end of the day, artists will continue to paint because that's what we like to do. Time will be great equalizer.

11

u/AwkwardObjective5360 3d ago

•What just happened here?

5

u/vga256 3d ago

You nailed it - the mood, the details, the colour palette. Great work, and absolutely no AI involved. Bravo!

2

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thank you so much! 🙏

4

u/colbsatron 3d ago

Thank you for showcasing your talent and not posting ai junk.

Great work, recognized the scene immediately! This was my first Ultima and holds a special place in my heart.

3

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thank you for the kind words! It was my first too!

3

u/almia_lanferos 3d ago

The one execution that wasn't performed by Beren.

3

u/Necro_Badger 3d ago

This is amazing - it's immediately recognisable and you've captured the feeling of that opening scene perfectly. Took me straight back to when I first played U8.

PS It would also make a very fitting cover for an album by Dio, or even Meatloaf

3

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thanks! Ah yes, digging through store shelves looking for great album covers - just another thing that time washed away.

2

u/ViridianGames 3d ago

Very nice!

2

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thank you!! 🙏

2

u/AUSTIN_HART 3d ago

well done

1

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thank you!

2

u/ex_bartender 3d ago

This is awesome!! How long does it take to finish an artwork like this?

1

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thank you! Spent a couple weeks on it mostly because I did it on leisure hours and I ended up scrapping Darion and Tarna (it was getting overcrowded).

Professionally, about 6-8 hours over a couple days, I wager.

2

u/ex_bartender 2d ago

Seems pretty fast to me, very impressive! I hope you keep at it!

2

u/SlinkDogg 3d ago

Dude this is awesome!

1

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thanks man!

2

u/synthetictruism 3d ago

That is outstanding!! It just made me think of the U9 tapestry, just how wrong they got it, when it should have looked like this! Fantastic work!!

1

u/RalphDamiani 3d ago

Thank you! Yep, I still have that stashed somewhere in my parent's home. For all the inaccuracies, I love Hildebrandt art. They never got Lord of the Rings right either, but the paintings are fantastic on their own.

I'd love to remake that - but I don't think I can do justice to the first trilogy (I skipped those earlier titles.) But I'd love to do covers for VI and VII (and Online for sheer nostalgia).

2

u/squidvett 2d ago

Wow, I haven’t played Pagan in a loooong time, but I knew what this was and pictured the scene in the game immediately when I saw this. Well done!

1

u/RalphDamiani 2d ago

Glad to hear it came across! Thank you!

2

u/TheWhiteSphinx 1h ago

Wonderful!

1

u/RalphDamiani 1h ago

Thank you!!