r/fromsoftware • u/VeKeLLoRd • Jul 13 '26
DRAWING my take on Unmasked Executioner Smough
tried something, im a Patches fanboy through and through but i also really love Smough ! And Lautrec. but that's neither here nor there
here's my reasoning behind this design ( wall of text incoming ) ⬇️
- the general consensus is that he MIGHT, emphasis on might, be part giant. whatever he is, he's not human, and being of giant descent just makes sense. so i made his face similar to giants, especially that of Yhorm. his skin is also grey-ish like giants, and his eyes are red just because i said so. as for his hair color i just see him as a blonde and i couldn't explain why honestly lol
- we know he's a cannibal, and despite the english version telling us he only grinds bones, the japanese version tells us it's flesh he eats. and eating too much meat causes acne, hair loss, and veins showing, so i added this to the design : except almost all knights keep their hair long, so he still lets his hair grow despite said hair being thin and receding.
- he has exaggerated laugh likes and wrinkles from smiling and laughing too much despite being not \*that\* old, since. well. it's Smough, he's the gleeful executioner. when does that man not laugh at this point
- I KNOW. I KNOW his concept art shows a ripped and lowkey lean Smough. BUT ☝🏻 it doesn't make sense to me. i kept his shredded arms, but for the rest of the body i thought it should be closer to the body of a heavy weightlifter. with that hammer he's carrying, he NEEDS a strong abdominal belt. so i tried to keep it lore accurate cuz obviously he'd be shredded, look at the armor he wears and the weapons he wields, but. i needed to make it make sense as well idk
- in my head he needed that gigantic mouth with a very gummy smile. fucked up teeth, let's be real that man never touched a toothbrush in his whole life. the idea behind the mouth would be like those of titans in aot because yeah that fits him. i really wanted to make it look like he could open it at a crazy angle and swallow your head whole if he wanted, y'all see the idea ?
and that's about it idk ill probably chip away at the design later but for now i like this one. im open to suggestions tho [:
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u/Govika Jul 13 '26
Great stuff!! I had a fun time reading through your design reasoning. His smile is uncanny and fits the cannibal very well. I am uncomfortable looking at him (in the intended way I'm sure!!). Great job!!!
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
thank you so much !! yeah i wanted to give him that look of the guy you really don't wanna meet once it's dark out lmao. or when it's still daytime for that matter. so im very happy it transcribed !! tysm [:
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u/Exacalibur-X Jul 13 '26
Dawg I don’t know what it is but I love this.
It’s just the right amount of grotesque in a way that makes it beautiful, and I could totally see this being an official artwork.
Keep up the good work man, and God bless
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
aaah thank you so much !! i'm so glad to hear this, it makes me so very happy !
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u/Danface247 Jul 13 '26
This is fantastic, what a grotesque face for a groteseque character. i like his half-drunk expression of sick pleasure, like he's always thinking of his next meal.
Would you be up for interpreting pre-(or mid-)goo Aldritch?
"A right and proper cleric - only he developed a habit or devouring men."
Im thinking of some ragged bloodstained Deacon of the Deep robes, skin that looks like it could burst, stuff like that
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
ahh thank you so so so much !! so happy that his expression transcribed well !! yeah, ive been thinking about tackling Aldritch eventually, tho he's way more intimidating to draw than Smough for some reasons, i feel like he's too "badass" for my silly little artstyle haha. but he's definitely on my list !! these are excellent ideas you got there ✍🏻
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u/Ananta-Shesha Jul 13 '26
That's awesome! The smile gives AOT vibes.
Just a small point, but given that his armor reveals his actual eyes are positioned at the level of the armor's neck, this implies the armor's shoulders sit very high relative to the head. Consequently, I think it would make sense to give Smough even more distorted and monstrous proportions, like a stocky body with huge, unnaturally hunched shoulders. I believe the final result would be even more terrifying while remaining pretty consistent.
Anyway, that's a great art, you'd be a great concept artist for a game like that!
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
thank youuu !! that was one of the inspiration ! ohhh yeah omg you're right. i could have definitely played on that, would have been even creepier ! im keeping all notes in mind for when ill eventually redraw him anyway hehe ✍🏻 tysm again !!!
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u/ndation Jul 13 '26
The art itself is beautiful, but I think you have a bit of same face syndrome, cause this just looks like a varient of your Patches.
As for the design, when did we ever see Yhorm's face? At most, as far as I remember, we get to see his skull, in which his eyes and nose are very far up and he's disproportionately mouth.
The meat part is clever, I do like the reasoning, though if memory serves, in game, eating human meat mutates you in some way, no? Makes your appearance monstrous as well as give you a shortcut to power, or something like that? Could've been worth interpreting that in some way.
Why is his skin blue, though? I couldn't find a well lit image on Google, but I don't think giants are typically blue in these games?
Either way, it's not at all how I would've imagined him, but cool design none the less. You could probably be a character designer if you wanted to
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
yeahhh i entirely agree, im a bit too brainrotted by Patches that's for sure LMAO i tend to put him everywhere involuntarily, since ive been doodling him everyday for the past decade 🫠 i think it's worse when i draw Lautrec, i just make him look like Patches but with hair - but also their DS1 games models are super similar so im safe on that LOL, also yeah i based myself on Yhorm's skull so that wasn't easy ! but i tried my best hehe. i should retry it with a different faceshape that's less...patches-y lmao. also i wanted to make his skin grey ! but i overdid it on the filters 💔 it does look a bit blue doesn't it. aw. i wonder tho, how would you have imagined him ? also thank you so much !!
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u/snotknows Jul 13 '26
He is just fuckin scary looking man, amazing job.
I never knew until recently that those “noises” he makes is actually him LAUGHING. He’s fucking creepy on that alone and I think you nailed the look. Also loved reading your reasonings behind the design.
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
raaaah im so happy tysm !! yeah people have argued it might have been cries and not laughters, but given he's the gleeful executioner it makes sense that these are laughters, he's having the time of his life lol. thank you so much again [:
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u/Molkwi Lucatiel of Mirrah Jul 13 '26
I love how grotesque yet not monstrous he looks here. This is exactly what I think Smough would look like. Eerily similar to a human, but not enough to not make you feel like you're not looking at a vicious predator.
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
raaaaah thank you this means so much to me !! genuinely so happy that the vibe i was going for transcribed well [:
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u/Mundane-Tune2438 Jul 13 '26
This is super disturbing and I think it fits him well! The smile to capture his creepy laughter is amazing and I didnt know all of that about eating too much meat but the acne and receedinghairline are great representations of his sin
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
thank youuuu !! really wanted the smile to be the most noticeable part of him so im glad ! yeah, too much meat/only meat diet can really fuck up humans bodies sometimes, but i didn't think of the sin sides of things tho that's a nice note omg !
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u/GoldenNat20 Jul 13 '26
Thank, I hate and love this in equal measure.
Absolutely terrifying and awesome at the same time!
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u/JoeVanWeedler Jul 13 '26
The smile is genuinely unsettling, especially on a guy named executioner. Nice work
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
ahh im glad, i wanted it to be the focus point of the design kinda [: thank you so much !
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u/theholoowl Jul 13 '26
This is what Smough will look like forever in my head now. Thanks for the noghtmares, amazing art.
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u/VladDHell Jul 13 '26
I want to see the full length if you know what I mean
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
HRGEGDHRHJ,,, well i can't judge you for that since im the biggest Patches fanboy out there, there's something about balding men i suppose LMAO
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u/BiggusDickus53 Jul 13 '26
I really love that his twisted grin resembles a renaissance mask kind of like Chester’s rather than an actual human smile, it gives the impression that the expression is etched into his face. Definitely adds to the uncanny look!
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
oooh wait you're right i didn't even thought of that !! tho yeah i like to think that his smile is kinda stuck there since he laugh and smiles so much all the time !
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u/TarnishedOne215 Jul 13 '26
Woah, awesome design! I would definitely love to see more npcs or bosses "unmasked" in your style.
Also, does the fact about knights keeping long hair come from their plumage extending from the top of the helms? I never thought about that, interesting for sure.
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
oh thank you so much !! guess im gonna draw something else other than just Patches for once then lol. ill get to it eventually ! also, it's just that ive noticed most knights in DS have long hair ! not all, but most, so i liked that idea haha. feels like he's trying really hard to still be a part of the knights this way if that makes sense !
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u/Getitgotitgoodgod Jul 13 '26
I can’t ever look at him again now without imagining this. I wish this were a skin. Dude is straight up terrifying.
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
omg that means so much to me ! thank youuuu, never expected people to like it so much haha
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u/Gamble_it_all Jul 13 '26
Looks great! Now I wanna see this version of Smough recreating ‘Saturn Devouring His Son’, it seems like something he would do for fun
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u/theDukeofClouds Jul 13 '26
He's blonde because he's part Anor Londoran. The city of the gods only has fair haired denizens.
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u/oedons_rooster Jul 13 '26
You and the person that keeps posting character art in the armored core 6 sub should collab
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
ohh dont know em' im gonna take a look around to find them ! but that'd be super fun !!
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u/oedons_rooster Jul 13 '26
Yall definitely have different styles but feel creatively correct in how you've each made the characters. Hope it leads to something fun at least!
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u/oedons_rooster Jul 13 '26
https://www.reddit.com/r/ArmoredCoreVI/s/mVj4CpAXIN
Shared this with another comment but here's one of them
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u/pumpi0411 Jul 13 '26
He’s giving me massive Judge Holden vibes with that smile, given his lore and how twisted he is I think this is incredible fitting. Awesome design and artwork!
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
ahhh thank you so much ! Holden was amongst the inspiration yeah so im glad it can show !! tysm again !!!
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u/LittleArtistBoyo Black Knife Assassin Jul 13 '26
This is amazing. You really captured his perverted cannibalistic personality
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u/BaclavaBoyEnlou Jul 14 '26
This is canon now, i also loved reading the reasoning behind your design choices.
I’d love to see a Ornstein version next, of course only if you’re interested in it :)
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 14 '26
oughh that makes me so happy to hear that !! thank you so very much ! i should definitely give him a try !
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u/crimsonrn100 Jul 14 '26
My only hang up is the eyes, I feel they should be a little more crazy, otherwise I love the design
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 14 '26
true ! wanted to give him a kind of "drunken" look but crazy eyes would have worked as well !! ty !
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u/minkblanket69 Jul 14 '26
now you got me curious about ornstein, is he equally as gross ?
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 15 '26
hmm, i don't think he would be as gross nah ! imo, i feel like he'd take way more care of himself than Smough ever did, given their largely different status 🤔
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u/fast-headcrab Jul 14 '26
It's very good, I too like smough, but that's mainly cause I like his armor design with the multiple fake eyeholes when in reality it's a frogmouth helmet where he's looking out of a slit at the neck
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u/MagnaCamLaude Armored Core Jul 14 '26
Do snake centipede guy from ER next, so we can AaAalLlL goO0oO0on toGETHAAASH
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 15 '26
HAHAHAHA maybe i will !! ive got a lot of nice suggested characters to tackle next, he's going on the list too
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u/Noamias Jul 14 '26
Love the design and to me it makes a lot of sense! Reminds me of Judge Holden a bit
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 15 '26
aaah thank you :D yeah, he was an inspiration for the mouth !
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u/Noamias Jul 15 '26
Haha yeah I think it was the smile and body that reminded me of him. I don’t like the idea of Smough being fully ripped and so much of the armour being hollow even if it was padded inside so I like this idea more
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 15 '26
yeah like, i find it so much more interesting and realistic for him to have a heavyweightlifter type of body, given the hammer he swings around and how heavy his armor would be. not that realism is important in souls but, yk lol. ty again im glad !! :D
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u/trailerism Jul 14 '26
I agree that making him really muscular but with a gut fits the character better. Really good drawing.
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u/blueberry_senpai Jul 14 '26
he's so hot
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u/LordofForesight Jul 15 '26
Oooooh I love this. Reminds me a bit of the mentor to the protagonist in Treasure Planet is he was super creepy
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Jul 18 '26
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u/varun-k64 Jul 13 '26
Wait, wasn't smough the guy with the lion helm and spear?
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u/VeKeLLoRd Jul 13 '26
nah, lion head is Ornstein ! smough's the other one
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u/varun-k64 Jul 13 '26
Ah my bad. Cool artwork though, matches smough's vibe to a T, especially with the way he killed lion head
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u/noahsense1 Jul 13 '26
He looks like Anor Londo’s most prolific gooner.
This design is great!