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Motifs from a recent 3d character tattoo commission.

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Since it has come up lately, I want to talk about what is legal in video game and software modding.

*Disclaimer: I am a professional freelance artist & developer with a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science but that does not make me a lawyer. I am not qualified to give official legal guidance or advise you on a case or project.*

Extraction Software - mostly safe.

Legally grey. Reverse engineering software is ok in the United States if you use it personally or for education, research, or compatibility. If the software download does not distribute any of the game's files or code themselves, it's in the clear.

Selling/Sharing files from a game - illegal

Distributing a game's code or assets without permission from copyright holders is illegal and you can potentially be sued for damages.

Websites that publicly host and distribute these mods, and modders who sell large amounts of unlimited copies are in the most danger here. This also applies to recognizeable edited files such as sculpts, mashups, recolors, and stamps on textures. Using something as a tracing/sizing base or studying is usually ok, as long as it isn't recognizeable or actually included and you are not using any trademarks to advertise it.

Some games have ToS or EULA that forbid any modding. While that doesn't make it illegal, it does mean they can get mad about it and there may be consequences.

Commissioning - mostly safe.

Doing commissions is considered selling a SERVICE, not a product. The fact that you pass files back and forth might be a legal grey area, but since it is a private transaction it's very light grey. However, if there is any sending copyrighted assets that the client does not own or have a license to use, this is illegal.

If you are editing another independent artist's work, sometimes people just get mad about this even if you both legally own it. Technically you might be competing with their business here. So be aware and just respect their ToS to avoid drama.

Selling mods 100% created by you - Legal and safe.

GIVEN THAT YOU DON'T DO ANYTHING ELSE ILLEGAL WITH IT. As long as you do not title or advertise the product with trademarks and copyrights that do not belong to you, it's 100% in the clear. Even if a software states it against ToS to sell mods, they have no grounds here to stop you from simply selling an original model or texture you made that is sized for the game or made compatible for modding. Packed file formats can be illegal to sell if the program used to create them forbids it, but a file format itself can't be copywritten- only the code algorithm to create it can.

Anything you do might still piss off a really strict developer, so be aware that sometimes it is in your best interest to avoid drama even if what you do is totally legal.

AFAIK it is also fine to mention 'compatible with <Software>' in your product description and mention it is not endorsed by the company.

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Zeerith the Hingeless [image dump + story link]

Read the story of my dark urge character, Zeerith, here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/51922327/chapters/131292529

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Watermarking and Protecting your Artwork

Tips for everyone to help minimize art theft, including AI training, without greatly sacrificing your images' impact

Objectives of Watermarking

When you place a watermark on your art, it has multiple objectives - they're there to prevent it from being reposted and accredited to someone else, to make it recognizeable as yours with text or symbols, and to prevent major parts of the image from being copied and reused. Here are some tips for making a good watermark, which you can save as a .png to reuse.

Use fonts with serifs or odd shapes and stylings if using text.

Add noise, with color, to your watermark.

Distort the watermark (I like ripple effect to break up the shapes subtly.)

Avoid text and stamps - use handdrawn shapes and letters if possible.

Place it between layers on your artwork if possible.

Use a light blend mode (linear or hard is what I use depending on background colors) and turn down the opacity to make it look nice but still do its job.

The watermark should be visually unobtrusive as possible, while covering major points that would be copied, and BE HARD TO TRACE or select by magic wand or smart selectors. This also helps to keep AI from copying your work.

Compression

Almost more important than watermarking is image compression and resizing. You don't want a full quality image online that anyone can snag and print on T-shirts at the same quality you can offer!

NEVER EVER post an image at 300 DPI or higher to share online. This is the quality required by most printers: without that, it's hard for anyone to make merchandise out of your art. Keep previews at 100 DPI or less. It shouldn't ruin the experience for your viewers and offers an incentive to purchase your work - you can sell higher quality images.

Keep your resolution as low as possible. You don't need more than a 2k image for most usages online - banners, icons, etc. So knock that size under 2000 pixels in height or width.

Flatten and save as a jpeg in medium quality. Typically, you don't need to post any higher quality images online, and you don't want it to include layer data.

Average viewers will NOT notice the difference in these changes without it being pointed out, nor will they think artwork is 'bad' because of it. Don't worry too much about "sacrificing quality."

Glaze it!

Lastly, a technology to combat AI has been developed and is constantly improving. Head over to https://glaze.cs.uchicago.edu/

and use this on your work that you post online for further protection against AI data scraping and training!

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"Saint of Werlyt" (Watercolor and ink)

Available as a print - link in bio!

Did anyone else take a whole moment to cry after playing the new Tarau's Grand Endeavor follow up for the Sorrow of Werlyt quest?

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What is the most emotional moment of #FFXIV for you?

For me, it's hands down the scenes with Alpha in the Omega quests. I don't known if its just Alpha's cuteness and innocence and purity that does it, but when that little bird ran across the cold vast universe alone just to save his friends, and his little wings froze and he fell down and just kept going, and you could see the struggle and pain in his expressive little eyes, I cried SO MUCH. I can't even THINK about it without crying. He was the fucking best boy there ever will be and I absolutely bawled when the same running scene was mirrored in a happy way at the end when he suceeded and then left to go on adventures. Man, now I'm crying again...

T_T not even joking

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Nergui doesn't fucking love himself and that's the whole problem. He ought to. He damn well ought to.

But he has only ever known himself as some 'hero', some 'thing people need to protect them' and not a person with his own desires and needs. Undoing this is a central background plot of his story.

If there is anything, he loves his intelligence, his creativity, and his physical features. He has never hated his body and loves it just the way it is. He does express this in fashion a lot, and he feels proud to figure out new spells or potions and solve puzzles.

FFXIV Daily Question n°99 : Let's talk about self-love. What is something about them that your character like the most ? It can be one of their qualities, a skill they nurtured, a physical feature or the way they do thing (fashion style, how they know to keep up with things or handle them ... ). Maybe something else ?

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Nergui is rather experienced and knowledgeable, as he used to be a courtesan. But he does not come off that way; almost everyone is surprised to hear it.

He is actually demisexual and figured this out late. He does not openly talk about his sex life much, but he also does not talk about anything else openly that often.

It's sinday ~ FFXIV Daily Question n°100 : How experienced is your character regarding sex ? Are they educated based on pure theory or more uh ... field experienced ?

For characters that do not participate in sexual activities, how open are they about talking about this subject ?

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Cat got his potatos removed.

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Villains x Cats: Kuja

PRINT AVAILABLE : https://vincentsnow-art.ecrater.com/p/41099282/villains-x-cats-kuja-print

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Rose Knights Farewell Party

All gposes taken during the event.

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Villains x Cats chibi series: Zenos

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Nergui Qestir photoshoot: Boatman

From all the hurt I'm suffering From all the harm I see From all these eyes of emptiness And all those evil deeds

Where the rainbow starts to end Across the swell behind the sea Where the rainbow starts to end Let the currents carry me

Take me away, boatman Far, far away Take me away, boatman Let me go astray

From all the love I never got And all the care I lacked From all the blows that rained on me But I won't count back

Where the pain begins to end Across the swell behind the sea Where the pain begins to end Let the currents carry me

Lyrics: “Boatman” by VNV Nation & Mono Inc.

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A Late Night Studying Alchemy

If were possible at all, should I? Could it be without consequence, if I saw you again just for a minute or three.... Just to tell you how far I've travelled, of the battles I've won, about how I fulfilled my destiny, and how strong I became... And I'd just want to let you know that I'm not alone, either. I didn't have to do it all alone. I'm okay... (Nergui Qestir + his deceased first boyfriend, Aruktai Kha)

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I have hundreds of pictures and videos of this little floppa and if I watch any of them I'll cry a little. I loved Gustave so much ❤️

Best 🐈 Furiend

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Id’Shidh flyer sketch

Id'Shidh Magick Shoppe & Cafe is open Wednesday at 11 PM to 1 AM~ JST. Come enjoy delicious traditional Steppe food & tea, receive some guidance or fortune from the crystals, or take home a blessed candle to bring you courage, wisdom and wealth~ 

 https://vsnowffxiv.wixsite.com/id-shidh

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Myers-Briggs 16 personalities test results for my FFXIV characters. This is a great excercise for writers to get to know how their characters think and react to situations.

Nergui Qestir is an INFJ-A, the same as me.

Khuj'a Terrha is an INTJ-A.

Yalden (Forgiven Dissention) is an ISFJ-T.

Cecyl Harviera (who is not quite as developed) is currently shaping up to be an ESFJ-A.