[IC] DSA Ember: Row-by-Row Legends Inspired by Fire (Renders & First Pricing)

[Oblotzky]

Neat, I'm not into DSA myself but the gradient legends and overall colors look good.

Just throwing an idea out there, maybe you can spin the flame colors of burning chemicals into some sort of addon kit, obviously not as a new set of alphas

[Sensorium]

Can't say I care much for any of them. The transmutation circle is neat but I'm betting it's too complex and thin to work as a doubleshot novelty. I don't get what the sword or kanji reference. 

I like the idea of the A:TLA cap but I personally prefer the fire element symbol over the fire nation symbol.

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I also think a campfire symbol would be nicer than just a generic flame.

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My biggest issue is that the novelties don't look cohesive enough. If I don't know what they're referencing, it's not obvious that it all has to do with fire.

One thing I thought about was having some sort of blue or white accent in the novelties. If there was a novelty-only color, it would allow for more icons since there would be fewer colors. Something like this?

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The colors are BFM and BBQ, for reference.

I hope this doesn't come across as overly critical! I just want to help this set be the best it can be.

Thank you for bringing up the blue option! I had thought about providing an alternative bottom row with blue legends so that it mimics a flame on a matchstick, but I lost the idea eventually. I might knock some options off of the list to make a blue option available.

To explain the other novelties, the symbol is the Chinese character for fire. I guess that would mean that it's also kanji, and I'm sure it means the same thing in Japanese. The sword is a bonfire graphic from Dark Souls. The most recent game had a lot of elements based around fire, including an "embered" state, so I though it was apt. The transmutation circle is the circle used to transmute flames in Fullmdtal Alchemist. I watched it again recently and love its design. I wanted to avoid making a whole bunch of keys with fire vector art on them, so I thought I'd mix it up a bit.

I like the idea of changing the fire nation symbol. The one you posted is more elegant. As for changing the fire graphic, I'd rather use a single flame rather than a full campfire graphic because I think it looks more "minimalist," for lack of a better word. I'll try out some more ideas though. Thanks for the feedback!

Sorry I've been gone for so long. My work tends to come in waves so this could happen a few more times, but I won't let it stop me!

I like the novelties! Whether or not you'd need them in every colour of the gradient is questionable but DSA novelty costs are actually not that high I believe - for example the "Bonus Pack" kit for Granite which included a bunch of novelties, coloured arrows/WASD and a few function keys costs like $35 on PMK (which is for sure a higher cost than what it'd be if it were during a group buy). Think there are 30-35 keys included there and not all of them are 1u even so I think you'll be fine.

Well it's good to know I have a cushion if there end up being a lot of novelties. Nonetheless, I wouldn't be averse to cutting some in the name of saving money. It depends on what people like and SP's response.

I know I keep coming back to this thread, but DAMN are those novelties slick! Really like the fire nation one. Really hope this makes it off the ground!  :thumb:

Hey, I just hope you're not the only one that keeps coming back! Thank you for your support! ;D

[Parva Ovis]

[snip]

Thank you for bringing up the blue option! I had thought about providing an alternative bottom row with blue legends so that it mimics a flame on a matchstick, but I lost the idea eventually. I might knock some options off of the list to make a blue option available.

To explain the other novelties, the symbol is the Chinese character for fire. I guess that would mean that it's also kanji, and I'm sure it means the same thing in Japanese. The sword is a bonfire graphic from Dark Souls. The most recent game had a lot of elements based around fire, including an "embered" state, so I though it was apt. The transmutation circle is the circle used to transmute flames in Fullmdtal Alchemist. I watched it again recently and love its design. I wanted to avoid making a whole bunch of keys with fire vector art on them, so I thought I'd mix it up a bit.

I like the idea of changing the fire nation symbol. The one you posted is more elegant. As for changing the fire graphic, I'd rather use a single flame rather than a full campfire graphic because I think it looks more "minimalist," for lack of a better word. I'll try out some more ideas though. Thanks for the feedback!

So I was a bit bored today and ended up doodling a bunch of possible novelties.  I'm not familiar with Fullmetal Alchemist or Dark Souls but I tried making a more simplified icon based on what I could google. There's also a fire element symbol and an inverted one with thicker lines, a  火 ‎for fire, and then some basic fire-y icons. I'm rather fond of the tree. I'm not well versed in iconography, so this was mainly for fun.




Other colors are here: http://imgur.com/a/qpdWz

[albinosquid]

I am very interested, and did the poll (grey alphas plz).

I'm really glad you decided to go with DSA profile, I just really like that look.

Also the Dark Souls bonfire novelty is awesome!

[Sensorium]

[snip]

Thank you for bringing up the blue option! I had thought about providing an alternative bottom row with blue legends so that it mimics a flame on a matchstick, but I lost the idea eventually. I might knock some options off of the list to make a blue option available.

To explain the other novelties, the symbol is the Chinese character for fire. I guess that would mean that it's also kanji, and I'm sure it means the same thing in Japanese. The sword is a bonfire graphic from Dark Souls. The most recent game had a lot of elements based around fire, including an "embered" state, so I though it was apt. The transmutation circle is the circle used to transmute flames in Fullmdtal Alchemist. I watched it again recently and love its design. I wanted to avoid making a whole bunch of keys with fire vector art on them, so I thought I'd mix it up a bit.

I like the idea of changing the fire nation symbol. The one you posted is more elegant. As for changing the fire graphic, I'd rather use a single flame rather than a full campfire graphic because I think it looks more "minimalist," for lack of a better word. I'll try out some more ideas though. Thanks for the feedback!

So I was a bit bored today and ended up doodling a bunch of possible novelties.  I'm not familiar with Fullmetal Alchemist or Dark Souls but I tried making a more simplified icon based on what I could google. There's also a fire element symbol and an inverted one with thicker lines, a  火 ‎for fire, and then some basic fire-y icons. I'm rather fond of the tree. I'm not well versed in iconography, so this was mainly for fun.

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Other colors are here: http://imgur.com/a/qpdWz

Thank you so much for doing this! I'll definitely be using the fire element symbol novelty, and as of now I'm trying to formulate a new bonfire novelty of my own. I'll also attempt to include more simple fire vectors (campfire and more interesting flames) and a row in the BFM color. I'll try to update with my ideas as soon as they're finished.

I agree with sentiments above and feel the novelties aren't very coherent. I feel like a Phenix would make sense as a novelty. I like the idea that Parva Ovis had of using a campfire icon as well.

Overall, this set looks great. Looking forward to this becoming a reality.

Campfire and Phoenix are both on the way. Thank you for the suggestions!

Neat, I'm not into DSA myself but the gradient legends and overall colors look good.

Just throwing an idea out there, maybe you can spin the flame colors of burning chemicals into some sort of addon kit, obviously not as a new set of alphas

Show Image

Planning on adding a touch of blue to my novelties. I think the idea of different legend colors would work really well as an esc kit though. I'll get on it and see how it looks.

I am very interested, and did the poll (grey alphas plz).

I'm really glad you decided to go with DSA profile, I just really like that look.

Also the Dark Souls bonfire novelty is awesome!

Finally, the news. I sent mockups to SP asking for a quote on kits that support both brown and grey alphas. The survey is nearly tied atm with brown edging out just slightly, but I really do believe that both can be done. I'll post here when I hear back from them with the potential pricing. As cool as it would be, it's worthless to offer both sets if they're both too expensive to buy. Hopefully the fact that it's DSA will bring down the price a bit. My fingers remain crossed!

On a different note, bonfire novelty is here to stay! It'll just be a little different than it is now.

[Rykno]

set is coming along nicely! I love the gradient!

[Sensorium]

Made the set more simple fire designs and less esoteric stuff. Also took out the middle row and added a light blue color row. The kit looks more focused now and I decided to keep a couple of my favorite designs anyways. I'm pretty happy with it overall.


I made the transmutation circle a little thicker, but it may still be too ornate. There's always room to simplify it, make it even thicker, or just cut it. (btw I couldn't find or make a phoenix that fit well with the theme. The phoenix is just too majestic for this set!)

In response to Oblotzky, I took a moment and made this esc kit:


If anything, this is the best way to incorporate colored flames into the set.

On another note, I've sent a lot of information to SP and I'm hoping that my set ideas are economical enough to allow for both alpha colors. We'll just have to wait and see. In the meantime, thanks for all of the suggestions!

[CampAsAChamp]

Made the set more simple fire designs and less esoteric stuff. Also took out the middle row and added a light blue color row. The kit looks more focused now and I decided to keep a couple of my favorite designs anyways. I'm pretty happy with it overall.
(Attachment Link)

I made the transmutation circle a little thicker, but it may still be too ornate. There's always room to simplify it, make it even thicker, or just cut it. (btw I couldn't find or make a phoenix that fit well with the theme. The phoenix is just too majestic for this set!)

In response to Oblotzky, I took a moment and made this esc kit:
(Attachment Link)





If anything, this is the best way to incorporate colored flames into the set.

On another note, I've sent a lot of information to SP and I'm hoping that my set ideas are economical enough to allow for both alpha colors. We'll just have to wait and see. In the meantime, thanks for all of the suggestions!

ooooh, big fan of that escape kit, another idea might be to swap the legend and cap color, so the cap is the blue/green/red and the legend is black.

Don't know how it would look but just throwing it out there.

Definitely a big fan of this set.

[Nuggetfish]

This definitely tops my want list.

[Sensorium]

Made the set more simple fire designs and less esoteric stuff. Also took out the middle row and added a light blue color row. The kit looks more focused now and I decided to keep a couple of my favorite designs anyways. I'm pretty happy with it overall.
(Attachment Link)

I made the transmutation circle a little thicker, but it may still be too ornate. There's always room to simplify it, make it even thicker, or just cut it. (btw I couldn't find or make a phoenix that fit well with the theme. The phoenix is just too majestic for this set!)

In response to Oblotzky, I took a moment and made this esc kit:
(Attachment Link)





If anything, this is the best way to incorporate colored flames into the set.

On another note, I've sent a lot of information to SP and I'm hoping that my set ideas are economical enough to allow for both alpha colors. We'll just have to wait and see. In the meantime, thanks for all of the suggestions!

ooooh, big fan of that escape kit, another idea might be to swap the legend and cap color, so the cap is the blue/green/red and the legend is black.

Don't know how it would look but just throwing it out there.

Definitely a big fan of this set.

Although inverting the colors would probably make it a good kit to use with a lot of other set I hesitate to make that change because it makes the keys too bright for a set that's dark overall. Unfortunately they just stick out like a sore thumb.

IMO the different colors stand out just as much as they need to when they're in the legends.

This definitely tops my want list.

Thanks! I'm really hoping to make this one happen!

[owacle]

Awesome!

[topsykrett]

This set looks great! The gradient colors are great and I'd be happy with either the brown or the grey. Count me in

For the novelties.. I really like the minimalist "elemental" style (I don't know how else to call it) of some of the icons.

The bottom row icon here is great and is the style im referring to. I also like the idea of maybe having an extra of that key in a lighter blue color

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I think I also prefer a few of the icons from Parva. Such as the fire (row 1, column 2), ds bonfire (row 2, column 2), and the kanji. I would consider dropping the transmute circle for the kanji (or anything else). The phoenix idea is great too.

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I also like some of the fire icons from here. Specifically the one at row 2, column 1

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Anyway.. I don't know anything about making icons and such, but these are just my opinions. Really looking forward to the set!

[Nuggetfish]

I would prefer Parva's wider Dark Souls bonfire personally.

[TheDisappointingGatsby]

I'm totally into this! Looks great!

[Sensorium]

This set looks great! The gradient colors are great and I'd be happy with either the brown or the grey. Count me in

For the novelties.. I really like the minimalist "elemental" style (I don't know how else to call it) of some of the icons.

The bottom row icon here is great and is the style im referring to. I also like the idea of maybe having an extra of that key in a lighter blue color

More

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I think I also prefer a few of the icons from Parva. Such as the fire (row 1, column 2), ds bonfire (row 2, column 2), and the kanji. I would consider dropping the transmute circle for the kanji (or anything else). The phoenix idea is great too.

More

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I also like some of the fire icons from here. Specifically the one at row 2, column 1

More

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Anyway.. I don't know anything about making icons and such, but these are just my opinions. Really looking forward to the set!

I would prefer Parva's wider Dark Souls bonfire personally.

Taking your compliments and criticisms to heart, I've come up with this selection:


I made all of the icons smaller so that they feel more muted and minimal. I feel like this change has the biggest impact by far. I was imagining that they would be about this size, so it was really my mockups that were incorrect :confused:.

I made an icon from your selection of fire icon and one from my own. I think both are very nice and fit with the theme of the set. I kept the Avatar symbol because it's awesome. I changed the bonfire symbol to the thicker one, which made it possible to downsize it. Finally, I added back the Huo (the kanji) key using a calligraphic font that's sort of in between my original icon and Parva's very straightforward one. While I'm a little sad that I have to kick out my transmutation circle key, I'm not too broken up. Besides, I don't think it would work at this size anyways!

I also included some other designs for novelties. I intended for the icon from my KLE renders to be in the base set as a replacement for the windows key, but if that doesn't work out I definitely want to make it a novelty. The other one is a campfire icon that I feel fits better with the theme. Think of these what you will.

Thank you for all of your input!

Awesome!

I'm totally into this! Looks great!

Thank you for the support guys!

Now this question is for everyone. As of now for each novelty design I have two R1 1.25u keys, and 1u keys on R2, R4, R5, the function row, and a special blue row. If people feel like novelties for certain rows will be of little use, I can strike rows to add more designs and keep the price point sane. Tell me if you like this idea. Thank you!

[Parva Ovis]

What's the purpose of having two of each 1.25u novelty? If the windows key does end up a thematic symbol (which I love the idea, btw) then there are only 5 keys left to cover and six novelties to choose from. I don't think the extra duplicate 1.25u keys are necessary, since most people probably don't care about having their alts and ctrls matching on each side.

As for my personal use: I would definitely use the bottom row 1.25u novelties and the blue novelties. The other colors, *shrug*... I might use one of the OB color, but only if it happens to stay in the kit. I would rather give up the YBP/YL/etc colors for more novelties or a better price point.

EDIT: I was thinking over it a little more and from what I've seen, most people seem to use novelty keycaps on Esc, Win, and anywhere where they can't get a key with the correct legend. So if one looks at which popular layouts have keys that aren't covered by the kits available, and the specific rows they are, that should give a better idea of which rows to keep.

DOUBLE EDIT: The 60% render in the OP shows an ESC in YL, but none of the kits offer this.

[Sensorium]

What's the purpose of having two of each 1.25u novelty? If the windows key does end up a thematic symbol (which I love the idea, btw) then there are only 5 keys left to cover and six novelties to choose from. I don't think the extra duplicate 1.25u keys are necessary, since most people probably don't care about having their alts and ctrls matching on each side.

As for my personal use: I would definitely use the bottom row 1.25u novelties and the blue novelties. The other colors, *shrug*... I might use one of the OB color, but only if it happens to stay in the kit. I would rather give up the YBP/YL/etc colors for more novelties or a better price point.

EDIT: I was thinking over it a little more and from what I've seen, most people seem to use novelty keycaps on Esc, Win, and anywhere where they can't get a key with the correct legend. So if one looks at which popular layouts have keys that aren't covered by the kits available, and the specific rows they are, that should give a better idea of which rows to keep.

DOUBLE EDIT: The 60% render in the OP shows an ESC in YL, but none of the kits offer this.

Oops to your double edit . I'll make this change to the materials I have ASAP. The selection of kits that I'm hoping for is a little more complicated than what I have laid out right now, so what you get is hopefully better than what you see. I'll update the post with information whether it works out or not.

The reason I wanted two 1.25u keys is so that people could use one design on both windows keys. Maybe just doing a couple of designs like that (e.g. the icon from the KLE renders) would be best, but I definitely want to provide people with the option to use the same design for both windows keys.

As for novelty rows, I think I'm going to take out all of the alpha rows (2, 3, and 4). Most people only use novelties on the function, number, and spacebar rows, so those are the rows I'll provide. I hope that puts the kit in a better place. As for keys that aren't covered by my kits, I'm not totally sure how to go about solving this. I thought I did a decent job of covering a lot of layouts, and aside from the absence of a Colevorak kit (which I included in my submission to SP) I can't see much of anything that I haven't covered except maybe some 65% layouts. If you see anything that's missing, please inform me and I'll add it to the relevant kit. Either way, I really appreciate all of your input with the novelties. I'm hoping it leads to a kit that everyone likes!

[topsykrett]

Taking your compliments and criticisms to heart, I've come up with this selection:

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This new novelty selection looks awesome. I really like them.

Now this question is for everyone. As of now for each novelty design I have two R1 1.25u keys, and 1u keys on R2, R4, R5, the function row, and a special blue row. If people feel like novelties for certain rows will be of little use, I can strike rows to add more designs and keep the price point sane. Tell me if you like this idea. Thank you!

Definitely need the matching bottom row 1.25 keys. Maybe bottom row 1u keys to replace fn keys as well. Other than that, maybe just 1u to replace the ESC key. Also, what do you mean by "a special blue row"? Just each novelty in a blue color?

[Sensorium]

Taking your compliments and criticisms to heart, I've come up with this selection:

Show Image

This new novelty selection looks awesome. I really like them.

Now this question is for everyone. As of now for each novelty design I have two R1 1.25u keys, and 1u keys on R2, R4, R5, the function row, and a special blue row. If people feel like novelties for certain rows will be of little use, I can strike rows to add more designs and keep the price point sane. Tell me if you like this idea. Thank you!

Definitely need the matching bottom row 1.25 keys. Maybe bottom row 1u keys to replace fn keys as well. Other than that, maybe just 1u to replace the ESC key. Also, what do you mean by "a special blue row"? Just each novelty in a blue color?

Yeah "special blue row" is just what I'm calling the blue keys. My best plan for novelties is to offer two 1.25 unit keys for the 3 most popular designs, one for every other design, and then do 1u novelties for R4, R5, and the "blue row." I might consider doing 1u R1 novelties for Planck people if it doesn't add too much to the cost.

[quadfreak]

Just wanted to say that I absolutely love this set and can't wait for it to see the light of day Keep up the good work!
 

[TheNamesTy45]

This set with the gray alphas makes me drool. Also, the novelties for this are gorgeous. Love this set, awesome work!

[nightdriver]

DSA's not my cup of tea but i like the concept!

[Parva Ovis]

One thought I had to cut down the number of keys would be to eliminate the alpha-color f-keys in the TKL kit, in favor of 1-12 f-keys in NN color. That would eliminate 8 excess keys and the only thing lost would be the "striped" f-key look.

With the announcement/teaser of a split space-bar on the Sentraq 84, the interest check on the Banana Split, and the various other split space-bar boards, it might be worthwhile for a spacebar kit or something similar, just a thought.

Some of the Backspace keys are incorrectly shown as Back Space.

Also, people have started receiving their Chocolatier sets, and the modifiers on those are TBN, for anyone who's curious about how dark it actually is. I very much like the color.

[Triviumtek Supporter]

Wow, this keyset look so good :3