Solutions to "Build Block" / Creative Block

[Sachys]

I figure we all get this from time to time - as someone who works as an artist and designer, its my absolute bane professionally.
Often I'll watch a film, read a book, take a walk or even play a game thematically detached from what I'm working on. Sometimes its just not enough.
Right now I'm finding a severe case of block in game, regarding the building of a new station - I've tried various things, and even done several different part-builds in an attempt to find something I can just run with. I just keep going in circles.

As I've no doubt there are others among you in the same wormhole, I figured a thread could maybe help - either with suggestions of things to do to freshen the brain and rid it of cobwebs, direct suggestions of inspiration if anybody has a specific issue they themselves face, or just pointing to an interesting build on the dock.

EDIT: If anybody has any useful input, I'll link it here.

Ship of the Month - working from a part built hull.
Make a model first / try Lego.
Have an audiobook or audiodrama on in the background.
View some concept art (example link).
Try building basic / smaller / different to your goal.
Pixel Art Concepting

[doublepost=1488564209,1488563874][/doublepost]


Working from Abstract
One thing I do artistically (that may be of use to many of you generally), is to begin a painting from an abstract base (something thats more difficult to do in starmade).

I'll often utilise a free drawing program for this: Alchemy

Heres a video showing how it can be used. While this only shows it for 2d work, it can be handy to make an unusual silhouette to work upon for ships, stations or anything else.



Voxel Sketchpads?

Well, looks like I've stumbled upon a nice little free "sketchpad" for voxel builders: MagicaVoxel

"A free lightweight 8-bit voxel editor and interactive path tracing renderer, enjoy License : feel free to use it for any project, no commercial licences required, credits are appreciated"

Havent yet tried it out myself, but I'm damned sure someone reading this will end up making great use of it!

Edit: Jojomo has amade a MagicaVoxel to Sm converter and loaded up to the CC:
MagicaVoxel to StarMade Converter

 

[Top 4ce]

I figure we all get this from time to time - as someone who works as an artist and designer, its my absolute bane professionally.
Often I'll watch a film, read a book, take a walk or even play a game thematically detached from what I'm working on. Sometimes its just not enough.
Right now I'm finding a severe case of block in game, regarding the building of a new station - I've tried various things, and even done several different part-builds in an attempt to find something I can just run with. I just keep going in circles.

As I've no doubt there are others among you in the same wormhole, I figured a thread could maybe help - either with suggestions of things to do to freshen the brain and rid it of cobwebs, direct suggestions of inspiration if anybody has a specific issue they themselves face, or just pointing to an interesting build on the dock.
[doublepost=1488564209,1488563874][/doublepost]One thing I do artistically (that may be of use to many of you generally), is to begin a painting from an abstract base (something thats more difficult to do in starmade).

I'll often utilise a free drawing program for this: Alchemy

Heres a video showing how it can be used. While this only shows it for 2d work, it can be handy to make an unusual silhouette to work upon for ships, stations or anything else.

I came into this thread thinking it's one thing, and come out thinking "Wow, cool thread."

My method is usually just sketch shapes till my subconscious starts to put things together. Looking forward to more of this.

 

[Sachys]

I came into this thread thinking it's one thing, and come out thinking "Wow, cool thread."

My method is usually just sketch shapes till my subconscious starts to put things together. Looking forward to more of this.

you'll probably like alchemy then - you can even use shapes like motor parts to build up form.

* * * * *
Another interesting free program is Sculptris - basically a free version of ZBrush. Doesnt require a monster rig to run well either. While its format suits organic modelling far better than spaceships, it has the same effect on your brain as plastecine.

 

[Gasboy]

What has helped me with build block is Raiben's "Ship of the Month". You get an incomplete shell that you take and make a ship from. It helped me get around the major stumbling block for me: trying to get the shape of the hull 'right'. With an incomplete shell, you have the basic idea of the ship's hull, so the decision is already made. That made it much easier to build the ship for me.

 

[Sachys]

What has helped me with build block is Raiben's "Ship of the Month". You get an incomplete shell that you take and make a ship from. It helped me get around the major stumbling block for me: trying to get the shape of the hull 'right'. With an incomplete shell, you have the basic idea of the ship's hull, so the decision is already made. That made it much easier to build the ship for me.

I've done projects like that for concept art and book covers before - its kind of similar to working from abstract, but as you say, you have a predefined base to work from. Think I'll drop it on the list.

 

[Gasboy]

I've done projects like that for concept art and book covers before - its kind of similar to working from abstract, but as you say, you have a predefined base to work from. Think I'll drop it on the list.

Something else I'd add: play with some Lego. Sure, StarMade is all about blocks, but Lego lets you feel the shapes. It's more visceral, and probably evokes childhood memories in people as well. Nostalgia is a powerful force, and my muse often responds well to it.
[doublepost=1488565621,1488565458][/doublepost]Also! Something I've watched Criss do, and this is relevant for your server build, Sachys. Build a station mini. Criss did that for the outcast station he's currently building on the Starmade stream (Tues and Thurs at 4pm EST til 6pm EST). Might help you visualize things without having to use many hundreds of blocks to build a general outline or frame.

Criss simply used a dozen blocks and fiddled a bit til he got the shape he desired, then he started framing and building.

 

[Sachys]

Build a station mini.

Done that a few times with this - sadly the idea falls apart between the model and the full attempt in this case. Usually worth doing though.

Edit: and yes, Lego is a good idea.
[doublepost=1488566526,1488565851][/doublepost]Audiobooks and Audiodramas.
This is something I'll use often when painting, but more recently (due to starmades UTTER lack of sounds), when building in game. Because you aren't distracted by visuals, the audio will kick your mind into making visuals. While the sites I'm about to list have more "golden age" sci fi stuff than anything else relevant, I tend to find them good enough. X Minus One from archive.org is a great old time radio show - if you love old b-movies, give it a whirl.

Librivox - free audiobooks from the public domain

X Minus One at archive.org

Theres loads of good, modern free audiodramas too - if anybody is interested, ask and I'll get a list together.

 

[Gasboy]

Something else people can try: be creative in another art form. Try writing a short story, or painting or drawing.

I recently volunteered to DM a Dungeons and Dragons game, and in writing out stuff for that game, I've had a newfound urge to build in Starmade.

 

[Scypio]

I recently volunteered to DM a Dungeons and Dragons game, and in writing out stuff for that game, I've had a newfound urge to build in Starmade.

Where is the dragon so i can slay him !

Jokes asides, when i try to find ideas for specific things/details i generally search in my incredible provided folder where i store a whole lot of pictures or draw from the internet about space ships, stations, mechs, turrets and so on. As i am really good to mimic things, i usually take ideas or details that i like to keep going. Sometimes i ask the starmade chat too, as there is good people and builders in there or my girlfriend to get ideas or opinion from different people, she really like the process of designing shapes and getting opinions from different people is a good thing for the creative process.
Then, once everything is ready in my mind i draw it or trace some lines of grey hull in starmade to get some scafolding and the start of a general shape. I cannot count the number of shapes i rejected because i didn't liked the result when i traced the lines in starmade but once i'm happy with it usually is just a matter of time and detailing.

 

[MythrilJelly]

I tend to go on and off on my projects, I will do multiple projects at once and swap between them when I get bored of working on one or run out of ideas for it at the time. Nice to take breaks and build in other games too so I don't get burnt out on any of them, swapping around like my ship/station projects.

A nice playlist of music helps, I like upbeat chiptine for example. If it's not a busy day I'll throw that on and I'll be set for hours.

 

[Tamren Shade]

If I'm stuck, which usually happens just after I finish a ship (as I am now ). I'll start with the concept of what I want my next ship to be, and I'll spend a fair amount of time looking through google search images of starships with different tags (cruiser, battleship, corvette, frigate, fighter, bomber, etc, etc) and then I'll get an image/shape/idea in my brain.

I'll take that image and poke and prod at it while I'm at work, for better/worse I have a job that requires almost no mental input, and do some freehand sketches over my lunch break. The sketches turn into a series of shells, and about 1/5th of those shells have *something* that catches my eye/interest and make it into full ships.

When building, I've found that progressive and vocal trance stations on google play really help to put into the flow state that makes SM so addicting. Best of luck to you getting back into the zone!

 

[DrTarDIS]

"challenge builds"
Right now due to GFX-card-meltdown block more than creative block i'm limited in finishing my bigger projects.
Because of that, I've taken to a smaller project: Ships craftable from only scrap. Early-game survival-mode can be a PITA. However derelict station provide a lot of scrap for very little work. Thus building some "bootstrapping" ships you can make purely from recycling debris.
In this particular challence systems are a little limited, only the 3 power blocks, thrusters, salvage and storage. The only hull tones you can get are from grey and dark grey hull. Highlights can be made with activation gates, girders, mesh and grille. Luckily consoles and computers are scrap-craftable. Lights however are right-out, so emission-mapped blocks become important for your interior spaces (and/or flashlights).

Other challenge build ideas: 15 block type or less(or arbitrary limited number for easy BP filling), an overall shape you normally avoid (eg build wide if you normally build long), Copy-paste ready ship parts (halls, console setups, systems packages, thrusters of various sizes), etc...

 

[Snowtiger256]

I don't have a surefire way to deal with Builder's block, but what helps me cope with it is to go do something else instead of trying to force myself through the block. This can be everything from reading books to movies to games and stuff like that, maybe even some other project I've got that has nothing to do with SM. Sometimes a lazy night of random youtube videos or netflix helps me to relax and get into a state of mind that promotes creative flow and eases the tensions of everyday life.

Also, somebody in SMD chat suggested to just go and build something simple (well, the actual suggestion was a slightly annoyed "For frak's sake, Snow! Go build a wall!"), so sometimes it helps to go back to basics and just frak around with stuff until you get back into the flow of things. Somebody else in-game suggested building a platform of "Stuff" specifically for working on random ideas that pop into mind sporadically.

The important thing is not forcing yourself into doing something that makes you feel uncomfortable and stressed, because that kills the creative process and you'll just end up going "Nah!" on everything you do. If staring at a recently spawned core in SM and trying to come up with a design, or staring at a blank page in a word processor, while trying to madly come up with something to write about feels like trying to bash rocks with your forehead, maybe you oughta take a step back and go do something else for a change of pace. Getting into the right mood and state of mind helps the creative process alot.

 

[Sachys]

Also, somebody in SMD chat suggested to just go and build something simple (well, the actual suggestion was a slightly annoyed "For frak's sake, Snow! Go build a wall!"), so sometimes it helps to go back to basics and just frak around with stuff until you get back into the flow of things. Somebody else in-game suggested building a platform of "Stuff" specifically for working on random ideas that pop into mind sporadically.

This i can entirely agree with - both the pallete build and building basic (or small). Right now its not working from me, but I'll link this in the OP as general good advice!

Edit: I'll add this is turning into a good thread - stuff brought up I no longer have a concious process of, so its a good reminder for me as well. I'll often do these automatically, but usually miss one or two of these tricks.

Edit2: Also thanks everybody for your contributions thus far! Please, keep em coming - for all readers of the thread!

 

[Gasboy]

Also, somebody in SMD chat suggested to just go and build something simple (well, the actual suggestion was a slightly annoyed "For frak's sake, Snow! Go build a wall!"), so sometimes it helps to go back to basics and just frak around with stuff until you get back into the flow of things. Somebody else in-game suggested building a platform of "Stuff" specifically for working on random ideas that pop into mind sporadically.

I do this as well. I have a door thing and a long rail slider thing which helps me with logic and rail stuff.

 

[Edymnion]

When I do, I like to just go into Google Image Search and type in something like "Cool Spaceship" or "Custom spaceship model" and see what everybody else is doing.

I'll usually go "Oh I like the overall profile of this one, and the engines from this one, and ooh look at the hanger bays on this one... and this turret!" and by the time I'm done I've got enough new ideas to keep going for quite some time.

I also like to build things that you wouldn't normally think to build. Like I have a small castle built in a bubble for a station. Stone walls, drawbridge, cathedral, little farm off to one side, a forest to the other...

Why? Meh, why not?

 

[Deserea]

What i usually do is go play another game for a day, then spend a day or two looking for something that sparks my interest and then i come back!

Heck, reading a book can end my blockage too. Ive found that being limited to a specific theme though is incredibly hampering see the original idea for ASMs shipyard. Good idea, but limiting, a little to much for me at least.

 

[Sachys]

Been a while since this thread saw some activity, so consider this a BUMP for inspiration!

 

[Sachys]

Well, looks like I've stumbled upon a nice little free "sketchpad" for voxel builders: MagicaVoxel

"A free lightweight 8-bit voxel editor and interactive path tracing renderer, enjoy License : feel free to use it for any project, no commercial licences required, credits are appreciated"

Havent yet tried it out myself, but I'm damned sure someone reading this will end up making great use of it!

 

[Sachys]

Thought I'd fire this up again for those lost in a void of build block (or those just interested at any rate).

I've recently been dabbling in pixel art (not my usual thing to do, and have found it pretty useful for coming up with concepts for Starmade. below there are a couple of tutorials (one on thumbnail concepting - rather an important part of the concept art job) and a little timelapse to give you some idea.




If you think it may be of use to you, and want to try pixel art yourself, try Graphics Gale (its free, though there are many other programs).

* * * * *
Additionally, Brokengauge has a thread for you all to share your own concepts: Post your concepts!