Hello everyone, and welcome to the third installment of Troop Spotlight, the blog series that features individual discussions of each of the Troops from OgreWare’s Calling All Heroes. And today’s Troop is one creature that actually deserves a “Cute but Evil” novelty T-shirt. That’s right, today we are talking about the Imp!
The Imp was designed fairly early on in the Calling All Heroes arsenal of Troops, and his design still makes me smile. He’s not just another pretty (pretty?!) face – he’s got a story behind his creation.
I was actually in the hospital when I designed him, due to a random health malfunction that made me not only have to be in the hospital but miss a family vacation. Bah. Health, am I right? What’s up with that? Anyway, I was pretty down due to missing the vacation and being stuck in the hospital, but nevertheless, I had assignments from OgreWare, so I brought my sketchbook and some Sharpies.
That’s right, the Imp was created on crummy sketchbook paper, with Sharpies. Never let ANYONE tell you you can’t do game design (or any other kind of art) because you need Schminke paints or Photoshop or a Cintiq. Sharpies, in a pinch, and with a little adjustment, can do it just as well.
The Imp was actually inspired by an existing character, but not one from any familiar franchise, or even a book or story. It was “Impy,” a persona that my younger brother used to adopt in order to amuse us. See, my brother had serious Middle Child syndrome as a kid – act out, be silly, make ALL the jokes. So “Impy” was just one of many characters he invented. The Imp had a really scratchy voice, and when my brother’s voice started cracking and getting lower, he couldn’t do the Imp’s voice anymore. Which is pretty sad – I kinda miss that little demonic fellow. He was funny and a good addition to our already wonderfully strange family.
But Impy lives on – in spirit, in family memory, and now in Calling All Heroes as the Imp Troop.
When OgreWare got hold of the Imp Troop, they provided a version that is absolutely delicious. Deliciously EVIL. Behold the Imp and its sweeter cousin, the Candy Imp:
That’s about it for this Troop Spotlight. Thanks for being with us. As always, leave any questions or comments in the comment section below. We’d love to hear from you!
~Admin Julian