Inspiration

Spudbox wanted to know about my inspiration. The dictionary definition isn't that different from "motivation": the process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something. What is it really?

It also means "where do your ideas come from?" Let me see if I can answer that more interesting question now that I've completed the title screen music.

First I looked at the title screen art. This image has been featured on this blog before. (Hat tip HereAndNow.)

What stands out here? The light shining down from the heavens through the tower to the statues staring down onto the monarch, and monarch looking up at the statues. I get a sense of the monarch being aware of this exact moment in history, and comparing himself to the great men of the past. Also, the light, the tower, and the army signify the marriage of martial and magical forces.

The image evokes physical sensations as well. Between the stone and the light, a sense of brightness and heaviness, all at once.

Do I think about this consciously? No. I'm observing my emotional reactions and how my eyes follow the various elements on the screen.

Then I studied the game's lore. An ancient empire. The Scarlet Witch King. The Cataclysm. The Fall of the Lloroi. Barbarian tribes becoming kingdoms. The war for Minaria. In all this, the fall of the Lloroi stood out. It sets up everything that follows - perfect for the title screen. Now I was working with light, stone, magic, war, and the fall of an ancient, powerful race.

Keeping these elements in mind, I wrote this piece.