Back in the day, many of the D&D Modules would have a seperate book or a section in the back of the main book that was illustrations of various scenes in the adventure. Thinking here of Barrier Peaks, White Plume Mountain, etc.

Now I know that modules have fallen out of favor, but what about a book (or .pdf if you must) that is nothing but illustrations? Just various things/people/places, for any genre, that could be used as "idea fodder" for GMs? Some people have better imaginations that others, and some are better at description, but I think this would be something neat regardless. They can even be in black and white, just like the old modules, so those of us who liked to color the illos can break out the old colored pencils again.

Anyone with publishing experience have an idea as to how expensive it would be to produce a product like that, as opposed to a written work? Maybe do "mini-packs" of 5 or 10 pictures of a common theme or "place" that GMs can use for their own adventures, if a larger book would be too cost prohibitive? I think illustrators would like a project like this too, because aside from a broad genre description they could run wild with it.

Just a thought.

I had forgotten about those Barrier Peaks images--those were fun!

There may be a market for this kind of thing... maybe... but for a publisher really good illustrations are more expensive to commission than really good text, no?

And today, in the age of the infraweb, you can find almost the exact image you need online if you apply yourself a bit. I was looking for images of the labyrinth of alleys in the old city of some fantasy metropolis at night. IIRC I googled "Lankhmar," and voila: screenshots from somebody's Lankhmar mod for the Quake computer game.

So, online you get to choose the images yourself, and they're free...

I think it could be a cool product, but I'd only buy it if the art was good. None of this crap art rationalized as good because it somehow reminds one of the old days. I mean real, honest-to-God professional quality art. Art of the level of quality of guys like Frazetta, Justin Sweet, Wayne Reynolds, Simon Bisley, Bernie Wrightson, the Kuberts, the Fraims, Dave Trampier, Bart Sears, Rags Morales, etc. That's what I'd buy.

You realize there are already TONS of books containing portfolios of fantasy art by one artist or another, many of them in very high quality.

They just aren't considered "RPG" materials, and probably sell better because of it.

Quote from: ConanMKYou realize there are already TONS of books containing portfolios of fantasy art by one artist or another, many of them in very high quality.

They just aren't considered "RPG" materials, and probably sell better because of it.

That's a really good point. Maybe we could assemble a list of books that would work well as RPG art.

I wish that there'd been more useful illos in Transhuman space. Like for the mobile helmet and gunpod. But they weren't even in the update for THS....