Topic: So I wanna make a CG Castlevania webseries

[Claimh Solais]

I'm gonna be making it through Source Filmmaker, with the character models and such being created through Blender. And I wanted to actually do an adaption of the Castlevania storyline. The question I'm wondering is... how far in the timeline should I go, without it seeming too redundant?

My initial thought was for it to adapt the first three chronological games, with working Legends into the series canon. So basically being Lament of Innocence, to detail the rise of Dracula, moving on to Legends, and finally going on to Dracula's Cruse which will detail the defeat of Dracula.

I'd like to detail more out of the series plot after that, but I don't know how much I could possibly input without the webseries feeling redundant. So I was wondering if anyone had any ideas on that?

[X]

The only pretty boy in there should be Alucard. Every other dude needs to look dudes.

[theANdROId]

The only pretty boy in there should be Alucard...

Just...please...don't make him sparkle...please. 

[Claimh Solais]

Ttttttttttttthose didn't answer my question at all? I already have ideas in my head for how I want the characters to look.

[VladCT]

Considering characterization of the Belmonts tend to be pretty bare-bones, you might want to expand on that.

[theANdROId]

X-D Sorry! (and I just posted elsewhere how annoying it is that people do that!)

I don't have any ideas right now...but if I think of something I'll let you know.  Also, for what it's worth, I'll be keeping an eye on this thread too, so maybe I'll think of something to share.

[X]

I think Claimh Solais, if you intend to have both LoI and Legends in the same continuity then you need to decide about what elements of both titles should remain while others are changed or removed. I would personally remove the Dracula/Mathias connection entirely, but that's just me personally.

[Claimh Solais]

I think Claimh Solais, if you intend to have both LoI and Legends in the same continuity then you need to decide about what elements of both titles should remain while others are changed or removed. I would personally remove the Dracula/Mathias connection entirely, but that's just me personally.

The reason I don't want to remove the whole Dracula/Mathias connection is that also serves as a personal connection to the Belmonts. Having a protagonist/antagonist connection other than "oh, it's my destiny to fight this guy!" serves to actually to make the plot deeper.

[Kale]

Make Trevor extremely righteous.
Make Richtor extremely arrogant, and a playboy.
Make LoI guy extremely mopy.
Make Sonia ..... uh..... ..... .... ..... bitchy? I don't know.

Alucard can be mopy, righteous, and overly dramatic.

[Claimh Solais]

Well, what I meant by "making the series less redundant" is... Basically, the basic concept of each Castlevania story is pretty much this:

-Dracula is revived
-Hero travels to castle
-Hero vanquishes Dracula

This is why my initial plan was to just end the series after Dracula's first defeat in Dracula's Curse. Below are SOME ideas I thought about, but I wanna know other people's thoughts on them, too.

-LoI, Legends, and Dracula's Curse all could tell the tale of Dracula's rise to power to his first defeat. LoI will keep the Leon/Mathias friendship, and actually spend an episode detailing it, in order to build up some audience-to-Mathias connections and actually feel for the guy.

-The Legends era could fill in some of the gap between LoI and CV3. First off, removing the idea of Sonia and Alucard having a romance between them, and instead give them a brothers-in-arms type relationship. The beginning of this arc could discuss the Belmont family as the generations went on, and Sonia's training, as well as the birth of Alucard, and even make some mention of characters like Lyudmil.

-During this time, neither Sonia nor Alucard are not strong enough to defeat Dracula, and he easily defeats both of them. Sonia is nearly killed by Dracula, but Alucard sacrifices himself to save her, and Sonia manages to escape. This leads to the Belmont lineage being able to continue, as well as explain Alucard being under Dracula's influence in CV3.

-The plot for Legends and CV3 could develop the rest of the world of CV, as well. Bringing in direct views of Lisa, and her being burned as a witch. As well as bring Hector and Isaac into the plot of both of them. It could also show the effects of Dracula's curse on Wallachia, and how men and women are being poisoned and tainted by it.

-After Dracula's Curse, I could basically skip all the way to the Dracula X era, as everything in between is either largely plotless, or a premature birth of Dracula. As well, the Dracula X era is the next era that features both a Belmont and Alucard as the protagonists. I don't want Alucard to suddenly disappear from the storyline, as I want him to be built as a recurring protagonist.

-LoI, CV3, and SotN would all serve as lengthier arcs, with Legends and RoB serving as shorter arcs with less episodes. Legends will feature a short introduction that bridges the gap between LoI and Legends, and RoB will have a short introduction that will bridge the gap between CV3 and RoB. And then SotN could end with the final redemption of Dracula.

Please note these are all just ideas. I don't know how long I want the series to be, but I know that AT MOST (again, AT MOST) an arc would be approx. 8-10 episodes, each anywhere from 10-15 minutes long. Maybe up to 20 for finale episodes. The plot of 1094-1476 doesn't seem TOO ambitious, but covering the entire timeline definitely is.

This is how I feel about adapting any of the parts of the timeline:

(click to show/hide)

-1094: Lament of Innocence - A perfect start to the timeline, definitely adapting. Will definitely include an introductory episode that introduces the audience to Leon and Mathias, as well as their relationship with one another and other characters.

-1450: Legends - Good story to bridge the gap between LoI and CV3. Parts of the story would be rewritten in order to fit with the exposition provided by the LoI arc. Sonia and Alucard would lose their battle against Dracula, with Sonia escaping, and continuing the Belmont lineage, and Alucard being captured and mind-controlled (or something) by Dracula. Could include details about how the curse is affecting the land, include details about Sonia's family, and Lyudmil with Alucard, as well as include Hector and Isaac into the plot. Could probably end with Sonia's fight against Dracula probably provoking Dracula's army to attack the villages or something, which, along with the superhuman powers of the Belmonts, ultimately leads to the clan's exile.

-1476: Dracula's Curse - Good story in order to detail Dracula's first defeat. There's a decent amount of time to imply that Trevor is the son of Sonia, and was taught by her. Could further show the affects of the curse on the land. As well, it could further develop the personalities of Grant and Sypha, as well as develop the relationship between the four heroes. Hector's departure from Dracula's forces and Isaac's pursuit could perhaps throw Dracula's forces into disarray, which assists Trevor and co. in their fight against Dracula. As well, there ARE four of them this time, which could lead to Dracula's overall defeat. The Belmont reputation could be restored, yada yada yada.

-1479: Curse of Darkness - ...I'unno. I honestly don't really feel like adapting this one. First off, it's a non-Belmont/non-Alucard who defeats Dracula. And rewriting it to where Trevor winds up being the one to defeat Drac ultimately devalues the whole purpose of Hector being the protagonist to begin with. I don't want to completely rewrite it with Trevor being the protagonist, either. Overall, I can safely say this story will not be adapted for the series.

-1576: The Adventure - Christopher is a character I'd like to include, but overall, there's not much I can really work with in terms of plot for this one. It would, overall, require an almost entirely original plot, since the original isn't much more than Belmont Slays Dracula. I don't think I'll be adapting this part. I'll say this once, also, I'm not at all big on adding in OCs into the main Castlevania storyline.

-1591: Belmont's Revenge - The same for The Adventure applies here, only this time there's a BIT of added plot, with Soleil being kidnapped. But overall, it still leaves Christopher and Soleil as the only real characters, without a ton of original plot.

-1691: Castlevania - I really want to include Simon's chapter into the series, as he's the original Belmont. But... again, there's nothing to really work with. Every version of CV1 is still Belmont Slays Dracula, and would require an entirely original plot.

-1698: Simon's Quest - This story is pointless without Simon's previous venture. There's too much missing exposition without the previous adventure. Not to mention there's still not a lot to work with.

-1748: Harmony of Dissonance - Despite this one having much more to work with than previous outings, I don't really want to include it. Firstly, a lot of the backstory is left vague without Simon's plot being shown. Which is fine, yes. But overall, it seems like a pointless addition to the storyline of a webseries. Sure, it's got a Belmont. But it really doesn't contribute to the overall plot much at all, and hell, Drac's not even in the story.

-1792: Rondo of Blood - I'm definitely up to including this one. Richter is the last Belmont to wield the Vampire Killer whip before their departure from it until 1999. It features both a Belmont slaying Dracula, along with a storyline that has a decent amount of characters to keep a short arc running. And it leads into SotN, which is a pretty defining moment in the overall storyline.

-1797: Symphony of the Night - I'm definitely up to including this one, too. RoB leads into this one, and it includes both a Belmont and Alucard as the main protagonists, on top of including Maria as one, too. This could lead into a final battle against Dracula, where he's ultimately redeemed by Alucard.

-1830: Circle of the Moon - Another instance of a non-Belmont/non-Alucard slaying Dracula, and one that doesn't really contribute to the overall storyline to boot. I adored this game and its simplistic plot, but it honestly doesn't have a place in this series.

-18??: Order of Ecclesia - I'd honestly be up to adding this one as a story that could bridge the gap of the no-Belmont era. I'm okay with Shanoa being the hero who defeats Dracula this time around, simply because she uses Dracula's own power to do so. Not to mention this is probably one of the better stories in the CV universe as a whole.

-1844-1852: Legacy of Darkness - Just not really up to adding this plot at all. It has a dramatically different tone from the entirety of the series.

-1897: Bram Stoker's Dracula - Nope. Not adding this at all.

-1917: Bloodlines - Don't want to add this one, either. There's a decent enough amount to work with, but I just don't want to add it.

-1944: Portrait of Ruin - Not adding this, either. I want the overall main villain to be Count Dracula, and Dracula himself was hamfisted into this plot (which would have been better overall without him in it to begin with).

-1999: Demon Castle War - I will not be making a story for this. Not only is there not much to work with, there's also about three characters that could even be put into this plot, and like I said, I'm not creating OCs for this series (although I will if they're a version of an unnamed character that was mentioned in the actual games). I won't be putting my own spin on this, at all.

-2035: Aria of Sorrow - If I go this far into the timeline, then yes, I want to include this. Firstly, I'll make the plot darker. It won't revolve around friendship and love, though there will still be some of that. The plot will be expanded, and I'll probably take some of the characters from DoS and apply them to this plot here. Overall, this is the PERFECT ending for the series, assuming it does reach this far. Mathias' second chance at life. What better way to end the series? Also, there would be an introductory episode that would talk about the "abyss" that Dracula was sent to that (re)corrupted him, the battle of 1999, and Dracula's final defeat at the hands of the Belmont clan. Also, it will be explained in this arc (properly) as to why it takes place in Japan.

-2036: Dawn of Sorrow - I will not be adapting this. As I stated, AoS is the perfect ending to the series. DoS I felt was just a pointless extension of the plot. As I stated above, I will probably rework some of DoS' cast into AoS, as I like some of the things they brought to the table (particularly Dario). But I won't be moving past 2035 in the series' plot.

Phew. There. So, thoughts?

(PS: I apologize for the nonsensical form of this post. I'm like... half-asleep right now.)

EDIT: Neglected to mention that the 10-15 timespan per episode also includes the time for the intro and credits. Those would be anywhere from 30 seconds to a minute, depending on how many people I have contributing to the project. So basically, I'd see it being:

-30 seconds of footage for the intro (1 minute of footage at longest)
-9 minutes of episode footage (13 minutes of footage at longest)
-30 seconds of footage for the credits (1 minute of footage at longest)

[VladCT]

Do you have any problems with adapting and expanding Haunted Castle's plot for Castlevania? It's a bit cliché, but it's better than nothing.

[Claimh Solais]

Do you have any problems with adapting and expanding Haunted Castle's plot for Castlevania? It's a bit cliché, but it's better than nothing.

I mean, I could. But like other versions of the same story, it really doesn't have much to go on. There are only three characters (Simon, Serena, Dracula), and overall, it doesn't really contribute much to the overall series plot. Though perhaps I could adapt it into a short film for practice on using the program?

[VladCT]

You could try figuring out the motive for Dracula's kidnapping of Serena, and then work your way from there.

[theplottwist]

You could try figuring out the motive for Dracula's kidnapping of Serena, and then work your way from there.

Well I suggest something here:

Original Castlevania says that Dracula was ressurrected by wicked humans on easter day.
Haunted Castle says that Dracula kidnapped Serena while Simon and Serena were comming out of their wedding.

I say: Have Simon and Serena have their wedding on easter day, and Serena be kidnapped by cultists as a sacrifice for Dracula. Have they wait until they are married to do it, and then some obscure ritual-prophecy say that a sacrifice for Dracula that was united to another soul under God can bring Dracula back much more powerful.

Either that or have the prophecy say that sacrificing one sworn enemy of Dracula to bring him back will be much more effetive. Simon is Dracula's enemy by bloodline, but the cultists would never be able to kidnap such a powerful foe, so they wait until the ceremony is over (Serena is technically a Belmont now, and much easier to kidnap), distract Simon and take her away to sacrifice.

Sorry man, my mind was racing and I had to type

[Claimh Solais]

Well I suggest something here:

Original Castlevania says that Dracula was ressurrected by wicked humans on easter day.
Haunted Castle says that Dracula kidnapped Serena while Simon and Serena were comming out of their wedding.

I say: Have Simon and Serena have their wedding on easter day, and Serena be kidnapped by cultists as a sacrifice for Dracula. Have they wait until they are married to do it, and then some obscure ritual-prophecy say that a sacrifice for Dracula that was united to another soul under God can bring Dracula back much more powerful.

Either that or have the prophecy say that sacrificing one sworn enemy of Dracula to bring him back will be much more effetive. Simon is Dracula's enemy by bloodline, but the cultists would never be able to kidnap such a powerful foe, so they wait until the ceremony is over (Serena is technically a Belmont now, and much easier to kidnap), distract Simon and take her away to sacrifice.

Sorry man, my mind was racing and I had to type

Hmm... This is a pretty good synopsis for a short film. I could definitely work off of this, if it's a one-shot type thing.