Deconstruct Reality
Adventurer’s Academy – Lesson 1: The First Step
You stand within the ancient halls of the Adventurer’s Academy, where countless artists have begun their journey. Stone walls rise high around you, adorned with murals depicting legendary heroes and mythical beasts—all formed from simple shapes. Before you lies a scroll marked with the Academy’s sigil: a flame rising from a circle, square, and triangle. As you unroll it, glowing text begins to appear:
“Every great masterpiece begins with a single shape. Master the basics, and the world shall bend to your brush. Now, step forward and let your training begin.”
📖 The Training Scrolls (YouTube Resources)
🛡 Begin your training with these guided studies from experienced sages!
🎯 Bonus Adventurer Challenges
For those who seek extra XP, test your skills with these side quests:
1️⃣ Shape Swap:
💰Reward: 20EXP
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Draw the same character using different dominant shapes—one round, one square, and one triangular. Reflect on how each shape affects the character’s personality.
2️⃣ Silhouette Test:
💰Reward: 15EXP
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Create a silhouette using basic shapes and challenge your fellow adventurers to guess what it is!
3️⃣ Shape Swap Challenge:
💰Reward: 20EXP
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Redesign an object using only one type of shape (e.g., a lamp made of circles, a chair built from triangles).
📜 Final Guildmaster’s Words
“A mighty castle begins with a single stone. So too does an artist’s journey begin with a single shape. Do not fear mistakes—they are marks of progress. With each stroke, your eyes will sharpen, and soon, you will see the world’s hidden structure.”
🔮Pro Challenge
Take a piece of your own artwork and break it down into shapes like we did with the references. Do the shapes you end up using support the shape language your piece would have needed for the feel you intended?
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Reward: 30 EXP
💡 Lesson Objective
Before wielding the tools of perspective and anatomy, an adventurer must learn to see the world as artists do—through circles, squares, and triangles. This lesson will train your eye to break complex forms into simple shapes, giving structure and clarity to everything you create.
Every complex object can be reduced to a few basic shapes:
🔵 Circles & Ovals – Soft, friendly, natural, flowing shapes
🟦 Squares & Rectangles – Stable, solid, structured, mechanical shapes
🔺 Triangles & Angular Forms – Sharp, aggressive, fast, dynamic shapes
When you overlay a reference with its simplest forms, you gain insight into how it’s constructed—allowing you to redraw, manipulate, and stylize it more effectively.
🔍 Step 1: Breaking Down a Reference
A skilled adventurer never rushes into battle blindly—they study the battlefield first. Similarly, an artist must analyze an image before drawing it.
When looking at any object or character, ask:
✅ What is the largest, most dominant shape?
✅ Are the edges soft (rounded), hard (boxy), or sharp (angular)?
✅ How do the shapes stack, overlap, or connect?
By recognizing these elements, you start seeing through the noise—eliminating unnecessary detail and focusing on the foundation of form.
Why Flat Shapes Matter
Shapes are the building blocks of every drawing. A character’s strength, a creature’s menace, or a landscape’s warmth all begin with these fundamental forms. By learning to see and use shapes effectively, you’ll unlock:
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Clearer Designs: Simplify complex forms into readable shapes.
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Stronger Composition: Arrange shapes to guide the viewer’s eye.
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Faster Sketching: Block out forms quickly, saving time in early drafts.
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Better Character Design: Use shape language to convey personality and mood.
📜 Your Training Mission
⚔️ Objective: Learn to break objects into their basic shapes and use those shapes to create simple, appealing designs.
💰Reward: 50EXP
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Object Breakdown: Choose three objects from your surroundings. Break each object into circles, squares, and triangles. Focus on capturing their core structure without details.
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Silhouette Challenge: Select a character or creature and draw its silhouette using only basic shapes. Ensure the character is recognizable by its outline alone.
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Speed Round: Set a timer for 5 minutes. Sketch as many objects as you can using only basic shapes. Focus on speed and confidence—no erasing!
✅ Post your results in Discord and earn XP toward your next rank!
🧩 Guildmaster’s Tips & Tricks Start Big, Then Refine: Begin with the largest shape and add smaller ones as needed. Shape Language Matters: Circles feel friendly and soft, squares feel strong and stable, and triangles feel dynamic and sharp. Use Reference Images: Study photos of animals, objects, and people to identify their core shapes. Stay Loose: Don’t aim for perfection—focus on capturing the general structure. Practice with Quick Sketches: Warm up by drawing rapid sketches using basic shapes to build muscle memory. Use Shape Overlays: Trace reference images using circles, squares, and triangles to train your eye to see shapes in complex forms.
Homework Images
