Tourism of the Mind XV - Book II with more signs and a little hair

I know it seems like I'm not doing a lot of cover art lately, but I've actually worked a fair amount on Book IV (The Path Unconceived)--that is to say, the duel. I have figures, weapons, faces and hair, background landscape and text all done... just need to finish armouring them and add the background people. The only reason I haven't posted it yet is that Chevenga and Kallijas are in a shocking state of undress in which Kallijas at least would be mortified to be shown publicly. In fact Chevenga too, because DAZ figures are not anatomically correct.

But looking at the existing covers, I found things that need improving in each. I've already dropped Little Chevenga's shoulders for Book I. Book II, I felt, needed Skorsas standing in the gate, even if he is distant and out of focus. It also needs fan signs. I've had time this morning before going into a routine medical procedure just to add Skorsas:

I know, you can't see him at all. So here he is up close.

Hair and clothes are all DAZ except the gloves. I'll probably do a better version of him in the future, with fixed hair, for instance, and changes to the gloves, especially if I need him for future covers.

Update: Let's go closer in still on gorgeous Skorsas. Because I'm skimping on time, these images are pure DAZ... no mods at all, I didn't even get the tablet out. So they are not final versions of my fave boy at all.

Proof positive of what my momma always told me: "DAZ hair looks weeeeeeeird." (I get away with Niku's because it's black.) For a cover-worthy close-up Skorsas I will most definitely do a bald DAZ and find a good photo of his hair on the Net.

There are two other problems with this one: his face isn't shaped quite right--he should have a narrower, more delicate chin, and more slender lips--which you can't control well in DAZ, so I might have to turn to FaceGen; and, his eyes look too computer-generated. I could paint them so they're right, just haven't done it yet.

However, changing the camera angle and the position of his eyelids solves both problems for at least one image:

Now here he is with a Corel PhotoPaint brightness/colour transformation similar to ones I did on his whole self for the cover:

He himself would approve of how his hair is washed out so it looks Aitzas-blond.

Update: Signs!

To my eye, Skorsas is to scale with the crowd... what looked wrong when I thought about it was the gate. Going on the old biblical saying "If thy gate offends thee, delete it," I did... occurred to me the crossbar interfered with the sightlines anyway.

What, you don't read Arkan? Well, maybe you do... it's very English based. If not, what the readable signs say, top left to right and bottom left to right, is:

The one thing I'm worried about is that maybe they make the whole thing too messy... thoughts?

Update, July 8:

Okay here is the latest. I added more signs, including one whole and one torn-in-half depiction of C, plus ones that say "Living Greatest forever" and "Raikas, we love you." Arkans being an artistic people, notice how they've also invented a logo for the fighter they call Lightning Loner.

And I gave him a little bodily hair. Just a little as he's not a hirsute guy, and I've only hairificated the hairy parts of him that are not in shadow, figuring it won't show up in the shadow anyway.