Sprites The Marshland- An Underground Minibiome

SnailsAttack

Dungeon Spirit
The_Marshland.png


kdcROYP.png


The marshland is a new mini biome which will generate somewhere in the underground, possibly near the jungle. It generates as a large open space which is about 350 blocks across and 100 blocks tall. It is made of and surrounded entirely by mud blocks covered in moss. There are several tar-filled ponds which surround one large lake.

Screen Shot 2016-07-24 at 2.37.46 PM.png

This is a really bad concept map but it gives the basis of the biome's appearance. It actually took like 45 minutes though. . c.

Blocks

Swamp_Tree.png

Mangrove Tree

A tree that will grow only on mossy mud. It drops Mangrove Wood, which is a whitish-beige. It can craft all the stuff that any other type of wood can.

Mud_Block_(placed).png

Mossy Mud

The mud that makes up the marshland will be coated in a fuzzy moss. From this moss, 2-3 block high grasses will grow at extremely rapid rates, almost four times as fast as normal. As well as this, mossy vines will grow from the ceiling in long 10-15 block strands which curl at the ends.

Blue_Dungeon_Chest.png

Mossy Chest

1-2 of these will generate in random areas of the marshland, most commonly in the tar lakes. They will contain mostly the normal golden chest loots, but also have a 100% chance of having one of the two of moss-based weapons shown below.

Tar.png

Tar

Tar is a thick, dark navy blue liquid which flows as slow as honey. If you go deeper than one block into it, you will be unable to jump or swim. A flipper potion will help to negate this effect, but only slightly. If you are completely submerged, it will begin dealing drowning damage immediately and at a 25% faster rate. Tar will naturally generate in the marshland, in pools within the underground, in corruption chasms, or most commonly, in the underground jungle. It also inflicts the Tarred debuff.

When it mixes with water, more tar will be created. When it mixes with lava, it will form a block of asphalt. However, if it happens to mix with honey, it will form tanzanite shavings.

Tarred_Debuff.png

Tarred

Inflicts halfed movement speed and no regeneration. Any entity inflicted with this will appear dark blue and drip tar.

Cattail.png

Cattail

This plant will grow exclusively on mossy grass, and when broken will drop one cattail fluff, which has uses in crafting potions.

Weapons & Items

Mossborne.png

Swampborne
23 Damage
Strong Knockback
Very Fast Usetime

Has the added effect of giving a very slight life-stealing ability.

Demon_Bow.png

Lichen Bow
23 Damage
6.5 Velocity
Average Usetime

Any enemy with more than 100 health that dies to it has a 25% chance of dropping a small, bouncing green orb which heals the player for 10 health on contact.

Tar_Lobber.png

Tar Lobber
15 Mana
25 Damage
Strong Knockback
Slow Usetime

Lobs a blob of tar at enemies, doing splash damage and inflicting the Tarred debuff.


Marsh_Rose.png

Marsh Rose

This rose will have a small chance to grow on any moss-covered mud block. If equipped, the player will gain increased life regen when in proximity to any form of plant life. It will apply from up to 5 blocks away from a plant.

Frozen_Key 2.png

Cattail Fluff

Dropped from cattails, used to craft potions. Has no other purpose.

Leaping_Potion.png

Potion of Leaping

Increases your jump height by 5 blocks. Crafted with a blinkroot, a waterleaf, and one cattail fluff.

Accuracy_Potion.png

Accuracy Potion

Causes the player's bullets to curve very slightly towards enemies, like a weaker version of chlorophyte bullets. Crafted with a blinkroot, a fireblossom, a daybloom, and 3 cattail fluffs.

Moss_Snail.png

Moss Snail

A cute little snail which appears covered in moss. It can be captured with a bug net and placed in a terrarium.


kdcROYP.png


Enemies

Tar_Zombie.png

Tar Zombie
225 Health
55 Contact Damage

The tar zombie acts just like a regular zombie, although much slower and tankier. It inflicts the Tarred debuff on contact.

Tar_Drippler.png

Tar Drippler
175 Health
35 Contact DmG
40 Projectile DmG

Another cheap recolor of a pre-existing enemy. It acts the same as a tar drippler. It has the ability to lob a ball of tar at the player. It also inflicts the Tarred debuff on contact.

Hardmode

FoxFire_Slime.png

Foxfire Slime
150 Health
55 Contact DmG
Drops :
Living_Cursed_Fire_Block.png
5%, 25-40
Cursed_Flame.png
2-4

Spawns in the marshland during hardmode. Has a chance to drop cursed flames. I know that they are intended to be for corruption worlds specifically, but I figured that there could also be some other way to get ichor as well.

FoxFire_Spirit.png

Foxfire Spirit
200 Health
70 Contact DmG
80 Projectile DmG
Drops :
Living_Cursed_Fire_Block.png
5%, 25-40
Cursed_Flame.png
3-5

Spawns uncommonly in the marshland during hardmode. Has a chance to drop cursed flames. Will fire a bouncing ball of cursed flames every now and then.

kdcROYP.png


130274-272d93c376c97dc385ebb26dea3a40e7.jpg.png
Tanzanite
130274-272d93c376c97dc385ebb26dea3a40e7.jpg.png


Tanzanite_Shavings.png

Tanzanite Shards

Tanzanite shards will form when tar makes contact with honey. If you break them and then combine 5 of them at a furnace, you will obtain one tanzanite gem.

Tanzanite.png

Tanzanite

A new indigo-colored gemstone which can be used in most of the same ways as other gemstones.

Large_Tanzanite.png

Large Tanzanite

You can combine 15 of these to form a large tanzanite. Useful for gem locks or minigames.

Indigo_Torch.png
Tanzanite_Gemspark_Block.png

These items will emit a special type of light called ultraviolet light. They will have an effect similar to that of real ultraviolet light. They're crafted the same as with any other gem.

uv-light-hire-effect.jpg

Tanzanite_Gem_Lock.png

Tanzanite Gem Lock

Works like any other gem lock! Amazing right?

Indigo_Phaseblade.png

Indigo Phaseblade

It's crafted just like any other phaseblade and does the same amount of damage. It also emits ultraviolet light.


Tanzanite_Staff.png

Tanzanite Staff
25 Damage
9 Mana

It's crafted with 15 tanzanite gems and 10 meteorite bars. Missing stats are the same as a diamond staff's.


Tanzanite_Hook.png

Tanzanite Hook
30 Tile Reach

The tanzanite hook has the farthest block range of any pre-hardmode hook. (except the bat hook? - 3-)
It's crafted with 15 tanzanite gems.

Tanzanite_Robe.png

Tanzanite Robe

Reduces mana usage by 17%, provides 4 defense, and increases max mana by 80. It's crafted like any other gem robe.

Unknown-1.jpeg


I actually made the sprite before I even saw the gemstone, which is why I ended up deciding to name it Tanzanite due to the uncanny resemblance.

Quest Fish

Tarfish.png

Tarfish

Angler Quote :
"I was fishing in that swampy cave deep underground when I saw a fish made of tar leap out of the lake, grab my fishing rod, and go back under.
Go fish it out for me so I can teach it a lessen!

Leechfish.png

Leech Fish
"I've heard rumors of a giant leech that lives in the marshy cave down in the caverns. I want to stick it in someone's bed, so you better go catch it for me!

kdcROYP.png


Thats about it for this suggestion. I hope you enjoyed reading through it!

If you though there was something that could be improved, please take the time to leave a comment with your suggestion.

I'd like to say thanks to @Tobbvald for the idea of a moss-based biome. I used one of his color palettes for most of the mossy sprites in this thread.
 
Last edited:
I'm not sure I like the aesthetic. Actually, scratch that; I love the aesthetic. But that's because I also love Tobbvald's Contagion/Corrosion. My issue with the aesthetic here is everything feels... a bit too close to The Contagion/Corrosion. I mean, it's cool -- it's not like Tobbvald has a patent on mossy weird feely things for pixel art or anything. But I wish you spent more time differentiating the two so that your fingerprint could have a bigger impact in a similar theme.

So I would have liked to have seen you put a different spin on your aesthetics. That way when I look at this; I don't immediately think Contagion/Corrosion, I think "Oh man this is that badass SnailsAttack marsh". Without your unique fingerprint on this, the only concept I get from this is what Tobbvald put forward already. And the concept is your best foot forward in a biome suggestion -- not someone else's foot.

===========

That said; Marshlands is a cool concept. Lots to play around with. I feel you just didn't push your boundaries enough with it though. Tar and Tanzanite feel very awkward, not only with the marsh setting -- but with each other. Like -- they could almost be their own separate suggestions or that they could be attached to something else.

Muck, Ooze, Sludge; these might have been more thematically ideal to correspond with Marshlands than Tar. Tourmaline, Diopside, Chrysoberyl might, similarly, have been a better choice than Tanzanite.

===========

Overall, I really like it. But I think it still needs some fine-tuning to up it's wow-factor and garner more support.
 
I'm not sure I like the aesthetic. Actually, scratch that; I love the aesthetic. But that's because I also love Tobbvald's Contagion/Corrosion. My issue with the aesthetic here is everything feels... a bit too close to The Contagion/Corrosion. I mean, it's cool -- it's not like Tobbvald has a patent on mossy weird feely things for pixel art or anything. But I wish you spent more time differentiating the two so that your fingerprint could have a bigger impact in a similar theme.

So I would have liked to have seen you put a different spin on your aesthetics. That way when I look at this; I don't immediately think Contagion/Corrosion, I think "Oh man this is that badass SnailsAttack marsh". Without your unique fingerprint on this, the only concept I get from this is what Tobbvald put forward already. And the concept is your best foot forward in a biome suggestion -- not someone else's foot.

===========

That said; Marshlands is a cool concept. Lots to play around with. I feel you just didn't push your boundaries enough with it though. Tar and Tanzanite feel very awkward, not only with the marsh setting -- but with each other. Like -- they could almost be their own separate suggestions or that they could be attached to something else.

Muck, Ooze, Sludge; these might have been more thematically ideal to correspond with Marshlands than Tar. Tourmaline, Diopside, Chrysoberyl might, similarly, have been a better choice than Tanzanite.

===========

Overall, I really like it. But I think it still needs some fine-tuning to up it's wow-factor and garner more support.
I agree with this, I would like the biome to have an aesthetic that doesn't so much reflect the Contagion, but reminds me more of what it's supposed to be, a marsh. For the most part it's alright, but it does look a tad "evil" rather than just dark and natural. And I agree about the tar too, it's a good idea, but it could easily be something else to better match the theme.
 
You have my support, but I think you should add a summoner weapon, either as naturally generated in chests or as a rare drop from mobs.
(maybe a miniature tar drippler/ dragonfly staff?)
 

I realize now that this biome is not exactly the way that I had originally pictured it. I had at first envisioned it to be a classic swamp-like biome, but it ended up being something different once I started using one of Tobbvald's sprites as a template/color palette.

I'm not really sure what can be done to make tar more thematic with the rest of the biome. The same applies to the concept of tanzanite. I had wanted to take my old tar suggestion and revamp it, while at the same time implementing it into this thread to pad it out and make it a bit more unique.

You have my support, but I think you should add a summoner weapon, either as naturally generated in chests or as a rare drop from mobs.
(maybe a miniature tar drippler/ dragonfly staff?)

I'll try adding some sort of summoning weapon.

I will be reworking some areas of this suggestion and adding more content, such as some fish, potions, and vegetation.
 
Last edited:
I suppose the tar is fine. I have thought tar would be cool, I like the way it works in this section. Even if it doesn't totally fit thematically, I like the idea.
 
I think the reason it doesn't feel very marshy is probably the purple/indigo. Everything seems marshy until you get to tar, and then it sort of feels different. The tar and Tar Zombie are fine, but it feels like it needs some kind of marshy enemies. Dragonflies maybe? A crocodile or alligator? I don't know for sure... I'm trying to avoid being influenced by another swamp/marsh minibiome suggestion. I like both suggestions, but I'm trying not to convert one suggestion to the other. :)

Is tanzanite a real material? It feels sort of out of place. Are there any dark coloured precious stones in real life that maybe could be used instead?
 
I think the reason it doesn't feel very marshy is probably the purple/indigo. Everything seems marshy until you get to tar, and then it sort of feels different. The tar and Tar Zombie are fine, but it feels like it needs some kind of marshy enemies. Dragonflies maybe? A crocodile or alligator? I don't know for sure... I'm trying to avoid being influenced by another swamp/marsh minibiome suggestion. I like both suggestions, but I'm trying not to convert one suggestion to the other. :)

Is tanzanite a real material? It feels sort of out of place. Are there any dark coloured precious stones in real life that maybe could be used instead?
Well with the tanzanite, I had originally planned to use black onyx, but when the sprite was finished and it came out really purple, I looked up purple gemstones and found that.

Tanzanite.png
=
Unknown-1.jpeg


yes i actually made the sprite before i even saw that

As said in my previous post, I plan to revamp my suggestion to make it more swamp-like.
 
Well with the tanzanite, I had originally planned to use black onyx, but when the sprite was finished and it came out really purple, I looked up purple gemstones and found that.

View attachment 130190 = View attachment 130189

yes i actually made the sprite before i even saw that

As said in my previous post, I plan to revamp my suggestion to make it more swamp-like.
Now that I've seen a real gem stone, it actually looks quite pretty and fitting. Very nice!

If tar doesn't work too well, you could try converting it to some kind of sticky mud. I've had my foot get stuck in sticky mud before. In trying to free it, I fell over and sustained a serious injury. Another possibility could be asphalt or bitumen (in liquid form). But both of these have the side-effect of confusion with existing blocks.
 
Now that I've seen a real gem stone, it actually looks quite pretty and fitting. Very nice!

If tar doesn't work too well, you could try converting it to some kind of sticky mud. I've had my foot get stuck in sticky mud before. In trying to free it, I fell over and sustained a serious injury. Another possibility could be asphalt or bitumen (in liquid form). But both of these have the side-effect of confusion with existing blocks.

Liquid Asphalt and Bitumen = Tar . - .

Anyways, I would change it if I had a better alternative that could work well in the terraria universe and also fill the use of creating tanzanite. I will try to make the marsh theme and tar theme more fitting together.
 
I didn't choose the clearest colors.

Also resizing it messed up some of the pixels.

Also im bad at spriting. :>
Nah, the colors were clear and you are good at spriting (better than me anyway), but the bridge of the "M" is a lil too low and the n looks like an h and some letters are capitalized. But great suggestion overall!
 
I assume that the sprites are different because I'm fine with everything here. Gives the regular undeground/caverns some nice variation. Also love calling them Mangrove Trees.

I dont mind any of it, I'm also fine with tar, I get that it doesnt quite match up with the location, but if we were adding something as big as a fourth liquid I think tar should probably come before "sludge" or "mush" and it works with the area well enough.

The one thing that loses me is that mixing tar and honey pretty much gets us a new gem. Seems really random. Maybe have the gem spawn at the bottom of tar pools and make the honey fusion something else like "sticky honey block."
 
Back
Top Bottom