rofl Render! Well you're half right - I've come down with the stomach flu and was throwing up all day yesterday but I wasn't drunk.

I didn't even turn on my computer. So sorry about the delay! Okay, here are the submissions for assignment #4. Expect results later today or tomorrow!

Also, the due date for the next assignment will be bumped to probably Thursday or Friday, since we're so late this week. Unless you contestants think that Wednesday as usual won't be a problem.
Gracie Grumple & Blit Rajaha
Judge 1: Very cute how you made a whole Beauty and the Beast twist! I see him kissing Gracie's hand in front of a scary castle, and he is fugly just like you said in the story. That was funny. So for the opposite part, I see pretty and ugly. However, I don't know if I could have told that by the picture alone, perhaps I should have looked at it first. But it's a good shot nontheless.
Judge 2: Very cute story! I like what you chose to do for this assignment, a very unlikely pair you two make… I wonder what the children will look like. Although I think the idea you had for your photo is sweet, I think that you needed to be zoomed in closer. Your co-star is the first thing I see; closer zoom and perhaps a different angle would have helped to put you as the focus of the shot. A different armor selection may have helped too as I think the one your chose blends in with the background a bit too much.
Judge 3: Your story is just so cute, I love it! Your picture does match the part where he kisses her hand, and I clearly see the contrast between "beauty" and the "beast". The background I think though has many distracting elements, such as the bush behind you and all the faces in the stone. Although I can tell what the necro is doing, still...his body looks a bit awkward. Its an adorable idea, but with just a few touch ups I believe it could have been even better.
Nymphalis Antiopa & Elvith Fax
Judge 1: I liked your story and I love your take on opposites - the strategic and the rash. Very different and creative approach. When I see the picture, I do clearly see romance and I like how it looks like you've been travelling for a long time, so your clothes are kind of torn up (at least that's my take but it's not a bad thing ). I can clearly tell the shot is in Elona, like you said. The moonlight adds to the romantic atmosphere. It's a little dark, but not bad. I can still see you both, and I see you first which is good. Great job!
Judge 2: Very cute approach to this assignment, I love your take on it. Your co-star is quite a bit larger than you and takes away some of the focus that should be on you, but all-in-all it is a very nice photo. Your arm seems to be missing a part of it though, which isn’t a big deal in this pic, but be careful of it in the future as sometimes character glitches are impossible to ignore. Also, without your story, the opposite would be impossible to figure out.
Judge 3: I love how with your story (mainly the beginning) players can connect with it, and then as it progresses your story just gets more amusing, until the end when it takes a turn to the sweetness! Your shot is amazing, its just what I had imagined from what you described when she first realized she was in love with him. The background is absolutely gorgeous too! One minor thing though is that your ranger's arm looks a little weird, but not so much to me that it distracts me from the whole of the shot. Excellent cropping, background, pose, and story! Although its a bit dark, the lighting on their faces is quite nice, and I think you've managed to do this assignment proud!
Render Me Useless & Dont Step On Poop
Judge 1: I really like your shot. I can see the romance and attraction between the two, and your idea for opposite is very creative! The whole dark and light thing is certainly a different approach, and the "blind" aspect from the lyrics add to it.

However, though your shot is good, I do kind of notice the male monk first, but because of the way his hand is positioned, I quickly see you. A little bit dark maybe, but not too bad. So other than that, great job!
Judge 2: Very neat approach to this assignment! I really like the way you chose to do this, but although I do see you first as your armor contrasts a lot with the dark background, my eye quickly goes to your male co-star. Even though he is wearing a dark color, he is a lot larger than you and his skin is quite bright so it definitely steals your thunder a bit.
Judge 3: I absolutely love the dark and light theme of your picture! The background choice I believe was good enough, but I think maybe you should have switched sides so that you are on the side that has the lighter lighting. Although it does look like they are both looking into each others eyes, it seems more like a friendship then a romantic relationship. With that main aspect I am a bit disappointed, but from a technical standpoint I think your shot was well composed.
Ember Coals & Elemential Drake
Judge 1: I really enjoyed reading your story. Very romantic and I immediately got the rich/poor opposite part. As for the picture, I do see that you're a rich princess with the expensive and lovely armor and he's a poor sailor with no clothes of his own. As for the cropping, I'm not sure if it fits. I guess you were trying to get the sun into the picture but perhaps you could have angled it a little better to do so. And it almost looks like your male model is trying to take a bite of something, erm, important.

So maybe a more romantic post would have helped too. But all in all, good job!
Judge 2: I like what you did with this assignment; the photo works very well with your explanation. VERY interesting use for /guitar, it looks like he is about to tickle you! However, I do feel that the sky is beautiful enough that you did not need to leave the sun in your shot. I would have preferred to see more of your bodies in exchange for the higher crop to show the sun. Still, I think you did a great job.
Judge 3: Phew, that is one hot picture. Your story was quite romantic and daring, if it was a real story I would buy the full version

. I love love love the background of your shot, especially the leaves near the top of the shot. However, despite that it seems to stretch a bit further then it should to focus on your ele. It seems a little awkward in the need to see more of her body, as is it hard to see the facial features of your handsome pirate. I can definitely see the chemistry between you two though.
Ao Kanashimi & I Crimson Legacy I
Judge 1: I really liked your story! And although the ending is sad, I do like that you took a different approach, so that's good. It's good to be different sometimes.

Your armor clearly says prisoner and your partner's shows royalty. And I do see the part of your story where your prince gives you one last hug before he returns after he freed her. Very good shot!
Judge 2: I really like this shot! I must commend you on how well you made yourself stand out from your co-star. Even though he is a lot larger than you, not being able to see his face and the fact that his armor is very similar to things in the background makes you pop right out of the photo. Cute story as well. Good job!
Judge 3: I always have been a sucker for sad love stories. It was absolutely sweet, but one minor detail I noticed (that won't be docked points, since it seems accidental?) is that you forgot to push the space bar between a lot of words, it just bugged me a tiny bit. I love the pose in your shot! It really does look like they are about to hug, although I know that your ranger's permanently smiling face is no fault of yours. The cropping is good, and the waterfall in the background I think adds to it a bit, even though its quite rocky.
Scarlet Renoux & Yule Be Sari
Judge 1: I really like your story! Very romantic descriptions and I can clearly see everything happening in my mind as I read it. When I see your picture, I see the beautiful beach scene and I see see romance here. However, I wonder if you could have moved the angle just a tad to see more of your helper's face. Also, though I love the story, I'm not 100% seeing opposite here, but I do see where you were going with this. So overall, great job!
Judge 2: The two of you are very cute together in your photo, but I think that your background is a little bit iffy. The beach is nice, but there are so many other places you could have gone with a beach that would have had a nicer backdrop than those hills. Also, I have re-read the explanation a few times and I don’t actually see clearly what opposite you are trying to portray. At first I thought it was simply just Mesmer/Necromancer being the opposites, but I think Monk/Necro would have been better for that… then I wondered if it was the far left/far right part of the rings game???
Judge 3: Your story is so sweet, and made me smile several times. I love your idea that you two are different personality wise, not just clan/alliance wise. In your picture your necro looks sweet, but you look like you're about to slug him! I also think you could have cropped it better to focus more on you and him. I am disappointed by the background...the hills in the background just don't cut it for me. Perhaps if you shown the sky and the beach instead, it would have set the mood much better. I applaud you for staying the main focus of the shot though, since your necro is facing away from us.
Deus Toutatis & Akemi Ajibana
Judge 1: Another outstanding job with words! You never fail to amaze me.

Good job describing the love story, and the picture matches great. I can see you reaching for the assassin's hand and she's extending it for you to kiss. The background works good, fits with the story being in Vabbi in the Basilica. At first, I thought you were trying to portray opposites in just your partner, being so beautiful yet so deadly. But then I realized that a mesmer and an assassin are very opposite, but worship the same god. So it was a little confusing at first, but other than that, great job!
Judge 2: VERY unique choice for this assignment! I love how you went about writing your story, but I must say that your photo disappoints me. Even though I get that you wanted it to seem as if you were about to kneel to kiss your co-star’s hand, when you do not zoom in on your character, you become lost in the photo. The background becomes overwhelming and the focus on your character is lost. I loved the elements you put together for this assignment (the Lyssa statue in the background is a great touch) but the photo itself needed better execution.
Judge 3: Once again, a wonderful story from you Dues! I love your story's bittersweet ending, I wanna know if he finds her again! I can tell that you are about to kiss her hand, I think, but it would have been so much better to just have a clear shot of him doing the action instead of about to. The background was a great choice though, but I am disappointed by the poses you chose. Although your concept is unique, it was a bit difficult to understand until after I was clarified.