FINAL FANTASY IV
EPEEGIRL PROJECT #600 CREATED: APRIL 2018 The aptly-named EpeeGirl was a sword-toting warrior that Cecil and his group encountered on more than one occasion. Dwelling within the Tower of Zot, the EpeeGirl would often travel with a Witch or a SwordMan, or both, using their combined might and swordfighting skills to attempt to intercept and subdue intruders within the Tower. Rumor has it that the EpeeGirl was a rogue fighter who was exiled in disgrace from Toroia. It's worth mentioning here that an épeé is technically a fencing weapon, similar to a rapier, while the EpeeGirl actually carries something closer to a scimitar. (The EpeeGirl was renamed Soldieress in a later remake of Final Fantasy IV.) I needed two identical action figures to create the EpeeGirl and Kary, preferably ones for whom I could find compatible swords and shields. I picked the Justice League Wonder Woman toy that was in stores, who already came with the right shield. The toy didn't have much articulation, though, and I wanted the EpeeGirl to be able to kneel on one knee as she does in her game sprite. I combined Wonder Woman with the Deirdre figure from Mystic Knights of Tir Na Nog, another armored female action figure. I had to graft the two toys together, fusing the pelvis of both toys into a single piece, to retain the waist and hip articulation I wanted. I also used parts from Deirdre to build new shoulder pads and knee pads. The sword is from an Usagi Yojimbo toy from the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toy line. I'm not completely sure I agree with the colors chosen for the revised sprite used in the PlayStation Portable version of the game. In the 16-bit version, there are skin-colored patches on the front of the EpeeGirl's armor, which I always interpreted as highlights (doing the best they could with the limited color palette). The newer sprite depicts them as actual holes in the armor, which I think is probably taking the original sprite much too literally. |
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