A composite Beastren made from seven other characters

I recently discovered a new passion-project: making composite characters in the DD2 character creator.

I find this fascinating for many reasons, and the best part is, anyone can participate.

In this post, I'll walk you through how I made one of these composite characters.

I began by doing an online search for Beastren Male slider sets. I found six results from creators who generously shared their sliders online:

Top row: [1] u/okay_jelly6670's "Panda Beastren," [2] u/4deCopas's nameless Arisen, [3] Slayer-Stevkan's "Savage Beast." Bottom row: [4] u/FruitBoops "Hobbes," [5] "Battle Beast," user unknown, [6] u/CyberneticDiabetic's "Tai Lung." Links to sliders in this caption.

The seventh is this Capcom preset (which is in there because I submitted it first, just to make sure the submission form was working):

Using that form (linked up top), I then entered their sliders and selections. To make things quicker, I had to sacrifice a few things (tattoos, scars, and most makeup selections aren't there) but most of the "inherent" features of a character's appearance (such as body sliders, face sliders, fur color and pattern settings, eye colors, and base heads) are accounted for.

The form sends the character creation info to a spreadsheet, which we can use to represent the data however we want.

For selections (like fur color, Muscle Type, and base head) I used the mode (the most common selection).

For sliders, I use the average-median hybrid. You can read more about the average-median hybrid and why I prefer it here.

Right from the start, if we eyeball the seven characters used in this composite, we can get a sense of what the result will look like. This is because we have a small sample size that is noticeably skewed towards certain features: tall, white fur, no face patterns, powerful facial features. We can also see that the same hairstyle and facial-hair style occur more than once.

But there's also some variation. "Hobbes" is a clear outlier in several respects: still tall, but with a skinny build, and less imposing facial features. Panda Bro is still large with white fur, but his facial features are less fearsome and more mellow. Tai Lung's face and nose are very wide. And the Unnamed Arisen and Capcom preset, while they have strong faces, have softer and less frightening expressions than the two Battle Beast-inspired characters.

From these samples, we can probably expect a character that has a fierce but gentle face, a powerful but not maxed-out body, all or mostly white fur, and few or no facial patterns.

So, with the spreadsheet in front of us, we simply open up DD2's character creator and input all of the sliders settings in the "Hybrid Sliders" column (which gives us the halfway point between the average and median). That gives us the character's face and build. We also use this to set the opacity and intensity sliders. I rounded positive numbers up and negative numbers down when I made this, but it's largely a matter of preference.

Next, we apply selections. We'll look for the modes (the selection that repeats most often), and if there's a tie between any of them we'll just choose whatever we want. The spreadsheet can give us that info easily. For example, the mode for all four fur colors is #16 (white), so we choose that for all of them.

The mode for Muscle Style is Color #19, so we use that:

Style #23 is the mode for Hairstyle (it occurs twice) and Style #2 is the mode for facial hair (it occurs three times), so we choose both of those.

And so on. When we get to Hairstyle (Tip Color), we run into a problem: there is no mode, with each selection occuring exactly once:

We could choose randomly if we wanted, but I instead go with Color #62 (a white-ish tone). In a sense, the choice doesn’t matter much. DD2’s character creator can’t truly “blend” faces the way image software does; it forces us to pick discrete options rather than combine them. So any final character is not a literal composite, but a representation shaped by the rules we adopt. The tip color, lacking a clear statistical winner, ends up being one of those places where the result reflects the method more than the data.

In the end, we get this handsome, snow-white gentleman. He clocks in at 214 cm, just shy of the max height, with a strong but not-maxed-out upper body and powerful but gentle facial features. You can see his full sliders below.

The result of all seven characters when we apply modes for selections and the average-mean hybrid for sliders.

Thanks again to the players who shared their Beastren characters online. Below are not one, but three sets of sliders. The column on the right displays the average-median hybrid of the seven original characters, which I used to make the Beastren in the photo above. But you can also find the average sliders (second from right) and the median sliders (second from left). I haven't tested them in the character creator, but the average sliders will probably look skinnier--we can thank the influence of Hobbes for that--while the median sliders will look bigger and probably meaner.

Fur > Pattern	1	1	1.00
Fur > Pattern Color Presets
Fur > Color 1	16	16	16.00
Fur > Color 2	16	16	16.00
Fur > Color 3	16	16	16.00
Fur > Color 4	16	16	16.00
Fur > Color 1 Intensity	45	51.14285714	48.07
Fur > Color 2 Intensity	40	49	44.50
Fur > Color 3 Intensity	24	34.57142857	29.29
Fur > Color 4 Intensity	45	47.42857143	46.21
Body > Height	215	212.2857143	213.64
Body > Torso Length	-50	-62.28571429	-56.14
Body > Muscle Style (number only)	19	19	19.00
Body > Muscle Strength	100	92.14285714	96.07
Body > Traps Size	60	42.85714286	51.43
Body > Upper Body Muscle Mass	100	99.85714286	99.93
Body > Lower Body Muscle Mass	60	51.57142857	55.79
Body > Upper Body Size	13	10.42857143	11.71
Body > Lower Body Size	0	-14.28571429	-7.14
Head > Head Size	19	7.714285714	13.36
Head > Head Length	-100	-50.71428571	-75.36
Head > Head Width	88	61.57142857	74.79
Head > Head Depth	100	83.42857143	91.71
Head > Neck Length	-64	-34.71428571	-49.36
Head > Neck Thickness	100	91.57142857	95.79
Upper Body > Shoulder Width	80	55.42857143	67.71
Upper Body > Shoulder Size	80	45	62.50
Upper Body > Chest Thickness	100	82.28571429	91.14
Upper Body > Chest Size	100	70.85714286	85.43
Upper Body > Torso Width	100	73.85714286	86.93
Upper Body > Torso Depth	65	52.14285714	58.57
Upper Body > Arm Length
Upper Body > Arm Size	75
Upper Body > Upper Arm Thickness	100	84.28571429	92.14
Upper Body > Forearm Thickness	100	85.71428571	92.86
Lower Body > Waist Width	-10	-5	-7.50
Lower Body > Waist Size	-32	-9.714285714	-20.86
Lower Body > Rear Size	100	70.71428571	85.36
Lower Body > Leg Size (Overall)
Lower Body > Thigh Size	60	59.42857143	59.71
Lower Body > Calf Size	100	80	90.00
Posture > Movement Style
Posture > Elbow Angle	58	38.85714286	48.43
Posture > Knee Angle	31	-10.71428571	10.14
Posture > Posture	12	4.571428571	8.29
Head > Base Head	2	2	2.00
Brow > Brow Height	-100	-56.14285714	-78.07
Brow > Brow Spacing	100	83.71428571	91.86
Brow > Brow Depth (Overall)
Brow > Brow Depth (Inner)	40	20.71428571	30.36
Brow > Brow Depth (Outer)	-2	-17.14285714	-9.57
Brow > Brow Bend	-30	-16.42857143	-23.21
Eyes > Eye Height	40	5.142857143	22.57
Eyes > Eye Width	68	66.28571429	67.14
Eyes > Eye Depth	-50	-48.42857143	-49.21
Eyes > Eye Size	100	71.14285714	85.57
Eyes > Eye Angle	12	-4.857142857	3.57
Eyes > Left Closed
Eyes > Squint (Left Eye)	26	28.57142857	27.29
Eyes > Right Closed
Eyes > Squint (Right Eye)	26	20	23.00
Nose > Nose Length	20	-2.571428571	8.71
Nose > Bridge Width	-20	-10.85714286	-15.43
Nose > Bridge Bump (Overall)	53	55.5	54.25
Nose > Nostril Height	3	20.85714286	11.93
Nose > Nostril Width	-10	5.857142857	-2.07
Nose > Tip Depth	40	17.28571429	28.64
Nose > Tip Angle	20	19.28571429	19.64
Nose > Tip Sharpness	40	7.428571429	23.71
Ears > Style
Ears > Size	0	3.571428571	1.79
Ears > Angle	0	9.857142857	4.93
Ears > Openness	0	8.571428571	4.29
Ears > Lobe Size	0	-6.285714286	-3.14
Ears > Tip Sharpness	0	27.42857143	13.71
Ears > Tip Bend	0	-0.1428571429	-0.07
Ears > Tip Rotation	-41	-40	-40.50
Ears > Ear Twist	0	-10.28571429	-5.14
Head > Cheek/Neck Thickness
Cheeks > Cheek Bulge	-35	-20.57142857	-27.79
Cheeks > Neck Fat	-100	-65.28571429	-82.64
Cheeks > Cheek Height	0	9.857142857	4.93
Cheeks > Cheek Width	50	32.14285714	41.07
Cheeks > Cheek Depth	0	11.42857143	5.71
Mouth > Mouth Height	-27	-15.85714286	-21.43
Mouth > Mouth Width	0	36.14285714	18.07
Mouth > Mouth Protrusion	100	58.57142857	79.29
Mouth > Mouth Corners	-30	15	-7.50
Mouth > Whisker Position	15	-6.857142857	4.07
Mouth > Lower Lip Position	0	26.14285714	13.07
Jaw/Chin > Jaw Definition	95	41.14285714	68.07
Jaw/Chin > Jaw Width	100	52.14285714	76.07
Jaw/Chin > Jaw Position	100	34.28571429	67.14
Jaw/Chin > Jaw Protrusion	100	57.14285714	78.57
Jaw/Chin > Chin Height	100	64.28571429	82.14
Jaw/Chin > Chin Width	100	69.85714286	84.93
Jaw/Chin > Chin Protrusion	0	-2.285714286	-1.14
Jaw/Chin > Chin Sharpness	53	29	41.00
Hairstyle > Hairstyle (put "1" if bald)	23	23	23.00
Hairstyle > Root Color (Put "NA" if bald)	16	16	16.00
Hairstyle > Tip Color (Put "NA" if bald)	70	70	TIE: 72, 175, 62, 68, 1, 140, NA
Hairstyle > Root/Tip Blend (Put "NA" if bald)	70	70	70.00
Hairstyle > Sheen Position
Hairstyle > Sheen
Facial Hair > Style (put "1" if no facial hair)	2	2	2.00
Facial Hair > Root Color (Put "NA" if no facial hair)	16	16	16.00
Facial Hair > Tip Color (Put "NA" if no facial hair)	50	50	TIE: 69, 16, 62, 50, 1, 140, 12
Facial Hair > Root/Tip Blend (Put "NA" if no facial hair)	62	62	62.00
Facial Hair > Sheen Position
Facial Hair > Sheen
Face Pattern Presets
Face Color Presets
Base Pattern (Put "1" if none)	#1	#1	#1
Base Pattern Opacity ("NA" if no base pattern)	50	56.33333333	53.17
Face Pattern (Select #1 if none)	#1	#1	#1
Eye Pattern (Select #1 if none)			#1
Cheek Pattern (Select #1 if none)	#1	#1	#1
Nose Pattern ("Select #1 if none)	#1	#1	#1
Color 1 (Put "NA" if and only if your Beastren does not use ANY patterns, i.e., if you selected "1" for ALL of the last four categories)	TIE: NA, 11, 1	TIE: NA, 11, 1	TIE: NA, 11, 1
Color 2 (Put "NA" if and only if your Beastren does not use any face patterns.	TIE: NA, 1	TIE: NA, 1	TIE: NA, 1
Pattern Color 1 Intensity ("NA" if and only if no patterns)	0	30	15.00
Pattern Color 2 Intensity ("NA" if an only if no patterns)	19	37.8	28.40
Face Pattern Opacity (Put "NA" if you selected #1 for Face Pattern above)	100	95	97.50
Eye Pattern Opacity (Put "NA" if you selected #1 for Eye Pattern above)	100	92.8	96.40
Cheek Pattern Opacity (Put "NA" if you selected #1 for Cheek Pattern above)	100	95	97.50
Nose Pattern Opacity (Put "NA" if you selected #1 for Nose Pattern Above)	90.5	90.25	90.38
Nose Color	1	1	1.00
Opacity	100	82.14285714	91.07
Sheen
Intensity
Eyes > Left Eye Style	Type 1	Type 1	Type 1
Eyes > Left Eye Color Presets
Eye > Iris Primary Color (Left Eye)	21	21	21.00
Eyes > Iris Secondary Color (Left Eye)	137	137	137.00
Eyes > Iris Tertiary Color (Left Eye)	1	1	1.00
Eyes > Sclera Color (Left Eye)	1	1	1.00
Eyes > Iris Size (Left Eye)	-41	-17.28571429	-29.14
Eyes > Pupil Size (Left Eye)	45	21.71428571	33.36
Eyes > Right Eye Style
Eyes > Right Eye Color Presets
Eyes > Iris Primary Color (Right Eye)
Eyes > Iris Secondary Color (Right Eye)
Eyes > Iris Tertiary Color (Right Eye)
Eyes > Sclera Color (Right Eye)
Eyes > Iris Size (Right Eye)
Eyes > Pupil Size (Right Eye)
Eyelashes > Eyelash Root Color
Eyelashes > Eyelash Tip Color
Eyelashes > Root/Tip Blend
Eyelashes > Length	25	45	35.00