Some stories just don’t get old..
May the Fourth be with you! (I added these to a Tumblr account that I started recently.)
Character Designs
Ronin Revolver Character Designs
I took my time finishing these, but I finally completed this set of character designs for S.A. William’s Ronin Revolver, a samurai/wild west mash-up story currently in development.
Post ECCC 2013
Photo by Georgia Ball (or was it Scott?)
I spent Emerald City Comicon with my son this year. With his help I was able to keep abreast of some of the happenings beyond my table. The next convention that he and I will attend together will be Stumptown Fest and if all goes according to plan he should have some of his artwork and comics available for sale, as well. At ECCC we both spent some time drawing behind the table. Below are some 13th Age commissions and you can find some of the drawings and photos by my son at his blog. My thanks to those who stopped by my table.
Behind-the-Illustration: The Elf Queen
The Elf Queen rules the Court of Stars, the one place where wood elves, dark elves, and high elves come together as peers and allies instead of as rivals or enemies. Honed by centuries of experience, the Queen’s innate magic at least equals the Archmage’s spells.–From the 13th Age icon teaser description.
I am left with the final two Icons for my behind-the-illustration posts, and evidently I’ve been reluctant to finish them off (astute readers may have noticed that postings were delayed for over two weeks). But there are so many 13th Age illustrations yet to be revealed that I need not hesitate. The show is just beginning, in fact! The Elf Queen is Lee Moyer’s favorite icon, and I think that passion is easily recognized in his digital painting. She’s a wonder to behold, and if Lee hadn’t already claimed her she would probably be my favorite illustration, but I’m going to be a tease and say that next week’s icon is my favorite. The Elf Queen was another icon that took some “ratcheting up” on my end. The progression of thumbnail to final pencils ends up looking like a narrative of the elf queen from adolescence to queen. Lee and I had a chuckle over the thumbnail of the “schoolgirl” elf queen that I knew wasn’t going to work, but submitted because she was just so darn cute! Take a look at the thumbnail and try to tell me she’s not about to burst into song. She’s the Snow White of elfdom in that stage, but as you can see her true form is much closer to The Queen, minus several degrees of vanity, one would hope.
Behind-the-Illustration: The Gold Wyrm
The Great Gold Wyrm is the world’s protector and the inspiration for holy orders of paladins and independent heroes. Although the Gold Wyrm’s physical form seals the gap that prevents the Abyss from erupting into the world, its dreams and the agents it employs still move through the world, helping those who will fight and even die for what’s right. –From the 13th Age icon teaser description
The Great Gold Wyrm brought to life by Lee Moyer’s mastery of digital painting. This was another one that floored me when I first saw it. You’ll notice that the painting really goes beyond my pencil drawing (below). It’s not just thousands of scales for vanity’s sake, though. I’m sure in the modern world of dragons there are those who have their scales multiplied to fulfill some concept of beauty, but the reason the Gold Wyrm has this many scales is simply because he’s a dragon of gigantic proportions. A little gnome could probably strap a saddle on one of those scales for riding…or rather he could try.
*Here’s a bonus sketch for everyone who has been tolerating my corny commentary in these posts. Thank you for not breathing fire on me:P
Behind-the-Illustration: The Crusader
The Crusader is the armored fist of the Dark Gods. So long as followers of the gods of light stay the hell out of his way, the Crusader turns his wrath against the demons that would destroy the world his own gods want to rule. Follow the Crusader if you must win at any cost. –From the 13th Age icon teaser description.
The Crusader digitally painted by Lee Moyer. I’m going to let the images do the talking this week because Lee and I are busting our humps* to finish the interior art for 13th Age, now available for Pre-Order.
*Oh, you didn’t know I have a hunchback? It’s common among illustrators. And that structure behind the Crusader…that’s my studio.
My pencil drawing:
My thumbnail sketch:
Behind-the-Illustration: The Three
The Three were among the first dragons to walk the world. The Red is a living engine of destruction. The Blue is a sorceress, perhaps even the original mother of all sorcery. The Black is queen of shadows and assassins. Unlike the Great Gold Wyrm, who must fight alone, the Three have learned to join forces. –From the 13th Age icon teaser description.
Behold The Three digitally painted by Lee Moyer. Not only are these mamas ancient, they are also enormous. Look for the Where’s Waldo Priests for a sense of…”scale” (sorry). This behind-the-illustration post gives you a much closer view of those guys, but they are ultimately inconsequential in comparison to the awesome majesty of The Three!
My pencil drawing (after receiving Lee’s request for plenty of “crunchy pencil detail.”) You’ll notice that my choice of color for the dragons was different than the final. Decisions, decisions – all part of the process!
And here’s the promised closeup of our dark priests, Larry, Curly and Moe:
As an extra bonus here’s an early thumbnail where I happened to accidentally not draw most of the dragons’ anatomy. Hmm…you’d think I was hesitant to draw thousands of scales or something. I haven’t confirmed this with Lee, but looking at this image and the final, it’s my guess that he may have appropriated this version of the Blue sorceress dragon in the final. Ah, Process, you are the Black dragon cloaked in vague shadows until you strike as quickly and decisively as a deadly assassin!
Behind-the-Illustration: The Diabolist
The Diabolist controls fiends and tampers with forces even the Archmage avoids. She likes her victims screaming and her chaos pure while claiming that the demons she summons would otherwise overwhelm the Great Gold Wyrm who seals the Abyss. There are two differences between her and her demons: First, she likes keeping destruction personal rather than universal. Second, she’s capable of kindness, so long as it comes as a great surprise. –From the 13th Age icon teaser description.
Lee Moyer’s deliciously diabolical digital painting of The Diabolist (in a sense 3D;)
My pencil drawing:
Early thumbnails included demons in the shadows of the Diabolist before we decided on a graphic background suitable for a most notorious Icon.
Behind-the-Illustration: The Emperor of 13th Age
The Emperor rules the world’s greatest human kingdom, known as the Dragon Empire for the mounts of its mightiest warriors. All the signs suggest that the age is turning, but will the Empire fall or shift to a new balance? –From the 13th Age icon teaser description.
The final illustration of the Emperor digitally painted by Lee Moyer:
My pencil drawing:
An earlier sketch that had the key ingredients, but didn’t have the necessary amount of refinement that the Emperor demands:
Earlier thumbnails included the Emperor with a tamed dragon. Think Ernst Stavro Blofeld (of James Bond fame) and his cat. That approach was too ripe for parody. We’re not going for Dr. Evil here. Whether the Emperor is a corrupt ruler or not has yet to be determined.
Aaron McConnell 