Someone Put The Feeling Into Words!

Observers Guide to Kobolds #2

Art & Crafts, with Illustrations!

Fig 1:

Kobolds are a very kinestetic species; the sense of touch being very important to engage with their art & crafts. Colours are appreciated, but are not as important due to their poor eyesight. A lot of their wearable crafts also server dual function as a fidget toy; helping control the species natural high anxiety and energy when focus is desired.

Fig 2:

a) Statuary and self representation is mostly used in instructional art, and funeral markers. This piece is the latter, and a rare example of a hollow marker with a piece of the owners bones inside.

b) Assorted glass, gem and painted stone beads. Most kobolds will have at least a small collection of interesting small stones, and do not discern precious gems from common stones. As long as it catches the eye, it goes in the bag.

c) Decorated sling shot. Shot from slings will often be re-used if successful in their first conflict, and will be decorated with various iconography to convey their luck or battle prowess. This example depicts "bloody teeth" possibly depicting a kill.

Fig 3:

a) Common storage pot. Pottery is a well practiced skill in Kobold communitys, with labelling often being a primitive braille- allowing important vessels to be found even in the dark.

b) Drinking flute. Due to the misalignment of the top and bottom of this flute it seems that it was an early piece fault by the creator rather than an intentional design choice.

c) Eating plate/low bowl. Kobolds do not require cutlery, as their teeth and claws are often of utility enough during meals. plates and bowls will over time be worn down by a flurry of scratches, requiring new crockery to be made.

Samuel Samantha Sammy-Sam-Sam-Sam

me and husbans IRL friend Sam, who would really fit in on tumblr.

Welcome to british rail. Enjoy your complimentary brick to the groin. that'll be £200.

An old pencil, paper and ink piece I'm still pretty proud of after all these years.

D&D tiefling cleric, I got to play her exactly once for one session but the design is still neat.

"The Fool Rules Freely"

Waaaaay back in the Horse Days I made a series of MLP themed posters where the main idea was to not actually show the horses at all -try to keep it a little vague, but still use all their colours and symbols.

I think it came from the idea that some people would like to show their fandom of MLP without the obvious and implicit ponys in it for one reason or another, ergo the posters.

This one is Pinkie Pie; Best pony and literally Weird Al's Waifu.

Second Dorf Fort propaganda poster! Spoof of the old american one of the german soldier peering over a wall menacingly.

I think if I did this again I'd have him peering out of a bush or tree foilage, the whole "over the wall peering" vibe isn't very elfy.

Thanks for replying! I've always loved the way you can include so much personality and story into a single character image, it reminds me of the best examples in RPG books where they want to depict a character concept or a monster and they just nail it.

Yo! Whats one thing you love drawing and find hard to do, and one thing you hate drawing but can do easily?

Really great question!

I love designing characters and I never get tired of doing it, but it also never really gets easier. I agonize over every little detail, drawing and re-drawing things over and over and pulling up tons of reference images. A fully-inked and colored character usually takes me a whole workday. I'm generally pretty happy with the finished results but I never seem to get any quicker at it haha.

I don't know if there's anything I'm good at drawing that I also hate to draw. I find the act of drawing pleasurable in and of itself. I sometimes find it frustrating when I'm commissioned to do "generic" fantasy or sci-fi illustrations. Like something that's just a "knight" or just a "spaceman" and the client really doesn't want me to riff on the design. I chafe under those kinds of restraints. Not gonna post any example pics because I don't want to offend anyone but it happens lol. Most of my clients are great though and give me a pretty free rein!

Hope this answers your question. If you've got any other questions about art or how I draw or whatever, just send them my way!

Temple of the Golden Tuber

Turnip 28! I love the setting and the amazing amount of world building and model kitbashing you can do with it.

This is my first landscape piece in a long time, and whilst I'm not super happy with the paint/texture on the temple I'm pretty chuffed with the work I did on the ground and sky.

The idea behind this is that in the far east and even farther north of the world of Turnip 28, lies a country in the thrall of a devious & dominating vegetable intelligence. It claims cultish dominion over the lands that used to be eastern europe in the world of T28, and is ever seeking to spread its sinister (and delicious) tubery tendrils into the rest of the world. One day all shall join in its starchy communion!

#359 ½: Babsol!

Sorry, I really couldn't think of a better name for it.

I always think its interesting when you get non-legendary pokemon that don't have younger or baby versions, and its always a good experiment to take a crack at what you think they'd look like.

Babsol hasn't grown into its swooping hair, or elbow spikes, or horn yet, but it still has eerie portents of the future to deal with. Not having learned to deal with such things yet, they can be a little emotional and moody but are easy enough to get along with with a little care and understanding. we've all been there Babsol, we were all teenagers once.

Absol itself reminds me of the Sphinx or those man-headed lion bodied and winged things you get in babylonian mythology. beast with the face of man telling you things you might not want to know.

little bugger has major neopet vibes too.