FINNIGEN KAX

(Gel Fineliner on A5 Paper)

Characters like this are easy to think up and even easier to draw. They can sometimes cause a creative block if ignored, so it's always best to draw them, give them a silly name, and then have done with them.

THE KAKKA-DU KNIGHT

(Gel Fineliner on A5 Paper)

You have to be careful when creating your own science-fiction or fantasy world. You can go on weird tangents as in the picture. I mean, that mount has a dragon's head and what looks like tiger stripes, and I've no idea about its tail, but anything goes when its just fantasy.

What you've got to pay close attention to are the names you give these things. For example, he's a Kakka-Du Knight. They're known to roam the galaxy, righting wrongs and bringing peace and justice to the far reaches of space.

Because that's what the Kakka-Du do.

The Porcupine

 

(Gel Fineliner on a 139mm x 87mm postcard)

"Balderdash! We're not namby-pamby elves! We use LIVE moving targets in the Imperial Dwarf Legion. That's why we're so damned good with a crossbow. It's quite safe, I assure you. We don't lose that many. Target strapped to their backs, straw padding. What more could they ask for? It's good exercise for them, but the steel boots are needed to slow them down just a tad. A dwarf can move at a fair pace when being shot at, and this can be unsporting on new recruits trying to hit them.

"Of course, only volunteers are allowed to be live targets, but there are always those more than willing to step forward. Especially lazy little bastards who are always late for muster!"

- General Thurgan Stormfoot -

BOOKMARKS # 3

(0.18 technical pen and HB pencil on off-cut card)

The top bookmark is titled: "Spaced-Out" and measures 120mm x 35mm. It was done with what was left of the diluted ink in the a 0.18 technical pen I'd used on previous bookmarks. I only just had enough ink to finish it and was pleased with the result.

The one below measures 125mm x 42mm and was done with a HB pencil. It's a simple drawing of the Medusa character that's pretty much standard fare for most fantasy artists, but it makes a decent enough subject for a bookmark.

Silas Grimbeard

 

(Fineliner on 115mm x 87mm paper)

A grumpy dwarf wizard, travelling with his feathery familiar.

This piece was done to try out some cheap gel fineliner pens I'd just bought, and they seem to work quite well, giving a good line and a decent opaque finish to the black areas. Not bad considering they're 3 for £1!

FF Spoof Page VII: "MILTON KEEN"

Fighting Fantasy Spoof: Page VII

 

(2B pencil on 150mm x 126mm paper)

Still continuing with my little celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, I created this little character: "Milton Keen" (who's from Milton-Keynes) and bumps into the player whilst playing the same "solo adventure" gamebook!

What he lacks in friends, he more than makes up for in body odour.

FF Spoof V: "THE NUBILE NYMPHS OF NUMARA"

 

Fighting Fantasy Spoof Page V

(2B pencil on 180mm x 120mm paper)

Still continuing with the spoof celebration of 40 years of Fighting Fantasy books, I added this particular example of the difficult traps some of the FF books would have for the player.

FF Spoof IV: "DARIUS JUN"

 

Fighting Fantasy Spoof page IV

(2B pencil on 150mm x 130mm paper)

I decided to go for the traditional wizard for the fourth Fighting Fantasy spoof image. Like with all these images, they work well on their own without the text, which is the way i want to keep them.

FF Spoof III : "THE OPPRESSED ORCS"

"The Oppressed Orcs"

(2B pencil on 150mm x 118mm paper)

It's been nearly 23 years since I did the first two of these Fighting Fantasy spoof images. I never planned to do any more, but since it's now the 40th Anniversary of the original Fighting Fantasy books, I thought I'd return to it, starting with this one.

You can see the previous two here

Unlike those first two pieces, the artwork for this third one (and the others I'll do) is pure Skav Art, meaning I only used one medium and no pre-concepts.

And it turned out quite well!

The Old Librarian

(fineliner on 190mm x 130mm paper)

This was a pen sketch that I did last year which I decided to finish-off a little more. The initial idea of it was a bookish, wizard-like, individual who was something of a travelling library, and wore one of his books as a hat.

LULANI GREENSTAR - Elven Witch

I don't usually favour sketchbooks, mainly because a single A4 sketchbook can last me a long time. I can easily get 3 or 4 works from one single page of it, but I didn't want to waste the few unused sketchbooks that I do have. So, I decided the crop them into smaller sketchbooks of A5, A6 and A7, each having 8 or 10 pages and stapled with a black card cover. They're crudely made, with uneven pages, but they'll do fine. Plus, I'm more likely to use them in these limited formats. The first one being the following:

 

Lulani Greenstar - A6 art booklet (10 pages)

I didn't intend to fill the entire booklet with just one character, but after I drew the first one, I found that more was to come from it. So much so that it ended up being a day in the life of this character. The drawings are of various sizes, and quality, below its A6 format, but they work well. So enjoy meeting the sexy, sultry, elven witch known as Lulani Greenstar. She's been, sort of, expecting you....

 

Lulani Greenstar

Lulani Greenstar, the sexy, sultry, elven witch, warmly greets us...

 

"Oh, how wonderful for everyone else but me! Completely unannounced and unexpected guests, arriving at an inconvenient time - Do come in!"

 

The Unfamiliar Familiar

Ah! Now here we see the fabled "Witch's Familiar." What strange and exotic name does Lulani give this little helper?

 

"Well, I don't know who it belongs to, but I call it "Little Bastard" because it's always tearing up my herb garden - Cats are edible, aren't they?"

 

The Witch's Brew

Where would any witch be without her cauldron? We can but wonder at what magical potions Lulani is concocting.

 

"It's called a stew. I do get hungry, you know. Would you like some?"

 

What happened to the cat?

 

"The what?..."

 

The Flight of a Witch

Like all good witches, Lulani knows how to fly, but shouldn't she be using a broomstick?

 

"Piss off! I'm not doing any housework whilst I'm flying. Where's the fun in that?"

 

The Love Potion

As a working witch, Lulani does all she can to help people with their problems...

 

"I'm sure you'd like this love potion, but let's be honest here, you're an ugly little fucker, aren't you? It'd just be a waste. I mean, I'm good, but I'm not THAT bloody good!"

 

"Burn the Witch!"

Lulani pays a visit to her good friend, and fellow witch, Karlotta Krane, who looks to be in a spot of bother...

 

"It seems that half the villagers were cursed with a plague of boils and she got the blame for it. Can't imagine who else could have done it. But don't worry, I'll save her, as soon as she reaches the point where she soils herself. I'm sorry, but she really needs to be taught a lesson. After all, she's blonde, beautiful, and much more popular than I am. In other words - WHAT A TOTAL BITCH!"

 

Raising the Dead

Using her powerful magic, Lulani has the ability to raise the dead! What diabolical plans does she have for this horrific creature?

 

"Nothing much. He was the shoemaker from the village and he owed me money. I just want him to pay me back. Death is no excuse when you're in debt to a witch."

 

The Rabbit Lulani

Another of Lulani's tricks is her ability to transform herself into a rabbit! But you can still tell that it's her.

 

"Really? How?"

 

It's your bright eyes, burning like fire.

 

"Why thank you!....wait, what?"

 



The Working Witch

There's always something that even a witch like Lulani needs to learn about magic. That's why we see her studying here.

 

"Bollocks! I don't need to learn anything. I'm doing that magic charm for fame, fortune and love that you wanted. That is why you're here, isn't it?"

 

Well....yes, I suppose so. It's not for me, you understand. Oh no, no, no! It's for a "friend"....Yes, that's right....a "friend"

 

"Yeah, yeah."

 

The Cock and Balls Magic Charm



It's....It's....IT'S JUST A COCK AND BALLS!

 

"You know nothing of witchcraft! It's clearly the "Phallus Rampant" an ancient symbol of fertility and good fortune. Besides, even if it was just a cock and balls, I'm a witch and I drew it, so that makes it a "magic" cock and balls."

 

You really are a mental-case, aren't you? And if you think I'm paying you for that, you've got another thing coming!

 

"The shoemaker once thought as you do."

 

 

Guardian Spirit - XORINA

(Green biro on 127mm x 76mm notecard)

- NOT AVAILABLE -

 

An unusual artwork, and the first of a few that I'll be doing. It's inspired by those that believe in guardian angels and spirit guides. I suppose it's really no different to those that believe they've been abducted by aliens. An idea that some higher being has, for some obscure reason, singled them out as something special. A constructed personal sense of worth in a world where they feel they have none. It's quite sad really, in that aspect, so who am I to begrudge them their little fantasy?

 

What I find amusing about them, though (especially with regard to spirit guides) is why they tend to be mostly American Indians aiding those with no heritage of such. I have this strange scenario in my mind of all these Indian spirit guides lining up to clock in and out of duty, with one suddenly turning to another and saying: "What the fuck are we helping these bastards for?"

 

In reality, these "entities" could be anything you want them to be. After all, it's your delusion, so why not treat yourself to something different? Like a sexy little elf-woman with a sword, for example.