[Art] Cheerleader Ziggy

[Ren Gaulen]

Whose blood?

Beats me, actually.. My guess would be it is the blood of "Evil" Ren's victims. Or, maybe, they are facing against each other in Hell, since Ren can travel there (via the Hell's Gate). As for the arm of the Ren on the right - he is pointing at the viewer with the sword. They both are holding identical swords - Ren's enchanted sword, Ithorin, was replicated too. By the way, I forgot to mention that they are actually supposed to be facing each other - I wonder what kind of a dialogue might be taking place between those two?...
Ren on the left: "Lower your weapon. There is no meaning in this fight. Together we will change this world for the better! You should understand it, for in the end, you are the same as me."
Ren on the right: "I am going to start changing this world for the better right now, by erasing you from existence!! There can be only one Ren - me."

[Tapewolf]

I'm somewhat confused about which is good and which is evil.  Ren on the left is at least happy, even if it's happy because he's on a murderous rampage.  Ren on the right, well it looks like he'd kill me for kicks and then try to pass my corpse off as a demon for the bounty.  Or kill a couple of dozen other people too just to be sure of getting his target.  Moral ambiguity can be such fun...

[techmaster-glitch]

I think that whichever one is the good one and which is the evil one is supposed to be either The Twist or The Reveal. I would love a full story out of this, if one doesn't already exist or isn't in the works.

I really don't know which one I think is good and which one is bad. In fact, I think it might be more a shades of grey thing-neither are truly good or fully bad!

(And by the way, I am saying I don't want to know who's good/bad)

[Ren Gaulen]

I'm somewhat confused about which is good and which is evil.  Ren on the left is at least happy, even if it's happy because he's on a murderous rampage.  Ren on the right, well it looks like he'd kill me for kicks and then try to pass my corpse off as a demon for the bounty.  Or kill a couple of dozen other people too just to be sure of getting his target.  Moral ambiguity can be such fun...

Ren is not morally ambiguous. He made a vow to stop the powers of the Netherworld from invading the world of humans. He stands for what he believes in, and fights to protect those dear to him. While he does not normally show mercy to his enemies, when he is not busy cleaving and smiting Evil Ren is actually nice and friendly, if a bit reserved. And he is not a mercenary. He is an official Daemonslayer of the Holy Order of Asheron, so his duty is to protect the innocents. As for the bad guys, as paladin Jericho Riley likes to say: "Let 'em burn.. "

I think that whichever one is the good one and which is the evil one is supposed to be either The Twist or The Reveal. I would love a full story out of this, if one doesn't already exist or isn't in the works.

I really don't know which one I think is good and which one is bad. In fact, I think it might be more a shades of grey thing-neither are truly good or fully bad!

In fact there is a story in the works. But at the beginning of the story Ren was nothing like he is now: he was open, romantic, naive and... well, not very smart. A typical fantasy hero. Now he is a bit harsh, a bit sombre, devoid of his former naivety, but still a little romantic at heart. Well, if he does not have to go daemonslaying for a couple weeks or so he usually snaps out of his "moody paladin" routine and partially reverts to his former personality. Oh, and in the story Ren fought his "evil twin" before he became that "moody paladin", which makes the "Duality" picture not strictly canonical...

(And by the way, I am saying I don't want to know who's good/bad)

Now I'll have to give the answer!! And the answer is... sore wa himitsu desu! ("This is a secret!" - a catch phrase of some character from some anime called "Slayers Next" or something ) Well, actually I have pretty much answered the question above, anyway.

[WhiteFox]

*Picks his lip*

If I might make a suggestion... All your characters seem to have the same attitude and and body type. Very slender, effeminate, and full of badass. I'm not one to tell and artist where to take their work, but have you thought about varying things a bit?

I envy your ability to ornament your characters, by the way. They're full of detail.

[Ren Gaulen]

Wow. Haven't posted here for a while...

So, here's a new picture, Faust Koch and Arelana Ilgador, the Master of Ice and the Mistress of Fire, walking peacefully... somewhere. I'll finish the background later. Both characters are from the world of the "Shades of Grey".
They both are members of the Holy Order of Asheron, but while Faust is a paladin and a daemonslayer, Arelana's status in the Order is harder to define, since she is a former High Priestess of Valbazarad, the Shakharrian god of Fire. She is usually just considered a daemonslayer too. Actually, by all rights these to should have been mortal enemies. Faust, the Master of Ice, belonged to one of the many pseudo-daemon clans inhabiting the Realm of Hades, while the Templars of Valbazarad, of whom Arelana was the leader for some time, were Masters of Fire and often had blood of the (pseudo) angels in their veins. However, these two met only after they left the Realm of Hades for the Blazing Universe, where their pasts were irrelevant.
Faust is almost always calm and collected, with an air of superiority about him. Some fellow paladins and knights joke that he has a spell of Aura of Cool from Ice magic permanently active. Faust does not talk much, but what he says is worth listening to. He is very polite, even in battle. However, people tend to find him very distant and introverted. There is hardly a single person who could be considered Faust's friend. Even his relations with Arelana are not clear. There are some dark and sinister secrets hidden in his past. He would not discuss it with anyone.
There is an interesting thing about Faust: while he specialises in Ice magic, he also wields an enchanted sword imbued with Thunder magic. Also, his hands and forearms are covered with weird "tattoos" which move when he uses magic. He also seems to have so-called Devil Eyes (additional pupils forming around his real one), but he activates them only if he has to fight a True daemon. Also, he can summon a shivar, an Ice Elemental. As many other powerful pseudo-daemons, Faust has very fast regeneration and can reattach severed body parts, making them grow back on. In fact, his aura is so powerful that Faust can survive decapitation or having his brains blown out. However, he needs energy to heal, so he will die if he is killed continuously, which will eventually deplete his energy reserves.
Arelana, who used to live on the planet Shakharr in the Realm of Hades, is a half-pseudo-angel. She is also one of Valbazarad's Chosen, which gives her the power to transform into a Phoenix and freely summon the ifrits to do her biddings (she uses them to do shopping ; just kidding). She has a fiery temperament and a very short fuse. It can't be helped, though, since it is a common problem of all of Valbazarad's Chosen. Because of this she has to put considerable mental efforts into staying calm. She also suffers from chronic insomnia. However, in Faust's presence she feels strangely at ease. That was the original reason why she decided to be with him. Nowadays, however, there is something more than convenience that tells her to be with the Master of Ice.
Arelana is a pretty good spellcaster, using several Spheres of magic. In battle she generates a Flame or a Heat sword (the former looking like its name implies, the latter resembling light sabres from "Star Wars"), summons ifrits (she has enough power to summon and control five ifrits at once), sets everything around her on fire with sheer willpower and, if the opponent is extra-tough, transforms into a Phoenix and smites her enemy with the power of overkill. Also, she can transform only partially, becoming something like an ifrit herself - a creature with a body made of solid fire. Being a Valbazarad's Chosen Arelana is inhumanly strong and tough herself, though she is not as hard to kill as Faust, unless she partially or fully transforms. Also, even if killed, she can exchange her life for the life of the Phoenix, coming back to life. The large medallion on her neck is so-called Heart of Phoenix. If she has to perform that revival technique, the stone in the medallion will shatter, and she'll have to go back to Shakharr and beg her Lord to grant her a new one.

[Tapewolf]

Nice, though all that background information in one lump was a lot to digest.  What is Koch?  He looks kind of lupine, though with short ears.  (And very surly)

[Ren Gaulen]

Faust is a wolf. Possibly an Arctic wolf (since he specialises in Ice magic ). And he is supposed to be sort of smiling. Actually, most of the time he has a rather grave or gloomy expression on his face. He simply isn't good at smiling.

[Ren Gaulen]

 More original characters of mine make their appearance! However, this time they are drawn in a rather peculiar and rather "cartoonish" way. It was inspired by a recent DMFA strip (yeah, by this one ).
So far I have only two of my characters done: Ren Gaulen, whom you probably know already ( ) and Adrian Rose, who makes his first appearance in my art thread. Ren and Adrian used to be mortal enemies for a while, but later they became comrades, fighting against the daemon Prince Azriel. Actually, when Ren and Adrian were still children, they grew together almost like twin brothers. However, now they hardly have anything in common at all. While Ren is a noble and selfless warrior, a self-fashioned Sword That Cleaves Darkness, Adrian is nothing short of a mercenary, fighting for money and fame rather than for any ideals. A smart dressed, a lady's man, a spendthrift and a general a$$hole - all of it is he. Adrian is also nothing short of a genius - his mind was affected by nether energies giving him mental capabilities beyond those of any regular humans. However, the same energies have driven Adrian slightly insane and gave him a distinct sadistic streak.
By the way, while Ren is more of a close combat specialist, Adrian would rather attack his opponents from distance. He is a very powerful and skilful sorcerer, an expert in several schools and spheres of magic, an alchemist and even a technomancer.

[Tapewolf]

I'm not a great fan of chibis so I'll leave it to others to discuss its artistic merit.  However it's interesting that their fur colourings are equal and opposite.  Does that mean anything perchance, or was it coincidence/laziness? 

[Ren Gaulen]

However it's interesting that their fur colourings are equal and opposite.  Does that mean anything perchance, or was it coincidence/laziness? 

He-he-he.. There is a good reason for that. First of all I must mention that Ren is known as the White Knight of Gaia, while Adrian - as the Black Knight of Gaia. And it was not them who made up these titles. Their past incarnations, Telim and Gieren respectively, were given their powers and had their appearances slightly altered by Amaterasu some seven hundred years before Ren and Adrian were born. Originally they were supposed to be the two guardians of a demi-goddess Brialy - one was Light and the other was Shadow. Later they had to fight daemon Prince Azriel and were all killed (even though Telim managed to strike the daemon down). Only to be reborn centuries later as Ren, Adrian and Tiare (who will be showing up next). By the way, there are at least three more members of the so-called Shining Brigade (aside from Ren, Adrian and Tiare).

[WhiteFox]

I'd leave out the fingers on the chibi. It's visually distracting, and chibis usually have less detail in general.

[Ren Gaulen]

 As I have promised, here's Tiare Alistair Brisgard! While she looks cute, fluffy and harmless, she is arguably the most powerful member of the Shining Brigade, and its leader outside of battle (during battles Ren takes the leading role). Tiare is a very kind and caring, if a bit mischievous, person; however, she should not be taken lightly due to her apotheosized powers.

[Tapewolf]

Now I'm curious.  What's the book?  She's got it clipped to her belt for quick access, like the spellbook in Ultima 7 (which I have admittedly been playing far too much lately).

[WhiteFox]

I notice that all your ink work has really jagged edges, and no aliasing. I poked at one of the images in Photoshop, tried a gaussan blur, selection/feather/fill, and a few other things, but what worked best was just scaling the image down by 50%. You could on the image at double size and shrink the image down when you're done.

[Ren Gaulen]

Now I'm curious.  What's the book?  She's got it clipped to her belt for quick access, like the spellbook in Ultima 7 (which I have admittedly been playing far too much lately).

You are correct. This is a spellbook. And those earrings, bracelets and necklace (and the belt buckle, too) are used to store and sometimes channel magical energy, so that Tiare would be able to cast especially powerful spells or create a nearly impenetrable force field.

[Ren Gaulen]

 ...And the three remaining members of the Shining Brigade is here! They are Lyndon de Vries, a swordsman (he seems to have a hangover), Itasha Folken, a ninja, and Jayce Hetzer, a sharpshooter.

[Tapewolf]

What are the species?  My guess is: Lyndon -> coyote, Itasha -> cheetah (?), Jayce -> no idea

If Itasha is a cheetah, there are a few things that could do with tweaking.  The tail pattern isn't quite right, and cheetahs have very distinctive face markings which again, could do with some tuning.

[Ren Gaulen]

Well, it's nearly impossible to tell what species are they from these "chibified" pictures, but you were pretty close. Lyndon is actually a wolf dog, Itasha is supposed to be a leopard (a tiger/leopard, to be more precise) and Jayce is a ferret.

[Ren Gaulen]

Woo!! Another chibified character coming up! This time it is Raiden, a genetically engineered super-soldier and a captain of the elite military group - the Thunderfists. And he is totally For the Commonwealth!

The Commonwealth of Gerio-Goran, to be exact.

[Tapewolf]

Like the armour design, but the commonwealth symbol is disturbing, in a fascistic sort of way.

[Ren Gaulen]

I forgot to mention: that is the symbol of the Thunderfists, not the Commonwealth.

And now for something a bit different. A picture of another one of my characters, Riona Rylendt, also known as Rio the Terrible (just kidding).

A captain of a mysterious spaceship "Tiamat" and a freelance bounty hunter, Rio travels across the Universe in search of worthy adversaries and bizarre adventures (or, rather, worthy adversaries and bizarre adventures manage to find her wherever she goes).

And one more picture that I have drawn for Keaton the Black Jackal.

You may notice that Keaton has a quite unusual outfit here. She will probably be wearing this outfit in "Project Future" at some point.

[Tapewolf]

And now for something a bit different. A picture of another one of my characters, Riona Rylendt[/url], also known as Rio the Terrible (just kidding).

I can see you have a lot of fun designing outfits.  Yellow eyes on a human make him look a llttle creepy, though.

And one more picture that I have drawn for Keaton the Black Jackal

Good likeness, except for the eyes, the soulless Chibi eyes...

You may notice that Keaton has a quite unusual outfit here. She will probably be wearing this outfit in "Project Future" at some point.

Yeah, around page 87 
Well, we might be able to cut her in early, but the earliest I see it slotting in is page 70.  (And this is why I originally wanted to do more than one strip a week )

[Ren Gaulen]

I can see you have a lot of fun designing outfits.  Yellow eyes on a human make him look a llttle creepy, though.

He-he-he.. You did it too. Riona is a "she", not a "he". However, she looks very ambiguously, and is often mistaken for a guy. Also, she is not really a human...
And yes, I had a lot of fun designing her outfit. Rio is wearing a bulletproof jacket made of "active fibre" and decorated with some pieces of metal armour (they do nothing ), but her gauntlets and boots are actually useful in battle, since they can stop even a spell-blade, while stuff like high-frequency blades bounce right off of them. Also, while they are not present in the picture, Rio's weapons of choice are a katana made of Syrydan adamantium and a big friggin' revolver with a "Techno-Magical Ammo Replicator" (actually, that thing is called simply Ammo Replication Device; a "TMAR" thing is a reference to "Serious Sam").

And one more picture that I have drawn for Keaton the Black Jackal

Good likeness, except for the eyes, the soulless Chibi eyes...

Only by becoming a chibi one can truly understand the chibi. So, how about I "chibify" Jakob next, then?...

[Dannysaysnoo]

A big friggin' revolver with a "Techno-Magical Ammo Replicator" (actually, that thing is called simply Ammo Replication Device; a "TMAR" thing is a reference to "Serious Sam").

Nice, Serious Sam all the way.

[Tapewolf]

Only by becoming a chibi one can truly understand the chibi. So, how about I "chibify" Jakob next, then?...

James got there first 

[GabrielsThoughts]

disproportionately big heads, and little gelfling bodies...how could one possibly go wrong

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

disproportionately big heads, and little gelfling bodies...how could one possibly go wrong

Want a list? ;-]

[Ren Gaulen]

Only by becoming a chibi one can truly understand the chibi. So, how about I "chibify" Jakob next, then?...

James got there first 

Then I'll be the second. I proudly present you a chibified... Jakob Pettersohn!

...I'm having too much fun with drawing these chibies.. I hope this one won't make Tape cross..

[Sunblink]

Oh god those chibis are adorable!  I'm still absolutely overjoyed with how Keaton turned out. I approve wholeheartedly that you used the same outfit as in the birthday picture. And I love the background with my logo. BWEE~ <3 Still, I've done most of my gushing through PM. Either way...

Thank youuuu!

~Keaton the Black Jackal