Skip to main content

Adventures in Sketchtopia Part 6: Dark Matter and Form

Some men will give anything for power...  

Here, we continue our exploration of the Looseleaf Sketchbook Pages.  I've tried to organize batches by general theme.  This post covers dark warriors and spirits.

For beginners, we have a non-human warrior, the Blood Mongerer.  Seems to be on par with a large orc or small ogre.

Moving along, the first of a group of human warriors that have committed themselves to a dark cause.  The Dark Templar, an evil counterpart to a Knight's Templar (note the spelling error below).

Templars who prove themselves across many battles may be promoted to Dark Lords.  They are now able to wield weapons of metal close up (mace) and newfound magical abilities from afar (dark fireballs). 

The strongest and most depraved of the Dark Lords will cross the threshold between life and death to become one of three rare enemies: Death, Plague, or Spirit Lords.  Death Lords are powerful wielders of unholy necrotic magics forbidden in every human kingdom.  Plague Lords, little more than animated swarms of pestilence beneath blasted armor, have mastered all manner of diseases, miasma, and desolation.  Spirit Lords, eschewing almost everything of their once-corporeal existence, command ghostly and poltergeist powers while floating above the ground in their black helms.

Speaking of spirits, we have two particularly nasty forms below.  The first is a Brute Sprit, which uses its large form to materialize and attack its foes.  The second is an Insane Spirit, who's ferocity and unpredictability is even more terrifying than the Brute's brute strength.

Creeping behind those spirits, comes an Intangible Fiend.  It can strike its victim with black tendrils, then phase out its body from physical reality as the victim tries to fight back, weapons swishing harmlessly through a ghostly body.

Lastly, we have something with no traces of humanity.  The Nightmare Fog.  Unwary travelers that get caught it its impenetrably black haze are never seen again.

Bonus:  This post could sure use a defender to smite the various evil entities that have just been described.  Its the perfect job for an untitled knight drawn by one of my brothers.  I dub thee, Sir Klelmet.  His shield is rather impressive, with a coat-of-arms that includes a snake, bear, bird, and eagle head.  The same cannot be said for his bow; it's little more than a straight stick with a string tied to each end.  Also, today would have been a good day to wear pants.  Regardless, good luck brave Sir Klelmet!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Creative Tool: Idea Mutation

It's mutating out of control!   Here is another wild method of improving the creativity of ideas through the process of introducing random 'mutations'.  I call it Idea Mutation. Method: Start with an idea.  Add it to a circle on the far left side of a piece of paper.  That is round 1. Make two branches off the first idea.  Each branch has a new circle.  That is round 2. For each branch, roll a 10-sided dice and select the 'mutation' from the table below. For each branch, create a 'mutated' idea incorporating that branch's mutation. Continue branching and mutation ideas for subsequent rounds (3, 4, etc.). Modifications: Include different mutations (ex. Add Thrill, More Collaborative, Clearer, etc.) Add null mutation (no changes for certain branches) Change probability of mutations (same mutation for more than one number) Examples:

Creative Tool: Idea Bracket

Let the Best Idea Win. How to generate great ideas?  Why not create an Idea Bracket ?  It is analogous to a sports league play-off.  Ideas are pitted against each other, with the winning idea moving on to the next round.  The last idea standing is the winner. I do have a few additional rules.  The Three M's : Modify, Merge, and Markup.  These rules allow for both idea modification and saving sub-winner ideas. Simple enough, right?  Let's try it out on some examples. Story Beginning Location Floating City and Haunted Graveyard merged into Floating Graveyard Screaming Wastelands modified into Blasted Wastelands Winner was Floating Graveyard and Sundered Titan merged into Floating Graveyard of Titans Artistic Inspiration Shack Brainstorming and Review Idea/Notes merged to Shack Review Ideas TCG View modified to TCG Mashup Shack Review Ideas marked for later Monster App and Walk and Song merged to Walk and Song with Monster App Priming Winner was TCG Mashup and Walk and Son

Writing Tool: Panic Cards

For writing emergencies only... In a previous post , I created a break-in-case of emergency box for days where I'm severely struggling to get my writing goal in.   In case that box is not enough, or if I'm away from my house, I've devised another emergency method to keep me from veering off my writing track. Panic Cards. What are they?  Simple.  Index cards cut in half with encouraging phrases on one side. The other side has a small, randomized reward for completing the writing task.  I made it random on purpose to increase the intrigue. To use them, I pull out the card, read the phrase of encouragement, and get the writing done.  Once the thirty minutes of writing is completed, I turn over the card and reap the reward. Silly?  Maybe.  Effective?  Time will tell.  It's better to have an emergency plan and never use it than to not have one when an emergency comes calling.