Wayne Reynolds's page

Most commercial artists retain creative copyright which allows them to produce prints of their artwork. Or to sell the original art to a collector for non-commercial purposes. (If the art is created traditionally. Ie; acrylic, oils, ink, etc). The parameters in which they can create and sell prints varies, depending upon the publishing copyright holder. (Some publishers don't allow the sale of prints).

Remember that ALL the artwork you see in game books is copyrighted material, owned exclusively by the company who published the game. (In this case Paizo).

The size of the prints an artist produces can vary. Many contracts stipulate a specific size the prints.
In many cases it’s “8 x “10. In other cases prints aren’t allowed to exceed the original size of the artwork… Although it’s often moot in the case of digital art. Which effectively means an artists could create prints any size they want.

(Most of my paintings are no larger than “12 x “16.5, so any prints I produce tend to be smaller than those dimensions).

If you are wanting art prints, I suggest contacting the artist directly.

You can find a list of artists in the credits section of the rulebooks.
It’s possible to identify an artist by their signature. Otherwise you may have to do some research to track down the creator of the image you like.
(It’s why I recommend new artists to develop an instantly recognisable signature for their art. It makes it easier for the viewer to identify the artist).

Not every artist sells prints.
Personally, I don’t sell prints of my artwork outside of conventions. The massive amount of time I spend creating art doesn’t leave me additional time to produce, parcel and post prints.
However, many artists are now using 2nd party printers such as Inprint, Redbubble or OMA. (If their contracts allow 2nd party printers).

Hope that helps?

Wayne Reynolds wrote:

It's Geb.

Thanks for confirming that. It's a beautiful cover! :)

Thank you. :)

It's Geb.

That Eidolon up there in the image at the beginning looks like a dragon puppy.

Or a stylised version of what a young teenage girl imagines a dragon-friend would look like.

Wayne Reynolds wrote:

Routamaa wrote:

Are those Skeletons old friends of Valeros as that emblem on the shield and banner is the same Valeros has on his shield in his Iconic picture??

Also love those Tooth Fairies on the cover, especially the one on the foreground that looks like salivating watching those skeletons and all those teeth ready to be pulled off.

Well spotted!

Critical success on your perception roll. :)

Oh no! They're not his friends... those skeletons have killed Valeros and taken his stuff! Bastards!

Unlikely.

Are those Skeletons old friends of Valeros as that emblem on the shield and banner is the same Valeros has on his shield in his Iconic picture??

Also love those Tooth Fairies on the cover, especially the one on the foreground that looks like salivating watching those skeletons and all those teeth ready to be pulled off.

Well spotted!

I wish she was holding her sword correctly. Index finger looped over the guard.

Both methods of holding a basket hilt rapier (As pictured in the illustration of Jirelle and index finger looped around the crossguard) are correct. They're both featured in Agrippa and Alfieri historical fencing manuals (Maybe in Meyer too?)

I did consider the option of looping Jirelle's finger around the crossguard during the sketch phase of the artwork.
It was a 50/50 decision.
However, I decided against it in the end due to purely visual considerations.
Her outstretched finger created another intersecting vertices which I felt visually interfered with the shapes of the basket hilt.

Although it did occur to me whilst deciding on which configuration to depict is that someone would probably complain no matter which version I chose.

I love that Freya have a broken Desna religious symbol, with one wing each held by her and Daji (and another broken one on her neck).

That bring me one question though... Have the "goal" of making the art easier to translate into minis dropped? Or is there enough confidence that this rapier will look good as a mini?
In fact, the three of them looks much more detailed than the Core Iconics...

Really pleased to hear that you like the artwork.

The Desna symbols around Feiya's and Daji's necks are identical. But they aren't broken. They have two wings with a female face in the middle.

If there was a directive or goal to make art simpler so that it could be easier to make them into minis, then it was never mentioned to me.

My question for you is in regards to the Champion class. I understand that you cannot speak on anything concerning any potential content for Pathfinder, so I'll try to parse this in a way that doesn't seem to imply that is what I'm looking for.

What I'm curious about is if you have any desire, personally, to create Iconic characters for the Champion subclasses? Of all the classes, the Champion is the one I feel would be the best fit for multiple Iconics, given the scale of deities within the world. Could argue that for the Cleric too I suppose, but that's neither here nor there. Anyways, Seelah will always be the Iconic Paladin to me, even if she is meant to evoke the idea of the Champion as a whole. I'd love to see your take on what a Redeemer and Liberator would look like; and any future subclasses for that matter. Would personally love to see your ideas for at least one of each alignment

Thanks for your interest in my artwork.

There's so much content from Golarion and Pathfinder that hasn't been depicted yet. It's such a great setting and there's so much scope, that I'm honestly enthusiastic about depicting anything and everything that the design team commission for me..... Including variations on Champions and the clerics of different deities.

However, you're correct that I'm not at liberty to discuss potential content for Pathfinder and therefore unable to discuss specifics much further than that. Sorry.

Good afternoon, sir.

With the indication that that tengu will be the ancestry of the new Oracle iconic for PF2, do you foresee any difficulties in creating a look for them?

Good Morning sir.

What was the hardest evil character to draw for Pathfinder and reasons why?

Probably Xin from AP#66-The Dead Heart of Xin. Shattered Star, part 6.

Here was a one-armed skeleton entombed in a crystal shard. With a runic inscription on it's skull. The crystal is at the heart of a clockwork construct with four arms and three legs. The trick was to combine all of those aspects but also to make it look like it was designed by an utterly arcane intelligence.

Actually - though it might be way too early to ask this - with the APG coming out next... Gencon, I believe ? Is there any chance we get another set of art panels for the updated (and new) iconics and races ?

The Paizo art team and I are looking into the possibility of holding more art panels at GenCon. There's a high probability that we'll be discussing the new Iconics, amongst other things.

Dear Lord Wayne of the House of Reynolds, First of His Name, Master of the Art.

Is there any info/insight about the new Witch Design that you can share. I really loved to new sketch design for Feiya and Daji. I can not wait to see what the completed version will be.

Anything that you can comment on for this will be most enjoyed and appreciated.

Thank you.

Thanks for your query.

Hi Wayne,

I just want to say I really appreciate your responses and the level of detail and care you take with designing characters and clothing. Also I really love your work.

Thanks for playing Pathfinder and your kind words about my artwork. :)

Is Yoon wearing hose or pants? Is she wearing a dress or is that all coat?

I wonder if there's some confusion between modern clothing definitions with medieval-style clothing?

Yoon isn't wearing a dress.
She wears an un-bleached linen tunic (with stitched applique hems). She may have been wearing it from a much earlier age because her sleeves are mid-length rather than up to her wrists. The lower hem rises to just above her knees. At one point, it may have been longer on her, but she's grown since then.
By modern standards, it looks more like a dress. But in medieval Europe it was a fairly standard style of body-linen worn by men and women.

Over the top of her tunic is a long doublet (coat) with triple panels. She wears a snood (hood) over her doublet.

It now depends upon what your definition of pants and hose are?
From a medieval perspective, they're essentially the same thing.
Hose were the standard leg-wear in medieval Europe. They tended to be made from wool cloth and styled to be fairly close to the leg, (but had a tendency to bag over time). Men's hose could be joined, (Like a pair of trousers) or made for separate legs and worn with braise. Men's hose tended to be hip-height. Whilst women's hose tended to be thigh-high and tied with a garter.
If this all sounds vaguely like "hosiery"? We do get the modern word from the word hose. But medieval hose were made very differently to the modern equivalent. (different material)
So in answer to your question, I guess they're more like tight woolen pants that've got a little bit baggy over time.

Hello Wayne.

I've loved your art for years, and follow you eagerly across IP. I am one of, I'm sure many, people who were -drawn- to Pathfinder due to your art, and I won't lie, your art is what keeps me coming back. PF is a good system and all but the depth of character (and Character) you give the IP is amazing. I've bought pathfinder books I didn't 'need' simply for your artwork.

I love the update on the Hobgoblins. They are instantly identifiable as being 'goblinoid' now, looking related to your "Pathfinder Goblins" Whom are so extremely distinctive (And well adored!).

I love the update.

I was wondering if you could give us any thoughts you had for the Hobgoblins, and their new designs. The Soldier from the Bestiary, and one from the Lost Omens Character Guide, are both very nice. (I'm not 100% sure the Lost Omens Character guide is your work.)

But any insight to the artistic development and implication of their new look would be appreciated.

Thanks for your interest in my artwork. I sincerely appreciate your kind words.

In the early days of Pathfinder offered an opportunity to create new visual variations on fantasy themes. The idea was to create a new variation to an established theme that would be unique to Pathfinder. Being both recognisable as the depicted theme and instantly associated with Pathfinder.
The art description for goblins was fairly open. Erik Mona specified that the Goblins featured on the cover art of Pathfinder Adventure Path #1 – Burnt Offerings did not have to look like established versions of goblins portrayed in other RPGs. However, the new design had to retain enough visual aspects to still be identified and associated with a high – fantasy concept of a goblin.

That’s not an easy task.

There are numerous variations to the concept of goblin portrayed by different brands. ….
And I had to create a new design that didn’t look like any existing depiction. But kinda looked like them too!

I don’t know if you’ve heard this story, but the inspiration for Pathfinder goblins came from a bath sponge!

I was squeezing the soap suds out of an oval – shaped sponge and had folded the sponge in half. I noticed that the sponge kinda made a mouth – like a hand puppet. Except the creases around the edges created a strange shark – like maw. I imagined what it would look like with lots of jagged tiny teeth and realised that would look really scary. (I made the proto – sponge/goblin talk. It said some really messed up things. But that helped with the scary) Hence the idea for the Pathfinder goblin was born. Inspiration can come from unusual places.

Consequently, the goblins of Golarion broke a lot of preconceptions and became immediately recognisable and are instantly associated with Pathfinder RPG. They’re one of the game’s most Iconic creatures.

Pathfinder 2 gave us the opportunity to use the same approach to create Pathfinder- exclusive visuals for its content.

Up until then, hobgoblins just looked like blue/grey skinned half-orcs. There really wasn’t much visually to tell them apart. And from a creative point of view, that’s a really lazy design. Not that there was anything wrong with the original artwork. The design was just kinda generic….. And we didn’t want generic. We wanted unique imagery that would be immediately recognised as a Pathfinder hobgoblin.

It made sense that Pathfinder hobgoblins probably should share some similarities to Pathfinder goblins in terms of body shape and facial features. Goblin and hobgoblins (and bugbears) may be humanoid, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re body proportions are exactly the same as a human. Distorting the body proportions help to convey a sense of unnaturalness about a creature and make it more like….. well…. a monster!

Consequently, I played around with designs that showed a larger and smarter gobliniod. Something that didn’t look like a hobgoblin depicted in other brands, but the natural progression of the Pathfinder goblin. Although they’re better equipped and armoured, their items should be slightly reminiscent of goblin items.
Hobgoblin equipment is like a sub-standard copy of items crafted by humans, elves or dwarves. Even though hobgoblins are intelligent their twisted minds haven’t quite got it right. Instead, their items have a slightly darker feel to them that reflects their true nature.
Similarly, goblin equipment is an attempt at copying hobgoblin equipment, except it’s even more messed up.

Creating unique imagery that would be instantly related to Pathfinder has been a large factor in the visualisation of the new version.

Wayne Reynolds wrote:

So that's why his shield seems so unique - it's because it is! Thanks for your reply, Wayne, I always love to get some insight into an artist's creative process. Most of all as good an artist as you (I love how much thought and research you always put behind everything you draw!).

I have another question, if that's okay with you.

Regarding Amiri (great ideas about her appearance in the comment above!), there was a lot of resistance in the player base to the idea that an "18 Strength barbarian" would look so relatively thin and unlike a really strong generic female athlete (and there was almost none...

The thread discussing Amiri was locked for very good reasons. It would be inappropriate of me to continue the discussion further on another thread.

Though I'm pleased that you like Valeros's shield design.
Much of my creation process consists of a great deal of research and imagination. It's an important requirement when tasked with
creating elements that might be uniquely associated with Pathfinder and the Golarion world setting.

Hi Wayne - I wanted to add my voice to those saying how big your art plays a role in my choice of playing Pathfinder. It's an increasingly wonderful setting but without you and the other great artists featured in the products it would be so much poorer and less attractive. You folks really bring it to life!

I also have a small question - I'm very curious about Valeros' shield. I've never seen a shield like that anywhere! What was the inspiration? Can you talk about it a bit?

Thanks again for adding the spark of great art to a great game!

Thanks for the kind words. I sincerely appreciate it.

I created over 100 potential designs for Valeros's shield. I must've completely filled 3 pages in my sketch pad with minute thumbnail designs too.
Firstly, myself and the Paizo design team didn't really want Valeros's shield to look like anything out of real-life history. Whilst I often take inspiration from real-world history, I change it to reflect a high fantasy setting based on imagination.
So recognisable shapes like the round shield, kite shield and heater weren't used. Even so, there were still a wide range of possibilities and variations to explore.

Some of the more complicated designs were discounted to make it easier for other creative outlets to replicate. So a much simpler shape and device was preferred.

Valeros is something of a packrat. His equipment is designed to look like it comes from a variety of cultures. Consequently, A more angular shape seemed to work better in contrast to the curved shapes featured in Valeros's armour.

The colour combination wasn't decided upon till I started painting the cover art for the playtest. A red shield rim showed up the best in the surrounding cold palette. So red it was.

Whilst a heck of a lot of work went into one shield design, it was a lot of fun. And on the plus side, I now have over 100 shield designs waiting to draw upon in the future.

What was Amiri 1st edition design inspiration for her Red Sonja like costume?

Comparing Amiri to Red Sonja is like comparing Mad Max - Fury Road to Smokey and the Bandit II on the premise that both movies have cars in them.

I've spoken in Paizo podcasts and posted previously on this thread about the design concept behind Amiri's armour. But I guess not everyone's seen it.

Here's an edited version;

Amiri’s armour is based upon Ancient European barbarian culture concepts about magical protection in battle. These coincide with a visual statement of just how utterly fearless these people were in battle by leaving parts of the body deliberately exposed. (in some cases this resulted in warriors entering battle completely naked) These concepts may be utterly alien to a modern Western way of thinking and fighting. I can understand why Amiri’s armour configuration is often misunderstood when viewed with 21st Century cultural preconceptions. But these practices beautifully summarise a barbarian culture with their own set of unusual beliefs and reckless nature.
Coincidentally, the armour configuration kinda fit in with some historical two-handed weapon techniques. Particularly the great axe (Also known as a Dane Axe) There are accounts of Viking and Saxon Huscarls charging forwards swinging a long hafted axe in a figure of “8”. In theory, this would create a constantly moving area of protection around the front of the body provided by the constantly moving weapon. An opponent would conceivably have to time their attack just right in order to stab someone fighting in this style.
I surmised that she’d mainly want heavier armour on her arms and legs. Her arms and legs would be the places where she’d mostly be getting hit if she was swinging that 2 handed sword in a figure “8”. The combat style and armour configuration may be pure conjecture but it works for a high fantasy setting based on imagination.

My favorite iconic is amari.She seems to be used when fighting dragons and giants.

I want to ask what was xin design inspration for his clockwork form.

The concept for the clockwork version of Xin was very unusual. There wasn't really any frame of reference I knew of the draw upon as a starting block. Consequently, The only way I could think of to begin visualising the design was to make lots of rough sketches that just consisted of combinations of random shapes until I found one that seemed to work. It was then a case of refining those shapes. Adding details and figuring out some method of locomotion to create the final form.

While I'm here, those art panels from the cons were really fun. Shame they tend to end with "oh god we're out of time" ^^.

I'm very glad that you liked the panels.

Erik, Sarah and I have talked about the possibility of holding more hour - long panels at future cons.

Will we see sketches of the updated Advanced Player's Guide iconics in the playtest document, or maybe in some blog posts leading up to the book's release?

It was really fun following them prior to the 2e playtest, so I was wondering if something similar was planned for the 2e Advanced Player's Guide.

Alas! I am but a freelance contributor. I only create the pics.

It's the talented Paizo Design Team who decides what to put into the APG 2e playtest document.
But I hope they put the new sketches in. :)

Wayne Reynolds wrote:

Consistency is one of the reasons why I was asked to create back views of the 2e Iconic characters.

Will we be able to see These in the future? I would love to have the full view of what all the characters look like, front to back!

Yes. Back view sketches for most of the Iconic characters have already been previewed in the "Iconic Evolution" Paizo Blog clips.

Do you have an approximate age for Yoon?

The art description never specified an approximate age, other than "child". You'd have to ask Mark Seifter.

Monkeybox wrote:

Concerning Karzoug's design, one thing has had me curious for quite a while, is he supposed to have two pony tails? I'm sure there has been one picture of him with his back to the audience where he has two, though I could be wrong.

He does, check this picture on PathfinderWiki.

I originally designed him with two ponytails positioned one above the other. The top ponytail is tied with a decorative sleeve. The lower ponytail is tied with a leather chord.

Other artists may have interpreted this design differently.
Consistency is one of the reasons why I was asked to create back views of the 2e Iconic characters.

So we're missing out on some context for the colors, that makes sense. Are all the iconics being drawn in the same light?

Most of the new Iconic artwork takes into account environmental lighting, which varies depending upon the character.

Cori Marie wrote:

It seems like her skin is lighter in the new art, and I'm not a huge fan of that :(

I also noticed this and was disappointed. As a black female, seeing someone with my skin tone as a younger girl was so impactful to me when I opened up the original rulebook.

In my community, being a darker tone individual can come with its own set of struggles (I remember being called ugly because of my skin).
Seeing someone like her in an rpg book being a hero and amazing means a lot. To see her skin get lightened here disappoints me a lot. :(

Sorry to hear that you're disappointed with this rendition of my favourite Iconic character.

You may notice that in an upcoming rendition of Seeleh, her skin looks darker due to the environment that she's been depicted in.

thistledown wrote:

Regarding eyes, this seems like a good time to verify for second edition. Are they entirely single color, or are they just incredibly large corneas with a bit of normal-white Sclera?

I believe it's the latter.

Yep, that's correct!

All of the non/demi-human Golarion ancestries (Dwarf, Elf, Halfling & Gnome) now have non-human proportions and facial features, as befitting their role in a high fantasy setting.
Whilst they're similar in appearance to humans, the proportions for non/demi-humans differ slightly from normal human proportions. This helps to create a richer visual diversity within the game.
It also helps to distinguish the difference between Golarion ancestries from their counterparts in other IPs/brands.

Golarion ancestries don't just look like tall humans with pointed ears or small humans with large hairy feet anymore. They're so much more than that.

Hi Wayne! Great job with version 2e of the Iconics so far, and I'm sure they will all rock! I'll also be eager to find out as many cultural and historical influences in their character design as I can (I have some Osprey books you illustrated, and I always appreciate the accuracy of your real life details!).

You talk about pantaloons tucked into wide rak boots. I immediately googled that, but found nothing about "rak". I've never heard or read this word before. Is it a type of leather, or a particular crafting technique, used during the Islamic Golden Age perhaps?

Thanks very much Roswynn.

Rak are boots with armoured plates rivetted on the inside of the boot. You can see the rivet studs on the outside of the boot. They're pretty clumpy. The two examples (and replica) I've studied are dated at 18C India. But the technology has been around Europe and Asia for centuries before then.

Xenocrat wrote:

Kaladin_Stormblessed wrote:

Medieval Arabic clothing, especially for women, was just huge and poofy like that. Which is presumably the inspiration here. The art's not bad, it's well-researched. I for one like it.

How effective did it make them in combat?

Something like this? Would have also been similar to what men wore, including over armor in combat. So, plenty effective.

Oh, and I portray a 12th century Saracen in the Society for Creative Anachronism. The costume I wear for fencing is pretty similar to Kyra's outfit, actually. So, I can speak from personal experience here. Notice how her pants are tucked into her boots, the wider sleeves of the overrobe don't go fully down her arm and stop short enough to not entangle her sword hilt, etc. The overrobe is a little long but could easily be belted up. And I've won fencing bouts because someone hit the edge of my tunic instead of successfully hitting me; having a concealed figure can be an advantage.

Yeah, I don't think Kyra's outfit will hinder her.

That's a very accurate assessment. ( I like research by deed)

Middle Eastern pantaloons tucked into wide rak boots does create the impression of a wide stance. (It's how they looked on my reference model IRL)It's further accentuated by the expansive material being pushed out by the weight of the long maille and gambeson. I deliberately kept it this way to emphasise Kyra's triangular visual silhouette. This has clearly caused some people to misinterpret what is being depicted. (Understandably) But her feet are positioned exactly where they should be for her body frame and stance.

I'm not going to comment on Iconic art that hasn't been previewed yet. I'm sure there are gonna be people who will lose their shit regardless. But I hope they will be well received.
Some of the Iconics have been changed more than others as part of the evolution for 2E.
There are numerous factors that contribute to the Iconic characters design. All of the Iconic characters have visual aspects that have been extensively researched from real-life cross-cultural history. This research into historical elements has been modified with imagination to fit a high fantasy setting. But they often contain more similarities to amazing real-life elements than people often realise. Historical and cultural research is a large portion of the many factors that are taken into consideration when I design a character for a commercial IP. Consequently, there's usually rational aspects to the designs which aren't always immediately apparent to some viewers.

It's interesting to read how people's perceptions of the artwork differ.
For the record, I never imagined Amiri as particularly muscle-bound. I always considered her to be wiry and rangy. I always felt the pose on the first version was too proud and I wanted to apply a more feral stance Like an animal crouching before they leap.(I've seen martial artists do the same when they're about to lose their temper in a fight)
I much prefer the new version because it fits better with the way I imagine her and what I'm trying to visually achieve. Particularly in terms of body shape and complexion. But I guess I have a creators perspective on how I want my designs to evolve.
I'm very pleased that most of the feedback I've received on various platforms has been positive.Especially from a few female gamers who have identified with the new body shape and skin tone which has enabled them to relate closely to the character.
Thanks for the feedback on this thread.
I realise that perceptions and expectations differ and not everyone likes the changes to the Iconic characters. But I can live with that.

Anyone else think she looks quite a bit younger? Be interesting to know if that was intended.

Any perceptions of age difference is purely coincidental.

I don't recall her looking quite this waifish. No shoulders, arms and legs super skinny, narrow chest, little visible tappering from lats. She looks pretty fragile.

I kinda like that some people are perceiving her as fragile, in contrast with the huge sword she's wielding. It makes a good visual juxtaposition.

Amiri's body-shape and skin complexion have indeed changed.

A common feedback I receive from speaking with players at conventions (especially female players) is a request for different female bodyshapes. I've been happy to oblige.
Amiri corresponds to what's known as the "classic pear", where the hips are wider, shoulders and bust are narrower.
I wanted to avoid the muscled barbarian cliché. By fortunate coincidence,the upward facing triangle created by the pear body shape fit in visually well with her costume.

Her skin complexion has also changed to correspond with pale complexions common in Northern Europe and South-western Russia. Places that aren't necessarily freezing cold, but don't get a whole lot of sunlight. Her pale skin makes a good visual contrast with the rest of her costume. Otherwise, there'd be just too many shades of tan in there.

Great backstory Michael.

Nevertheless, while I joked in another thread that Wayne Reynolds needed to go back and redo all the art for the Iconics to account for how conservative they need to be regarding their choice of carried gear, apparently he really does need to redo all the art. Valeros is supposed to be little more than an emaciated skeleton, rather than healthy and muscled, I guess.

Valeros has never been described as an emaciated skeleton (or anything similar) in any of the art descriptions I received.

Valeros has always been designed to be a fairly slim body shape. However, his physique hasn't changed in my rendition for Pathfinder 2.

As part of the new artwork for Pathfinder 2, some of the Iconic characters have been altered to accommodate the revised rules. A few weapon configurations have changed and specific items have been altered to reflect cultural design features. However, the amount of equipment they carry has remained the same.
(I'll be posting design notes about the Iconics at some point next year. I'll also be addressing the misconceptions regarding their equipment too)

I think that's in response to the iconic characters drawn by Wayne Reynolds, and I think he did that on purpose. After all, the typical PC still probably has more junk carried around than even those pictures. Most have more than one backup weapon, lots of scrolls, lots of potions, rope, etc. And, if you're a player who actually thinks about the character living, you probably have rations, a waterskin. I play a lot of PFS, so I figure my character ought to have a journal, ink, etc.

It's definitely a different style from what you see in a lot of fantasy RPG art, but I have to admit I kind of like it, because it does come a bit closer to looking like what actual PCs might look like.

Thanks Rknop.

Whilst the equipment configuration on the Iconic characters may seem haphazard to some people... I know what every strap, belt, pouch, sheath and item is for and how it's attached. All that stuff has to go somewhere and I'm fascinated by it all.

A written account detailing my design process and inspirations for all of the 2.0 iconic characters will be available at some point in the near future.

Was Seoni's look inspired by Hild from the manga and anime Oh My Goddess?

They have similar hair color and style, tan skin, facial tattoos, exposed outfits with trailing ribbons and so on.

Hild Reference.

Seoni wasn't inspired by Hilda.

A written account detailing my design process and inspirations for all of the 2.0 iconic characters will be available at some point in the near future.

Do you have specific heights (like 5'11) for the iconic characters or just general ones?

The Iconic characters have all been illustrated to scale, but I haven't allocated a specific height to each character. It's more like a height band of 2 -3 inches.

At some point I'll be releasing design notes for all of the new versions of the Iconics which clarifies the ideas and reasons why they look like they do.
I can't say too much about the design process at the moment.
However, here's an extract.....

"SEONI was one of the Iconics that received a fair amount of changes. Mostly this was to ensure visual continuity with the Inner Sea region of Golarion.
I depicted Seoni long before her background was written. Since then, the setting of Golarion has been created and expanded to a point where the character didn't really look like she came from the region from her backstory - Varisia. She'd been initially depicted as someone from a culture in a much warmer climate.
The new version corresponds visually with the Varisian cultural designs that I've created. At the same time the depiction of Seoni retains aspects of the original design so that the character remains recognisable, such as her tattoos..."

Fuzzypaws will be delighted to hear that the artwork accompanying this fine article on sorcerers is an older pose. (Her costume remains the same in the new pose)

I didn't know Alahazra was supposed to be wearing armor... Man, that is silly.

Alhazra isn't wearing armour because the art description at the time didn't mention that she was wearing armour.

Thanks DM & Rysky.
One of the things I wanted to introduce to the non-human creatures in Pathfinder was a distinct non - human quality. This concept was applied to the "demi - human" ancestries also.
In many cases, creatures needed to be more than just a human with a slightly larger teeth or different coloured skin. Their body proportions and skeletal structure needed to be wildly different too in order to better convey that monster - quality.
In the instance of Goblinoid creatures we started to take into account their culture and what their items, weapons and armour would look like if they were made by a monster. If these creatures were making things themselves, how would they differ from human - made, elven - made or even orc - made items?
A lot of the new art will reflect a great diversity of Golarion cultures.

<_< I liked that hobgoblin art. I can't be only one who likes it?

I mean, old art for hobgoblins look like gray colored orcs really.

Thanks CorvusMask. Glad you like the new art for a female Hobgoblin archer. (BTW - Not all archers have huge shoulders and arms. )

The old art for the hobgoblin is a perfectly good piece of art. But when it becomes difficult to distinguish one monster from another, it becomes a problem that needs addressing. That's precisely why the Hobgoblin required changes for the new version of Pathfinder.
The Hobgoblin was never really defined, other than they are a military - minded / more organised goblinoid race.
For the new version of Pathfinder it made sense that if they are a goblinoid race, then they should bear some resemblance to the Pathfinder goblin.
We're creating a visually recognisable world for Pathfinder which will involve some new takes on "classic" monsters.
It's been one of the most exciting projects I've worked on.

Wayne, I summon thee from thy slumber to pose to you not one, but TWO questions:

First, which artist would you say influenced you the most where the fantasy genre is concerned?

Second, to keep it topic... have you or Paizo considered alternative Iconics? That is, Amirion the Barbarian or Valeria the Fighter?

Zzzzzzz, Whu? Wha?... WHO DARES WAKe.....Oh, right!

I had to give your first question a great deal of consideration, because there are a number of artists who've had a significant impact at different stages of my life and artistic development.
After careful consideration, I'd have to say the artist that had the most influence on me has been Mike Mignola.

If I were to work on the concept of opposite gender versions of the Iconics, I'd have to depict them as if they were from an alternate dimension where they were the opposite gender. Rather than depicting them as if they'd just put on a Girdle of Opposite Gender. The latter would just be a case of depicting the characters as "cross dressed".
Most of the Iconics costumes transfer well to the opposite gender with some like Kyra/Kryan or Ezren/Ezra not needing any modification at all. Most of the other Iconics just require a degree of feminisation/masculinisation to their costumes to suit the change in gender. Such as armour shapes or the style of their robes. Harsk/Harske would be beardless and Lini/Lini would be bearded. The Iconics that would require most change would be Seoni/Seon, Sajan,Sajane and Amiri/Amirion. I'd have to alter Seoni's dress to look more robelike to avoid Seon looking like a dude in a dress. Sajane would require covering up around the chest area. Whilst Amirion could show off his manly pecs more.

Not that I've given the subject much thought........

Nor, I am able to confirm or deny if sketches of opposite gender versions of; Valeros, Seoni, Merisiel, Kyra and Ezren already exist.

As much as I’m enjoying the discussion about historical weapons and armour. One of the things to bear in mind is that we are discussing weapons and armour in the context of a high fantasy RPG. (It has been pointed out in this thread already.)

It’s not really a valid proposition to omit an armour type or weapon from a high fantasy RPG on the grounds that it didn’t exist in real life. * Elven chainmail, mithril or dragonscale armour doesn’t exist in real life. But they do exist in the game.

*Even though there are real life archaeological examples of vambraces, greaves, cuisse, pteurges and gauntlets constructed from studded leather and splint armour.

As much as some of us like our historical accuracy, Pathfinder and Golarion isn’t 15th century Europe. If it were, I’d be illustrating things a lot differently.
Consequently there are going to be a heck of a lot of anachronisms when compared to real life history.
We should also consider that the range of weapons and armour that are listed come from a myriad of cultures that span nearly two thousand years of time.

Weapons and armour appear in the equipment lists because there are players who want their characters to wield those cool – looking weapons or wear armour that they’ve seen in a movie, comic, book or museum.
We’ve probably seen enough historically – themed movies to know that movie makers are more interested in entertaining us than educating us.
Whilst a bit of education is never a bad thing, (It took remarkable restraint to delete a bunch of stuff I'd written about correcting some of the incorrect information on this thread ) a game is intended to entertain .
There will be players who might not care about historical accuracy. But they do care if the rules interpretation of a Warhammer is going to help their character crack a dragon’s skull.

I’ve spoken at length with some of the Pathfinder design team about real life weapons and armour. Some of these real life aspects have been introduced to a few of the concept designs I've been working on for the new version of Pathfinder. I base many ideas on real life combined with imagination to transform the items into the realms of fantasy – which is what the game’s about.
Seeing some of the weapons and armour renamed or added in the new version of Pathfinder would certainly scratch my historical itch.
However, the real life elements do need to take into account the high fantasy setting.

So big-headed goblins are distinct from the old school ones in culture and feel (definitely seems inspired heavily by Gremlins, which is a positive in my mind).

Glad you like the Pathfinder goblins. :)

Thanks Everyone.

I'm pleased to confirm that I've been working closely with the Paizo design team (Bouncing ideas off each other) for the past couple of years on creating visuals for the second version of Pathfinder.

I can't go into too much specific detail at this point.
However, The sketches that you're seeing are the world-building concept images for the new version of Pathfinder.
One of the visual aspects we wanted to address was to define the in-game ancestries and culture to a point where their appearance and equipment makes them instantly recognisable as a Pathfinder - specific visuals.
For example; The differences between a Pathfinder Halfling and a Pathfinder Gnome.
The viewer should now be able to identify which ancestry the character or item is from at a glance.
There are lots of sketches as we've been going into quite a lot of detail. At some point they may end up being colour pieces.

In addition, I've been working on design notes for each of the Iconics. The design notes will describe the inspirations and creative process behind the visuals of the characters. Including details and origins of their equipment.

I hope the new images will be (mostly) met with approval. It's been the kind of project I've been waiting for a large chunk of my career to work on.

I noticed the thread on armour and weapons and just couldn't resist joining in.......

A lot of the armour and weapon classifications in RPGs are simplified versions that take into account game balance and statistics. Even though they don't necessarily reflect what they're like IRL. (Bearing in mind we are talking about a game based on an imaginary setting with flying hexapodal lizard-horses and people who can fire ice out of their fingertips.... You get the idea.....)
There are a number of mistakes in the old D&D weapon and armour descriptions. Most players are none the wiser, especially if the system still kinda works.

From a historical point of view....

The term longsword usually referred in the 15th Century to the "Hand and a half" sword. Otherwise known as a Bastard Sword.
Single handed swords were known as Arming Swords.

Brigandines often get mistaken for studded leather.

A Brigandine is comprised of interlocking metal plates riveted behind a covering of felt - Sometimes leather.
The earlier version is known as a "Coat of Plates" The metal plates were larger and fewer in number. The later version became a "Jack of Plates" consisting of much smaller metal sections.
The Persian version is known as a "Coat of 1000 Nails".

Studded leather is just leather with small metal studs either sewn or attached to it. To my knowledge, an archeological example of studded leather jerkin or jack has never been found. Though there are historical examples of smaller sections of studded leather armour. Such as vambraces, greaves, pteurges and gauntlets.

However, studded leather as a classification works quite well for an RPG. It also looks pretty damn cool.

The historical definition of a falchion is a blade with a flat edge and a sharp edge which came to a asymmetrical curve at the tip. However, that definition is fairly loose and you get a whole bunch of variations on the theme - All categorised as a "Falchion". (Not to be confused with cutlass or katana)

Most of the classification we see in RPGs has been based upon 19th Century scholarly attempts to categorise the wide variety of medieval weaponry found in museums.
Pole arms were the main reason. In the middle ages, anything (That wasn't a spear) with a metal bit on the end of a big stick was referred to as a "pole arm". However a pole arm could consist of an axe head with a spike (Halberd) or a single curved cutting edge edge with a hook (Guisarme) Referring to them all as Pole arms confused the heck out of the scholars , hence the names and classifications we see now.
Though for some reason they didn't seem to categorise falchions.

Those scholars have a lot to answer for....

Maille became known as "Chainmail". Which is a tautology. Maille being the old French word for "Chain". Mail is now used to describe armour made from separate links.
Scale mail was just referred to as Scale. Ring mail, banded mail and splint mail are all RPG terminologies.

What was your favorite animal companion/familiar to draw?

Gimcrak the Quasit. The familiar of Areelu Vorlesh (From City of Locusts - Wrath of the Righteous Part 6, AP #78)

It was great seeing you at Lucca today, I’m still a bit star struck! My question is, with the iconics, were there some that were easier to come up with than others? If so, is there a specific type of character that comes to you more naturally, or a conceptual genre that you feel more at ease with?

Thanks for visiting my booth at Lucca. It was a pleasure to meet you. Hope you had a great weekend.