Questions about Iconic Character Art?


Lost Omens Campaign Setting General Discussion

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Wayne Reynolds wrote:
Yetaxa wrote:
Really enjoying this thread especially the design notes. Any plans to collect the original iconics descriptions, design sketches and final artwork into a hardcover art book ?

Thanks.

You can find original sketches and final artwork in my collected artbook here; Visions of WAR

Link'd/

Contributor

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Dustin Ashe wrote:
What did you draw on in designing Alahazra's headdress? Is Shardra's headdress the dwarven version of it?

Alhazra the Oracle’s costume was based on the Ancient Greek and Persian cultures to evoke visual connotations with the famous Oracle at Delphi. I based her gold jewelry and equipment on early Mycean and Mesopotamian culture to infer another ancient tradition. The headdress came about through just playing with shapes and seeing what worked within that cultural context.(A lot of people criticize my depiction of her headdress – saying it’d be too heavy. Although there is a degree of artistic exaggeration here, I based the headdress on actual artefacts made with a light wooden core with incredibly thin sheet of gold over the top. The item isn’t solid metal – It’s mostly soft wood.)

Shardra the Shaman was based more on shapes and designs that could be identified with a fictional Dwarven culture. Although these motifs are slightly reminiscent of Northern European Viking cultures. I wanted to contrast the angular shapes with curved ones to create a visual intertwining of ethnic themes.
Both Shandra and Alhazra's headdresses are ceremonial. I deliberately created a visual similarity between the two concepts. Although I think they may have different functions.
Shandra's headdress is made from shaped and carved horn. The idea behind it was that it would help Shandra focus on ancestor spirits - Hence the face designs in it.

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Stacey Buxton wrote:

Wayne,

Sheila Heidmarch, what is in the viles that she wares, and are they suspended from her pouch? Also is her belt woven fabric or leather same as the green chest pieces are they padded leather armor or are they just rigid cloth? I have a lot of questions about her but I will stay with these for now. Are there and full around pictures of Sheila Heidmarch out there in high def? My wife is looking at doing this as cos-play. She is a historical costumer and she wants to make sure that it is as accurate as possible.

If needed I will ask outside the forum.

Thank you for bringing the Iconics form and life. I love your work and look forward to more in the future.

Thanks Stacey.

The vials are potion bottles.

Her belt is made from dark brown leather with a 4 - square pattern etched into it along it's length. It's long enough to wrap 2 times around her waist and has a silver buckle and strap end.

Her chest panel is made from thick material which holds the shape such as felt.

The only rendition of Sheila Heidmarch I've created is the cover to PF AP #61 - Shards of Sin.
http://static4.paizo.com/image/product/catalog/PZO/PZO9061_500.jpeg

There may be other illustrations by different artists that show her from different angles?


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Wayne Reynolds wrote:
Stacey Buxton wrote:

Wayne,

Sheila Heidmarch, what is in the viles that she wares, and are they suspended from her pouch? Also is her belt woven fabric or leather same as the green chest pieces are they padded leather armor or are they just rigid cloth? I have a lot of questions about her but I will stay with these for now. Are there and full around pictures of Sheila Heidmarch out there in high def? My wife is looking at doing this as cos-play. She is a historical costumer and she wants to make sure that it is as accurate as possible.

If needed I will ask outside the forum.

Thank you for bringing the Iconics form and life. I love your work and look forward to more in the future.

Thanks Stacey.

The vials are potion bottles.

Her belt is made from dark brown leather with a 4 - square pattern etched into it along it's length. It's long enough to wrap 2 times around her waist and has a silver buckle and strap end.

Her chest panel is made from thick material which holds the shape such as felt.

The only rendition of Sheila Heidmarch I've created is the cover to PF AP #61 - Shards of Sin.
link

There may be other illustrations by different artists that show her from different angles?

Grand Lodge

Hi. I want to state that I've admired your work, like many of the others here, since I first saw it in the 3.5 manuals. I'm very glad to see the works, exaggerated or not, in Pathfinder. The fantastical nature of the art helps bring to mind the fantasy world those characters inhabit. Your details are amazing and I love them.

My friend point out to me, just today, that it seems like the feet of many of the characters are positioned similarly. Very few have much detail in the shaping other than angles unless they are barefoot. His thought was that each artist has an Achilles's Heel and that yours might be feet. I was curious to hear what you have to say about it.

Contributor

Xelnagahunter wrote:

Hi. I want to state that I've admired your work, like many of the others here, since I first saw it in the 3.5 manuals. I'm very glad to see the works, exaggerated or not, in Pathfinder. The fantastical nature of the art helps bring to mind the fantasy world those characters inhabit. Your details are amazing and I love them.

My friend point out to me, just today, that it seems like the feet of many of the characters are positioned similarly. Very few have much detail in the shaping other than angles unless they are barefoot. His thought was that each artist has an Achilles's Heel and that yours might be feet. I was curious to hear what you have to say about it.

Thanks for the kind words Xelangahunter.

Tell your friend that I've CHOSEN to depict feet in those positions because I think it looks good. This is an informed choice that is a result of years of practice, observation and study. I'm very conversant with foot anatomy and how a medieval shoe looks on a foot. I feel that I put subtleties in the shapes that your friend might be missing?
This style is a very personalised form of rendition which may not conform to traditional ways of depiction, nor appeal to everyone.
Your friend is free to decide whether they like this style of rendition or not.

Dark Archive

Was wondering if it would be okay to ask about some of your other artworks on this thread or would you rather it kept specificly to the pathfinder Iconics?

Contributor

Kevin Mack wrote:
Was wondering if it would be okay to ask about some of your other artworks on this thread or would you rather it kept specificly to the pathfinder Iconics?

I'd prefer to keep this thread about Pathfinder art. I don't feel quite right talking about my work on other IPs on a Paizo messageboard.

Pathfinder art can include Adventure Path, Rulebook & card game cover images as well as Iconic character artwork. :)

Dark Archive

Wayne Reynolds wrote:
Kevin Mack wrote:
Was wondering if it would be okay to ask about some of your other artworks on this thread or would you rather it kept specificly to the pathfinder Iconics?

I'd prefer to keep this thread about Pathfinder art. I don't feel quite right talking about my work on other IPs on a Paizo messageboard.

Pathfinder art can include Adventure Path, Rulebook & card game cover images as well as Iconic character artwork. :)

Was thinking of a character art cover you did for a Paizo published issue of dungeon?

Contributor

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Kevin Mack wrote:
Wayne Reynolds wrote:
Kevin Mack wrote:
Was wondering if it would be okay to ask about some of your other artworks on this thread or would you rather it kept specificly to the pathfinder Iconics?

I'd prefer to keep this thread about Pathfinder art. I don't feel quite right talking about my work on other IPs on a Paizo messageboard.

Pathfinder art can include Adventure Path, Rulebook & card game cover images as well as Iconic character artwork. :)

Was thinking of a character art cover you did for a Paizo published issue of dungeon?

Maybe?

Those Dungeon characters were kind of a precursor to the Pathfinder Iconics.
I felt that some worked better than others. Many were probably more "Throwaway" ideas but there were others that I'd started to put a little bit more thought into their equipment and background. I'd carried that method forwards when I began designing the Pathfinder Iconics. I suppose you could call the Dungeon Iconics my practise run ;) But that's all part of the process of artistic progression and evolution.

You can always PM me via the message boards or write to me via my website or Facebook page if you have an off-thread question.


Hello Wayne. Thanks very much for answering these questions.

I'm wondering about how you started working for Paizo and how the idea of iconic characters came about. Can you talk about how you and Paizo developed a working relationship? When did that begin and what were your first commissioned pieces?

And then could you explain how the idea of iconics was first pitched to you? Did you and Paizo have an inkling of how they would be used and how popular they would become? Can you walk us through that process? And then what was your reaction to the fans' reception of the iconics?

Thank you!

Grand Lodge

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Dustin Ashe wrote:
how the idea of iconic characters came about

Erik Mona talks a bit about the iconics in this interview.

Contributor

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Dustin Ashe wrote:

Hello Wayne. Thanks very much for answering these questions.

I'm wondering about how you started working for Paizo and how the idea of iconic characters came about. Can you talk about how you and Paizo developed a working relationship? When did that begin and what were your first commissioned pieces?

And then could you explain how the idea of iconics was first pitched to you? Did you and Paizo have an inkling of how they would be used and how popular they would become? Can you walk us through that process? And then what was your reaction to the fans' reception of the iconics?

Thank you!

Thanks Dustin & Auke.

I began working with Paizo when they took over publication of Dragon and Dungeon magazines. I’d already been doing artwork for both editions previously.
I seem to recall I did the cover artwork for Paizo’s first Dungeon Magazine? #94. “Underdark Prison Riot” (It was an illustration of an ultra – Illithid. )

I can’t remember which issue the original Dungeon Magazine Iconic characters first appeared in but I know the first cover to show them was #114.. It showed the Paladin, Ranger, Rogue & Wizard.

They were designed to be stand – ins to represent a particular character class that could be used and identified with the adventures published in Dungeon magazine.
At that stage in my career most of my commissions were cover images, which made it increasingly difficult for me to undertake interior art commissions. However, I really liked designing characters, I had a really good working relationship with the art director and really liked working with Paizo. So I accepted the commission. Due to time restraints caused by my cover commissions I created the first Iconics over an extended period of time. I also had to illustrate them as coloured sketches rather than painted versions. The later versions were inked.
As mentioned in a previous post “Those Dungeon characters were kind of a precursor to the Pathfinder Iconics. I felt that some worked better than others. Many were probably more "Throwaway" ideas but there were others that I'd started to put a little bit more thought into their equipment and background.”

The creation of Pathfinder provided me with an opportunity to design all new characters as part of cover commissions. On recollection, I think my artistic evolution had been moving me in this direction as I’d began to really start putting a lot of thought into the creation of new characters. Getting an opportunity to work with a company that I’d had a good creative relationship with meant that I was very excited to work on the Pathfinder project.

I never really realised or thought about whether the characters I’d illustrated were going to become popular. I had no idea what people’s reactions to them were. For me, it’s a really fulfilling way of playing around and visualising concepts and idea. I’m just very pleased that some people like the aspect of my artwork and process of creativity that I really enjoy doing. I hope my future work will meet with your approvals too.

Silver Crusade Contributor

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I always loved that Dungeon cover.

The most manly mind flayer, all prison-buff. Rowr. Not sure how I feel about tentacles though... :)


Wayne, I had to comment to my favorite contemporary Fantasy-Adventure artist (sorry, DAT will sit solid as first due to his long-lasting influence and Legend status) to say that some of us don’t forget your work with historic illustration (Osprey) and greatly appreciate your attention to detail, not only with little “things” that an Iconic character may have, but specifically what that particular character might have based on overarching themes and so forth.

One thing that caught me off guard, though, was the Psychic Iconic’s overall color scheme. I altogether expected, for whatever reason, a saffron and gold color scheme. Is there anything in particular that inspires you as to a given commision’s overall color-scheme?

Contributor

Abyssian wrote:

Wayne, I had to comment to my favorite contemporary Fantasy-Adventure artist (sorry, DAT will sit solid as first due to his long-lasting influence and Legend status) to say that some of us don’t forget your work with historic illustration (Osprey) and greatly appreciate your attention to detail, not only with little “things” that an Iconic character may have, but specifically what that particular character might have based on overarching themes and so forth.

One thing that caught me off guard, though, was the Psychic Iconic’s overall color scheme. I altogether expected, for whatever reason, a saffron and gold color scheme. Is there anything in particular that inspires you as to a given commision’s overall color-scheme?

Thanks for the kind words Abyssian.

Apologies for my hesitancy in answering your question. I wasn't aware that a colour version of the Psychic has been officially previewed? I'll only comment on future artwork after it's official preview.


I love your art style and even though we may never see non-core race iconics, I would love to see your version of Catfolk(female), Lashunta(male and female), Ghoran, Kitsune, and Grippli. I would also like to see your art style for Pixies, Nixies, Crystal Dragons, Cloud Dragons, Jungle Giants, etc.

Do you have any favorite Pathfinder iconics?

Are there any places, characters, or creatures you would love to draw for Pathfinder?

What is your favorite type of monster(s) you like to draw?

Contributor

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Dragon78 wrote:

I love your art style and even though we may never see non-core race iconics, I would love to see your version of Catfolk(female), Lashunta(male and female), Ghoran, Kitsune, and Grippli. I would also like to see your art style for Pixies, Nixies, Crystal Dragons, Cloud Dragons, Jungle Giants, etc.

Do you have any favorite Pathfinder iconics?

Are there any places, characters, or creatures you would love to draw for Pathfinder?

What is your favorite type of monster(s) you like to draw?

Thanks Dragon 78. There sure are a lot of things in Golorion that would be fun to illustrate.

I don't think I have a single favourite Iconic. But if I HAD to choose then I think it'd be Valeros, because he was the first Pathfinder Iconic I illustrated. I guess there's a degree of sentimentality with that choice.

I don't think I have a particular favourite monster either. Though I do like to illustrate creatures that you wouldn't want to put your finger in their mouths.


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Kalindlara wrote:

I always loved that Dungeon cover.

The most manly mind flayer, all prison-buff. Rowr. Not sure how I feel about tentacles though... :)

The adventure was a (mind) blast to run, too. Still one of my favorites from that era.

Contributor

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Amiri

Bear in mind that I depicted The Barbarian character before Amiri and her backstory was created by the ingenious James Jacobs

I wanted Amiri the Barbarian to be a total badass warrior. In order to achieve this I had to start thinking about basing her on historical barbarian cultures. Her armour and equipment is based upon the concept of her fighting style. I based this upon the use of a great wielded by Viking and Saxon Huscarls axe (Incorrectly referred to as a “Dane Axe”). They would charge forwards swinging the long hafted 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’ve practiced using a Great Axe in this way and a considerable degree of speed and power that can be achieved. The historical warriors that trained with this weapon must have been able to move the weapon in this way at a frightening speed and force. An account at the Battle of Hastings – 1066 describe a great axe cutting through a maille leg, saddle and horse in one blow!

Sorry, got distracted there by history.

Applying this concept to Amiri I thought that she’d mainly want heavier armour on her arms and legs. (In hindsight I wonder if I might have been better making her arm and leg armour out of maille of lamellar plates? Such as Crowe’s ) 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”. This concept also coincided with some of the battle practices and superstitions of the celts where warriors would go into battle naked, believing that fighting in this way would give the magical protection from death. It also showed the enemy just how utterly fearless these people were in battle. There are also tales of Celtic warriors refusing to wear helmets to show that they weren’t afraid of being hit on the head. It’s also a statement of just how confident they were in their combat abilities. These concepts may be utterly alien to a modern Western way of thinking and combat but these practices beautifully summarise a barbarian culture with their own set of beliefs and reckless nature.
I felt this concept worked really well with Amiri. It looked cool and it fit with the concept. By just wearing armour on her arms and legs she’s making herself lighter and more manoeuvrable. At the same time her appearance is saying that she’s not afraid of getting hit and that she’s such a good warrior, that she won’t get hit.
BARBARIAN LOGIC.
You can see that she’s got a couple of scars on her abdomen where her skills may have let her down in past fight. But despite the wounds, she’s alive – Her opponent is most likely dead.

Her sword got to that size purely by accident. I’d been roughly sketching the position of a much smaller blade and some of the lines were overlapping. It gave the illusion of a much larger weapon. It made me think that this was just another way of making Amiri even more badass if she’s wielding a clumsy weapon that’s bigger and probably weighs more than she does. This kind of exaggerated weapon might not fit in an authentic historical setting, but might work just fine in a fictional high fantasy world. I’m not making any claims that this would work IRL , just giving an insight into my ideas.

On her back she wears a couple of javelins along with an atlatl, which is a furrowed stick used for throwing darts, javelins and spears further.
I decided on a simple hand axe and curved knife at her waist as secondary weapons. Then went about putting claws, horns and animal teeth as decoration and potential weaponry. I went for jagged shape warpaint / tattoos to contrast with those curved shapes created by the armour and decoration.

Those are the ingredients that make Amiri.


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Cool~! :D

Dark Archive

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Oh, so super amazing. :D

Grand Lodge

Wayne Reynolds wrote:
Xelnagahunter wrote:

Hi. I want to state that I've admired your work, like many of the others here, since I first saw it in the 3.5 manuals. I'm very glad to see the works, exaggerated or not, in Pathfinder. The fantastical nature of the art helps bring to mind the fantasy world those characters inhabit. Your details are amazing and I love them.

My friend point out to me, just today, that it seems like the feet of many of the characters are positioned similarly. Very few have much detail in the shaping other than angles unless they are barefoot. His thought was that each artist has an Achilles's Heel and that yours might be feet. I was curious to hear what you have to say about it.

Thanks for the kind words Xelangahunter.

Tell your friend that I've CHOSEN to depict feet in those positions because I think it looks good. This is an informed choice that is a result of years of practice, observation and study. I'm very conversant with foot anatomy and how a medieval shoe looks on a foot. I feel that I put subtleties in the shapes that your friend might be missing?
This style is a very personalised form of rendition which may not conform to traditional ways of depiction, nor appeal to everyone.
Your friend is free to decide whether they like this style of rendition or not.

Thanks for the response. I'm staggeringly interested in this thread and will continue to pop in and read up on this.

Ezren is very easily one of my favorite iconics and I'm not prone to seeing many little details (Low perception on my player's part I think). I was curious if he had any hidden treasures or secrets in his art that I might not have seen. I'm sure there are a great many things I've missed.


I heard that Crowe is based on a character that you ran in the Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path.

How much fun did you have nailing his iconic look down? Is his style much different than the character you ran in that AP, or does he look mostly like you always imagined him?

Is his presented backstory similar or based on whatever you came up with for him? Or did the powers-at-be spin up an entirely new sort of tale for him?

Obviously Bloodragers weren't around back in the time you ran the path, so what class was he? A pure barbarian with some magical-ish rage powers? (Maybe the elemental ones?). A barbarian/air bloodline sorcerer? Would love to hear!

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Xelnagahunter wrote:
Wayne Reynolds wrote:
Xelnagahunter wrote:

Hi. I want to state that I've admired your work, like many of the others here, since I first saw it in the 3.5 manuals. I'm very glad to see the works, exaggerated or not, in Pathfinder. The fantastical nature of the art helps bring to mind the fantasy world those characters inhabit. Your details are amazing and I love them.

My friend point out to me, just today, that it seems like the feet of many of the characters are positioned similarly. Very few have much detail in the shaping other than angles unless they are barefoot. His thought was that each artist has an Achilles's Heel and that yours might be feet. I was curious to hear what you have to say about it.

Thanks for the kind words Xelangahunter.

Tell your friend that I've CHOSEN to depict feet in those positions because I think it looks good. This is an informed choice that is a result of years of practice, observation and study. I'm very conversant with foot anatomy and how a medieval shoe looks on a foot. I feel that I put subtleties in the shapes that your friend might be missing?
This style is a very personalised form of rendition which may not conform to traditional ways of depiction, nor appeal to everyone.
Your friend is free to decide whether they like this style of rendition or not.

Thanks for the response. I'm staggeringly interested in this thread and will continue to pop in and read up on this.

Ezren is very easily one of my favorite iconics and I'm not prone to seeing many little details (Low perception on my player's part I think). I was curious if he had any hidden treasures or secrets in his art that I might not have seen. I'm sure there are a great many things I've missed.

I hope to be able to write about the design concepts behind each of the Iconic characters over time. Some have more going on than others.

There's probably some details in Ezren's equipment that have been missed - Like the wooden toggles on his gaiters that I mentioned earlier on in this thread. But I think there is one detail that most people don't seem to have picked up upon. This may be because it's small and partially obscured. But it's an interesting detail that I may keep under wraps for now. I might decide to use in a future piece and illustrate it in full, then refer back to Ezren.

Contributor

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Nargemn wrote:

I heard that Crowe is based on a character that you ran in the Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path.

How much fun did you have nailing his iconic look down? Is his style much different than the character you ran in that AP, or does he look mostly like you always imagined him?

Is his presented backstory similar or based on whatever you came up with for him? Or did the powers-at-be spin up an entirely new sort of tale for him?

Obviously Bloodragers weren't around back in the time you ran the path, so what class was he? A pure barbarian with some magical-ish rage powers? (Maybe the elemental ones?). A barbarian/air bloodline sorcerer? Would love to hear!

You're correct that Crowe was based upon my barbarian character when I played Curse of the Crimson Throne AP (Which is a great campaign. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who hasn't played it yet!)

There is an unreleased illustration of "Crow Henge" wielding a 2 - handed axe which I painted for my own enjoyment. I sent the image as an aside to Sarah Robinson along with some commissioned Pathfinder artwork. It was just a "Hey, here's my character. Let me know if you ever need an illo of a Shoanti barbarian?". I never realised that the design team were working on the Bloodrager concept.

The Bloodrager description specified;
"Male, Human (shoanti), scale mail armor, armed with an earthbreaker. This class is a blend of sorcerer and barbarian. This character has an affinity with elemental air, and can conjure lightning about his weapon when he is in a rage."

The description seemed to almost fit my depiction of Crow the Barbarian. Sarah was happy for me to adapt the barbarian illustration to the Bloodrager Illustration. I had to replace the 2 handed axe with an earth breaker. I also added more robes and changed equipment to better reflect the Sorcerous aspect of the character class.

Wes contacted me and asked about the background for my barbarian character. My writing skills aren't as developed as my art aptitude. I was more than happy for Wes to use his much superior writing abilities to create a back story for Crowe based upon the background of my barbarian character. I was really happy with the detailed back story that Wes created. Especially considering that I didn't really give Wes much to go on;
"My GM and I never really explored the reason why Crow was exiled from his tribe. But it had something to do with dead horses - They were already like that when I got here - was an often used excuse by that character".

RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32

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On the cover of Mythic Adventures, Valeros is using the sword last seen being picked out of a treasure hoard by Alain on the cover of Ultimate Equipment.

Can you tell us more about this sword, and why Mythic Valeros has it instead of Mythic Alain?

Dark Archive

Was wondering if there is a place to see the sketches for the iconics introduced in Dungeon 114 (Has the sksetches for a few of them in it but not the female ranger with a wolf cloak.)

Contributor

Kevin Mack wrote:
Was wondering if there is a place to see the sketches for the iconics introduced in Dungeon 114 (Has the sksetches for a few of them in it but not the female ranger with a wolf cloak.)

Not that I know of. Sorry.

Contributor

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Ross Byers wrote:

On the cover of Mythic Adventures, Valeros is using the sword last seen being picked out of a treasure hoard by Alain on the cover of Ultimate Equipment.

Can you tell us more about this sword, and why Mythic Valeros has it instead of Mythic Alain?

The sword wasn't part of the art description for Mythic Adventures. I deliberately put the sword in as an "Easter Egg" to raise those type of questions. :)

Why does Mythic Valeros have the sword that we see Alain reaching for in another illustration?
Do the events on the cover of Mythic Adventures precede the scene depicted on the cover of Ultimate Equipment?

I don't have the answer to these questions. I included the sword into the illustration without an answer in mind in the hope of stimulating the imagination of the viewer. Not only to ask the questions about the reasons why a potentially powerful sword is in two illustrations, but to begin creating possible answers too..... Perhaps even to begin creating their own adventures around this mystery?
That's the fun of RPGs. :)

Any official answers concerning the mysterious sword lie within the capable imaginations of the Paizo design team. I just do the visuals.

Grand Lodge

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Pathfinder Adventure Path Subscriber

"Just"? No way!

Grand Lodge

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Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Ross Byers wrote:

On the cover of Mythic Adventures, Valeros is using the sword last seen being picked out of a treasure hoard by Alain on the cover of Ultimate Equipment.

Can you tell us more about this sword, and why Mythic Valeros has it instead of Mythic Alain?

My personal theory is that the latter lost a Mythic Bet.

Dark Archive

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Wayne Reynolds wrote:
I don't have the answer to these questions. I included the sword into the illustration without an answer in mind in the hope of stimulating the imagination of the viewer.

Very cool!

Pet theory;

The sword is both intelligent and has an ego beyond compare, relating tales at length about all of *it's* magnificent and legendary deeds, and kind of ignoring the name of whatever schlub was holding it at the time.

Valeros, particularly when he's got a pint in him, find this sort of 'creative storytelling' amusing, since he knows darn well who the hero of his story is.

Alain, on the other hand, shares credit with *no one,* and there's few things in this world he appreciates less than listening to tales of *someone elses* glorious deeds.

He couldn't off-load that thing fast enough...

Grand Lodge

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Ross Byers wrote:

On the cover of Mythic Adventures, Valeros is using the sword last seen being picked out of a treasure hoard by Alain on the cover of Ultimate Equipment.

Can you tell us more about this sword, and why Mythic Valeros has it instead of Mythic Alain?

After a full day of shopping with Kyra, Alain finally spotted the ultimate birthday present for Valeros.

RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32

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How does it feel to know that your iconic character portraits will be used as reference art for those characters for years to come?

What is the best/most surprising detail that other artists have picked up on when re-illustrating the iconics?

What's the worst/weirdest?

Contributor

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Ross Byers wrote:

How does it feel to know that your iconic character portraits will be used as reference art for those characters for years to come?

What is the best/most surprising detail that other artists have picked up on when re-illustrating the iconics?

What's the worst/weirdest?

It's actually quite daunting considering some of the fantastically talented artists that are using my work as character reference. I feel that it really puts pressure on me to try to create artwork that's an acceptable standard to the skilled artists working on Pathfinder who create utterly amazing renditions of the characters that I designed.

The weirdest renditions of my Iconic characters I've seen is fan art depicting them doing things to each other probably best not mentioned on a public forum.

Contributor

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Kyra.

The art description for Kyra specified that she was a Cleric of Sarenrae. She wielded a scimitar and her vestments should look Middle Eastern.
Clerics can be quite difficult to design because their costume elements fall somewhere between fighter and spell user. With Krya, the impression of multiple layers was the important theme I wanted to convey. Her armour and clothes are put together from separate elements to create a whole.

Underneath she’s wearing a short sleeved gambeson. This is a padded coat made from layers of wool and material. It probably comes down to lower thigh/mid leg. She might be wearing a simple vest and pantaloons underneath (But we can’t see those). Over the top of the gambeson is a wide sleeved chemise sometimes known as a Farasia. We can see she’s wearing simple vambraces over her forearms with a few decorative bracelets. On her right wrist is a small spherical phylactery (Possibly containing ashes, powder or incense?)
I decided to make her maille made from brass instead of iron for aesthetic effect. The yellow – metal colour fit better with Kyra’s colour scheme. (Historically - most maille was made from iron and although it was sometimes included links made of brass, these were for decorative effect as brass may be more expensive than iron in those times but is softer than iron.) Her haubergeon is in the “Persian” style. Split at the front and tied with hook and eye over a wide leather hem. The sleeves have a wide opening and a narrow second layer sewn in to accommodate the voluminous sleeves of her linen chemise. She’s wearing a separate maille girdle and a single (asymmetrical) skirt of maille that wraps around her legs, overlapping at the front. All of her maille has a linen backing typically found in the medieval Middle East. The circular discs around the hems are decoration (Reminiscent of shatweh headdress )
Over the top of her maille she wears a wide short sleeved robe known as a “Binish”. This looked both Middle Eastern and could be adapted to resemble clerical vestments too. I added the circle of triangle - pattern to reinforce that sun symbology.

Around her waist she wears a cotton hijam (Kinda like a cummerbund) combined with a wide sash and leather belt. Tucked into her belt she has her scabbard and scroll case. Attached to her belt is a small pouch and a larger shaped pouch. The larger pouch has a stylised silhouette of sarenrae implying that it carries clerical equipment.
On her legs she’s wearing studded boots known as Rak. These have reinforced metal plates over the dorsum of her foot.
She’s wearing a conical helmet with “petal” style reinforcement strips. The forehead crest is removable. Her turban and head scarf are separate pieces of headwear.
On her back is a stole which bear written prayers. There are actually two panels but we can only see one in the illustration in the core rulebook. The tattoos on her cheeks are vaguely Arabic – looking symbols designed to be holy words or prayers.
Kyra’s scimitar is based more upon a stylised Yatagan. But I’ve used my imagination to alter the blade shape and fittings
With Sarenrae being a deity connected with the sun I was able to incorporate lots of different sun symbols into her costume. I’d kept a lot of her jewellery circular in shape to resonate with the shape of the sun. (The exception being the inverted heart shaped brooch attached to her turban) I’d considered a red and gold colour scheme but that suggested fire and flames to me. Instead I used blues and golden yellows in an attempt to suggest the “sun in the sky”. Blue and gold is also a colour scheme that might be more associated with “Good” aligned characters.

I had to base my design of Sarenrae on the cover of Gods & Magic. upon Kyra’s outfit and holy symbol.


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So excited to see a new post on one of the iconic's art. It blows me away the amount of thought that goes into the art for these characters. Thank you for putting so much time and effort into really making these iconics feel alive, and for taking the time to explain in detail the thought process for them. I very much look forward to the next one you detail!


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Coooooooooooooooooooooooooooolllll~!


Wow. Thank you for those details.

Which iconic do you consider to have the most complicated design? Though there's probably multiple serious contenders for that spot...

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Zhangar wrote:

Wow. Thank you for those details.

Which iconic do you consider to have the most complicated design? Though there's probably multiple serious contenders for that spot...

Thanks Zhangar. I hope you found the design concepts interesting?

The most complicated Iconic designs are usually the ones with repetitive patterns or textures. Kyra's fairly complex with all that maille. There's a lot going on with the multiple material content of Valeros's design too. But I think the most complex I conic character has to be Alain the Cavalier. Or the many jars, bottles, boxes, phials, flasks and barrels that belong to Damiel the Alchemist.

Grand Lodge

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Clearly a LOT of research there, many thanks for the explanation.

Dorsum; nice word. Anatomy lessons or Bill Bailey?

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Darrell Impey UK wrote:

Clearly a LOT of research there, many thanks for the explanation.

Dorsum; nice word. Anatomy lessons or Bill Bailey?

Thanks Darrell.

Anatomy. :-)

Grand Lodge

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Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Wayne Reynolds wrote:
I had to base my design of Sarenrae on the cover of Gods & Magic. upon Kyra’s outfit and holy symbol.

So you based Sarenrae on Kyra.

Now that's tail wagging the dog category!

RPG Superstar 2008 Top 32

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What's up with Damiel's weird dagger?

Paizo Employee Publisher, Chief Creative Officer

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Wayne Reynolds wrote:
Kajehase wrote:

More Lem, and not jokes about him having hat-envy this time. ;-)

What do you see his flute being made of? Depending on who draws him, it looks either like bone or like wood to me.

Lem's flute is actually made out of Silver.

Thank god you said that, as it's a plot point in Pathfinder Origins #6! :)


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Erik Mona wrote:
Wayne Reynolds wrote:
Lem's flute is actually made out of Silver.
Thank god you said that, as it's a plot point in Pathfinder Origins #6! :)

Is Lem going to lead the wererats out of Hamelin with it?


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I can neither confirm nor deny any speculations as to what I use my flute for in that comic.

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Ross Byers wrote:
What's up with Damiel's weird dagger?

Damiel's dagger is also a syringe.

Grand Lodge

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Pathfinder PF Special Edition, Starfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber
Wayne Reynolds wrote:
Ross Byers wrote:
What's up with Damiel's weird dagger?
Damiel's dagger is also a syringe.

Of all the iconics, Damiel is fast approaching the top of the list of those I don't want to meet in a dark alley... or a lighted one for that mattr. That boy is just not right in the head.

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