Suilaid, Gwenyr

I didn't choose the sylvan life, the sylvan life chose me.

[athetos]

Oracle of Seasons /// Bosses

[crocincrocsart]

I’ve made a sketch of a landscape… because. Lets say it’s Uberwald at Night.

Extras:

[thats-adorkable]

[silver-grasp]

Silmarillion Elves vs LotR Elves

I actually really like how there’s such a difference between the view of elves we get in the Lord of the Rings and that which we see in the Silmarillion. Like it’s such a meme, but at the same time I think it says something really interesting about the elves themselves.

Basically, they changed. And for immortal, mostly changeless beings, that says a lot. And the way I read it, they realized their mistakes from the First Age and made an active attempt to do better.

When Galadriel is tempted by the Ring, I wonder if she’s thinking about the how the desire for power, vengeance, and the Silmarils screwed everyone over in the F.A. I wonder if she’s remembering that the ring was made by Sauron - who, if we remember, captured and killed her brother Finrod (and at least indirectly killed her other brothers as well. And I think it gives her comment, “I pass the test” a little more background when you think about it in terms of the Silmarillion.

Elrond yelling “No oaths!” at the Council (over Gimli’s somewhat understandable confusion) makes a lot of sense given the F.A. He saw, firsthand, that oaths get everyone killed and also destroy continents.

And I think it gives more context to the overall cautious nature of the Third Age elves. Frodo mentions an old saying, “go not to the elves for council, for they will say both no and yes,” which is not particularly flattering to them. But it makes a lot of sense if they’re still somewhat traumatized by the Nirnaeth, the Kinslayings, etc, that they would be hesitant to give definite answers or advice.

Look at how badly we messed up in the past, I wonder if they’re saying. Don’t take our word for this. We don’t really know what we’re doing either.

Basically I love the idea that the reason the elves seem so wise and peaceful and generally Good in LotR is because they actively tried to change the way they did things after learning from their prior mistakes. It’s a lot more nuanced than “Elves are just good because they’re elves and all elves are good because they’re magic and special and superior to everyone else.”

[maedhrosrussandol]

I think this is a fascinating concept because they are so different in the Third Age compared to the First Age but also to the Second Age.

[writingwithcolor]

First off, thank you for all your hard work. I was wondering if you and/or your followers had any opinions on presenting orcs as black in (urban) fantasy? From what I gather (as a white person), the problem is more the Primitive Savage Trope rather than orcs being POC. If orcs were given a culture and orc characters actual development and personalities, would there be a problem in them having (specifically) black appearance traits? (There would also be orcs with white features as well.) Thanks!

Portraying Orcs as Black People (Please Avoid)

Nooooo no no no no, don’t go there. 

No matter how much you reinvent Orcs, they will ALWAYS be connected to Tolkien’s and all the others where they are ugly, brutish, savages, etc. Just the mere thought of it makes me VERY uneasy. This reminds me of that Warcraft movie (which wasn’t bad but) they tried to give more depth to the Orcs, who were coded as Black, but they were still an antagonist and used “dark magics”. 

When there are literally authors out there who write Black people the way fantasy authors write their classical Orc species, this will never work out as well as you mean it to. 

~ Mod Alice

[vmae]

Wait a second. The quenyan word for boobs and hills is the same mostly. I assumed this meant they named breasts after hills but. The elves ALL WOKE UP TOGETHER BY A POND. They saw boobs BEFORE hills, and thus breasts must have been named first.

So, it’s the other way around.

Elves canonically cal hills “earth tits” I can’t fucking handle elves

[artofshinga]

Yshael the Free Elf Fighter

[amgicalhat-deactivated20190702]

My Creature Aesthetics: Elves

[thisblogonlystaysupfornostalgia]

A badly drawn detailed walkthrough of the Vicar Amelia bossfight

[knighthelm]

“But what a sporting hunt it was.”

Lady Maria | Gehrman | Eileen the Crow | Arianna and Adella | Father Gascoigne

Micolash | Plain Doll | Viola and Daughters | Henryk |  Alfred | Annalise | Yurie |

Iosefka | Valtr

[viergacht]

The cover I painted for the special antifascism issue of WEREWOLVES VERSUS. All the artists involved donated their work for free; All profits go to the <a href=“https://www.splcenter.org/”>Southern Poverty Law Center</a> 31 entries, 317 pgs, 15 pieces of art & over 80k words!

https://gumroad.com/l/NaziChomper

Donations start at $1, but you can donate any amount. 

[viergacht]

It would probably help if I fixed the link, eh? ;)

[hushabyevalley]

Why’d you have to be so cute… I’m so so sorry…

Sweet sweaty science elf girl.

[kerisugi]

A commission for @storples

[kerisugi]

Garunk De Jonquille, my pretty half-orc swashbuckler

[kerisugi]

So I tried to draw Roger in a studio trigger type style I’m going to keep trying out new freckle brushes… I think this one is the best, so far.

[foxy-nerdy]

Matsu Nami dons a suit of traditional Ō-yoroi

[doctor-roman]

A series of tweets from GemOfMagic on Twitter that perfectly encapsulates how I’ve been feeling about the recent trend from Magic’s storyline.

I have enough bad things going on in real life. I don’t need it in Magic, too. I need escapism.

Granted, Magic is a story. Stories have conflict. But not every conflict has to end with destroying what made you like Magic in the first place.

[moisellethefae]

So what we’re saying is Ixalan should hopefully be a bit more like Lorwyn! Small scale conflicts, but mostly people living life and having adventures! I would put Kaladesh in this same boat if the growing authoritarian regime conflict didn’t get just…. Too Real last year.

[abzanascendancy]

I think this is why we all loved Homesick and Renewal, because they were chill episodes that had a lot of character development.  Likewise, we enjoyed Release not because of the combat, but because of the character interaction, and that we got to see a person’s home life, their family, etc.

With Rivals of Ixalan, we probably won’t leave without conflict.  With Dominaria, it was mentioned how we’d be going back to a revitalized Dominaria, so we have that to look forward to.  But yeah, I’m tired of the blocks being “Set” and then “Set, but more eldrazi/tentacles/rebellion/destruction”.  Let’s just have a feelgood set for a bit, ‘kay?

[celestialtyrant]

But magic is a game that is fundamentally about combat. Who picks up a copy of Call of Duty or God of War or Halo or Bloodborne and wants to just walk around? Conflict is the fundamental driving force of Magic.

It may also interest you to know that, in literary terms fantasy tends to be a lens through which to examine our current social, political, and economic struggles through a safe and controlled medium. It wasn’t Providence that made Kaladesh eerily echo current political regimes in the USA and elsewhere, it was purposeful.

Use the game to reflect.

[doctor-roman]

I deal with enough bullshit irl. I don’t want to come to Magic, my way of getting away from all that, only to find more.

There’s also nothing to suggest that whatever conflicts Magic has have to end in what draws us into Magic in the first place. A conflict can end with characters and settings changing, and yes, some even dying; but when you follow a franchise and are left with nothing but blasted landscape after blasted landscape you tend to get burnt out on it and burnt out on it I am.

There’s also the fact that a lot of people (myself included) aren’t exactly happy with the way faith has been portrayed in Magic recently.

Zendikar and the Eldrazi? False idols.

Theros and its pantheon? They’re all dicks. Everyone of them.

Innistrad and Avacyn? A plane’s guardian angel turned against it in bloody slaughter.

Amonkhet and Bolas? “Hey all your gods are dead now and what you thought was a supreme god was actually the devil the entire time.”

People are tired. I’m tired. We want to be able to enjoy something without worrying that that thing is going to be killed/maimed/slaughtered in terrible heart wrenching ways and we want/need more happy endings, god damnit.

Also, the Kaladesh storyline and the political climate lining up was completely by coincidence. An inspiring coincidence, but a coincidence nonetheless. Remember, Magic sets are made years before their release, so Magic had no idea how the election was going to be by the time Kaladesh and Aether Revolt saw their release.

[celestialtyrant]

I would argue that magic in its entirety is an art, and artists always have a through-line, a single statement they make through all of their pieces.

Gods ARE false. All of them. Governments do fall to corruption. ALL of them. People place their faith in falsehoods all the time. Almost constantly.

I would also argue that the 2016 USA election was inevitable. Looking back with an understanding of history and the clarity of hindsight, it was almost destined to happen, just like it has thousands of times during human history. These patterns keep occurring.

Magic as an art form simply reflects that. All of it. It’s just basic human nature and societal structure bearing itself out.

[doctor-roman]

>“Gods ARE false. All of them. Governments do fall to corruption. ALL of them. People place their faith in falsehoods all the time. Almost constantly.”

Are you done? Like are you quite done?

I hate to break it to you but that self defeatist attitude that things don’t change and the worse facets of our society will always repeat is EXACTLY WHY THOSE PATTERNS REPEAT IN THE FIRST PLACE.

Fiction does something that we ourselves can’t do; set standards and goals that we can aspire to be and achieve, and that’s a form of art that I am way more willing to consume than the dejected drivel you’re trying to sell.

[voiddwellerstudios-deactivated2]

@odric-master-swagtician is right.

I base my world view on probability and the most likely outcome of a scenario. I don’t believe in any god(s). I believe climate change will end human life on this planet, because it’s only reversible if everyone tries to reverse it, which, realistically, they won’t. In reality, the world is pretty depressing. So it’s completely understandable for us to want to escape into a happy, good fantasy world

[maris-solstice]

@celestialtyrant As someone who actually does put some faith in a god, I’m wholeheartedly on @odric-master-swagtician‘s side here. 

Innistrad meant something to me because I could identify with the Cathars. Because in a horrible world they could look to their faith and find strength.

 I loved Oketra because to me she embodied what a self-sacrificing god means. Powerful. Serene. Ever-present. Wrathful when necessary. But ultimately caring for her people. I LOVED the story when Gideon was enraptured by her because I was too. 

I’m not just saying this because ‘hurr durr my god is real and ur rong’

Faith is an incredibly important part of many people’s lives. It has driven them to do horrible things, yes. But also to do wonderful and kind things. The power of faith helps people to find hope in bleak situations. 

When I was around 12 I had a certain…crisis, and felt depressed and suicidal for years afterward. But it was finding solidarity with my faith that helped me. I wouldn’t be here today without it.

People need hope. People need to see that people can be good, especially now. And whether that’s portrayed through a sympathetic pantheon, a kindly king, or a benevolent senate, we need a little bit more of that in Magic.

[flavoracle]

“People need hope.” I totally agree with @actualborossoldier here. 

I would also add that people need TRUST. And that’s something that the Magic storyline has been really rough on the last couple of years. Let’s take a look at some recent story arcs… 

Theros - You can’t trust gods 

Tarkir - You can’t trust history 

Battle for Zendikar - You can’t trust that life goes on 

Shadows Over Innistrad - You can’t trust your protectors 

Kaladesh - You can’t trust authority 

Amonkhet - You can’t trust your heart or your beliefs 

So what’s left for us to believe in? The Gatewatch? I mean, I like the Gatewatch, but I don’t trust them. (I certainly wouldn’t let them babysit my kids.) 

And if the overall message here is, “You can only trust in yourself,” that is a REALLY scary and depressing message. (And one that’s terribly unbalanced in representing color pie philosophy.) 

Humans NEED trust in order to thrive. We need it as individuals, and we need it as societies. So to constantly read stories where trust is bestowed and then betrayed, over and over again, is emotionally exhausting and discouraging. 

On the other hand, I want to trust the Creative Team that they collectively know what their doing! I have a lot of respect for them, and each story on its own is very well-written and compelling. But this overall trend is eroding that trust as well, and I hope we see a shift in the not-too-distant future. 

In the meantime, I’ll keep reading the stories. Hoping for a change, and trusting that the @wizardsmagic Community Team hears our feedback and passes it along. :) 

[high-elf-esteem-blog]

I was just thinking about this. I started playing magic at Innistrad block, and it’s turning into a trend where Magic’s writers hate good endings. If there’s any protagonists left they don’t have homes, the plane is devastated, the victories are all Pyrrhic, the villains are all one step further along, and then Liliana gets whatever she want because she’s a villain-protagonist. It’s a little draining, like one of the everyone-can-die shows where there’s no point to liking a character because the writers aren’t invested in them other than as plot devices. It’s just draining.