I heard about Project Dragon aka Everhaven on Twitter/X through game artist Nicholas Kole's social media posts. It looked like a very interesting game; choosing from a variety of fictional races besides humans, taming animal mounts, building our own land and exploring the world. I was surprised by how close it was to being announced before Phoenix Labs canceled the game weeks before release.
I want to see it brought back and finished! #BringBackProjectDragon! Spread the word!
Fauns, Wyvarr, Valekin and Purrlan playable race (left to right) artwork below by @/nicholaskole!
This guy knows what he’s talking about. He’s one of the lead writers for Leverage and if you ever watch the series on DVD, do yourself a favor and listen to him talk about how the scripts got written. Some of the advice he has is stuff I use all the time:
1. Don’t introduce an important plot person or thing after the first half of the story.
2. Always tie up loose ends.
3. Introduce important things in the middle of unimportant things.
4. If you have to infodump, find an emotion to tie it to and it will seem less like infodump and more like a motive rant.
Seriously this guy knows how to write.
Beside my animated portrait commissions, I've decided to also open a more affordable option for those wishing for a doodle or two!
Starting price is $5 with which you can have a bust sketch of your character - you can give more and from there get a cleaner lineart, or a sketch page with several pics of your OC, or a singular pic with colors and more details, so on and so forth depending on what you give!
Remember to read the TOS first and then DM me!
I am struggling financially so anything helps - including reblogs! Thank you so much ♥
(Check out my animated portrait tag for high resolution examples!)
45 USD for a fully colored animated portrait with background!
☛ +5 to 10 USD for complex designs
☛ -10 USD if you want no background
☛ -5 USD if you want no shading
Don't hesitate to request specific details (like blinking, smiling, frowning, rain particles in background, etc), or you can let me work my magic!
The animation can be more or less subtle or obvious, and can last 2 or 3 seconds (bear in mind that longer means heavier file, but I can resize the gif to whatever size is most convenient for you).
3 Slots open!
TOS
Payment upfront, in USD, via Paypal only
Character reference is mandatory. Also, I won't draw real people
Once you approve the sketch, only very minimal edits will be allowed further down the line. Heavy edits will be charged extra
I will ask permission to post on socials
You may not feed my art to AI in any way whatsoever
I reserve the right to refuse a commission without explanation
This is a method I started using when NFTs were on the rise - thieves would have to put actual work into getting rid of the mark - and one that I am now grateful for with the arrival of AI. Why? Because anyone who tries to train an AI on my work will end up with random, disruptive color blobs.
I can't say for sure it'll stop theft entirely, but it WILL make your images annoying for databases to incorporate, and add an extra layer of inconvenience for thieves. So as far as I'm concerned, that's a win/win.
I'll be showing the steps in CSP, but it should all be pretty easy to replicate in Photoshop.
Now: let's use the above image as our new signature file. I set mine to be 2500 x 1000 pixels when I'm just starting out.
Note that your text should not have a lot of anti-aliasing, so using a paint brush to start isn't going to work well with this method. Just use the standard G-Pen if you're doing this by hand, or, just use the text tool and whichever font you prefer.
Once that's done, take your magic wand tool, and select all the black. Here are the magic wand settings I'm using to make the selections:
All selected?
Good.
Now, find a brush with a scattering/tone scraping effect. I use one like this.
You can theoretically use any colors you want for this next part, but I'd recommend pastels as they tend to blend better.
Either way, let's add some color to the text.
Once that's finished,
You're going to want to go to Layer Property, and Border Effect
You'll be given an option of choosing color and thickness. Choose black, and go for at least a 5 in thickness. Adjust per your own preferences.
Now create a layer beneath your sig layer, and merge the sig down onto the blank layer.
This effectively 'locks in' the border effect, which is exactly what we want.
Hooray, you've finished your watermark!
Now let's place that bad boy into your finished piece.
You'll get the best mileage out of a mark if you can place it over a spot that isn't black of white, since you'll get better blending options that way. My preference is for Overlay.
From here, I'll adjust the opacity to around 20-25, depending on the image.
If you don't have a spot to use overlay, however, there's a couple other options. For white, there's Linear Burn, which imho doesn't look as good, but it still works in a pinch.
And for lots of black, you have Linear Light
Either way, you're in business!
EDIT since this has escaped my usual circles, and folks aren't as familiar with my personal usage:
An example of one of my own finished pieces, with watermark, so you can see what I mean about 'relatively unobtrusive'-- I try to at least use them as framing devices, or let them work with the image somehow (or, at the very least, not actively against it).
I know it's a bummer for some people to "ruin" their work with watermarks, which is part of the reason I developed this mark in particular. Its disruption is about as minimal as I can make it while still letting it serve its intended purpose.
There's other methods, too, of course! But this is the one I use, and the one I can speak on. Hope it helps some of you!
You know how fantasy worlds are almost always based on (mostly Central and Northern) European Medieval aesthetic and folklore?
For a while I’ve been thinking that if we had a fantasy world made here, it would be interesting to have it be inspired by Modernisme (the Catalan artistic movement from the late 19th century - early 20th century). I mean, look at this and tell me it doesn’t have potential:
Interior of the Sagrada Família basilica, Barcelona. The stained glass in different sides of the temple are different colours, so the light changes colour depending on the hour of the day. (Photo sources x x)
Illa de la Discòrdia, Barcelona. x
Benches in Parc Güell (Barcelona), made with the “trencadís”, the typical mosaic used in many of Antoni Gaudí’s works (he’s one of the most famous Modernist architects, and one of the most famous Catalan architects of all times too). x
A hall in Hospital de Sant Pau, Barcelona. x
Ceiling of Palau de la Música Catalana, a concert hall in Barcelona.
Lots of these things. This one is in Argentona (Catalonia, too). x
And fashion would be like this:
Stained glass in Cerdanyola, Catalonia. x
Illustrations by Gaspar Camps.
More stained glass, now in Museu del Modernisme, Barcelona. x
Modernist jewels by Lluís Masriera (I’ve talked about Modernist jewels in this previous post). x
Even the furniture:
x
Interior of Casa Amatller in Barcelona. x.
Even in wood looked pretty.
x
And lots of cool windows inspired by nature!
And from outside
Olot, Catalonia. x.
And of course all kinds of windows. Light is important!
Torre Bellesguard. x.
Barcelona. x.
This ceiling in Palau Güell with holes to let light in. x.
And this lamp?? Also in Palau Güell. x.
Everything would have to be very curvy.
Casa Milà, Barcelona. x.
And shops
This bakery in Palma, Mallorca. x.
And I won’t begin with the tiles to not make the post longer…
What do you think?
And for people from other countries, what element in your culture do you think a fantasy world could be based on, aesthetically?
Fashion is one of my favourite worldbuilding components and choosing which way I want characters to look, is one part of research that is more fun than work. The use of different styles give each culture a defined feel and could act as a symbol of all kinds of lands in your WIP. Since it is your WIP, you can play with different elements of the gowns and pay fast and loose with the styles.
(If you want a more in-depth look at the structure of gowns and the composition of gowns have a look here)
Kirtle
The kirtle was technically an under dress to be worn under a grander gown though some women wore it as a gown itself over their chemise. The kirtle could be made of any material and worn by any woman of any rank. It could be laced at the back, front and even, though rarely, the side.
Sarafan
The sarafan is a traditional Russian dress worn mainly by the peasants (since Peter the Great banned traditional Russian costumes from the nobility in order to drag them toward Westernization). It rather resembles a pinafore and often worm under a lighter gown like a slip. During the reign of Nicholas I, the sarafan was allowed to be worn by the women of the Royal court. They fancied up the sarafan, adding a popular boat-line neckline and long dragging sleeves. It is one of my favourite looks of all time.
Gamurra
This was the most popular gown in Renaissance Italy. The waist was high, usually pleated beneath the bust and had a square neckline. The gown would be worn over the lady's chemise and corset and perhaps another under dress. It was worn by both nobles and commoners.
Burgundian Gowns/Houppelande
These gowns were high-waisted, belted underneath the bust. The neckline was classically shaped in a V, often showing off another fabric underneath. These gowns were worn by highborn women.
The Farthingale
This gown is named after the structure that held it in place. The skirts would be stretched into a dome-like, bell-jar shape, often fitted about the waist over a bum-roll (stop sniggering) a piece of padded fabric hung about the waist to widen the skirt's distance from the bodice. You know what they say, the bigger the Farthingale the bigger the rank. Worn through the 15th & 16th centuries.
Robe à l'Anglaise
This gown is the classic silhouette of the 18th century. The sleeves usually stopped at the elbow. The neckline was usually cut square. The bodice could be done up in front by laces or buttons. The skirts usually were supported by panniers and often reached staggering girth.
Robe à la Française
This French gown was similar to the Robe à l'Anglaise only that the back featured a train made from pleated fabric that draped from the shoulders to the floor. The gown often opened at the front to show another material beneath.
Robe à la Polonaise
The Robe à la Polonaise was similar to the last two gowns excepting a skirt that featured an overskirt which was picked up and pleated to show the under skirt.
Chiton
This dress is often seen in Roman or Greek art. The Doric version was made by draping material over the body and fastened at the shoulder by clasps The Ionic chiton version was draped about the body and pinned at the waist.
This is basically what my physical therapist had me do for my back problems last year and it helped with the pain so much! Also walk for at least thirty minutes a day, even if it's just in small chunks throughout the day.
thanks to mainstream media and being unable to show breasts on TV, way too few people know about female signs of cardiac distress, and impending heart attacks. they only know about the “pain in the left arm” male symptom.
Please, please, PLEASE, reblog this. i don’t know if I did save or called false alarm, with my boss’ life tonight. I felt I was being a bit paranoid, overreacting, but I told Mirage my thoughts and he, after reading over the article I showed him, immediately sprung into action and then shooed her off to the hospital. I don’t know if I did or not, but I knew she’d been super stressed. She’d off-handedly commented on her arm tingling and I asked her if she felt queasy on a hunch. I went to look at the symptoms and we went from there.
Holy shit, I didn’t even think the symptoms would be different between men and women. This is so hugely important and I don’t understand why we aren’t taught this.
One of the other symptoms that doesn’t get talked about , especially in women, is a “feeling of impending doom”. I am not even kidding, that is a legitimate diagnostic criteria.
Please - if you are feeling any of these symptoms and a sudden onset of “Holy shit the world is ending” do not let anyone tell you it’s “just nerves” or “just heartburn” or something.
Keep these in mind ESPECIALLY IF YOU’VE GOT HEART DISEASE IN YOUR FAMILY! So many more women die from heart attacks than because they don’t recognize the symptoms when they’re so different. Please stay safe and stay informed.
Sex differences in diagnostics are pretty much never sharp cut-offs. The stereotypical “male” symptoms are more common for men, and the stereotypical “female” symptoms are more common for women – and yes, treating the stereotypical “male” symptoms as universal has absolutely lead to women being less likely to know when they need medical help.
But these things tend to go like bell curves, and so even if you’re a cis man, and you think that none of this applies to your own health – if you ever suddenly start experiencing stereotypical “female” heart attack symptoms? Go to a fucking doctor.
These symptoms show up more often in heart attacks for women, but they also just shouldn’t be ignored, by anyone, ever.
im not christian, but i have encountered so many transphobic christians that actually hearing someone in a position of authority in their religion actively support trans people makes me feel like maybe there is hope
