Art Fight attacking @galacticsabc
No.525 Ladas and his crew are being chased by evil forces. They had a good lead at first, but the horse-back attackers chased Ladas to the hills, and Ladas' patron can't lay down an optimal alignment. Running low on sand and grit, and buffeted by wind and rain, Ladas loses his grip on the rails and wheelspins, draughting hard and blowing hot cinders from his funnel and grinding down his wheels. Will he be able to grip the rails again? or will he slide backwards into the grasp of the villains…
It may not be possible to avoid the battle after all.
I absolutely loved this character's design. I wanted to put him through his paces in a stressful situation, and also represent him as a realistic locomotive, so I used plenty of references. I made a few small design changes--some to match the autotank, and some to fix some details. For example, steam doesn't like to take sharp right angles, so I bent the squared pipes that had been there before. I also added a little more detail to the autocoach, basing the panelling off of a slightly older design for a GWR steam-railmotor, which has a similar form factor to the autocoach, but looks a little more old timey and so appropriate for a fantasy setting.
I also imagined Ladas has picked up a few modifications in his travels. He has a whistle turret now so he can speak with more than two voices--currently he has his two original single-chime whistles and a big deep loud "american" style five-chime. He also has a big oil headlamp which can perhaps be used as a magic focus. (hey, it's a fantasy world, it doesn't have to be straightforwardly British!)