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I'm in the process of making my own Jestyn x oc yt playlist so I thought: "why not make some custom background art for it?"
But I am an ambitious person, so it's only one of 6 I have planned based off the whole playlist and its separate, progressively changing vibes..
I'm not very good at making backgrounds.. nor full bodies.. nor hands. So this was a challange. Not sure if I like the final effect of it, but it's not bad either.
Close ups:
[click for better quality!]
Jestyn from Kingdom of Marionettes by @thepipiuw
Okay I just made a doodle between struggling with drawing Ilian's profile (idk why its so hard oh my god) and thought that since I shared some fun facts about Eva way back I could also do some for Ilian.
These will be quite random lol
ILIAN FUN FACTS:
♛ His tongue design was inspired by this pic:
And now every time I look at it I see Ilian lol. It's so goofy
Although I still associate him with a hyena in a way, I do also think of lizards or some sort of reptile animals haha
♛If he ever tasted ice cream, I think his favourite flavours would be coffee and blackberry
♛ His favourite colours are: brown (ofc), black, orange, and red.
♛ He was right handed, but due to... you know what... he had to learn how to use his left hand, therefore technically he is now ambidextrous with his left becoming the dominant one.
♛ I think canonically he's an only child. Also I do think of him as a momma's boy lol. But not in the most wholesome way. There'd be love but also neglection bleeding in for sure.
♛He likes to whistle. You'd often find him whistling when he's in good mood. But it's this sort of slow, almost haunting whistling. Like the one you'd hear from a hunter lol. He also uses whistling as this sort of neutral trick when using his ability on someone. Can be very disorienting when you hear few whistles from few directions.
♛ When he was younger/before the punishment he had a bit shorter hair than now. I might post a doodle of it soon, we'll see.
♛ Before I made him all pretty and handsome the first sketches of his design looked like this:
He looked SO ugly ToT It reminds me of that one portrait of Stolas from Heluva Boss when he was just a baby bird. All grey and messed up.
Safe to say he went through a massive glow up.
Okay that's all I have for now. There are more but they all lean into more relationship/mature themes that I might leave for seperate posts.
The first time I saw Pasha's full body I just fell in love with him and his design, it's so good!
And then Sol popped out of nowhere with their secret godly art skills and presented us with their beautiful human mc and genuinely felt like that one meme of Stanley from GF with the three journals lmao
So of course I had to doodle them all together
I wanted to do more but I got a bit busy and it got quite late for me very quickly haha
But at least I managed to draw one doodle for each
Gosh these two are so cute and handsome, lowkey giving me cuteness agression <3
Okay so... I kinda got sucked into a spiral of "what if" scenarios ever since -c posted about their little MC/KoM verse horror critter au (post 1 and post 2) and mentioned Eva in it and then I couldn't get it out of my head so I kinda designed World Save Amalgamation Eva...?
Eh, I kinda rushed the design to just have anything to base off to make the sketch/comic above so it's not set in stone. I had no idea what vibe the au has (like, fantasy/medieval or more modern clothing like in horror movies). I just kind of based off the vibes of "human" Eden doodle from the first post and also my old MCSM au Eva and basically winged it
I don't hate it but I also don't fully love it. I usually spend hours on my designs, especially if they are meant to be practical or represent the character in some way. But it will do for now.
I was mostly excited to just present something of what I had in mind ever since -c shared their idea for the au. Mostly bc of this:
"This also makes me curious for how Eden works with other characters, because I can NOT help but giggle at the thought of Eva stumbling upon this poor ass creature </3 Compared to Wheylan and critter Eden, I can tolerate it since Wheylan wouldn't at all question what it is but EVA? I'd feel she'd have the clarity to know that things not normal </3 And the image of her keeping it in her dwellings isnt real in my mind WHAAWH"
Okay, so, you're not entirely wrong, but... if I'm basing off my other mc aus here... Eva would probably take him home anyway.
Basically, borrowing from my other AU, Eva would be kind of a... biologist here. A self-taught one. Someone who keeps journal upon journal filled with notes and sketches; not only of the original Minecraft creatures, but also the lesser-known, more interesting and unique ones, like the sniffer, glowing squid, happy ghast, or whatever else you might find out there nowadays
Imagine Stanford from Gravity Falls, but less naive.
So, even if she'd obviously realize that this critter isn't really just a critter, she still wouldn't leave it there to potentially die.
Of course, she'd first assess whether he's hostile or not, then try to get close enough to examine his wounds and figure out how to get him out of the trap. She'd also probably have to break the arrow shaft off so it wouldn't shift around while she was carrying him and potentially make the injury even worse.
-C also mentioned that he's slimy? to the touch, so I imagined she'd use her scarf to gently pick him up, first making sure he's okay with it and won't bite or attack her out of fear. Then she'd carefully wrap him in it and carry him like in the doodle, proping his head with her hand, not really caring that much of getting her hand bloodied or in the goo/slime. I think throughout the whole process she'd sort of mumble and talk to the little guy, both to soothe him and maybe herself, too. I mean, it'd be a pretty devastating thing to come across. Eva has a really soft and I'd say almost motherly voice, so maybe that— or even just the vibrations of it against her chest as she cradles him—would calm him down a little.
At the same time, I feel like at some point on the way back home she'd fall silent, with a million thoughts tumbling through her mind. But her top priority would still be getting this guy somewhere safe and checking his wounds, even if that meant taking him back to her own place. Once again, her empathy wins out over her survival instincts just a little.
I also think, as someone who studies animals and other creatures, she'd have a sort of etiquette when it comes to approaching them, especially wild, neutral, hostile, or completely unknown ones.
Still, something just wouldn't let her leave this critter alone; not in that state. And realistically, she probably wouldn't have time to think of a better place to take him than her own home.
I wanted to write more about her reaction to the critter escaping and then meeting the "stranger" later on but kind of running out of writer fuel here. Maybe later!
But bonus idea: I lowkey imagined critter Eden NOT wanting to let go of Eva's scarf even if she'd want to just take it to at least wash it from the goo and blood so eventually she'd either find a compromise or just leave him that scarf.
Okay that's all I have in me to share. I just love Eden creature, he lowkey reminds me of Cyndaquil which is one of my favourite pokemons out there and I just can't ToT If this what the horrors are than I am no better than those main characters in horror movies </3
Again, no idea what are the vibes of the au and how relevant it is to kom verse but it was still fun to draw these ^^
critter Eden from World Save Amalgamation au belongs to @an0nymous-c
"You're chasing certainity in a place built on lies."
Okay, since we got the comic outta the way, I'm finally gonna talk about Ilian's ability and how it works more or less.
RAMBLING UNDER THE CUT!!
Gosh, where to start...?
Like some of you noticed, in the comic I made you could see multiple versions of Ilian chasing the intruder. That's because he was using an ability I like to call mirage.
As the name suggests, it's an illusion-based ability.
I actually mentioned it only once before, in my very first post about Ilian, but he's capable of creating copies— or rather, mirages— of himself. These copies can appear incredibly realistic, to the point where it's often difficult to tell which one is the real Ilian and which one is merely an illusion (especially if you're someone that does not know how his ability works, which is likely for most).
Especially when he uses his special ability.
As -c noticed in their lovely reblog on my comic, the intruder actually bumped into one of the copies. And no— it wasn't the real Ilian.
It was one of his solid mirages.
Normally, his copies are intangible and exist purely to deceive the eye. However, Ilian can temporarily make one of them physically tangible, allowing it to interact with the environment as though it were his real body. It can touch objects, open doors... and, of course, hurt people.
The downside is that maintaining a solid mirage consumes a tremendous amount of energy. It also requires a lot of his concentration, making it harder for him to divide his attention elsewhere.
That's actually one of the reasons he was caught sneaking into Crownus' chambers in his backstory. At the time, he was simultaneously controlling a solid copy performing his role on stage while his real body was elsewhere. Back then, he wasn't nearly as experienced with balancing his attention or managing the energy required to keep the illusion stable.
After the theatre closed, however, he had something he never really had before:
Time.
Years of it.
With no performances to distract him and no king to control him, he spent that time mastering mirage, to the point where he's now exceptionally proficient with it.
Back then, creating even one convincing copy was exhausting. Two was pushing his limits, and neither would last very long.
Nowadays, I'd say he can comfortably maintain up to four high-quality copies at once, maybe even more.
Of course, there are trade-offs.
The more copies he creates, the lower their overall quality becomes. As of now, four is probably the maximum number of mirages he can maintain while still making them look, move, and speak convincingly. Beyond that, they become progressively less realistic, especially if someone gets close enough to inspect them.
That said, even those less convincing copies are still useful. From a distance, they're more than enough to distract, confuse, or mislead someone into making the wrong decision.
Because Ilian isn't among the physically biggest or strongest puppets in the theatre— his greatest physical advantage is actually the strength of his grip rather than raw power— I wanted to give him an ability centered around deception, positioning, and control instead of brute force.
[Of course that does not mean he is physically weak. It's just that in my canon there are stronger puppets like Jestyn or Knighter in that sense. Ilian is still quite strong, definitely stronger than a human as they are supernatural entities]
And over the years, he's learned to use it to his full advantage.
Naturally, mirage isn't without limitations.
One of its biggest weaknesses is that all of Ilian's ordinary copies disappear the moment his opponent spots his real body. Because of that, he usually keeps his distance during confrontations or usage of his ability, carefully making sure that his true position remains hidden.
That's another reason he devoted so much time to mastering his solid mirage. Since it can physically interact with its surroundings, it allows him to act through a copy while remaining hidden himself.
The longer he keeps his abilities active, however, the more energy they consume.
That's also why, in the comic, his right pupil disappears. (And yes, -c, you were right: he was injured by the intruder. Nice deduction! Didn't reblog but loved reading your analysis on that one <3) The crack to his face had already thrown him off balance, and chasing two intruders while maintaining multiple mirages drained him even further.
Even so, his stamina and control over mirage are leagues beyond what they used to be.
Also, there's one final aspect of the ability.
Technically, Ilian can create mirages of other people as well.
However, those are much more difficult to produce, so he rarely relies on them.
Creating convincing copies of himself became second nature only because he spent years studying and practicing every little detail of his own movements. Replicating someone else requires just as much familiarity. He'd need to know their appearance, mannerisms, posture, and behavior well enough to recreate them convincingly, which would take a great deal of observation and trial and error.
So far, his most successful attempts have been copies of members of the main cast (perhaps even Crownus himself, though that's tied to a small story change/idea I'm still considering).
These impersonation mirages work best from a distance. Up close, the imperfections become easier to notice, so he mostly uses them as brief tricks of the eye rather than perfect disguises.
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I'm still working on his abilities and how exactly they work as I am very particular about the pros and cons of them. There's a bit more to them I'd say but for now I think these are good enough basics for those curious of what he can do.
Gah I'm not entirely proud of the art though. I wanted to make something cool and pretty looking but my motivation run out mid-working on this..
Like, first half I was like: omg the profile turned out so good he looks so pretty and handsome!
And then I started adding colours and it all went downhill. I can either do lineart without colours or colours without lineart, but apperantly I'm not capable of doing both ToT
Also his eye turned out way more... yellow/orange than I wanted to be honest.. his eyes are usually this smokey-brown like in the aesthetic template I made.
Here are other versions:
I mean look how much better it looks without colours ToT
Be careful what you say outloud. Somethingone might be listening.
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Lmao okay so today I woke up and was hit with so many ideas for horror au Ilian and I felt it'd be a lacking post without some kind of visuals so I spent some time to draw a silly comic that's kind of relevant to the ideas
ILIAN HORROR AU ABILITY-RELATED RAMBLING UNDER THE CUT (also more art :])
Poor Betty...
Dksjsndkendnf okay maybe he wouldn't straight up LEAVE a dead carcass of his last meal in the barn/area where the owner can easily find it (he would probably be the type to either SWALLOW IT WHOLE or drag it out of the barn into the woods leaving no real traces behind as he usually plays a sort of "how many sheep can I steal before they notice" kind of game lol) but if that ever happen for some reason, he'd make sure to make it look like wolf's doing.
And I know, I know. Minecraft doesn't have blood or carcasses— they just poof into dust, but it's a horror au and we know that Eden can bleed/get visibly hurt so indulge me here a little. I just love gore in art. I love horror in general <3
This is ofc not the best gory art I've ever made. It's hardly anything lol. It was supposed to be a bit subtle. I even put the hayblock there to cover it up. It was intention to kind of give you a glimps/feeling of horror in contrast of the usually wholesome/peaceful vibes of minecraft life.
Now, to the point of this post:
One thing I really like about the idea of Ilian living a double life is that his human disguise isn't something he wears because he enjoys humanity. It's simply practical. It gives him access to places and information that would be impossible to obtain as a creature lurking in the forests. Humans are far less guarded around another human than they are around something with claws hiding between the trees.
I can imagine him occasionally wandering into villages disguised as nothing more than a quiet random traveler. He doesn't draw attention to himself or actively seek out conversations, but he listens. Humans are surprisingly willing to share information without realizing its value.
A passing comment about someone leaving for the mines before sunrise, a merchant complaining about a shipment, a villager mentioning where they keep their valuables, or a hunter bragging about setting traps in the woods— all of it becomes another piece of the puzzle. By the time Ilian disappears back into the forest, he knows exactly who lives where, who travels alone, and which houses are the easiest to rob.
The disguise also serves another purpose: observation. He doesn't simply watch humans from a distance— he studies them. The way they greet each other, how they smile, how they carry themselves, the little gestures they make without thinking. He pays attention to how they solve problems, use tools, open doors, and protect their homes.
To him, humans are simply another species to observe, much like Eva studies wildlife. The difference is that Eva seeks understanding, while Ilian seeks usefulness.
That knowledge eventually becomes a weapon. The more he understands someone, the easier they are to deceive. A familiar face is naturally trusted, and trust makes people careless.
Imagine this.
Perhaps he greets someone on a road one day, exchanging only a few words before continuing on his way.
Weeks later, that same traveler appears outside their home. Or standing silently at the edge of the forest. Or watching from between the trees.
Suddenly the memory of that harmless encounter doesn't feel so harmless anymore..
Sometimes he doesn't even need to impersonate someone else to manipulate people. Looking like an ordinary traveler is enough. If someone asks whether he's seen their missing sheep, he might casually point them toward another part of the forest. While they spend the afternoon searching in the wrong direction, Ilian quietly slips into their home and takes whatever he came for.
The lie is small, almost insignificant, but incredibly effective.
His disguise also allows him to scout places without raising suspicion. I thought about it a bit as I'm not sure how Ilian would be willing to interact with the humans but I feel like in this au he'd really become quite... bold. I mean, he already is, but in this au he'd have a bit more freedom and power to wield. He'd be stronger and would definitely look at humans purely as tools or pawns, things to use and/or observe and learn from. Here, he has less restrictions to be truly bad and horrifying if he wants to.
He might use people's kindness more often than not.
If someone would offer him food or lets him stay the night out of kindness, he might accept— not because he appreciates the hospitality, but because it gives him an opportunity to memorize the layout of the house, where valuables are kept, how many people live there, where the exits are, and what routines they follow. Sometimes he might leave without taking anything at all. The unsettling part would probably be realizing later that a stranger you let in had already seen every corner of your home long before anything ever went missing.
It's kind of giving me vibes of those old folk stories where you let in the monsters or demons into your house by inviting them yourself purely because of their convicingly human disguises.
And that naturally led me to thinking about the ability itself.
The more I started thinking about the idea, the more I realized I didn't actually want Ilian's "human form" to be a true shapeshift as that's not really what he does in KoM og au. It felt a little too straightforward for what I had in mind. Instead, I wanted it to remain an extension of his original ability: Mirage.
So, here me out on this: what if... rather than physically changing his body, Mirage manipulates perception itself.
Ilian never actually becomes human. Beneath the illusion he is still the same towering creature, standing at roughly 2.40 metres tall and missing his right arm. The disguise exists only in the minds of those looking at him, convincing them that they're seeing nothing more than an ordinary traveler. Literally kinda like mirages work haha
Interestingly, the disguise itself is remarkably plain, and I think that'd be intentional. Ilian has no desire to become someone memorable or charismatic. If anything, he aims for the exact opposite. His illusion usually takes the form of a lone traveler wrapped in a dark cloak with the hood pulled low over his face. The cloak naturally drapes over his right shoulder, concealing the absence of his arm without requiring the illusion to fabricate one.
There's nothing remarkable about him. He's simply... forgettable. The kind of stranger you pass on a road, exchange a polite nod with, and struggle to describe only a few hours later.
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WEAKNESSES OF THE ILLUSION
Like any illusion, however, Mirage has its limitations.
The illusion is most convincing at a glance or from a distance. The longer someone remains in Ilian's presence— or the closer they get— the harder it becomes for the mirage to maintain every subtle detail flawlessly. Most people never consciously notice anything unusual though. Instead, they walk away with the vague, nagging feeling that something about the traveler wasn't quite right.
Perhaps he seemed just a little taller than expected.
Maybe his footsteps sounded heavier than they should have when he stepped on that one creaky board, or he instinctively ducked beneath a doorway that someone of his apparent height shouldn't have needed to. But hey, could just be some sort of reflex, right?
Environmental conditions can also interfere with the illusion.
Rain is particularly troublesome. Water running across his cloak can momentarily outline shoulders that sit far higher than they appear to, while soaked fabric may briefly hint at the empty space beneath the cloak where his missing arm should have been. These imperfections rarely last more than a heartbeat before the illusion settles once again, leaving witnesses unsure whether they actually saw anything at all.
Sudden changes in lighting produce similar effects.
A flash of lightning, the flicker of a campfire, or even the shifting glow of lanterns can cause the illusion to falter for the briefest instant. This traveler's silhouette might suddenly appear unnaturally tall, elongated claws may replace ordinary hands for the blink of an eye, or a pair of glowing eyes may stare back before everything returns to normal. Most dismiss these moments as tricks of the light.
Reflections, however, might be Mirage's greatest weakness. Ponds, puddles after rainfall, polished metal of a tool like a sword, or windows can sometimes betray fragments of Ilian's true appearance. While the illusion continues to deceive anyone looking directly at him, his reflection may reveal the towering creature hidden beneath. These moments are fleeting, and most people are quick to convince themselves that fatigue or poor lighting simply played tricks on their eyes.
Mirage is also not a static ability. It evolves alongside Ilian's observations. Every conversation overheard, every routine memorized, every habit studied allows him to better his illusions further. The more time he spends observing someone, the more convincing his imitations become.
Even so, perfection remains just out of reach..
A smile may linger a second too long. A familiar gesture may appear in the wrong context. A voice may sound correct, yet somehow lack the warmth or emotion people unconsciously expect.
Most fail to notice these imperfections. A particularly observant person, however, might slowly begin to realize that the stranger standing before them isn't human at all.
. . .
Mmm do I like this concept? Yes. But at the same time I'm unsure. Does this balance things well? Or did I make him too weak? No idea..
Also that means no hot human Ilian, only some chupacabra aah monster dog 😔 KSNDJDKDM
I mean maybe there could be a compromise to this? Maybe he can shapeshift into his human version but cant disguise himself as others through shapeshifting? Maybe he has to be in his monster form to perform illusions? Or maybe some of his mirages can be physical?
At the same time we are going with monsters/horrors so lol I have no idea
