Arashi's Take on NightWings
I'm currently trying my hand at drawing the Wings of Fire tribes in my own style, and the first one on my list was the NightWing tribe! (For reference, I'm using the allegiances from Legends: Darkstalker and from the third arc like a checklist, by this logic, the SandWings are next) Also, apologies for my handwriting in the design notes, I am aware that my penmanship isn't the greatest.
This is somewhat of an exercise for my creative/designing skills and a way for me to apply some of my personal headcannons to the tribes as I go along. This will also come in handy for future reference as I'm planning on revamping the allegiances for my WoF fanfiction. I'm not entirely sure if this counts as redesigning the tribes? Let me know if it is, but I consider it more like taking artistic liberties and visualizing some of my personal interpretations as to what the tribes might look like.
NightWing headcannons:
-NightWings don't just have the starry markings underneath their wings, they have them scattered cross the underside of their bellies too, providing even more thorough camouflage from below
-Sometimes a NightWing may have a surplus of star-speckles that appear on scales they usually wouldn't (ex. snouts, legs, sides, tail), effectively giving them freckles
-When a NightWing hatches with melanism, they have little to no star-speckles (though if they happen to hatch a telepath, the silver tear-drop scales are unaffected)
-The tear-dop scales running down their sides don't always appear in every NightWing, and are typically a trait found in NightWings descended from the original tribe that resided on the Talon Peninsula (back in Darkstalker's days); a fairly uncommon occurrence nowadays since hundreds of years have passed between the cannon series and my fanfiction, putting an even greater distance between now and the age of Darkstalker, so this could be considered a dying trait
-Though I tend to shy away from giving future-seers markings, I am warming up to the headcannon that prophet dragons have star markings in the center of their foreheads
-NightWings born during supermoons will have their powers amplified
-NightWings have a broad wingspan, being perfectly built for gliding
-Because of this, NightWings are able to fly/glide greater distances without stopping to rest
-They are also almost completely silent fliers
-NightWings have a darker shade of blood than most tribes, being so dark it glints almost black; this also applies a sort of "discoloration" to the exposed skin areas (ex. inside the ears, the darker colored tongues, scar tissue)
-(I don't really have a reason behind that headcannon, I just think it's neat)
-NightWings have reflective pupils (similar to those of a cat's), that help reflect light even in dim environments and aid in their night vision
-NightWings have semi-prehensile tails (not to the full extent that RainWings have, just a little more flexible than the average tribe) that allow them to better cling onto stalactites while resting
-In addition to that, NightWings are the only tribe that can sleep upside down
-Due to sharing a distant ancestry with the RainWing royal family, royal NightWings have an almost iridescent sheen to their scales, which is usually not visible unless they're illuminated by moonlight
These were honestly so much fun to work on and I can't wait to expand the allegiances even further! I hope you enjoyed this silly little ramble of mine.
!!I DO NOT CONSENT TO HAVING MY ART STOLEN AND USED TO TRAIN AI MODELS!!
Original base by Joy Ang:
My take:
Close-up views of the wingspan and the face, with and without the teardrop markings: