An ancient elvish watchtower high in the mountains.
Somewhat inspired by one place in our RPG campaign, an ancient long since abandoned tower preserved from the war against the dragons over a 1200 years in the past. My players found it when they were experimenting with an ancient teleportation chamber.
I'm trying to improve with my more painting-like skills, but there's a long road ahead of me. This is a second cold weather landscape pic in a row, maybe I should start doing something warmer.
Oh no this is going to be embarrassing, but sure. No particular order (aside from #1). It was really hard to compile this list I hope you appreciate the effort.
The Witcher (duh)
Mostly because it's so down to earth yet with magic and creatures and past that make sense together. The world feels organic, familiar, and mysterious at the same time. It's medieval, based largely on human nature, the everyday things of everyman's greed, love, or failure, but with magic elements, bending reality moments and sometimes unicorns. It's Europe-like, but with ancient elven past buried right underneath each city and forest (which also somewhat feels European with all our castles and ruins, just with fantasy flavour). Sure there are fantasy races like elves and dwarves, but reading them makes you believe they live in this world, not just exist for show to fit into the tropes (elves = high fantasy cities or all-magical forest dwellings / dwarves = strongholds). I don't like high fantasy much, so this setting really speaks to me. It's dangerous, dark, but all the same beautiful. The rough and tumble lifestyle of a witcher and all the beasts are just chef's kiss. I love the amalgamation of different mythologies in this setting. Of course Sapkowski isn't the best author out there and there are things I'd wish of him to write better (like the sorcerer women or that there are no women witchers), but the books were written in the 80s-90s, and all in all I love them and the games and I will die on this hill.
Avatar (ATLA/Korra)
I'd have to go back and remind myself a lot about this setting, it's been a long time since I'd seen it, but I really like the elemental bending powers, martial arts, the creatures, and the many secrets this world has to offer. I don't think we'd been shown that much of it, anyway, so there's more to explore if anything they're planning to do with the franchise is successful (and by successful I mean I can watch it without cringing).
DnD...?
Not sure if I can put this here. I do love some of the classic elements of Dungeons and Dragons/Forgotten Realms canon (the monsters, some races, the many different planes of existence), but what I like here is the potential of what you yourself can create from it. The baseline setting with all the additional extensions/books that came throughout the years is an interesting world in itself, but I'm more interested in the homebrew ideas that can stem from it all. Critical Role would also fit on this list in this place.
The Elder Scrolls
This is the embarrassing part since I only ever played Skyrim. I do like the world and the setting though, it feels a lot less like "I can see this world existing/functioning", but I still enjoyed the overall story and what I heard about the previous iconic titles.
Discworld
Ok so I only just recently started to read Pratchett, but I already like the set up and I feel I'm only going to like it more the further I read into this mess, so yeah, let's put it on this list.
From all that I heard about the settings of Neverwinter Nights or Dragon Age, I'd love to put them on this list, but in all honesty I never played them myself. LOTR is great but I never got too deep into it and it's the trope maker series. Gothic games (only 1&2, szanujmy się) are my all-time favourites, but the setting is similar to the Witcher if not less magical. Still awesome, but not as fleshed-out and engaging in itself.
Oh thanks for the ask!! This might be a bit long so bear with me... I love answering these.
Iri'thiel (half-drow, fey wanderer ranger)
2. what was your original concept for this character? how did playing them change that concept?
Surprisingly, she didn't change all that much from my initial concept! Originally she was meant to be far more religious; I wanted to see if I even could play a character like this. Then her mind was erased, but when she recovered some of her memories the deity stuff came back. The relationship this time is not as much a blind devotion as planned at first, she treats it more like partnership, like being welcomed back by an old friend, not as servant - patron.
She was also meant to be a lot more wild, prickly to humans, cracking inappropriate jokes and not giving a fuck most of the time. Some of that was filled by another player, so even though she's still sometimes rude and takes her goddamn time to warm up to others, she cares SO much for her troop and likes to be involved in everything. Much softer than planned, but I like her this way.
Her ears grew twice the size though and I keep making them longer each time I draw her it's very funny
20. what attracts them to someone—platonically and/or romantically, anything counts.
I think it's mostly people being genuine and compassionate. She tries to be that herself, but it's not so easy, so she likes to see that in others. Also those who are not afraid of a challenge, someone she could look up to.
She's generally attracted to non-human people, the more interesting kinds of elves mostly. Maybe it's got to do with gravitating towards the fey-adjacent and their chaotic and interesting nature.
Also women. Yeah.
21. do they have an idea about how they’ll die? do you?
At this point this could be literally anything, multiple times XD But for the final death, I hope she goes out in a fight just like before, but fighting for something she chose to defend, or dying peacefully somehow in the far far future if she'll be allowed to see it.
69. what’s one secret they don’t want getting out?
That's a tough one since she might have secrets she doesn't know about yet (not all memories yet recovered). At this moment maybe her youth/teenage "adventures" of trying to fit in, just because she'd probably be ashamed of herself/afraid to talk about her life before now. As shy as she can be she'd probably be fine with sharing most of herself in time, though.
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Enoch (firbolg, shadow monk/archaeologist kinda)
4. what one person, place, or thing do they love more than anything else?
There was probably a half buried house, or some other caved in place in the ruined city of the Bone Valley that they studied in. A small space being reclaimed by nature that they could've meditated at or trained at when not at work of recovering the forgotten libraries of that place.
7. there’s a magic item (or technological innovation, or special resource) made just for them—what is it?
Some device that essentially could create a pocket dimension for thoughts. Where they could store what they learned, what they read, thoughts they had that needed to be remembered, important conversations, etc. All for recording the world around them.
40. if you had to remake this character right now, how would you change them?
Since this character was created for a one-shot at a moderately high level, I would probably go more in-depth of their learning to add them more skills/proficiencies in certain areas like Arcana or Perception or Persuasion to be a bit more useful and in accordance to what they do. Teach them more languages that they learned with all the books around them. But other than that, not many changes actually. I really like this build and their story.
52. how would they dress themselves up for a formal event?
Simple black with hints of green, tight minimalist design. Alternatively grey with complicated floral patterns, wide slacks and wide blazer. As gender neutral as possible, but probably wearing makeup on the eyes.
Just a quick digital picture of a lighthouse somewhere far north.
May or may not be inspired by a map in World of Warships
I just had this day Today when I got up and felt I simply have to draw something. And I also felt too lazy to draw a character or worry about a lineart. That and it's snowing outside so I was kinda in a winter mood.
8. Girls… (finish the sentence); Boys… (finish the sentence)
Girls are life. That’s it that’s the sentence.
28. What’s your biggest “what if”?
What if I were mentally perfectly healthy? Boy that sounds like a fine reality.
89. What would be a question you’d be afraid to tell the truth on?
“How are you?” No but honestly there would be a lot of questions here, like “what do you want to do in the future”, “what did you do this week”, “what’s the meaning behind your tattoo” (more annoyed than afraid here really), or any other big life questions because I don’t know the answer.
92. You can re-live any point of time in your life. The time-span can only be a half-hour, though. What half-hour of your past would you like to experience again?
That one time when I was a kid (like, dunno, 10-12 y.o.) visiting my then best friend, we were running in the woods feeling the euphoria and happiness I have never since then experienced again. True, pure friendship and feeling free from everything but that and nature. In recent times I noticed I became numb to strong emotions other than anxiety.
