Chevalier

Here's another illustration for a recent issue of Dragon magazine. Chevalier is another word for knight.

Banderhobb Filch

This illustration was done for the recently released Dungeon #191. It depicts a frog-like creature called a Banderhobb stealing through a village at night with a small body in a sack (it's up to the viewer to decide just what kind of body). There's nothing I like better than painting the grotesque so illustrating this creature was fun. There's a special joy for an artist in adding expression to a type of face (in this case, a frog's) that is usually rather expressionless.

I've included a detail shot to provide a better idea of what a digital painting like this looks like "up close".

Cupid of Hate

Doesn't that title express a lovely sentiment?

This is a miniature design I did for the Dreamblade miniatures game. I was asked to create a devilish little version of Cupid and I was given the chance to get a bit "cartoony" with it. Those chances don't come along often enough for me so I jumped at the opportunity, especially because the subject was very reminiscent of an old Harvey Comics character I remember fondly, Hot Stuff, the L'il Devil. My version is more realistic than Hot Stuff but definitely intended as an homage to that character.

The vertical "pole" you see running up from the bottom of the drawing represents a post. In Dreamblade, this hateful little fellow would be able to fly so when produced, the final plastic miniature would be mounted on a clear post.

Storm Warden

This D&D character is a Storm Warden. The illustration was painted a few years ago and appeared in a book called Primal Power. If you're a D&D fan, you can read more about Storm Wardens in this article: http://www.wizards.com/DnD/Article.aspx?x=dnd/4ex/20091012

I was particularly pleased with this painting, in part because the striking lightning breaks up the shape of the vignette nicely. I also thought the muted (for my palette anyway) colors worked well and I was able to capture the differences in texture between metal, cloth, fur and flesh. That can be a difficult challenge!

Shadowmire

This is another illustration from the recently released D&D supplement: Monster Vault: Threats to the Nentir Vale. It depicts a few adventurers encountering a black dragon (Shadowmire) ina swamp. Glowing "swamp lights" illuminate the scene.