Character Codex - Round 7 - Elf Fighter and Elf Monk

April 9, 2014 Than Gibson

Hey everyone! Welcome to another week of the Character Codex! This week we have two different styles of martial arts, the Elf Fighter and the Elf Monk.

As always, if you've missed any weeks you can find the whole gallery here!

Virtual Tabletop Tokens can be found here!

Make sure to read The Adventurers, a new short fiction up in the World of Chronicle and don't forget to come back tomorrow for New Strip Thursday over at the Chronicle comic for their appearance in the comic itself!

First up, we have the elf fighter. This particular elf is a member of the Celasyn guard. Still a low ranking guard, her armor is the standard issue guard armor that reflects a woven nature to it, yet it is still practical banded mail. She is a dual wielder, choosing the curved elven longsword and dagger combo.

Second, we have the Elf Monk. This Celasyn is a bit of a hybrid, he has taken up the monastic ways of the followers of Vrae, yet he still wears the colors of Belagaea. I had this notion that there would be some followers of Belagaea who neither wanted to let nature run free nor tend it carefully. Instead they would live in harmony with nature choosing small shrines deep in the woods as opposed to the temples and totems of the other two belief systems.

Fun Art Friday! - Tyrion Lannister

April 3, 2014 Than Gibson

In honor of Game of Thrones coming back to wreak havoc on casual viewers' emotions, here is a portrait of The Imp himself, Tyrion Lannister.

In case you were wondering, Tyrion is indeed my favorite character and I am really looking forward(?) to his story arc this season.

Character Codex Round 6 - Elf Cleric and Elf Druid

April 2, 2014 Than Gibson

Here we are again, drawing our way through all 77 combinations of races and classes in the Pathfinder RPG/d20 core rules!

Elf month continues here at Chronicle!

This week we have the Elf Cleric and the Elf Druid. If you want to see everything so far, check out the Character Codex Gallery. Also, for you Virtual Tabletop users, we have free downloadable tokens available!

Don't forget to come back tomorrow for the comic where our resident elf sorceress, Elysia, begins to investigate the Slumripper's Dagger.

Now onto the characters!

First up is the Elf Cleric. In many ways the Celasyn elves remind me of Japan during the Warring Kingdoms period. There is a monarch who is mostly a figurehead, rival houses vying for the true power, a growing trade with outsiders who are not completely to be trusted, and a fear that they are losing their cultural identity due to these outsiders. To push that a bit further I designed this cleric of Belagaea to look like a Shinto priestess. Her ceremonial robes are covered by her banded mail breastplate. All of this is colored green and yellow, the colors of Belagaea. All clerics of Belagaea are trained in Belagaea's favored weapon, the longbow. To allow for mobility when drawing the bow, the sleeves can be untied at the top and her arm can be pulled free. The sleeves are actually only stitched to the robe at the bottom to create a hinge. For the bow's design I went with the asymmetrical yumi or japanese longbow.

The Elf Druid is a Saysyn from the Panther Clan. I wanted him to seem almost feral and so the drawing has a bit more of a sketchy feel than this style has had with the past couple of drawings. Here he's invoking his totem animal, perhaps as a precursor to wildshaping into a large panther and pouncing on some hostile intruder into the Old Wood. The breeches are really nothing more than braided straps of leather. You can see a similar design on the Elf Barbarian. Since this guy's a bit more of a wild one, his breeches aren't as neatly wrapped. For his staff, I went with a smaller stick rather than the usual carved branch. Something this size can be wielded at quick speeds and still deliver a devastating blow if the defender is caught off guard. I feel like that's a bit more in keeping with his style.

The Chronicler's Notes - Two Months In! - March 31, 2014

March 31, 2014 Than Gibson

Hey everyone! Welcome to another week at Chronicle!

Thalin, leader of the Lower Haven Thieves' Guild

I've got some good stuff planned for you this week, so please check back every weekday for new content! Also, as a treat here's a peek at the, as of yet, unseen Thalin. We'll get to him next week.

I want to take a moment and thank you guys for stopping by over the past two months. I really didn't expect such a reception and I want to express my gratitude.

For those curious in stats, we just passed 7,000 page views and 3500 unique visits! I feel like that's huge for only being two months old. So, thanks so much for showing up! It looks like some people like Chronicle enough to keep coming back. I'm averaging around 40 direct links on Wednesday and Thursday. Those are, of course, Character Codex and Comic updates. I can't believe how much the Character Codex has taken off! If you guys stay interested, I'll definitely do the other half with the genders flipped.

For those of you new to the site let me give you a quick run-down of the schedule.

Mondays - The Chronicler's Notes - This blog, where you'll get updates from me about what I'm up to, how the site's going, and where we're headed.

Tuesday - The World of Chronicle - This is where I take the opportunity to let you step into the world of the comic a bit more. Whether it be background information about what you're seeing, RPG material, or short fiction based in the world, Tuesdays are where I flex my world-building muscles.

Wednesday - Character Codex - My continuing project through the classic races and classes of fantasy RPGs. There are 77 combinations and we're only through 13 so far!

If you haven't seen them yet, there are Virtual Tabletop Tokens based on the Character Codex. The Dwarf Pack (which includes all 11 dwarves and one bonus bearded bard) is now up for sale at low price of 99 cents!

Thursday - Chronicle - The main feature of the site is the comic. The comic is currently following Autumn, a young thief who is dealing with magical powers she can't seem to control.

Friday - Fun Art Friday - This is where I draw whatever I feel like drawing. Most of the time it is something completely "un-Chronicle". Whether it be characters from other genres or commissions (which, I am currently accepting) you'll see what else I can do, every Friday!

Fun Art Friday! - Jack Knight, Starman

March 28, 2014 Than Gibson

Today's Fun Art Friday is my first step into superheroes and it's one of my favorites! This is Jack Knight, aka Starman. This drawing is also the commission for Rob Rosenblatt, the winner of the Name That Rogue contest! Congrats Rob and thanks for submitting an entry.

If you want a commissioned drawing of any character you can order one in the Artist's Store. I'll draw anyone you want in my own style, be it a superhero like Jack here, an anime character like Nausicaa, a fantasy character, a historical figure, even you as a cartoon character! Hit up the Artist's Store now!