FanArt_ink.Fire

MTGinktober burns out Day 31, "Fire," starring Chandra, the Firebrand, Fanatical Firebrand, and Velican Dragon!

All right, that's the ballgame.  This year felt special, and after a nervous first couple illustrations as I got my traditional-art legs again, I feel like I really got back into the swing of traditional art--I've had a difficult relationship with art lately, but this year has helped me fall back in love with it, I'd say thanks to Clip Studio Paint, and now this Inktober run.  I'll definitely be sad to move on from these daily Magic drawings--the relentless grind requiring everything of you is the closest thing to Yale I've felt since graduation, I realized, which may be why I love this marathon so much--but a deep depression always follows Inktober, I've found, as I shift back into my usual uselessness, but since we got so many new subscribers this year, maybe people will stick around--I usually only pick up a couple, but Amalia alone got me a boatload.  We'll see.  But in any case, I'm definitely in need of some rest, my body's pretty beaten up, so I'll try to take it easy for a bit. 

 Indeed, MTGinktober 2023 is in the books, and with such a deceptively tricky final prompt for the road.  It's simple, but you don't want to just draw just something mundane for the finale, so I thought of drawing one of my all-time favorite characters, Chandra, but in Jaya's costume for the gag.  Complement with a little ragtag crew, one of which is also a firebrand (totally intentional!), and we're good to go.

Fun Facts:  I love drawing Chandra so much, I've lost count of how many times she's hit MTGinktober, but this might be her record twelfth appearance--one of the only characters to have made multiple appearances in a single year twice now--maybe with Liliana, since their kid versions kinda act as separate chars.  And I've finally accomplished my goal of drawing a Dreamcast card via Velican Dragon, though I read the name as "Velucan."  And though we didn't technically draw Jaya Ballard here, we did take her Secret Lair outfit, but used Oath of Chandra as our anchor.  

Easter Eggs:  The background's from Approach My Molten Realm, which is another "Magic expression"--an Archenemy Scheme--I've wanted to make sure I got.  After hitting a Dreamcast card, that leaves only a couple left as of now--I'm thinking a release event card like Battle the Horde, and so on--hope to complete the checklist by next year--ooh, do I have to draw a checklist card?  I mean, we actually drew stickers.

 All right, lastly, as is tradition, my usual closing offer--I'm happy to do a couple of requests if there was any character or card anyone was hoping to see that didn't make the cut.  Though if you're here, you know we have some 200 images in the archive, just click any October since 2016 and peruse as you will.  All right, thanks so much for tuning in, I really appreciate it, and hope to see you next year.

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FanArt_ink.Rush

MTGinktober can't relax on Day 30, "Rush," starring Saffi Eriksdotter and Hans Eriksson!

I wanted to draw the Erikkids again, and while I've written a little alternate universe for Saffi, and as long as we're hitting tropes, I thought it'd be funny to do the inevitable onsen episode of MTGinktober, where they're trying to unwind but their constant rival shows up to ruin their day off.  I figure they're like Team Rocket, except rather than blast off from Ash attacking them every episode, a Lhurgoyf always wrecks their day.

Fun Facts:  This is Saffi's third MTGinktober appearance, the second of which was Hans's debut, and this makes two for Hans--one for each Han, I guess.  He's always relaxing and trying to have a chill time, but she's always on edge, always on the lookout for a goyf, and she's always right.

Easter Eggs:  The lurker in the upper left is of course the 8E Lhurgoyf.  The setting is Invigorating Hot Spring, and that monkey's just trying not to let the humans' problems harsh his vibe.  The background waterfall is from Concordant Crossroads. Their head towel patterns are a banana, a flower, and her trusty sword.

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FanArt_ink.Massive

MTGinktober goes big on Day 29, "Massive," starring (inhales deeply) Nahiri, the Harbinger; Sorin, Solemn Visitor; Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger Ugin, the Spirit Dragon; Emrakul, the Promised End; and Kozilek, the Great Distortion.

For this prompt, and since we're into the last few days, I wanted to do something a little special and draw the biggest illustration I've drawn yet for MTGinktober, using the whole of my artboard paper.  I was inspired to draw tiny Eldrazi as the gag by John Avon's tiny Emrakul, but then I considered scale differences, which lead me to my one of my absolute favorite images--that staredown between Frieza and Goku that contrasts their sizes so dramatically--but who could play those roles?  The Erikskids? Radha Radha?   The Three.

Fun Facts: This is over double the size of my regular Inktober sketchbook--at most, I'd divide this artboard in half when I used sheets from it a few years ago (it's a dream to draw on, though can bleed near the edges). The scan's so big, it chopped off Ulamog, so I had to scan it in parts and stitch it!  The last time these PWs came together was also a DBZ spoof, oddly enough, but personal favorite Nahiri makes her sixth MTGinktober appearance, as she is always fun to draw.  Sori and Ugin are two-timers, but surprisingly Emrakul has shown up three and a half times now.

Special note--sadly, I cut my other super sweet idea--a send up of For Whom Doth the Game be Good, Sir, I Ask You This?, which woulda been perfect--crazily niche, involving a recently previewed card and even the streamer's name is huge.

Easter Eggs: Beyond the size difference between the main two, we had to goof further by having tiny Eldrazi titans in the background, plus Ugin to complete the callback.  Ugin is prepping a kamehameha and Ulamog is playing all three moves in Janken.  Cheater.  There's also Flying Nimbus in the upper right corner since we're drawing DBZ clouds.

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FanArt_ink.Sparkle

MTGinktober twinkles its toes into Day 28, "Sparkle," starring Anikthea, Hand of Erebos and Go-Shintai of Lost Wisdom!

This was definitely a tough one to figure out.  Initially I thought of Algen's famous sparkly tokens, but nothing felt like it could anchor a piece, so maybe jam from my heyday drafting almost literally nothing but BW throughout OG Theros block, with all my Limited faves?  Maybe a Go-Shintai crew piece.  Ultimately, I wanted to have Lost Wisdom, who I've long wanted to draw, taunting an Enchantment Creature with an impossible/dumb riddle (maybe it's possible, who knows), but as to what that would look like, that just came together right as we were getting ready to pencil.  

Fun Facts:  This is everyone's debut, but it's my second time doing that starry Nyx technique which was a byootox-load of fun to do and see come together at the end.  But we were so undecided until the very end of pre-production that I actually had research for some three pieces, including a literal splash image of Kiora in case this image didn't work out.

Easter Eggs:  I couldn't resist a nod to my old drafting run, so Anikthea is actually ticked off by not figuring out the riddle and is currently bestowed with Spiteful Returned, which I will never tire of saying helped me beat Yamaken once (just once; I lost the match!).  And as this is an Algen jam, we gotta toss in the swooshy B (ß), which is in the splash.  Meanwhile my signature is carved in a stone pillar from the surrounding Sanctum of Calm Waters.

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FanArt_ink.Beast

MTGinktober affectionately crashes into Day 27, "Beast," starring Amalia Benavides Aguirre and Affectionate Indrik!

I was absolutely eager to draw this yet-unreleased Vampire the moment I saw her, and fortunately the prompt lined up with a creature that would gravitate towards her.  Combo with some more sketches strewn about and we have a winning composition.

Fun Facts:  This is not the first time we've drawn an officially previewed, yet-unreleased card, and it's always a bit of a thrill.  And I decided to start up my next sketchbook with her as I had a hunch this one would be special, and indeed it is.  Plus I apparently have another sketchbook in the wings after this one--I thought I was down to my last one.  So plenty of paper to get to.

Easter Eggs:  Her doodles (or the Beast's?) are Arboreal Grazer; Ravenous Chupacabra; Lovestruck Beast (which inspired the hearts motif); Craterhoof Behemoth (in kid mode, which inspired the rest's naive stylings); and Yannik, Scavenging Sentinel, who I've been wanting to draw. 

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FanArt_ink.Remove

MTGinktober interacts with Day 26, "Remove," starring Cemetery Desecrator, Remove Soul, and Path to Exile!

All right, with this illustration, we've officially killed our Inktober sketchbook after picking up this 60-pager last year.  I can either start up my duplicate--bought two by accident--or dig into my larger size artboard, which I ruled in two to make a few illustrations a few years ago.  We'll see how we're feeling--fortunately, my hand has been in great condition, I'm just physically tired, so maybe we can rally these last few days and put on a real show.  But at least we're done with this sketchbook, which was annoying miscut at top, making it hard to align while scanning.

Fun Facts:  Not a huge fan of Dan Scott, but this creature is actually one of my favorite illustrations of his, and this guy was perfect for the prompt since he not only removes counters himself, but he also exiles stuff, which used to be known as "remove from the game."  Couple that with the double-whammy of referencing the coolest Essence Scatter and an equally sweet white exile effect and we're good to go for yet another of the previously rare non-legend illustrations, though the Zombie is mythic, at least.

Easter Eggs:  To up the "remove" quantity, we have him losing his grip on his counter-removing Umezawa's Jitte (which also functions as creature removal--and is its second MTGinktober appearance), and it's all set over a combat-removing Labyrinth of Skophos, which, as a minotaur-themed land is interesting in (but untintentially referencing) that race's tendency to get overkilled.   There's even a proper non-sequitur Easter Egg of an Easter Egg--the Sliver Mark Tedin hid in Dreamcatcher is hanging out in the exhaled portion of the mist.  Plus my signature is hidden in the maze.

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FanArt_ink.Dangerous

MTGinktober lives on the edge on Day 25, "Dangerous," starring Famished Paladin, Sorcerer's Wand, Splendor Mare, Porcuparrot, and Selfless Savior!

It was certainly tricky coming up with a compelling concept for this prompt, but after getting past just inherently dangerous creatures, I thought of a straight-up lethal creature combos.  We've done Kiki combo, which is pretty obvious, so I was thrilled that we finally get to draw an illustration I've been wanting to flesh out fully since last decade--my dear, sweet Paladin-Wand combo!  We even got to work in some special guests that didn't exist back when he was first printed, too.

Fun Facts:  This is another of the rare, non-legend MTGinktober illustrations.  It's even Artisan legal, a truly wonderful format I wish they'd put up more.  I've drawn Famished Paladin's background before, but this is his proper debut along with everyone's else.  This is indeed the complete, insta-lethal combo as I play it (especially satisfying with EOT-cycle into mutate), with added elements of double protection via the pooch and the enchantment creature, and double the pain outlet via the mutate and equipment.

Here's the initial gesture, which told me we could be in for a straightforward drawing--the more belabored, the riskier it is of going to time, but this one flowed relatively easily.  I don't actually have the hound in my current list, but prolly should--either way, I had to work him in there, and fortunately I'd drawn a similar illustration that I could pull confidence from.

Easter Eggs:  The background, as well as the sparkles, come from Alseid of Life's Bounty, which is actually my protection card of choice in the deck.  But I was thrilled to be able to work in Randy Vargas's version of the pup as a sorta nod to my own hound that left.  That triggered a slump I've been in ever since, which I reasoned out while drawing this (plenty of time to think and talk to yourself while drawing these things).  My signature is in his right shoulder armor detail.  The ridges on the spines come from the OG Porc though the shapes are from the showcase.

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FanArt_ink.Shallow

MTGinktober superficially looks into Day 24, "Shallow," starring Mari, the Killing Quill and Pietra, Crafter of Clowns!

I had a couple ideas for this prompt, but as I felt oddly emotional reading the news that Magic is not only collaborating with Marvel, but it's going to be a multi-year, multi-tentpole release plan, I felt like doing something pertaining to that.  It really feels like we've now surely lost something--we've cheapened Magic.  Obviously everyone gets to enjoy whatever however, but for me it feels sad to see us give up our game to be other properties' dancing monkey, especially when Disney has their own legit cool multiversal TCG to use and Marvel has Snap.

Fun Facts:  This is my first multi-panel comic in years, but not our first comic for MTGinktober, the first of which was also on a relatively controversial subject for Magic.  I chose these characters because one seems mean, and the other is, believe it or not, an actual Magic clown, but I felt kinda bad drawing her getting bullied, but the gag calls for it.  I don't use emoji, but I woulda worked the clown emoji in there if I did. 

Easter Eggs:  We've drawn Magic trophies here and there, but never a Pro Tour trophy until today--this is Joel Larsson's.  Pietra has an ABC sandwich and an open soda (with my sig on it) next to her unsleeved, rubber-banded, 71-card deck next to her collection of うんこpoop figures, which have the McDonald's M.  The 60-card crack references my disdain for EDH--I blame them for this relentless release, social play, and IP slush.  But here I am drawing legends every year.

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FanArt_ink.Celestial

MTGinktober twinkles into Day 23, "Celestial," starring Giada, Font of Hope; Yorion, Sky Nomad; Falling Star; and Shabraz, the Skyshark!

I legit had no idea what to do here even while starting to pencil it--I let the drawing sorta dictate what to do.  I even snapped a photo of the initial gesture to give an idea of what I was working with.  The trickiest thing was who to cast--I've been wanting to use Arden Angel to hit the Dreamcast set, but I want to up the difficulty/obscurity by using one that hasn't seen print yet, so that left us with a CovertGoBlue reference to Yorion and flying sharks, with angel-in-training Giada for actual celestial credibility.

Fun Facts:  This is everyone's debut, and Falling Star appears to be our first dexterity-banned card.

Here's what we were scrambling to cobble together our illustration with.  Fortunately it turned out OK, and we could take it a little lighter today to rest up.

Easter Eggs:  Yorion's pose and lower scaling is based on I Bask in Your Silent Awe, which knocks out one more Magic expression from our checklist before we've finally catch 'em alled.

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FanArt_ink.Scratchy

MTGinktober thrills Day 22, "Scratchy," starring (deep inhale) Towashi Songshaper; Mirri; Iron Myr; Gallia of the Endless Dance; Copper Myr; and Omnath, Locus of Rage!

I was thinking of something basic like Arlinn scratching her ear along with Hex or some character scratching Hex, but then I thought of scratching records via this ridiculous DJ card that actually exists and thought a dance party might be more doofy.  And who better to dance than Gallia?  But then what dance?  I was going to go super niche with the X-Men Evolution dance, but then I thought of the Thriller dance, which famously has some scratchy moves.  And then fill the dance floor with fellow RGers and we're ready to rage.

Fun Facts:  This is Mirri's third MTGinktober appearance--funnily enough her last appearance was music-related, too. Gallia makes her debut as a dancer here--usually she's passed out or about to--but has made the show now thrice.  Omnath gets his rage on in Doritos mode, but has appeared once before.  The adorable mana myr make their third appearances.

Easter Eggs: As with all Algen fan art, we include the "swooshy B" (ß), this time in the grass near her elbow.  The background is based on the currently MTGO-exlcusive Cliff Childs Stomping Ground to check the exceedingly rare box of an MTGO-only card--same with basing this Mirri on her Vanguard card.  It'll officially see print in the upcoming Ravnica Remastered, but for now, it fits the bill. 

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FanArt_ink.Chains

 MTGinktober links up with Day 21, "Chains," starring Massacre Girl and Angrath, the Flame-Chained! 

Ah, man this was a tough one to concept--I almost mulliganned it completely (and I did have to restart after my initial gesture draft just wasn't working) for my backup idea of just featuring the lunatic from the Chinese alternate-art Sanitarium Skeleton, but I managed to work that in and go ahead with these two.  And that's after a lengthy process of figuring out who to draw in the first place--I almost went with Poly-K to knock out some Face the Hydra, but I hate hydras.

Fun Facts: This is Angrath's MTGinktober debut, but I play him almost daily in my BR Explorer deck, which clued me into using his chibi version for inspiration here, since that's my deck's sleeve, not to mention the Year of the Ox edition for added clarity on some of the costuming.  Massacre Girl makes her sophomore appearance at long last after several years away.  With the inclusion of a region-locked version of a card, that leaves just about one or two remaining Magic expressions before I'll have drawn them all. 

Easter Eggs:  As mentioned, the background is from the Chinese alternate-art Sanitarium Skeleton.  This Massacre Girl is sort of a mix of all the different versions she's got since the main Chris Rallis one is a little tough to read in parts--notably she gets her spiked choker from Tsubonari and her pants from MiDQN.

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FanArt_ink.Frost

MTGinktober sdasd Day 20, "Frost," starring Kari Zev, Skyship Raider; Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer; and Kumano, Master Yamabushi!

I had an idea for a glamor shot of Saffi solo, but I went with this more humorous composition partly because it seemed more amusing, but also because I want to see if we can break the curse of any image with Kari Zev absolutely tanking.  I've also long wanted to draw Kumano, and playing with two red creatures where one is used to warmth and the other cold seemed interesting--plus drawing Kari and Ragavan in winter gear seemed like a treat. 

Fun Facts: This is Kari Zev's fourth MTGinktober appearance, and true to her debut, her pieces are always underwater.  This is Ragavan's second appearance this year, and fourth appearance overall, too.  Kumano debuts.

 Easter Eggs: This concept is loosely based on the classic Boy Meets World episode with the Eskimo.  The "snowflake" at the upper right is a Deathmark, and the sun dog at upper right comes from Volatile Fjord.  Kumano sports a Chillerpillar familiar.  The central mountains come from Thrumming Stone.  Kari's scarf and her and her monkey buddy's hat come from Goblin Furrier.  Kumano's gear reads 無限まで福井 and いつも勝山に行きたい since I didn't want to just use that pattern he had.

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