FanArt_ink.Toad

MTGinktober hops into Day 8, "Toad," starring Thalia, Guardian of Thraben (Hannes's Secret Lair version) and The Gitrog Monster!

Oh, man, I was pumped to draw this one once I hit the concept of Thalia goofing around with famous toads from the major TCGs.  It started with wanting to draw Thalia hanging out with four Keroyon, who I used to use back in the day in a janky alternate-win deck that never won one.  But then I thought of her hanging with the arguably more infamous Toadally Awesome (I'm relaxing my boycott of that word, since it's the card name), and then since we almost had four toads, I searched for the toadiest of Pokémon.   

Fun Facts: This is personal favorite Thalia's fourth MTGinktober appearance, always a joy. This is my first time drawing Yu-Gi-Oh! fan art, but it's not our first Duel Masters fan art by a long shot.  YGO's 50-50, as early on it was an interesting change of pace, and I like poking in on how the game's coming along, but there's an arrogance/ignorance that emanates from it that's quite off-putting, chiefly the refusal to learn from Magic, its progenitor.  Duel Masters is always dear, though--I'll always love it, even if I've lamentably stepped away from it. 

Easter Eggs: As is tradition with Algen fan art, we hide a little "swooshy B" (ß) in there--this one is near the Gitrog's eyebrow.  Notably, this is not Thalia and The Gitrog Monster--this is OG Thalia, whose outfit is cooler, plus Gitrog from the team-up, since it has a little helmet.  The background comes from a combo of the Hannes Secret Lair version I just mentioned plus the Heron moon from Paraselene.  I believe that moon no longer exists in the lore right?  Well, who know, in any case, this is MTGinktober, and we make our own lore.  

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FanArt_ink.Drip

MTGinktober styles into Day 7, "Drip," starring Domri Rade; Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief; and Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts!

I always look forward to these fashion-centric prompts, and this was an easy decision--to use the slang for drip rather than an actual water-themed piece, though in that case I mighta gone with Emry.  The only tough part was deciding on outfits, and then I was on the fence about changing it up by using water-themed characters or flashing back to these three.  They just need to have easily readable heads since I couldn't rely on their outfits to sell the characters, which is a bit of a shame for Magic character design.

Fun Facts:  Why these three?  Well, this is a sequel to a piece from 2017!  So while this is personal favorite PW Domri's sixth MTGinktober appearance, it's Drana's third rodeo, and only Teysa's second, but I would definitely like to draw her in her own illustration some time.

Easter Eggs:  The composition is from the 2017 "Fall" piece, down to tossing the signature-etched pumpkin and Domri repping the Gruul logo on his headwear.  I added the Supreme logo spoof, as I understand that it's a high-end fashion goof. 

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FanArt_ink.Golden

MTGinktober blings into Day 6, "Golden," starring Tasigur, the Golden Fang and King Macar, the Gold-Cursed!

Man, I was super unsure of what to draw for this one, down to actually starting the piece.  I had thought of maybe Macar doing the finger-gun thing to under his chin, as he's driven to despair, but looking at his art, he can't affect himself, so I went with another golden-themed character antagonizing his inability to use his hands.  I figured Tasigur might be a spoiled brat and openly mocks how he's golden yet can touch anything as he wishes because not only is he inconsiderate, but he's also a Khan.

Fun Facts:  This is Tasigur's third MTGinktober appearance, though the second instance was kind of as a cameo.

Easter Eggs:  There's a Golden Egg on the right.  The coin design comes from the Pete Venters Smothering Tithe.

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FanArt_ink.Map

 MTGinktober charts a course for Day 5, "Map," starring Cartographer (Donato version)!

I knew I wanted to cast Cartographer, but I was unsure about her soling or maybe reporting to a captain, conferring with a navigator, or even giving tips to a Goblin Guide about to set out for adventure.  But we ended up going for a straight-up celebration of this supremely influential card alone, like she's nerdily drawing maps through the night and we're coming over and bugging her to sit for a portrait, like in college: All these motivated people moving their own mountains and everyone's timelines are intersecting at odd hours in odd places.  

 Fun Facts:  This is a rare instance of an illustration containing no legends and a totally solo character!  Exceedingly rare there isn't even one per year.  I literally have to ponder for the last time this happened.  Let's see, looks like Fan // Investigate, thought that was about a legend...Anyway, this card is special to me because it was one of the very first truly great Magic illustrations I ever saw back when I was starting and it still entrances me; it made me fall in love with Magic art--it set the tone for what excellence is.  

 Easter Eggs:  The background comes from Donato's wonderful Cartographer, of course, but the framed map in the center is the cover art to the incredible song by Yeah Yeah Yeahs called "Maps," of course.  Her ruler says "Donato Rules" as another homage to the genius, and I mimicked how he hid his signature in the lower left map.  And her pen is based on my trusty G-pen.

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FanArt_ink.Dodge

 MTGinktober gives the slip to Day 4, "Dodge," starring Ghoulcaller Gisa and Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver!  
 
I had a couple concepts I was thinking about trying here, like Asmo trying to get someone to eat her rancid food, but Gisa giving the slip to a zom-bro sounded like a good time, and this even plays as a bit of a sequel to their first MTGinktober meetup.  The composition was inspired by the classic scene of the Jurassic Park kids hiding from the velociraptors.  Poor Wilhelt is trying to woo Gisa, but she sees him as totally cringe or cheugy or whathaveyou.  But he's a zombie, so he won't give up, and he'll just keep on trying again and again. 
 
 Fun Facts: This is personal favorite character Gisa's whopping seventh MTGinktober appearance, and Wilhelt's second, though his first gig was kind of only as a special cameo role.  I decided not to go with her actual legendary shovel card since that face is in the wrong direction, as opposed to her regular one, which did have its face in the proper position.

 Easter Eggs: The expression on Gisa and her shovel is the Excalibur face.

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FanArt_ink.Path

 MTGinktober is streets ahead on Day 3, "Path," starring Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer (Zoltan Boros version) and Koma, Cosmos Serpent!

 I was on the fence on what to do with this prompt, maybe Nissa reenacting the clueless pathfinder of Goblin Guide, but I thought of the famous scenario of Goku running on Snake Way and these two seemed like a great cast, so I went with that concept.  Thankfully it was a bit light, so plenty of time to help the cat get adjusted to the wide, open spaces of anywhere but under the bed.

 Fun Facts: This is Ragavan's third MTGinktober appearance, and Koma's debut.

 Easter Eggs: My sig is hidden near the far-shot of Ragavan.  Plus the whole image is an homage to Dragon Ball Z, of course.

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FanArt_ink.Spiders

 MTGinktober wallcrawls into Day 2, "Spiders," starring Tymna the Weaver and Kotose, the Silent Spider!

 I wasn't quite sure what to do with this one, but having two spider-related characters teaming up to knit and pose like Spider-Man sounded like a neat challenge.

Fun Facts: This is Tymna's second MTGinktober appearance--she was in our very first run, and hasn't had time to join us since.

 Easter Eggs:  The background is based on Tymna's card.

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FanArt_ink.Dream

 MTGinktober snoozes into Day 1, "Dream," starring Obyra, Dreaming Duelist and Lurrus of the Dream-Den!

 Oh, boy, it's that time again, hoping to put on a good show this Inktober.  Kinda bummed out how crickets we got on our roundup post--I usually get a bit more engagement--but we must press onward.  Anyway, this is my first Inktober on my new workflow, which includes using Clip Studio Paint as my digital prep program and my phone as my digicam, plus my new laptop negotiating with my trusty scanner, which is still holding up fine.  So far, so good--CSP even has a handy dust-remover function that I am definitely loving.

 Fun Facts:  This is Lurrus's second MTGinktober appearance, while Obyra's fresh from the currently most resent premier set, Wilds of Eldraine.  I almost did a similar composition out of parallel thinking to that original Lurrus piece, oddly enough.  But this is kind of a tribute to our old cat who just passed, plus our newer cat who has joined us as a true pet since the last run--back then she was a wild animal surviving on the mean streets!  But we adopted her and she is enjoying the indoor life!

 Easter Eggs:  The background is from the classic Carl Critchlow Underworld Dreams.

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FanArt_ink.Farm

 MTGinktober puts out to pasture Day 31, "Farm," starring Nahiri, the Harbinger; Bartered Cow; and Blackblade Reforged!

This was definitely a tricky one to end our run on.  I wasn't sure what to draw exactly, but the idea of a character kicking back after putting a long day's work felt apropos.  I then thought of Swords to Plowshares, taking a warrior of the battlefield, so maybe a sword-wielder should be the pick.  I like drawing Nahiri, and this might be my last chance to draw her for MTGinktober, so here she is.

Fun Facts: And with Nahiri's fifth MTGinktober appearance, not to mention Blackblade Reforged's second, we wrap MTGinktober 2022.  This is my 7th run, and my 5th complete series.  According to my calculations, I've done 206 official illustrations, plus a couple bonuses--I usually take a couple requests at the end, if anyone has any good ones.  I don't know if I'll do another run, I am starting to wonder what the point of any of this is, frankly. 

I will say, I've been in a severe art block for what feels like years now, and I've been trying to force myself to snap out of it, and thought this year's Inktober might do the trick, after last year's felt like such a backfire on motivation.  Well, I feel like I've fallen back in love with art (or rekindled it, if it ever really left) via this run.  I basically stopped paying attention to the news and even listening to podcasts--just music--and I wonder if that made the difference.  But the difficulty is that I feel like I need to be an informed citizen, especially since I always volunteer to talk to voters, and a lot of them just need stuff explained plainly to them.  On top of that, because I draw so slowly, Inktober takes up just about all of my time in October, and I feel like that's costing me time I should be spending on other things--I feel like it's not opening doors, but rather limiting my ability to be available for others. Anyway, I don't know, we'll see what happens. 

Easter Eggs:  The background is Overgrown Farmland, plus a sunset, since this is the last MTGinktober piece, potentially forever.
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FanArt_ink.Gear

 MTGinktober shifts into Day 30, "Gear," starring Akiri, Fearless Voyager and Greasefang's Bike (TAPIOCA version)!  

 This is the illustration I've been waiting for over a year to draw!  I knew pretty much exactly what I wanted to do here, so I even got to sleep in a little, and rest my back, which is feeling better, but still some residual pain, though I expect to make the final day just fine.
 

 

Fun Facts: I've seen Akira many, many times, having studied it for a college course, and I still can't quite remember what it's about or how to describe it, kinda like Ghibli films.  I should probably check it out again some time.  Also, the hardest part of this piece was getting the bike to work in this perspective--there's a slight twist, so that's the only thing that really gave me trouble.  Everything else was mercifully straightforward--funnily enough, the figure was the least of my concerns for once.

 Easter Eggs: This is of course a reference to the famous Akira slide. I like the Citizen sticker since there are Citizens in Magic, but it's just coincidental, though I made sure to include it on Greasefang's bike's tagged up section (which I noticed is made to look like a rat).  I hid the name of my classmate, who's really into Otomo, in the bushes as a dedication.  My name's there, too, but it's a perfunctory signature  Also, I decided to match the shot with goggles, so we went with Pyromancer's Goggles, of course.

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FanArt_ink.UhOh

 MTGinktober facepalms into Day 29, "Uh-Oh," starring Judith, the Scourge Diva! 

 I've been wanting to draw Judith for a while--not only does she have one of the funnest epithets in Magic, she also has one of the corniest, dorkiest given names in Magic, which is a hilarious pairing.  Anyway, I've sketched her here and there, and have been working on a portrait of her for forever, but now she gets her very own MTGinktober piece.  Although, I feel like I want to update this one a little.
 
 Fun Facts: This is a rare instance of just one character, and barely a background, to boot--I was originally going to have her picking the Unluckiest Planeswalker from the crowd, but it just didn't line up to give her a dramatic, psychotic pose and also get his reaction.  Plus I wanted to see if less is more, we'll see. My back and hand are hurting quite a bit, but fortunately just a couple more days to clear Inktober.   Easter Eggs: The stage lights are inspired by Light Up the Stage, but I was going from memory, and wasn't sure what they actually look like and turns out they look totally different!  To be fair, I detest Monored and only ever had the spell played at me, but have never cast it myself.
 
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FanArt_ink.Camping

MTGinktober keeps on Day 28, "Camping," starring Thalia, Guardian of Thraben; Tyvar Kell; Myntasha, Honored One; Blex, Vexing Pest!  

 Man, woke up and my back was really feeling it, took a while to shake it off--confident I can complete the month, but hopefully the back heals up or at least it gets no worse than this.  Anyway, I wasn't exactly sure what to do with this one--maybe a callback to something Magic-related of mine (or at least a character telling a scary story?  Some of the kid characters at camp?  Well, I went with two Voss characters hanging out at some kind of camp, as a send-up of his more relatively recent adventurous, and as always, cheerful tone. 

Fun Facts:  This is Thalia's third MTGinktober appearance.  I like drawing her, so that was one of the reasons we went with today's team.  I was also thinking that while I've drawn every kind of Magic card now, there's actually one tiny variety I haven't hit yet--they're one notch above test cards--Heroes of the Realm cards--well, now we have indeed hit every kind of printed (true) Magic card you can have (real, unreal, test, and heroes), as well as every release state (old, new, none, pending).

Easter Eggs:  They have Camp Wedonwannamull T-shirts, founded in 1997 (the year the Paris Mulligan debuted, the first legitimate mulligan rule) and hats--Tyvar has a Snow mana logo, and Thalia's has Avacyn's symbol of course--but otherwise they're wearing their actual costumes.  Myntasha's graham cracker box has an Invader-Zim-style bee.  The Hershey's bar is a Hurkyl's bar.  And as always with Algen fan art, the little, swooshy B (ß) lands in the expiration date on the box. Background elements from Base Camp.  

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FanArt_ink.Snack

 
MTGinktober crams in Day 27, "Snack," starring Sarulf, Realm Eater; Mishra, Excavation Prodigy; Urza, Powerstone Prodigy; Saheeli, Sublime Artificer; and Silver Myr! 

 Ah! We did it!  We've drawn every kind of Magic card--Real, Unreal, and Test, after wondering if such a thing were even possible, and now we've also hit all lifespans of cards--old, new, and now: previewed (day-of, to boot), but not-yet-printed.  I had sorta speculated an Inktober might coincide with a preview season at the modern release rate, and indeed this has happened--during that very same Inktober, no less.  It's funny they mentioned they wanted to embrace 90s vibes with their haircuts, and it turns out Mishra has a Z-like do and Urza has classic, 90s movie-villain kid hair.

 Fun Facts: I woke up and a bunch of Brothers' War previews went up, so I made an executive decision to ditch what I was planning to use for this composition (Lil'iana and Saheeli studying on Sarulf while Silver Myr and/or Azami brought them snacks) and went with a study break of sorts, where everyone grabs food and magically becomes an expert at whatever subject is giving anyone trouble--definitely nostalgic for those homework jam sessions at Yale.  Anyway, this is Saheeli's third MTGinktober appearance and Silver Myr's second.  

 Easter Eggs: Silver Myr and Sarulf are remnants of the old concept, but the Myr is also a shout-out to a fan who likes whenever I draw Myr, and Silver Myr's my favorite of the Kev Walker original mana Myr, so it all worked out.  The scrolls are inspired by those in Azami's art.  Some of the scrawling comes from The Mirari Conjecture.  Since Donato painted the bros, the food, aside from the Pocky come from his food token--made sure to keep the chocolate far from Sarulf, though.

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