Revisiting the Star Spawn

In 2009, I was hired to design a series of miniatures for Fantasy Flight Games. They were gearing up to make plastic minis of all of their Arkham Horror/Call of Cthulhu monsters, and I was at the right place at the right time to get the bulk of them. It was a fun project with a lot of freedom for a grotesquely small amount of pay. And then nothing. It wouldn't be until 2011/12 for the monsters to finally be released as unpainted figures in board game sets and as fully painted premium minis. By and large, they all turned out great, and I still look back at them favorably. As it has been 17 years since I made the art and 15 years since they were eventually released, I thought it would be nice to revisit some of them. Next up in alphabetical order, we have the Star Spawn. Here is my design and the final miniature.

Star Spawn

12 x 9 - Pencil on paper - 3 separate drawings

Arkham Horror Monsters / Mansions of Madness 

© 2009 Fantasy Flight Games

The Star Spawn miniature

And, as an added bonus, something I have never shared before, here are the thumbnails that I created for this piece. Over the past 17 years, I had forgotten how loose and sketchy these were.

Star Spawn - Thumbnails

Arkham Horror Monsters / Mansions of Madness 

© 2009 Fantasy Flight Games

That's all for another exciting week on the blog. See you back here on Monday! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability, head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Star Spawn Seer Miniature

Today, I have for you a miniature based on one of my illustrations. I updated and painted the Star Spawn Seer for Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse. I have been biding my time for this one. Not sure why I figured it would eventually become a miniature, but I have expected one to be made since I painted this one. We can add this to the growing number of miniatures based on my work, where I used myself as the reference. To start things off, here is my painting of the Star Spawn Seer.

Star Spawn Seer

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

11 x 14 - Digital

Art Director - Emi Tanji

© 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

This one looks great and is nice and awkward and gross. You can't go wrong with that. I always find it interesting to see what had to be changed and what comes directly from my painting. Here are a pair of images of the miniature so that you can compare them to the illustration.

Star Spawn Seer

Ghost Light

That's all for another exciting week on the blog. See you back here on Monday! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability, head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

The Death of Szass Tam - The Return of the Star Spawn Seer

From time to time, I like to check in on BoardGamesGeek and RPGGeek to see if my work has popped up in anything I am not aware of. Over the years, I have discovered many gaming items that feature my work that I was completely unaware of. This is the nature of the industry and working freelance. Once you have done work for a company, they can and will use it again. I recently stumbled upon some recent and not-so-recent PDF gaming supplements that feature my work. Today I am sharing a more recent release of the supplement The Death of Szass Tam and the return of the Star Spawn Seer. First off, here is the final art for the Star Spawn Seer.

Star Spawn Seer

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse (and now The Death of Szass Tam)

11 x 14 - Digital

Art Director - Emi Tanji

© 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

This was a fun one to design and paint, and it is a nearly unchanged self-portrait. I, unfortunately, do not know much about the folks behind The Death of Szass Tam, but it is a good-looking supplement, and they have good taste in monster art. Always fun to see my work popping up in unexpected places. I only wish that it had been a printed book and not a PDF so that I could add to my shelves of items featuring my work. Here are some images of The Death of Szass Tam cover and the Star Spawn Seer in it.

The Death of Szass Tam

 

The return of the Star Spawn Seer! RAWR!

That's all for another exciting week on the blog. See you back here on Monday! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability, head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Star Spawn Mangler - Dungeons & Dragons - Process

Today, I am happy to share the process and steps for one of my contributions to the Dungeons & Dragons supplement, Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse. This second contribution is the Star Spawn Mangler. The Star Spawn are established monsters, but I was asked to give them a little bit of a new polish and a little bit of new life. Here is the final painting for the Star Spawn Mangler.

Star Spawn Mangler

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

11 x 14 - Digital

Art Director - Emi Tanji

© 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

While these are established monsters, and I was asked to update them, there was still a bit of direction from production and a lot to work with. It was described as:

"It has a bipedal, vaguely humanoid body and an elongated blueish-purple torso that resembles a CENTIPEDE. From its shoulders it has six clawed arms instead of two. Its figure appears emaciated. Its face has humanoid features, but it is narrow, giving it an aerodynamic feel.

The star pawn is in a hunched posture, appearing shorter than it really is. It looks like its coiled, ready to lunge at an offscreen target."

You had me at centipede! I do love a good insect or reptilian monster. It was time for some thumbnails, so I made my best Star Spawn Mangler impression, and my wife took lots of images of me. I knew what it needed to look like. The photoshoot allowed me to work out the physicality of the monster and figure out how it acted and took up space. Here are the thumbnails that I submitted. 

Star Spawn Mangler - Thumbnails

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

Not sure I had a favorite with these thumbnails. They all have the potential to be cool monsters. There is something about the arms in 'B' that I still like. I imagined them pinwheeling through the air as they slashed at the players. Needless to say that 'A' was the winner, though I was asked to make some changes. Production preferred the nose slits on the other thumbnails, and they wanted the arms to be a bit thinner. I made the requested modifications and submitted a revised thumbnail.

Star Spawn Mangler - Revised thumbnail

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

So close. The revised thumbnail still wasn't perfect. Production asked that the monster didn't skip leg day and bulk out its lower appendages. It may be thin, but it can run and jump if called for. Here is the updated revised thumbnail.

Star Spawn Mangler - Even more, revised thumbnail

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

The third time is the charm! This updated revised version hit the mark and was accepted. It was now time to move closer to the painting. I always do a final traditional drawing for every project to work out the details and to give myself a tangible product from the assignment. Here are the two stages of the Star Spawn Mangler drawing, the mid-stage line art, and the final rendered drawing.

Star Spawn Mangler - Line art

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

 11 x 14 - Digital

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

 

Star Spawn Mangler

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

11 x 14 - Pencil on paper

Original - SOLD

Art Director - Emi Tanji

© 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

With an approved drawing, it was time to start painting. This was another of those paintings that, in my head, should go quickly and be relatively painless. I was a little concerned about my color choices. While I was mindful of what I was asked to do, I also wanted to have some fun and do something interesting. In the end, I did all of the above. Here is the painting for Star Spawn Mangler taking shape.

Star Spawn Mangler - Process

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

I typically look to nature when selecting colors for a piece. Even when you want to make something acid blue, there is plenty to look at when searching for reference. One of the significant issues I had to overcome, and in some ways, I am still working on it, is the battle with local color. Even if something is BLUE... it is not really, or at least not completely blue. The world is full of color, and those colors are constantly interacting with each other as light bounces, reflects, and is absorbed by objects. It might be a blue monster, but I am adding green, purples, reds, and more to make it more complex and visually interesting. I make sure the hands, belly, and face have contrast and interest. Does it make a difference? Maybe, or maybe not. I know I have a more enjoyable artistic experience when I do this. My art directors are generally happy too. I have so much more to learn about color. That is why I live in a world of blacks and whites in my work. Here again, is the final painting for the Star Spawn Mangler.

Star Spawn Mangler

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

That's all for another exciting Wednesday on the blog. See you back here on Friday! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability, head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Star Spawn Seer - Dungeons & Dragons - Process

Today, I am happy to share the process and steps for one of my contributions to the Dungeons & Dragons supplement, Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse. This first contribution is the Star Spawn Seer. The Star Spawn are established monsters, but I was asked to give them a little bit of a new polish and a little bit of new life. Here is the final painting for the Star Spawn Seer.

Star Spawn Seer 

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

 11 x 14 - Digital  

Art Director - Emi Tanji

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

While these are established monsters, and I was asked to update them, there was still a bit of direction from production and a lot to work with. It was described as:

"This creature’s roughly humanoid appearance is a thin disguise that obscures its otherworldly horror. In this shot, the seer is making a grand gesture, leading a sermon promising a great beyond to an offscreen audience. 

The seer’s body appears as a MALE HUMAN covered in tumorous skin growths with that raise the skin in strange whorls reminiscent of BRAIN WRINKLES. Inky tentacles and eyes made of star stuff appear to be poking out from the shadows between the wrinkles. Its figure is bloated, like a drowned body, and its hands are large and webbed. 

The seer is wearing an open purple robe fit for a noble or high priest. It is holding a STAFF that appears to be a blend of flesh, bone, and chrome."

That is a lot to play with and to make a fun monster. It was time for some thumbnails, so I made my best Star Spawn Seer impression, and my wife took lots of images of me. I knew what it needed to look like. The photoshoot allowed me to work out the physicality of the monster and figure out how it acted and took up space. Here are the thumbnails that I submitted.

Star Spawn Seer - Thumbnails

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

There was something about each one that I liked, so no matter the end result, I would be happy to move forward with any of them. It turns out that 'B' was the winner, but production wanted to adjust the staff, so it showed off more. I was told that the staff designs were well received, which is always nice to hear. I made the requested modifications and submitted a revised thumbnail.

Star Spawn Seer - Revised thumbnail

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

This revised version hit the mark and was accepted. It was now time to move closer to the painting. I always do a final traditional drawing for every project to work out the details and to give myself a tangible product from the assignment. Here are the two stages of the Star Spawn Seer drawing, the mid-stage line art and the final rendered drawing.

Star Spawn Seer - Line art

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

 11 x 14 - Digital

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

 

Star Spawn Seer

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

11 x 14 - Pencil on paper

Original - SOLD

Art Director - Emi Tanji

© 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

The drawing was approved without comment, and it was time to start painting. This was one of those paintings that, in my head, should go quickly and be (hopefully) relatively painless, but you never know. A lot of the color choices were made for me, and I had excellent lighting reference, so it was a matter of sitting down and getting to work. Which I did. And it would turn out to be a straightforward process. Here is the painting for Star Spawn Seer taking shape.

Star Spawn Seer - Process

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

With many of these monster paintings, the hard work is done in the design and drawing phases of the assignment. Doing the photoshoot, creating the thumbnails, addressing any feedback, and creating the drawing(s) are the points that I need to spend a lot of time and brain energy on making things and being creative. Not that this doesn't happen when I paint, but it often doesn't. There are happy accidents and things that need to be fixed or corrected, but at the end of the day, the painting stage is sitting in the chair and working on it until it is done. Thankfully, after all these years, knowing when it is done has gotten easier. Yes, I still have to think and work very hard to make a finished painting, but if I did my job correctly, most of the heavy lifting has already been done, and it is not time to simply 'make it in color now.' Here again, is the final painting for the Star Spawn Seer.

Star Spawn Seer 

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

 © 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

 That's all for another exciting Wednesday on the blog. See you back here on Friday! Until then...     

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability, head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Dungeons & Dragons - Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse - Part 2

The newest Dungeons & Dragons supplement, Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse, will be released tomorrow, and I was lucky enough to have contributed four pieces to the book. Usually, I would have to wait till the book was out to share my work, but the good folks on the Dungeons & Dragons social media team have been sharing some of my monsters early. While they have not all been spoiled, I have plenty that I can share with you leading up to the book's official release. I got to design/redesign three of the four pieces, which is always fun. The fourth is a classic monster that didn't need to be revisited and only needed a new illustration. 

Next up, I have for you the Star Spawn Mangler. While the Star Spawn have been around for a while, I am unfamiliar with this version. I am not sure if it is a new monster or heavily redesigned. As with the Star Spawn Seer, I used myself as the model for this monster. Here is a look at the final painting for the Star Spawn Mangler.

Star Spawn Mangler

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

11 x 14 - Digital

Art Director - Emi Tanji

© 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

As with all my D&D pieces, even though the final is digital, there is an original drawing available. This one is no exception, and I was pleased with how the drawing, actually all the drawing from this book, turned out. Here is the drawing for Star Spawn Mangler.

Star Spawn Mangler

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

11 x 14 - Pencil on paper

Original - SOLD

Art Director - Emi Tanji

© 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

 

Lastly, a look at a social media image that featured the Star Spawn Mangler. It is fun to see my art being used for promotional uses again. It has been a while. As always, never read the comments!

 

D&D monsters in social media form!

That is all of another exciting Monday on the blog. See you back here on Wednesday! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability, head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Dungeons & Dragons - Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse - Part 1

The newest Dungeons & Dragons supplement, Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse, will be released next week, and I was lucky enough to have contributed four pieces to the book. Usually, I would have to wait till the book was out to share my work, but the good folks on the Dungeons & Dragons social media team have been sharing some of my monsters early. While they have not all been spoiled, I have plenty that I can share with you leading up to the book's official release. I got to design/redesign three of the four pieces, which is always fun. The fourth is a classic monster that didn't need to be revisited and only needed a new illustration. 

Starting things off, I have for you the Star Spawn Seer. While the Star Spawn have been around for a while, I was asked to flesh this incarnation out. I had to look no further than myself to find all the inspiration needed. I have loads of embarrassing photos of me in a robe that I will never share that led to this piece taking shape. Here is a look at the final painting for the Star Spawn Seer.

Star Spawn Seer

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

11 x 14 - Digital

Art Director - Emi Tanji

© 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

As with all my D&D pieces, even though the final is digital, there is an original drawing available. This one is no exception, and I was pleased with how the drawing, actually all the drawing from this book, turned out. Here is the drawing for Star Spawn Seer.

Star Spawn Seer

Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse

11 x 14 - Pencil on paper

Original - SOLD

Art Director - Emi Tanji

© 2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC

Lastly, here is a look at the social media images that featured the Star Spawn Seer. It is fun to see my art being used for promotional uses again. It has been a while. As always, never read the comments!

D&D monsters in social media form!

That is all of another exciting Friday on the blog. See you back here next week! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability, head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Star Spawn - Arkham Horror Monsters

Back in August I shared with you my Star Spawn miniature that is part of the 2nd Edition release of Mansions of Madness. I also mentioned that the Star Spawn would also be included in the Arkham Horror Monsters line of prepainted miniatures. That time has come and I am happy to share with you some images of the production miniature of my Star Spawn design...

Star Spawn

Arkham Horror Monsters Miniature

Pretty cool if I do say so myself! I think that the miniature really turned out great and is extremely faithful to my design. Here again is my turnaround for the Star Spawn so that you can compare...

Star Spawn Turnaround

Each - 12 x 9 - Pencil on paper
© 2016 (2009) Fantasy Flight Games

This was the very last design that I did for this line of miniatures. I am thankful that they finally all made it into production, even if it took one seven years. Hopefully there will be another great line of miniatures for me to work on, if not, I guess I will just have to make my own...

That is all for another exciting Monday on the blog, see you back here on Wednesday!  Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Star Spawn Miniature - Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition

Very excited to finally share this with work with you today. I have only been waiting 7 years for this piece to finally come out. With the announcement of the 2nd Edition release of Mansions of Madness I can now share the Star Spawn miniature design that I did back in 2009. While I have had to wait a while for pieces to finally come out, this by far is the reigning champ for the most delayed release. Better late then never! Here is the initial design for the Star Spawn...

Star Spawn

12 x 9 - Pencil on paper
© 2016 (2009) Fantasy Flight Games

You can imagine my reaction when I looked into the display case at Gen Con during set up. I did a double take since it had been 7 years since I worked on this piece and it has been years since I actually looked at the drawing. I was told years ago when it was not released with the rest of the Arkham Horror miniatures that it would eventually be out as a part of "something special". Well, that day has come and the 2nd Edition release of Mansions of Madness must be pretty special!

Star Spawn making its debut at Gen Con 2016

Here are two views of the complete turnaround for the Star Spawn. You might notice an edit to the texture of the legs that was requested after the final 3/4 view was created. The right wing in the rear view was a separate drawing that was digitally added for the turnaround.

Star Spawn Turnaround

Each - 12 x 9 - Pencil on paper
© 2016 (2009) Fantasy Flight Games

Star Spawn Turnaround

Each - 12 x 9 - Pencil on paper
© 2016 (2009) Fantasy Flight Games

Since I am sharing everything, because why not it has bee 7 years, here is a look at the very rough scribbly thumbnails that I turned in for miniature concepts. This is the highly detailed and clear roughs that I use to turn in 7 years ago. Scribble scribble scribble...

Star Spawn Thumbnails
© 2016 (2009) Fantasy Flight Games

If the release of the Star Spawn in Mansions of Madness after a 7 year wait was not good enough, it looks like a fully painted version of the Star Spawn will be available later in the year! Looking forward to having this fellow on my shelf with the rest of my miniatures. RAWR!

Painted Star Spawn and company

Image courtesy Fantasy Flight Games

That is all for another exciting Monday on the blog, see you back here on Wednesday!  Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com