Friday, April 7, 2023

Dungeons & Dragons: The Legend of Drizzt Visual Dictionary - The Return of the Mind Flayer Tadpole

I have seen a lot of talk online about the new book out from DK, Dungeons & Dragons: The Legend of Drizzt Visual Dictionary. People were talking about how much art was in it and how older pieces were making a repeat appearance. That got me thinking that I have made a lot of D&D art since 2006, and I wondered if any of my art was there. After picking up a copy, my hunch was correct, and I do have a piece of art in the book. To start things off, here is the cover of Dungeons & Dragons: The Legend of Drizzt Visual Dictionary.

Dungeons & Dragons: The Legend of Drizzt Visual Dictionary

In 2016 I had several pieces released in Volo's Guide to Monsters, one of them being the Mind Flayer Tadpole. The piece was well received and had a nice creep factor that resonated with a lot of people. As Drizzt hails from the Underdark, it is not surprising that there is a large section of the book devoted to Mind Flayers. If you are talking about Mind Flayers, you will eventually get to their reproduction cycle, and with that, you will speak of their tadpoles. And if you are talking about Mind Flayer Tadpoles... well, you know, you use the art available for that. Here is my final art of the Mind Flayer Tadpole originally created for Volo's Guide to Monsters.

Mind Flayer Tadpole
9.1 x 10.1 - Digital
Art Director - Kate Irwin
© 2016 Wizards of the Coast LLC

I have always liked this piece, and it is great seeing it out in the world again, especially since this is one of my many self-portraits in D&D. Hard to believe this is piece is seven to eight years old now (while it came out in 2016, I would have painted it in 2015). Time flies when you are making monsters. Finally, here is a photo of the painting in the book.

Mind Flayer Tadpole on the page in the book.

 That is 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

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