A Second Look at Older Work - Troll Auger

This coming June will mark twenty years for me in the gaming industry, and this is also my twenty-sixth year as a working artist. I have made a lot of work over these years, and as I focus on larger projects with multi-year timelines, it is hard to keep this blog updated regularly. I have kept this thing going since 2009, and I would like for it to continue. To that end, I thought I would look back at works I particularly liked, enjoyed making, or seemed to fall through the cracks and went unnoticed.

Today, I have for you a piece for Pathfinder done for Paizo fifteen years ago. This was always a favorite of mine. I was starting to figure out a lot about painting, using reference, and what it takes to get a good image. This was also a fun assignment to depict a troll carving out its own guts to read the future - because the troll can just shove them back in and naturally heal from this severe self-inflicted wound. I painted this in my old style of layer arrangement and structure - which might be only interesting to me. Not matter what, I am still happy with this little painting, and I think it deserves a second look.

Troll Auger

Digital

 Pathfinder Chronicles: City of Strangers
© 2010 Paizo Publishing, LLC

As a side note, when looking back at this piece, I realized I never shared a process post for it. Not sure that sharing it now would help anyone, but it's interesting that I never took the time to post more about this one.

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

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

Scrag Attack - Princes of the Apocalypse Process

I have another VERY overdue process post for you. Today I am sharing the process and steps that went into the Scrag Attack piece that I did for the 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragon's release of Princes of the Apocalypse. I first shared this piece with you back in April of 2015 which means I painted it in 2014... so, yeah, this is a little overdue. So many other things going on. Anyway, here is how the final piece turned out...

Scrag Attack

Dungeons & Dragons - Princes of the Apocalypse

  6.5 x 16 - Acrylic, pencil, and gouache on board

Original - SOLD

© 2015 Wizards of the Coast

This was one of the very first pieces that I did after deciding to switch the majority of my client work from digital to traditional. This was also a piece I did a lot of freaking out about and over. It was a very nervous time in my monster making life. I was taking a lot of chances and I felt like I was risking it all. We are approaching the two year anniversary when I made the switch so I will be interesting to see where I am when that roles around.

I was relying heavily on all if my best practices that I learned in my digital process flow to make the switch to traditional that much easier. That meant starting off with reference gathering and thumbnails. Here is how the thumbnails turned out for this piece...

Scrag Attack - Thumbnails

© 2015 Wizards of the Coast 

Option "C" was the winner, production just wanted a little more bleed and to bet the Troll's elbow into the composition. There was a bit of a run around with this aquatic troll too. It was in the adventure, but an aquatic troll did not exist yet for 5th Edition. I was asked to that the Troll template and add gills and webbed figures. There was some back and forth and eventually it was approved and went through, though I was a little nervous for a moment or two. Here is how the final drawing turned out...

Scrag Attack - Drawing

  11 x 17 - Pencil on paper

Original - SOLD

© 2015 Wizards of the Coast

With an approved drawing I was physically ready to start the final painting, mentally ready... that is another situation altogether. I had no idea about how long this painting would take. I had no idea what obstacles I would face. I had no idea when I was even done with the painting... did I even ever actually finish it? Like I said, there were a lot of risks being taken and I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. Here is a look at the painting coming together...

Scrag Attack - Process progression

© 2015 Wizards of the Coast

I was pretty much in a state of wild panic through out this entire piece. If you look at the last image in the process above, this is where I first thought this piece was finished. Through a bit of a personal crisis and some advice from another artist I went back in and continued working on this piece to the point you see in the final state. I learned A LOT doing this piece and its companion piece (the fire breathing Minotaur that I will share the process with you soon). Sometimes you learn the most when you have the most to loose. You also learn a lot by doing the actual work and not by planning and practicing ahead of time. Here is an animated progression of this piece coming together so you can better see the steps...

Scrag Attack - Animated process

© 2015 Wizards of the Coast

To put it bluntly, there was a lot of blood split to finish this piece. It took its tool on me and my dear wife, but in the end it was finished, approved, published, and sold. The painting saw its entire lifespan so it was a victory. I just did not know at the time I started it that it would be so costly, emotionally speaking. Live and learn! Here again is the final painting for your viewing pleasure...

Scrag Attack

Dungeons & Dragons - Princes of the Apocalypse

  6.5 x 16 - Acrylic, pencil, and gouache on board

Original - SOLD

© 2015 Wizards of the Coast

That is 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 - Princes of the Apocalypse

Last year I made the decision to begin working traditionally for my client work. The switch came in July/August and Dungeons & Dragons - Princes of the Apocalypse was the first project that I worked on. In some ways I find it very fitting that the first project was to be a D&D project. Princes of the Apocalypse with produced with Sasquatch Games Studio in coordination with WotC and it was a really fun to work on. I contributed two pieces to the book, one has an aquatic troll (RAWR!) and the other has a fire breathing minotaur (RAWR!)...

Scrag Attack

Dungeons & Dragons - Princes of the Apocalypse

  6.5 x 16 - Acrylic, pencil, and gouache on board

Original - SOLD

© 2015 Wizards of the Coast

Emberhorn Minotaur

Dungeons & Dragons - Princes of the Apocalypse

  12 x 9 - Acrylic, pencil, and gouache on board

Original available on my web store!

© 2015 Wizards of the Coast

Since these were my first paintings since deciding to go traditional AND these paintings were for D&D it was a *little* stressful at times. The stakes were high and I was just a little concerned I might not be making the best choice. In the end the paintings got done, my wife did not murder me, and they are in the book (thanks wife and Aaron!). These are not perfect, but they are a really good start and I think each painting since has been better and better. I have a lot to learn, but that IS the point of all this. Growth, advancement, learning new things. I will have more to say about both of these in the new future when I share the process that went into making these.

Here is a look at how the pieces appeared in the book, there was a little cropping, but they turned out great in my opinion...

Traditionally painted D&D paintings in handy dandy book form!

That is 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

Fresh from the drawing table... Troll!

I have for you today another drawing that is fresh from the drawing table. This time around it is a Troll! "T" had several great monsters to pick from which left me a little indecisive for a time. The Troglodyte caught my eye early on, but I have already done a lot in the Dungeons & Dragons universe with the Troglodyte. In the end the idea of drawing a huge hulking powerhouse of destruction won me over and the Troll made the cut. I present to you my version of a Troll...

Troll
© 2011 Christopher Burdett

Is it a plant? Is it an animal? Is it a anilant or planimal? Who knows... but what is known is that it is a relentless juggernaut of destruction. I love to work on big massive hulking creatures (the dumber the better) and the Troll gave me that opportunity. You can keep your sleek lean agile creatures, give me the big slow brutes. Not sure if I explored any new territory design wise with this guy but I sure as heck had a lot of fun working on him ...and sometimes, that is enough for me. I did try to give him the appearance that his skin and horns could be plant or animal in origin or somewhere in between. He does have a big stone hammer and shields wrapped around his shins!

My first 100 original Dungeons & Dragons Monster Manual redesigns (A - Z): Aerial Servant, Ankheg, Ant (Giant), Ape (Carnivorous), Ape (Gorilla), Axe Beak, Axe Beak (version 2), Baboon, Badger, Barracuda, Basilisk, Baluchitherium, Bear (Black), Bear (Brown), Bear (Cave), Beaver (Giant), Beetle (Giant) - Bombardier, Beetle (Giant) - Boring, Beetle (Giant) - Fire, Beetle (Giant) - Rhinoceros, Beetle (Giant) - Stag, Beetle (Giant) - Water, Beholder, Black Pudding, Blink Dog, Boar (Giant), Boar (Warthog), Boar (Wild), Brain Mole, Brownie, Bugbear, Buffalo, Bulette, Carrion Crawler, Catoblepas, Cerebral Parasite, Chimera, Cockatrice, Coutal, Crab (Giant), Demon Type III (Glabrezu), Demon (Juiblex), Demon (Manes), Devil (Ice), Dragon (Red), Elemental (Earth), Ettin, Eye of the Deep, Flightless Bird, Frog (Giant), Fungi (Violet), Giant (Hill), Goblin, Golem (Flesh), Hobgoblin, Homunculus, Hydra, Imp, Intellect Devourer, Ixitxachitl, Jackal, Jacklewere, Jaguar, Ki-Rin, Kobold, Lich, Lizard (Giant), Lizardman, Manticore, Mind Flayer, Minotaur, Naga, Neo-Otygugh, Nixie, Ochre Jelly, Ogre, Owlbear, Peryton, Pixie, Purple Worm, Quasit, Ram (Giant), Roper, Rust Monster, Sahuagin, Salamander, Shambling Mound, Treant, Troglodyte, Troll, Umber Hulk, Unicorn, Vampire, Wasp (Giant), Wight, Wyvern, Xorn, Yeti, and Zombie.        

That is all for today here 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