u/TyrannoNinja

This is a marker drawing of a Khumetian crocodile warrior from my ancient-era fantasy world. He would be one example representing a phenomenon in this world called therianthropy, wherein a human being becomes part animal through an expensive magical rite that must be performed at night during a full moon.

In Khumetian culture, warriors who become crocodile therianthropes traditionally pledge their service to the crocodile god Sebek and make their living both as guards for the god's temples as well as amphibious special forces in the Khumetian army. They are vicious, powerful fighters and excellent swimmers, but as part of their transformation, they lose their ability to speak human language and assume an ectothermic metabolism that makes them lethargic in colder weather.

A marker doodle of my OC Pharaoh Neferkaret of Khumet (a fantasy version of ancient Egypt and Nubia) delivering one of her favorite sentences to the most egregious offenders.

As it happens, Neferkaret is not uncommonly tyrannical as far as theocratic monarchs go. If anything, she cares so much for her subjects and loved ones that anyone who dares pose a threat to their lives or well-being will receive justice in a snap. Literally speaking, of course!

It being the 4th of July today made me want to doodle a Native American huntress. After all, you can't get much more American than a Native American.

Happy 4th of July to my fellow Americans!

This concept art shows an Ahrabiyyan camel skirmisher from my ancient-era fantasy world. Most of the Ahrabiyyan peoples subsist as nomadic herders and merchants, but some urban communities have developed here and there across the otherwise arid landscape, most notably the city of Al-Batra with its famous cliffside-hewn structures.

Being better adapted to the desert environment than horses or other equine animals, dromedary camels are the mount of choice for Ahrab warriors. Their scent is in fact said to repel and disorient equine opponents.

As far as this artwork goes, I am pretty proud of how the camel came out, considering I don't draw them that often. The crescent shield is inspired by ancient Persian ones, as I always felt the crescent shape had the most distinctly Middle Eastern look as far as possible shield shapes go.

A marker drawing of my fantasy OC Pharaoh Neferkaret of Khumet having taken off her crown for the evening and standing on a balcony projecting from her palace. I have to say she's quite a beautiful character with or without her crown.

A marker doodle of two Khumetian palace guards from my ancient-era fantasy setting. The leopard skins they wear around their linen kilts are a marker of their status as elite warriors in service of the Khumetian pharaoh.

It is morning on the open plains, and a huntress is stalking a herd of savanna hoofers on top of a rocky overhang. Not only are the little hoofed mammals tasty, but their striped hides are striking enough to be lucrative exports for the savanna tribes.

In this prehistoric-fantasy setting, “hoofer” is a term referring to various species of primitive equines that eke out their existence in the shadow of the great saurians. The species you see here is adapted to the world’s savanna regions and is inspired by the Mesohippus of our world’s Oligocene epoch.

From atop the earthen rampart that protects their village, these defenders are barraging a ravenous blademaw with volleys of boulders.

I imagine this scene takes place in a later time period in the setting's history than some of my other prehistoric-fantasy illustrations. During this era, some of the human cultures would have developed agriculture and metallurgy after settling down in permanent villages. It would roughly correspond to the Neolithic to Copper Age of our own world's history, or perhaps the early Iron Age in western Africa.

Looking at the work of comic book art legend John Buscema made me want to emulate his rendering style, hence the use of black ink for the shading in this drawing. It ended up not looking that much like Buscema's work, but oh well, most of us can only do so much to emulate the greats.

If you're wondering why this character's hair looks blue, that's how Buscema and other artists of his generation often colored the highlights in black hair.

In another age, in another world, a mighty deathjaw prowls in search of prey among the megalithic remains of an abandoned ceremonial plaza. Where once a bygone generation of the hairless apes known as humankind performed forgotten rites now has since been reclaimed by the jungle primeval and its denizens.

A marker doodle of Yeshua ben Yosef, better known as Jesus of Nazareth, treating himself to a kebab. I don’t know for sure how far back kebabs go or whether they would have been served in Roman-era Judaea, but they’re undeniably a pretty common item in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisine and probably have been for quite a while now. Besides, anyone from any era could eat roast meat on a stick.

Marker doodle of a resting Smilodon fatalis, or the North American “saber-toothed tiger”. Not sure the foreshortened torso came out right, but I am proud to have attempted it nonetheless.

A marker doodle of Giganotosaurus carolinii from Cretaceous South America. I used to not like this dinosaur that much due to how the press held it up as a usurper to T. rex's throne as the biggest and most badass theropod ever. Now that I'm older and more mature, although T. rex is still my favorite dinosaur, I've come to respect Giganotosaurus more. They were both apex predators in their native time and place, they were just adapted to hunting different prey in different habitats.

A marker drawing of Conan the Cimmerian, aka Conan the Barbarian, standing tall and proud. The recent announcement of Genndy Tartakovsky developing a Conan animated series made me want to celebrate with a quick doodle of our favorite barbarian adventurer.

A marker illustration of my OC Pharaoh Neferkaret of Khumet leading her fleet of reinforcements to a battle raging on at sea.

Without spoiling too much of the story I have in mind for this, it's inspired by the historical battle of Actium between Octavian Caesar on the one side and Mark Antony and Cleopatra on the other. Let's hope our Neferkaret doesn't pull out of this fray like Cleopatra did in real life!

This is concept art for Valerian infantry from my ancient fantasy world. The Valerians are the setting's equivalent to ancient Rome, characterized by a volatile republican government and a cultural disposition toward militaristic expansionism.

When designing these soldiers, I ran into the issue of balancing the Roman vibes I wanted them to give off and the need to make them their own civilization rather than just transplanting the real historical Romans into my world. One change I did make was in their helmets, which have influences from those of Spanish conquistadors and medieval Italian crossbowmen alongside the obvious Roman ones.

This marker drawing shows Yasuke, the East African man who served as Oda Nobunaga's retainer in feudal Japan, taking a strolling with his native Japanese girlfriend. I don't know how likely it is that Yasuke would have gotten involved with a local woman, since he exits the historical record returning to Jesuit missionaries like those that had brought him to Japan in the first place, but honestly, I thought this kind of couple would look cute if I drew it.

A marker doodle of my OC Pharaoh Neferkaret of Khumet. She may be a new character of mine, but I'm already infatuated with her (as tends to happen with my female characters). I would sum her up as being like a cross between the historical figures of Cleopatra and Amanirenas, seductive and cunning while also brave and determined to do what's best for her ancient kingdom and bring it back to its former glory.

A marker doodle of my fantasy OCs Antonio and Neferkaret enjoying each other's company. As much as I feel the marker work looks better when seen in person than after being scanned in, I think these two are a cute couple!