Guild Wars 2

Absolutely right,

The æ of the old danish/english is quite fitting to appear within a Norn name, to enhance the nordic archetype and lend it a greater credibility in an imaginative context.

Best regards
Benjamin

Hi Roksiel,

really nice art. I especially like the Sylvari! Keep them coming…

Best regards
Ben

Auric Basin

The jungle here was a compilation of golds and greens, with sunlight seeping through the canopy like some viscous liquid. Exotic birds, flying lizards and pterosaurs squawked overhead, pocket raptors screeched and prehistoric insects chirped. Deeper in the jungle the deafening roars of rivalling stoneheads could be heard. Somewhere a small pride of arrowheads dragged their massive, armoured bodies through the tangled underbrush, cutting broad swathes through the jungle.
Yet Llamarias attention was focused on the huge structure towering above her. The ancient ruins were in part overgrown with veins and giant ferns, the stones cracked and the reliefs weathered away, but still it transpired a sense of primal magic and venerable power. There were ramparts and viaducts the size of whole towns, columns reaching towards the sky and arcades spanning hundreds of metres. Everything was cut from some unknown sort of smooth stone, which looked a sandy brown, a warm ochre hue or a rich gold, depending on the light.
Tarir was an age-old, forgotten place now, but in its prime it must have been magnificient.

Hi Gaile,

thx for the kind comment :-) Just feel free to to use any of them in the Community Showcase Live show. I´m glad to contribute to community events (and to be honest – proud that somebody takes notice from time to time ^^)

Best regards and have a nice weekend
Benjamin

P.S.: More Sylvari-based artwork´s on its way, too…

Thorim Bloodaxe

A commission i´ve done for Kobibold. The request was: “Something based on this character + a wolf.” Well, considering the name of this Norn warrior it immediately suggested itself to draw him with an axe. I went for a rather dark colour scheme to get some contrast with the pale wolves and the blood of the slain monster.

Deep-Sea dragons name?

Cthulhu!!!! ^^

Old Svanir Hunter

Garm Wolfsbane, an ancient, hard-bitten trapper and hunter. Hidden in the icy fogs he sets his traps alone. He despises huts, hovels and even caves and is said never to sleep. His solitary, endless hunt is cursed, yet he will never stop haunting the boreal forests, chasing the totem animals he once held sacred.
In rare moments a trace of regret shows in his seamed face.
Regret of leaving everything he loved.
Regret of becoming a Svanir.

In my opinion it was a pretty good episode! Got a feeling of progress (storywise, dragon-hatching, rewards)! Nice map design and some hearts again ;-) Thx for that ArenaNet.

Reintroduction of an old enemy, but approach from a different angle, new insights into the dragons/magic topic and thereby FINALLY some tangible insights into the overall plot plan for GW2. This reestablished my belief in an interesting and well-planned plot-outline (because for some time LS had a subliminal feeling of “where are they going with this or that?”… introducing too many subplots of no or at least not foreseeable consequence). Go on ArenaNet – tie it all together!!

Destroyer fight felt really cool, like several others have mentioned before – pressure, something at stake, cool enemy/boss.

And of course Aurene: a supercute blue and turquoise dragon babe with huge, expressive eyes that say “cuddle me” yet carry the potential for future greatness!

Point of criticism: Too short, as always ^^ (especially this time since it was so entertaining…)

Best regards to all playsers
Benjamin

Hey ho!
Thanks for the kind comment. It´s nice to connect the single pictures and thereby tell some kind of story, indeed. I hope this makes the thread more than the sum of its parts :-)
Regards
Benjamin

Hey,
thank you for posting some of your older creations ;-) I totally agree and often wish they would bring back more of the original GW stuff (landscapes, armour, weapons etc.) What Speaking of monitor brightness and technical details, what software do you use? Or are these pieces hand-drawn?
Best regards and have fun with the new LS
Benjamin

Nidhængr is upon us

Angry roars and guttural grunts are echoing from the mountain flanks as Sjælla´s fury is unleashed. Her ancient runespear cuts through armour, leather and thick hide alike. The merciless bloodshed in the snow is mirroring the rising sun, pouring pink and red into the innocent morning sky. Even the battle-hardened Jotun hesitate, once confronted with Sjællas primal rage. One after one they die under the deadly spear-thrusts. Some of the brutes fight on, others flee, and yet others just cry out in shocked disbelief: “Nidhængr is upon us!”

Burning Skies

Llamaria finally made her way to Verdant Brink. Too late to save the pact fleet, yet gathering poison and sharpening arrowheads to avenge some of Tyria´s brave heroes and thin out the local Mordrem population ;-)

Hi Clockwork Unicorn!

This is superb work. I especially love the 4th one: delicate outlining, the flimsy, almost transluctent butterfly-wings and flower petal clothes, yet accentuated by her strong facial expression and determination. Great character, great mood and color!
As a huge fan of GW1 i have to ask? Do you also draw stuff inpired by Prophecies, Nightfall or Factions?

Best regards
Benjamin

Hi Blackchaos!

I absolutely agree! Gorgeous work! Great expression and use of colour!! Would be awesome to get this race ingame as well as seeing more Tengu artwork here in the forum!!

Best regards
Benjamin

Wow, the last one is great! Looks like a creator-god or mighty angelic related to the human deities of Tyria. What did you imagine when painting it?
Best regards
Benjamin

Deserves attention, indeed! Great expression and use of colour. Simple yet capturing how you did her facial features. The sparkle in the eyes is superb (something between innocence, curiosity and cute mischief ^^)!

Best regards and keep them coming
Benjmain

That´s really funny! I like his mischievous grin :-)
Asuran craziness combined with wintersday topic.

kind regards
Benjamin

Interesting idea! I especially like the coloured one in the upper left corner :-)
Keep them coming Selana, i´m always looking for new art (and shortstories too, by the way) of you…

kind regards
Benjamin

Hello milanne!

I really enjoy these drawings. Especially your recent interpretation of Caithe is great :-)
Is this watercolour?

kind regards
Benjamin

Great character drawing. I think a coloured one would be awesome, too!

Best regards and merry chistmas

Benjamin

More artwork connected to the story above… :-)

Tlaxca-chui

Tlaxca-chui stalked silently along a wet, mossy branch in the jungle canopy. The nicitating membrane above his huge, slitted eyes slid back and forth as he watched his prey. When he sticked out his tongue in regular intervals he could also smell it. A small pride of behemoths wallowed in the mud beneath him. Today he and the other ceruatl – seasoned hunters – would make rich pickings for their tribe.

Tlaxca-chui was an Itzel. The frog-like creature crouched along the huge branches of the rainforest trees before sliding down a huge vine. Though able to giant leaps and ferocious speed, he now moved with furtive little hops, placing his webbed toes with care. The other Itzel did the same, their thin, slippery limbs weaving through the branches. Slowly they surrounded their prey. Some of them had already drawn short bows or bowpipes. Darts were slid across their own oily skin to cover them in poison.

To Tlaxca-chui´s deep satisfaction there was still no sound. No snapping twigs, not even the tiniest quack (which he would have expected amongst younger hunters, who had only recently passed their tadpole-rituals). Still he didn´t renounce to thank mother jungle for their luck. He touched a bromeliad and whispered silently: Ameyalli amaxtli. Ameyalli provides.

Then Tlaxca-chui´s skin changed. Within seconds the camouflage-like dim grey became a bright violet-grey and then an iridescent purple. Colourful dots appeared in the canopy as the Itzel-Hylek started their hunt. Loam and mud-brown was replaced by stark yellow and fiery orange tones. The glands of their skin exuded pheromones to further incite their eagerness to kill and they moved with the deadly unison which could only be expected from individuals hatched from the same frogspawn. Their incredibly powerful hind legs propelled them through the air and Tlaxca-chui was the first to land amidst the surprised behemoths. He could smell the fear and confusion of the ponderous beasts and it intoxicated him. As he slew the first behemoth he inflated his vocal sack in a triumphant call. Tonight there would be celebration in Jaka Itzel since the hunters would bring meat to the starving tribe. With satisfaction he once again thanked mother jungle. Ameyalli indeed provides.

The last couple of days i adressed myself to everything Hylek… ^^
Hope you like it!

Kind regards to all players
Ben

Hi setius,

great stuff! I especially like the pose of the sylvari necro as well as his staff!
Very well done!

Kind regards
Benjamin

Hey Vitakorpen!

Thx for the comment ;-) I´m already busy with new stuff…

Kind regards
Benjamin

Spearmaiden

Introduction of another strong Norn-character: Sjælla Sigrunsdottir, spearmaiden of the Snowdrift Dens, fabled jotun-slayer of Hrothgar´s Pass.
After travelling north with dolyak caravans and fighting svanir and icebrood monsters for more than a decade, she´s back on her original prey. Here she overlooks a dangerous jotun-mountain, wrapped in clouds. Her tattoo Ællegarth is an oath to fight the coarse brutes which once extinguished her entire igloo village, smashing her youthful dreams and the brains of her family alike. The skalds and storytellers call her spear Nidhængr, which means ´impaler´. The rune-encrusted weapon – forged in ancient times when the Norn and not Jormag ruled the Shiverpeaks uncontested – will live up to its name when she confronts her hated enemies.

Guess in this case you´ll also like these quick weekend drawings…

Timberline Falls

I always liked the harsh nature of that map. Wish we could feel the rough weather a little bit more. Imagine a bleak day in winter: the treacherous snowslush and slippery stones making each step a risk, the ceaseless drizzle and thick fog obscuring potential dangers. And the thundering roar of the falls is drowning out the swift footfalls of hunting grawl-savages which are closing in…

“Mordrem Husk” and “A terrible tangle”

Mordrem Colour Studies

Still intrigued by the Breacher from the last drawing, I decided to explore the possibilities of that colour scheme a little bit: cold turquoise, teal, bottle green and avocado, all darkened and tarnished and then highlighted with the sickly, pulsating purple of Mordrem vines.

Here´s the outcome…

Hi eleshazar!

Usually i do several sketches on paper (quite rough) to sort my ideas and bring everything into place. Then i either scan it and incorporate it as a first layer into photoshop or i´ll redraw it with the graphic tablet (already making first alterations because i want it different/better ^^) The actual colouring i do in photoshop.
Since the single pieces of art are in general very big-sized it´s possible to print them out and have good quality. From time to time i assemble some good stuff (also not GW2-related; private work) and let it print as some kind of hardcover photo- or artbook.
Maybe it would be worth offering commissions some day, thank you so much for the encouragement. For sure i´ll let you know! Which ones do you like best?

kind regards
Benjamin

Hi Driveskull!

Your thread made me think “Me too!” instantly ^^

Thanks for sharing your work. I particularly like the angel-wings details on the crossguard of sunrise. Nice technique by the way; how exactly did you do the colouring?

kind regards
Benjamin

P.S.: There´s more to come soon; as a lizard-fan you really got me with the whole jungle setting and all its Itzel, Nuhoch, dinosaurs and other creatures with this distinct “prehistoric” feeling ^^

Hey Gaile,

great that you enjoy the artwork. Thanks for all your work on/with the community! I really believe we all could benefit from enhanced exchange ;-)
And yes, there´s really inspiring stuff to be found in the forums. The playerbase seems to produce a high amount drawings, fanfiction, videos etc. of astonishing quality.
As a personal note I would like you to know that I deeply admire the work of the design-team and the creative heads behind the various environments, races and characters from Tyria. My biggest praise and hats off to the masters of the craft: Dociu, Anderson, Kotaki, Ahn and Bauer in particular (her Nightfall-design was nothing short of amazing!!!)

Best regards
Benjamin

A panther´s fury

It seemed like if the rainforest had swallowed Llamaria. Dreadful silence fell upon the world, only disturbed by the slithering sound of growing tangles and kreeping jungle tendrils. Even the roar of Aranw and Cruáchain died away after everything seemed lost and the ranger was likely to join the jungle dragon´s thorny forces.
But Llamaria is not dead yet. Indeed, she´s back to slay some Mordrem. Here she´s riddling a Breacher with arrows, unleashing all her pent-up anger.
She has the weapons.
She has the companions.
She has the determination.
But first of all she has a panther´s fury!

Hey Aegis,

nice stories. Currently i´m reading chapter 4. I especially like the asura-themed dialogue – very convincing and funny :-)
Do you focus solely on GW2 related stuff or do you also create other short-stories?

Kind regards
Benjamin

Thank you for the comment Joyce! I always try to write down a few lines to accompany the drawings. On the one hand its fun and reflects what´s going on behind my forehead, on the other hand i hope it lends some additional atmosphere to the various sceneries from Tyria.
Maybe it would be worth to develop one of the characters from my threads into a fanfiction one day…

Best regards
Ben

Resistance!

Could not really digest my own, dark foreshadowing… So I started drawing the Claw of Jormag, bringing its dreadful armies across the Shiverpeaks. I drew more Svanir, too, hundreds of them, corrupted and cold and surrounded by a chilling ice fog. An endless, relentless wave of frozen axes, maces and claws…
Only to place a sole, single heroine on that rock to face them! To draw her rune blade and shout at the top of her lungs: “We descend from Jora and Eir Stegalkin and the legends of old. We don´t forget, we don´t forgive and we don´t surrender! Ours is the strength of the north cause we are the Norn! Taste our steel, spawn of Jormag!”

Savage Svanir

A Svanir Berserker grabbing the severed head of a helpless victim in his frozen fist. The scene symbolizes the cold grip of Jormag which is getting stronger with each passing winter, with each norn village burried under the snows and with each norn slaughtered by some merciless icebrood.

Hi shilane!

Just wanted to tell you that i greatly admire your art! Awesome stuff amongst it; especially the way you capture the “spirit” of certain characters by movement and facial expression is fantastic!
Do you do solely commissions or are you sometimes also sitting in front of the graphic tablet, drawing what comes into your mind… If yes, please share! Would be nice to see more from you!

kind regards
Benjamin

Hi everybody!
I think each game has its weaknesses and strengths. Unfortunately the focus in forums like these semm to lay on the negative stuff… Guess a lot of casual gamers simply don´t care to share their opinion…
Personally i think GW2 is a great game and I enjoy HoT. If i´m fed up with leveling/gathering hero points – what´s the matter: no one forces me to play ;-) I simply quit or do somethign else ingame and have fun.

Best regards to all players and contributors to the forum
Ben

Love the expansion!
Great map design, vast and atmospheric, packed with cool new enemies (dinosaurs!!!) Jungle and ruins are adding new charm/ideas to the locations and also the new hylek races are great!
So far i´m just speakign about the look since i´ve only scrached the surface of all the new content (masteries, elite-specialisations, revenant etc.)
Thank you ArenaNet!

Best regards
Ben

P.S.: And congratulations to the smooth and mostly bugless launch!

This was my very last pre-HoT post! Download-bar at 97% now… ^^

See you ingame, have fun and best regards

Ben

Mordremoth´s Call

Llamaria can´t trust her own senses any more, a cruel fate for an experienced ranger.
Suddenly her vision blurs and dark things gather at the corners of her consciousness.
Tormented by unending nightmares and horrible visions of the violence she is about to commit, Llamaria is writhing in pain. Her Panthers watch with growing agitation, unsure of how to treat her diseased pack mate. They sense her pain and suffering, yet are willing to rip her apart if she awakens as dragonspawn.
There are voices, too, scraping like thorns on the inside of her skull. Voices speaking of blood and utter madness. Voices winding their way into Llamarias soul like barbed tendrils, strangling her true self.
Or… revealing it?

HEEEEEEEEERE!!! ^^

Wow, very cool image! Like your style. Great atmosphere and colouring. Especially like the rich orange glow of the Mad Kings´s head and the candy corn elementals.
Would be nice to see more drawings like that!

Happy Halloween Sildar (where´s the “mad pumkin” smiley when one needs it ^^)

kind regards
Ben

Here we go!!!! ;-)

Silverwaste Colour Studies

Some weekend experiments. Ochre and brownish rock formations in the dry and harsh desert landscape. Like the stark contrasts between baking sand/sunlight and dark shadows.

Hey guys!

I´m realy glad and astonished about your kind comments. They make me want to draw something right NOW ;-) Appreciate all sorts of comments and suggestions for the pics or some talk about art/GW2-related environments, character studies etc. Think the community would really benefit from enhanced exchange.
Clerigo, your absolutely right – there´s a lot of great fanart here in the forum. In this context i also want to thank Gaile Gray, in general for promoting contributions to this forum section and personally for the praise. Seeing the red ArenaNet label on my post and then reading the comment made my day! ^^

Best regards

Ben

Thank you so much Vitakorpen ;-) Happy to read something like this! There´s more to come soon…

Do you always paint with oil or do you also use other techniques? And do you focus on fantasy exclusively or are you experimenting with other things, too (landscape etc.)?

Best regards and have fun ingame

Ben