翼無し

STOP

2005-05-11T11:12:00.000-07:00

This blog is no longer being updated.

Please go to no-wing's real blog.

Oldori

2005-03-31T23:41:00.001-08:00

Oldori is another fictional language I have created for another world setting (used for my game project, Battle Chess), whose name I have lost in some text file in a particular portable storage medium. Inspired by the Arabic system of writing, Oldori is written from right to left, and different marks around the original letter to indicate stress and tone.

PLL - Darkbrood and Erghit

2005-03-31T08:15:00.000-08:00

Erghit

As Hizuran is Light, Erghit is Darkness. Erghit, the Trench of Shadows, the Blinding Void, Home of the Darkbrood, lies at the north of Hizuran. If one would look down into Erghit from one of the peaks, he cannot see anything but a dull black. The blackness is not natural, but due to a high concentration of black mana that floods the entire trench, so thick that walking in it is almost like walking in water. The black mana is usually inert, though one in it can feel it running through his body, chargin g it with power. If someone attempts to cast a magic spell, then the surrounding area combusts in a black flame.

Erghit is a long and winding valley, though the valley walls under the sea of mana are smooth and featureless. The temperature is a freezing cold because no warmth could be obtained from the black mana.

As dangerous as Erghit gets, Many adventurers enter Erghit in search of power but never return, forever indulging in black mana. Mages - usually mystiks try to channel the black mana for personal use but most fail terribly, often killing themselves in the process. The successful ones survive to be great mages with a corrupted heart.

Darkbrood

A 'darkbrodd' is a general term given to someone from Erghit, native or not. 'Native' darkbroods aresaid to be descended from fallen gliders, gliders who forsake their honor in quest of power. Native darkbroods and gliders do have a certain resemblance in their short stature and hollow bone structure, though their hair, skin and eye color are completely different.

All darkbrood have dark skin (not tanned, but greyish) and dark red eyes and hair. THey seem to be able to communicate telepathically, but only with fellow darkbroods in a very short distance.

Other pics from Anime Week

2005-03-30T02:24:00.000-08:00

The other half of what we've done, these are drawn by coffeeping and shaded by me.

PLL - Merideans and Katulis

2005-03-29T21:49:00.000-08:00

Katulis

The underwater kingdom of Katulis is located in the sea between the east and west continents. It is not clear how far the borders of Katulis extend, but considering that the merideans are the only intelligent underwater race, they pretty much own the waters.

A land traveller may enter Katulis from Port Katulis West or Port Katulis East, each on a different continent, by bubble-shaped chariots. Katulis West is located in the coastal city of Navi, while Katulis East is a port city on it own. Said traveller might not be too eager to step out unprepared of the chariot when it reaches its destination, but the water in certain regions are surprisingly breathable. The boundaries of these regions are marked with high fences and permanent warning wards to protect land travellers from wandering too far.

The buildings of Katulis are carved out of natural stone and coral, the most expensive houses being those carved from cliffs. The palace is in an inverted coral reef.

Merideans

The merideans are an underwater race. Unlike the mermaids and mermen in The Little Mermaid, the merideans aren't just humans with a fish tail and gills. The merideans have bluish-green tough and scaly skin, and their hair - well, they're more like long, soft scales.

Merideans have a long and tapering tail like that of a snake. They move around in water with their arms and tail movements. Some merideans possess the magic of turning their tails into feet for walking, these merideans are usually merchants or diplomats.

PLL - Greyvians and Greyvelt

2005-03-28T20:17:00.000-08:00

Greyvelt

Down south of the eastern continent lies Greyvelt, the sunken forest, home of the greyvians. Greyvelt isn't much of a sight. Think the forests of Kurast in Diablo 2, only much wetter. There might be some ruins of ancient kingdoms somewhere in the jungle, though most of Greyvelt remains undiscovered.

Greyvians

A greyvian is most easily noticed by his skin color, which is grey with a hint of green. Greyvians also have long tails with short fur. The rest of the body hairs are similar to a human.

A greyvian prefers to wear little because of the wet climate. Their clothes are made of rough cloth and woven grass.

Greyvians either live in wooden houses on trees, or stilted houses on the ground.

The preferred weapon of the greyvians is the whip.

PLL - More on Mystiks

2005-03-27T14:43:00.000-08:00

It's been quite a while since I've introduced the races of PLL, so here are the Mystiks. For an example of what Mystiks look like, look at Eloneth, he's not too far down there.

Anatomy

Mystiks are more of a cult than a race, though members of the cult are usually shunned by fellows of his race. As the mystiks aren't a race, there is no common defining physical feature except the marks of a mystik. A mystik's mouth is sewn up with mylweim threads as a part of an 'oath of silence' he is bound to. The mystiks will have access to his powers as long as the seal of threads is not broken.

Mystiks also have a unique mark on their foreheads as a window to telepathic communication. Mystiks receive the mark during the rites of initiation, where the laying of hands by a mystik priest would cause the mark to magically appear.

Mystiks are mainly mages. There are mystiks fighters, but they still use their magic when fighting. A mystik can draw his magical powers from any natural landscape, though rock formations are the most potent sources of power. Mystik magic is probably the strongest form of magic in the world, thought the great power takes a toll on their lifespans.

Society

Mystiks are found everywhere on the world, though they're most concentrated in their sacred city of Breiben. The social structure of the mystiks are unknown, though the most high-ranked mystiks manipulate the lesser mystiks telepathically from the stone towers of Breiben.

Fashion

A mystik prefers simple garments and drab-colored clothing. He will most likely be also seen in a hooded cloak when walking in public. A mystik prefers his accmade of stone - stone bracelets boost their powers by quite a big notch, and they do not hesitate to cover both their arms with stone bracelets in order to be more powerful.

Some mystiks put themselves in physical restraints - chains, bandages - in order to limit their magic use.

Diplomacy

The mystiks live in a highly isolated society, and most other nations prefer not to think of its existence. However, some anti-mystik vigilante movements operate independently to hunt down mystiks and lynch them.

Unnamed glider prepares to strike

2005-03-26T21:30:00.000-08:00

Another sketch. Didn't really like the pose so didn't color it.

Eloneth colored

2005-03-26T21:16:00.000-08:00

Did this at the Anime Week booth. I'll be putting up more pics from Anime Week.

Eloneth posing

2005-03-25T05:36:00.000-08:00

Foshizzle.

Anime Week '05...

2005-03-24T07:30:00.000-08:00

Starts today.

Ohitsujiza-kun finished

2005-03-21T05:03:00.000-08:00

Finally, all six done.

Click on the pic for the wallpaper version.

Ohitsujiza-kun sketch

2005-03-20T04:39:00.000-08:00

Coming out pretty fine. I put him in a sleeveless shirt to save me from the troubles of drawing the damn creases. One of the few times I have a reason to put them in sleeveless. Other times just because they look cute in it. But anyway, sleeves can be a pain sometimes. I mean, most of the time. And pants too.

Shishiza-kun

2005-03-19T13:13:00.000-08:00

By the way, this is a rather cool effect. Don't think I've seen it in other Flash movies before.

Yagiza-kun

2005-03-17T21:16:00.000-08:00

Whoa, screw making up for last week for now. I'll handle that once I get over with Data Structures and other crap.

Here's lineart of Yagiza-kun. Not exactly satisfied with the horns. Gotta fix that.

.
.
.

And it's done.

Kaniza-kun - Final stage

2005-03-14T23:18:00.000-08:00

And it's done.

Kaniza-kun - Stage 2

2005-03-14T21:33:00.000-08:00

And yes, I'm aware that multiple stages of the same picture counts as only one.

Sasoriza-kun

2005-03-13T23:46:00.000-08:00

If you think his pose looks too suggestive, he probably is. Colored version coming up soon.

(Half an hour later)

And it's done.

Kaniza-kun

2005-03-13T14:19:00.000-08:00

Ahh.... in the lab now, for Open Day. I very much would like to continue on Sasoriza-kun but they don't have Photoshop here, so I started on the sketch of Kaniza-kun. My tablet's an attraction.

Oushiza-kun finished

2005-03-12T15:43:00.000-08:00

There. Sasoriza-kun is next.

Oushiza-kun

2005-03-12T04:31:00.000-08:00

I wonder what I was doing for the past few days. Gotta make up for them.

Part of a collaborating series Ping-ping and I are doing for Anime Week '05. Uncolored version. Will be coloring it... ah, after lab test.

Shit! Lab test!

WIP to WD - Lucoth shaman

2005-03-09T21:01:00.000-08:00

Two days ago I showed the concept sketch of the LUcoth shaman I'm drawing for my friend, here's how it looks like now:

Ah, I'm very proud of myself with the cavern. Now I just need to shade the guy properly, finish up the aura and draw some bright crystals in the background. That should take about an hour or eight.

Four hours later....

Almost done...

And.... done

Character sketches - Samu

2005-03-08T21:35:00.000-08:00

For my modelling assignment, I chose to do Samu-kun, one of the few random characters I drew. Here's an original picture of him, that's about all that I drew him.

Front and side views, with his hands up and down. Be doing other views.

Damn, Anime Week is coming in two weeks' time. I better start drawing something decent for it.

Card of the Day - Magifice Blast

2005-03-08T15:34:00.000-08:00

Magifice Blast
1U
Instant
Counter target spell.
Mimic 1U (Any other player may pay 1U when you play this spell. If a player does, put a copy of this spell on the stack. That player may choose new targets for that copy.)

A 'hard counter' should cost at least two blue mana without drawbacks, that's what the guys at Magic E&D use as a rule. Mimic allows your opponent to copy this spell, which means that he may use the copy to counter yours.

For a more detailed explanation on the role of counterspells in the game, see my article on counterspells.

Intermission II - A brief history of counterspells

2005-03-08T15:33:00.000-08:00

I'll start of with a brief introduction for those who read my blog and don't play Magic. Experienced polayers may skip the next two paragraphs, but it's advised that you read it as well becuase hey, I didn't write it for nothing.

Anyway, there are five colors in the game of Magic - white, blue, black, red, green in that order. Each color represents an aspect of magic itself, it shouldn't be too hard to see what each color does - white is the color of healing and protection; blue is the color of knowledge and cunning; black is the color of death and greed; red is the color of chaos and destruction; and green is the color of nature and life.

Counterspells are, well, spells that alow you to 'counter' your opponent's. When a spell is countered, it is rendered null and void. It does nothing. It's a spell that has gone to waste. The creator of the game decided to put counterspells in blue, the color of trickery. Your opponent spends all his resources casting a bigass spell and wham, your counterspells blows it away. Counterspells are probably the most annoying cards in the whole game. Try to bring a deckful of counterspell to a tournament and you'll be beaten. Physically.

The hated ancestor of counterspells is guess what, Counterspell (People back then aren't as creative with names). For two blue mana (the primary resource in the game, for those who don't play. Just take it like 'money'.), it puts every other spell at risk. Blue wasn't that much of a popular color back then mainly because it's lacking effecient big creatures that actually win you the game. (Side note - For a more complete description about the rules of the game, check out EWA's Secret Lair.) I suppose Counterspell didn't have much attention payed to it as well.

Another blue counterspell that came alongside Counterspell was Spell Blast. Spell Blast was even less well-received becauae of it's )often high) variable cost. Most of the time, it's caster has to spend more than three mana to actually counter anything.

Ironically, Spell Blast's superior counterpart, Power Sink, came along in the same set. Power Sink was basically a race of resources, whoever has more mana wins. If your opponent can't pay what you invested into the Sink, he loses.

The real power-counter didn't come until three years later, when the Alliances expansion was released. Force of Will was the first 'free' counterspell, free in the sens ethat you needn't use any mana to cast it. It instead use an alternate resource - your life and the cards in your hand. Even at five mana, Force of Will was the more popular choice because you can play it as a trick up your sleeve when your opponent sees that you have no mana (money, remember?) available.

Alliances also brought in the 'cantrip' counterspell Arcane Denial. A 'cantrip' spell is one where supposedly, you don't spend anything to cast it. The spell comes along with 'draw a card', which means that the spell somehow replenishes itself. This was another preferred counterspell because it costs only two mana, gives you a card, although it gives your opponent two. It was another fourteen months until another 'cantrip' counterspell, Dismiss was released in the Tempest expansion.

The second expansion of the Tempest block, Stronghold (Side note: Magic expansions are released in 'blocks' of three - One big and two small expansions.) featured another popular counterspell, Mana Leak. Mana Leak counters a spell if your oppoent can't pay 3 mana, which is quite a lot in early game. Some expert players play just one copy of Mana Leak as a psychological tactic. By Leaking one spell, his opponent would be more careful in casting his spells, thus saving up more mana for future Leaks and slowing his progress.

The Mercadian Masques block, published in 1999, had a few 'free' counterspells namely Thwart, Daze and Foil, though none were as hyped as Force of Will.

All the while, the original Counterspell was reprinted in base sets and expansions frequently. It was last seen in the 7th base edition, and after that only lesser counterspell variants like Mana Leak and Memory Lapse were reprinted. The Magic R&D team has tried to reduce the power of counterspells, especially those 'hard counters' - counterspells that don't have failsafes like Mana Leak. One of the better recent counterspells is Hinder, a hard counter for 3 mana though it has to put the countered spell back into the library (the deck); and Disrupting Shoal, another 'free' counterspell that may be alternatively played by discarding a card from your hand.

Thanks to Magic R&D's wisdom and insight, couterspells have been brought to a power level where they should have been. In conclusion, I shall quotet he immortal words of a blue mage, "In response, I tap for two blue."

WIP - Lucoth shaman

2005-03-08T09:01:00.000-08:00

Card of the Day - Abject Refusal

2005-03-07T11:00:00.000-08:00

Ah heck, why not I just spend a week talking about counterspell variants. Here's today's variant:

Abject Refusal
2UU
Instant
If you control an Island and this is the only card in your hand, you may play Abject Refusal without paying its mana cost.
Counter target spell.

All out to deny eh? It's free counterspell over again. I can't remember we having any since Foil except for Disrupting Shoal.

To those that think this is too good... well, maybe, but a blue mage wouldn't want to be caught without cards in his hand. Finding ways to make your hand empty to play this spell is the wrong way to play it. It's good when it's free, but it's dangerous too.

Concept art - Lucoth shaman

2005-03-07T02:53:00.000-08:00

Drawing more stuff to compensate for my MIA-ance over the last wekeend. Well technically it's not a complete drawing, but it's something to show how the drawing drawing would look like when it's complete. As far as I've seen those guys in Wizards do it, its eems to be like this.

Anyway, this is a picture of a Lucoth, a subterranian race an online friend of mine created. Here's his description of the Lucoth:

[Lucoth are] vaguely reminiscent of insects in appearance, but also tall and elegant. The Lucoth city is a matrix of hexagonal cells, much like the inside of a bee hive. Lucoth society is strictly regulated, with every Lucoth working toward the greater good of the hive. This suits them just fine as they have little sense of individuality. To a Lucoth, excommunication from the hive is a worse fate than death.

Card of the Day - Cynical Remark

2005-03-06T23:07:00.000-08:00

Cynical Remark
2UU
Instant
Meld 2 (You may pay 2 when you play this spell. If you do, you may play a card with Meld 2 from your hand without paying its mana cost.)
Counter target spell.

Another counterspell variant. Meld was one of the cooler mechanics I came up with, but somehow just didn't take off. Maybe I need more spells with Meld.

I came out with Meld after the idea on 'convenient spells'. In fact, the whole block (Parallel Worlds) was based off 'convenience'. I don't think there was another set with so many other ways to play a spell.

Overbleedage

2005-03-06T22:06:00.000-08:00

Well... I was being lazy.

Game design document

2005-03-06T19:24:00.000-08:00

Planning to develop my trading card game idea further, so I was scribbling the first draft of my game design document on scrap paper. Now that I'm typing it down my first draft nicely in WordPad (I try not to use microsoft Word whenever able), it's just so hard to put down the rules in formal terms. How the hell do you describe 'moving a creature' without using the word 'move'?

n any case, this is addictive. It has been taking up my drawing time. If anyone is interested in joining the developent team, tell me.

Card of the Day - Stag Antlers

2005-03-05T17:14:00.000-08:00

Stag Antlers
2G
Enchant Creature
Enchanted creature gets +2/+2.
Enchanted creature can't be blocked by creatures with power less than it.

Man, I haven't been drawing for a while now, busy doing... other stuff. I'll ony be able to get back to drawing tonight.

Anyway, the reason why I brought up drawing and this card is because this was the first card that I illustrated on my graphics tablet. That was in May 2004, when I first joined DeviantART. Looking back at it, the pic sucks now. I won't post it here, but those who are intrerested can go to my DeviantART gallery.

Card of the Day - Self Deception

2005-03-04T18:35:00.000-08:00

Self Deception
U
Instant
You gain 5 life. At the end of turn, you lose 5 life.

I must be on drugs when I made this. I remember myself thinking hey, wouldn't it be cool if we had a one-turn mini Illusions of Grandeur? No. Maybe it does save you by delaying your death for a while, but in general it's pretty much useless.

Three years down the road, I created the set 'Fortress', which is based on life. Maybe it'll find some use there.

Card of the Day - Eternal Glade

2005-03-03T21:40:00.000-08:00

Eternal Glade
Land
Eternal Glade untaps during each player's untap step.
T: Add 1 to your mana pool.

Nothing too interesting this time, just a land that taps for vanilla and untaps each turn. Well, some mana acceleration during your opponent's turn is pretty nifty, but... this card is just unnoticable. anybody can think of anything that takes advantage of the untapping?

Card of the Day - Unnamed

2005-03-02T06:45:00.000-08:00

[unnamed]
1W
Instant
Discard any number of cards from your hand. You gain life equal to the total converted mana cost of cards discarded this way.

And now... my submission for You Make the Card 3. It's unnamed because I created it just for the contest, though I might as well put it in one of my sets.

Dreamscape - Creepy twilight

2005-03-02T06:30:00.000-08:00

Scene from a dream I had just a few hours ago. I dreamt that I was riding on this bus on an empty road. There were very few empty buildings on the two sides of the roads, though there were quite some flashing neon signs for some reason.

I looked out of the window. The sun has already set, though there are still streaks of light at the horizon.The way that the horizon clouds were like as just... surreal. The whole sky was greyish but the yellow was beautiful. This picture does no justice to that scenery.

Card of the Day - Diverging Lens

2005-03-01T22:28:00.000-08:00

Diverging Lens
4
Artifact
Creature and enchantment spells cost you 2 more to play.
Instant and sorcery spells cost you 2 less to play.

This was my submission to You Make the Card 2. It's a very old card I made, like four years ago (before PLL). Of course, there's a Converging Lens that does the opposite.

Quickie

2005-03-01T04:33:00.000-08:00

I have this nifty wooden model on my table, gave to me by a former teacher. I don't use it at all, just putting it on my table for visitors to play with. And do they come up with weird poses.

Here's the current pose:

Didn't finish the feet because ran out of canvas. The shading was kinda tricky, I had to use a very very light shade of grey to shade it. Digital art programs are tricky.

Akiwara Kaede

2005-02-28T23:50:00.000-08:00

Friend's D&D character.

Card of the Day - Fear Hunter

2005-02-28T22:49:00.000-08:00

Fear Hunter
3G
Creature - Cautor Archer
T: Fear Hunter deals 4 damage to attacking creature it can't block.
2/2

I think I shall skip explaining about Cautors for now, but rather focus on the mechanics of this card for now.

Anyway, I don't think 'something it can't block' would be that hard to understand. The card name already gives a hint on what it can shoot - Creatures with fear, doh! Also in this category are flying creatures, unblockable creatures, etc. If you enchant a Pacifism on it, more power to you.

The big significance of this cardit that it was my submission to Wizards of the Coast's first 'You Make the Card' contest, where the chosen ability would be printed out in a set. Forgotten Ancient won. Blah.

Character profile - Kyuro the monk

2005-02-27T22:13:00.000-08:00

Name: Kyuro
Age: 22
Race: Human
Class: Monk
Alignment: Lawful Good

Biography:

Kyuro was born the landlord's son of a small village. On the day before his eighth birthday, the village was ravaged by a horde of mountain bandits, killing both his parents and two sisters. Kyuro, then hiding in a cupboard, was eventually discovered by one of the bandits. Just when the bandit raised his arm to strike the child with his sword, an unseen palm struck the bandit right in the chest, killing the bandit on the spot.

It turned out that the palm belonged to an old monk who happened to pass by the village. After saving the child in the cupboard, the old monk offered him to join him in his travels back to the monastery of St. Cuthbert, the god of retribution. Burning with vengeance, Kyuro agreed.

Kyuro was an exceptional student, though often reckless and unforgiving. When Kyuro was 13, after a particular incident that left another student almost dead, Kyuro's master interfered. Kyuro was heavily chastised by the master. As punishment, Kyuro's hands were bound together by cloth, a symbol that he shall not fight over the smallest thing.

Kyuro still keeps his hands bound until this day as a sign of respect to his master. He believes in 'repentance' - that a person, no matter how evil, can turn back to the right path when properly instructed. He tries not to resort to violence no matter the circumstances, only to stun his opponent long enough for him to get away at the most. However, his hatred towards bandits still rages deep in his heart, therefore he would not hesitate to kill anyone who kills. In his words, "What goes around, comes around."

Appearance:

Kyuro is a few hairs short of five feet, not very tall of an adventurer of his age. His skin is tanned to a healthy brown, and he has black hair.

He wears light traveller clothing - a sleeveless shirt covered by a cloth vest, worn long pants and sandals. His arms are wrapped with cloth and are bound at the wrists, leaving him with just about enough freedom for daily activities.

Card of the Day - Doubled Might

2005-02-27T13:57:00.000-08:00

Doubled Might
1G
Enchant Creature
Enchanted creature gets +1/+1 for each +1/+1 counter on it.

This card would be so sick with Ravager. Anyway, this was a card in the third set I created. As far as I remember, there weren't many cards with +1/+1 counters on it. I thought the idea was cool and threw it into the set.

It wasn't until very recently that I couldn't just throw in 306/165 cards together and call it a set. Each set almost always follow a certain formula, namely:

- The 'staple' spells. Each set should always have variants of a certain effect. Example, white: life gain. Red: Artifact destruction.
- The weenies. The average cost of all the spells in a set should be around 2.3 to 2.5. Since there are spells that cost up to 10 mana or more, it means that most spells are around the 2-3 mana range. Sometimes, 'staple' sells come in these forms.
- Crap. Pale Moon? Mudhole? Liar's Pendulum? Azami? As crappy as they might be, someone will make a deck out of them. I still love my Coalition Victory deck.
- Weird stuff. Basically cards that make people go whoa when they first see them. I consider Doubled Might to be in this category. Mirrodin was full of these.

Card of the Day - Eloneth

2005-02-26T03:54:00.000-08:00

Eloneth, Insane Prodigy
WB
Legendary Creature - Elf Mystik Wizard
1WB: Change Eloneth, Insane Prodigy's power or toughness to target creature's power or toughness. (This effect doesn't end at end of turn.)
0/2

Uh... Mys-what? That's not a typo, just another class type in PLL. I don't know how I came up with the Mystiks, probably made a typo on 'mystic' and thought it was cool or something. Lenny's a kid when he comes into play, but he grows big pretty fast. If you have some spare mana, he'd be at least a 2/2 when he comes in.

And yeah, he's insane. Escaped from the lunatic asylum I'll talk more on him later. Meanwhile, here's a closeup:

Not sure if it looks like it, but his mouth is sewn up. That's part of the 'oath of silence' the mystiks have to swear on when they enter the cult. More on it later.

Card of the Day - Contentment

2005-02-25T22:43:00.000-08:00

Contentment
1W
Enchantment
Discard a land card from your hand: You gain 3 life.

One of the first few cards in Realms, I just loved the simplicity and flavor of this card. You're content with what (lands) you have. So you 'give them away' for something else. Mmmmmm.

Anime Week '05

2005-02-25T04:31:00.000-08:00

Warm feet dirty bedsheets

2005-02-25T03:38:00.000-08:00

ZZZZZ

Was trying to draw a big mattress for the guy to sleep on, but.... did it turn out good? Guess I still suck at folds.

Card of the Day - Æther Stalker

2005-02-24T10:25:00.000-08:00

Æther Stalker
1UB
Creature - Subterran Warrior
Fear
1U: Remove Æther Stalker from the game until Night.
2/1
"Eyes are not for listening."

I can't remember what does the flavor text mean, but I'm sure it came from the age-old saying of teachers: "Do you use your mouth to write?" in front of a noisy class.

Subterrans are another race in PLL. More on that later.

PLL - More on Subterrans:

2005-02-24T10:24:00.000-08:00

The subterrans areanother race I created for PLL. It's not hard to guess where do these people live in. And if you don't get it by now... OK, they're underground people, OK?

Anatomy:

Size-wise, subterrans aren't much different from humans. The first thing a person would notice about a subterran is his ears. Subterrran ears are about twice as big as normal humans in order to capture sound more efficiently. Another feature unique to them is their exceptionally huge arms and hands.

Subterran eyes are adapted to the darkness. Subterrans gain infrared vision after puberty. When they walk on normal ground, they have to wear 'day vision goggles' so that their eyes don't get damaged.

Subterran mages are trained in shadow manipulation and telekinesis.

Society:

Subterrans live in the cavern network of Wyridian, right under the Hizuran Mountains. It's hard to estimate how many subterrans are there in total becasue of the caverns' extensive reach. Hence, there isn't a central authority to bind the subterrans together. However, most subterrans live in communities in the larger caverns. There isn't a big job distinction between males and females because of their similar physique and strength, though merchants are mostly male (since they have to be away from their home) and miners are female.

Fashion:

Subterrans have very little hair, so it's not uncommon to see them wrapping their heads with cloths or bandannas. They wear very little, usually covering only the vital spots, since underground life is full of dirt and grime. Their attire is made of rough cloth so that they won't get worn out easily.

Subterrans prefer dlaws and daggers as their weapons.

Diplomacy:

The surrounding nations are in neutral terms with Wyridian. Though very few nations admit that they have trade ties with them, the underground market (pun not intended) of precious minerals and hitmen is what makes the subterrans a significant force in the world.

ZOMG I drew a girl!!!

Card of the Day - Fumble

2005-02-23T20:49:00.000-08:00

Fumble
2U
Instant
Counter target spell unless its controller played a land this turn.

There has been a whole lot of variants on the original Counterspell that there's not much space to move around. Here's something I came up for Realms, a land-themed set. I liked the flavor of Realms a lot, it's set in a 'spirit world'. It's different from Kamigawa that there aren't any human(oid)s, and the conflict isn't that significant.

PLL - Rugul

2005-02-23T03:50:00.000-08:00

In case if you're looking at the scribbles in my previous pictures and wondering what's that, it's Rugul, an alphabet/language I created for PLL. I've got the alphabet out and has been 'evolving' it for the past few years.

Creating alphabets are fun, if you know how to do it. Not just in the "Ha ha I'm writing bad things about you and you don't know it" kind of fun, but it's just fun to have a piece of culture in your works.

Here's another sample of cursive Rugul:

And I'm not telling you what it means.

Card of the Day - Sunwind Glider

2005-02-22T21:34:00.000-08:00

Sunwind Glider
3WW
Creature - Glider Soldier
Flying
At Day, creatures you control get +1/+1 and have stand. (Attacking doesn't cause them to tap.)
3/3
"The heavy task of protecting Hizuran is laid on my wings, and I will fail not in doing so.

The mechanic of Day/Night worked like this: At the start of the game, Day/Night will be determined randomly. Then after each player takes his turn, it'll become the other time of the day. So Sunwind Glider will give +1/+1 and 'stand' (I've been using 'stand' all the while and I can't stand the official term 'vigilance'). a 3/3 for 3WW is quite a mediocre deal, but a Serra Angel carrying a Glorious Anthem half of the time is another matter.

Here's a concept sketch of a Sunwind Glider, the second highest rank a Glider soldier could have. More on Gliders later.

More on Gliders

2005-02-22T21:33:00.000-08:00

Anatomy:

Gliders are one of the first humanoid races I created for Project Lesser Legends (PLL). They are shorter than humans (about 5 feet at their tallest), and have short lifespans (about 40 years). They live on the peaks of the Hizuran mountains, into the clouds where only the hardiest plants survive. As such, they get sustenance by absorbing energy from the sun itself. They also have hollow bones like birds, so that they could fly.

A glider is born with metal wings, and they could be enhanced with a magical metal called mylweim. The bigger and more ornate the wings, the higher the rank. The glider society is highly structural. Other than wings, a glider's rank is determined by his headgear and clothes.

Society

A glider child starts off at the lowest rank of the society. After his/her coming-of-age ritual at nine years old, he/she steps into the productive society. A glider boy would be used as messengers, flying from a peak to another to deliver important information and news; while a girl would move into the commercial or religiouis sector as apprentices or priests.

Fashion

Cloth is scarce in Hizuran, so most of their accessories are made of stone and metal (like shoes, for one. YOu can't really see it in the picture, but they're made of metal). A glider probably has three or four sets of clothing throughout his whole life, since they don't grow too much or sweat at all.

For males, their attire is basically as shown in the picture. The short-sleeve shirt provide adequate protection against the elements, and their pants vary in length depending on rank. The messengers wear shorts, while the soldiers long pants. For females (maybe I'll draw them some other time), a sleeveless robe and an undergarment is their standard attire. For the priests and mages, their rank is determined by the length of their robe sleeves.

Different sorts of headgear, from simple metal circlets for messengers to gold crowns for generals are worn as a status symbol.

Diplomacy

The gliders are allies with the elven empires Feldaril and Anogria, both to the south of the Hizuran Mountains, and are constantly at war with the werewolves in Orizoa.

Ninja 2

2005-02-22T04:30:00.000-08:00

Second ninja requested by Key. Remember to get it from here OK Key?

Intermission

2005-02-21T19:24:00.000-08:00

Taking a break. Before I post my other pics, I shall introduce some artists I admire.

Being a big fan of Magic: the Gathering, it's not surprising that I know some of my favorite artists through there. Today, I'll talk about John Avon.

John Avon is famous for his fabulous landscapes. I can't really find a term for it, I guess you could call it 'realistic fantasy'. Check out some landscapes he illustrated, like Tranquil Garden, Cloudcrest Lake or Winding Canyons. It's hard to believe that they're drawn out of paints and airbrush.

His talents aren't just in landscapes. Look at Life Burst. It just looks like a photo. Or the abstractness and sheer beauty of Aura Flux. It's not hard to see why his art is appreciated by Magic fans all over the world.

My favorite Avon piece would be a piece of lowly Plains:
>
In case you don't know, Plains is one of the five 'basic land' cards in the game, your primary resource. Everyone uses them to build their decks. And to paint such a breathtaking picture for such a mundane card, it's a respectful job indeed.

Card of the Day - Customized Weapon

2005-02-21T13:18:00.001-08:00

Customized Weapon
1R
Enchant Creature - Weapon
(Enchant Weapons only on creatures you control.)
Enchanted creature has first strike. If enchanted creature is legendary, it gets +2/+0.
Salvage 2R (2R: Return this card from your graveyard into play enchanting a creature you control. Play this ability any time you could play a sorcery.)

This is a card that's similar to Tenza, Godo's Maul. You might say that I copied the Equipment idea, except that mine came out three years before Tenza.

A late night back in October 2001 I was studying my Geography notes for my O-level preliminary exams while watching some crappy Taiwanese variety show. Then it all came. What if I had a set based on the time of the day? What if enchant creatures were physical objects that the creatures could actually hold?What if I had a set based around legendary creatures... like Legends? Hence, Project Lesser Legends was born.

Three years later, Weapons were printed in the form of Equipment. The day/night mechanic in the form of flip Legends. And a setful of legendary creatures in the form of Champions of Kamigawa. As for my set, it's still under development. I planned for it to be a 500-card set, which is kinda big when ideas run dry. I'm still some 50 cards away from reaching the end.

I'll talk about Day/Night tomorrow. I think it's one of the best mechanics I've came up with.

Ninja!

2005-02-21T12:55:00.000-08:00

For Key

People please comment!

Card of the Day - Stigmata

2005-02-20T03:09:00.000-08:00

I'm still working on my Data Structures assignment, so I don't have time to finish today's pic yet. Anyway, here's the CotD for today, the one that started it all:

Stigmata
WB
Enchant Creature
At the beginning of your upkeep, put a +1/-1 or -1/+1 counter on enchanted creature.

I started playing Magic: the Gathering since 2000, halfway between Mercadian Masques and Nemesis. This card was created about a year after that, when I'm more familiar with the rules and stuff.

The original version only allowed you to enchant it on an opponent's creature, and it gave +2/-2 or the other way round. A few revisions made it the simple card it is now.

Works in progress

2005-02-20T00:52:00.000-08:00

Whew! Today was a tiring day! The arcade session took a big toll on my fingers, all that walking afterwards made me pretty much dead. Don't think I'm able to finish up a picture today, anyway, here are some half-done pics which will be finished in these two days:

Chibi ninja requested by Key for his project. The pose is pretty tough.

After my slight success with grassy backgrounds, I decided to move on to mountain peaks... aren't as easy as expected. There aren't enough tones to make it look realistic. I think I'm going to have a hard time here.

Card of the day - Megido Dragon

2005-02-19T23:39:00.000-08:00

I'll start a 'Card of the Day' thing. These are the more interesting Magic: the Gathering cards that I've designed. With about 10 sets created so far, guess I won't be running out of resources for quite a while ;) Anyway,

Megido Dragon
RR
Creature - Dragon
Flying
Megido Dragon can't be the target of spells or abilities.
When Megido Dragon comes into play, it deals 19 damage to you.
9/9

I always loved cards like these. Powerful fatties that throw you into a shithole and you have to figure your own way out. (Eg. Leveler) So I designed this for Fortress, a medieval-fantasy setting expansion still in progress.

Fortress is a set based on life totals. Red spells and creatures get more powerful if you are at a low life total. So Megido Dragon is a double-edged sword - it's big, it's hard to get rid of, it helps in powering up your spells; but it puts you at a very dangerous position. If your opponent attacks with two creatures, most likely you're dead. If your opponent is playing red, time for you to scoop.

Maybe some of you have guess how did the name came about. I got the name from a devastating attack by Omega Weapon in Final Fantasy 8. His Megido Flame deals 9998 damage to all your party members. So you'll be dead unless you have 9999HP. Hence.

Dancing fingers

2005-02-18T01:04:00.000-08:00

Trying out something different for this time. I didn't really refer to my hands since I can't place my hands at that angel, so had to sorta imagine how they'd be like that.

First time drawing a keyboard. Can't draw straight lines using my graphics tablet.

STFU

2005-02-17T03:50:00.000-08:00

Marcus stared into his mirror.

"I think I should get a haircut," he said.

"He thinks that he should get a haircut, he says!" His reflection in the mirror chimed.

"Huh?" Marcus turned around to see who was talking to him.

"Huh, he says!" His reflection made his jump.

"Wow, cool. My reflection could talk!" Marcus was delighted.

"It's cool that I can talk, he says!" His reflection sounded sarcastic.

So Marcus and his reflection talked for a while, each time the reflection replied in 'he says' voice.

"I'm sick of this."

"He's sick of this, he says!"

"Shut up."

"Shut up, he says!"

"Go away."

"Go away!"

So Marcus left and his reflection was no more.

Taking my stylus for a stroll

2005-02-16T18:36:00.000-08:00

For Chinese New Year and Valentine's Day:

I always liked writing calligraphy, but I suck at it on real paper. Thanks to technology, we get the ultimate key combination of Ctrl+Z.

My favorite character is still this:

It took me about 20 tries to get the curves correct. I wonder if I could print these on bookmarks and sell them. Anyone want them?

With the winds

2005-02-15T04:18:00.001-08:00

In the middle of the great Mithylian plains, a lone figure walked.

The clouds were clearing, he had been walking since mid-morning, after his simple breakfast of hard bread under a great raintree. Five hours later, there wasn't a tree in sight. The Great Mithylian Plains were great indeed. He figured that it might take him the rest of the zanh to reach the next settlement, according to his map. At least he would have a soft bed to spend the night on.

A rock, his keen elven eyes set on it. Something to lean on. Not as good as the buttress roots of a tree, but not as awkward as sitting in the middle of nowhere nonetheless. The wilderness is the wanderer's home.

The rock was a flat one, like a stool growing out of the earth. The elven wanderer put his backpack beside the rock. He laid three fingers on the top surface of the rock. Judging that it's cool enough, he turned around and sat on it. He took out his bottle from the backpack, splashed some water on his face, and rubbed away the grime on his face with his fingers.

The winds picked up. The wanderer stretched out his arms. The wind blow through his dark green hair. Under his arms and into his shirt. A small breeze swirled in his boots. He stretched backwards and deliberately tumbled onto the soft grass. Five hours worth of sweat dried off from his clothes. He figured that he'd save the hassle of changing into a clean set for another day.

On the grass he laid for a while. The winds were still blowing strong. He closed his eyes and dreamed off. The village he was heading to might have nice food and warm beds, but a windy clear day was a moment worth spending an eternity in.