Month: November 2017

The Dragon of Iletupa

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Is it wrong to start designing the cover art before you write the book? I hope not. These are pen-and-ink studies for the cover art of The Dragon of Iletupa, the next novel I’m working on. The first one began as studies of dragon scales and then turned into an odd little street scene with characters taking their colorful balloons for a walk. This in turn inspired a limerick entitled ‘The Droll Encounter.’

The other two managed to come out looking like dragons. Progress!

While taking his balloons for a stroll / Professor Lanyard encountered a troll / A White-Crested Rail and a belligerent snail / Under circumstances unusually droll.

cover art study 2 cover art study 3

Lego Dungeons and Dragons: Spider Pit Trap

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I’m home with a cold today, nothing better to do than play with Legos . . . jk, this is what I would be doing anyway. I had this idea when my sinuses woke me up at 4 am. I’ve been inspired to make interlocking Lego dungeon modules like Heroica or BrickQuest (check out @LegoGuacamole for my first example). This is a pit trap leading down to a chamber occupied by a giant spider and her babies. I had no plan whatsoever for how this might integrate into an actual Lego dungeon, so we’ll just call it a prototype. Maybe I’ll strip out the interior of my Death Star and convert it into a multi-level Lego dungeon . . .

Anyway, here’s the module:

The only way I could display this was on my bookshelf :D The party on the upper level is about to fall into the trap and slide down the chute.
The only way I could display this was on my bookshelf 😀 The party on the upper level is about to fall into the trap and slide down the chute.
The adventuring party. Yes, that is a 1 kg plate from my dumbbell set holding the upper level down.
The adventuring party. Yes, that is a 1 kg plate from my dumbbell set holding the upper level down.
I'm not happy with the white tiles or the action of the pit trap door, so off to BrickLink for parts!!
I’m not happy with the white tiles or the action of the pit trap door, so off to BrickLink for parts!!
A closeup of the chute. The turny bits took some ingenuity to build, and I'm pretty pleased. I debated enclosing the chute but I kind of like it open; this way forces the player to choose between pitching off the side of the chute into the almost-certain death of the inky darkness beyond or staying on the chute to brave the almost as almost-certain death of whatever lies below . . .
A closeup of the chute. The turny bits took some ingenuity to build, and I’m pretty pleased. I debated enclosing the chute but I kind of like it open; this way forces the player to choose between pitching off the side of the chute into the almost-certain death of the inky darkness beyond or staying on the chute to brave the almost as almost-certain death of whatever lies below . . .
The spider pit! Momma and her babies are ready for some juicy adventurer!
The spider pit! Momma and her babies are ready for some juicy adventurer!
A closeup of the spider. I used the body of Ultimate Lavaria as the centerpiece.
A closeup of the spider. I used the body of Ultimate Lavaria as the centerpiece.