Raerakun Art

I listened to some old favourites this morning and the idea just hit me. This was actually just supposed to be a quick sketch, so naturally, I ended up spending the whole day day on it.

This is one of the few drawings where I never did a proper lineart. Sometimes I just look at a sketch and it captures the vibe I was going for perfectly and I know doing proper, clean lines would ruin it, and this was one of those cases. So instead I cleaned up the sketch as well as I could. It may not look as crisp, but it has character. :) Maybe I'll do this more often from now on.

So, the thing about Rae is, people who grow important to her don't seem to have the best luck staying alive. As in, I literally keep a "dead friends" list in my campaign notes because it happens so often. And a "dead acquaintances" list. I wish I was joking.

While searching the Underdark for a lost temple, Rae and her friends got lured into a trap and ambushed, resulting in the death of every party member except her. Aside from grieving her friends, Rae is dealing with intense survivor's guilt, feeling like she is the last person to deserve getting out of their mission alive and that her friend, whose selflessness and kindness she admired to no end, should have survived in her stead.

So, I technically drew this ten years ago. Back then it was a traditional drawing. I was obsessed with VanaN'Ice as a teenager, and this song in particular. (And honestly, it's a banger, give it a listen if you don't know it!)

I really liked Len's pose in this scene, but I wanted to draw it with him alone, reaching for a warmth that has long since faded. Because I feel like the fundamental message of this song, and VanaN'Ice songs in general, is that Len ultimately ends up alone. Some songs are more on the nose about this (The Last Supper comes to mind), others are more subtle, but the theme is always there. It's tragic and beautiful and it really hit teenage me right in the feels.

Five years ago, I decided to redraw it digitally. I put this off for so long because I really struggled to learn drawing digitally in the beginning and I wasn't confident that I would be able to replicate the original drawing to my satisfaction. It was one of my favourite drawings (and I still like it a lot), so I really wanted to get it right. I actually uploaded it back then already, so if you've seen a version of this before, that's probably why.

Today, I gave it some final touches (mainly adding some texture) to match my current style more without changing it too much from the original version. There are some flaws that I technically could have fixed while I was at it, but I decided not to. I really like the journey I had with this drawing and I've come to love the small imperfections about it that drove me nuts ten years ago.

Rae is a Changeling rogue. Their current persona is that of "Nilah", a young human woman.

Rae assumed the persona of "Nilah" out of nostalgia - her form resembles a human girl who used to bully Rae when they were children. That is, until Rae committed a petty crime in her form and made sure she was seen doing it. Having gotten a taste of mischief, Rae decided to leave the small village she grew up in behind and put her unique skill set to good use.

After a few years of travelling the Sword Coast and doing odd jobs, Rae decided that it was time to party up with some experienced adventurers. Not just because she wanted to take on even bigger heists, but also because she was lonely. The drunkards that spent the whole night at the tavern did not make great company after a while and she longed for real connection.

Fortunately for her, a guild in Neverwinter just so happened to be looking for mercenaries to take care of a dangerous quest...