#alfarid

Please excuse the quality, I needed to take photos off screen as I'm still at work after all, sigh. But who cares.

Spoilers ahead!

(Maybe I'll write something up about the previous chapters soon. But for now, a few quick thoughts on the one that just came out!)

Lots of characters featured in this one but notably no Arslan (meaning we don't see him or the group he is with). I thought it was a good choice by Arakawa to focus on those whose objective is reaching Arslan instead, along with Hilmes and Zandeh.

SO nice to see my boys Hilmes and Zandeh in action in a way I can support... okay, just because their behaviour right now is heroic on the surface level doesn't mean they have fully redeemed themselves, but at least I can enjoy this.

Still so stoked to see him going without his mask. This was a nice panel.

The ensorceled soldiers struggling to make sense of their competing orders is... an interesting dilemma. It's the opposite of the cohesion we see with Team Arslan where they're, well, operating as a team, but also able as individuals to use their initiative, prioritise, or take on roles of leadership as needed. Arslan has the retainers he needs. Zahhak doesn't.

This gave me a prickle of fear... Mainly because we know Zahhak is on the lookout for a general and I'm still worried about him managing to acquire one and who that might be. In the novels, Ilterish took that role, but that seems unlikely here. It may come to nothing, Zahhak's mind-controlled forces might remain the rabble that we see right now, but if Zahhak did find someone to take command of them, imagine how much more of a threat his army would be.

Loved the 'Yashasuiin!' moment as the gate broke! Feels good to have something to cheer for, y'know?

Somehow this is cute.

So everyone gets inside the palace and splits up to look for Arslan.

Gieve running into Hilmes and deciding to cross blades with him just in case was fucking hilarious. Only Gieve could do that. And only Gieve can piss Hilmes off that badly (...no, wait, I take it back; Narsus is capable of it too).

Anyway, Gieve's smart, he sees Hilmes has been killing the Snake King's soldiers, he knows hanging around any longer will mean he'll be slower to find Arslan, so he leaves him to it. This encounter feels important; I'll go into why later on.

Relieved to see Alfarid and Merlain, especially when Elam runs into them. The situation for Merlain feels so much better now, and of course Alfarid remains to do what she can! And once again we see her quick thinking when considering how to present information to those outside the palace in order to gain their support. Team Arslan remains adaptable where Zahhak's soldiers flounder and struggle to think for themselves.

This is also cute!

And then things take a turn for the worse as one of the remaining sorcerers shows up and begins manipulating the bodies of the dead soldiers in order to prevent Hilmes from leaving, seeking to hold him there until the Snake King arrives. Fuck. Sounds like Zahhak wants to end Hilmes personally.

This... feels bad.

I said that brief encounter with Gieve felt important, and the reason it felt important is because the likelihood of anyone coming to give Hilmes aid is extremely low. Those who broke into the palace are focused on finding Arslan. They don't have time for Hilmes (and it's not like they'll even be aware he's in trouble, either). We know Sam is likely still inside the palace somewhere, but he's so badly injured I'm not sure what he could do even if he manages to be in the right place at the right time.

Which leaves Hilmes to face this alone, as Zandeh is still on the ramparts... How fast can Zandeh get down there? He'll soon see that Hilmes is in trouble, and surely try to rush to his side.

And maybe I'm a touch paranoid, but we all know Zandeh would lay down his life for Hilmes if need be. Neither of them would survive against the Snake King. If they can't manage to defeat the sorcerer quickly, they won't get away in time. I'm kinda worried (especially after that "Let us go, Zandeh!") that they won't be leaving together.

first of all, i just found it too funny how everyone after hearing arslan's voice is like "why isn't his highness hiding? it's so dangerous to be near the snake king."

meanwhile gieve's reaction is almost like "taunting the snake king huh? I love it. also that sharp tongue. from where did you learn it?" 😆

anyway here are some panels I liked that others haven't posted

my first thought here was oh they are going to use that fire powder again? smart thought.

also loved this panel of farangis making her way to arslan as soon as she heard others shouting about seeing him.

all arslan panels look good but yeah here's a panel of cute arslan and hot daryun. (don't know why I liked this small one. 😅)

loved this farewell between don ricardo and arslan though I still wish to see them talk again. I hope they do. 😭

also daryun fighting zahhak before arslan? why am I not surprised. just hope it doesn't end like the novels.

anyway here's an image of shabrang. I do love the loyal animal friends of the mcs in this manga. I hope nothing happens to him either. 🥲 (I fear more for that horse than daryun though as yk daryun is like important next to arslan.)

A year and two months after the previous entry in this series, here I am with another one, at last!

This time it's Alfarīd. Regretfully I was only able to plan two for her (and her brother, but I haven't drawn him yet) but I tried my best with what I could manage! Her “casual” fit vs her “combat” fit, as I like to call it. Her dress and skirt don't necessarily have to be that color for her combat fit, any of her clothes could go under her armor, but I wanted to try making an alternate color scheme for my girl.

I tried to base her clothing on that of the Baloch people, as I headcanon the Zott to be Baloch like I briefly mentioned here. The headscarf is probably wrong, the reference photo I looked at definitely wasn't that of a Baloch woman, but I liked the look of it, so I'm allowing myself a little bit of creative liberty. I also decided to give her (and her brother as well as the rest of Zott) some armor, like, they're pretty powerful, aren't they? They take mercenary jobs from foreign countries, they attack large, wealthy caravans, so surely they would have the means to arm themselves properly?? Surely???? Good equipment will also make them better at what they do, right?????? It's not that I think the canon designs for her and her clan are bad, it's just that... I don't know. Their designs feel like Generic Fantasy Barbarians™. They could be a little more, y'know? Their design could be more. What's with the short sleeves and bare torsos, everybody? Y'all live in the desert. You wanna get skin cancer? NO. SENSIBLE CLOTHING FOR ALL OF YOU. NOW. (Also bc I've been kinda wondering about the Zott clan's culture, how they came to be, and their potential connection to Badakhshan, all in the context of my AU, and... I dunno, I just wanted to give them More™)

The armor is leather because I think they'd cook alive in metal armor in the desert heat, but then again leather is also known for being terrible to wear in the heat so I... don't know. I think it's still better than them having NO armor at ALL. Like guys. Come on now. Also the leather distinguishes them from the formal warriors and soldiers, visually. That played a part in me choosing this, as well.

If the colors are a bit strange on her, my apologies, but I tried to capture her vibes, but also I really. Kinda hated the shade of pink she was given in the anime. It kinda felt like she was given pink because she was the Girl bandit. Nope, we're giving her something else. The first is a sunny yellow which also to my eyes gave the impression of the sands + the green-blue being kinda like the oasis, as the Zott clan was said to hail from desert regions in the novel:

“The Zott were a bold and daring nomadic people who haunted the deserts and the rocklands, sometimes serving as mercenaries for various nations, sometimes engaging in banditry.”

(Book 2, Chapter Three, part iii)

And uhhhh just think of the pattern dotted on her dresses as cactus flowers or something. Something something blooming in adversity:

The cactus and cactus flower represent endurance, resilience, and strength due to their ability to stand the test of time against harsh conditions in the desert.

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The cactus plant as well as particularly the yellow cactus flower represents heat, security and endurance. The cactus flower is an icon of maternal love due to the fact that it can withstand and also prosper in severe conditions.

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Other meanings for the cactus flower:

- Protection from danger and threats

- Enduring all things, no matter how painful or difficult

- Warmth and care, especially from a mother to a child

These fit her quite well, don't you think? She is, to me, a protective force in her own right (particularly towards Etoile, who she tries to protect both in body and heart because she tries to stop them from rushing into danger for an unworthy king, she stops them from spiralling into a self-blame frenzy by telling them to go find the survivors when Etoile finds Innocentis dead) and I think it feels fitting that she's associated with endurance. We don't know a whole lot about her life, aside from the fact that she was a bandit, she was favored by her father (but he still beat her, the fucking bastard), she had (still has) command and sway over her clan. But I doubt she grew up sheltered. She's already a leader at her age, and that kind of thing doesn't come from someone who wasn't forged into it. Also, being a child of Haltash with all that entailed should qualify her an endurance medal or something. Bastard.

I don't necessarily see her as maternal, nor associate her with motherhood in my mind, BUT it. How do I put it. She'd be really good with kids, I think. Also she mentions babysitting Zott kids and caring for them and that's how she knew how to soothe a fussy baby... so. Sure. There. That counts because I say so. Maybe in the future of the AU she and Ashaya might take in some kid that strayed their way. (Ashaya would need to mature first though because uhhhhh *gestures at their whole thing* y'know.) Or alternatively the couple just ends up every kid's favorite aunt or something. Close enough. I haven't really thought about this one. Maternal or not, though, I do think “warmth and care” are qualities that she possesses in spades.

Those two animals on her dress are gazelles!

In various cultures, the gazelle symbolizes beauty, grace, speed, and agility. It's also associated with feminine beauty, love, and even a connection to the divine in some contexts, particularly in Arabic and Persian literature and ancient Egyptian art. Gazelles can also represent adaptability and perseverance due to their ability to navigate tough terrain.

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The Gazelle is often seen as a symbol of grace, elegance, and agility. They are known for their ability to swiftly navigate through challenges and obstacles in life, emphasizing the importance of adaptability and quick thinking. In many cultures, the Gazelle is also associated with beauty, sensitivity, and intuition.

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Gazelles can represent consciousness, swiftness, elegance, beauty, and liveliness. They are able to maneuver in vertical movements and even meander around while they run to escape their predators.

Alfarīd, as an official (according to me) member of the acrobats club among the cast, is pretty dang agile, wouldn't you think? She dodges Hilmes' strikes in their first encounter. She's the one who responded the quickest to Narsus' alarm during the hunting ground debacle. And while she may not necessarily be the kind of beauty Farangis is, but I do think she is very beautiful. I think of her and only half a heartbeat later I associate her in my mind with beauty. I'm not making sense rn but yeah. Also in the context of the AU she's Ashaya's love interest and... Ashaya finds her very pretty, indeed. The “love” aspect also, I was thinking of their relationship while I was drawing these. And I think she's persevered through a lot. I don't know, I just think gazelles fit her quite well, what do you guys think?

I don't think it's recognizable but I did also put saltwort on her dress embroidery:

Saltwort, a plant that thrives in salty environments, symbolizes endurance, resilience, and survival in harsh conditions.

Sounds about right, yeah?

Gazelles and saltwort can also be found in... fuck, which desert was it. It was one of the ones in Iran. Uhhhh I think it was Dasht-e Naomid? I'm not sure though because I was trying to look around for deserts in Iran and their flora/fauna for symbolism purpose and... couldn't find much, had to scrounge up what I did find, and. So. Here.

I also put little suns on the hems of her yellow dress. I don't have any fancy quotes for this, I just think she's like the sun in many ways.

Not much in terms of symbolism for the second design, just some rambling. I ended up going with that shade of green, as I found the other shades I tried to be too... they were too cool-toned and I thought that wouldn't fit her, so I tried to skew towards a warmer hue here. I do like that aspect of her canon design, so I decided that it could stay. The headscarf stayed the same color to show that what she has on her head for combat is usually just the same as what she tends to wear for her casual fits, just tied up so that it doesn't fly off her head. It also can be any color she likes.

I tried to give her some ✨bling✨ for both designs. I mean, they gotta have some nice shinies from what they took, right? My girl gotta have some neat accessories. She wears some of those to battle too so long as it doesn't get in the way of her armor. I forgot to draw her earrings for the second design, fuck.

As for the designs on the metal bits, one's a star (I do also sometimes think of her as a star so...) and the other's taken from her crest as shown on the Arslan Senki site:

(though the drawing was too small for me to add those little details surrounding the arrows... well, close enough. I don't even know if she'd realistically have an individual crest of her own as she is not nobility or anything, but maybe as the daughter of the chief... or maybe she just likes the look of it. I thought long and hard about what I could put there, what the symbol to represent the Zott could possibly be— the black flag that Arslan gave them only became their banner from that point on, after all, so what came before?— before I just ran out of ideas and decided to go for this instead.)

OH and that's a scorpion on her belt. A symbol that her girlfriend also shares, I talked about it in Ashaya's design sheet here (she was named Ranna back then, don't worry about it).

I also tried to kinda take inspiration from Baloch embroidery for the designs on her clothes as they're known for it:

I think you can spot which aspects I took and such! Thanks for reading this, y'all.

The AU character design sheet saga so far:

I forgot how annoying Alfarid was in the beginning! And how hypocritical. Dear lord above (or below).

I am so happy that she later has such a big character development. She now is one of my favourit characters. (And that is the genius of Arakawas writing! Or rather of Tanaka...)

I am continuing chapter 5 and am now where Narsus and Alfarid are at the village that go attacked by Team Zahhak.

It's done. It's finally done ;_________;

that's one more commission scratched off my list.