#hetra

The Art of Smelling

Although all four dragon species have their unique traits to show off, the Arthrodracos (Mranvu in their own tongue) seem to dial it higher than the rest at times

Case in point: smelling.

Arthrodracos don't actually have noses. Evolved for underwater hunting, they use a much larger area to detect chemical signals - the inside of their mouths and their tongue. Generally, it is enough to just slightly open their jaws and flick their tongues in and out a couple of times. But when Mranvus really want to smell something, they readily employ their entire jawset - all three layers of it. Them simply enjoying the fragrance of a well-made meal could leave innocent bystanders with emotional scars. Especially deeper in the mainland, where Arthrodracos are rare as the white raven.

Please remember that if you see a Mranvu impersonating some kind of alien monstrosity from a horror movie, it is far more likely that they are only smelling the air. Screaming is impolite.

Dragon Design Adventures #1 - Hetra 2.0

Now you guys can see some of my more messier sketches. Musings about character design process below, read through if you are interested!

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So Hetra. My dear sweet Hetra.

She's a tough code to break, not gonna lie.

My first go at her ended with a Western-style design, with some colorful feathers. Functional, nothing ground-breaking. Something felt off about her, so I put her in the background and focused my efforts on another team member, Shirqi. Glad to report, she had been a success. But Hetra kept eluding me, because the root of the problem reaches far earlier than her first design.

Originally, I wanted the final team to have six members, however while I had had plenty ideas for the first four, the last two were just... there, in the "well, they have to be there!!" kind of spirit. You know, six dragon species, plus one human, seven magic number, all that good jazz. I'm very big on stuff like this, I admit. But currently... yeah, I think four is enough. There may come a day, when I get such a good idea for the last two members that I just have to include them. Or there may not come a day. Or I could eventually design the two races, without them being part of the core group. Anything goes.

I have originally intended for each member to reflect one "type" of dragon in their design - Western, Eastern, drake, Wyvern, maybe a wyrm or a full-on sea dragon, some more obscure versions of dragons, you get the picture. I would still like to preserve this line of thinking, even with only four members.

Marada is a tried and true Western dragon with an aquatic spin on it. Amphibian at its finest.

Shirqi is a very "modern" take on dragons, mostly covered in feathers, with some special wings. Very cat-like, more mammal than reptile.

The fourth member will more than likely be based on Hungarian dragons who are vastly different than the usual myths. Partly because I am Hungarian, of course, I'm absolutely shameless about it, sue me. But also Hungarian dragons have certain qualities that can fit well with what I have been planning for Four and his species in the story. So I have actual reason for this decision! (Man, I can't wait to get to him. Hetra comes first, tho.)

But Hetra? With the other two members gone for now, she could be the "Eastern dragon" of the group.  Of course, not a full-blown Chinese dragon god of the Wind, no no no. Too easy. I want something just a bit extra. Something with leather wings - perhaps a harpy eagle kind of structure, broad but short wings for good maneuverability but weak long-distance soaring. Shirqi and Marada have that last part covered anyway. I am truly wondering if a long body can work with a broad wing. In silhouette, it might - a long and graceful creature when the wings are closed, but a surprisingly broad "paper kite"when flying. I must think on this more. Also, not entirely sure where this "butterfly vibe" came from, but I am liking it. She is a regal character who will have to go through a massive transformation in some sense, after all. Let's see if I can keep it.

Do feel free to share your thoughts on the matter. Lord knows, a fresh pair of eyes never hurts! Thank you for reading. Extra thank you, if you share your thoughts!

(Yes, I do draw other things besides Doc Ock. I am just as surprised as you guys are, trust me)

Dragon Design WIP - Hetra -phase 2-

- Commission Info

- Phase 1

Now for some color schemes and head variations. I am still debating over the final decision here. Anything can change until the final render, so I would really like to hear your opinion about it! ^^Which one do you guys like better?

Also, yeah, not sure why, but I saw some dope-ass vases on this site and I decided to use those as my main references.

Dragon Design WIP - Hetra

- Commission Info

Emboldened by my last attempt at a dragon design, utterly fed up with the s***storm at my job, and for some reason riding on a very strong dragon-mood for a while, I give you guys a new WIP for my portfolio.

Currently named Hetra, Daughter of Ima (“ima” means “prayer” in Hungarian), she is yet another reincarnation of an age-old character, Tamara. You can read basically all my current ideas for her on the page, it is not much as of yet. The silhouette was tricky to figure out - I had a strong vision for her base look, but there were a lot of smaller details that needed to be put in place first. I know the variants aren’t that mind-blowingly different from each other, but I hope you guys still appreciate seeing them. I’m figuring this character design thing out, don’t worry!

Unlike with Marada, who had been a super personal project and damn near a journey of sorts, I would like to share the phases of Hetra with you guys- Kinda like with the Silver Queen, only this time I will do my best not to spam your inboxes with my WIP pictures.

I would very much love to hear your thoughts and opinions on her design phases! ^^

I am planning a speedpaint video about her final render once we get there.