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The Context

🐲 This illustration has been commissioned by a French roleplaying game magazine. This is the fifth adventure of the parody of a roleplaying party described in Episode 1. During the previous episode, the adventurers had to face the giant snails guarding the innkeeper’s vegetable garden, after this high feat, it was time to take a break and delve into the intimacy of our adventurers with a more in-depth interview of one of its proudest representatives: the Barbarian…

The Illustration

The principle was to have an in-depth interview with each of the characters (in this case the Barbarian, represented by R.E. Howard) to the exclusion of any other scene or character which could have interfered with the main interview scene. I therefore decided to animate the scene in the most iconic and representative way possible to capture the quintessence of each adventurer. There were therefore two criteria to respect: First, the behavior and posture of the character during the interview. Second: represent all the paraphernalia which embodied as much as possible his role in the adventure, as well as his personality and the elements of the article which referred to it.

Since this “interview” was conducted “OOC” (“Out of Character”), I also took the opportunity to “break the fourth wall” to systematically represent a game of Tabletop Role Playing Game where the character would “play” himself, presenting a figurine in his image within a context of a tabletop roleplaying game. This made it possible to have a surrealist double reading of the situation, while graphically signaling a “type of staging” which differentiated itself from the usual scenes in the series.

For the representation of the Barbarian himself, as well as his attitude, I decided to represent him very… thick. Thick in muscle and thick in brain, since he is described in the article as being really very, very stupid, preferring brutal force to the slightest thought: hence his puzzled posture.

I had decided from the start that the Barbarian would be the stereotype of the “Gros Bill”, which, in the world of French role-playing games, designates a meme for a Powergamer, a player who only seeks to accumulate all kinds of objects and powers up to the caricature to cheat and win every game at all cost. A figure quite close to the Mary Sue or Gary Stu in literature and cinema.

Consequently, he had to be represented with an insane pile of objects and weapons which would change with each representation along the story, in this case: A Sword of the Bastard (allusion to the “bastard sword” type of weapon), a scepter bearing the claws of Wolverine from the X-Men comics, the sword from the movie “Conan”, a two-handed syringe marked “Nth dose” (yes, we were in COVID times), as well as a sword strongly resembling Excalibur. In the same state of mind, Tolkien’s “One Ring” is worn as a bracelet on his left arm… as a small ring would be certainly not impressive enough for our Barbarian.

To reinforce the idea of a player who always wants to win, his flail is ended with a 20-sided dice with all sides bearing the number 20, a number indicating an exceptional and critical result in most role-playing games. The “Unearth Arkana!” tattoo is a declaration of intention from the Barbarian ; actually, in Dungeons & Dragons, the roleplaying community considered that the famous extension of the game named “Unearthed Arcana” allowed the advent of super-powerful players, destroying the balance of the gameplay… this tattoo is therefore a testimony of nostalgia towards a time when everything was permitted.

On the game table is a dungeon floor plan -typical of D&D tabletop sessions- in the middle of it, the gigantic version of the Barbarian’s figurine version is triumphing : all around are scattered the figurines of all the opponents he killed during the game session, both friends and foes…

Two glasses containing the dice necessary for a game are presented: the glass symbolizing the damage inflicted by the character is filled to the brim with dice; the second, symbolizing non-violent skills, includes only a few. As, for this type of player, only destructive capacity counts and not reflection. I also reinforced this matter of fact with a torn “character sheet”. This Sheet is used by players during role-playing games to embody their character within a very specific rules context. The fact that the Barbarian tore his own sheet signifies his carelessness in respecting the rules. It is also covered with fanciful and poorly spelled inscriptions, proving that only the characteristic of “Strength” matters. One the other hand, “Wisdom” -or circumspection- is completely unknown to him and his score of “Intelligence” is very weak – because useless… As proven by his characteristic of “Languages”, which he thought was a question on whether or not the Barbarian was equipped with a functional tongue…

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• “The 4M” : Designing Superheroes for Public HealthJuly 24, 2026
• Site Update : World Architect OffersNovember 27, 2025
• Interview with a Compeer #1.1 : Desfragmentations – “The Alchemical Vision”June 11, 2025
• Using AI creatively : Character Design – Yaràn MalakMay 12, 2025
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Check the latest comments!

1. 

   Thank you very much for your comment coming from an IT expert, Nouha!

2. 

   Very interesting article and excellent choice for th Sphinx!!

3. 

   Splendid as always! And also this showcase the very broad scope of your design skills!

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The Context

🐲 This illustration has been commissioned by a French roleplaying game magazine. This is the fourth adventure of the parody of a roleplaying party described in Episode 1. During the previous episode, the adventurers negotiated at length to NOT cross the cursed portal which led to the cursed vegetable garden to collect cursed vegetables, but they failed the negotiation. This time, they have no choice: they will have to face the guardians of the vegetable garden: giant snails (which are also cursed…).

The Illustration

After having announced a great danger beyond the portal in the previous illustration, I had to represent an epic fighting scene between the four adventurers and the giant snails… I was inspired by historical medieval illuminations which represented this kind of fights between knights and peasants against giant snails during the European middle-age; as depicted in the two images below (click to expand) :

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However, in order to keep the same pictorial style as the previous episodes – and considering the large number of protagonists – I decided to decompose the image and the action into foreground scene, intermediate scene and background scene, in order to include four independent sketches in the same illustration. Narratively and pictorially speaking, it was more interesting to represent four “duels” animating the page than a pitched battle split into two monolithic camps: the snails against the adventurers. This way, the eye can better wander around the page and appreciate the temperament of each character immersed in their own battle.

Each of the snail shells also bears an individual inscription which has a double purpose: First, it allows to personalize each of the snails by giving it a form of personality, posing like the innkeeper’s “cattle” where each animal would have its own nickname, like a pet. And Second, each inscription has “added value” in the way it evokes either a pop-culture “meme” or a pun made out with the word “Escargot” (“Snail” in French).

In the foreground, I chose to focus on the Barbarian‘s victory against his own giant snail; the animal nature of the Barbarian is finally revealed as he literally devours the snail alive, like a succulent dish. I also chose to give a “cartoonish” appearance to the snails, so that they become characters in their own right – and no longer just animals – so that they can also express emotions that can serve the interaction dynamic they have with the adventurers. The pun on its shell is “Chubby-Niggurath”, an allusion to “Shub-Niggurath”, an iconic deity from H.P. Lovecraft‘s cosmogony; and it is also an allusion to the succulent texture of the snail which the Barbarian feasts on.

On the intermediate level, the Wizard enchants a cabbage by levitation in order to delay the assault of his snail, the time someone else comes to help him… or to lure the gastropod towards a possible precipice. His snail bears the inscription “Naute” to form the pun “Escargot-Naute” and therefore “Argonaut”, as if this vegetable harvest were a mythological feat…

Behind the Wizard, the Priest is in difficulty facing his own snail, which is very aggressive – even demonic – which explains the surge of faith of the Priest who tries to do a “Vade Retro” gesture by crossing two leeks to form a crucifix. His snail bears the inscription “de Nuit” to form the pun “Escargot de Nuit” (“Night Snail”), an allusion to a famous French song from the 80’s by Axel Bauer : “Cargo de Nuit”.

In the extreme background, the silhouettes of the Thief scrapping with his snail at the top of a cliff stand out, in the purest style of a swashbuckling film. This scene also allowed me to extend the perspective and the dimension of the vegetable garden as if it were an immense and infinite valley, even a magical country in its own right, which would extend beyond the portal – a strong homage to the World of Narnia. The shell of his snail bears the inscription “Norrhea” to form the pun “Escargot-Norrhea” and therefore “Gonorrhea”, which is a sexually transmitted infection… this snail being particularly infected, it is better that our thief dispose of it as quickly as possible! Note that the position of the off-hand of the Thief and the tip of the snail’s tail are mirroring each other, typical of an “En Garde” fencing position.

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Check my latest posts!

• “The 4M” : Designing Superheroes for Public HealthJuly 24, 2026
• Site Update : World Architect OffersNovember 27, 2025
• Interview with a Compeer #1.1 : Desfragmentations – “The Alchemical Vision”June 11, 2025
• Using AI creatively : Character Design – Yaràn MalakMay 12, 2025
• Article Header Design: “How to use AI for Weak Signals – Trump, the International Revolutionary?”March 28, 2025

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Check the latest comments!

1. 

   Thank you very much for your comment coming from an IT expert, Nouha!

2. 

   Very interesting article and excellent choice for th Sphinx!!

3. 

   Splendid as always! And also this showcase the very broad scope of your design skills!

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The Context

🐲 This illustration has been commissioned by a French roleplaying game magazine. This is the second adventure of a parodic roleplaying party described in the Episode 1. and Episode 2. After having fought an epic battle against a Dish Golem in the kitchen, our heroes are asked by the Innkeeper to go through an ancient portal leading to a merciless world : the one of the vegetable garden…

The Illustration

Part of the narrative continuation of “loser anti-heroes unable to earn a single gold coin”, the Innkeeper requires the heroes to venture into the vegetable garden to earn their share. Therefore, the principle remains the one of the absurd, where the slightest household task takes on an epic proportions; and this, in accordance with the codes of role-playing, but always with humor.

The task of the adventurers is then to venture into a magical and dangerous vegetable garden to harvest all kinds of… well, vegetables…the danger residing in the presence of giant carnivorous snails, eager to devour the slightest careless person venturing into their territory.

The article presents the door as being the source of all negotiations between the Innkeeper, the adventurers and his waitress ; therefore, I decided to essentially use the main plot of the article as the main decorative element: the door.

Beyond that, the waitress serves to animate and put the plot into perspective to prevent the illustration from being too static. The author also wanted the elf waitress to have Asian features, as he wanted to pay homage to one of his personal acquaintances. So, I worked from the photograph of this real person to pose the character of “Balls of Fire” (or “Fireballs”), the elf waitress.

The main thing was to synthesize a “dangerous” aspect with a comic touch. Consequently, the gate had to display a heavy appearance, with several superfluous padlocks, chains and locks to caricature its role as a “forbidden door”; at the same time, I lightened the whole aspect with several anachronistic indications and several puns, “tropes” or “memes” specific to fantasy or role-playing games: a road sign indicating “Beware of the snail!”, a pun borrowed from the Lovecraftian universe or several burlesque warnings.

As for the character of “Balls of Fire”, I created her as the perfect stereotype of the curvaceous and sexy inn waitress; and I chose to add a pair of small “fireballs” in the form of jewelry to several places on her person as a pun on her name. The tray she carries is garnished with several burlesque drinks and puns writings, synthesizing branding, role-playing tropes and certain cinematic allusions.

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This post belongs to the Category :

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Check my latest posts!

• “The 4M” : Designing Superheroes for Public HealthJuly 24, 2026
• Site Update : World Architect OffersNovember 27, 2025
• Interview with a Compeer #1.1 : Desfragmentations – “The Alchemical Vision”June 11, 2025
• Using AI creatively : Character Design – Yaràn MalakMay 12, 2025
• Article Header Design: “How to use AI for Weak Signals – Trump, the International Revolutionary?”March 28, 2025

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Check the latest comments!

1. 

   Thank you very much for your comment coming from an IT expert, Nouha!

2. 

   Very interesting article and excellent choice for th Sphinx!!

3. 

   Splendid as always! And also this showcase the very broad scope of your design skills!

---

Related Themes :

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Related Links :

---

The Context

🐲 This illustration has been commissioned by a French roleplaying game magazine. This is the second adventure of a parodic roleplaying party described in the Episode 1. Since our wannabee adventurers had not enough money to pay their mere meal, they had been forced by the Innkeeper to wash the insane amount of dirty dishes and plates which rest in the kitchen…

The Illustration

Originally, the article was simply presenting a scene of arguing and bickering between the adventurers where everyone asserted their right to NOT wash the dishes, notably the Wizard who thought that an “Unseen Servant” spell would be enough to finish quickly their chore in their stead.

But since we were in a magical world where unreal excess could serve the comic and absurd tone of the writing which was supposed to come through in the article, I decided to go well beyond what was written. And I literally created a “monster” made of dirty dishes and plates that would extend almost to the infinite. So I created a titanic “Dish Golem” that would epically depict the challenge faced by the adventurers.

The horizontal curves of the stacks of plates help create the mass of the golem’s body, while I chose cooking pots, marmites, chaldrons and rounded dishes to form the mouth, hands and fingers, because their rounder shapes were more suitable for the representation of complex organs, a bit like Giuseppe Arcimboldo did with his pareidolia portraits with vegetables and fruits.

A large fork forms the golem’s tongue to evoke his “evil” intention, as well as his glowing, smoldering eyes that come from the embers of the ovens. However, I added a skimmer and a spoon on his head, forming a sort of “antennae” to give him a comical appearance in order to “de-dramatize” the creature: the illustration had to remain light and not frightening. Sometimes it can just be down to a detail.

I transformed the “Unseen Servant” into a fairy-like “French Maid” who – literally – returns her apron and leaves the Wizard’s service, refusing to work overtime in the face of the enormity of the task… and anyway, she was definitely too low level!

In an Illustration, it is necessary to propose concrete alternatives that effectively serve the “spirit” of the article without ever contradicting it. This makes it possible to establish a “style” which will nourish the graphic trend of the series while creating a narrative which the writer can use later. The illustrator is not just a simple performer : he is the co-author of the story in a collaborative and reciprocal dynamic.

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This post belongs to the Category :

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Check my latest posts!

• “The 4M” : Designing Superheroes for Public HealthJuly 24, 2026
• Site Update : World Architect OffersNovember 27, 2025
• Interview with a Compeer #1.1 : Desfragmentations – “The Alchemical Vision”June 11, 2025
• Using AI creatively : Character Design – Yaràn MalakMay 12, 2025
• Article Header Design: “How to use AI for Weak Signals – Trump, the International Revolutionary?”March 28, 2025

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Check the latest comments!

1. 

   Thank you very much for your comment coming from an IT expert, Nouha!

2. 

   Very interesting article and excellent choice for th Sphinx!!

3. 

   Splendid as always! And also this showcase the very broad scope of your design skills!

---

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Related Links :

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The Context

🐲 A famous French roleplaying game magazine commissioned several illustrations from me. Through several episodes, they were representing the adventures and setbacks of a group of adventurous characters (typically Dungeons & Dragons) unable to escape the inn of their first adventure.

Art Direction, Style and Synergy of the Commission

The tone of the article was resolutely comical and satirical, as were the situations represented. However, the illustrations also had to have a certain realistic density so that readers/roleplayers could identify with them, through memories of game experiences shared by all roleplayers.

I therefore chose to make a synthesis of styles oscillating between a form of cartoon, semi-realism and caricature in order to be able to induce certain allusions specific to the storytelling of tabletop roleplaying games, such as certain “memes”, “tropes” or “easter eggs” throughout the episodes that I had to illustrate.

A non-roleplayer could therefore completely understand the illustrated situation, but, in addition, a roleplayer would perceive “added value” thanks to all the details and “private jokes” perceived with a second reading.

Technique

The technique chosen is that of the pencil to adhere to a relaxed and immediate style, specific to press drawings. Also it symbolically embodies the pencil used by all roleplayers during their roleplaying sessions.

Character Design and Narrative Design

The adventure involved a Barbarian, a Wizard, a Priest and a Thief. From the first episode, I had the idea of portraying the four adventurers in the guise of four renowned Heroic-Fantasy writers, each of whom remaining a famous reference among all roleplayers:

Clive Staples Lewis as The Priest

Clive Staples Lewis, the author of the “Chronicles of Narnia” series, has frequently questioned religious faith and has instilled numerous references to Christianity in his works. This made him a wise choice for the Priest. But to keep the light and caricatured spirit of the article, I modified the Christian cross of his prayer rosary into a mathematical “plus” sign of arithmetic, and I added the symbols “minus”, “multiply” and “divide”.

Robert Ervin Howard as The Barbarian

The Barbarian had to be represented by the author who most represented this archetype in Pop Culture: Robert Ervin Howard, the author of the famous “Conan the Barbarian”. Especially since his physical appearance as a boxer made him suitable for this role. Arguing to be an outrageous stereotype of the Barbarian, this character constantly carries a whole eccentric arsenal of weapons on his person in order to demonstrate his aggressive, bellicose and not very subtle nature.

This also allowed me to change the weapons from one illustration to another, to create visual interest from one illustration to the other; and also to make other references to pop culture or Heroic-Fantasy classics through famous weapons such as Starwars’ lightsabers, the Singing Sword of Irish legends or even a giant pocketknife!

Howard Phillips Lovecraft as The Wizard

The mysterious and enigmatic Howard Phillips Lovecraft created a colossal work by inventing the cosmogony of the “Call of Cthulhu” myth. I portrayed him as a Wizard, or more precisely, a Necromancer; his work having always been perceived as very dark, fatalistic and peppered with references to death.

I wanted to give him almost vampiric features, in line with his role ; he always carries the “Necronomicon” like a spellbook and his familiar perched on his shoulder is a small “Cthulhu”, constantly squealing the famous “Ftaghn” from the the injunction of “Call of Cthulhu”.

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien as The Thief

Finally, the Thief took on the features of John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, author of the “Lord of the Rings” saga, in reference to the “Hobbits” of his works who, most of the time, correspond to the archetype of the Thief. I wanted a “rebel” character, completely at odds with the academic personality of the author towards the end of his life. I therefore represented him young and with a mustache, as he appeared during his engagement during World War I, which profoundly influenced his work. He wears “The One Ring” as an earring and several thieves’ tools at his belt, along with several purses containing anachronistic currencies.

The Illustration

In this episode, these adventurers are faced with a forced chore of washing dishes. I symbolized their confusion and summarized the story arc of the episode by an object called “Bucket of Plonge” which is a “Franglais” barbarism that could be translated into English slang as “Bucket for Washing Dishes”.

To symbolize the anxiety of the situation, I gave this object an aura of danger by representing the sponge in the bucket having multiple predatory mouths and a creature is hidden in the broom brush.

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This post belongs to the Category :

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Check my latest posts!

• “The 4M” : Designing Superheroes for Public HealthJuly 24, 2026
• Site Update : World Architect OffersNovember 27, 2025
• Interview with a Compeer #1.1 : Desfragmentations – “The Alchemical Vision”June 11, 2025
• Using AI creatively : Character Design – Yaràn MalakMay 12, 2025
• Article Header Design: “How to use AI for Weak Signals – Trump, the International Revolutionary?”March 28, 2025

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Check the latest comments!

1. 

   Thank you very much for your comment coming from an IT expert, Nouha!

2. 

   Very interesting article and excellent choice for th Sphinx!!

3. 

   Splendid as always! And also this showcase the very broad scope of your design skills!

---

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Related Links :