Mike Pape

Good morning #PortfolioDay :D I'm Mike, still painting Fantasy Characters doing Fantasy Things (often in Fantasy Places), and having a blast doing it! Last year I got to do my first book covers, and this year I've got some rad stuff in the oven that should be publishing soon 😊

These Silicon Valley Geniuses Are Changing The Game Once Again By Replacing Good Things That People Like With Stupid Bullshit That Sucks Ass

Destishire town at night

@_QAE0 they're all extremely editable (file->shortcut settings), and I highly recommend digging in there for a couple minutes! I defaulted to setting a lot of them back to what I was used to in PS when I switched, but you can mess around with new options in there too :D

my first test sketch in CSP, drawing animals and creatures is my comfort zone. So far I'm really enjoying it! Does anyone have a cheat sheet thing for the keyboard shortcuts for CSP btw? I keep forgetting them

puppy!!!!

@zookie_art this is awesome! I remember passing your name along to the AD when recommending folks, and so glad it turned out :D

🫣 !!!!!

@HellcowKeith My whole campaign is named for an abandoned Cannith research facility in the Mournlands, where they were figuring out how to build planar portals! The PCs went into there right at the outset and have been dealing with the fallout for 2+ years now :D

What’s the most interesting thing you’ve seen in the Mournland? #Eberron

@tendermiasma every now and then it hits you, like dang it's cool huh

You know what I love being able to draw whatever

@SamSykesSwears gotta be beef but they're both pretty rough not gonna lie

are you more of a ray smuckles or a roast beef

Fireball Hello guys, this is one of the illustrations I did for the new D&D player's handbook! It was fun to explore how to paint such strong color harmony. Until next time, guys, enjoy! @Wizards_DnD @DnDBeyond #dungeonsanddragons

@RichardHPerry well dang! I've been watching tons of D20 the past few months, so this is neat to hear :D

This is giving strong D20 art shop vibes ⚒️

@astupidgoose Full orcs! I'm pretty sure they're mechanically changing up how all the half-species work (to allow for more varieties than just half-elf and half-orc), so there's no more species entries for those two specifically.

@WingBuffet are these full orcs or half orcs?

Second illustration I made for the revised PHB – the species entry for Orcs!

@Rosgakori I remember using it so much in 3.5! I'm kind of hoping that 5.5 brings back some silly busted weapons like that, just for fun :D

@PCuattro 'PHB' is the Player's Handbook, one of the core rulebooks for Dungeons and Dragons 😊

@WingBuffet What would be "PHB"?

Sharing the first of my illustrations in the new PHB – the species entry for Dwarves!

@david_b_moffit I honestly put a broom propped against a wall and some soot in the corners at one point, but it didn't work with the composition! An idea that almost worked, though

@WingBuffet Very nice layout. Flows really well. Colors & lighting are really good, too. But man, that's one clean workshop for dwarves. Where's the soot, smoke, embers, etc,? Only a handful of sparks from the piece they are crafting. They must have some cleaning magic going on there. 😁

@eSkilliam All digital (Clip Studio Paint)! It's been years and years since I did any paid work traditionally, and have been working digital for almost 20 years now :D

@WingBuffet oh, also was this all digital or physical media and digital? Sorry for the barrage of questions. I'm just interested in the process :) (I do graphic design as a hobby for 30+ years now, and peoples processes always intrigue me)

@eSkilliam I made the vignettes for these myself! I'd provided different overall sketch ideas for each piece, and every rough had a unique vignette.

@WingBuffet Are the artists making the surrounding mask or was that provided by WotC to add based off of where it was to fit in the book? Artwork is amazing. Wish I had these skills!

@newbiedm @Chazori Neither! The clothing was based on mostly fantasy reference from orcs in various settings, with a bit of fringe and fictional Western/cowboy aesthetics layered on top

@WingBuffet @Chazori Are they coded as Mexican or Argentine?

@jamesjhaeck That was the hope! When we were discussing the species section, there was a big emphasis on non-adventurers – just regular folks going about their lives forging, hunting, waxing poetic etc., so we could feature a range of ages and characteristics outside the usual for D&D art :D

@WingBuffet your inclusion of children in all three of your species illos we've seen so far really sets them apart!

Third species opener that I painted for the new Revised Player's Handbook – Elves!

@JoriBoltonPaint Thanks Jori! These were all so laden with details, but I'm glad I managed to push through :D

@WingBuffet Really great! So much to look at and discover in this piece. Love me some Wayne Reynolds, too!

The idea that younger elves are still figuring out their inborn magical abilities (often by observing others) was something I made sure to sneak in there 😊

AD: Emi Tanji The main focus this time was on the elves' innate magic and their artistic inclinations as a long-lived species – playing music, doing some gardening, painting, or just observing others!