#Studious Arriastis

[bean-cookies]

[bean-cookies]

Still losing my mind over how much I love this. 🥺❤ It is my desktop background now

Thank you again! I hope you also have a happy rest of your holidays, and all the best in the new year! 😊

Participating in Secret Satan! Hosted by Sygdom!

My gift is for @bean-cookies really love these three and their immersive lore to each other! I hope you enjoyed and have a happy rest of your holidays!

-

#secretsatan #secretsatan2023 #seasidedraws #seadraws

[bean-cookies]

Here's the latest drawing of my tiefling divination wizard, Studious Arriastis (better known as Stu), casting some fire magic ! 🔥 🔥 🔥 His wife, Ez D'Avenir, gave him the Tarokka cards, which he now uses as his arcane focus. The wedding ring was a gift from the vampire lord Strahd (and is, of course, cursed 🥲).

[bean-cookies]

Wherever you go, I will follow. Whatever evil you fight, I will fight it by your side. And even if I never see a clear sky again, at least I will have gazed at the twinkle in your eyes and basked in the warm glow of your smile, and that will always be enough for me. 💛💛💛 Studious and Ezmerelda - The bride and groom in the Temple! 🥰🧵

(Not to be confused for the bride and groom in the Castle... 😬🧛🏻‍♂️)

With the help and support of their friends, Stu and Ez tied the knot (literally and figuratively) in the Amber Temple before their vampire-hunting honeymoon.

Also, I consider myself brave for including a close-up on the hands. 😛 Hands are still a struggle, and even though these ones are not perfect I like the difference between Ez's thin nimble fingers and Stu's meaty mitts, lol (which are also nimble, he is quite good with them, as Ez knows... 😏 Somatic spell components! I am talking about somatic spell components, of course 🧙‍♂️)

[bean-cookies]

The comfiest spot for a short rest ❤️

Now that I've finished this drawing of Stu and Ez, it's time to finish designing their wedding outfits.

......They are SO doomed. 🙃

This is another drawing for which I referenced a pose from a pose pack that I purchased from @Spectr00m on Gumroad: https://spectr00m.gumroad.com/

[bean-cookies]

The shape of Stu's fireballs when fighting Strahd

[bean-cookies]

Here is a sketch of my tiefling wizard, Studious, that I let myself get carried away with. I started it Sunday night, immediately after a dramatic D&D session. [Content warning for the text below: parasite, mind control, body horror, eye trauma - Also, Amber Temple related and general Curse of Strahd spoilers]

After a near-death experience with a dire wolf, Studious was feeling acutely aware of his own mortality, and terrified of the battles to come. In the night, half-awake and unsure if he was dreaming or not, he heard a voice make an offer to help him. Days later, a milky whiteness filled his left eye, and lumpy iridescent white flesh bubbled out of his skin in a streak that extended from the left side of his face, down his neck, across his torso and hip, and down his tail. The hair that grew over this skin also went from black to bright white.

Already insecure about his appearance, this physical change absolutely horrified and disgusted him - he immediately had his crafty team-mate, Felrick, make him a leather half-mask to hide underneath.

Ezmerelda, the woman that had recently stolen Studious's heart, tried to console him by saying "Don't worry, it is what's inside that matters."

Little did she know, Studious's outward appearance was not nearly as distressing as what was going on inside. A voice, one that no one else could hear, began speaking to him.

The voice offered to help him survive, and pushed him to seek more power wherever he could find it. [For more details, see "Symbiotic Being" under the Dark Gifts section of "Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft"]

The symbiote inside of his body coerced and magically charmed him into going in the Amber Temple with his adventuring party, and seeking more power there. Ultimately, its goal was to make Studious powerful enough to accept the Dark Gift of lichdom. But the young wizard never wanted to be a lich. He saw what the dark powers in this place did to the vampire Lord Strahd, and he saw the similarities between himself and that evil lord... A depressed dark-haired wizard, with a more attractive brother, who feels insecure, and pines for the love of a beautiful woman? These eerie similarities disgusted him, and he vowed to reject evil and never follow Strahd's path.

The symbiote mentally and physically pulled Studious towards the sarcophagus that holds its master. Then, they were separated from the group and transported to where that dark power resides. The symbiote painfully wriggled in his skull, but Studious was determined to reject its offers and said he would NOT be returning to become a lich when he is a more powerful wizard. The horrible thing, desperate to be with its master and realizing it would never change Studious's mind, ripped itself from his body through his eye socket. Dazed and bleeding from his where his left eye once was, the young wizard returned to his companions.

Where the symbiote affected his skin is now a large scar, and Studious's mind and body are back to belonging to him and him alone.

He won't be wearing the mask anymore.

[bean-cookies]

It had to be done. This pose is just... so THEM.

[Here is the inspiration]

[bean-cookies]

Very fancy wedding outfits for Stu and Ez! 🥰 In our Curse of Strahd game, they are currently getting ready to be married in the relative safety of the Amber Temple (of all places...) Wish them luck, they are going to need it! Who knows who might show up... 😬

These outfits were inspired by medieval formalwear, and gothic vampire styles, with just a touch of the sun theme and vaguely religious imagery. There aren't any flowers for many miles (if there are any at all in Barovia), and at first I had Ez's hands held demurely in front of her. I quickly realized that was just wrong for this character, and gave her a sword to hold! 🤭❤

I hope you can see some of the smaller details through the art protection - especially in the fabrics on Ez's dress. I also started putting freckles on Stu's tail and that is my new favourite thing to do. Here are a couple of close-ups:

[bean-cookies]

Casual wizard vibes. 🧙‍♂️

My tiefling wizard character, Studious Arriastis (aka Stu), relaxing and... smouldering. 😏 I just felt like dressing him up in a different outfit, and wanted to practise drawing his new scar.

Is that blue sky in the background? Maybe. Maybe this is yet another alternate universe drawing. 😅 And yet, he still carries a wooden stake around... 🚫🧛‍♂️

[bean-cookies]

Every December, since 2021, I have made a drawing of my tiefling wizard, Studious, dressed as Santa Claus. This year is extra special because he has Ez to dress as Mrs. Claus 🥺❤ ugh I love them too much

[bean-cookies]

Studious looking super spiffy in his new wizard hat! ✨ With specially tailored horn-holes. 😈

He really is my cutest creation, lol - I just wanna squish him (gently) 😩

[bean-cookies]

Some more shading/colouring experimentation - this time I also tried out a new more textured brush for the line art.

This is how I think Stu will look when his eye and his skin are all healed up and he uses his new so-called Third Eye ability (he is a level 10 divination wizard in 5e). Our DM kindly said that while that ability is active he will not have any penalties for having recently lost an eye. 😅

I gave some thought to how the new eye should look, and I figured it should be blue, purple, or pink. I think the blue works well with his colour scheme, and I particularly like the colour symbolism of a bright sky blue... He is really hoping to see sunny blue skies again when he can get out of The Mists. 🌞😏🤞

[bean-cookies]

Modern AU Arriastis siblings - Just a fun sketch of some of my OCs

It's always fun to see them side-by-side, and this was good practice for different kinds of clothing and accessories 😊

[bean-cookies]

My special wizard boy ❤

Frexennosin Arriastis, chosen virtue name: Studious (Stu) - 24 years old, School of Divination wizard, tiefling, scholar, poet, the sweetest cinnamon roll, precious baby brother, bashful bookworm, personification of a feminist counterpoint to Strahd's bullshit, big softie, incredibly horny but always a respectful gentleman, bully magnet, sugar addict, devoted husband, huge fucking nerd, patron saint of hopeless romantics and anxious burnt-out gifted kids, who is very gradually becoming an icon of male body positivity.

This outfit is what Stu is currently wearing while trudging through the wretched bowels of Castle Ravenloft - including his new (*sigh* …cursed) wedding ring.

Not pictured: his wretched little undead tressym familiar, and his tough badass monster-slaying dhampir wife.

[bean-cookies]

Look who OFFICIALLY, CANONICALLY has a sweet new wizard hat! 👏✨

The horrors persist, but at least Stu has a nice hat.

I'll probably digitally colour this one in a few days