the-survivalist-chronicles - Tumblr blog

[the-survivalist-chronicles]

It’s been a few months, though I promise you this project is not dead. I admit, I felt as though I was on a bit of a “deadline” due to the increasing hype of the Minecraft movie- I was afraid that finally having an official official adaption would immediately devalue the efforts of someone else to create a story following the iconic faces in this game.

Needless to say, I don’t find myself being that worried that the movie is going to make everything else look bad in comparison.

The good news is that I’m discussing bringing my brother onto the project- as he has a more realistic (but still expressive and fun) style that better fits the tone I want this story to have.

Though I don’t know when the next update will come, hopefully it will come before 2024 ends.

My story is far from anything perfect, nor is it “the” adaptation, but hopefully you will all enjoy it nonetheless. It was made out of a passion for the game- and I hope that shines through the little details.

[the-survivalist-chronicles]

Some cut pages from this comic. Though the basic idea is still the same and some of the dialogue remains, I am redoing these due to small edits and a different artistic approach.

The cover MAY actually be kept, as I’m rather proud of it, but it’s more likely that I’ll remake it.

In this draft of the story, Steve’s dim-wittedness was due to him being a little too cocky, whereas in the current version it’s much more due to his naivety. Steve and Creepy were also originally thieves, and had been for 90% of this story’s development, but with a heavy heart I had to change it to fit the story I wanted to tell. It was mostly a bummer because I liked the conversation between Steve and Creepy at the beginning, already establishing that Creepy is careful and likes to play the long game whereas Steve rushes into things a little too quickly, but I think the change will have been worth it.

I’m not sure how people will feel about my Creeper designs? I think overall Creepers and Endermen have changed the most, but Creepers still win that comparison by a long shot. I tried to make them more lizardlike, and gave them a tail to kind of compliment that (and because I think they’d need it for balance).

Even OLDER versions under the cut!

I do actually like the above version of the prologue (you can read the official one here!) but it was too much of an info dump. Most of the lore has stayed the same, though, and I do actually like the black/white parallel shots, it just didn’t make the cut, especially after I ditched the vaguely-realistic approach. It also talked a lot about random worldbuilding tangents (like illagers and such) that weren’t important for the story while not at all detailing the brothers’ story.

Last but not least we have this monstrosity! I hated (and still hate) drawing backgrounds, so I wanted to build the settings in Minecraft and use them as the backdrops, but I didn’t like the result….and look at this art! It’s not the worst, but the shading is terrible….and the creeper design just wasn’t super appealing to me. I feel like the current design is a little better at being likable to the reader but off-putting to the in-universe characters. Also I totally whitewashed Steve. My biggest mistake here was the shading, although I hadn’t quite mastered lineless art either.

It’s far from the worst art I have of them (again, I’ve had these characters since before fourth grade) but definitel6 not something I’m proud of.

[the-survivalist-chronicles]

Some basic reference designs for different prevalent characters and species in this comic. As you can see, I tried to go for a nice cartoony style for this comic, but tried to get creative (haha) with the designs.

Many of these are messy and were created just to get a general idea down.

[the-survivalist-chronicles]

PROLOGUE

(Note: the art was made a while ago, and the rest of the series will be in black and white)

[the-survivalist-chronicles]

MASTERPOST

As a kid, I wanted to read Minecraft books more than anything in the world. But I wanted stories about the universe itself, not the fact that it was a game. All of the stories were about kids getting sucked into games, or childish stories following monsters in high school…. They weren’t bad, but they were not what I wanted. I wanted explanations, creative interpretations of creatures, I wanted to see Steve and Alex go on adventures.. I think this is what subconsciously urged me to make my own story.

I had these little minecraft plushies, which formed most of the main cast as time went on.

Characters went from unlikable (in a way I thought was humorous but in hindsight was just unbearable) to more well rounded.

I’ve been hesitating fully kickstarting this story for years, but now with news of an official movie and show, I’d like to get my story out into the world before it will be completely overshadowed by canon content.

INFO

The Survivalist Chronicles are a series of B&W comics starring Steve and Alex as they venture through the many crevices of Minecraft, narrated by the lovely 1̷̩͔̳̎̌̿4̵͙̳͕͗̓1̸̛̬͇̪̇5̷̘̰̕2̸̛͓͓̀0̸̲̦̫̔3̸͇̑̉̃8̶͙̄ ̴̛̦͕̽! Join them as they venture from the darkest ruins to the brightest blazing kingdoms…and hope they stay alive long enough to tell the tale.

Q&A:

Q. Is this official?

A. I doubt this will be asked, but no, it is not. Everything is completely fabricated and may contain some inconsistencies compared to the game for the sake of worldbuilding and storytelling.

Q. May I draw fanart / make fan content / dub this / tag you?

A. Yes, yes, yes, and yes!

Q. Asks?

A. Yes! Feel free to ask me (or the cast, haha) anything you’d like!

Q. What age demographic is this comic for?

A. 13+, due to blood, occasional gore, and some heavy topics. I avoid sexual topics, swearing, and religious curses.

PROLOGUE