Revisiting Major Kite Physiology

I’m to a point in the second video where I will be drawing Major Kites in action. Before I do this, I wanted to re-examine their physiology to make sure I was drawing them right. Original Design The original idea for the major kites came to me when I wanted to make a species that

The Custodians and August (Part 2)

This post continues the story from The Custodians and August (Part 1). The Minimalists fell into themselves, debating how to best apply what they saw as the winning formula of Earth to humanity’s extended habitat.  There were multiple trains of thought.  Some wanted to lobby Earth Central to sanction colonies that did not follow set

The Custodians and August (Part 1)

“We strive for balance in a universe whose final balance means our death. We believe in balance as if it is the way of things, but this is not true. If we want things a certain way, there must be affirmative action, a positive force to move to our destination. Because the natural order would

The Aquians: Intro and Physiology

We’ve now covered the Earth Domains a bit. Over the years, the Earth Domains’ population has become more diverse, accommodating new species. However, the Earth Domains are predominantly a human creation and humans still comprise a majority of the population. The counterpart to the Earth Domains is the Aquian Habitat. As the Earth Domains are

The Mines (Part 2)

This post continues the post “The Mines (Part 1)“. Fear and Fact The mines’ ability to evade port-tracing filled many with fear.  If the Aggregate had technology advanced enough to port-in without being detected, the military outlook boded poorly for Proxima.  But the few communications that arrived from the embattled core worlds did not describe

The Crew

August has grown accustomed to sudden attacks from autonomous incursor “mines”. Even though the war that commissioned these devices ended 35 years ago, they continue to attack, their automated factory evading detection and disarmament*. Despite the real threat that these war machines pose, the Proxima Coast Guard stationed in the colony has grown adept at

The Mines (part 1)

When the war broke out, Aggregate space fleets attacked August, landing ground forces to dislodge the colony’s defenders. Responding quickly, Proxima fleets arrived and scored a decisive victory against the aggregate, clearing the skies above August of all enemies. Most of the Aggregate’s ground forces were destroyed. But before all the invaders could be cleared,

Sarine and Thoris

Today’s illustration is of the unit’s odd couple, Sarine and Thoris. I wrote a bit about Sarine earlier in the post Sketches: Human Armor. Sarine is a respected veteran far older than her appearance. While she is not the most extroverted or social person, she is known to be a reliable asset on the battlefield

Paper Kites

This one is mostly a visual post.  When I was drawing the sequence of the minor kites’ folding wings I started to feel a bit uncertain about the actual geometry of what I was drawing.  The first fold was easy, but when I flipped the hind appendages, my spatial rendering device (brain) started maxing-out. So,

Kites (Minor)

Minor kites are mammalian in appearance and about a meter in length.  They accompany major kites, gliding in similar fashion and feeding on larger flying animals that majors don’t eat, as well as defending major kites from pack predators and parasites.  Minor kites have a furry body with bare flying membranes, much like bats or