Frosting Smugglers

Landmark

We've lost so many already. What will be next? This was another commission for a friend at Office Nomads.

Egar and the Trollkin

A peaceful-seeming home, but full of surprises.

Desktop Tower Defense

Have I published this one before? I was sure I had, but I can't find it anywhere.

Braid

Braid is a pretty awesome game, don't you think?

Coffee Dungeon

Because it is important never to lose sight of your inspirations.

Pictures of houses, some of them underneath other houses

Stones

Microbrew

This morning I was IM-ing with Marshall, who brews. He brought up the topic of Microdungeons as beer labels. I mentioned that being a homebrewer myself, I've often used dungeons as labels for special occasions. As I am drinking a beer at this very moment, it seems an appropriate time for a sampler.

Tentacle Spaceship of Science

When I had my wife proofread the Microdungeon 10 post, she immediately requested "Tentacle Spaceship of Science." That's not really fair, but where one's spouse is concerned, one has to be prepared to overlook minor discrepancies.

Underground Maze of the Githyanki

What are the Githyanki up to in this underground maze? Are they excavating that skull, or did they just find it there? Shard of what?

These new microdungeons are sparking my inspiration more than I expected. I thought I was kind of done with microdungeons, but now it seems like maybe I'm not!

Haunted Tower of Forbidden Gods

The first of the Microdungeon 10: the Haunted Tower of Forbidden Gods. What makes a god forbidden? Is it enough that worship of the god is outlawed somewhere? Or must the god himself be somehow proscribed? And what manner of authority is required to achieve that feat? Or is there something ontologically significant about the state of being forbidden (at least where a god is involved)?

HVAC

Kobold Theme Park

I drew this dungeon last year after our family trip to Disneyland. My daughter drew a picture of the roller coaster with unhappy-looking stick figures falling out of the cars. I guess we share some elements of our aesthetic. Disneyland was fantastic! I especially appreciated the efforts of the staff to go above and beyond to meet my daughter's dietary needs. But there's just something about a place that's so well-oilied that makes me want to introduce the element of chaos-hence the idea of a theme park run entirely by Kobolds.

Eyebelex, Thwun, Zokor

A seething bundle of envy, bundled lidless eyes coveting everything they see: Eyebelex.

Constriction and malice animated by dread, Thwun killed its cousin to win its mother's love.

And Zokor, most cunning of all, planned revenge on you from the day your father was born.

Pharos

O voyagers, O seamen,
You who came to port, and you whose bodies
Will suffer the trial and judgement of the sea,
Or whatever event, this is your real destination.'
So Krishna, as when he admonished Arjuna
On the field of battle.
         Not fare well,
But fare forward, voyagers.

--T S Eliot, The Dry Salvages

Homage

Maybe not the most auspicious way to get back to the blog, but it is where many of my best ideas come from. There's room for one hell of an Otyugh in there!

Vulture Temple

Little creepy, 'innit?

What Really Matters

I do get depressed occaisonally, though for me it's more of an inconvenience than a debilitating condition. And lately I've been sick too. When I get in an extended down mood, it doesn't stop me doing art, but my focus changes. Instead of feeling enthusiastic and energetic and having to pick between a bunch of different ideas, it's more of a struggle to find any idea at all that I want to work on. Usually I just sit down and draw whatever. I often get something I think is pretty decent. It's not a good time for working on big projects, but at least I can work.

Bigger on the Inside