TRPG-ZINE: Hoppings

Click on the cover to go to the store page!

My first self published Zine is on my Itch.io Store {Click Here}!

    So this first project is a Six page fully illustrated Sourcebook about a hare version of halflings. It uses a System Agnostic model which means it will be compatible with whatever system you play. (Click here to see the character sheet model I created).

    If you're not familiar Itch.io is a website where independent publishers post games. usually it is videogames. but some, like me, use the site to post TRPG books and materials. The payment system is done through Stripe so it is safe!

    I also included a PDF version prepped for A5 printing at home. I'll create a video tutorial for that soon! 

Hitoshi Yoneda

 This post is the answer to the question:
Who is your favourite Artist?

   I'm always out of sorts when asked about "my favourite" anything. I have so much love for all things that I love that this type of question makes me feel like a Parent whose kids asked who is the favorite one... you know well enough that there is enough love to go around, but that's not an compelling answer.

So if you ask me who is my favourite artist, I could certainly geek out on several people I admire. But for many special reasons I'm going to say Hitoshi Yoneda [米田仁士].

In 2017 (I think) two friends who knew that retro games are a minor hobby of mine gave me an original copy of the Japanese version of Phantasy Star 3 for Mega Drive. Which made me the owner of the First and Third games of the series. So I googled about Phantasy Star 2 and that was when the art of Hitoshi Yoneda struck me for the first time!

セガさんからメガドライブミニが届きました。(^w^)
私が描いた『ファンタシースター 〜千年紀の終わりに〜』も収録されてます。

カートリッジ ミニも入ってました。こんな感じです。#メガドライブミニ #ファンタシースター #米田仁士 pic.twitter.com/PaaHZ5Adq6

— 米田仁士 Hitoshi Yoneda (@Brise_Marine) September 27, 2019

And I quickly became fascinated with his art style!♥

Being that my main media is watercolour I felt (for a while) a bit distraught because most modern Fantasy illustrators that I liked seemed to either work in oil or digital. So when I found a fantasy artist that had watercolour as his main media and made an exquisite use of it I was thrilled! It vindicated my own path as a fantasy artist.  

However at that time the information and images of his work were scarce on the internet. But my search led me to discover that he had published two Art Books in the 90s. One named Qvinta Essentia and another named E-nu-ma e-lish So I set out to buy them both because I just needed to scrutinize his technique. :P

In my search for more of his works I also found out that he currently (at the time) was illustrating the covers of a Japanese RPG magazine called Warlock Magazine (ウォーロックマガジン, formerly TtT Magazine). Which in turn led me to discover the amazing  website EntropicDreams that talks about everything TRPG and Board-Game related from Japan.

I found Hitoshi Yoneda's blog (last updated in 2017 as of this post). And a Twitter account @Brise_Marine where he posts fairly regularly with new and old work. He also posts plenty of nice pictures of the Nara Park and urban Japan by him. So I followed.

Then in 2020 when he posted his artwork cover for the book E-nu-ma e-lish I replied with a photo of my copy of the book. He did reply it in 2020. But he once again replied to me this year:

2020年のTweetだけど見逃してました。（＾ω＾）

YOU MADE ME HAPPY !!
THANK YOU VERY MUCH INDEED !! https://t.co/IEdzjRDQgQ

— 米田仁士 Hitoshi Yoneda (@Brise_Marine) July 1, 2022

So we had a nice exchange and I told him how much I admire his work and that I wish to be a great illustrator like him. He responded me with nice words of encouragement:

And now I have a nice Motivational Poster in my Studio!

Being mentioned on the WIYQ Podcast

 My friend from the Muspelhell project, Drew Cochran (of Epic of Dreams fame) has a podcast named What Is Your Quest (WIYQ) weekly which is among the few podcasts I hear while drawing and on episode 8 he and his co-host where talking about the project I worked with him. And this new experience happened to me where I was listening to a show talking about me while I draw. Around the 35:50 mark Drew goes on to talk about how we met and how we got to work together. You can listen to the podcast on youtube on the link bellow:

This is a great show. I really enjoy Drew's outlandishly creative ideas and Cam's passion for magic the Gathering!
Keep it up you guys!

Portrait of a Wizard with Birds

 

"I am Usidore!

 Wizard of the 12th Realm of Ephysiyies,

Master of Light and Shadow,

Manipulator of Magical Delights,

Devourer of Chaos,

Champion of the Great Halls of Terr’akkas.

The elves know me as Fi’ang Yalok.

The dwarves know me as Zoenen Hoogstandjes.

And I am also known in the Northeast as Gaismunēnas Meistar..."
-Usidore the Blue; Hello from the Magic Tavern

 

 This was the last painting of 2021. I named it "Portrait of a Wizard with Birds" and it was made with watercolour and gouache on paper. 

This piece was inspired by Usidore the Blue a wizard played by Matt Young on the podcast named Hello from the Magic Tavern. Usidore himself has a twitter account in which he interact with fans and said this about the painting:

HOW DID I NOT SPOT THEE AS THOU PAINTED US!?

That... MADE MY DAY! It was an incredible experience to have a character react to something I created! Godspeed to the people at that podcast!