Sketch 5: Auron

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I gotta say, Auron blew me away when I first played Final Fantasy X. His cool facade; his awesome outfit; and not to mention his swaggelicious sunglasses.

Also, I love his quote: “This is it. This is your story. It all begins here.”

So, I began my search for an image to refer. And here we go!

EQUIPMENT: Mechanical pencil 0.5mm, Eraser, Pilot G-2 pen 0.5mm, Pilot G-2 pen 0.38mm, Artline 200 Fine 0.4

I guess it is quite obvious why I included an Artline pen :) Here's the pencil draft:

I'm actually quite glad that this Final Fantasy character doesn't have a million and one details on him. Although the red was slightly tiring. But it was nonetheless satisfying. Here's after inking:

Believe it or not I actually considered leaving this as it is. I really like how it looks after the ink. But somewhere inside me prompted me to add in the shades and color. I was actually praying that I don't ruin the sketch with the red. The result isn't all that perfect, but it was not as bad as I would've thought:

There you go. Auron :D

FUN FACT: In the game Kingdom Hearts, Auron is one of the two Final Fantasy characters which featured as an active party member. The other one? Well, who else? Cloud of course! 

Sketch 4: Chaos

I came to know about Chaos when I was playing Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift. Chaos is a scion that can be summoned by anyone who has the Ring of the Wheel equipped. And again, this scion, like all other scions, looks badass as ever.

Sitting on what seems to me like a gigantic lotus, Chaos looks like he-or it-could easily rule the Underworld. What really caught my attention was the etymology of Chaos. (Refer to FUN FACT for the details)

Alrighty then, here it is!

EQUIPMENT: Mechanical pencil 0.5mm, Eraser, Pilot G-2 pen 0.5mm, Pilot G-2 pen 0.38mm

Chaos is slightly more challenging compared to other scions such as Adrammelech because of its relative size. What do I mean? Have a look at my pencil sketch:

I have to admit. In the original artwork, Chaos' 'throne' looks much bigger compared to my sketch. I had a tough time gauging the relative sizes between Chaos and his armor-like exterior. Also, I've reduced the size of the 'lotus' he is sitting on as it wouldn't fit my sketchbook if I hadn't done so. Conclusion: NOT EASY.

Here is what it looks like after inking:

Ain't half bad, eh? :P Anyway, I proceeded with the last step, and here it is:

There you go: Chaos, the Walker of the Wheel.

FUN FACT: In Japanese, Chaos is known as Rinne, which is the Japanese term for Saṃsāra, the endless cycle of life, death, and rebirth in Buddhism, Hinduism, and other Indian religions.
Source: finalfantasywikia

Now you know why Chaos is known as the Walker of the Wheel.

Sketch 3: Adrammelech

Phew, this is one tiring one. Having first seen Adrammelech in the first Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, I was stunned by the elegance and complexity of the scion. Being deemed the Totema for Bangaa(s), this is one armored dragon. Donning a emerald-green and ruby-red piece of armor, this has got to be one of the 'smartest' looking scion out there.Again, I can't seem to stress this bit quite enough: the designing team at SE is crazy when it comes to details. In my previous post I mentioned about Hashmal; this is no different.

Alright, let's get it on with!

EQUIPMENT: Mechanical pencil 0.5mm, Eraser, Pilot G-2 pen 0.5mm, Pilot G-2 pen 0.38mm

The reason why I used an even finer pen (0.38mm) is because the details are just so crazy. With the 0.5, I could only go through a portion of the patterns on the armor. Here is a shot after the pencil:

The thing about inking is, I would often improvise with the pen, rather than 100% following the pencil markings. This way, although mistakes might arise, it provides me with more freedom.

Here is one after inking:

Crazy, ain't it? And this is only about 75% of detail. The other 25%, I couldn't fit them into the sketch without an even finer pen. And after touching-up:

There you go! :D It took me about 2 hours plus to complete the whole sketch.
Time to wipe my brow, grab myself a bucket of chips, throw myself onto the couch and watch some television.

FUN FACT: In Assyrian mythology, it is said that children were sacrificed to a God called Baal Adramelech.
Source: finalfantasywikia

Thanks for your time (TFYT)!

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Sketch 2: Hashmal

Before I began the attempt of drawing Hashmal, to be honest, my memory of Hashmal only resurfaced when I played Final Fantasy Tactics Advance 2: Grimoire of the Rift. When it comes to Guardian Forces or Espers or Scions or Lucavi (the list goes on and on), my top few are the likes of Ifrit, Adrammelech, Shiva, or sometimes Bahamut. Despite the minimal appearances and promotion of this creature, Hashmal is no weakling when it comes to badassery.

My thought when I first looked at the image was: That is one difficult one to draw. But a part of me went (as usual): what the heck. Let's do this.

The reason why Hashmal was such a pain in the buttocks was because the details were hard to draw (at least to me it was).

Now, let's get to it!

EQUIPMENT: Mechanical pencil 0.5mm, Eraser, Pilot G-2 pen 0.5mm

Here it is after I applied it with pen. I forgot to take one down with only the pencil markings. Sorry, my bad: 

Why does Hashmal need such a extravagant piece or equipment? Only the designing team in SE knows. After what seemed to be an hour or more, I finally finished off the details. Here's a close up on one of the sides of the sketch:

I actually decreased the details massively when I applied the layer of pen over the pencil. Here is the final piece:

 There you go. Also, I think I would keep up the fun fact section, just for the fun of it :)

FUN FACT: 'Hashmal' is the name of the leader of the second order of Angels (Hashmalim) in the Jewish belief.
Source: finalfantasywikia

Oh, when I was working on the gloves, I kept thinking of Kratos' Nemean Cestus in God of War III.

Ya? See the resemblance? No? Okay, it's just me then.

Anyway, thanks for your time! :D

Sketch 1: Luso and Chocobo

Alrighty. My first official post. As you will find out more about me and my sketches, being a typical male in this day and age, I am (cue suspense) a fan of video games.

But what sort of games, you ask? Well, what else other than the famous and popular Square Enix series. So my first exposure to the series is Final Fantasy VIII, which featured a whole lot of things worth being excited for. The graphics was stunning (compared to other games played on the same platform).

Years later, more and more games were released by SE, and one which really caught my attention was the tactics series. Different from the usual turn-based combat system, FF Tactics gave the series a fresh look. Something the series needed, despite the ongoing success of the usual FF titles.

So there I was, browsing through the Final Fantasy Wiki page, looking for images. I am someone who prefers and enjoys referencing (that is to draw using a reference picture). And I came across this picture of Luso riding a Chocobo. And I thought to myself: Meh, why not?

Oh, and I will also let you know the tools that I used for each sketch. Ain't that a bonus? :D

EQUIPMENT: Mechanical pencil 0.5mm, Eraser, Pilot G-2 pen 0.5mm

For me, I usually draw the outlines once with a mechanical pencil, and then layer it will a pen. Only then I erase the pencil markings. So here is what it looks like after the pencil sketchings:

 And then the pen:

 And after touching up here and there, the final result:

There you go :) Oh, fun fact to all SE fans: The name Square Enix actually originates from a merger between two companies, Square and yes, you've guessed it, Enix.

The Journey Begins

I have been wanting to create a blog like this for quite some time now. As an art and sketch enthusiast (at least that's what I view myself as), it is always a privilege to share with others the experience and process of my sketches.

Well then, here it is. Welcome aboard. Please enjoy your stay here (be it for just a mere second, or hopefully longer). The contents here are meant for one reason and one reason only-the same reason that spurred its very creation in the first place-that is to enjoy.

Alrighty then, ENJOY! :D

P.S. And to commemorate our first meeting, Bob has volunteered to share a hug with you. Go on, you know you want to.