The Faceless Summoner Entry #11: Silenced Dendrus Ferroq

Here is the next entry in the series. This is Silenced Dendrus Ferroq:

Just like the last entry, here is Ferroq's lore:

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After proceeding further into the temple, we found ourselves at a central crossroads. Up ahead, the path split three directions. The left path which was decorated with a deep green seal similar to the first vanished into the darkness. On the right an arch with a crimson seal wound off into the temple in an undiscernible direction. The final path at the center was barred by two bone-like gates with a dark gray-blue seal. Ardelrius waved the tree-like staff and its “eyes” began to resonate with the green seal on the left. We proceeded down the path.

The narrow corridor lit with faint burning torches led us downwards under the planet’s surface. Slowly, the air became more dense and humid, the temperature rising as we descended. At the end of the hall, the temple widened into another room. Slowly the room illuminated, light all around cast by glowing jewels in the ceiling. What was revealed was unlike anything I’ve seen in this realm. Twisting green vines and roots grew in all directions like a sprawling jungle of tendrils even reaching up the walls and ceilings. At the far end of the room, a large form pulled itself forth, moving slowly towards us. It looked like a hulking monstrosity with scaled skin covered in moss and thorns. A large glowing jeweled core at the beast’s center was ensnared in a mix of claws and more vines. The face of the creature was some sort of horned monster with sloping horns and blue jewels embedded in its skin. Its mouth was stitched shut and it beckoned to us with large clawed hands.

Before Ardelrius could speak, we heard the voice of the creature. A hollow tone echoed in the chamber around us as if projected from its mind. Introducing itself as Ferroq the sealed plant god, our next foe rose up ahead. Like Diyara before, Ferroq told us that Arderlius would have to offer proof of strength in order to proceed.

As the fight began, the room started to distort. From the metallic walls, vines and tendrils began to emerge. They struck out at Ardelrius from all sides, attempting to impale their foe. I watched the Summoner move with inhuman speed, darting quickly over the paved floor. Using the tree-like staff, Ardelrius conjured a miasma of bright green mist. I managed to escape to the entryway of Ferroq’s chamber away from the battle. Slowly, the toxic fog began to erode the vines and tendrils emerging from the walls. It slowed the onslaught enough to allow the Summoner to deal several blows to Ferroq’s body. A glancing blow from its staff cut a deep gouge across the central jewel. The great beast let out a roar and knocked Ardelrius away before collapsing to the ground. Its body began to liquefy and seep into the floor. All the remained was the scarred jewel wrapped in a few vines.

Once again, the hollow snarl of Ferroq’s disembodied voice rang around us. Ardelrius has apparently satisfied the creature and we would be allowed to proceed to the next trial. I followed my companion back up the sloping corridor to the central crossroads of the temple.

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Front/side view

Ferroq's mask design was sort of a progression of ideas. As shown in the WIP shots, the original shell had no initial design elements to work from. I knew I wanted to create a sort of demon-like monster with a sealed mouth but the armor plates, horns, and jewels just sort of emerged as I worked. After the piece was painted, I toyed with the idea of actually stitching the mouth shut with white wire. This proved to be too difficult and in the end I used smaller segments secured in a pattern with hot glue. I think it turned out well.

Ferroq's Emblem

I feel like the emblems are a good way to flesh out more of the designs of these characters since the masks are merely representations of their faces/heads. As described in the lore, Ferroq as a massive creature comprised of flesh and plants. The jewel at the center of its body houses the majority of its power and grants control over plant-based constructs. I envision a creature that isn't very mobile but a powerful commander of its environment.

That's it for this entry. I think I mentioned this somewhere but I will be posting these parts every other day until the event is done.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Zan

The Faceless Summoner Entry #10: Gilded Feather Diyara

As mentioned previously, the story of the Faceless Summoner continues today. This mini-arc centers around the "Four Gods" and will build upon the universe from both a character and lore perspective. Here's the first entry, Gilded Feather Diyara:

As with the previous entries in the Summoner series, here is Diyara's lore:

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We slowly made our way down from the mountains over the course of two days. The main path took us through winding cliffs that were blasted with constant dust storms. All around, I felt like eyes were on us. The lawless packs of demons that roamed the wastelands numbered in the thousands but none attacked us. I think the fearsome aura of my traveling companion was keeping them at bay.

Finally, we came to a large temple surrounded by jagged blade-like rock formations. Crafted from a deep black metal and adorned with numerous reflective jewels, the twisting structure was sealed with an intricate runic character bearing a four-colored jewel pattern. I watched Ardelrius walk up to the seal and place a single hand upon its surface. A glint of light illuminated the rune and the massive doors to the temple swung open.

Venturing further in, the light was cast by pale blue torches that burned endlessly in the walls. A central open area was our first stop in the temple. Etched into the ground was a gold seal very similar to the one on the door. It was then; a terrifying presence manifested itself and appeared before us.

So far, most of Ardelrius’ foes have been monsters or demons with the exception of K’taerthos. The creature that appeared in the temple was a blinding visage wrapped in gleaming scales and a sort of holy garment. Its face was covered in bladed plates and it had vaguely bird-like features. The creature floated in the air before us despite having great feathered wings adorned with jeweled chains. Ardelrius stood before the holy creature and announced its arrival. In an ominous tone, the light-shrouded entity introduced itself as the goddess Diyara, one of the Four Gods of this temple. Diyara spoke to both of us but primarily addressed Ardelrius. She spoke of a great trial and told my companion that it would have to offer proof of strength before the Four Gods would grant an audience. With little warning, Diyara moved to attack.

The fight, while again brief was seared into my memory like all the others. Diyara struck from the sky with a relentless hail of bladed feathers. Each volley cleaved effortlessly through the walls and floor. I watched Ardelrius use the tree-like staff to summon floating stone blocks to deflect the projectiles. The Faceless Summoner traded blows with the Goddess before conjuring a deep blue broadsword with a crimson blade. This must be the power of the Netherspawn, Thalgre for the weapon called razor gale blasts of wind that forced back the bladed feathers of Diyara. Finally, Ardelrius was able to counter the assault and struck a mortal blow with the sword. The goddess was brought to the ground and her strength appeared to vanish before us.

“You possess strong resolve for a creature wielding one of the forbidden relics,” she spoke to us. “If you truly seek to acquire the treasure sealed here, proceed to the next trial.”

Diyara vanished in a blinding flash of light. I suppose like any other gods, she couldn’t be killed but either way, Ardelrius was victorious. Without any hesitation, the summoner started further into the temple. What would the next trial be? What is our goal here? I hoped to find these answers as I followed after the mysterious traveler.

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Front/Side View

I thought I'd try this condense format for the final pictures of the piece. Diyara's mask was a bit of an experiment. In the construction phase, I used a layering of individual plates to create the look you see here. This was actually the most complicated part of the skin phase since I had to try to apply the cloth layer to both the plates and the surfaces beneath. I added the signature glass stones for contrast and I think they work well with Diyara's color scheme. I was going for a sort of firebird look but focused more on the yellow-gold blending rather than orange. I think it turned out well.

Diyara's emblem

I didn't go with concept sketches this time, instead choosing a more complex realized emblem for each character. Diyara's emblem shows her regal appearance and the divine ring construct behind her helps add some color distinction. Because this is a full-body image, it's harder to make out the details of her face but I wanted to focus on the rest of her design since the mask is meant to capture the face more.

Stay tuned for the next entry!

~Zan

Faceless Summoner Event Starts on 11/28

Greetings,

As mentioned previously, I will be posting a multi-part series of write-ups and videos featuring the latest entries in the Faceless Summoner series. Ardelrius' tale will continue and I'll but putting up the lore pieces for each entry here just like our Halloween event last year. As a sort of announcement for the project, I've put together a simple trailer on Youtube:

 

 

 

Just like the lore entries of the past, I wanted to keep a cohesive narrative going for the story so far. I've written up a prologue to the event here:

 

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It has been many months since I joined Ardelrius on its mysterious quest. As we traveled, I’ve only been able to learn that it is seeking powerful souls in anticipation of some great threat to our world. Whether it’s the return of the Sealed Ones, or something new, I don’t know. All Ardelrius has told me is that a great trial will soon envelop our world and all must be prepared to fight. I am no warrior and I know not what this means for me and my village but perhaps I will find an answer on this journey.

We made our way across the vast Cirladn Mountains, a range that stretches across the southern end of the continent. Much like the skypeaks closer to our village, little life thrives in the harsh living conditions. I was able to weather the cutting snowstorms and my companion was unaffected, not even needing protective clothing. When we descended from the snowy passes, we found ourselves near the boundaries of the Demon Wastelands, sprawling lawless territory. Many tales have been told of brave knights vanishing among the chaotic savage lands before us. When I asked Ardelrius of our destination, it told me that our next target was a great sealed temple hidden in the heart of the Demon Wastelands. With no time to spare, we proceeded along a path down the mountains into the darkness ahead.

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The posts will start going up on 11/28 on here, DA, and Youtube.

Stay tuned!

~Zan

Project Updates and Timeline

Greetings,

If you've been to our site consistently over the last few years you might be wondering why there was no papier mache event around Halloween this year. I've made it a point in the past to do either a combined release or countdown to my favorite holiday. This year a combination of real-life factors in October pushed my plans back and I was forced to re-evaluate the likelihood of getting something completely finished on time. Rather than try to push out something lackluster, I decided to move the timeline back and spend some more time on the project.

Right now, it looks like the actual event will begin in November. I haven't picked a start date yet as I'm still finalizing several pieces. Instead of a short event, I'm planning for this to be the start of an ongoing series that continues the story and lore of Faceless Summoner universe we established last year. I will be doing some filming and will hopefully be able to post a sort of teaser trailer once I've decided on a start date. It will most likely be towards the middle or later part of November.

Thanks for stopping by!

~Zan