This week, we are finally introduced to General Clovis! As an elite Canid general, Clovis’ responsibilities are to ensure that in this heightened state of tension between the Canid and Ermehn, the soldiers of Aisling are at peak readiness. While this doesn’t necessarily require him to be hands-on with the troops (he has plenty of underlings perfectly capable of this), Clovis is definitely the sort to offer personal, nuanced critique on a bowman’s form, as seen in his introduction.

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Originally, General Clovis’ design was quite a bit different than it is today. He was a bit more eccentric, at least visually-so, exhibiting an air of menace that we felt was appropriate for the Canid in that iteration of the story (this would be back in mid-2011).

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2011 Clovis

As the storyline matured and we began to delve more into the various perspectives of the story, Clovis’ true nature and history began to take shape, turning him from the leering fellow you see in the above image into a much more refined upper-class general — the type of high-level military leader who could negotiate the shirt off your back (so it’d be easier for him to stab you there later). The newer design for the character is the one we see today: classy, genial (to a point), and ruthless.

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Clovis, late 2013

The poses and expressions in the concept pieces for the character are perfect reflections of the changes from old to new. Both pieces show the character reacting to, perhaps, happy news of a victory or some machination going according to plan. Old Clovis would mug for the camera like he was Jenner from The Secret of NIMH, while the new iteration of the character is not so much of a caricature. At the very least, he understands the PR implications of grinning wickedly in public.

This week, we’ve got a follow-up to the wonderful Dakkan piece Jerome Jacinto did for us a few weeks ago! Where there is Dakkan, after all, there must be Quinlan!

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During one of his high-flying antics in the treetops of Terria, it seems Quinlan has spied somebody off in the distance and is trying in vain to get their attention. I love the pose and the take on the character — Jerome keeps outdoing himself on these pieces, and I love seeing his approach to the world of the Western Deep.

By the way, not to be too much of a tease, but Jerome’s guest pinup for the Beyond the Western Deep hardcover collection is absolutely fantastic. I simply cannot wait for you all to see it in the book :)