Art Attack! Bow Chicka Bow Wow
As you may have heard from the most reputable news sources, it was my birthday yesterday. Out of the blue, someone sent me this beautiful son of a… ahem, the sunless world:
I think we can all guess who that is.
As presents from nowhere come, that’s a hell of a lovely thing to wake up to. I get sent quite a lot of art – often with “Please don’t post this as it’s not finished” warnings, as well as First Claw conversion images, but I think this might be my fave. The selfish reason of it being a birthday present may indeed be making me biased, but my answer to that is Bite Me, followed by Please Eat My Balls.
On a similar note, I was recently watching a bunch of Traitor Legion tribute videos on YouTube, and although it should’ve been obvious, I was still surprised to see my influence painted all over the Night Lords ones. It made me miss First Claw, not only because if I’d kept them in the game they’d have been a license to print money (teehee!), but because I loved those guys, heart and soul, and I think I’ll always miss them. Sometimes I muse over adding them as a Chosen Squad to my Chaos Marine army, but even by my standards, that’s a whole spire of self-indulgent bullshit.
But I digress. Let’s discuss art, as I’m in the mood to do so.
A lot of WoW players get their characters artworked up at some point. I’m usually too embarrassed, as despite most of my WoW, uh, “career” spent playing undead, I’ve played a lot of trolls (their faux Rastafarian-ness makes me cringe with some pale shade of residual white guilt) and blood elves (who are the victims of endless “gay” / “girl” / “losers play elves to feel cool” jokes because they’re less muscled, hunched and hideous than the other Horde races). But getting your character inked – or at least, inked well – is usually a cause for “Oh, hell yes!” moments in an RP guild.
Also, often a cause for “These aren’t tears of jealousy, there’s just some hatred in my eye” moments.
Katie recently commissioned some artwork of her paladin, along with another guildie’s paladin, as the two characters are very close – with a sisterhood kinda deal going on. As a late Christmas present, I actually begged Neil Roberts (of Eldar Path and Horus Heresy Series cover fame) to do both of Katie’s main characters, as well as Ron Spencer (of Werewolf: the Apocalypse and WoW: TGC fame). Those are all in mid-scribble, so either me or Katie will show them when they roll in. Patience, grasshopper. Professional artists are busy people; they also suffer from the ire of Deadline Gods.
But I thought some of you might this interesting in the meantime. I’m sort of in love with it – not only does it look lush, it also captures them both to perfection.
Here’s the final piece of the two girls, with the usual “click to make it bigger” addendum:
Hmm.
Hmmmm.
Hmmmmmm…
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Nice pics! I especially like the third one!
Oh man that’s amazingly good! I would digest and say you did a slight mistake to end it at the 3rd book. You could have done at least another 3 three books. You problem is you felt rushed at the time. Look at Abnett. He’s had over a decade writing Gaunts Ghosts and nooobody is complaining its some time in between.
And THAT picture is the first thing EVER I’ve liked about WoW.
I dunno, man. First Claw were never supposed to “make it”. They were always going to go down, Johnny Cash-style, “kicking and a-gouging in the mud and the blood and the beer.”
While I did have ideas for another trilogy, it was a conscious and long-thought-about process to end it when it ended. Talos had reached where I wanted him (well, where I hoped he’d eventually get) in terms of self-realisation, and the others had shown enough of their dualities to suggest that maybe nothing was as clear-cut as it first seemed. Narratively, I felt they’d done their jobs, and I didn’t want to drag it out.
The Black Legion, however, is more ripe for a long, long series.
…unless I die.
Oh that I understand. The ending was perfect. I’m just saying you could have prolonged it by another 3 books. I wanted to know more about theirbackground, their customs and what’s special about their Legion. Hopefully you can merch that in HH instead.
Understandable, as an author there is only THAT much you can write about certain characters. Feel great that you made them so inspiring. I for one even started collecting them (showed it on yoru web-page).
I hold you to that promise! Please make the Night Lords of 10th company cameos in either HH or the Black Legion-series.
I think the ending of Frist Claw was perfect, it felt right. I like the idea of you taking on a company within a unknown chapter Aaron, something like successors of Raven Guard or something. Successor chapters often have interesting flaws in their geneseed you can play off. That’s just my take though.
Mean you could invent a classic of your own, new chapter colours and a symbol, a cool theme, then imagine the artwork you would be sent!
I think in terms of their own trilogy it is a good idea to leave First Claw be. To try and necro them from such an amazing end would cheapen the scrotum thwack you feel after finishing Void Stalker.
However this does not stop you from writing the characters – as the rapid hordes have screeched many a time since you started writing for the series – into a future Horus Heresy story or even giving them a cameo in the Black Legion tales.
They’d be your 50 Shades of Grey without the dirty, dirty porn aspect. And by grey I mean the grey they inhabit in a black and white “Ferr the Empererr” “Ferr the Khaoerrs Gerds” universe.
It’s OK, man. First Claw ended at the right time in the right way. Talos was a better character because he didn’t – couldn’t – beat the odds forever.
Anyway all you need to do is get them to make Decimus a special character in the next CSM Codex and you get the best of both worlds.
The brunette one is best.
The blond one is a kitschy, glossy tramp.
The dark-haired one is Katie’s paladin. Teehee.
She didn’t want her character to have her flame hair?
I want their eyebrows. They would be hilarious.
The blonde-haired Paladin has a Princess Adora/She-Ra vibe to her. Unless it’s just me seeing Filmation characters everywhere again.
Talos and First Claw met a great end, to bring them back from the dead would cheapen what they died for, and would make Decimus much less special. Plus Talos would probably want Septimus and Octavia back and they got their happy ending and deserve to keep it.
Can’t wait for The Talon of Horus, especially since we all remember how Abaddon got that Talon and I really want to see Horus 2.0.
LotN
well it wasn’t quite a happy ending for Octavia and Septimus was it….given what happens to their offspring and therefore what probably happened to them. I suppose they got their happy ending for a time which is more than they could have hoped for really. There’s definately potential for more 40k Night Lords with Decimus but since Aaron doesn’t mention it maybe it’s not allowed to write about that far into the 40k future…
Uh well i’m one of the people who thinks that Decimus is not Octavia’s son for two reasons. First, the name Decimus means 10th and it adds to the fact he wears the wargear of the 10th’s best, he is the culmination of their efforts. Second because of something ADB himself said about Boba Fett.
http://z6.invisionfree.com/bljunkies/index.php?showtopic=890&view=findpost&p=1801209
Indeed he is right about what he said, and it extends to Decimus in my opinion. How would Variel find them? There are star sectors he might not know the name of, and he’s going to hunt down two people whose real names he doesn’t know who are likely being transported to the nearest Navigator stronghold and take their child? I doubt that he could pull that off.
Imo Decimus is one of Variel’s slave children who became the leader the Night Lords were waiting for, and Septimus and Octavia got one of the happiest endings in 40k.
Its stuff like this which makes me want to pick up WoW again. I will resist. MUST resist.
That is very tight. I like his addition of the helms rune etching. Not the mention the entire piece is just quality work.
Aaron dude, who did Katie pay to do the work ups? I would love to have the same done for my guildies and my kick ass Pala
give me the info please 
For some reason there is no reply button for your post….
‘Uh well i’m one of the people who thinks that Decimus is not Octavia’s son for two reasons. First, the name Decimus means 10th and it adds to the fact he wears the wargear of the 10th’s best, he is the culmination of their efforts. Second because of something ADB himself said about Boba Fett.
http://z6.invisionfree.com/bljunkies/index.php?showtopic=890&view=findpost&p=1801209
Indeed he is right about what he said, and it extends to Decimus in my opinion. How would Variel find them? There are star sectors he might not know the name of, and he’s going to hunt down two people whose real names he doesn’t know who are likely being transported to the nearest Navigator stronghold and take their child? I doubt that he could pull that off.
Imo Decimus is one of Variel’s slave children who became the leader the Night Lords were waiting for, and Septimus and Octavia got one of the happiest endings in 40k.
Comment by Lord of the Night | August 6, 2012′
didn’t know about the 10th wargear but I thought the Decimus = tenth thing was weird (septimus 7, Octavia 8, 9?) until I looked it up and there was a Nonus (9) in the books meaning Decimus would work as the tenth slave. And maybe he joined the tenth and he’s best so he gets his pick of the toys.
Talos was pretty sure that Variel would find them, that suggests to me theres a way Variel can do it (some sort of implanted warp based tracker for example). Yes, I know that bit is like saying ‘the warp did it/a wizard did it’ and you’re entitled to think they got their happy ending if you can accept a happy ending to these particular books but….since this is ADB 40k Night Lords I just can’t – I reckon their faces are hanging from Variels shoulder pads.
Well I think it was more Talos believed they would not get very far, or that Variel would be in better condition as he did say that before he found Variel wounded, I think. Either way though a trilogy ending with ambiguity like that means its up to the reader to decide what happened and I think Septimus and Octavia got away and lived happily ever after, at least as much of that as you can get living in the Imperium.