george lucas, remarkably unsubtley, over and over again: the fall of the republic was because of corporate interests interfering with politics and increased complacency with fascist ideas in the face of a manufactured war

everyone, for some reason: so the jedi were the REAL villains because they didn’t get married

OK so this is the whole AI situation summarized

• AIs have already been scraping data from sites for free for years

• Companies got pissed at this a little too late and are now trying to put it behind a paywall by offering things like data packs in paid partnerships

• Your data wasn't safe before or now

• Capitalism babey

@staff

OUR CONTENT SHOULD BE OPTED OUT OF AI TRAINING BY DEFAULT!

Hairstyle Meme ft. Hiriss Moraana

The meme (especially this particular template) has been around for years, but I only became aware of it this year. The last time I did a piece with Hiriss in multiple hairstyles, it was done purely on a concept sheet (many of these looks should be familiar), so I decided to do a few new ones and revise a few of the familiar ones, especially as I continue to acclimate myself to Clip Studio Paint. If I want to try more looks I haven't done with Hiriss before, I might give them their own sketch (one of these days, I'm going to try to draw her with an actual hat of some kind; if she's ever bareheaded, that remains to be seen). And yes, the fangs indicate that these are all post-symbiosis.

The difficult part was deciding an outfit for each style, so I ended up defaulting to her usual field outfit for a third of them or picking an outfit I'd already done once before (buns and braids are the only ones I just cooked for this meme).

This is my art summary for 2023.

I made a lot more pieces than I did last year, and I gained some new tools to work with near the end.

This is it: My last piece I have made using the original method of hand-drawing and editing in Paint Shop Pro. Whether it will be the last ever, I can't for sure. It's possible I may go back to it again for special occasions, but it's far too tedious (i.e. a lot of clean up from the scan) compared to drawing it with a Wacom in Clip Studio Paint when I've got so much on my plate in my adult life. I may post hand-drawn sketches, but simply not color them and merely use them as rough drafts.

In short, this may be the end of an era in regards to how I approach my craft.

And now for the bio:

Developed on the mechanical planet of Aut Matok, flight armors are one of the most complexly-engineered vehicles in the galaxy, as they can change from a flight-capable humanoid combat mech to a short-range starfighter, and can be modified to suit the role they are given.

As the Matoki are mechanical lifeforms, their flight armors are only designed to accept them as pilots. Instead of a conventional piloting interface like other walkers and starfighters, flight armors function as an extension of the Matoki's body. Several organic aliens who've tried (and failed) to conquer Aut Matok in the name of organic supremacy and tried to take this technology for themselves (rather than make their own due to perceived impracticalities in the design process of making humanoid mechs) have been crippled for life at best trying to commandeer flight armors.

Violet Leader, the head mech of the Matoki Kingdom's Violet Squadron, is the personal flight armor of the Matoki heir Medil.

Happy Holidays to all my viewers!

Here's a non-canon holiday dress for Hiriss Moraana (if it were a Life Day dress, it would probably be simpler in design)

Tried making a multi-panel comic for the first time thanks to the new software I've got.

As a test, I decided to visualize the incident that Hiriss mentioned where Elscorsef tried to eat one of the Academy's smaller Jedi Masters. This is the kind of thing to expect from a Forceless symbiote that's just a few days old at most, and thus Hiri's bound to have a few awkward mornings as a Forceless mom.

Again, Hiriss has fangs as a side-effect of her symbiosis with Elsie, and she decided to keep them because she thought she looked cute with them.

And while I didn't explicitly plan for him to be that species when writing about the incident in Episode III: Chapter 5, Shimik is indeed an Anzellan.

Spectre - Besh Squad Shadow

This is the last of the Besh Squad pieces.

Subject: Tsai Ventia (Codename: Spectre) Species: Kyuzo Homeworld: Phatrong Gender: Female Age: 50 Affiliation: Rebel Alliance, New Republic, Galactic Alliance (Besh Squad)

Very little is known about the Kyuzo that goes by the codename of Spectre, but befitting her name, she's rather aloof. Shockingly, she's over a decade older than her direct superior, Captain Xadisall Varessi. Some say she fought against the Empire as a teenager (and since Kyuzo can live over 150 years, she is not even middle-aged) and even fought alongside Xadisall's parents. During the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, she lost her left eye to a Yuuzhan Vong thud bug.

Lacking very little presence, Spectre often takes on the role of scout, sniper, and spy for Besh Squad. However, she doesn't participate in every mission the squad's involved in. Coming from a world with high gravity, Spectre has incredible muscle density that makes her deadly close-quarters combatant and can easily jump to an ideal sniping position. Fitting her role, she doesn't wear Besh Squad's usual colors in favor of camouflagic armor. Like many Kyuzo, she wears a sturdy war helmet that can function as both a shield and a throwing weapon. 

Boltz - Besh Squad Engineer

Subject: Boltz Welmok (Codename: Boltz) Species: Gand (lungless) Homeworld: Gand Gender: Male Age: 29 Affiliation: New Republic, Galactic Alliance (Besh Squad)

The youngest member of Besh Squad and a Gand Findsman, Boltz got his codename (and his given name per Gand naming rites) through his technological aptitude. Such skills include building devices and droids, slicing computers, and repairs, among others.

While his squad role isn't strictly combat-oriented, Boltz is still fairly competent in battle thanks to being mildly Force-sensitive, wielding a Findsman shockstaff in close-quarters and sensing attacks before they happen, a skill that has proven especially helpful against Forceless. Some Jedi suspect this Force-sensitivity also has a part in his skill with machines, as he's been able to repair and disassemble devices he hasn't even studied in-depth before in seconds.

Boltz is one of the more socially awkward members of the squad, often being holed up in a laboratory or garage when he's off-duty. However, any unusual technology can easily pique his curiosity. Despite being a lungless Gand (a species which otherwise breathes ammonia), Boltz wears a respirator mask to hide his face and to mislead his enemies. When going undercover, Boltz will reduce his name to "Gand" when referring to himself (Gands usually refer to themselves in third-person).

Patcher - Besh Squad Medic

Profile: Quoll Jomas (Codename: Patcher)

Species: Nautolan

Homeworld: Glee Anselm

Gender: Male

Age: 33

Affiliation: New Republic, Galactic Alliance (Besh Squad)

Formerly an independent and respected doctor, Quoll Jomas enlisted as a field medic for the New Republic military after the hospital he worked with was destroyed by Neo-Imperials. Eventually, he caught the attention of Captain Xadisall Varessi after he saved his squad's lives from almost certain death, prompting the Mirialan to recruit him into Besh Squad as a combat medic under the codename of Patcher.

Having vast knowledge of many sapient species' physiology, this usually-optimistic Nautolan has kept his squad alive in many difficult situations throughout the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, Valkoran War and Forceless War, and saved the lives of many high-profile figures. While he's one of the more normal members of Besh Squad, his use of "bacta bombs" (a bacta-spreading grenade he co-developed with Besh Squad's technologist Boltz) in tricky situations has made other field medics question his competence, as the bombs aren't reliable for direct treatments and sound more like an attempt to apply holo-game healing logic to reality. However, they have worked in a pinch and kept the squad alive until Patcher could apply proper medical treatment.

Some suspect his seemingly-perpetual optimism is actually a mask he puts up to cope with the fact that not only can he not save everyone's lives, his role as an armed medic means he's taken lives too. During the Forceless War, the fact that he has no way of treating Forceless possession is an endless source of frustration for him.

Deciding Patcher's pose and equipment for this piece was tricky, as I needed it to reflect his role in the squad and his personality. So, I decided to give him a bacta sprayer as his prominent tool.

Bad Kitty - Besh Squad Heavy

Subject Name: Banir Keeti (Codename: Bad Kitty) Species: Cathar Homeworld: Cathar Gender: Male Age: 37 Affiliation: New Republic, Galactic Alliance (Besh Squad)

The heavy weapons specialist of Besh Squad, this muscle-bound Cathar is rather trigger-happy and can easily get into the rush of combat. Despite his intimidating appearance and sometimes crass attitude, he's got a heart of gold and has a soft spot for children.

He also insists you only call him by his codename.

The war with the Forceless Collective has soured his battle-happy demeanor a bit, mainly because he cannot derive catharsis from killing people who are possessed and being forced to fight against their will.

Xadisall Varessi - Besh Squad Captain

Here's a Mirialan OC that isn't Hiriss Moraana for once. And this is another one of my pieces edited in Paint Shop Pro after drawing it on paper. The rest of Besh Squad will follow in the same format. While it's hard to want to go back after trying a Wacom tablet in CSP, I chose to commit anyway since the sketches were already done.

Profile: Captain Xadisall Varessi (Codename: Cap, Boss) Species: Mirialan Homeworld: Mirial Gender: Male Age: 35 Affiliation: New Republic, Galactic Alliance (Besh Squad)

During the reign of the Galactic Empire, Mirial was one of several worlds marked for subjugation due to the Force being a major part of Mirialan culture, even if not every Mirialan was Force-sensitive and Mirialans in general were on the near-human spectrum, the latter of which would have otherwise put them in a relatively favorable position when taking the Empire's speciesist policies into account. Because of this, Xadisall's parents along with many other Mirialans would find themselves fighting for the Rebellion.

After the defeat of the Empire and the formation of the New Republic, Xadisall would follow his parents' example and train as a commando. After several years, he would lead a spec ops group made up of a few odd characters known as Besh Squad. Even if he seems more straight-laced and professional compared to his other squad mates, the fact that he was assigned to lead this group suggests he's also got a mischievous side, such as indulging in schadenfreude when corrupt politicians he's assigned to protect fail to go through with bills he personally disagrees with. His squad has been involved in operations against Imperial remnants, Neo-Imperials, the Yuuzhan Vong, the Valkoran Empire, and most recently, the Forceless Collective.

While tactics are his main expertise, Xadisall is also a trained pilot.

Rapthound - Forceless Hunter

Rapthounds are one of several species possessed en masse by the Forceless Collective. The most distinguish traits of these quadrupedal, carnivorous reptiles are giant hooked forelimbs used for both climbing and combat, a single glowing-eye located in the back of their throat (suspected to be a mutation), and a nightmarish howl. Their lack of exterior eyes suggests they hunted primarily by scent and hearing.

Within the Collective's military buildup, Rapthounds serve as tracking animals. Without the Forceless symbiosis providing it sustenance, Rapthounds can go three galactic standard days without food. However, as the eye obstructs its throat, mutated Rapthounds have difficulty consuming solid food, to the point that the meat has to be chewed up into a gelatinous state that loses its flavor. The Collective frequently starves them to make them more vicious, and as such, they are often driven by a hunger they are unable to fully satisfy.

Tried playing with some new hardware and software, specifically a Wacom tablet and Clip Studio Paint.

As a test, I decided to draw Grein again for the first time in 9 years. Sorry if it looks a little rough, as this method is new to me.

I finally got myself a drawing tablet that feels close to drawing with a pencil and paper, as well as Paint Clip Studio.

However, I've still got a few more p&p sketches to color from before I got the tablet (if you've been keeping up with the sketches I post, you know which ones), so I'll continue using Paint Shop Pro for those sketches (but the tablet does help with the coloring process a bit) before trying to do brand new pieces with the Wacom.

Doctor Nole Breibog - Valkoran Weapon Scientist

Subject Name: Nole Breibog

Homeworld: Ockla Prime

Species: Human (cyborg)

Gender: Male

Affiliation: Valkoran Empire/Order

The son of Valkoran nobility, Dr. Nole Breibog was a former student of Machinus, the Valkoran Empire's former top engineering scientist. However, Machinus considered him to be one of his worst students (and that's not a claim he makes lightly since Machinus is over 4000 years old). Many of his inventions were often deemed impractical at best. In fact, Breibog lost most of his original body (save for his head) as a result of his own incompetence.

Near the end of the Valkoran War, Breibog remained loyal to the Valkoran Empire while his former teacher sided with the split off Seferite Order, and was the only one of Machinus's students to do so. Going into the Forceless War, he's one of the few leaders the Valkoran Order has left. While he has a reputation for mediocrity, he has somehow created a cyber-virus that can imitate Forceless possession, giving the Forceless Collective a means in which they can possess computers and droids. He continues to experiment with his virus on Aut Matok, a planet inhabited by a race of mechanical lifeforms known as the Matoki.

In spite of his incompetence, Breibog has delusions of being a genius. He also has a grudge against the Jedi Knight Zolph Vaelor, even though Zolph does not remember him at all. Befitting his ego, he seeks to take Zolph down personally to gain Emperor Valkor's approval, even if it means making serious tactical blunders.

Due to his head being his only remaining organic component, he is capable of disconnecting it from his robotic body it it's incapacitated. His head can move around on a small set of legs hidden in his neck before attaching himself to another droid's body or a powered battle suit.

Trivia: Breibog's design is based on older concepts for Machinus. Instead of being a full-body cyborg, Machinus would eventually be revised into a droid with an organic consciousness.