A Piece of Random

(click to enlarge)

This one probably looks a bit weird. And aye, that it is. This is just a random picture I drew of my cast from my story called Labyrinths and Lizards. Yes, its a play on Dungeons and Dragons. The story itself was a random, zany little deal set in fantasy world; this picture, obviously, set in modern times if they were a band, hahaha. L&L was a new thing for me for several reasons. First off, it took place in a different world than the rest of my stories. All my other pieces have taken place within the same world, just in different time periods. L&L was on it's own world, though it DID have cameos of just about all my favorite characters. This story was a great one because, as I found I enjoy, most of my characters were very powerful. Either in the beginning or over time, they had reached a point, a "hero" status, where people knew them by sight. The cast of L&L was new for me because they were the underdogs. They were technically 'level 3' from the beginning of the story to the end. Imagine a big epic fight with nothing but tiny soldiers to fight against? That was the idea I was shooting for here. Rather than a huge epic save the world battle, it was several characters struggling to survive in the starter zone.

And now, for the cast. Starting clockwise from the top left:

The money grubbing 'manager' of the band, was a red-cloak wearing kleptomaniac named Aurelia. If it wasn't nailed down, Aurelia could steal it. Funny due to the good-aligned Paladin in the group, Aurelia always boasted if he didn't see it, it shouldn't count against his alignment. She has purple hair, and like I mentioned before, a bright red cloak. Odd garb for a rogue / thief, wouldn't you say?

The guy banging on the drums is Marig the Lion Man. Lion Man set forth from his village with an epic tale to look for a relic that would save his people. Unfortunately, he has a weakness for the nectar of the Mountain Dew Berry (sound familiar?) After a drunken spectacle of biblical proportions, Lion Man forgot what his quest was and wandered aimlessly until he met the crew of L&L. A beast of a warrior, Lion Man is armed with a giant axe, a leather vest and a big black kilt. Don't call it a dress; he's killed lesser people for saying so. Lion Man is a shaman by nature, albeit a violent one.

On the spin-tables is a character I owe credit to my buddy Mike Marchant, as he aided haevily in her creation. Her name is Sharla, a beautiful, blonde High Elven bard. Her songs are melodious and her Lore knowledge are practically unmatched, but one thing really sticks out about Sharla- her lack of battle prowess. More than willing to heal, Sharla prefers to leave the fighting to her comrades, sticking to songs and her favorite spell of all time: Magic Missle.

The dwarf up front with the axe(!) would be Gamlek McKillumthings, no relation to Surly McKillenthings. A pilot that was exiled from his dwarven kingdom for his many.. Er... 'colorful' inventions, Gamlek began selling his services as a taxi cab, ferrying people to and fro in his Dirigible. One day, a motley little crew hired him for a flight when they got shot down, forcing Gamlek to accompany them until he acquired the funds to repair his beloved air-boat. Gamlek adds not only force to the fight, but humor as well. Most of his battle tactics revolve around his Dwarven Blunderbuss, plus many bombs and trinkets, including explosive-sheep. He wields a mean axe, but prefers range.

The singer on the right, the one screaming into the mic, would be the Bloodkin Elf Sho'Ryu. Sho'Ryu is another of my favorite characters of all time, falling short of Ruun in number of his appearances. Sho has appeared in many of my writings, most often as a humorous, womanizing sorcerer, which you may find odd for an Elf. He hits on just about anything female, including an Ogress one time. His skills vary depending on what story he's in; in this one, he's just a level 3 sorcerer with a loudmouth Bat for a familiar named Vikktor. The group hates Vikktor as his level of obnoxiousness is unmatched, and Sho'Ryu often uses Vikktor as leverage to get what he wants, or to make a point. Sho can be smart when he wants to, and has the ability to identify most spells he sees, whether he can cast them or not.

The other vocalist on the left there with the cross around his neck would be Dante. Dante hasn't had many roles in my stories, but I love him to death because in this work, while the whole group is spastic and funny, Dante can often be found thinking and pondering seriously. That doesn't sound like me, does it? Well, the story takes place on Dante's shoulder; he's basically the narrator. The cool thing about the story is all the subtle details that Dante notices and the things he does. In fact, by the end of the story, many people would look at what Dante did and go "Whoa! All along he was doing something meaningful!" It comes as a surprise to most people, but that was my idea. Serious-faced, but deadly in battle, the Paladin Dante sports a mean long-sword, a range of Divine-based spells and a reforged steel shield he received from his days of youth... from an enigmatic young female that is no longer around. She lives on in Dante's memory, protecting him from harm through her shield he bears.

Lastly, on the left there, wielding a giant guitar, and, in battle, an even bigger Battle-axe: the barbarian Spikes. Spikes fits the typical Barbarian berzerker status: Huge orc that isn't too pretty, but he's strong as hell. Strangely, he has a certain fear of all things cute and fuzzy, as well as spiders. If the target is not one of those three things, Spikes will kill it. It doesn't matter what level it is. Sho and Aurelia have a bad habit of using Spikes to set off traps when they can't figure out how to disarm it, then resurrecting the Orc when the trap kills him. Spikes doesn't mind, after all, he found a use outside of combat, but it irritates Dante when they do it. Spikes shows intelligence from time to time, and found himself the bearer of a great magical artifact in the story. Lucky for him!

Not picture, because I think I forgot to add him, either that or I couldn't find a spot for him, would be the elven Ranger Jenos. Jenos, like Lion Man, set out from the Elven kingdom with an errand to accomplish, until Dante pointed out that Jenos' quest was impossible, and that the elves were just trying to get rid of Jenos. Saddened, Jenos joined Dante and crew on their quest. He just has one real problem: his eyes were cursed in ages past by a sorcerer. A near-sighted Elven RANGER? That just screams hilarity, doesn't it?! Jenos has a natural leadership flair, though, and keeps the group together when certain events rear and things get rough.

8 little adventurers out trying to stop a mad evil at level 3? Yup, they're insane. That's Labyrinths and Lizards :D The first story I've written that's more focused on comedy than drama or, for that matter, plot. The plot just kinda seems to happen while the characters are bickering, and then someone goes: "Hey look. Plot happened!"