Here's A Preview For My Addition To @curseofsergei's Curse Of Strahd Zine, Memento Mori!

Here's a preview for my addition to @curseofsergei's Curse of Strahd zine, Memento Mori!

I've had a wonderful time participating, and can't wait for the zine to be out! (:

Along with my main piece, I've also been working on some of the formatting art, and will post that soon too! (:

I need a quick break before I get back to art and D&D prep, and I've been considering animating some of my D&D PC's voice lines, so here's my dirty little guy.

Context: Devleik is a reborn (originally drow) and swarmkeeper ranger, who came back to life the first day of the campaign. For a while at the beginning he couldn't speak Common, and still prefers to speak in Old Common, his native language/the equivalent to Latin in our game. Most NPCs can't speak it, so he doesn't tend to talk much. It's for the best, people tend to ask uncomfortable questions if they pay too much attention to him. His voice is pretty scratchy, and after a few hours of playing, is usually broken up by my coughing.

Andrel is a bard we met at the beginning of the campaign and he's shown up a couple times after.

Friendly Introduction:

Ah, Andrel! My friend! I've been wondering when I'll next see you again, please, tell me the roads have been treating you well!

Neutral Intro:

Oh? Can I help you? The goal is to direct their attention away from himself, ideally making them focus on one of the human party members.

Hostile Intro/Combat Initiated/Threatened:

Get away from me! or Stand back! Followed by Dev drawing his weapons, and, if it's safe for him to do so, showing off his spider swarm as warning. It normally doesn't go well.

Combat Victory:

Good... Is everyone else alright? No one else dead yet?

Critical Fail/Miss, Near Incapacitated/Dying:

Oh dear... That's... unfortunate... Breathing becomes more labored, the result of an instinct from his old life, not because he needs to breath anymore.

Support Ally:

Hold on, just keep talking. This will only take a moment. You'll be okay soon enough. or Hold on, we don't need another dead man walking around just yet. For some reason, our undead, actively rotting ranger is our healer.

Flee:

We should go. Now. We'll meet back up at the camp.

Received Gift:

Are you sure? Oh, thank you, my friend! I am in your debt, may life treat you well.

Lost an Item:

My friends? Do we still have the [item]? Which cart did we leave it on again? Do we still have that cart with us? Where is it, I need something from it.

Received Flirt/Unsolicited Flirt:

Excuse me? You must be mistaken...

Disliking Activity:

I'm not getting wet. I don't care. I don't dry out easy, this will only make the problem worse. I'm not explaining this one.

Waking Up:

If it's sunny: Well, that's unfortunate. If it's overcast: Oh! Decent weather, for once. If it's raining: Well, I suppose it could be worse. We should do our best to stay dry though. Dev still has sunlight sensitivity, despite being a reborn. And his mummification hasn't held up to water well.

Middle of Day:

You know, I think we could go without the sun for a bit. Like, I don't think it would kill us.

Bored/Idle (playing with his swarm):

Hey, check out this spider! Does it have too many legs to you too?

Preparing to Rest:

The stars are nice tonight...

idk what to tag this as but here's a silly thing i made

fill in the blank oc voice lines game! i did these in the perspective of the oc (so like friendly means oc friendly to someone else) but its freeform so yea!

Fill in what your OC would say/do in these situations!

Friendly Introduction:

Neutral Intro:

Hostile Intro:

Combat Initiated:

Combat Victory:

Attack:

Critical Fail/Miss:

Critical Hit:

Nat20ed against a BBEG:

Support Ally:

Flee:

Combat Defeat:

Near Incapacitated:

Received Reward:

Received Gift:

Lost an Item:

Received Flirt:

Received Unsolicited Flirt:

Sees Favorite (object/subject):

Sees Disliked (object/subject):

Enjoying Activity:

Disliking Activity:

Waking Up:

Middle of Day:

Bored/Idle:

Preparing to Rest:

Memento Mori Contributors: Part 2

We have a lovely group of contributors; each spotlight will promote 3-4 of them! Today's spotlight goes towards Zephyr Nix, Einmeegle, and IrinaCapitan!

Check them out!

@sheabeanie | einmeegle | irinacapitan

once you stop being terrified of wasps you can live in awe of their diversity and beauty

1 - Wine

“I never drink… wine,” Alek intoned, as deeply as he could, thoroughly butchering Strahd’s native accent in dramatic caricature. He blinked, setting down his glass of the dark red liquid, and thumped a fist gently against his own chest to produce a stunted belch which left him looking a bit perplexed.

His little display would have been terribly insulting, but for the fact that it was, on all counts, simply inaccurate. Strahd reached across the relatively small table and lifted the glass from Alek’s hand. “Why do you think I stock my cellar with wine, if not to drink it?” he challenged. Strahd swirled the contents lightly, observing the slight syrupy cling about its edges.

Alek’s eyes narrowed, an eyebrow raised conspiratorially as he leaned in—or rather swayed—closer. “You do it for me, I’d bet.”

“Indeed?”

“I’ve had…” Alek fell back again, peering down at himself as though to assess whether he was, in fact, still attached to all his limbs. “...all of it,” he said vaguely.

“All of it?” Strahd echoed, a faint smile pulling at one side of his mouth.

Alek’s elbow thumped against the table top, and he jabbed a finger in Strahd’s direction. “’Cept that. Drink it, or I’m right.”

It was true that Strahd did not often imbibe, and when he did it was very little. He found that his head ached too quickly, and he had seen the ill effects of alcohol on some of their eldest comrades. Altogether, the risks often outweighed the benefits. But Strahd could easily stoop to this particular challenge. He raised the glass to Alek, then drank deeply from it, tipping his head back. He deposited the empty vessel back into Alek’s waiting hand, whose dilated gray eyes were now wrought with suspicion.

Alek looked into the glass, then back at Strahd. “I’m still right,” he decided.

Strahd did not bother to argue. Alek was drunk. And what did it matter who drank most of the wine in his cellar, so long as Strahd had given it freely? Exquisite drinks were a feature of etiquette, a tool in diplomatic relations, denoting a status of wealth and refinement, which often served to inspire awe or intimidation, depending on the visitor. That anyone appreciated Strahd’s selection beyond that was of little consequence.

Alek’s finger absently traced the rim of the glass, stationed once again on the table. Strahd was pulled out of his musings by the eerie feeling that he was being appraised at this moment.

“Are you satisfied?” Strahd asked dryly.

An easy grin lit upon Alek’s face. “Of course.” He added, cryptically, “Some get better with age.”

Then Alek rose from his chair, managing to remain mostly steady in doing so. “I had better leave you to…” He waved vaguely about the room. “...before I do something foolish.”

“I’m afraid it’s too late for that,” said Strahd.

Alek balked at this news, and then he laughed, sheepishly. “Forgive me, then.” He leaned on the table, scooping up Strahd’s hand from its surface to press his lips against Strahd’s knuckles. Strahd’s heart skipped. His mind seemed to be at once racing and absent of thought. The gesture was unusual between them.

“Good evening, my lord” Alek said with a flourish, further baffling the incomprehensible moment.

Alek had made it halfway to the door when a soft correction of “...Strahd” reached his ears.

He paused, glancing back at Strahd over his shoulder, expression lopsided but fond.

“I know.”

Then Strahd was left alone, with a vague feeling of driftlessness and a budding headache. Resting his elbows on the table before him, Strahd pressed his knuckles to his lips.

* * *

[Ao3 collection]

[prompts list]

“he has your blood all over his mouth” well we are in love. If you must know