Aethis Quill, Half-Elf Arcane Scribe Wizard, in the Library of the Blue Candles - Sketch (Patreon)

Hey all!

In the latest pin-ups/adventurers poll you voted for: Pin-Up: Aethis Quill, the Half-Elf Arcane Scribe in the Legendary Library of the Blue Candles, so here's the sketch!

I made two versions of this piece. This is the "safe" version, and I’m posting a spicier one in the Catilus discord! https://discord.gg/catilus

Are you a Patreon supporter? Check how to get your Discord role here: https://support.patreon.com/hc/en-us/articles/212052266-Get-my-Discord-role

Safe from the perils of the outside world, Aethis is relaxing in the Library of the Blue Candles, a legendary repository of arcane knowledge hidden between dimensions.

Character: Aethis Quill, Half-Elf Arcane Scribe Wizard

Born and raised in Lichtendam, a wealthy and prosperous duchy dotted with ruins left behind by the fabled Light Dwarves, Aethis always stood out as one of few half-elves in a realm of sturdy humans of distant dwarven ancestry, and peaceful orcs and half-orcs. A vast network of underground passages lies underneath Lichtendam, rumored to connect every schloss and every city in the duchy with the colossal dam of light, the realm’s namesake that defines its eastern border and serves as a testament to the legendary skills and magic of the Light Dwarves.

Aethis’ father, Duke Morgenlicht’s personal librarian, taught Aethis the practical magic she would need to become an arcane scribe, while her mother traveled the realms as a free-spirited merchant, bringing back exotic goods and tales of adventure. Growing up, Aethis spent her time between studying ancient light dwarven tomes in the duke’s vast library, and travelling to nearby ruins with her childhood friends, hoping one day to set out to explore the underground passages and discover the secrets of the Light Dwarves.

One of her childhood friends, the duke’s third son Wilmar Morgenlicht, eventually became her first love, and together they had many carefree adventures in the serene countryside that hadn’t seen war for twenty human generations.

Yet trouble was brewing in the north. As Aethis was enjoying peaceful expeditions and dreaming of great discoveries under Lichtendam, the Tzar of the Krestovian Empire was amassing the largest army since the Age of Insight; a force of more than a million red crusaders and conscripted slaves, belligerent giants, and nightmarish monstrosities that soon set out to conquer the empire’s enemies in the name of the four warring gods that supported the Tzar’s vision for a grant, continent-spanning empire.

Lichtendam succumbed to the overwhelming might of Krestovo almost without a fight. The duke recognized the futility of a direct confrontation and chose to spare his people from the fate of realms that resisted Krestovo only to be reduced to smoldering ruins. Aethis’ childhood sweetheart, Wilmar Morgenlicht, left on a quest to find allies that would help liberate Lichtendam, while Aethis, heartbroken but determined, stayed behind with her father and secretly helped orcs and half-orcs flee through the underground passages to escape a life of slavery in Krestovo.

Just hours after Lichtendam became the latest addition in the ever-expanding Krestovian Empire, a powerful and charismatic mage of angelic descent, Avel Kazimir, arrived to the ducal schloss bent on discovering the secrets of the Light Dwarves and claiming their fabled power for himself. As a wizard of Krasnygor, the red mountain of ancestral Krestovo, Kazimir assumed the position of the court wizard, typically under Duke Morgenlicht’s command, but in reality controlling much of the realm with the Tzar’s blessings.

However, Avel Kazimir’s numerous enemies and rivals made it impossible for him to leave the safety of his tower and explore the realm. Instead, the wizard of the red mountain delved into the duke’s library to plunder its secrets and quickly put Aethis and her father to work. Seeing Aethis’ arcane aptitude and realizing her eagerness to discover the secrets of Lichtendam rivaled his, Kazimir tasked her to explore the realm’s ancient ruins and underground passages on his behalf. Eventually he secretly expressed a romantic interest towards Aethis, further complicating her position.

During her expeditions, she found an unlikely ally in the ever-changing face of a polymorphist (changeling) cleric of the forgotten god of knowledge who seeks to keep the secrets of the Light Dwarves out of Krestovian hands.

Now, Aethis must strike an impossible balance between pursuing her lifelong dreams of arcane discovery and keeping Kazimir content without giving him access to secrets that would endanger the realm…

Aethis is one of my own characters in the Theomachy setting!

What do you think? :)

Full illustration soon!