Introduction
Hey friends! I'm here to share this fascinating character that caught my attention. It all started by searching for our friend on Pixabay... and his crossbow too, of course!
About the Character
Swiftbeard Stout is a rare card from the Fire Splinter of the latest edition. He's a dwarf with interesting abilities and ranged attack damage designed for high mana battles, as he costs 7 mana. Adjusting this card in low mana battles can be a bit challenging, but his Taunt ability can still increase the chances of winning.
Since he has a ranged attack, we'll obviously place him in the backline to attack from behind, targeting the first enemy monster. With the Taunt ability, all monsters from the enemy team will target this card because of its taunt effect. He has decent health with normal speed and 1 armor at higher levels.
If you upgrade this card to level 6, the Backfire ability will increase the chances of enemy attacks missing, allowing him to survive longer. Otherwise, this card might be defeated in early rounds... but the Bloodline Tribute ability will activate to boost the stats of all monsters on your friendly team.
The Creative Process
Initial Attempt
I tried to take the image and have AI transform it to make him hold the weapon... and this is where the adventure began.
Digital Reconstruction in Krita
In the end, I got a good image and used Krita to digitally reconstruct the legs with a digital brush and added some braids to the hair to get as close as possible to our character.
Background Cleaning Process
I cleaned up the background as best as I could:
Finding the Perfect Background
I started looking for a forest background and found several options:
Color Transformation
I found one and then changed its color in Krita to purple... that mysterious vibe caught my attention more.
The AI Experience
AI always gives you crazy results. I feel like a fisherman: you just have to wait for the right moment to catch the correct image to work with.
Intermediate Results
Technical Commands and Composition
And that's how I managed to get this shot. I've been learning how to give technical commands and achieved the result with a 16:9 ratio and with the bed I wanted.
Final Result
Summary
This entire process shows how digital art creation combines searching for references, using AI tools, manual digital painting in programs like Krita, and technical knowledge to achieve the desired result. Each step—from the initial concept to the final composition—required different skills and tools working together to bring "Swiftbeard Stout" to life in a new visual context.