Hybrids, part 2
These hybrids come from the huge update we did that rebalanced the breeding grid to fill in the missing ones (Fire and Lightning only had Firefly, and we added Scorch so there was a second possible outcome) and added the Metal primary--which added a lot of new dragons all at once (we had to do 2 new dragons for 6 of the original 7 primaries, plus Metal itself. Only 6 of the 7 because Metal and Plant don't mix.)
Acid. Dark/Metal. I'm a Giger fanboy. This guy was a lot of fun to paint. We had a lot of fun writing the description, too. It won't fit here.
Promethium. Metal/Dark. I sketched this guy while standing in line at the Massive Black conference in Santa Monica. I believe the final artwork was inked by Ashley Stoddard, who was working diligently on the Metal update while I was watching cool lectures
Promethium. Metal/Dark. I'm pretty sure Ashley Stoddard did the final inking on this, but I could be wrong. Ilona Paslawski may have inked it, and she made a lot of baby dragons.
Quicksilver. Metal/Water.
Wisp. Lightning/Dark.
Abyss. Water/Dark.
Rust. Water/Metal. I love this guy. Again, thanks to the animators, his tail slinkys in and out while it moves. I need to make a fan art piece of "what he really looks like."
Sand. Earth/Light. Along with Dark, we added Light. I feel like this dragon would be at home both in the desert and at the beach.
Cactus. Plant/Lightning. This guy was a collaboration between Bill Stutte and myself. I got the final say on lines because I inked it :D Google Bill's "Sophisticactus" art.
Scorch. Fire/Lightning. This was my version of a real "dragon's dragon." Very much influenced by Elmore and Easley's art for D&D. The art director blackened the tips of his limbs to make him look scorched. It fit.
Bone. Fire/Earth. This is a reskin of the Scorch. Only available around Halloween.
Cave. Dark/Earth. You should see the initial sketches... I met with some resistance. The googly eyes are a nod to the Black Beast of Argh from Monty Python and the Quest for the Holy Grail. Needs more legs.
Forge. Fire/Metal. This dragon was adapted from a concept done by Ilona Paslawski for a Thorn dragon (Metal/Plant). It was too cool not to use, and it adapted well to wrought iron and plate styling.
Thunder. Lightning/Air. Later recolored grey and yellow, the Thunder dragon started out like a dark cloud. The bearded axe on his tail and it's horns are a nod to Norse iconography--who doesn't think of Thor when they hear thunder?
Iceberg. Water/Cold. No doubt this one is odd. Dragonblubber. It animated nicely, as the head and neck reached way out, giving it's bulk a flexible feel.
Salamander. Fire/Water. As a Medieval geek, the idea of the salamander as a creature rumored to be able to live in fire, I enjoyed adding this guy to the game.
Lichen. Cold/Plant. This guy caused me trouble. One influential member of the team really hated the name. Thought players might think it was a werewolf... like an Underworld lycan. We can all laugh about it now. I was going for "so ugly it's cute".
Butterfly. Air/Lightning/Fire. This little dragon has false eye spots to make him look like a much bigger dragon. And in larval form it looks like Heimlich.
Fog. Water/Air. One of the cutest babies I did, I think. The AD thought it looked like a nasty alien. Again, animation is the real hero, as they had this big, puffy dragon floaty bouncing on his tiny feet (inspired by a Carl Sandburg poem about Fog).
Chrome. Metal/Air. A rare, rendered up DragonVale dragon. Inspired by heavy metal album covers. Really should have looked like the concrete seagull that Aarzack rides, in retrospect. Fun to paint.