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FelisGlacialis In reply to Xhyxhahruxh [2022-01-11 23:23:04 +0000 UTC]

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Xhyxhahruxh In reply to FelisGlacialis [2022-01-13 17:44:39 +0000 UTC]

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FelisGlacialis In reply to sarahmarlen [2016-03-21 06:55:29 +0000 UTC]

Ha yeah I've seen it now!! GREAT!! I still want to write a proper comment in it - I have featured this drawing on my journal page too.

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sarahmarlen In reply to FelisGlacialis [2016-03-21 18:37:39 +0000 UTC]

Thank you very much for the feature! And no rush for commenting - just take your time.

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FelisGlacialis In reply to alvringer [2016-01-07 13:05:58 +0000 UTC]

Thanks!! Yeah, it's Nice to show a bit of his 'soft', personal side as well. I'm thinking of making this sketch into a 'bigger' digital project...but I have so many drawings on my list that this idea will just end up at the bottom of my already-far-too-long to do list XD

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alvringer In reply to FelisGlacialis [2016-01-08 18:07:46 +0000 UTC]

Aha yea that happens too often, doesn't it? Hopefully you'll be able to do it some time though, it would be good to see!

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FelisGlacialis In reply to Vannjaren [2015-11-27 16:35:52 +0000 UTC]

Haa there you are again!! I started to miss you already! I’m sorry that I didn’t respond to the previous comments again. I think that I had reached my too-long-didn’t-respond threshold – that I just feel so flooded that I didn’t know where to start answering (because I need to read all the messages over again to write a proper answer).

Anyway thanks for the Stian-love tsunami! Ha and you know that I already find your art very good. But that’s a different topic. Interesting that you noticed the different hair-lengths of Stian’s neckfur. Hardly anybody notices this. About the robustness on walking-drawing; I had the same feeling that he felt kind of ‘longer’ than he normally is. Not necessarily more skinny, just ‘longer’. So I overlaid it with the charactersheet and saw that it exactly matched, so I conclude that it is a deceptive pose – probably because he tends to stand with flexed legs, while when he walks, the legs are more stretched. On the charactersheet his hindleg is placed forward, giving a more compact impression, while now it’s placed far more backwards, which gives a much more stretched feeling. When you look at photos of the same individual in different poses, some poses can really skew your perception I think. At least I noticed that on photos of my own cats. In some they look too robust, on others too thin compared to ‘reality’. But anyway – good of you to notice this, it made me double check it again And indeed, before he is fully mature, he is kind of ‘longer’ – although still very robust compared to siderians of similar age.

Haha details of teeth don’t appear with all my characters. I only know that Stian and at least Matthias have these weird incisors, that falkner has only 5 incisors in his lower jaw and that Tristan has very straight, rather than bent (and slightly lateral pointing) upper canines. I’m curious to see these crooked incisors of Axis. I generally miss Krovens a bit.

About the family – yeah I finally got Vivanna’s colour and appearance right. I may have to make a new charactersheet of her. And Ekster is indeed nearly white as adult, but is born very dark. It is the reversed silver effect – and she has a variant that is also affected by season, just like her son.

And yep I have indeed changed Stian’s eye-position a little bit. Not that he changed in my mind, but my drawing skills improved in that way. I noticed all of a sudden that his face looked bugged. This is much more how I see him – with high placed eyes. And I must admit that I don’t like big round heads – so let’s say that siderians get their intelligence because of the increased foldings and connections (Neanderthal brains were also bigger than human’s – both absolutely and relatively, but they were probably less ‘intelligent’ – although intelligence is a very complex thing and I don’t believe it to be a single cognitive ability).

Anyway back to the point – I thought that Krovens weren’t mammals (if they are animals at all?) – why do they get cubs in the same way? Convergent evolution? Interesting to hear that they get more developed young. Why do they need that? In mammals it imposes greater energetic costs for the mother, compared to having altricial young.

As for drawing Stian laying down – it’s just to trust my feeling for how to draw him right and I used to watch my cats a lot – when I lived in the Netherlands. But I agree- it can be challenging. Sometimes I have to go back to the reference sheet and actually measure the proportions of certain body parts relative to each other in a different pose. And really? You’re back to drawing again??? I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THAT!!!

Hmm yeah I notice it again and again- nearly ALL feline characters are 'eunuchy snipsnip' and nearly ALL canine characters (even drawn in a very simple comic way) are drawn with obvious genitals. Poor felines… I don’t see a shame in it and I would rather insult my characters if I would draw them without their precious parts. Maybe it’s easier to draw the simple penile sheath of canines than it is to draw the testicles of a feline? Dunno. Anyway, since I’m doing a PhD in seasonal biology I noticed that many animals actually regress their gonads during non-breeding times. Maybe Krovens do so too? Siderians don’t – like most felids (except the lynx) and are sexually active year-round.

That drawing of Stian sitting there with death-glare is indeed the same drawing as the one of my ID. I liked that one so much that I wanted to make a full-body drawing of it. Oh and you know what? I have started making a sculpture of Stian!! I was inspired by mangakasan and her fantastic sculptures.
(wow, this reply took me 20min to type Oo- let al one the reading - and now I have written a wall of text of at least similar lenght than yours )

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Vannjaren In reply to FelisGlacialis [2015-11-30 22:57:29 +0000 UTC]

Hehe, yes… I keep disappearing this year… And aww, really? And don’t worry about that, I don’t mind if you don’t respond to all of them since I know I have a tendency to type too much. If there’s anything that’s particularly interesting or that you want to ask though you can always mention it in another comment, so you don’t have to reply in full to the original comment it was in. ^^ (if that makes sense… :’D)

Ha, you’re very welcome – and he totally deserves a love-tsunami, hehehe! :’D I think we can agree to disagree on that topic… Anyway, I found it something quite noticeable – and in my old art for him, I tried to show it. I guess I notice the neckfur thing since I tend to pay attention to the manes of Krovens too, since they often have different lengths in different regions of their manes etc. And I thought that might have been the case but wasn’t entirely sure – some poses can indeed be deceptive. :’D I understand what you mean though – I find the same thing looking at animals from different angles, like Cooper (my Weimaraner) can look very long-bodied in some poses. (he’s correctly proportioned but depending on how he’s standing and what angle you’re looking at him from, he can look like his back is too long compared to his legs sometimes. :’D)

Indeed, it would be too many characters to work out details of teeth for all of them. :’D And hmm, I didn’t know Falkner only had 5 lower incisors, interesting! ^^ (I do remember him having quite a narrow head though so maybe this is linked?) Ah, yes… you could kinda see them in the portrait I had of him – he was the black male Dreikov with pale golden eyes. Krovens can have crooked incisors sometimes – the incisors don’t interlock like the rest of the teeth so they occasionally grow a bit crooked in some individuals. And you miss Krovens, really?????

Ah, yes, I thought she looked exactly how you described her to look here – some characters have colours that are hard to get right – and ooh, I’d love to see it if you made a new one! ^^ Interesting, that explains the colour difference between her here and as an adult – for a while I thought I was remembering her incorrectly as being paler, but that makes sense now! :’D

Aha, I was certain I had noticed his eye position was different! And I definitely understand that… especially in my older art my characters don’t “look like themselves” compared to newer drawings – urgh, in some of the reaaaaally old ones, their faces are far too short and stubby and have almost no variation and definition, blergh! But yes, sometimes when a character SEEMS to change, it’s not so much that the character has changed, but more just the artist’s way of drawing them has improved. ^^ And ha, I must agree with you there too – I dislike big round heads as well! :’D And also interesting that you mention connections, I didn’t know that Siderians had increased connections before – since this is actually partly what I use to explain the intelligence of Krovens as well (knowing that increased “intelligence” is associated with increased connections between neurons). I thought initially that Siderians simply just had large braincases – though I think newer drawings of Siderians seem to show this feature less prominently than before. With Krovens, their intelligence is down to high connectivity between neurons(also linked to their metaphysical skills…), plus their braincases are deceptively large relative to overall body size. Also, because of their size, they have proportionally more densely-packed neurones… overall giving them a very high encephalisation ratio relative to their bulk. (Ha, I agree that intelligence is a complex thing and pretty much impossible to accurately quantify since there are so many different aspects that make it up, and different ways to interpret it.)

Ah, interesting questions! I’ll separate out this little section of to make it easier to read (hopefully).

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 Firstly yes, Krovens are not mammals (they are still animals though, most definitely. :’D). As for the cubs, well… I will try to explain it as briefly as I can. ^^ It is a case of convergent evolution with them in terms of internal gestation. The “stock species” from which they originated (which would later become infected with the xenovirion and undergo genetic combination to later become the ancestors of Krovendraekk) was a type of large predatory dinocephalian-type therapsid, and therapsids are most commonly believed to have laid eggs (though there are some who think they could have born live young). However, after the integration of the virion DNA, things would have begun changing… the first generations would have likely still laid eggs of some kind, but as the species changed there would have been advantages to internal gestation – as a nomadic species, making a nest would be inconvenient to say the least. Likely what happened was that the eggs were retained for gradually longer periods until gestation became fully internalised as the species evolved. As for internal gestation… the cub is carried within the mother and so there is no need for a nest, or for incubation of eggs. Additionally, there is no need to protect or defend a nest, as there are no eggs which are vulnerable to predators. As for exactly how the process works in Krovendraekk, they do not have a true placenta as such, but some other means of nutrient transport, perhaps with a series of specialised membranes etc.

With regards to the young being more developed, there are two reasons for this – one is likely a “leftover” from their reptilian stock species, since viviparous reptiles tend to have very developed young compared to mammals. Another major reason is the lifestyle of Krovendraekk, as more developed cubs are able to start moving for themselves sooner, and to follow their parents rather than being carried. Being born in a more developed state allows them to practise motor skills earlier after birth. Also, Krovens require quite developed young for other reasons – regarding their fur, since Krovens lack any insulating adipose tissue and cubs cannot regulate their temperature as well, they need to have a fairly developed coat when born. Regarding feeding, Krovens cannot produce milk, nor do they regurgitate partially digested food for cubs – instead, like raptors, they carry prey back to cubs, and tear off strips of meat for their young – hence the need for a full set of teeth (though the teeth of cubs are not so sharp or numerous as those of adults). In some instances, more developed cubs have an added advantage – in some Krovendraekk (most notably Kårstatt), cubs may be left alone for periods of time, and a cub which is able to run or climb (or indeed fight, as in the case of Kårstatt) is less at risk from potential predators.(adult Krovens have no natural predators, but some large predators like wolves, bears, pantherine cats etc. may take interest in a small cub…)

On the subject of energetic costs… this is partly offset in Krovens by the fact that they only have one single cub at a time (or, very rarely, they may have twins – but the mother usually does suffer as a result), and that cub is very small compared to her overall size. Also, gestation in Krovens is a slow process, taking around 11 months, so the cub does not develop rapidly or to a large size.

However, even if Kroven cubs are not altricial, they’re still far from independent, and require a lot of parental care and input, and are still vulnerable compared to adults.

Hope that explains a few things! ^^

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I suppose when you’ve been drawing him so much you get a feel for it, and watching your cats would have helped a lot indeed, I’m sure. ^^ And ha, sometimes I do that too with certain poses, to check if things are right because it’s hard to tell sometimes just by the look in certain poses. And sort of… I’m currently TRYING to get back to drawing again, but… University work and depression-anxiety combination aren’t helping, though I am still trying at least… I just hope someday soon things will get more bearable and I can finally be more productive… As for a laying Krovendrakk… I have started some sketchies of Morsan, and one of them is a sort of perspective-ish shot of him lying. (another one shows him yawning, haha… something else I’ve never tried to draw before. :’D)

Yes, I find it strange indeed. And I don’t think it’s any harder to draw -  if anything, I personally find it easier! Like when drawing Stian – showing the testicles really wasn’t hard at all, which just makes it seem odd that people will draw the sheath of canines and not the testicles of felines. And yes, I’ve read that before, quite interesting! ^^ This isn’t the case in Krovendraekk – Krovens don’t have any defined breeding seasons, and, like humans and many other creatures, including Siderians, may mate at any time of year. Ovulation is triggered directly by the process of intercourse, and does not occur on a cycle. Male Krovens do not have external testicles – instead, they have an internal spermatogenic organ which originated from the paired internal testes of reptiles  (now partly fused in Krovens to form a bilobed organ). Male Krovens do have penises(though they lack a baculum, having a ridged cartilage rod instead), but the penis is not visible as it is held partly internally as well, in a cavity with a narrow slit opening which is obscured entirely by the fur – this is the urogenital slit, and is present in male and female Krovens (the female’s urethra and reproductive tract are also enclosed within this structure). As such, to look at the rear end of a Krovendrakk, you won’t get any clues regarding the sex. :’D Dimorphism is present instead in voice, facial features etc…. but with regards to genitalia, there’s no outwardly visible indication.

Ah, I thought it was – and I can’t blame you, it looked great! ^^ And as I said in my other message, I’m sure it will be awesome, and I look forward to seeing it! (and mangakasan does indeed make beautiful sculptures… ) (sorry if my reply is long too btw – you don’t have to reply to any of the stuff on Kroven reproduction unless you want to, it’s just there for reading and to answer your quandaries)

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Vannjaren In reply to FelisGlacialis [2015-11-27 17:16:14 +0000 UTC]

Ha, I will reply to the rest of this comment soon, bug... I am sort of back to drawing - or starting to try at least. It will probably be a good amount of time before I get anything finished again but I have at least started sketching again... even if the sketches are terrible. I have started working out facial features for a few characters, including Morsan who will be getting a sketchdump. (and I hope I figure out more on his role by doing so, haha...)
Btw, I updated my sketch of Ferrus yesterday to fix his eyes and add the rest of his chest fur and his tail - I can upload it to see if you think his eyes are ok now. ^^

Speaking of sculptures, ha, that is such a coincidence since I also decided to try making a Kroven sculpture - digitally in Sculptris, a free programme. (part of my attempts to try getting back into art by doing something new). I have no idea what I'm doing though, hahaha... . At least it currently has four legs and looks vaguely Kroven-shaped - it's just so annoying though that it lags so badly on my laptop, will make detailing almost impossible, but I can't pay for a proper program which would run better.
As for your Stian sculpture, I can't wait to see it! I'm sure it will look amazing!

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FelisGlacialis In reply to Yami-Pimea [2015-11-22 22:46:18 +0000 UTC]

Haha yeah indeed- I must admit that I love to imagine him like that. Just to see the Great White Devil (more or less) peace for once. Yeah I wouldn't dare come close to him either - but throughout the story he once meets somebody he wouldn't kill.
(btw...how are you? haven't seen you on skype lately)

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FelisGlacialis In reply to IsThisNotAName [2015-11-03 10:18:44 +0000 UTC]

Lol, maybe it got lost Oo Sometimes DA is really bugged. Anyway thanks for the comment anyway. That motivates me to work on more sketch-dumps like this

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FelisGlacialis In reply to Hunting-wolf [2015-10-22 22:12:56 +0000 UTC]

Thanks!! Ha yeah usually Vivanna is a bit 'pushed away' in my mind, thanks to Stians dominant, uncontrollable presence... He kinda overrides nearly all my other characters. But maybe I should draw Vivanna a bit more often indeed.

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FelisGlacialis In reply to PrinceOfArc [2015-10-22 22:11:33 +0000 UTC]

Ha good to hear that Stian got a new fan hehe. I will definitely promise more Stian art in the (near) future XD

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PrinceOfArc In reply to FelisGlacialis [2015-10-24 14:13:12 +0000 UTC]

Thank you! C: 

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FelisGlacialis In reply to HunterBeingHunted [2015-10-22 22:10:54 +0000 UTC]

Thankies!! Haha that pink fluffball - yeah I kinda melt as well there. I've had a cat (Jayto - see my gallery) who often slept as a kinda ball. Stian often does the same. Maybe because he has to use his tail to keep warm.

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FelisGlacialis In reply to StarshadowDragon [2015-10-22 22:09:40 +0000 UTC]

THankies!

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FelisGlacialis In reply to grimhost [2015-10-22 22:09:32 +0000 UTC]

Thanks! Lol - I'm wondering which expressions you mean - poker face or pokerface? Oh wait we also have death glare (and some very rare very well hidden tiny smiles)

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FelisGlacialis In reply to Lupas-Deva [2015-10-22 22:03:56 +0000 UTC]

Thanks!! Haha Stian with expressions?? I used to think that he has only two: pokerface and a slightly more intense version: death glare.

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FelisGlacialis In reply to AywenSix [2015-10-22 22:04:37 +0000 UTC]

Haha lol, you find him cute?? He's actually a pretty notorious killer - but ...I must admit that he is cute in a way

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AywenSix In reply to FelisGlacialis [2015-10-23 12:25:39 +0000 UTC]

^^ especially when he's toileting himself or is sleepy.

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FelisGlacialis In reply to ApalrieusCentauri [2015-10-22 22:05:34 +0000 UTC]

Thanks! That's good to hear. Yeah drawing your character in different poses and in different actions really brings him/her to life. I may not be finished with Stian sketches...am totally obsessed with him right now.

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FelisGlacialis In reply to GingertheTiger [2015-10-19 11:25:20 +0000 UTC]

Haha Yeah

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GingertheTiger In reply to FelisGlacialis [2015-10-19 13:43:01 +0000 UTC]

I guess I'm not the only person who thinks their OC's are sexy

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FelisGlacialis In reply to GingertheTiger [2015-10-20 08:41:18 +0000 UTC]

haha no, definitely not

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GingertheTiger In reply to FelisGlacialis [2015-10-20 13:32:01 +0000 UTC]

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FelisGlacialis In reply to Mudstar-Sibera [2015-10-22 22:08:28 +0000 UTC]

Haha I remember your reaction on skype, yes. You nearly got stuck in your ceiling so high you jumped haha. I will maybe make a 'serious' project of the one with the family

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Mudstar-Sibera In reply to FelisGlacialis [2015-10-22 23:54:18 +0000 UTC]

Hehe yep and I always will.  

I PASSIONATLY SUPPORT DIS! 

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FelisGlacialis In reply to Niirra [2015-10-19 11:25:04 +0000 UTC]

Thankies!! Same here- I can't stop stirring at the drawings...

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