More concept art for the game I've been working on, though the in-game sprites don't quite match up to this and are abysmally lazy in quality. The mechanics work as I'd intended at least. The idea for this creature is that it floats over to a strategic location, or just near the player, and starts charging up an aura of red energy centered on it's location. If you hit it while it's charging the thing takes extra damage and dies instantly. If you allow it to charge fully, then the only way to get to it yourself involves running through the aura and taking damage from it. Or, as friendly fire is very much a thing for the enemies, trick a ranged attacker into hitting it for you.

Any advice on how to draw something like this from a top-down perspective, or what elements should be changed about the design for a fuzzy ghost made of pain, will all be taken into consideration.