Calm scene. I just love how affectionate it is.

It is, the particular emotions in this have been depicted well, actually Thanks for the nice comment.

wow, that vanguard looks very realistic, I love the detailing and muscle and vein deffinitions, that is some hard stuff to do....

Yeah, that's one thing that really impressed me, it's almost like a photo with some of the detail.

I have a fingerprint on my screen after trying to feel the veins in Two-Talon's arms. Amazing color and detail. Stunning!

I know, right? It's like one of those traditional oil paintings of a real person, you know it's a picture, but it still looks so real. I Damie_M, he's amazing.

the detail on the face...dear lord...it's beautiful...

You're not wrong, Sir... this really is a beautiful piece, quite humbling really

This is nothing short of [i]amazing![/b] I feel enthralled just looking at this painting; They captured a classical art sort of appearance.. in a sci-fi scene!

You know what else? I could have sworn that this was a traditional painting, but now I see that it is digital. I think that makes it even more amazing.

You're not wrong, my friend. You've captured what I was thinking perfectly, it really does look like one of those classical paintings doesn't it? Those old time ones that are almost photo-realistic from a distance. Thank you so much for the wonderful comments, too

Holey schmoley...

That was my reaction on receiving it

Colour me incredibly impressed. Must have cost a pretty penny.

Not cheap, but oh, so so worth it

Damn right, I'm half tempted. Curse you and your great-artist-finding capabilities.

Hmm, sometimes. Othertimes I'll just commission anyone who will stand still for more than a minute or two at at time

well cool

Thanks buddy... yeah, it is a cool piece, really quite amazing.

yer grate detail

Three phrases come to mind when reading this; "Very cool", "So nice", and "Money well spent!"

Thanks for sharing Lincard!

No problem - works like this really should be shared and appreciated. Thank YOU for the lovely comments and yeah, Damie_M is such an incredible artist, as well as a really lovely guy. Hoping I get the opportunity to work with him again, actually.

I like this. I like what I'm reading of yours, too. If you don't mind, I'll give you a chapter play-by-play.

Please do, I'd love to hear what you have to say - constructive criticism is what I live for

Gah, you flatter me with your kind words, man :) I had a blast working on this for you! The pleasure was all mine. *hug*

We need to pleasure each other some more then

Goddamn insane realism. Bravo to the artist, it's a lovely piece!

I know, right? It's got that real classical feel to it as well. Much, much kudos to the artist - I had a lot of difficulty in expressing my gratitude to him for this stunning gift of his art.

He really did an amazing job here. The thumbnail looked almost like a photograph.

I have always been a fan of size difference. This Vanguard could easily have ripped that guy to shreads, but here it is sitting and giving the guy mental support and really care about him. The thought that something so big and powerful also can be so gentle and soothing really makes you adore the race. :)

Are there different sizes on the Vanguards? I think one of this size would be a little too big for certain acts of intimacy. :p

Not all Vanguard are all about the eating and tearing and killing and rending and...

Yeah, it does kinda look almost photographic, aye? Quite amazing. As for the size difference thing - Two-Talon is a fully grown Vanguard, but even he is slightly larger than average. They grow to approximately 3m tall when mature, and as for how well they're equipped... actually in relation to their over-all body size, their genitalia are not all that big. Quite daunting for a human to contemplate taking one on, but on a ratio basis even average humans are actually better equipped

However Two-Talon here has zero interest in humans sexually. In The Cold Wind (that this scene is taken from) it is one of the engineers on New-Home that develops the hots for Tainui. And Attacks-First (the engineer) is a bit smaller

Impressive.

Thank you for the comment, yeah it is, isn't it?

D'awwww, I do love how the vanguard look when all compassionate, so cuddley >:3

Hehehe.... aww thanks, Zebo Not all of them have anger management problems and an attitude. Some of them (usually the Medics, since their temperament is more placid by nature) can be quite caring and nurturing.

No prob^^, and yeah I like that about your Vanguard, they can be so BRUTAL and so cute~ (not necessarily at the same time hehe)

Well, there is ONE exception to that rule... Blue-Scale from the second story (Taniwha). He's very caring about his little-one, but woe betide anyone who comes in between them

Damn man, this is an awesome commission that Damie_M did for you. I still can't get over how life like the whole piece is and just the detail on it just amazing. This is a piece that should be framed and mounted on a wall.

I love the contrast in size difference between Two-Tallon and Tainui, like Draug said, he cold easly rip him apart, but you can tell just by the expression on his face and his body pose that he would rather comfort his friend and keep him from harm in any way possible.

When we get back to NZ and we have our house built, you can damned well bet this will be printed at high resolution and framed to hang on the wall

Two-Talon always was a bit of a hippy-drippy lovey-dovey type. He does actually care a lot about his little human friend. As for the size difference, this pic illustrates it very well, actually. The average fully-mature Vanguard stands approximately 3m tall, and Two-Talon was slightly larger than average.

Attacks-First, the engineer that Tainui befriends on New-Home was younger and smaller, which made them a better match. Two-Talon was never interested in humans in that way anyway

Something that I was wondering about, you've described Two-Tallon as a hippy type a couple of times now, was that the way that you had written the character out when you first created him or did he just kind of take on a life of his own and evolve into that as you progressed in the story.

I guess he actually started off as a hippy and developed into a bit more of a deep character, but for all that he never had much of a part to play in the second half of the story. All characters evolve as you write them and he was no exception. But then most Vanguard medics tend toward being sensitive, nurturing types due to their genetic mutation. They have more empathy than the others.

Just looking at this right now, my shit has already been well blown away. :) So far away, in fact, that the wall over at the other end of the room now needs cleaning. Thanks a lot. :(

What's especially impressive is how he got Two-Talon's face to look so real and so alien looking, yet make the features and the expression clearly indicative of the compassion he's feeling for lil' Tainui. Also, that there are two arms and a tail are being used for the comforting hug, yet it looks so appears so natural and sincere in the expression that little attention is drawn to this unusual (by human standards) fact.

I mean, it speaks immensely on one's artistic talent that your first reaction upon viewing the feel of this pic is "Awwwwww, that's so sweet" and it isn't until moment later that WHAT you're looking at actually dawns upon you and your secondary reaction is "HOSHIT, look at that fucking four-armed demon, he gonna eat'cho soul!!!"

Gah, see below!

Om nom nom?

You're quite right though, there is a lot of readily identifiable emotion there, despite the fact that ol' T-T is quite alien. I'm actually bloody lucky to have got this pic - Damie_M is a freelance commercial artist. He's quite literally a 'pro', and that much is evident by the sheer quality of this. He's also a really lovely guy, sadly one going through a few difficulties at the moment, poor bugger.

This is probably the single best commission I think I've ever received