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The first in a series of speedpainting experiments by the really awesome 
Alpha0 !
The Holischiky were a plague, a blight upon the land and sea. An unbelievable odor erupted from their rookeries, and it seemed to weep out of the pores on their bloated bodies, but that was only the herald of their arrival. On land they were ungainly, forced to haul their corpulent, blubbery bodies along on short, thick legs, yet it is a mistake to believe that there isn’t immense physical power beneath the fat or genuine cunning behind their beady black and red eyes. The Vucari had fought small bands of these warriors through the winter, and there wasn’t a wolf in the battalion who underestimated them.
Yet victory would be theirs. The Holischiky were twice as strong, but they were as mortal as any other foe. The Sabalazmon troops to the right and the Rosomai cavalry to the left sneered and yawped, and the Vucari troops felt inclined to join in, piercing the air with a baleful howl. The Holischiky responded with a thundering cry that sounded like a great belch and shuffled forward on stocky legs. They were not fast, but they were steady and relentless, yet not a single Strelok flinched at their approach. They continued to hold until the glassy crimson sclerae of the Holischiky bulls could be seen and the bark of the fire order swept through the air.
In an eruption of flame and thunder the first row of Holischiky collapsed to the ground, dead or wounded. The second rank fired, then the third, and by the time the third had fired the first was ready to shoot once more. With every volley more bulls fell, but they continued their approach. Worse, the bulls actually appeared to be getting bigger. It seemed that the enemy had put their finest troops in the second wave, not the first.
No order to fix bayonets was given- they had been fixed long before the battle was underway. Each soldier planted the butt of his musket on his right hip, ready to absorb the charge of a seething mass of primal warriors with whalebone clubs, spears, and knives. Regardless of what happened next, here were soldiers that would not back down from the Holischiky’s savagery.
Alpha0 !The Holischiky were a plague, a blight upon the land and sea. An unbelievable odor erupted from their rookeries, and it seemed to weep out of the pores on their bloated bodies, but that was only the herald of their arrival. On land they were ungainly, forced to haul their corpulent, blubbery bodies along on short, thick legs, yet it is a mistake to believe that there isn’t immense physical power beneath the fat or genuine cunning behind their beady black and red eyes. The Vucari had fought small bands of these warriors through the winter, and there wasn’t a wolf in the battalion who underestimated them.
Yet victory would be theirs. The Holischiky were twice as strong, but they were as mortal as any other foe. The Sabalazmon troops to the right and the Rosomai cavalry to the left sneered and yawped, and the Vucari troops felt inclined to join in, piercing the air with a baleful howl. The Holischiky responded with a thundering cry that sounded like a great belch and shuffled forward on stocky legs. They were not fast, but they were steady and relentless, yet not a single Strelok flinched at their approach. They continued to hold until the glassy crimson sclerae of the Holischiky bulls could be seen and the bark of the fire order swept through the air.
In an eruption of flame and thunder the first row of Holischiky collapsed to the ground, dead or wounded. The second rank fired, then the third, and by the time the third had fired the first was ready to shoot once more. With every volley more bulls fell, but they continued their approach. Worse, the bulls actually appeared to be getting bigger. It seemed that the enemy had put their finest troops in the second wave, not the first.
No order to fix bayonets was given- they had been fixed long before the battle was underway. Each soldier planted the butt of his musket on his right hip, ready to absorb the charge of a seething mass of primal warriors with whalebone clubs, spears, and knives. Regardless of what happened next, here were soldiers that would not back down from the Holischiky’s savagery.
Category All / Fantasy
Species Wolf
Size 1100 x 778px
File Size 201 kB
The Vucari are a race of wolf humanoids, and arguably the dominant power in a nation called the Beastfolk Alliance. The Holischiky are a race of pinniped humanoids based off of walruses and elephant seals, living in a hostile tribal society. The other races mentioned, the Rosomai and Sabalazmon, are wolverine and marten humanoids, respectively, who live in the far north and are allies of the Vucari.
That's the tragic wrinkle to their tale. Granted, the Holischiky have long been totally hostile to other cultures for as long as anyone can remember, but it doesn't totally justify the attacks on them. Regardless, they rejected the Alliance, so they have no say now in how the Alliance treats them.
That would make sense from history's telling. Those words are kind of striking as a Native American though, that because we refused to submit to the US the US did such terrible things to us, and even those who did submit would get cheated later on. I'm not trying to start a political debate, but rather I am trying to show why in a way I feel for the side of the Holischiky and how they were to loose. That is not to say we were massive and smelled bad, in fact a lot of times it was the opposite side that had that description.
It's a completely understandable viewpoint. Just because a culture is alien doesn't mean it should be destroyed. This isn't to say that the Vucari are entirely in the right, as well. In fact, their presence in the campaign against the Holischiky is mostly to curry favor with the Rosomai and Sabalazmon- those races want land, food, and coastal access and are the kind of people who have no compunctions about shoving aside an entire race to improve their standing.
Ideally, neighbors would be understanding and respectful to one another, enriching each other through trade and an exchange of ideas. However, I have not created an ideal world- the Beastfolk, along with all the other races have self-centered ideals and motives and will do whatever they think is best to protect their people and interests- even at the expense of others.
Ideally, neighbors would be understanding and respectful to one another, enriching each other through trade and an exchange of ideas. However, I have not created an ideal world- the Beastfolk, along with all the other races have self-centered ideals and motives and will do whatever they think is best to protect their people and interests- even at the expense of others.
I don't remember if I accidentally or intentionally misspelled it, but in any event I thought it a good name for a race of pinnipeds. I don't think it's what they call themselves, however- the name is probably given to them by other races and based upon a word they don't understand, like the term "Iroquois" for the Haudenosaunee.
I don't remember either. It's been forever since I read that stuff. I should read it again... Hell, web probably has it.
Aha.
"Their wives never came to the island until late in May or early in June, for they did not care to be torn to pieces; and the young two-, three-, and four-year-old seals who had not begun housekeeping went inland about half a mile through the ranks of the fighters and played about on the sand dunes in droves and legions, and rubbed off every single green thing that grew. They were called the holluschickie–the bachelors–and there were perhaps two or three hundred thousand of them at Novastoshnah alone."
Apparently it's an anglicization of an Aleut pronunciation of a Russian word: holluschick (plural -i.e.) "bachelor male seal" (холощик) from холостой = "unmarried".
Huh.
Aha.
"Their wives never came to the island until late in May or early in June, for they did not care to be torn to pieces; and the young two-, three-, and four-year-old seals who had not begun housekeeping went inland about half a mile through the ranks of the fighters and played about on the sand dunes in droves and legions, and rubbed off every single green thing that grew. They were called the holluschickie–the bachelors–and there were perhaps two or three hundred thousand of them at Novastoshnah alone."
Apparently it's an anglicization of an Aleut pronunciation of a Russian word: holluschick (plural -i.e.) "bachelor male seal" (холощик) from холостой = "unmarried".
Huh.
You know, instead of feeling sorry for the Holischiky or filling a rush of pride for the Vulkari, my initial response after reading and seeing this was: Damn, I bet the first volley would have looked awesome.
Is that bad?
Anyway, I really like this piece. For a speedpainting, it looks really intense.
And the little snippet you added in the description was a nice way to flesh it out with a little background information.
Rock on.
Is that bad?
Anyway, I really like this piece. For a speedpainting, it looks really intense.
And the little snippet you added in the description was a nice way to flesh it out with a little background information.
Rock on.
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