goblin cleaver

An goblin warrior with green skin, orange hair, and a large meat cleaver, leaping through the air amidst battle debris, with a background of a cloudy sky and castle ruins. He's tooting a horn.

In the pantheon of fantasy creatures, I’ve always had a soft spot for goblins. This painting went through many iterations before landing in its final state.

the process

step 1: thumbnails

The original idea was to depict a trumpeter making a call to arms over the battlements of a castle under siege. Originally, this character was not a goblin and the composition was dominated by the crooked shape of the horn. I explored many variations on this idea in the thumbnail stage.

You may notice that none of these thumbnails remotely resemble the final composition!

A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.
A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.
A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.
A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.
A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.
A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.
A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.
A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.
A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.
A rough thumbnail of a trumpeter blowing his horn over a battlement.

step 2: refined sketch(es)

There were two thumbnails that seemed strongest to me, so I developed them both into more refined line sketches. At this point, the character was definitely going to be a goblin.

After I’d finished both of those sketches, the composition was still feeling too static and stiff for the subject matter. So I drafted a third line drawing with some extra action: now tha goblin was jumping off the parapet and swinging a cleaver.

I still wasn’t happy with it though. So I redrew it as a dramatic perspective shot of the goblin jumping down from the parapet and blowing his horn. I ended up bringing that one to final.

A sketch of a goblin blowing a horn over battlements.
A sketch of a goblin leaning out over a castle battlement blowing a horn.
A sketch of a goblin humping off a castle battlement swinging a cleaver and blowing a horn.
Sketch of a goblin jumping towards the camera into battle, swinging and meat cleaver and tooting a horn as arrows splinter around him.

step 3: color comps

Rough midday color comp of a goblin jumping towards the camera into battle, swinging and meat cleaver and tooting a horn as arrows splinter around him.

I came up with six color variations, experimenting with time of day, various value combinations, and secondary light sources.

Ultimately, I decided to go with a midday scene with direct, overhead sunlight, but also wanted to incorporate a strong secondary light source from below, perhaps coming from flames.

Midnight color comp of a goblin jumping towards the camera into fiery battle, swinging and meat cleaver and tooting a horn as arrows splinter around him.
Sketch of a green goblin with an orange background jumping towards the camera into battle, swinging and meat cleaver and tooting a horn as arrows splinter around him.
Sketch of a green goblin with a red background jumping towards the camera into battle, swinging and meat cleaver and tooting a horn as arrows splinter around him.
Sketch of a green goblin with a red background jumping towards the camera into battle, swinging and meat cleaver and tooting a horn as arrows splinter around him.
Sketch of a green goblin with a pruple background jumping towards the camera into battle, swinging and meat cleaver and tooting a horn as arrows splinter around him.

step 4: paint

I started tentatively building up color over the line drawing, letting certain elements of the linework show through. Ultimately, I ended up going in more boldly and covering up all the linework in favor of a smoother, painterly texture. At some point, I also removed the scaffolding behind the goblin, and swapped his helmet for an expressive hairstyle.

A cartoonish goblin wielding an axe and wearing a helmet, leaping over a battlefield with two figures in the background, amidst a war scene with weapons and debris.
A painted goblin wielding an axe and wearing a helmet, leaping over a battlefield with two figures in the background, amidst a war scene with weapons and debris.
A green goblin with a large nose and pointed ears wielding a large meat cleaver, leaping through the air with sharp weapons in a castle in ruins