Alright. I started working on the concept while I was still at my parent's house, so most of it is traditional... I wanted to go with something very much in my comfort zone, so expect a lot of... baby. My idea was to make a more support themed character, relatively small and harmless looking, but good at keeping others alive.

This was my first sketch, just to have a very basic idea of what I wanted :')

Based on that, I was looking for some inspiration in games I like (specifically Fire Emblem, oops). I made a couple more sketches and she gained a bit more shape and character.

My only fear now was that she'd look too much like just an FE Troubadour, which... she really does, rip. SOoo, I decided to make a moodboard and figure out, what direction I'd like to take her in to make her a bit more unique. I ended up choosing a lot of traditional russian clothing, partially because they show a lot of movies in that setting here, and because my dad would know more about it, too.

With that in mind I went off to give her a new look and ended up with something like this!

I'm currently still working on color schemes for her, as well as tweaking her design to fit more into her element, earth! I'll update this thread and add her backstory and an explanation for her abilities once I have something nice to show. : )

I hope she is not too soft for this event, lol. But I think she'll be able to stand her ground!

Very cute! I do get Fire Emblem vibes from her. Nice attention to her dress patterns and shape flow. Can't wait to see her in action. :+1:

Alright, this has been sitting for a bit, but here are some color schemes for her!
I wanted to keep it green, so it wouldn't look too frosty...
(Also a version with the poncho off, since I find her dress very cute.)

Kept to a lot of similar shades, only adjusting the placement of them and changing th esaturation a bit. I'm not sure which one I like the most, thought I am leaning toward the first one - nothing final yet though. : )

I also have some sketches and ideas for her abilities, which tie pretty nicely into her backstory.
(Summary: Her grandma taught her all about magic and that it is found in nature. She wanted to become a capable healer, just like her. However, after her grandma passed because of a horrible fever, she left her village and travelled the land to find other people in need. During an attack on a small clinic she was working in where most of her new found friends were wounded, she revealed a new power inside her. With the aid of her grandma's spirit (which is totally not a Stand), she emitted a healing aura, knocking back foes and restoring her allies.)

I also gave her a branch (presumably from a forest near her village) to use as a staff, to tie into her "magic from nature" background. : ) I couldn't really imagine her with a big fancy staff, since her design is already pretty loaded full of details, and it would only make her look more busy. Plus, I think it's just a more natural way to connect her to the earth.

oh my, so cute! She looks completely different than the characters of the other participants and it is so wonderful

thank you!! i was kinda scared she'd be too soft for the contest, but i guess that also makes her unique... :'D

Decided to let the color scheme issue sit for a while... I just can't decide yet, so I might do some more versions of it another day... :')

For now, I've been working on some thumbnails for her final illustration!

Personally, I'm heavily leaning toward the bottom right one, I feel like it has the most energy out of all of them. Still wanted to show the other ones for a bit of progress!

I plan on adding some more things into the background, maybe someone wounded etc, to show that she protects people and heals them, or a hand in the foreground, to indicate her repelling foes.
I'm not 100% set on the format, though I'm just more used to it than the one you usually see in big splash arts... I want to try it in some thumbnails though, especially to maybe show off her ultimate power with the barrier and the stun (the Grandma Stand Move)! It'd also help show both friend and foe in one image, so I'll give those a shot too. Just wanted to keep my progress up here, lol.

I'll probably give myself a couple more days to think about her color scheme and then start working on her full image. Just gotta keep the ball rolling. :')

Alright, it's been a hot minute, but I more or less made up my mind about the final illustration and lined one of the sketches I've made before.

I think I'll be working with this one, maybe change/add some details and add more obvious perspective here and there, but I like the concept (especially since it'll be an opportunity to show off her grandma).

Now, all I need is to figure out her color scheme, since I'm still kind of indecisive... maybe that'll come while I'm coloring this. :')

first colour scheme is my favorite, if you are undecided, maybe try that one but apply the colours to different elements of her gear? Or play around a bit more with the one you like best? :smile:

waaaaow nice project :smile: your character is so sweet that's amazing
I'm not sure you should be that worried about the colour scheme. But With the poncho I love the values of the 1 the dark really make her face stand out