Ranma/Lina the Red Cat (A Bit of Wild Magic Art)

[KonokoHasano]

I ended up with another Wild Magic Ranma drawing again. This time, instead of the horror's of the Pompom Fuku, we have a more 'mage' styled Ranma.

Of course, it kind of contains a spoiler or two for future chapters.



Basically, it's Ranma a couple or so years down the road after obtaining a special staff that was crafted for her during her trip to Mau -- which would happen within a couple chapters once I get to it. The staff would allow Ranma to control the amount of magic she uses in her spells, and it would also be a medium that allows her to control her Sailor Pompom form so that there's no more accidental changes. I need to actually determine WHEN Ranma will get the outfit though.

[Spokavriel]

What happened to the Red and Blue eyes? And yep that is a bit of a spoiler there. But if anyone could help make that device I guess the Mau are up there.

She seems lankier than Ranma-chan or Lina Inverse ever were.

[Hazard]

Nice picture, yet I have nothing to say about the picture itself, only about the story line involved.

First: Ranma doesn't need any kind of focus except for when she is using the really high end magics. The Giga Slave, Ragna Blade and Zellas' Bleed (a non-anime spell that fires off a controllable and very sharp 'ribbon' of energy calling upon Beast Master Zellas, not as much raw power as a Dragon Slave, but requiring a lot finer control) are such spells that she needs the aid. I can't remember off the bat if she already has the Demon's Blood Talismen back, but she doesn't really need the staff if she already has those.
Unless, of course, it's the only thing that keeps a lid on the Sailor Pom Pom bit, then I'd be surprised if she didn't carry it with her, on her body, everywhere she went. As Lina Inverse she wasn't all that fond of playing the girly girl but as Ranma she really hates it.

As for the outfit, I am strongly reminded of the Elves of Warcraft fame in general and the Blood Elves in particular. This is due to the style and colouring of the outfit. Likewise is the staff something that you could probably get out of asking a few Draenei about a mages' weapon. Maybe a teleport or portal went wrong and she meets a few? I doubt there is a need for giving the tailors and smiths in question more than bit part so it could work without going in too deep into the background (like why they are willingly working together in the first place...)
It's unfortunate that this is happening in the nineties, instead of after the release of the Burning Crusade, as then you could simply cite that as a source of inspiration. Or you could just turn the entire thing around and give us a oneshot/camo on how this inspired Blizzard regarding the Draenei and Blood Elves colour and styles.

Of course, it's your story, so feel free to ignore my ramblings, I'm just rather fond of the Warcraft series.

[KonokoHasano]

I tried making some red in the eyes. I managed it, but there's only some tint. Seems to have not come out too well with that, though.

Yeah, she does seem a little tall and lanky, but it was originally meant to be a sketch of what her outfit and staff could look like. Then again, stand-alone images don't really show height all too well compared to if someone was standing next to another person. Whenever I think about Ranma's end-height, I keep thinking of her ending up just a few inches taller than Washu -- Washu's 'child' form.


Edit to Hazard: There's also the possibility that -- considering this is Ranma, -- she could end up creating and perfecting new spells that WOULD require a lot of focus. I understand what you mean though. Another thing is that the staff could double as a weapon in battle.

[Spokavriel]

I could see her ears getting higher than Washu-chan's hair spikes. But as far as why I say she looks lanky comes down to proportions. Look at how long her arms and legs are compared to her torso. Also how thin her upper torso is, I know you are going with a smaller chest for now but I'm talking shoulder breadth. Right now her head and torso fit more for a Ballerina (Dee dee from Dexters Lab with a different head.) than the more athletic builds of Ranma-chan or Lina Inverse.

[KonokoHasano]

That's true. I tend to have issues at times when it comes to arm and leg length. Legs are the biggest problem, actually. I always seem to make them too wide when I draw JUST the legs.

I should make an update of this sometime. I'm just proud of it because I actually managed to get it onto paper. I've been in a blasted dry spell with my drawings.

I'm not sure I understand the comment about her ears getting higher than Washu's hair.

[KonokoHasano]

I think I managed to do a better version. It could probably still use some work, but it is still a sketch.

[Spokavriel]

Between her arm holding the staff and her back there is a shadow of a line going from belt to armpit almost perfectly where her back should be to keep her torso from seeming too thin. There is allot of improvement.

[KonokoHasano]

So the erased line is the one I should use when I re-do the lines before I color?

[Spokavriel]

The erased line is a little flat. Try to keep the shape you have in the line you have now but redo it out that far. The current back is more like mid side and the decoration from her top shows that. Right now she'd almost have to have her torso 1/3 turned to the side further than her shoulders and hips. Now hips is possible but shoulders and torso tend to go together.

In a way that's throwing me a little with the chest. But I can't quite figure out how to describe it.

[KonokoHasano]

I finished, and I think I'm honestly in love with how it turned out. I was originally going for a more electric-oriented magic, but it ended up as an ice-oriented spell by the looks.

[Spokavriel]

It looks beautiful. See how the line being a little further back let her seem more solid? (Lack of a better term)

[KonokoHasano]

Yeah, now that I look at the sketch, it's glaring at how tiny the body looked. x_x

[Spokavriel]

This is a quick sketch of what I was thinking the eyes were like after reading the descriptions. And I do see some of this sort of pattern to the shading.


It's just a quick sketch. I did it taking a close look at Ranma's and Lina's eyes and I tried to get something in between the two in shapes. I left out the reflection both of them always get because I'm only using MS Paint for coloring.

Lina has those long narrow ovals that are almost always tucked under her upper eyelids. While Ranma usually has a rounder iris that often fills most of his/her eye but can shrink down to a little near circle in his expressions.