[Cougar]

yeah, 6 and a half feet is big, but it's not that big when you consider Rake is 7 foot tall.

I'm always puzzled why Rake is portrayed as so bulky when the Tiste Andii are consistently described as being tall and lithe.

[meili]

Nooo Rake is heavily muscled.

Quote

The face remained blurred as always did; the Knight was naked, his skin jet black. From the hips up he was human, heavily muscled, holding aloft a black two-handed sword that trailed smoky, ethereal chains drifting off into the background's empty darkness. His lower body was draconian, its armoured scales black, paling to grey at the belly.

[Cougar]

That's a representation of him, not him, he doesn't have a Dragon arse in real life does he.

Second you can be muscular without being bulky, in loads of the pics he looks wide, his back is described as broad certainly but I doubt a date with Rake equals two tickets to the gun show.

[Viandaran]

in my rarely humble opinion, the second picture isn't even close to Rake nor Dragnipur.

that looks more like Elric and Stormbringer on the juice...

[murphy72]

Viandaran;378493 said:

in my rarely humble opinion, the second picture isn't even close to Rake nor Dragnipur.

that looks more like Elric and Stormbringer on the juice...

I think it looks more like Morrolan from the Steven Brust Vlad Taltos books.

[amphibian]

Cougar;378174 said:

yeah, 6 and a half feet is big, but it's not that big when you consider Rake is 7 foot tall.

I'm always puzzled why Rake is portrayed as so bulky when the Tiste Andii are consistently described as being tall and lithe.

It might be that Rake is rarely ever shown in a scene with someone human as a benchmark. It's hard to convey "bigness" without something readily identifiable to show scale, so I bet most artists take the easy out with the muscles.

An interesting way to tackle this might be to do a picture of Rake in the crowd at the masquerade ending GotM. I volunteer Onrack. Nothing like coming up with an idea and making somebody else do the grunt work.

[Shiara]

I don't know if you're allowed to post Michael Kormack's art on the forum - I'd check with Pat if I were you.

For anyone who isn't aware, the first pic posted in this thread is from the cover of the Gardens of the Moon Limited/Lettered edition, available from Subterranean Press - see the Announcements thread in the General forum for further details and more sketches/artwork by this fantastic artist.

:angel:

[Cougar]

amphibian;378503 said:

An interesting way to tackle this might be to do a picture of Rake in the crowd at the masquerade ending GotM. I volunteer Onrack. Nothing like coming up with an idea and making somebody else do the grunt work.

I was thinking of this very scene when I was trying to find a description of Rake. In this he is not remarked upon as being bizarrely large. I've seen plenty of tall people and if you saw someone 7ft tall and heavily muscled they would be collosal, I try to think of Rugby Union second row players when I think of Rake, top end of 6 feet tall, strong and muscular but their limbs still look long rather than bulky. Moreover, when you think of his Brother Silchas he is described as slender to the point of emaciation and is still fast and lethal like Rake, at this point I ask myself why would Rake need to have muscles like a powerlifter and where would he have got them. Anyone who says 'by magic' is getting a slap.

[Bhurnae]

Cougar;378543 said:

I was thinking of this very scene when I was trying to find a description of Rake. In this he is not remarked upon as being bizarrely large. I've seen plenty of tall people and if you saw someone 7ft tall and heavily muscled they would be collosal, I try to think of Rugby Union second row players when I think of Rake, top end of 6 feet tall, strong and muscular but their limbs still look long rather than bulky. Moreover, when you think of his Brother Silchas he is described as slender to the point of emaciation and is still fast and lethal like Rake, at this point I ask myself why would Rake need to have muscles like a powerlifter and where would he have got them. Anyone who says 'by magic' is getting a slap.

Tossing around a six and a half foot lump of steel for a couple of years??

[Abalieno]

Cougar;378174 said:

yeah, 6 and a half feet is big, but it's not that big when you consider Rake is 7 foot tall.

6 and a half feet just the blade.

[Cougar]

Yeah but the weight of the sword, ie: it cracking the flags near the end is obviously vastly more than a conventional musculature could handle, even Karsa for example, so Rake must be using Kurald Galain and/or Starvald Demalain to help support it.

[meili]

Not to mention he would need magic to draw a sword that is as long as he is tall. Otherwise his arms would have to be freakishly long.

As for the card being a representation of Rake and not how he looks like for real, well that is possible but Paran's card is recognizably Paran so I have always thought that Rake's card would be recognizably him (except for the lower half).

[amphibian]

meili;378562 said:

Not to mention he would need magic to draw a sword that is as long as he is tall. Otherwise his arms would have to be freakishly long.

As for the card being a representation of Rake and not how he looks like for real, well that is possible but Paran's card is recognizably Paran so I have always thought that Rake's card would be recognizably him (except for the lower half).

The scabbard can be cut a certain ways up, so the sword stays in place (with a couple snaps up at the top) yet can slide out pretty easily. Lifting a sword like that over your head as if you were doing a military style up'n'over takes tremendous strength though. It is a fantasy series.

Paran's card has his feet pointing so tightly together that he looks like a sword. I think it's safe to say that the cards are more representational than accurate.

[dktorode]

When you spread your arms...from finger tip to finger tip is how tall you are.
So if rake is 7ft tall he can pull the scabbard down wile pulling the sword out and he would be able to pull it out.

[Cougar]

Yes, true but only if he could hold on to it in front of him. If he wanted to draw it directly from his back leaving the scabbard in place he'd need an arm over 7 feet long, which he does not have.

I think Amphibian is correct when he says he probably has a few clasps etc, I mean he's survived for 300k years, he'd have worked it out somehow.

[SonOfDarkness]

http://fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com/2008/02...bterranean.html

This says its the possible cover art for GotM for a special edition book.

[SonOfDarkness]

Check out this link, this might be possible cover art. Read the comments on that blog.

http://fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com/2008/02...bterranean.html

[Blend]

I'm pretty sure it's been confirmed that that picture of Rake is going to be the coverart for the Limited Edition...

http://www.subterraneanpress.com/Merchant2...Product_Count=7

[meili]

Cougar;378675 said:

Yes, true but only if he could hold on to it in front of him. If he wanted to draw it directly from his back leaving the scabbard in place he'd need an arm over 7 feet long, which he does not have.

Exactly.

Why is the sword so long anyway? Is Draconus 16 feet tall?

Quote

I think Amphibian is correct when he says he probably has a few clasps etc, I mean he's survived for 300k years, he'd have worked it out somehow.

No doubt.

This is a great GotM cover and Rake has the right "powerful and cold" look.

[amphibian]

meili;378879 said:

Why is the sword so long anyway? Is Draconus 16 feet tall?

The musings of an Elder God, as told to amphibian:

Quote

Hmmm... let's see... I'm about to create the most appalling weapon ever made. Do you think I could pull off a penknife? It'd be real easy to lug around and there'd be that 'element of surprise' factor. Not enough reach? Too gay? It'd wear thin after the first couple millennia? Yeah, you're right. Plus I'd have all this leftover material cluttering up my workshop.

I'd better be on the safe side and make it six feet plus so that anyone who wants to use it has to be gotdanged capable of actually using it.