SciFi and Fantasy Art: Castle Raid close-up

I'm rooting for the gryphie! But I think it's a stalemate though. This pic is great, except for the fact that the gryphon looks at little too happy with a spear through him. Maybe I'm not looking at it right, it could be battle euphoria.

Kit CW Kederich replies: "Hmmm, he was not supposed to look happy,, might just be the way the corners of the beak bent from pain.... Supposed to be a noble but futile fight, lower the drawbridge for the besiegers, etc. I've never seen a similar pic, so I wanted to be the first to try it. It always surprises me that gryphons are not used more in such action pics."

To me, the griff doesn't look happy, because of the way it's face looks stiff, as I said before. Like it has a set expression. This remains a good pic. I especially love that dude on the far left.
Who will win? I don't know. This only looks like a portion of the battle. I'm sure there's more going on beyond the borders of the picture.
Oh, just one thing though: the griffin's wings could be bigger.

cheese

Kit CW Kederich replies: "I thought up this scene, and had to try it. It was way harder than I expected! I should have tried using a huge posterboard, instead of something I could cram onto a scanner. Also, because of size restrictions, I had limits on details. The gryph should not be smiling--he has just been hit by several arrows and a spear (about how I visualized that street fight in your 'Sashen'). I wanted larger wings, but hey! Ran out of room in the pic--full sized wings would have covered the other characters. I DO THINK I posed the wings dramatically. Hell, I know I did."

Wow! I love this one! Excellent action drawing!

Kit CW Kederich replies: "I admit I went through some old Conan mags for inspiration. Robert E. Howard described so many such raids,,, but I do them with gryphons in the action!"

WOWZERS!!! I'm going to say the gryphen will win because it's a gryphen of course. ^_^

Kit CW Kederich replies: "Well,, maybe. I keep challenging viewers to try it their way, just to see. So far, no takers!"

I don't think that he can take much more arrows. And a spear thrust like this can be deadly as well. So i hope he will escape.

Kit CW Kederich replies: "  Actually, I figure the two know they are finished, but are just trying to buy time for their side, which is about to take the castle. Going out fighting is a gryphon trait and a point of pride. Go down hard, and make it count. But he will try to protect his rider to the end. Chivalry is not yet dead, just embattled."

I think the gryphon is going to strike every single attacker off that wall with his wing! Yeah! Or no, he looks way too angry. He strikes a bunch of 'em off the wall, then leaves one up there (one who looks really frightened because he's alone now) and then he rips that one to pieces! Go gryphon!! *cheers* Oh yeah, and thereafter he flies back to where he came from and plucks the annoying arrows from between his feathers/fur. And he curses the dumb attackers because they made his beautiful feathers/fur look tangled. Grrr, stupid attackers.

Kit CW Kederich replies: "I'm sure he would want to. Gryphons are nothing if not highly spirited and fearless--right up to the end! This does seem to be the end of the flight path for this warrior and his partner, but if they go down, they go down in glory! Breach the walls, open the gates for their comrads beyond the walls. Victory to the bold!"

With this closeup, the torso of the gryphon has a slight discrepancy to it. Not sure what it is, but just doesn't seem to have the right flow of line on its right side (viewer's left side).

Isn't much of a close up considering the full picture. Perhaps you could have zoomed in a little more on the gryphon. The way its claw is up by its beak makes me think that it was just shot (by that arrow, spear, whatever!). A few have said that its expression is rather fixed, but I actually see it more as if it was just a moment, completely frozen with that shock of the hit, about to turn into either agony or rage.

Kit CW Kederich replies: "I think I will have to start charging you for editing and spell-checking, Ivy. Just joking, hehe, I love having your comments. The curve of the gryphon's spine is intentionally uneven, to dramatize his peril and condition. Still, you can see the lumbar curve, and the thoracic region being I think true to form. I based him on a lion pic. You are right, he was just hit by an arrow, and in that distraction, caught by the spear. This is his last stand, and he knows it, his attention being divided by his many wounds and his final duty. It is theatric, granted. Gryphons lend themselves nicely to the dramatic. Cue the music by Wagner. Gotterdammerung, I think."

The gryphon should Be consumed in a type of battle fury of some kind and kill all of his enemy's even thow he is technically dead.

Kit CW Kederich replies: "That is my general idea, though he is not yet dead,, just definitely dying. The idea is to win the battlements and raise the gate, even though it costs them their lives. The griffin and his rider will win their names in legends to come. So, do YOU do art?"