Fantasy Faire: Ombiasy Rakoto of the Owl Tribe

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STORYLINE: In the treetops of Madagascar, nestled amongst the vibrant leaves and swaying branches, lies the colorful village of the Owl Tribe. Their shaman, known as Ombiasy Rakoto, had long white dreadlocked hair and white tribal markings on his purple skin. From his staff swung a shrunken skull, a symbol of his power and connection to the spirits. Perched on his shoulder was the watchful white owl Kijabe who acted as his eyes and ears. Together, they kept a vigilant watch over the village, protecting their people from the evil Unweaver. But one day, a darkness fell upon the village, and the Unweaver's shadow crept closer. With his people in danger, the shaman knew he had to act fast. Summoning all of his strength and magic, Rakoto and Kijabe set out to battle the Unweaver.

I was inspired by the wonderful and colorful Africa inspired sim, Khumbla. I haven't seen a sim quite like that before at Fantasy Faire, and I look forward to seeing more creations by Novus Ascending. Something else that blew me away, was the Dobs Witch Doctor Staff. This is no normal staff, ...sure it has several animations built in from hold poses, to magical spells, and knocking people on the head... but what really is next level, is animesh! It moves... fabric, ropes, feathers, and skull all swing gently in the breeze. Just a wonderful effect. It makes my mind hurt to consider how it was animated.  ....Because the tribe of Khumbla live in the trees, I had the idea to combine the idea with the Owl mask and Owl pet. 

Sadly the Faire is ending today, but there is a lot to celebrate. Once more, the Fantasy Faire lived up to all the hype and then some. It raised $119,536 USD for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. Well done Faire organizers, designers, vendors, entertainers, shoppers, gamers, adventurers, and role players. Kudos to you all!

On him, Ombiasy Rakoto of the Owl Tribe:
Pet: CKit Falconry animesh Eagle Owl_Small [Animesh](Fantasy Faire: Spirits Crossing)(550L)
Mask: CERBERUS .:C:. + ::BP:: - Gloomgrove Owl Mask [mesh](Fantasy Faire: Sialdor )(599L)
Cloak: DOBS Dry Grass Cloak, Male Fit [mesh](Fantasy Faire: Khumbala)
Staff: DOBS Witch Doctor Staff [Animesh](Fantasy Faire: Khumbala)
Tattoo: Wild -Body Paint :Mayan Tribe: [bom](40L)
Hair: NO.MATCH NO.FUTURE. (male) [mesh](200L)
Claws: L'Emporio&PL Oblio Vampire Claws male [mesh](350L)
Head: LeLUTKA Kane Evolution [mesh](3990L)
Body: TheShops [BODY] Athletic Meshbody (Legacy)(m) (1.0) [mesh](5000L)
Pose: momomuller / 3M MMMA_1108

Location:
Khumbala ~ Sponsored by Novus Ascending, Khumbala

You can read more about the sim's creation here: 
Fantasy Faire: MEET OUR SPONSORS: NOVUS ASCENDING

Fantasy Faire: The Sea Dragon's Adventure, 2

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STORYLINE: As they swam, the three playful mermaids promised to show Kaiju, the Sea Dragon, something exciting when they arrived at the Fantasy Faire.   ....As they arrived at the Greek harbor of Nysaris, he noticed a large gathering of creatures on the beach. He heard a loud roar and turned to see a mighty land dragon towering over the crowd. Its wings were massive, and it breathed fire!    ....Kaiju was awe-struck. He had never seen such a creature before. The mermaids giggled at his reaction and explained that this was the famous dragon of Nysaris, known throughout the land for its power and grace. He watched in wonder as the dragon soared above the sea, its wings creating a powerful gust of wind. He knew he would never forget this moment and felt grateful to his mermaid friends for showing him such an incredible sight.

Game of Thrones nerds rejoice! Can you believe this wonderful fellow is for sale at the Fantasy Faire? Its so cool and fun!  It comes in many sizes and has a robust hud to change its textures, glows, alphas, materials, AO, custom textures, and many fun animations. You can spit fire, ice or water. Make a nest and lay eggs. Even little baby dragons will hatch!  (But let's not talk about the Dragon turd droppings complete with bones and flies. lol.)  You can even give your friends a ride! LOVE IT!  Go check it out!  

The picture was taken at the gorgeous ancient Greek city of Nysaris created by Harshlands and Belle Eqoque. Its just so awesome! I love the ambiance! I wish this sim would stay in SL forever or adventures and RP. 

On him, The Dragon of Nysaris:
Avatar: Prehistorica: The Dawn Kingdoms VALORIAN Adult [mesh](Fantasy Faire: Khumbala)

Location:
Nysaris ~ Sponsored by Harshlands & Belle Epoque

You can read more about the sim's creation here: 
Fantasy Faire: MEET OUR SPONSORS: BELLE EPOQUE & HARSHLANDS

Fantasy Faire: The Sea Dragon's Adventure

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STORYLINE: Kaiju, a young Sea Dragon, had been enjoying gem-combing on the ocean floor with his pet Sharkpoo when he heard the laughter of 3 women. He had never seen a mermaid before, and now there were three! He forgot all about collecting gems. The girls were so cute and excitedly talking about a great gathering of mythical creatures. He stalked them, always keeping himself well hidden. But once they were in open ocean, he couldn't hide anymore. They screamed. He screamed. And after many awkward apologies and reassurances he didn’t intend to eat them, he was invited to swim along on the journey to the Fantasy Faire! He was so excited. He looked up at the rippling surface of the water, and wondered what amazing sights he would see.

ITS FANTASY FAIRE TIME! Time to raise some funds for a good cause and celebrate all things fantasy.  Fantasy Faire website is rich with daily blog posts, a calendar of events, list of items for sale, stores and locations, information on the hud based Quest game, and more. Check it out: FantasyFaireSL website. 

I have a confession to make, of all the years I have created characters for the faire, this guy is my favorite. He just looks amazing.  I took so many pictures, it was hard to pick only one. lol (Bonus image is below). His creation was inspired by the many fun and beautiful merfolk items at the Faire. For this post I would like to highlight, a New-to-me-store, Tonkatihead. The store is on the Isles of Aquarius sim, and is full of cute and adorable creations that really give that fun festival feel like  whale shark balloons, waving sharks, ... it was just so much fun. And its not animesh, so the land impact is pretty low.  The dragon in Seadragon is proviced by the Ambix Geode Dragon Horns, Animesh tail, and dragon bento wings. They come with a hud to change out the textures. For the tail and Wings, just right click them to bring up a menu to change the animations or for static poses. For the body tattoos, I layered the fun Forest Fantasy Store's Jellyfish with Soul's Agamidae. The colorful mohawk is by Ni.Ju and comes with a texture hud for a wide range of colors. The bang can be repositioned, and its Mod. The hair bases are also mod and come in a variety of styles. The gemstone earrings are by Vortech. I so wanted to get a great image of the Aii Riptide mertail, but it was tricky to show so many things at once. You see it in the bonus image below. The tail comes with a lot of textures, has animations built in and if you right click it, you can pick animations, and a great bonus the alternative  hip style. Its wonderful and has fits for all the major mesh bodies, male and female. This is the Best Male Mertail to date! 

Also, for "Mer May," SecondLife has released several mermaid themed last names. You can read more about it on the official forum.

on Him, Kaiju the Sea Dragon:

Pet: TONKATIHEAD TH-: Waving Shark - C [mesh](Fantasy Faire - Isles of Aquarius)(299L)
Horns: AMBIX Geode Horns [mesh](Fantasy Faire - Dingir)(299L)
Wings: AMBIX Geode Wings [mesh](Fantasy Faire - Dingir)(399L)
Upper Tail: AMBIX Animesh Geode Tail [mesh](Fantasy Faire - Dingir)(499L)
Hair: NI.JU Ember Hair [mesh](Fantasy Faire - Spirits Crossing)(300L)

Hairscalp: NI.JU Ember Hairbases [mesh](Fantasy Faire - Spirits Crossing)(200L)
Tattoo 1: Soul .:S:. Tattoo: Agamidae EvoX, Classic (Fantasy Faire - WooHoo Bay)(599L)
Tattoo 2: Forest Fantasy Store [FFS] Jellyfish BODY EVOX - BLUE (Fantasy Faire - Fungalmire)(690L)

Lower Tail: Aii & Ego Riptide Mermaid Tail, Athletic [mesh](Fantasy Faire - Szystrum Synod)(2000L)
Earring: Vortech W-DARK CRYSTAL EARRING [mesh](Fantasy Faire - Dingir)(200L)
Claws: Static Hexxus Symbiote, Black Claw Legacy [mesh](450L)
Ears: Eclectica gargoyle ear, beastly version [mesh](285L)
Bubbles: Half-Deer Bubbles - Extra Big Group [mesh]
Eyes: Gloom. Galaxy Collection - Jupiter M [mesh]

Head: LeLUTKA Kane Evolution [mesh](3990L)

Body: TheShops [BODY] Athletic Meshbody (Legacy)(m) (1.0) [mesh](5000L)

Pose: [Black Tulip] The dance of the mermaid

Location:
Fairelands Junction ~ Sponsored by Secrets of Gaia

Engine Room : The Celestial Mafia, part 4

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STORYLINE: Just as J and Guryong rounded the corner, they saw a woman racing towards them with dark tear stained cheeks. "Run! The Gears have gone haywire!" Behind her was a horde of Automatons and a rampaging Quad car smashing them under foot. They were chasing her. What in the Cogs was going on? Had all the machines of New London gone mad?

Sadly, there were so many more images I wanted to do for this series, but it comes down to what you can get done in time. This image was inspired by all the items I used from the Engine Room. I just loved the Camo Jules Dreads and wanted to build a character on that, and thus Olivia, one of two survivors of New London, was born. She is wearing the Steam Eques outfit and boots by Silvery K, the pink is a texture option in the fatpack. The robot smashing attack comes from the wonderfully wacky AG Quad Walker car. (It just looks like it wants to smash things!) It is a wearable vehicle with wonderful animations for the car and rider, and you can customize its colors. And the poor Somnium Automation androids got underfoot. (To read about the other survivor of New London and the continuing story, go to Aarya Phantomhive's Dark Phantom blog.)

On her, Olivia, survivor of New London:
Outfit, boots: Silvery K Steam Eques, fatpack [mesh](Engine Room)(680L)
Hair: Camo Jules Dreads [mesh](Engine Room)(599L)
Eyepatch: Insomnia Angel Honoria mono-goggles [mesh](320L)
Collar: Artificial Hallucination  +AH+ Belt Collar male rig [mesh](249L)
Pose: FlashPhotography Terror Bento Pose pack (175L)

Setting: 

Robots: SOMNIUM AUTOMATON - Forgotten [mesh](Engine Room)(899L)

Car: Arts&Gear AG Quad Walker Type A [mesh](Engine Room)(1500L)

Set: VARONIS Dayport Backdrop Scene [mesh](499L)

Engine Room : The Celestial Mafia, part 3

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STORYLINE: Snow was piled high in the abandoned streets of New London. The hairs stood up on the back of J's neck. "It's quiet. Too quiet. No obvious signs of violence...." He turned to his mechanical helper, "Guryong, ...can you detect any environmental hazards?" Steam poured from the nostrils of the mechanical dragon as it surveyed their surroundings, and a metallic voice replied, "Master Jang, I detect none. However there is a woman close by." Suddenly, they heard a woman scream, "EEEEK!"

Part 3 of the going comic series for the current round of the Engine Room. This weekend was the Halfway point and new items have been added to the event. Go check it out, and don't forget to get the many gifts too!  

The image above was inspired by the Asian themed elements at the event, and actually gave me the idea to do a manga like series. The large mechanical Dragon by Eliavah is animesh you can wear. It has color to change its textures and glow, and sets of static poses and animations. There is also a version you can ride! (Who's a good boy?) The outfit Oscar by Ash Store is another Must Have. Its gorgeous! I especially like the latex options. lol The Steamer Katana is by the Forge. Its a mod static prop so you can add your scripts and animations to it if you want. The Eight hair is by Zao. With luck, the next part in this series will have Aarya Phantomhive as our woman-in-distress. She's been helping me on this series. Thanks Aarya!

On Him, J:
Outfit: ASH Store Oscar Outfit - LEGACY [mesh](Engine Room)(369L)
Pet: Eliavah Draconic Empress [Dragon Companion] [mesh](Engine Room)(450L)
Hair: ZAO +Eight Hair [mesh](Engine Room)(366L)

Weapon: The Forge Steamer Katana [mesh](Engine Room)(375L)
Earring: Badwolf  Batwings Earrings, Evo [mesh]

Gloves: NOCHE Bill Essential Gloves Legacy [mesh](349L) 

Cape: Cureless Senshi of the End  Senshi Cloth, gacha [mesh](100L) 
Head: LeLUTKA Kane Evolution [mesh](3990L)

Body: TheShops [BODY] Athletic Meshbody (Legacy)(m) (1.0) [mesh](5000L)

Pose: Clemmm Take a walk

Location:

Time Portal Victorian England

Thanks for your help, Aarya!

Engine Room : The Celestial Mafia, part 2

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STORYLINE: J had a baffling nature. Both beautiful and deadly. "You must be desperate to call me," J sneered. "So who do I end?" ...."No," K replied in a grave tone, "You misunderstand my intentions. People are disappearing from New London. It was just a few at first, nothing to worry about. But the missing are now increasing at an alarming rate. None of the other crewheads came back. Go investigate, and stop it immediately. Use any means necessary." 

How are you guys liking the manga/comic format so far?  From current round of the Engine Room is the the sleek shiny Domentor jacket, vest and top by Jey's. The wings by Petrichor are animated and come in several sizes, and even a nonrigged version. The claw gloves are by Wicca Originals, and since they are mod, I hid the upper part under the jacket. This cool anime style hairstyle is by Zao is called Two Hair. The setting has elements and stars from the Bibliotheca Noctis skybox by the Spires Society.  I have to make an embarrassing confession here, I didn't realize the skybox hadn't fully rezzed out when the pictures were taken. Once I realized my error, I did a reshoot but I liked the original better, so I just went with it!

On Him, Mr J:
Wings: Petrichor :[P]:- Markvaine Wings [mesh](Engine Room)(699L)
Jacket: JEYS DOMENTOR2-/Z-SUIT[LEGACY] [mesh](Engine Room)(299L)
Hair: ZAO +Two Hair [mesh](Engine Room)(366L)
Gloves: Wicca's Originals Tilcott Arm Legacy, Male [mesh](Engine Room)(399L)
Earring: Badwolf  Batwings Earrings, Evo [mesh]
Pants: toksik Remnant Pants Legacy M, Black [mesh](240L)
Head: LeLUTKA Kane Evolution 3.1 [mesh](3990L)
Pose: yzk mens pose2-1

Setting:
Skybox: Spires Society x Toksik - Bibliotheca Noctis [mesh](Engine Room)(2000L)

Thanks for your help, Aarya!

Engine Room : The Celestial Mafia, part 1

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STORYLINE: Hovering high above the soot choked city was the Celestial Mafia’s headquarters. 

Nothing happened in New London without Mob Boss K’s permission. K was ruthless, so it came as no surprise when his power was threatened, he immediately summoned his best Crew head.... "Thank you for coming quickly J, I have an urgent mission for you."

The ENGINE ROOM is back, and this round is truly amazing! For my posts this round I'm going to try to show as many things I as can, and challenge myself to do it in a comic book/manga-like style. It's been difficult, so I had to scale back my ambition some to not take too long. lol  I hope you enjoy it, and please let me know if you like it. Many thanks to Aarya Phantomhive for her help with pictures and feedback.

The first image was inspired the elegant Toksik Bibliotheca outfit, and sweet gothic steampunk background by The Eschaton. Also from the Engine Room is the fun animating Gyro that you can wear, and the eerie gold eyes by Hellbourne.

On him, Celestial Mafia Boss K:
Outfit: toksik Bibliotheca Noctis Robe, Hood Up, M black [mesh](Engine Room)(350L)
Orb: RSStore RS-Dwayne Gyro RS-Dwayne Gyro EF [mesh](Engine Room)(220L)
Eyes: HELLBOURNE :H: Gilded Eyes - Gold [mesh](Engine Room)(275L)
Epaulet: CURELESS REDLABEL / Donatien Manteau / Black Epaulet [mesh](399L)
Gloves: Contraption Dapper Dandy's Gloves Legacy M [mesh](350L)

Hair: Ginko Hair #97 Hair - Rigged, Male [mesh](520L)
Head: LeLUTKA Kane Evolution 3.1 [mesh](3990L)
Pose: ZZANG Strength 003

Setting:
Backdrop: The Eschaton *TE* Clockwork Apse PhotoBooth [mesh](Engine Room)(375L)

Twinkles: Dysfunctional Designs [DDD] Twinkle Patches - Giant Patch [mesh](95L)