Rooftops - step by step

Here they are! Unfortunately I don't have the colour steps left anymore as it looks like I merged the serpent's and Jack's layers at some point in the process. Sorry about that, it would've been interesting to show.

1) Really basic sketch to get the idea down. I've got a ref sheet for this guy but unfortunately I can't share it with you at the moment. Bit too spoilery.

2) Get the details in! Chatted with Mika and Mark about the details and what to add on him to make the idea a bit clearer. Rat was originally meant to be in but I dropped him. I wanted the focus to be on the serpent and Jack.

3) Inks! These were done in Clip Studio. I like using PS to sketch and colour, but CSP is far superior when it comes to inks.

4) Bases. I very, very rarely do bases in PS anymore. CSP is just so much quicker and better for it. The tools don't compare at all. It was easier to just leave the BG blank and shove the base on it than going through the painful process of painting the dragon and Jack in instead..

5) I'm a bit gutted I lost the colouring steps. I experimented a LOT. The serpent was much, much lighter to begin with but I realised I couldn't get the window lights to show properly without turning the whole thing much darker. Lot's of different layer modes were tried out (I use more or less all of them just to see what things would end up looking like before painting over them).

6) BG was added in the very last. I actually used the city panel from page 32 in chapter 1 as a base and painted over it. If you have something you've made in the past that you can use, do it.  Some extra lighting and fog added on top of everything and softened the lineart (saturated it towards brown instead of black).

The idea was to make things look ethereal and bit trippy. In Tistow, this place is a realm that exists between the living and the dead and it's home to wisps, primals and wild gods. It echoes the sounds and shadows from both sides and its residents can move between realms with relative ease.

Jack can visit it, but only in spirit and as long as he's anchored to his body. It's a dangerous place, constantly trying to trick him into entering the waters that lead to death.

 Those who read the old story might remember Jack calling it 'saivo'.