#Illusionist

[clockworkbanana]

(2023) My friend is starting a new game and the only character I want to reintroduce to any world setting is my beloved Pathfinder Kitsune, Wasabi. Though she'll be less of a 'I'll steal whatever is in your pocket and eat it' fox and more of a 'I'll make you see untold horrors until you tell me what I want to know' fox.

I'll draw more of her soon!

[peitalo]

ARTFIGHT attack on my dear friend @tempulian’s characters ainé & illusionist! ✷⁠ (process drafts under the cut)

[thatbratcohen]

FNF doodles !!

old mod ideas i had on the left

base game on the right

car at the top

[moxpunk-art]

Gob A Week 10

Another for the Gob Squad! The idea of an Illusionist has been kickin' about in my head, so might as well add in another to the gang! She's a wonderful writer, and has been teaching Death Knight the art of calligraphy when she's not befuddling foes.

[the-cricket-chirps]

Kellars Latest Wonder, Strobridge Lithograph, 1906

[newyorkthegoldenage]

Harry Houdini, handcuffed and manacled, about to jump into a pool in 1923.

Photo: NY Daily News

[mikasnazz]

Not even sure what this is meant to be [shrug]

I’m trying to make an intro for something and I don’t know what to put, why does every template make me disclose my sexuality and whether or not I’m cis? .. it’s weird to me idk, also nobody cares about your zodiac I’m sorry, it’s 2024 [shit it’s 2024 :P]

[tempulian]

Soo about the last ask I did about the Illusionist...

It's fine if you infodump about how Ainé got trapped in her body or vice versa idk, or any other lore :')

I just honestly like the freshness you give with the literal idea of this characters :D

*banging my pots and pans together*

THE FULL ILLUSIONIST BACKSTORY, COME AAND GET IT

tldr: Girl died and was so pissed about it she came back as a ghost wayyyy too fast. Someone revived her body without her in it, and she got stuck on the outside. She had to unwillingly watch the soul in her body brain-fog her way through an entire smp - WHAT SHOULD OF BEEN HER second chance - before giving up. Then she figured out how to travel through dimensions, and became really evil about it when she met this cool spider guy and aided in the murder of an entire royal family.

full story under the cut :]

SOME CONTEXT BEFORE I GET INTO IT:

I've vaguely mentioned it before, but many of the characters featured on my YouTube are from role play servers me and my friends created as early as 2020. Naturally, that means most of their writing was improvised, and very little was planned ahead of time. Aine and Illusionist were made for Whispers and Kingdom, respectively. Whispers happened very organically out of a survival minecraft server, so a lot of the decisions about Aine's backstory were made on the fly. Kingdom's creation was a lot more deliberate, but Illusionist was retroactively fitted into Aine's backstory, so she shares the same writing quirks that come from improvised storytelling. ALL OF THAT TO SAY, these characters were made purely for fun. They aren't my best work when it comes to cohesive writing; They're a little convoluted, a little messy, but they were a lot of fun to play, and that was the goal :)

THE GETTING INTO IT:

Way before the events of Whispers, there was a sleepy little town where a young woman named Erena lived. That town was razed in the middle of the night, and she was drowned in a river after being fatally wounded by none other than Amadeus, the Soldier [ jojenis on instagram]. Erena woke up at the bottom of the river, dead. Her soul had died, and she became a vengeful ghost. She was nothing more than the memories of her old life, but she had every intent to come back and return the favor to the monster that killed her. 

Her plans were immediately halted. She watched as a fae  - named Jophiel, the Lover [also jojenis] - picked up her dead body, and brought it to a hidden bunker. Jophiel successfully found Erena's lost soul, but could not return it into the dead and broken body. Instead, she tenderly placed the soul and the body into the roots of the largest surviving tree in the village.

It should have brought Erena back to her body, but the spell was incomplete. Jophiel was unaware of the ghost already haunting the village and only pulled the soul from death. 

Without the soul's memories... The newly born Dryad became a blank slate. Erena's soul is living a new life without her in it.

Years passed, and Erena learned two important things:

1) she was physically tethered to the Dryad, so she couldn't leave or control anything, and

2) the Dryad was an oblivious idiot.

Erena has been quietly haunting this forgetful Dryad, but she couldn't see or hear Erena. She could instill emotions - dread, fear, sadness, or rage - into her, but nothing coherent enough to explain anything to the Dryad. She always just chalked it up to a deep seeded intuition that she couldn't quite grasp.

Then, the events of Whispers unfold. 

The Dryad finally uncovers the truth of her origins through Amadeus's first hand account, and an old dusty journal that once belonged to Erena...

and the Dryad ignored it.

The Dryad read about Erena, talked to Amadeus, and experienced every bit of rage, fear, and sadness Erena wanted her to feel, but Dryad wanted to define her own life. She wanted to become her own person, and assume her own identity. She knew she was no longer the person that died all those years ago. She didn't have the experiences that made Erena who she was. Without knowing about the ghostly figure haunting her, Dryad decided to move on without looking any deeper into her past. Later down the line, the Dryad would finally become her own person, and pick her name: Aine. 

This enraged Erena. After years and years of trying to communicate with the Dryad, she is just discarded. Erena didn't care that Dryad couldn't possibly know that she was still around. the Dryad decided that Erena's life was unimportant.

She had to sever herself from the Dryad. If her own soul wouldn't help her get revenge on the man that took her life away, then she would make her own...

Erena spent so much of her afterlife sifting through Dryad's head, she figured her influence must stretch beyond just Dryad's mindscape. 

and it did. 

Over the years, as the Dryad forged her own identity, the tether tying the two together began to decay. Aine was no longer part of Erena: she had become her own person, while Erena was still stuck as the girl that drowned in the river. 

Eventually, after the tether disintegrated, Erena found a way to travel in-between realms through the Void (evil worldbuilding shenanigans, just go with me for now). 

She successfully left the realm she used to call home, and ended up settling in Illador, where Kingdom takes place.

She spent her time hopping from mindscape to mindscape, learning about her newfound abilities. She learned she had a particular affinity with nightmares since her dip into the Void, and noticed she began to feel more present, more focused, and more powerful with every new victim.

She kept haunting people's nightmares until she crossed paths with a young Midas [@peitalo]. He proposed a deal that if she helped murder his father, the ruling king of Illador, he would help make her a new body that would be hers. No Dryad, no soul. Just a vessel to possess.

She accepted the deal. She killed his father, killed his mother, and aided in the murder of his older brother, leaving Midas to be the sovereign of Illador. As promised, King Midas helped conjure a vessel that would become a physical shadow that she could control. 

She would don a porcelain mask, and would adopt many names:

The Night terror, The Cleric, The Queen of Illador...

But "The Illusionist" was always her favorite.

[ariniekat]

It's pride month, folks.

Had to do it. Did not realise how hard Coven leader from the silhouette would be, facelessness is hard. I gave up with hands. But hehehehe. It's gayer magic time, guys you heard the leader.

[hermionegalathynius]

Found Family (2/?)

Hey, so I genuinely expected zero reaction to the first part (because the nysm fandom has cooled down a lot since the second movie came out) but it was great to see people reacting to it! (Even if it was just 2 likes 😅)

Anyway, here’s the next part! To those few of you reading, enjoy 😉.

Fandom: Now You See Me

Pairing: Daniel Atlas x Reader

Warnings: nothing, just you sharing a pizza with Danny.

Part 1 Part 3

The six of you spent the next hour going over the plans and working out the minor details. You and Lula were to make your debut with the Horsemen on the stage at the launch in three weeks’ time. With less than a month to prepare, you were to work with the other three Horsemen on a set for the performance. 

  Having been a duo for your whole magic career, Dylan suggested you and Lula split up for this first performance and do your acts with Atlas and Merritt respectively. It made sense, considering you were an escape artist, just like Atlas’s last partner had been. Henley. 

  When he heard what your specialised area of magic was, Atlas looked at you with an unreadable expression. It was a little unsettling and you got the impression you had let him down in some way. 

  “Okay, let’s wrap it up for today,” Dylan said, rolling up the blueprints. 

  With a sigh you realised you and Lula still had to catch the subway home. 

  “Yeah, we have to go now, Lula, if we’re going to get home before midnight,” you said, pulling your leather jacket on. 

  “Actually, ladies,” Dylan added, making you pause your search for your keys, “It might be easier if you both lived a little closer so we can all stick together. I have an extra room in this apartment for one of you and Danny has another in his.”

  “Oh, I call crashing here!” Lula said, flopping onto the couch and giving you what she probably thought was an inconspicuous wink, “I looked around earlier, this place is nuts.”

  “I guess that leaves Y/n with me,” Atlas said, catching your eye. 

  You gave him a small smile, “Thanks.”

  “Jack, you don’t live too far from here, do you?” Lula was asking. 

  “And that is my cue to leave,” you said quickly, grabbing your phone and making your way to the stairs. 

  “Yeah, me too,” Atlas said, following after you.

  Once outside, you suddenly realised you were going to be spending a lot of time alone with Atlas if you were living with him. It was a jarring thought. You also realised — as he climbed onto his motorbike — that you had taken the subway here. 

  “Um, any chance Dylan has another one of those lying around here somewhere?” you asked, stuffing your hands in your jacket pockets. 

  His quirked his brows, an amused smile playing around his mouth, “Nope. You’re riding with me. Here.”

  He extended an extra helmet to you and you took it, quickly placing it on your head and hopping on behind Atlas. 

  “Hold on,” he said.

  Settling your resolve, you held onto his waist.

  Unfortunately, you had never ridden as a passenger before, so the minute he pulled away, you panicked and wrapped your arms around him for dear life. 

  “Jesus, I wish I was driving,” you muttered, making him chuckle. 

  Luckily the drive took only ten minutes, and before you knew it you were stopping in a garage underneath an apartment building. 

  “I’ll ask Dylan to uh… acquire another bike for you,” Atlas said as you climbed off and began unbuckling the helmet. 

  “Acquire…?” You asked, frowning slightly at his strange word choice.

  “Uh, yeah, because he doesn’t buy them.”

  Your eyes widened, staring down at the bike you were just on. 

  “Don’t worry,” he added, “Only from big multinational companies who’s profits are barely affected.”

  “Well, okay then,” you said, feeling a little surreal. 

  You followed Atlas to the stairs and the two of you climbed them to the third floor. 

  The apartment was actually quite nice. There was a couch and a television on one side and a good sized kitchen on the other with a corridor branching off in the middle. You guessed that that was where the bathroom and bedrooms were. You suddenly realised you didn’t have your night clothes with you. Or any of your stuff for that matter. 

  “Um, I don’t have any clothes or toiletries,” you said softly, feeling a little awkward standing there as Atlas moved about the apartment.

  “Actually, you do,” he said, opening the fridge, “Dylan moved all your stuff here. It’s in your room. First door on the right, by the way.”

  You were shocked. Not because Dylan had somehow managed to move all your stuff here, but because of your lack of shock that he had. Barely twenty-four hours into being a Horseman and you were already getting accustomed to the abnormality. 

  “Oh, okay. Thanks,” you said, walking down the hall and opening the door he’d instructed. 

  Sure enough, a suitcase full of clothes sat on the bed, and two boxes full of books lay on the floor. There was a large window with the curtains drawn and an empty bookshelf against the wall. 

  All in all, it was probably the best room you’d ever had. 

  Changing into your tracksuit pants and a spaghetti strap top, you walked back into the main space.

  “Did I hear the doorbell?” You asked, padding into the kitchen where Atlas was typing away on his laptop, his eyes focused intently on the screen.

  “Uh, yes. I ordered pizza. Got a Hawaiian and a ham and mushroom. I’ll eat either, so take your pick,” he replied, jerking his head at the coffee table where there were indeed two pizza boxes. Your stomach growled in response to the idea of food. 

  With a grateful smile, you gathered your confidence and said, “You know, since we’re gonna be living together, we should take this brief period of respite to get to know each other.”

  His hands froze on the keyboard and he slowly retracted them from the laptop, turning in his chair to face you, “Alright, what do you want to know?”

  You shook your head and leaned against the armrest furthest from him, gesturing for him to sit down opposite you, “Come on, Atlas. Don’t leave me hanging.”

  He sighed, but it seemed less frustrated and more playful. You grinned as he got up only to plop down next to you. Leaning forward, you grabbed a pizza.

  “I’ll eat half of this one, and you eat half of the other, then we’ll swap? Deal?”

  He nodded, grabbing the other box.

  You grabbed a slice of ham and mushroom and hummed happily at the familiar flavour. 

  “Okay, I’m just going to get this out of the way quickly so we can clear the air,” you said eventually, tucking your legs underneath your body and avoiding his gaze, “I’m sorry my sister broke into your apartment. I know you and the others aren’t exactly overjoyed to have new teammates, but I promise we’re not just run-of-the-mill, amateur-“

  “Oh no,” Atlas interjected, a slice of Hawaiian balanced precariously in one hand, “believe me, you I don’t have a problem with. You seem sensible and probably a necessary addition to the group considering the maturity level you already witnessed today. Plus, you’re an escape artist and our old one left a while back.”

  Your expression softened, “Yeah, Henley, right? You guys were together?”

  He nodded, “Uh, yeah, but that’s irrelevant. My point is, you I don’t mind. Your sister on the other hand…”

  You laughed softly, glad to see the tension seep from the room, “Lula… she’s my older sister, but I’m the one who looks after her. She’s always been unpredictable and a little erratic, but once you get to know her you’ll see there isn’t a more loyal friend you could have. She’s the reason I got into magic, actually.”

  Atlas quirked his brow, tilting his head in silent query. 

  “When we were kids, Lula was obsessed with Lionel Shrike,” you began, aware of his eyes fixated on your face, “She would read every book on magic she could find just to see if there was any information about his tricks in there. She idolised him. I was 7 and she was 9, and while she was gushing over his card in the tree trick, I was frightened by his failed safe. I knew one day Lula was likely to out herself in a similar situation, and unless I learnt how to break her out of anything, I would lose her.”

  “That’s a lot of responsibility for a seven-year-old to take on,” Atlas murmured. 

  You shrugged, fiddling with your charm bracelet, “As I said, she’s the oldest, but I protect her. I always have. Anyway, from then on I began teaching myself magic tricks. While Lula taught me card work and illusions, I took it upon myself to learn the art of escaping. Trucker’s hitch, Bowline, Clove Hitch, you name it, I learnt how to escape from it.”

  “So you became an escape artist to save your sister if she ever tried something stupid,” Atlas summed up and you nodded, “But you do like magic right?”

  “Oh of course! Somewhere down the line I obviously realised I had found a passion in magic, but that didn’t divert my attention from my main goal,” you said. 

  “Is that why you decided to join the Horsemen?” 

  You gave him a bemused smile, “This is a lot of questions from someone who seemed content to sit in awkward silence ten minutes ago.”

  He huffed a laugh, “Yeah, well I’ve been known to be uh, standoffish. At least, that’s what others tell me.”

  “I get it,” you mused, “I’m the kind of person who enjoys her own company more than other people’s.”

  “It’s just easier, right?” He agreed, “You can’t control social situations. It’s like jumping straight in the deep end every time you enter a conversation.”

  “Merritt was wrong, you definitely don’t have control issues,” you stated, sarcasm dripping off your tone.

  He nodded, “Yep, I stepped right into that one.”

  You laughed softly, chewing and swallowing another bite of pizza, “Jokes aside though, I do get it. We might have more in common than we thought, Atlas.”

  “You can call me Danny,” he said, “Atlas sounds far too much like Dylan or Merritt. If we’re going to he living together we might as well be on a first name basis.”

  “Good point… Danny. In that case just call me Y/n.”

  “It’s nice to officially meet you, Y/n,” he said, a small, genuine smile spreading across his face. 

  “Likewise, Danny,” you replied, grinning. Then, reaching for the deck of playing cards lying on the far side of the coffee table, you shuffled around with them before spreading them out upside down and instructing, “Alright, pick a card, any card.”

[feletida]

Me trying draw something elegant is like caveman trying to forge a rose out of ice with no tools

[neworleansvoudou]

Who's Who in Hoodoo History: Black Herman

In the early 20th century, during the era of segregation and racial discrimination in the United States, an extraordinary figure emerged to challenge societal norms and break barriers in the world of entertainment. Black Herman, born Banjamin Rucker, was a larger-than-life performer, a master illusionist, and a charismatic showman who enchanted audiences with his mesmerizing magic shows and captivating stage presence. Despite facing numerous challenges as a Black entertainer in a racially divided nation, Black Herman's career flourished, leaving behind a legacy that continues to inspire generations to come.

Black Herman's performances often had a spiritual and mystical flair, and he claimed to possess supernatural powers. He used these elements to add an aura of mystique to his shows. These performances often involved dramatic rituals, incantations, and the invocation of spirits, which were common elements found in Hoodoo practices.

[peitalo]

my beautiful scary fiancé @tempulian ‘s illusionist :-)

[p1xiemeat]

[moxpunk-art]

Illusionist Job Stone (Fan Job)

So, after the new Dawntrail details came out, my brain has been buzzing with the idea of my writer-lalafell Bamimi Bami transitioning from Summoner to Pictomancer, but it didn't really feel right. She's a writer, after all! She should be able to bring fiction to life with illusions!

Fun fact, this was my first-ever attempt at digital painting!

Thoughts on my creative process below the break!

So, the big thing I wanted to do was to have meaning behind the decisions that are similar to the job stones in XIV.

First, the symbol. It's obviously a pen nib (the class's arm being pens as a counterpoint to Pictomancer's brush), but it also has the center-circle motif found in WHM and RDM, with the top-curve found in SCH. I figure it'd fit in very well with the rest of the casters to keep a bit of similar design-language.

The stone shape! I wanted to go with a triangle that was mostly even, but offset. It's an art about illusions, after all - they aren't perfect. It's why it doesn't have smooth facets like MCH and BLU.

Finally, I picked violet because I played Guild Wars 2 like over a decade ago and Mesmers have solidified it into my brain that illusions should be violet. That's the long and short of it. My girlfriend says it looks mixed-berry flavor, and I agree. Plus, it's similar in color to Bamimi's eyes, and it's a soulstone crafted by her using her bullshit Alexander Time Magic.

In all, I'm insanely proud of it! I've never tried doing digital painting before, and my whole process was opening a blown-up picture of the DRG job stone on my other monitor and sorta messing around to peel apart the techniques used in the official art. I think I did a pretty good job for a first-time try!

[the-cricket-chirps]

Strobridge Litho. Co, Thurston the Great, ca. 1914