A fantastically realised, atmospheric commission by the super-friendly and highly regarded artist BlueHunter
I love BlueHunter's medieval settings and the way the artist gives the characters personality.
I was therefore pleased and honoured when Hunter showed interest in accepting another commission with my Anthro-Friesian stallion character, this time also including Gunnar - one of his original characters - as a sparring partner in the painting.
The level of detail... the dynamics... the light setting... everything turned out even more beautiful than I had imagined when we discussed the ideas for this commission in advance.
I would also like to thank Hunter for his research work in visualising the location. The look of the defence wall and barracks was heavily inspired by Burg Trausnitz in my hometown of Landshut.
Both characters wear a gambeson - a piece of textile armour that either consisted of several layers of linen cloth or was stuffed with various materials such as raw wool or scraps of cloth and was worn under the chain armour.
In addition to head plates for protection, both stallions use blunt training swords; Gunnar also carries his shield with the coat of arms of his kingdom, while Steppen has left the coat of arms of his duchy on the wall.
The picture is another part of the medieval series of earlier commissions:
The town guard
The Night Watch
Duty break
The winter snow lasted an unusually long time this year...
Here and there, the first snowdrops and crocuses made their way through the frosty ground as harbingers of the approaching spring. Meanwhile, the farmers looked anxiously at the barren fields. Behind closed doors, they vented their anger at the nobility, who had demanded the leftovers from the larders weeks ago... Everything that was not yet infested with mould or vermin had to be handed over to the duke.
Under these impressions, the strangers from the north had also been observed with suspicion and incomprehension: an aristocratic travelling party of around one hundred and fifty people, moving along the rural road like a colorful snake - flanked by soldiers, who were particularly numerous around an elaborately decorated palanquin. Although news travelled slowly here, everyone knew who was being carried by servants...
Ida, one of King Herold's daughters from the Hound's Lands, was accompanied by members of the court to marry Gregor, the eldest son of Duke Leopold of the House of Fuchsfeld.
As was customary among the nobility, this was not a marriage born of love. Ida and Gregor had never met before. Emissaries from both houses had met months ago on neutral ground to sound out the possibility of an alliance between the two noble families, which was to be sealed by this marriage. If for Herold it was an opportunity to extend his influence far into the south and secure trade routes with the lands beyond the mountains, for Leopold this alliance meant securing his power. Reports of warlike hordes from the south and east, who had already plundered many a city, literally forced him to look for an ally who had already won more than one battle...
Over a month ago, the wedding party had set off with many wooden carts and backpacks... and after this long, arduous journey, one evening they finally caught sight of the towers of Falcon's Solace Castle, which rose imposingly on a hill above the town of Weitwacht below.
Now, two weeks after this arrival, preparations for the wedding were in full swing...
A big celebration had been promised to the lowly folk to keep them happy despite the levies... Dancing, singing, free beer and the chance of bread and dried meat thrown into the crowd here and there from the town's stocks during the festivities were intended to make them forget the suffering of the barren season… just as much as exciting, splendid tournaments.
The highlight of every show fight was the clash between two horse soldiers. Whether in a ritual joust, in which two opponents tried to knock each other over with lances, or in a fight with sword and shield: when the strength of two battle-hardened stallions clashed until shields burst and iron bent, the cheers of the crowds were certain.
One of these stallions was Gunnar, a guard soldier from Herold's kingdom, who was assigned to protect the travelling party with his men. His tall, muscular figure, which towered over all the others, was warning enough for any bandits or angry peasants to keep their distance.
Among the soldiers at the barracks in Weitwacht, Steppen, a black horse of no less impressive stature, was chosen to compete against Gunnar during the tournaments. As a Friesian, he was somewhat smaller than Gunnar, the Coldblood… but size was rarely the only thing that mattered in battle...
Both horses were skilled in duels and, despite their muscular build, were elegant in their movements as they crossed swords agilely and confidently, circling their opponents as if they were dancing around each other.
Even before the festivities began, Steppen and Gunnar had introduced themselves to each other... Together they had decided to use their free time to practise together in preparation for the exhibition fights. Both knew that the better they knew their opponent's strengths and weaknesses, the greater their own advantage when they had to prove themselves in front of hundreds of spectators. Such tournaments were not just about personal honour... everyone was fighting for the honour of their coat of arms.
Even on this cool evening, as the sun slowly approached the horizon in an impressive sunset glow, the two stallions met in front of the barracks for another training session...
"Good evening Gunnar..." Steppen greeted the stallion, whose mane tied into knots made him look unusually noble for this region "... Well rested and refreshed after yesterday's training?"
Gunnar gave a short snort and grinned amusedly... Since the day they first met, the two soldiers had been living out their rivalry through friendly banter and teasing each other...
"Good evening... Yes, I slept soundly... after having a good work-out on a training dummy. I saw our training as more of a warm-up exercise..."
Steppen countered this remark with an amused snort and moved to one of the wooden stands with the blunt training swords.
"Well... I guess you always pick opponents of the same calibre, huh? I hope our practice dummies haven't been too tough on you..."
And Gunnar just put the shield down with another gentle smile to reply: "If they were guarding the city gate, I'd probably have fewer worries about your city as a resident..."
"Enough with the pleasantries…" the black stallion said with an equally friendly expression as he handed Gunnar the practice sword... "There are still three days until the start of the tournaments... How are the preparations in the camp going?"
"Everything is ready and eager for the wedding..." replied Gunnar, before looking thoughtfully over the snow-covered fir trees behind the wall... "Hm... It’s unusual not to wait until summer for such festivities when it's warm and the larders are full..."
Steppen briefly followed his gaze, placing the practice sword on the back of his neck while holding onto it with both hands. "Romantics would probably say that the wedding couple were so distorted by love and longing that they couldn't wait any longer to get married..."
"Ha… Yes! Exactly..." Gunnar snorted ironically "... We both know that their fathers can't wait to unite our houses for their own personal gain. I've seen the princess grow quieter and quieter over the course of the journey... What can you tell me about your Gregor?"
Steppen was surprised that Gunnar, as a soldier, seemed to be so concerned about Princess Ida's well-being. But he answered him in a calm tone: "I can't say I've played dice games with him... but they say he's quiet and well-educated. Leopold is not unpopular with the people, although I hope he didn't overstep the mark when he had the peasants' stocks emptied for the wedding feast... So all I can tell you is this: I don't think Gregor is a mean asshole"
"Well... I guess that will have to suffice in the circle of the nobility" Gunnar mused calmly, which only caused an amused "Hmm!" to escape Steppen's throat.
All at once, Gunnar picked up his shield again to place it in his left hand... "But enough words... we should make use of the remaining evening light"
Steppen nodded "Let's go then..." and tightened the leather straps around his head protection.
The ground of the barracks forecourt, covered in fresh snow and ice, crunched lightly under the iron-tipped hooves of the two stallions as they took up their positions.
"You forgot your shield..." smirked Gunnar, pointing his sword at the wall where the shield decorated with the town's coat of arms stood leaning against the barracks.
"I'm fighting without a shield today..." the black stallion snorted back, earning an amused "Brave… or stupid!" from his opponent. "I can defeat a unicorn without a shield..." joked Steppen, symbolically tapping the metal of his headguard once more to make fun of the iron horn that adorned Gunnar's head plate at the same spot.
And then the combat training began...
The two stallions rushed at each other with agility...
Sword clashed dully against shield... then iron against iron as Gunnar went to strike and Steppen was only able to counter at the last moment.
Using his strength, Gunnar pushed his opponent back and immediately followed up with more hits.
Steppen, smaller but also a little more agile, dodged the first blow with his upper body and let the blades cross again with the next strike while holding his sword with both hands.
"Well, shouldn't I get you a straw doll instead?" Steppen snorted at Gunnar as their two heads approached under the metallic screech of the iron rubbing against each other
"Does your poor province still have that much straw left?" Gunnar countered just as provocatively, until both stallions pushed away from each other again and circled each other, snorting and prancing.
The faster their powerful hearts pounded... the faster the blood rushed through their veins... the more spirited the duel became. The sound of the hard clashing iron became more and more rhythmic, accompanied by the dull echo of the prancing horseshoes, which whirled up the snow beneath them to the long, waving tails of the horses.
It was Gunnar who landed the first hit when Steppen tried to strike a powerful blow that was blocked by Gunnar's shield. Even as the black stallion staggered back, Gunnar followed up with his sword hand already raised and used the free space to drive his training sword into the side of the gambeson protecting the Frisian's body.
"Ahhh..." was all that came out of the stallion's throat as he briefly dropped to his knees before Gunnar helped him up again. "That's what happens when you don't use your shield..."
But spurred on by this criticism, Steppen immediately picked himself up again, snorted his frustration away once more with puffed out nostrils and tapped his chest with his sword "Just a lucky shot... Go on!
As if fueled by the desire to make up for this mistake, Steppen now pranced up and down in front of his opponent all the more agilely. He skillfully dodged the powerful blows, with which Gunnar seemed to literally cut through the air, by pulling back his upper body... allowing Gunnar to exhaust himself for a few moments before he himself raised his sword again to strike his opponent's shield and sword with no less powerful blows.
Gunnar moved his right hoof back to counter the blows and prepare his next attack. But instead of taking advantage of Gunnar's open guard as he held his arm up to block the blows, Steppen backed away from the final blow, forestalling Gunnar's plan to push him sideways with his shield. The Frisian used the brief moment of irritation to land his first strike on the chain mail of Gunnar's shoulder.
"Ohh..." Gunnar gasped briefly and gritted his teeth in pain "... I didn't see that one coming...".
"Now we're even," Steppen commented curtly and gave Gunnar time to collect himself.
The two stallions measured their strength in ritual combat until the last ray of sunshine. Warm breath poured from their broad nostrils like the smoke of dragons from the legends told at court in front of the open fire. And sweating under their thick gambeson, the steam literally rose from their muscular bodies in the light of the torches that still illuminated the barracks square.
Each had been able to score hits on the other... both had used the training to study the other's tactics... to find out weaknesses and strengths which they hoped to exploit at the next training session tomorrow.
"I think... phew... that... should be enough for today," puffed Steppen, visibly exhausted... and Gunnar's tiredness was also written all over his face... "Yes... I think... I'll pass on continuing with the training dummy today..." replied Gunnar, exhausted.
After Steppen had brought the two practice swords back to the wooden stand, he put his hand on Gunnar's shoulder and said: "Come on... the castle pub is still open... I'll buy you a beer...".
"I certainly won't say no to that..." Gunnar replied with a smiling nod and placed his shield next to Steppen's.
As both opponents left the training ground side by side, Steppen said cheerfully:
"Maybe you can tell me something about the crest of your house... it looks very... martial..."
"Sure..." said Gunnar "... if you tell me something about your name. Steppen? Unusual, even for this region"
"Oh, you know... that's a long story..."
I love BlueHunter's medieval settings and the way the artist gives the characters personality.
I was therefore pleased and honoured when Hunter showed interest in accepting another commission with my Anthro-Friesian stallion character, this time also including Gunnar - one of his original characters - as a sparring partner in the painting.
The level of detail... the dynamics... the light setting... everything turned out even more beautiful than I had imagined when we discussed the ideas for this commission in advance.
I would also like to thank Hunter for his research work in visualising the location. The look of the defence wall and barracks was heavily inspired by Burg Trausnitz in my hometown of Landshut.
Both characters wear a gambeson - a piece of textile armour that either consisted of several layers of linen cloth or was stuffed with various materials such as raw wool or scraps of cloth and was worn under the chain armour.
In addition to head plates for protection, both stallions use blunt training swords; Gunnar also carries his shield with the coat of arms of his kingdom, while Steppen has left the coat of arms of his duchy on the wall.
The picture is another part of the medieval series of earlier commissions:
The town guard
The Night Watch
Duty break
~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~⚜~~~
The winter snow lasted an unusually long time this year...
Here and there, the first snowdrops and crocuses made their way through the frosty ground as harbingers of the approaching spring. Meanwhile, the farmers looked anxiously at the barren fields. Behind closed doors, they vented their anger at the nobility, who had demanded the leftovers from the larders weeks ago... Everything that was not yet infested with mould or vermin had to be handed over to the duke.
Under these impressions, the strangers from the north had also been observed with suspicion and incomprehension: an aristocratic travelling party of around one hundred and fifty people, moving along the rural road like a colorful snake - flanked by soldiers, who were particularly numerous around an elaborately decorated palanquin. Although news travelled slowly here, everyone knew who was being carried by servants...
Ida, one of King Herold's daughters from the Hound's Lands, was accompanied by members of the court to marry Gregor, the eldest son of Duke Leopold of the House of Fuchsfeld.
⚜
As was customary among the nobility, this was not a marriage born of love. Ida and Gregor had never met before. Emissaries from both houses had met months ago on neutral ground to sound out the possibility of an alliance between the two noble families, which was to be sealed by this marriage. If for Herold it was an opportunity to extend his influence far into the south and secure trade routes with the lands beyond the mountains, for Leopold this alliance meant securing his power. Reports of warlike hordes from the south and east, who had already plundered many a city, literally forced him to look for an ally who had already won more than one battle...
⚜
Over a month ago, the wedding party had set off with many wooden carts and backpacks... and after this long, arduous journey, one evening they finally caught sight of the towers of Falcon's Solace Castle, which rose imposingly on a hill above the town of Weitwacht below.
Now, two weeks after this arrival, preparations for the wedding were in full swing...
⚜
A big celebration had been promised to the lowly folk to keep them happy despite the levies... Dancing, singing, free beer and the chance of bread and dried meat thrown into the crowd here and there from the town's stocks during the festivities were intended to make them forget the suffering of the barren season… just as much as exciting, splendid tournaments.
The highlight of every show fight was the clash between two horse soldiers. Whether in a ritual joust, in which two opponents tried to knock each other over with lances, or in a fight with sword and shield: when the strength of two battle-hardened stallions clashed until shields burst and iron bent, the cheers of the crowds were certain.
⚜
One of these stallions was Gunnar, a guard soldier from Herold's kingdom, who was assigned to protect the travelling party with his men. His tall, muscular figure, which towered over all the others, was warning enough for any bandits or angry peasants to keep their distance.
Among the soldiers at the barracks in Weitwacht, Steppen, a black horse of no less impressive stature, was chosen to compete against Gunnar during the tournaments. As a Friesian, he was somewhat smaller than Gunnar, the Coldblood… but size was rarely the only thing that mattered in battle...
Both horses were skilled in duels and, despite their muscular build, were elegant in their movements as they crossed swords agilely and confidently, circling their opponents as if they were dancing around each other.
⚜
Even before the festivities began, Steppen and Gunnar had introduced themselves to each other... Together they had decided to use their free time to practise together in preparation for the exhibition fights. Both knew that the better they knew their opponent's strengths and weaknesses, the greater their own advantage when they had to prove themselves in front of hundreds of spectators. Such tournaments were not just about personal honour... everyone was fighting for the honour of their coat of arms.
⚜
Even on this cool evening, as the sun slowly approached the horizon in an impressive sunset glow, the two stallions met in front of the barracks for another training session...
"Good evening Gunnar..." Steppen greeted the stallion, whose mane tied into knots made him look unusually noble for this region "... Well rested and refreshed after yesterday's training?"
Gunnar gave a short snort and grinned amusedly... Since the day they first met, the two soldiers had been living out their rivalry through friendly banter and teasing each other...
"Good evening... Yes, I slept soundly... after having a good work-out on a training dummy. I saw our training as more of a warm-up exercise..."
Steppen countered this remark with an amused snort and moved to one of the wooden stands with the blunt training swords.
"Well... I guess you always pick opponents of the same calibre, huh? I hope our practice dummies haven't been too tough on you..."
And Gunnar just put the shield down with another gentle smile to reply: "If they were guarding the city gate, I'd probably have fewer worries about your city as a resident..."
"Enough with the pleasantries…" the black stallion said with an equally friendly expression as he handed Gunnar the practice sword... "There are still three days until the start of the tournaments... How are the preparations in the camp going?"
"Everything is ready and eager for the wedding..." replied Gunnar, before looking thoughtfully over the snow-covered fir trees behind the wall... "Hm... It’s unusual not to wait until summer for such festivities when it's warm and the larders are full..."
Steppen briefly followed his gaze, placing the practice sword on the back of his neck while holding onto it with both hands. "Romantics would probably say that the wedding couple were so distorted by love and longing that they couldn't wait any longer to get married..."
"Ha… Yes! Exactly..." Gunnar snorted ironically "... We both know that their fathers can't wait to unite our houses for their own personal gain. I've seen the princess grow quieter and quieter over the course of the journey... What can you tell me about your Gregor?"
Steppen was surprised that Gunnar, as a soldier, seemed to be so concerned about Princess Ida's well-being. But he answered him in a calm tone: "I can't say I've played dice games with him... but they say he's quiet and well-educated. Leopold is not unpopular with the people, although I hope he didn't overstep the mark when he had the peasants' stocks emptied for the wedding feast... So all I can tell you is this: I don't think Gregor is a mean asshole"
"Well... I guess that will have to suffice in the circle of the nobility" Gunnar mused calmly, which only caused an amused "Hmm!" to escape Steppen's throat.
All at once, Gunnar picked up his shield again to place it in his left hand... "But enough words... we should make use of the remaining evening light"
Steppen nodded "Let's go then..." and tightened the leather straps around his head protection.
The ground of the barracks forecourt, covered in fresh snow and ice, crunched lightly under the iron-tipped hooves of the two stallions as they took up their positions.
"You forgot your shield..." smirked Gunnar, pointing his sword at the wall where the shield decorated with the town's coat of arms stood leaning against the barracks.
"I'm fighting without a shield today..." the black stallion snorted back, earning an amused "Brave… or stupid!" from his opponent. "I can defeat a unicorn without a shield..." joked Steppen, symbolically tapping the metal of his headguard once more to make fun of the iron horn that adorned Gunnar's head plate at the same spot.
And then the combat training began...
The two stallions rushed at each other with agility...
Sword clashed dully against shield... then iron against iron as Gunnar went to strike and Steppen was only able to counter at the last moment.
Using his strength, Gunnar pushed his opponent back and immediately followed up with more hits.
Steppen, smaller but also a little more agile, dodged the first blow with his upper body and let the blades cross again with the next strike while holding his sword with both hands.
"Well, shouldn't I get you a straw doll instead?" Steppen snorted at Gunnar as their two heads approached under the metallic screech of the iron rubbing against each other
"Does your poor province still have that much straw left?" Gunnar countered just as provocatively, until both stallions pushed away from each other again and circled each other, snorting and prancing.
The faster their powerful hearts pounded... the faster the blood rushed through their veins... the more spirited the duel became. The sound of the hard clashing iron became more and more rhythmic, accompanied by the dull echo of the prancing horseshoes, which whirled up the snow beneath them to the long, waving tails of the horses.
It was Gunnar who landed the first hit when Steppen tried to strike a powerful blow that was blocked by Gunnar's shield. Even as the black stallion staggered back, Gunnar followed up with his sword hand already raised and used the free space to drive his training sword into the side of the gambeson protecting the Frisian's body.
"Ahhh..." was all that came out of the stallion's throat as he briefly dropped to his knees before Gunnar helped him up again. "That's what happens when you don't use your shield..."
But spurred on by this criticism, Steppen immediately picked himself up again, snorted his frustration away once more with puffed out nostrils and tapped his chest with his sword "Just a lucky shot... Go on!
As if fueled by the desire to make up for this mistake, Steppen now pranced up and down in front of his opponent all the more agilely. He skillfully dodged the powerful blows, with which Gunnar seemed to literally cut through the air, by pulling back his upper body... allowing Gunnar to exhaust himself for a few moments before he himself raised his sword again to strike his opponent's shield and sword with no less powerful blows.
Gunnar moved his right hoof back to counter the blows and prepare his next attack. But instead of taking advantage of Gunnar's open guard as he held his arm up to block the blows, Steppen backed away from the final blow, forestalling Gunnar's plan to push him sideways with his shield. The Frisian used the brief moment of irritation to land his first strike on the chain mail of Gunnar's shoulder.
"Ohh..." Gunnar gasped briefly and gritted his teeth in pain "... I didn't see that one coming...".
"Now we're even," Steppen commented curtly and gave Gunnar time to collect himself.
⚜
The two stallions measured their strength in ritual combat until the last ray of sunshine. Warm breath poured from their broad nostrils like the smoke of dragons from the legends told at court in front of the open fire. And sweating under their thick gambeson, the steam literally rose from their muscular bodies in the light of the torches that still illuminated the barracks square.
Each had been able to score hits on the other... both had used the training to study the other's tactics... to find out weaknesses and strengths which they hoped to exploit at the next training session tomorrow.
"I think... phew... that... should be enough for today," puffed Steppen, visibly exhausted... and Gunnar's tiredness was also written all over his face... "Yes... I think... I'll pass on continuing with the training dummy today..." replied Gunnar, exhausted.
After Steppen had brought the two practice swords back to the wooden stand, he put his hand on Gunnar's shoulder and said: "Come on... the castle pub is still open... I'll buy you a beer...".
"I certainly won't say no to that..." Gunnar replied with a smiling nod and placed his shield next to Steppen's.
As both opponents left the training ground side by side, Steppen said cheerfully:
"Maybe you can tell me something about the crest of your house... it looks very... martial..."
"Sure..." said Gunnar "... if you tell me something about your name. Steppen? Unusual, even for this region"
"Oh, you know... that's a long story..."
Category Artwork (Digital) / All
Species Horse
Gender Multiple characters
Size 1677 x 1014px
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