Bit of an experiment since this was coloured all in Copic marker. Yup, that's all done by hand, traditionally. I tried to make it look stony, which was not easy.
Spoiler
)And those are totally leaves it's sitting on...
Castle Gargoyles
These, often fierce looking creatures are actually very shy and docile. They make their homes in the abandoned ruins of castles and other stone buildings. They have a smooth, stony hide which feels much like sandpaper to the touch. Another, rarer variety is said to look and feel like polished marble. The wings on their back seem to have no use, being too small to lift their heavy bodies and magi have yet to understand why they even have them. Current theories are that they are used for display. They despise water and often find a dry place to hibernate through the winter to avoid the snow and ice.
Their eggs look like large, smooth stones and are often pick up by curious magi and brought back to the keep, only to hatch a while later. The young are about the size of cats and enjoy munching on rocks and gemstones to satisfy their voracious appetites, much to the dismay of their magi. A gargoyle raised by a magi is a stalwart companion and faithful guardian, and they are often kept for this reason.
They nest in large piles of fall leaves, which they can summon, or make fall from near by trees with the red gem in their chest. The gem pulses and can summon a flurry of leaves around the gargoyle. While they can be kept indoors it is not advised because they'll summon up leaves to nest in, leaving them all around the Keep and their magi's quarters.
Adults are the size of small ponies and their appetites have dwindled to needing to only eat once or twice a month, however they eat much more. The males and females are nearly indistinguishable from one another, though females often tend to be larger and more aggressive than the males. When threatened they generally freeze in position, taking on the appearance of a statue, their bright gold eyes giving away their true nature.
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Contest requirements-
-large body structure- thick/dense and heavy
-made of stone- their hide is stone
-red crystal in chest- yep, a large red crystal
-orange, yellow and red leaves- they use these for nesting and summon them with the aforementioned red gem
Hopefully those count. I wanted to try something a bit different than a large, chunky rock creature, which was my original idea.
I'll work on getting the Wind creature done. It'll probably be done digitally.
