Garth Graham (garthft)

LET IT BE KNOWN. I don't only find art that has to do with League. True, that community generates a butt load of art (Good, bad, pornographic, and everything in-between), but I do also try to find artists creating other things. The internet is such a great place to discover art.

Alice in her own Wonderland (Very Suckerpunch-esk)

Garth Graham, or grathft as his screen name, makes some amazing alternate versions of Disney characters. His women are attractive in their own ways and have incredibly accurate attitudes for the characters, his men look like actual people instead of hulking muscle machines, and his non-human work is detailed and interesting to look at.

A guy with realistic hair and muscle structure. FINALLY

Beauty and her steam-powered Beast

I like to let artist's work speak for them, so this post will be fairly short. Check out Garth Graham (garthft) on Deviantart. He's got a bunch of alternate Disney pieces in addition to his other works. Definitely worth the snoop.

Toodles!

Yosnakorn Sothonwong

A form of art that I always find interesting is gender-bending, or gender-swapped, characters. It is the process of taking a well established character and switching their gender (usually from cis male or cis female to the other).

Something about those chains just works better with Female Thresh

Yosnakorn Sothonwong is an artist on Deviantart that makes some absolutely amazing work. The above gender-bent Thresh is an example of his work. Anyone who has played League with me (or just has been following my blog for a while) knows that Thresh is thematically and mechanically one of my favourite champs. 

The cavalry has arrived, indeed.

I do talk a lot about League on my blog, as it's probably my favourite game. But artists do more than just League art. This is a character known as Tracer from the game Overwatch. Tracer is a spunky Australian with the technology to rewind her place in time by several seconds. She is able to reload her weapons, undo damage done to herself, get out of ambushes, or surprise enemies with a position reversal into a flank. If you're familiar with League, she seems to play very much like one of the newer champions, Ekko. Anyway, Yosnakorn does an impressive job of capturing many aspects of Overwatch and it's characters with this single image. The smirk on Tracer's face hints at her playful attitude, the light lines from her weapons imply her impressive speed as a character. There's even a subtle "time shadow" behind her, as her ability to rewind is a core mechanic for her in the game. On of the other characters, Winston, is in the background ...appreciating... Tracer's athletic build. All in all, the artwork captures the spirit of the game and it's characters well. The colouring and shading is beautiful, and it never hurts to have more art out there of a sexy character.

Yosnakorn also likes to merge different fandoms in his art. This piece combines characters from League with the Avenger's franchise (He really likes to combine League with Marvel stuff). The champs that fit each character in the movies are portrayed well in the image. Gnar is hulking out, quiet literally, as his rage-fuelled transforming ability is incredibly similar to The Hulk. Xer'ath is using his magical lightning to power an Iron Man suit. Braum grabs yet another shield to add to his repertoire as Captain America. The hammer of Thor, with it's flexibility of fighting style and powerful emissions is a logical choice for Jayce. Miss Fortune fits the body type, attitude, and weapon style of Black Widow, with Varus and his amazing bow backing her up Hawkeye-style. Lucian's stoic attitude makes him a great choice for Nick Fury (Sorry Ekko, you're a little too punk rock for that one). Master Yi takes over the role of the fast running Quicksilver, with Morgana taking the role of his sister, Scarlet Witch. If that wasn't enough, Malzahar takes flight as Vision, and Azir commands his minions as Ultron. The fact that all of these characters work so well in the art and as crossover personalities is really impressive to me.

From gender-swapping chain wardens, to the most attractive Rengar I've ever seen. Yosnakorn's art is always a pleasure to peruse. Some of his art is NSFW, but the Deviant art filters hide his more revealing works from underaged eyes. This particular character is a favourite of his, with several pieces dedicated to the female Rengar. Yosnakorn also uses the Fem-gar, as it's also known, to cross over skins within League. Here is the Battle Bunny skin that Riven uses, but adapted for Fem-gar. It really makes me wish that one: Fem-gar was a character in League, and two: That this skin happened ASAP. There is also a Heart Seeker Fem-gar, complete with heart eye patch and accents.

This artist really likes to do gender-swaps, and makes some really sexy artwork (a little too sexy for some of my more conservative readers). Give his page a look and support. Maybe one day Riot will pay him for some new skin ideas...


Toodles!

Nappin Kraken

If you like to browse the internet for ways to spend all of your monies, chances are you've happened upon Etsy. A website where crafters and talented product makers can sell their wares without having a larger distributor. I'm sure that a number of posts in the future will feature products sold on Etsy. One shopkeeper on the site is Nappin Kraken. A Nintendo fan, NK makes a small handful of gamer jewellery from a variety of games. 

New Leaf pendent from Animal Crossing

Spirit Stone necklace from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Phantump, from Pokemon X/Y

Also available in shiny Phantump

Nappin Kraken has some really nice jewellery, and would make a very nice gift for the gamer in your life (yourself or otherwise). Give their shop a look, and consider supporting a small business. They're even based in Canada! Woot!

Gamer love is forever love. Just don't overwrite their save file....

Toodles!

Eating Right Can Be Hard

A huge part about getting into shape (and staying there) is your diet. What can be frustrating about it is trying to gauge how many calories you actually consume in a day. It can be shocking what foods contain high or low concentrations of calories if you never paid attention to that kind of thing before. Four prunes has the same amount of calories as an entire plate of asparagus, for example. Speaking of examples, we come to today's post topic.

Spark People has created a few pictures that can help you think more about what you're eating. They have a series of images depicting different kinds of foods, all amounting to 100 calories. Some of them are quite shocking in the difference in amount.

All this said, the amount of calories you eat is not the only factor that affects your health. Proper nutrition, exercise, water, sleep, and mental well being all are factors in staying in good shape. Genetics are all well and good when you're younger, but there are studies that show that genetic history only affects your younger life, aside from hereditary conditions. The lifestyle choices you make have a much greater impact on how long and how well you can live.

Toodles!

DAV-19

Cubone and Marowak anthros

There are people on the internet who are CRAZY talented. The amount of artistry the web has to offer is staggering. From art, music, games, stories, poems, comedy, web shows, comics, and so much more. One such talent is Anastasia, also known as DAV-19 on an art site called Deviant Art. The domain name can be a little misleading, as the large majority of the art is not unsafe for kids or work (Though there are artists who do that kind of thing, behind an age filter setting).

Anyway, the art that this girl does is so amazing to me. She is obviously a nerd, based on what she draws. Video game characters, anime, and even personal ones to her, the art is all great.

Saber from the Fate series

This one is my personal favourite.

And of course, adorable Eeveelutions

To see more of her art (and stuff that isn't just Pokemon), check out Anastasia's Deviant Art page. Know an artist that's got some really cool stuff? Leave a comment about them so I can check them out!

Toodles!

This Is Why I'm Broke

Haha! Almost didn't get a post out in time for today, but the streak shall continue!

Anyway, as another Tuesday rolls around, let's talk about another geeky collection website. This Is Why I'm Broke is a website that has a massively eclectic assortment of stuff. Seriously. There's everything from replica medieval armour:

 to glitter bomb postcards for your enemies:

to sriracha bacon:

Each item on the TIWIB is linked to the actual website that you can purchase it from (there's a lot on Amazon). The writers for the website also have a pretty wicked sense of humour, so just seeing all the weird and wacky things the web has to offer keeps me coming back to the site, even without the money to actually buy anything.

Check out the site when you've got some time. There's bound to be something there for everyone.

Toodles!

Sit and Be Calm

Life can get hectic. It can also be extremely overloading to your senses, with too many things to have on your to-do list, another article to read, another website to check. Sometimes, you just need a reminder that your mental health is important to maintain. It's not just a matter of "Don't be stressed and you'll be happy". Finding that moment of calm every day can be really important.

Calm is a website (and mobile app) that allows you to take a 2-20 minute meditation. You are able to choose a setting (Background, music/sound), the duration of your break, and whether or not your meditation is guided (having a voice give you directions on what to do with your awareness and body during the meditation).

Taking care of your mental health is just as important as your diet or physical maintenance. It only takes a couple of minutes. Check it out.

Toodles!

Everything is Awful and I'm Not Okay

But really, I'm doing really well right now.

Anyway, today's cool internet thingy is going to be a little different. Tuesday's have honestly been one of the harder days for me to come up with topics, so I'm broadening the spectrum to include cool bits of media that I've found on the internet. One such cool thing I've found is a small piece of advice that honestly can help you through some shitty days. It honestly is just a list of obvious questions and answers, but in life, common sense is getting rarer. As well, it can be the right little reminder if you're struggling, feeling depressed, or anything that's got you down.

For those of you who hate Google, here's a shot of the sheet. I also have no idea how long it will stay up, so if you'd like the original copy, try the link below.
Self Care on Google Drive


JUST DO IT (Insert flexing arms here)

Toodles!

Gozzys Dungeon Generator

One of my incredibly nerdy hobbies is playing Dungeons and Dragons (or Pathfinder) with some of my old friends. Playing DnD has been something that I've enjoyed for a number of years now, and I've even tried my hand at running a campaign a few times. Running a game is so drastically different to playing in one. The amount of rules you need to have mostly memorized is significantly higher. You need to have enemies, loot, NPC's, and locations available at a moments notice.

On the note of locations, I discovered an online tool that is quite useful for those of you looking to run a game. Gozzys is a website that has a number of random map creators. It can make dungeons, caves, and general wilderness maps quickly and easily. It has a bunch of settings for you to tweak the size, amount, and spacing of large areas or rooms, the overall size and randomness of the layout, and even the tile set you'd prefer to use.

The Dungeon Generator creates room, hallways, marks the dungeon entrance, and adds in doors locations. Here are a few examples of what the Dungeon Generator can do, using the default settings.

If you need a little help making maps, or just need to shave a little time off your prep (there's a lot to do), feel free to give Gozzys a go.

Toodles!

Thinkgeek

If it isn't apparent by now, I'm a nerd. As such, I also love nerdy things. Some of my favourite presents I receive for holidays (or just buy for myself when I have the money) are gadgets, do-dads, or nerd-type things. And what self-respecting nerd doesn't shop for stuff online?

Behold! Thinkgeek enters! It's a website that I've had bookmarked on my homepage for years now. Even when I don't have any money to spend, I still like to see what new products they bring out. Although the selection had become smaller over the years, the quality of products is great. They also have exceptional customer support. I once received an item that it damaged in shipping, and they sent me a new one immediately, no charge. As a Canadian ordering things from an American website, that's a big deal.

Like most stores and websites now, Thinkgeek offers a loyalty points program that you can redeem for specific products around the site. They also offer discounts and deals to their customers whether they are signed up members or not. They often have free stuff too!

Thinkgeek is staffed by fun people who care about their customer base, and was recently acquired by GameStop (who thankfully outbid Hot Topic for ownership). Give the site a browse, if not an order. And say hi to Timmy the monkey. 

Toodles!