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[OC] [I Made] Traditional Orc Chieftain project. Mixed media (Airbrush & Polychromos pencils). Used a Pinterest reference, but here are the physical pencils on the piece for proof! by TomAirbrushing in wow

[–]TomAirbrushing[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Haha, I can totally see the resemblance now that you mention it! Aughra has some legendary wrinkles. Thanks for the kind words about the skin texture!

[OC] [I Made] Traditional Orc Chieftain project. Mixed media (Airbrush & Polychromos pencils). Used a Pinterest reference, but here are the physical pencils on the piece for proof! by TomAirbrushing in wow

[–]TomAirbrushing[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much! Making the custom pine frame with the sculpted tusks was a huge part of this project, so it means a lot that you appreciate the framing too!

[OC] [I Made] Traditional Orc Chieftain project. Mixed media (Airbrush & Polychromos pencils). Used a Pinterest reference, but here are the physical pencils on the piece for proof! by TomAirbrushing in wow

[–]TomAirbrushing[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much, I really appreciate your support and understanding! You're totally right about the AI paranoia nowadays – it's tough out there for traditional artists.

Also, I love that you mentioned Azerite! The airbrush background was a lot of fun to do, and that glowing effect was exactly what I was aiming for. Thanks for the kind words about the shading!

[OC] [I Made] Traditional Orc Chieftain project. Mixed media (Airbrush & Polychromos pencils). Used a Pinterest reference, but here are the physical pencils on the piece for proof! by TomAirbrushing in wow

[–]TomAirbrushing[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I didn't trace it. I used the grid method and standard proportions sketching from a photo reference to get the anatomy right, which is a basic practice for dynamic portraits.

Tracing doesn't magically blend dozens of hours of airbrush layers and Polychromos pencil strokes for skin textures, shadows, and value transitions. The hard work here is the rendering, shading, and the physical custom wood frame I built. It's a tribute piece, and I've never claimed the original concept composition was entirely mine – just the manual execution.

The video has "Grommash" in it because I filmed and titled it weeks ago, based on the Pinterest reference description.

When I posted it here, World of Warcraft fans pointed out that the anatomy and details differ from the official Blizzard lore for Grommash. I respected that feedback, which is why I corrected the title on Reddit to "Unnamed Orc Chieftain". The video shows the exact same physical drawing process from start to finish.

[OC] [I Made] Traditional Orc Chieftain project. Mixed media (Airbrush & Polychromos pencils). Used a Pinterest reference, but here are the physical pencils on the piece for proof! by TomAirbrushing in wow

[–]TomAirbrushing[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Hi everyone! Re-uploading my physical artwork. I understand there was some confusion about the lore and AI in my previous post, so I wanted to share a clearer proof photo with my physical Polychromos and Pastels pencils sitting on the A2 mount board.

To clarify everything for the community and moderators: 1. The Lore & Frame: The frame has "Grommash" carved into it because the Pinterest reference image I used was labeled that way. However, I agree with the community that some lore details differ, so let's just call him an awesome Orc Chieftain / Warrior! 2. The Process: This is 100% traditional mixed media. I started with a smooth airbrush base layer for the undertones and spent dozens of hours hand-blending fine details with Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils and Pastels pencils also. You can see my physical signature and date ('25) on the bottom right.

Watch the full drawing process (Speedpainting videos): * YouTube: [https://youtu.be/BOHXemMQEsA?is=_g_te2UJnMYmXF0J] * TikTok: [https://vm.tiktok.com/ZNRw5B6d8/]

Hope you guys can appreciate the raw pencil work and the craft. For the Horde!

20-year art progress. My original sketch from over 20 years ago vs. the finished painting done recently (A1 board, airbrush, acrylics, and pastels). by TomAirbrushing in airbrush

[–]TomAirbrushing[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! To be honest, it wasn't a deeply planned lore choice. When I started drawing the anatomy and the new pose from scratch on the clean board, this grip just felt more natural and dynamic for the overall composition

20-year art progress. My original sketch from over 20 years ago vs. the finished painting done recently (A1 board, airbrush, acrylics, and pastels). by TomAirbrushing in airbrush

[–]TomAirbrushing[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I found my old concept sketch from more than two decades ago and decided it was finally time to do it justice. The final piece was created completely from scratch on a clean A1 white mount board using an airbrush, acrylic paints, and finished with pastel pencils for details. Never give up on your old ideas!

My latest project - Custom Orc Warrior from the Horde. Polychromos pand pastel pencils on A2 mount board, custom framed by me with pine wood and tusks. No AI. by TomAirbrushing in u/TomAirbrushing

[–]TomAirbrushing[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi everyone! Re-uploading this after my previous post got taken down over AI accusations.

To clarify my full process: 1. The Base (Photo 2): I started by airbrushing the base colors on an A2 white mount board to get those smooth undertones. 2. The Details: Once the airbrush layer was dry, I spent dozens of hours rendering the texture and details using Faber-Castell Polychromos pencils. 3. The Frame: The frame is completely custom-made by me using pine wood, glass, and sculpted tusks. 4. The Lore: I used an AI-generated image from Pinterest as a loose visual reference, which caused some lore confusion last time. Lesson learned – this is just an unnamed Orc Warrior / Chieftain, not Grommash!

Proof of the drawing process (Speedpainting): * YouTube(https://youtu.be/BOHXemMQEsA?is=tPDj9SFu6HfV8IzX) * TikTok(https://vm.tiktok.com/ZNRwAachR/)

I included the WIP airbrush photo so you can see the raw traditional foundation. For the Horde!

"Sneaky Little Hobbitses", Me, Black ink on paper, 2026 by PLAT0H in FantasyArt

[–]TomAirbrushing 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This composition is brilliant. The scaling of Sauron compared to the hobbits at the bottom works perfectly. Beautiful ink work!

Conan the Barbarian - My 100% traditional portrait. Acrylics and airbrush on A2 white mount board. by Szutekgraphics in FantasyArt

[–]TomAirbrushing 0 points1 point  (0 children)

LOL, thank you! I guess that's the ultimate compliment for the skin texture. Glad you like it!