Merry Sithmas 2025 - Darth Maul

MERRY SITHMAS
Darth Maul

Merry Sithmas!  I hope everyone is well and has/had/will have a great Holiday Season (whatever you do or don't believe)!  Rather than do up a more obscure Sith character (cannon or non-cannon, who knows?), I figured I'd dust of Darth Maul again with his Christmas Tree lights for horns.

Sure, last year I was hoping to perhaps do up a "Real" animated video for Sithmas and while I did do up a better animated .gif, it is not quite the true, smooth animation I had in mind.  Oh, well, next year, for sure!  Probably...

* * *

Alas, I don't have a Work in Progress, but here's a single image .jpeg rather than the Animate .GIF for no apparent reason at all...

I did up the Darth Maul and Winter Scene digital painting in Rebelle, leaving the Christmas Tree Bulbs/Horns on his head to be done in Photoshop, along with the snow and the type for "Merry Sithmas".

* * *

Done digitally in Rebelle and some in Photoshop (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

. 

Merry Sithmas 2025 - General Grievous

MERRY SITHMAS
General Grievous

Hey, hey, it's time for a Sithmas Card!  This time it's not a "True" Sith, but someone adjacent to Count Dooku/Darth Tyranus, as well as killing a number of Jedi, as well.  So, we'll call it close enough!

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks.  They were mostly done with a 15pt digital brush.

* * *

STEP THREE:  Here are the colors, done in a variety of layers under the inked layer before the animation lights were applied.  For the animation, three images were imported into Photoshop in the Timeline, and exported as an animated .GIF.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

.

Merry Sithmas - Darth Plagueis

 MERRY SITHMAS
Darth Plagueis

Hey, hey, it's the second Sithmas Card of the season!  Always two there are, no more no le--... oh, what's that, I made the same joke in my last post?  Oh, um...  Heaven forfend that I should repeat myself and make the same joke twice.  What's that?  The hundredth time, you say?  Yeah, I guess I do that...

Anyhoo, this time it's Darth Plagueis, the Sith Lord that trained Darth Sidious (A.K.A. Emperor Sheev Palpatine), who was seen skulking in the shadows of a cave at the end of the "The Acolyte" series.  

Did you ever hear of the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise?  Well, I guess there's a whole book about it that I haven't gotten around to reading, yet, but I think the moral of the story is that you should never eat or drink anything that Sheev gives to you.  Just sayin' you may not be all that wise if you are so guileless of your fellow Sith apprentice.  

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks.  They were mostly done with a 15pt digital brush.

* * *

STEP THREE:  Here are the colors, done in a variety of layers under the inked layer before the animation lights were applied.  For the animation, three images were imported into Photoshop in the Timeline, and exported as an animated .GIF.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

.

Merry Sithmas - Darth Teeth

MERRY SITHMAS
Darth Teeth

Hey, hey, it's time for a Sithmas Card!  This time it is the nameless Sith from "The Acolyte", dubbed Darth Teeth or Smilo Ren (perhaps Darth Dentata?), as the tubing around his mouth looks like teeth when seen from a distance.  Hmmm, I wonder if they will ever give him a "real" name since it appears there won't be a second season to "The Acolyte". 

Always two there are--no more, no less.  So, look forward to another Sithmas Card in a couple days or so.

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.  I used the Symmetry Tool to keep everything, well, mostly symmetrical between the two sides, then turned it off for parts of the helmet and cloak.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks.  They were mostly done with a 15pt digital brush.

* * *

STEP THREE:  Here are the colors, done in a variety of layers under the inked layer before the animation lights were applied.  For the animation, three images were imported into Photoshop in the Timeline, and exported as an animated .GIF.

Maybe next year I'll do some genuine animation for the Sithmas Cards.  As always, my dumb brain and mouth writing checks that my hands (and @$$) may not be able to cash.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

.

Merry Sithmas - Darth Zannah

 MERRY SITHMAS
Darth Zannah

Hey, hey, it's another Sithmas Card!  Always two Sithmas Cards there are... and this time, fittingly enough, it's Darth Zannah, the apprentice to Darth Bane: The original "Rule of Two".

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.  I used the Symmetry Tool to keep everything, well, symmetrical between the two sides.  Originally, I was going to do the outfit in red with white Santa-type trim along the collar, but then changed my mind and did a full on Santa-type cloak.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks, mostly done with a 15pt digital brush.

* * *

STEP THREE:  Here are the colors, done in a variety of layers under the inked layer before the animation lights were applied.  For the animation, three images were imported into Photoshop in the Timeline, and exported as an animated .GIF.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

.

Merry Sithmas - Darth Sion

 MERRY SITHMAS
Darth Sion

Hey, hey, it's a little late, but here's yet another Sithmas Card!  This time, it's deeper into the lore with Darth Sion, The Lord of Pain.  And dry skin, no doubt; he needs to up his skin care routine.  Darth Sion first appeared in 2004 with "Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords" video game and has shown up in some comics.

Hmm, with the position of the necrotic-type skin on his torso, I just realized it almost looks like he is wearing a tank top or suspenders.  Sigh... Oh, well.

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.  I used the Symmetry Tool to keep everything, well, symmetrical between the two sides, then turned it off for the hat and a couple other random bits.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks.  They were mostly done with a 15pt digital brush.

* * *

STEP THREE:  Here are the colors, done in a variety of layers under the inked layer before the animation lights were applied.  For the animation, three images were imported into Photoshop in the Timeline, and exported as an animated .GIF.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

.

Merry Sithmas - Darth Revan

 Merry Sithmas
Darth Revan

Hey, hey, it's another Sithmas Card of everyone's favorite Jedi that wore a Mandalorian helmet, that became a Sith that wore a Mandalorian helmet, and became a Jedi again that later merged with the Force.  Yeah, it's a long, convoluted story. 

Darth Revan and Darth Malak were best friends and Jedi, and Revan believed the Jedi should help the Mandalorians, and took up wearing a helmet from a fallen Madalorian in the war as a symbol of his solidarity with their cause.  After the war was won, Revan and Malak went to hunt down a Sith Emperor, only to be trapped and forcibly converted to the Sith...  Well, like I said, it's a long story and I won't bore everyone with the retelling here.  There are numerous sites and videos that have done a far superior job than I ever could.

Anyhoo, a Merry Sithmas to all and to all a good night.  Or Knight, I suppose...

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital scribbles done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks.

* * *

STEP THREE:  Here are the colors, done in a variety of layers under the inked layer before the animation lights were applied.  For the animation, two images were imported into Photoshop in the Timeline, and exported as an animated .GIF.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

.

Merry Sithmas - Darth Malak

Merry Sithmas
Darth Malak

Hey, it's another Merry Sithmas card done for the holidays!  This time it's Darth Malak, who along with Darth Revan (see tomorrow's post), was first introduced in the "Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic" video game (and have since appeared in comic books and novels).  They were best friends and Jedi before both being converted to the Dark Side, and were the model used by Darth Bane for the Rule of Two for the Sith.  Darth Malak sought to overthrow Darth Revan and lost his bottom jaw in the battle, resulting in having to wear the metal collar.

I will admit it is difficult to draw Darth Malak without thinking of the "Kilroy was here".

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, such as they are (I mean, it is really just shy of random scribbles), done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.  I used the Symmetry Tool to keep everything, well, symmetrical between the two sides, although I shifted Darth Malak over a little bit to make room for the lightsaber.  Also, I later decided to add a Santa hat, which I did at the inking stage.  Speaking of...

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks.

* * *

STEP THREE:  Here are the colors, done in a variety of layers under the inked layer before the animation lights were applied.  For the animation, two images were imported into Photoshop in the Timeline, and exported as an animated .GIF.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

.

Merry Sithmas - Darth Bane

 MERRY SITHMAS
Darth Bane

Hey, I got another Merry Sithmas card done for the holidays, this time it's Darth Bane, founder of the Rule of Two for Sith.  I was gonna have the shading of his eye be either a Christmas bulb (it just looked like a couple black eyes) or a Christmas Tree (I've already used Christmas Trees too much recently).  So, I went with a star shape, instead.  

I even added some Rankin-Bass type primitive snowflakes this time around.  Marginal improvements to the animated .GIF.

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.  I used the Symmetry Tool to keep everything, well, symmetrical between the two sides, then turned it off for the hat and a couple other random bits.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks.  They were mostly done with a 15pt digital brush.

* * *

STEP THREE:  Here are the colors, done in a variety of layers under the inked layer before the animation lights were applied.  For the animation, two images were imported into Photoshop in the Timeline, and exported as an animated .GIF.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

.

Merry Sithmas - Darth Talon

MERRY SITHMAS
Darth Talon

Key, Kids, do you have your stocking hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that Darth Talon will soon be there for Sithmas?  That's right, it's Sithmas-time again, this time with Darth Talon, the red, tattooed Twi'lek who worked with Darth Krayt and Darth Nihl.

I always thought she looked pretty cool, so I had her on the list (hmmm, on my naughty list?) for Sithmas.  Last year, I had the Darth Talon card about 98% finished, when my iPad ate my homework--every artist's worst fear.  Of course, it didn't delete the whole thing, it just took it back to the pencil stage, which I found even more infuriating, as it was just mocking me at that point.  I mean, totally destroying it, I can understand that; just leaving enough for me to realize I have to redo most of it was just sadism on the part of my iPad.

I have some more Sith from the Expanded Universe I hope to do in the future.  Not sure if I want to do another Sithmas card this year (one is tempted to say "always two there are..." but that is not always accurate for my Sithmas posts).  I have another Christmas-based post I am hoping to get in under the wire.  I guess we'll see which one (if any) gets to the finish line!

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.  I used the Symmetry Tool to keep everything, well, symmetrical between the two sides.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks.  They were mostly done with a 15pt digital brush.

* * *

STEP THREE:  Here are the colors, done in a variety of layers under the inked layer before the animation lights were applied.  For the animation, two images were imported into Photoshop in the Timeline, and exported as an animated .GIF.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the animated .GIF produced in Photoshop).

.

Merry Sithmas - Trilla: Second Sister

MERRY SITHMAS
Trilla: Second Sister

OK, I admit to having to go to a slightly more obscure Sith-Adjacent character, just to make it interesting.  She was introduced in an appearance the comic book series "Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith", and was the main villain in the video game, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (2019).  Alas, I gave up video games a long time ago, in a galaxy right here.  But, I liked the look of Trilla: Second Sister and figured it would be cool to do a Sithmas card of her.  And here it is.

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 2,00px x 2,791px document at 300dpi.  I used the Symmetry Tool to keep everything, well, symmetrical between the two sides.

* * *

STEP TWO:  So I can scale the drawing up in the future without having to redraw everything from the beginning, I did most of it as Vector Graphics (Vector are mathematical lines and shapes, keeping their sharpness as they are scaled up; Raster, which use individual pixels, generally get blurry as they are enlarged).  Given the lined style I normally use for the Sithmas Cards, I think it generally worked.  

* * *

STEP THREE:  Several Layers later--each with their own color linework--and we have the finished project.  I also imported it into Photoshop so as to animate the card.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint (with the .gif done in Photoshop.

.

Merry Sithmas - Emperor Palpatine

Merry Sithmas

Emperor Palpatine

Hey, I managed to sneak in another Sithmas Card!  This time, it's Emperor Sheev Palpatine (yes, his first name is "Sheev".  I Sheev you not...).  Since he kinda went nuts with the Force Lightning in "Star Wars: Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker", this image popped into my head as a possible idea for a Sithmas Card.  And here we are...

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 1,000px x 1,400px document at 200dpi.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks, also done in Clip Studio Paint.  I left large chunks in plain black, since the Force Lightning would cover most of the area and need more contrast to better stand out.

* * *

STEP THREE:  The color was done with a series of layers in Clip Studio Paint, with two different layers used for the lightning for the animation.  Then it was imported into Photoshop to animate two frames and exported as an animated .gif.

While I was coloring the drawing, I realized a little too late that I hadn't properly done the lighting from where the Force Lightning would be flashing.  I fudged it a little bit, and it MOSTLY works, but is not entirely correct.  Sigh...

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint and Photoshop.

.

Merry Sithmas - Kylo Ren (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker)

Merry Sithmas

Kylo Ren (The Rise of Skywalker)

When I saw Kylo Ren's repaired helmet in "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker", this was the first image that appeared in my head for a new Sithmas Card.

* * *

STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 1,000px x 1,400px document at 200dpi.

* * *

STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks, also done in Clip Studio Paint.

* * *

STEP THREE:  The color was done with a series of layers in Clip Studio Paint, then it was imported into Photoshop to animate two frames and exported as an animated .gif.

* * *

Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint and Photoshop.

.