Grár (Graur)

New (left) and old (right).

Feeling MUCH happier about this project now. Will add the rim light and some texture later!

Grár is the king of the trolls and the mountains. He rules his lands with an iron fist from deep within the halls and caves of his kingdom and rarely ventures outside. Rumour has it that his caverns are covered in gold and filled with riches and gemstones. 

The troll king is ruthless and egoistic, and after centuries of conflict there is now a shaky peace between him and Ísafold. This peace will be tested by the news of your arrival, as Grár orders his trolls to search for you and Yrsa... What he wants with you is unknown, but you'd rather not find out.

Chris looked at what I'd drawn and referred to it as a "she" - and yeah, maybe the long hair and the creepy red cheeks make him look like a lady. But I honestly don't mind or care, because the gender of the character is completely irrelevant; they're the leader of the trolls and they're mean and you should avoid them. If anything, the lack of a clear gender can make him seem even more unsettling. We're so used to being able to make all these easy assumptions about people based on their gender, and taking this small security away can be liberating... But also quite strange.

This image is to illustrate a particular troll character, but I'll do another drawing for the "Creatures" part of the book. That illustration will show a troll coming up from the ground all nice and creepily, as I really loved that idea.