The legends surrounding King Arthur have been passed down through the ages, with each retelling offering fresh perspectives on the knights, locales, and tales that make up these enduring narratives.
Erik’s Curiosa is honored to bring its vision of the Arthurian cycle to Sorcery: Contested Realm with the upcoming set, Arthurian Legends, scheduled for release in early Q4.
Enter Sir Yvain, the Knight of the Lion
In Chrétien de Troyes’, “Yvain, the Knight of the Lion,” Sir Yvain endures trials and tribulations as he seeks to redeem himself through heroic deeds, including rescuing a lion, who becomes his loyal companion.
A layered and complicated tale, Sir Yvain’s story of knight-errantry is brought to life by Sorcery artist Vincent Pompetti, known for his evocative watercolor ink style.
Pompetti shares, “The description of the story was very dense with psychological aspects, and I drew the story as a cycle. He meets several characters and has to face dangerous trials. Sir Yvain is tormented and trying to find balance. More than a story, it tells a symbolic and alchemical path, so melding characters with medieval patterns was perfect for creating a complex illustration. I also had a lot of fun drawing a classical knight of the early Middle Ages, close to the late Roman Empire.”
Crafting a Legend
“I always try to ‘see’ the picture and then transcribe my vision. In this case, there are a lot of elements. First, I had to present the character and the lion, and then articulate the subplot around them. The medieval patterns were very helpful with that. The story behind Yvain looks like a flashback, and after that, I placed the action scene aside from the lion. Finally, I positioned the battle between Yvain and the dragon below. As you can see, the head of the dragon is in the continuation of his body above," Pompetti shares.
He continues, “I prefer to work with watercolored inks because they allow me to combine the watercolor technique with aspects of oil painting. This sensitive medium reacts well to special effects like water spraying, bleach, and other secrets.”
Sir Yvain is one of several pieces by Vincent Pompetti that will be available for players to discover in Sorcery’s Arthurian Legends, available early Q4.
Explore more of Vincent Pompetti's work on his website and search his portfolio of Sorcery cards on curiosa.io, the official Sorcery deck builder.
