Final Submission
MAIN DESIGN
SUPPORTING MATERIAL
Link to an animation of my progress from crude sketch to finished artwork:
(click the thumbnail for the full-size animation)
Inspiration
When we decided to make a trapper and gave it Ghost typing, I knew I wanted to do some kind of dreamcatcher theme. I think dreamcatchers are very cool visually, and over the course of many past CAP designs, I have tried to incorporate tribal elements in my designs. I've toyed with dreamcatchers in past Flying designs, since the feathers on traditional dreamcatchers are an easy way to incorporate organic elements into an otherwise inanimate object. None of my previous flirtations with dreamcatchers amounted to anything meaningful though.
So with the Dragon typing for CAP 23, I was originally making my design a lizard-like dragon with dreamcatchers for wings. It had a lot of tribal imagery, including a skull head which was reminiscent of Southwestern Native American tribal artwork and that sort of thing. The design was pretty cool, but it was very action-oriented. Also, I noticed lots of other artists using skull heads and other skeletal elements, which dampened my enthusiasm for what I was doing with my design at that point.
When we picked Comatose, I couldn't believe it! In terms of supporting my general dreamcatcher theme, it was absolutely perfect. But in terms of supporting my pose and overall design choices, it killed my design completely. So I scrapped everything and literally went back to the drawing board.
On my first design, I didn't like how the dreamcatchers were incorporated into the wings on the design. They didn't look organic enough for my taste. Although the game of Pokemon seems to use more and more inanimate objects as the basis for characters, particularly Ghosts (Chandelure, Aegislash, Dhelmise, etc) -- I think making an object a pokemon is usually a bit too literal from a creative standpoint. So, if I'm using an object as a basis for a design element, I try to figure out ways to incorporate the object into the Pokemon's anatomy. With the dreamcatcher, it's a tough thing, because circles are hard to do organically!
As I was looking around at various types of lizards, I noticed chameleons with their round curled tails. So I set about trying to figure out how to use the curled tail as the "frame" for an organic dreamcatcher. If you look at the progression animation I posted above, my first sketch was little more than a amorphous body on top of a round curled tail. Everything else flowed from that until I arrived at the final design you see above.
Explanation
I based this on a chameleon for the Dragon typing, incorporating the swirled tail as an organic way to make a rounded frame for trapping spirits in its eldritch energy web. Also, by having the creature hold its own tail, it makes for a tranquil pose, perfect for a slumbering beast.
The wings, fins, and other elements are meant to have a vaguely vampiric feel to them. I think it brings in some more ghostly tones, and vampires are commonly associated with sleeping (during the day, at least), so I think that helps support our ability, even if in a small way. The dangling fins complete the dreamcatcher look without doing hanging feathers or whatever, which would look out of place here, and also a bit too literal for what I'm trying to do.
CAP artists have made some amazing designs in this thread, like always. I have many favorites and I'm excited to see which design we choose!