Hello, there! Q.: Who the heck are you? A.: My name is, as you can see above, Claudio Pozas. I'm an artist from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. I recently left my work in advertising to dedicate my energies to illustration work. And how are you? Q.: Quit the sweet-talk, buster! How do you know so much of DnD? A.: Well, I've been playing and DMing Dungeons and Dragons since 1986. I have also played dozens of other systems, like Shadowrun, Rolemaster, Marvel, DC Heroes, Star Wars... Q.: Yadda-yadda... So, did you go to art school or anything? A.: Actually, no. I've been drawing since I was 5, so it was about time I got good at it. Q.: Who are the artists that influenced you most? A.: I've collected comics since I was 10. The artists that amazed me the most were George Pérez, Alan Davies, Jim Lee and, more recently, Scott McDaniel, Bryan Hitch, Greg Land and Phil Jimenez. When you compare what you do to what they do, your flaws become telling, and you can correct what you did wrong. Q.: So, what medium do you use? What's your process? A.: Well, I first doodle a lot until I get a pretty good idea of what the scene or character will look like. I then pencil it several times, each time adding more detail to it. Then I use a thin marker to ink the illustration. I then scan it into the computer and use Adobe Photoshop to color the whole thing. The process can take from two hours to several days, depending on the complexity. Q.: Cool! How did you land this Fiery Dragon gig? A.: I first started a website in late 1999. It began slowly, I wanted to do my take on the 3e look. You know, the edgy, mismatched look Todd Lockwood and Sam Wood developed for the whole line. I kept on drawing and updating my site weekly. The quality and regularity caught the attention of Eric Noah (Hi, Eric!), who runs THE most important unofficial site about DnD and the d20 system. He asked if I´d like to be hosted by his site. I believe my exact word were "Who do I kill?". After coming to RPGPlanet, I kept on updating every single Friday, and eventually Jason kempton, from Fiery Dragon Productions, contacted me. Q.: Hey, I like what I see! Can I use one of your illustrations on my website? A.: Provided you follow some simple guidelines, yes! You can use up to FIVE images on your website. They must be accompanied by this text: "All images and artwork copyright 1999-2001 Claudio Pozas. Used with permission". And they must NOT be from the Fiery Dragon gallery. Those illustrations are property of FDP. Q.: Can I order artwork from you? A.: It´s a tricky thing. When I started the website, I opened myself to private orders. But now I am up to my ears in work, and wouldn´t be able to fit smaller orders into my schedule. Q.: Okay, thanks! Now get your butt back on the drawing board! There's an update due on Friday! Many thanks to my good friend Zouron for teaching me enough HTML to put this site together.