D&D 5E D&D Next Art Column: June! And July!

[Incenjucar]

I did a few tweaks using paint to try and get a closer-to-origin idea across:

In general they just need to stop making the owlbears look like gorillas.

 

[frankthedm]

I agree, the eyes need that blank stare.

As for owls having "small" beaks, it's because they, unlike eagles, don't use their beaks to carve their prey:

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Plenty use their beak for cutting up prey. But the damned things can open their beaks disturbingly wide.

 

[Libramarian]

Yeah I like the quadruped most I suppose. It is a bit too hunchbacked though. I like it mostly for the more owlish face; I don't mind a bipedal owlbear.

The thing I'm looking for now is the "red-rimmed eyes".

Something like this guy:

 

[Leatherhead]

Yeah I like the quadruped most I suppose. It is a bit too hunchbacked though. I like it mostly for the more owlish face; I don't mind a bipedal owlbear.

It's not really hunchbacked. It's just bristling it's feathers.

And I just realized the thing that bugs me about these pictures the most. None of them are in the dark. Those giant glowy owl eyes would do allot to make the monster come alive.

 

[Hussar]

Well, the problem with in the dark is that you lose all the details about the creature. Sure, he's got big scary eyes. But, then again, just about EVERYTHING that wants to eat you has big scary eyes.

And, let's not forget, these are concept pieces, so, there's little or no context.

Lastly, would an Owlbear actually be a nocturnal predator? Did a bit of hunting and saw this in the 2e Monstrous Manual

Ecology: Owlbears have a lifespan of 20 years. They are warm-blooded mammals, but lay eggs. They prey on anything, from rabbits to bears, to trolls, to snakes and reptiles. Owlbears prefer temperate climates, but some thrive in subarctic environments. As a hybrid of two animals, one diurnal and the other nocturnal, they have an unusual active time, waking at noon, hunting animals active during the day, then hunting nocturnal creatures before going to sleep at midnight. Owlbears are active in the summer months and hibernate during the cold season. There are rumors of white arctic owlbears, a cross between arctic owls and polar bears, but no specimens have ever been captured.

So, it's not unusual to meet them during the day.

 

[CAFRedblade]

I'd like to see a more head on shot to compare to the quadruped Grizzowl version. Although I don't mind some of the test ones, those angles don't seem to do them as much justice as the off kilter head on sketch of the Grizzowl.

 

[jadrax]

Owlbears lay eggs? I never realised that.

Ohh, I see plot opportunities.

 

[Hussar]

I always did love the ecology sections in the 2e Monster manuals. Very, very evocative.

 

[Klaus]

I always did love the ecology sections in the 2e Monster manuals. Very, very evocative.

Hmm... wonder if the platypus is called duckbeaver in the D&D world, and if a wizard did it...

 

[Gold Roger]

Hmm... wonder if the platypus is called duckbeaver in the D&D world, and if a wizard did it...

Now there's a thought. Owlbears are just a carnivorous oversized kind of platypus. Just wait for the dire koala and fiendish echidna.