FINAL FANTASY IV
SYLPHS PROJECT #617 CREATED: OCTOBER 2018 The Sylphs were legendary magical creatures who dwelled within the Underground, far away from human civilization. Fairy-like winged creatures of comparatively diminutive size, the Sylphs sequestered themselves within the appropriately-named Sylph Cave, on a secluded land mass surrounded by magma. So mistrusting were they of outsiders that the cavern floor was littered with dangerous hot spots—no problem for the aerial Sylph race, but would cause pain to any intruders with each step. Karate Master Yang of Fabul was the first to inadvertently discover the Sylphs after he incurred near-fatal injuries. The Sylphs found him near death, taking him to their hidden realm for rest and recuperation. Cecil and his other companions discovered Yang's convalescence purely by accident while exploring the Sylph Cave. After returning to Fabul and reporting to Yang's wife about his survival, she supplied Cecil with a frying pan to awaken the unconscious Yang from his syncope. The unorthodox plan worked; Yang returned to consciousness, but did not rejoin Cecil in his quest to stop Golbez. The Sylphs reached out to Rydia the Caller, however, offering their services during battle. Rydia could summon the Sylphs to use their magical healing properties, stealing the very life essence from nearby attacking monsters and granting the entire party a partial recovery from their battle wounds. I struggled with finding an action figure that was small enough to represent a Sylph, and there was also the problem of attaching wings to it somehow. Then I saw a set of Cubez brand fairies that came in an assortment of poses and colors; I picked the three that I liked the best. I added antennae to their heads made of metal wire. To make it look like they were flying, I built figure stands for them made of translucent plastic. I attached them to a display base that I sculpted to resemble the cavern floor as seen in the game (complete with glowing green hot spots). The fairy figures I used were made of a plastic which normally doesn't take paint very well, so I slathered them with a layer of enamel primer and painted them with acrylics afterwards. Each Sylph is about two inches in height. (Those are the smallest eyes and lips I've ever painted in my life!) |
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