Drip, Drip – The Shadowgrapher is about to awaken and will soon be on her way! She may sense that artists have made beautiful art on their own canvases, and she will be eager to perceive.

Our upcoming Update is our first mainline update of the year – bringing many puddles of ink, robotic goodness, and a new Community Art Pack! This pack features five artists and their creative insight! Read more about the five artists below, and enjoy their sharings of creative experiences.

Follie (and us all) are ready to get inspired, so let’s get started with AesopYOLIAN!

AesopYOLIAN

Warframe: Wukong
Pronouns: She / Her
Socials: X (formerly Twitter)

(Initial responses were translated from Chinese to English)

Hello AesopYOLIAN! Can you give us an introduction of who you are?

“Hello everyone! I’m AesopYOLIAN (AY伊索), an amateur cartoon artist. When inspiration strikes and collides with the games I love, cute little characters pop into my head and I bring them to life with my pen so we can meet. (The truth is, I’ve always wanted to draw ‘cool’ things, but somehow everything I draw ends up looking cute!)”

We love seeing your little characters pop to life! What do you enjoy most about Warframe?

“I’m not the type of player who aims to collect everything or become incredibly powerful. My favourite part of Warframe is simply immersive travel! For example, admiring the landscapes of different planets, watching my Warframe appear in new cutscenes… Sometimes I’ll go fishing, or just stare at the cute doggies inside the Cetus fence…”

“But I never wanted to be just a passerby in this game world. So being able to see these little characters I created living inside the Warframe universe brings me so much joy. (Though it would be even better if we could farm in the Drifter’s Camp and adopt even more pets!)”

Speaking of your creations living inside the Warframe universe – we are huge fans of your MiniCalibur! Please tell us about how MiniCalibur came to be!

“I’ve been playing Warframe since 2019, back when I was still in university… When my mind wandered during class, random doodles would appear on my sketch paper (don’t copy me! Pay attention in class!). That’s exactly when MiniCalibur was born. I’ve always wondered: how would these little guys live in the world of Warframe? How would in-game events affect them?”

“On a Chinese platform (Baidu Tieba), I started a comic thread in the Warframe section. I’ve been updating that thread since 2019, it’s now over 900 entries long!”

“I think Excalibur’s facial design in game already has this inherently cute, blank and spaced out quality. I was lucky enough to capture that essence and miniaturize him.”

“I’m not a trained artist, I don’t really understand complex drawing techniques. I just doodle for fun as an amateur, and am someone who keeps updating my little comics consistently. I never imagined so many people around the world would love these little guys I created! (Even my mom, who doesn’t play games, thinks MiniCalibur looks like an adorable big-eared puppy.)”

“I’ll keep creating in the future. I want both players and non-players to get to know MiniCalibur. I’ve already released 5 sets of free MiniCalibur sticker packs and 4 red envelope covers on digital Chinese platforms like WeChat! Though my personal capacity is limited, who knows, maybe one day you’ll spot him at a pop culture store near you!”

That’s so exciting! We can’t wait to see more! What elements are you drawn to when drawing other Warframes?

“I think it’s their appearance and skill design. When I create other characters, I would wonder: how would they interact with MiniCalibur? For example, Limbo, he’d definitely be very polite, a true gentleman; Frost looks steady and reliable, like he’d protect the little guys; Loki is mischievous and often steals MiniCalibur’s things, but he’s not bad at heart, he just wants to get his friends’ attention.”

That is so much fun! Finally, how did you approach creating this Wukong Glyph?

I wanted it to interact with my existing MiniCalibur Glyph! So people can tell at a glance, “Hey! Are you MiniCalibur’s friend?” That’s why I kept the same style, the same pose of thumbs up! And a giant heart! When these two Glyphs appear together, it’s like best friends teaming up in game!

You can get AesopYOLIAN’s existing Creator glyph of her MiniCalibur character with the in-game promo code: AesopYOLIAN , then you can also bring the friends together!

Thank you for bringing your little Warframe characters to life, and spreading so much joy with them, AesopYOLIAN!

Next up we have RoboMythos, with the true gentleman, Limbo!

ROBOMYTHOS

Warframe: Limbo
Pronouns: She / Her
Socials: BlueSky

Hi RoboMythos! Can you give us a quick snippet of who you are and what you enjoy most about Warframe?

“Hello! I’m an illustrator who’s been drawing Warframe fan art for about five years now. The thing I enjoy the most is the aesthetic of the world and storytelling, it inspires a lot of imagination.”

How would you describe your art style?

“I lean towards a cartoony cel-shaded/2000s anime kind of look, like the media I grew up with. I like to try to capture motion or expressions in things both with and without distinct faces. And I try to express a range of feelings from serious to silly.”

You truly capture them well! What is your approach when it comes to drawing Warframes?

“When drawing Warframes, I try not to get too caught up in the details. I first try to break them down into more basic shapes while keeping in mind the key features that make each frame unique and recognizable.”

You already have a lot of experience drawing Limbo -- What aspects of Limbo did you want to implement with this Glyph?

“Limbo has a very distinct style. I wanted to make sure as much of his dapper “suit” is visible. His Rift abilities are a little abstract, but then I thought of the Rift portal that he makes while dodging. So I wanted to make it feel like he’s approaching from his tear in the fabric of spacetime.”

And dapper he looks indeed! Thank you for this beautiful Limbo Glyph!

Coming up, we have TBGKaru with Baruuk!

TBGKARU

Warframe: Baruuk
Pronouns: She / Her
Socials: X (formerly Twitter)

Hello Karu! Can you give us a quick rundown of who you are and how you’d describe yourself and your art?

“I’m a 90s kid, part of LGBT+, freelance comic artist, lover of horror, games, vintage/retro aesthetics and fandom spaces! Been in them since my early teens and still going strong in my 30s! I love to have color and patterns in my life, take black and white photos, and will forever defend “girly” interests. People are my muses ♥”

“As for my art, I’ve gone from anime/manga style in my early teens, through traditional czech art styles and western comics, to come out of it with this mash of realism, eastern idealisation, western drama and pop-art-y fun!”

“I’ve studied animation so I learned to draw VERY fast, get the art out while I’m still full of the inspiration and feeling, so you will never catch me over-rendering my pieces (but also don’t zoom in, you’d easily find the errors of my ways haha).”

Your art has gone through so many styles and you’ve been part of the Warframe Community for a long time! We are lucky to have worked with you on many official projects for Warframe – how would you describe your journey of creating Warframe art?

“My first pieces used to be very safe - I used to trace screenshots of the warframes to understand all the wrinkled carved textures and shapes that I haven’t encountered before in anything else.”

“Then came the chibis - an easy, quick way of getting some of my favorite visual duos out there while trying to figure out a way of simplifying those complicated designs! Those were the first time my art appeared on Prime Time and hearing the praise, I just knew that this seed was worth watering.“

We’re so glad you continued! What came next?

“Eventually I got to put clothing on our beloved frames because they each had distinct personality to me despite not having one canonically, and that “humanized” them so much to me I just craved to know more about them, to create entire worlds and stories around them (what turned into my “humanframe” and “beforeframe” fan collections).”

“I’ve become so familiar with some of the Warframes (namely my beloved Oberon - who I still think is the absolute masterpiece of a design- or my underappreciated powerhouse Baruuk) that I no longer need to look up references of them, but the others still have me rotating them in the captura and noticing small little details.”

Baruuk lovers unite! Seeing as you’ve been drawing Warframes in so many different ways, what are your personal inspirations?

“Sadly, just like with music, I have a collection of styles and randomly encountered artists that I look up to and get inspired by, but no one set in stone. One name that I can sort of put behind my art is Alphonse Mucha, just the way his art flows, all the gentle curls and cloth folds and plump beautiful women with simple coloring, it’s all so gorgeous to me I wish I got to use what I learned from him more in warframe art but it’s two different worlds in terms of aesthetic haha.”

“I’m also very proud of Czech culture, so I needed to give him a shout out! Other than that I just create from the mash of media, fashion styles, experiences and opinions that form my own creativity more so than seek out inspiration.”

And for the final question: How did your creative process apply when creating this Baruuk glyph?

“I actually made multiple sketches with very different vibes based on what I imagined the community may enjoy - went the “cool” route for Baruuk mains- Baruuk from a dramatic perspective, ready for a fight.”

“Then I went for a “meme” approach, just something that could give someone a chuckle or be used by the community in different situations as a reaction image perhaps. Then “chibi” that’d fill the square format of the glyph in a way where the frame looks squished into a box, it’s a format of a drawing that some may recognize from anime art.”

“Lastly I went for something that represents how I portray the character - in this case I enjoy tranquil content Baruuks- and what started more as a peaceful tea-ritual piece, turned into a fanfic trope reference (“coffeeshop AU”) to pay homage to my roots and DE was okay with it which made me very happy! So that’s the final piece!”

“After the sketch was chosen, it was a rather easy time rendering the usual bold flat colors and thick lines. Little comic speech bubble too, it became kind of a staple in a lot of my art.”

We appreciate the fanfic vibe! Thank you, TBGKaru, for taking us into an alternate universe with this Baruuk Glyph!

Next up is RoyalPrat with her Mag-nificent art!

ROYALPRAT

Warframe: Mag
Pronouns: She / Her
Socials: BlueSky

Hi RoyalPrat! Please tell us about yourself and your art!

“Hello! I'm Royalprat and I'm an insurance adjuster by day and artist by night. I've lived in the Toronto area for my whole life so I also like to attend conventions and frequent karaoke bars!”

“In terms of my art, I love drawing my original characters as well as fandom art, specifically Warframe among other things! I started playing Warframe in 2018 when I saw my girlfriend playing online with her friend; I saw Gara and thought she was so beautiful that I should play. I picked Mag as my starter and fell in love with the game! :D”

The Protoframe of Mag, Aoi, would totally join you for karaoke! We’re fortunate to see you in various facets of our Warframe Community – We have several art pieces of yours in-game, you’ve taken part in our Warframe Cosplay contests at TennoCon, and more over the years!

What are some of your favorite Warframe-related things to create?

“I honestly loved making my Warframe cosplays the most! If I had all the time and money in the world I would cosplay Warframe more often!”

“My first Mag cosplay was actually relatively cheap, though I spent an embarrassingly large amount of money making my Gara cosplay because I kept making mistakes, ordering the wrong materials, etc, but even so I really just had a great time working on it. I tried my best as a beginner costume maker and I encourage everyone to try to make a costume as a passion project at least once if it's something they're interested in!”

“In terms of digital art I love drawing Mag, Yareli, and Gara in particular, I often doodle Mag and I feel like I've drawn her so much I can draw her mostly from memory now.”

What are your personal inspirations during your creative process?

“I honestly get the most inspired by games I play, media I watch, and other artists!”

“I'd love to get better as a character artist, and to do this, I love to watch youtubers like Drawfee and Spilled Ink who always push themselves out of their comfort zones with different and fun challenges.”

“Some of my favourite artists online are Loish, CTChrysler, Heikala,and Abel Klaer! If I'm ever in a creative funk, going out and doing things often cures me; attending a ball, going to the beach, going to a museum, going on hikes, attending events in the city, etc.”

“The amount of Warframes I drew in fancy dresses after attending the Bridgerton Ball was insane. Whoever first said to touch grass was really onto something…”

Every Warframe deserves the title of “diamond of the season”. Which aspects of Mag did you want to highlight with this Glyph?

“I thought a Japanese cherry blossom background would be really cute, even before the protoframes I thought of Mag as bright and cheery and wanted to reflect that feeling, and of course you've GOT to have the paper crane to represent Aoi along with Mag (hi fellow certified Aoi kissers).”

“Also fun fact I've drawn Mag over 70 separate times over the years since I started playing warframe in 2018 and it always brings me such joy to draw her. With my new job it's been a while since I've really had a chance to work on a solid piece of Warframe art, and drawing Mag again felt like coming home after a long time away. I hope the bright yet soft colours really convey how I feel when I draw her! MAG NATION RISE UP!!!”

We are truly honored to have this Mag glyph created by THE Mag enjoyer! Thank you, RoyalPrat! MAG NATION, THIS ONE’S FOR YOU!

Then finally, we have Shiro_kosh_a! She agreed to take on our request to draw the newest Warframe Follie before her release!

SHIRO_KOSH_A

Warframe: Follie
Pronouns: She / Her
Socials: X (formerly Twitter)

Hello Shiro_kosh_a! Tell us a little about yourself and what you enjoy about Warframe!

“I’m a digital artist, and for me, drawing is not just about creating my own characters, but also a way to dive deeper into the universes that inspire me. I’ve been part of the Warframe community since 2021, and in that time, the game has become a massive source of inspiration for me.”

“What I value most about Warframe is its depth and variety. Aside from the great quests and having a good time with friends, I’m really hooked on the level of customization - it’s just beyond anything else. The game offers so much freedom for self-expression, from tweaking builds and choosing your Frame to 'fashion-frame’ and even decorating spaces.”

“As an artist, I’m mostly inspired by the visuals: that unique, almost living blend of technology and organic forms in every Warframe is what constantly pushes me to pick up my stylus and experiment.”

We love your more human depictions of Warframes – what elements of Warframes stand out to you most?

“I love drawing them with a more human touch because I’ve always been fascinated by the stories and personalities hidden behind their exterior.”

“My goal is to convey their character through subtle details and stylistic experiments, while still staying within the established design. Even though Warframes don't have traditional faces [not counting Protoframes, of course!], their silhouettes and body language are incredibly expressive. I find it exciting to explore that fine line where bio-mechanical design meets human nature and individuality.”

How would you describe your art style and process?

“I’d describe my style as a mix of anime and realism - a sort of semi-realism, or something like that!”

“My creative process is definitely not a straight line! I tend to mix the different stages together; sometimes I jump in without a preliminary sketch, and I often don’t have a clean, final line art. I love experimenting with details on extra layers right as I’m working. It might take a bit longer this way, but it’s much more comfortable for me - I really enjoy 'finding' the character or certain elements as I go.”

“As for tools, I usually use a square brush, but I’m also fond of narrow, pen-like brushes [or tapered triangles]. I love how the line thickness changes depending on the direction of the stroke; it adds a nice touch of energy to the piece.”

Thank you for the detailed description. At the time of us reaching out to you to draw Follie, we had shown a small glimpse of her on our devstream 192! What was it like to draw her without knowing much more about Follie? Are there specific aspects you wanted to highlight with this glyph?

“Drawing Follie with only a brief glimpse of her was an exciting challenge! However, Warframe designs are incredibly vocal. A character's appearance can tell you so much even before you know their full backstory.”

“Follie’s look and name clearly point to the Pierrot archetype - she is a sort of visual tragicomedy, blending melancholy and 'folie', where a lot of pain is often hidden behind jokes and irony. In this glyph, I really wanted to highlight that specific sense of theatricality and the fragility behind the mask.”

You did an amazing job capturing her with your art. Huge thank you to you, Shiro_kosh_a, for this beautiful Follie glyph!

A massive thank you to all our Community artists for creating these stunning art pieces and giving us a glimpse into their creative worlds!

We hope these insights inspire you to give Follie’s Sketchbook ability a try, which will be available with The Shadowgrapher release! All these Glyphs can also be found in the In-Game Market on March 25th!