Panel 4: You'll see the effect used more prominently in the next few pages, but I should note here that I tried out an unusual pencil technique for some of these images of "nekkid Emp": Namely, I broke out a blending "stump" to smooth out my light shading tones on her bared flesh. I prrrrobably tried out this approach due to then-current stump experimentation during my 2017-18 sessions of near-daily life drawing, even though I ultimately abandoned "tortillons" and similar tools for anything other than very specialized uses (such as blending tones for skies and clouds); the problem, you see, was that stump blending would flatten out pencil shading into single-value monotones (or possibly "mono-monotones") that lacked the delicate gradations I was looking for.

Next week on the webcomic, things look dire indeed for our naked and now powerless heroine! Lordy loo!

Today’s Patreon update: Originally done as a means of scratching out more worktime to complete the long-gestating Empowered vol. 12, I've switched over to a Monday/ Wednesday/ Friday Patreon posting schedule that won't feature the fixed content format I previously used. So, who knows what today's post might feature? Could be Life Drawing or Distressed Damsels content (both of which are featured at least three times per month), or something in the Work Stages, Vintage Con Sketches or Design departments, or possibly something entirely new, such as updates on fantasy test project The Chaste and the Chained. Golly!

-Adam Warren