Tomb of Aznurhradi

[J.Edward]

Tomb of Aznurhradi

In a hole in the ground lived a corpse. Not a pleasant tidy hobbit hole, but rather a dry sandy ill-kept one,
albeit well-crafted many ages ago by long forgotten tradesmen to commemorate someone that they greatly loved,
or who had a great deal of wealth or power at their disposal. As it turned out, it was all of the above.

Queen Aznur of Ul-Hradi was well loved in her time, by her own people, as well as those she came to rule.
Which came as a surprise to those very people, who were not much predisposed to noble folk,
regardless of where they cam from. And yet, it was so.
For the Lady Aznur had a treasured gift of immense value unknown to the whole of nobility in that land and age.
She possessed a golden humor and could laugh at herself; make light of mistakes, her own and of those about her.
This was precious in an age of cruel tyrants and miserly ministers.

It was a crowning jewel in a life well lived. As she grew old, her people worked to create a beautiful mausoleum on the river,
near the reeds and flowers she loved. So it was with some dismay that on the day after her funeral, her body went missing.
Where had it gone? And who would have done such a foul deed to one so thoroughly embraced by her community?
No one would ever know. Or so the culprit had believed.

Hidden away in a temple beneath the sands lay the unfading corpse of Aznur, left in another's place.
That one was the Lord of Sands, BenhiRadu, and this haven below the ground had been crafted
by the followers of that one-time sultan of the seering sun. Those treaders of the Way, that Golden Path,
had constructed this secret place in cobwebbed eons beyond recall.
Yet some tales lingered of the scale and reach of that lost Way, a power that echoed through the ages, if only in whispers.

It would have remained a mystery for eternity, but for the meddling of a necromancer in a far land.
That mage of dark power had once reanimated a portly sage into the lithe body of a wizened rat.
Such things were done in that day.

A gordian tale is rumored to have followed that rat sage through sea and sky,
under rock and soil; ever on in search of a golden path to be set free.

The price of freedom was to lay the cursed fate upon another soul, and this was done,
as that shriveled sage had more of rat in his nature than he would have supposed.
The cursed one who was revived was none other than Queen Aznur, though fortune smiled on her, however wryly,
by foregoing the rat and allowing her to inhabit her own old bones.
Some claimed it was a gift of the Lord of Sands, but only he could say.

The riddle of her waylaid corpse, and its true resting place, was lost to the winds for centuries.
Long after the last of her people had passed from the land, a roaming scrying scavenger of a man
brought the first hint of fresh air into that dusty subterranean hollow. But that's another story...



This was a load of fun to work on. I did another one right after it.
Will likely do more. Pencil drawing then digitally colored.
Cheers, J

[Greason Wolfe]

Dag nabit! I can't keep up with all these sweet little maps you keep posting. But this is sweet just like all the others.

[- JO -]

"lovely" tomb !
I like the way you choose to have a very bright environment ! And the stairs going down in round is appealing to another map, with another chapter of the story ! Great job !

[Abu Lafia]

Such a wonderful tale about a wonderful place! Your words add so much to these lovely maps, it's a delight to immerse.
I'd love adding more background stories to my maps, but (despite not bearing the elegance of yours) even if i'd write them in german it'd take me longer than the drawing itself! XD
The sandstone colour, the detailed statues and burial goods (<3 the pottery!) give this tomb a fantastic sandy(?) atmosphere. Looking forward to see what comes next!

[J.Edward]

Dag nabit! I can't keep up with all these sweet little maps you keep posting. But this is sweet just like all the others.

Thanks Greason When I am on point, I post a new piece every monday.
That said, I can't always hit the mark. Sometimes work takes too much of my time.

"lovely" tomb !
I like the way you choose to have a very bright environment ! And the stairs going down in round is appealing to another map, with another chapter of the story ! Great job !

Thanks Joel
This was a fresh attempt to get a different look/color scheme for me.
I like it and i'll definitely do it again. Those acidic yellow tones feel good.

Such a wonderful tale about a wonderful place! Your words add so much to these lovely maps, it's a delight to immerse.
I'd love adding more background stories to my maps, but (despite not bearing the elegance of yours) even if i'd write them in german it'd take me longer than the drawing itself! XD
The sandstone colour, the detailed statues and burial goods (<3 the pottery!) give this tomb a fantastic sandy(?) atmosphere. Looking forward to see what comes next!

Thanks Abu I'm always glad when people appreciate the tale.
That does take a decent amount of extra work and is often not easy.
I have gotten stuck on story many times. On occasion having to just let it go.
I have been watching some lectures from Brandon Sanderson.
Helpful, but showing all of my mistakes and how much I don't know about writing.
Still helpful. You can check them out on youtube here.

[Jaxilon]

Very nicely done! I have wanted to attempt some hand drawn small dungeon maps but just haven't gotten around to it. This is a fine example and interesting read as well.

[Bogie]

Great little map! Interesting backstory, I need to know the rest of it!!!! Also cool that what should just be a simple tomb map opens more questions, where do the circular stairs go? What is in all those jars and boxes? And why does the sarcophagus room need a rear exit?

[Kellerica]

Nice! Your penmanship is as excellent as ever.

[MistyBeee]

I spent 10 minutes looking at the map, asking to myself what kind of magic you use to make a tomb looking so warm, welcoming and cozy. Still unable to find. In one word, amazing. As always, J.

[J.Edward]

Very nicely done! I have wanted to attempt some hand drawn small dungeon maps but just haven't gotten around to it. This is a fine example and interesting read as well.

Thanks Jax It's a fun thing to do if you're just sitting around.
The pencil drawing was not too intensive. It was about 2/3 of a page.

Great little map! Interesting backstory, I need to know the rest of it!!!! Also cool that what should just be a simple tomb map opens more questions, where do the circular stairs go? What is in all those jars and boxes? And why does the sarcophagus room need a rear exit?

Thank you Bogie hahaha, that's how I feel when someone uses this line
The truth is that I didn't have all of that story completed.. so i used that wonderful story crutch.

I have a document somewhere that I wrote many years back about death rituals of many peoples.
It had all of these variant ways that cultures might deal with death and burial/graves.
In one, the people had these underground catacombs where the spirits of the dead hung out near to their prepared corpse.
There was a priest class that cared for and talked with the dead.
Family would visit and bring entertaining gifts, so the dead had activities over their long span.

I feel like this place had something similar, though it was due to the deceased serving the Lord of Sands throughout time.
But, something went wrong, or was deliberately done to subvert the Sand Lord.
Maybe a rival power.. or maybe the times were turning and moisture was returning to the sands
and Benhi was loosing his domain, and power. And the spirits were largely gone.
Perhaps that is why he helped Aznur, so he would have someone to aid him in this realm,
as his followers were long dead and departed. But that is another story...

I ronically, i didn't manage to actually answer any of your questions, did I? huh...

Nice! Your penmanship is as excellent as ever.

Thank you Kell

I spent 10 minutes looking at the map, asking to myself what kind of magic you use to make a tomb looking so warm, welcoming and cozy. Still unable to find. In one word, amazing. As always, J.

I believe it may be flawed magic.. as a tomb maybe shouldn't look inviting. ;P
I do lean toward more pleasant scenes. Maybe cus my life is sooo gloomy hahaha.
I am just glad I am still functioning with physical ability and mind.
Many are not so fortunate.