a smallish collection of oldish to newish doodles off my patreon

1-2.) I've been working out a lot this week, and I like to have netflix on in the background. Yesterday I happened across the MLP episode with the Appleloosa character Troubleshoes Clyde, who is such an absolute delight I wondered why I'd never drawn him before. Coincidentally, someone pointed out that in my Twicord stuff, I named a few characters that Twilight dates outside of Discord, but I didn't mention any of Discord's potential paramours.

so here ya go

Discord picks date mates based entirely on how entertaining they'll be. Mister Troubleshoes Clyde has a peculiar quirk going on with his earth pony magic, typically manifesting as clumsiness and "bad luck". The dude is a great big chaos magnet, so naturally, Discord is fascinated when he runs into the fella riding the rails. This works out just fine when Troubleshoes finds himself somewhat enjoying the company...

Troubleshoes isn't the most confident guy. :iconloryska: wrote: "Celestia knows I think you're one handsome feller, but I'm sure you won't feel the same. I understand if you laugh in my face. You wouldn't be the first, and you won't be the last."

Fortunately Discord's got confidence enough for both of them, and is rather a bit softer on his big klutzy bf than he is with Twilight, showering Trouble with affection and compliments, often in his typical insensitive, Discord-y way

3.) got to thinkin about this dull sadsack of a villain

specifically his big sharp teeth and forward-facing eyes, which suggest the Storm King is a predator. i don't like this idea, idk why, i guess there's something deeply unsettling about a large bipedal intelligent carnivore interacting with small anime-eyed prey animals

SO i argue, the Storm King may look big and scary, with a huge strong jaws and big stabby canines, but he's actually an herbivore! Juuuust like a gorilla. The Storm King is a yeti, which are Old World composite creatures distantly related to minotaurs and centaurs. A yeti is a blend of mountain goat, yak, and ape. Despite their reputation of being monstrous flesh-eaters, yetis are gentle giants, often willing to help anyone lost out in the snow.

Or, at least, they were gentle giants. Yetis have been hunted to near extinction. The Storm King is the very last one. He's a bit peeved about the slow destruction of his entire species, as well as being forced to survive on the fringes of society since he lost his mother as a juvenile. His world conquest was done out of revenge and misdirected loneliness. He has exactly zero empathy for the suffering of other creatures, and resents the ponies especially for their cutesy-wutesy saccharine nonsense.

(Had they ever met, he and Tirek probably would have gotten along like a house on fire, then lit some actual houses on fire~)

4.) Concept art for Cuppa Joe's precious kitties! All are named after coffee. Featuring:

Miss Bitters was an elderly shelter cat that nobody wanted, probably because of her aloof personality and attempts to claw out a pony's eyes. She reminded Joe of his cranky old culinary teacher, Zesty Gourmand, and so Joey took Miss Bitters home to shower her with the love and patience he knew she needed. Miss Bitters was not impressed. She still hates everyone and everything, with the intensity of a thousand suns.

...It's worth noting though, that Miss Bitters now swats at Joe with her claws retracted, and her hisses have an almost affectionate note to them that only a well-trained ear can catch.

Vienna was found as a kitten in the alleyway behind his cafe. She was lost and huddled under a box, mewing in the cold. Joe found her, tucked her into his scarf, and fed her a bit of his sandwich. Vienna has since been forever loyal and loving, and enjoyed many, many more sandwiches.

Cubano is a big grumpyface that is actually pretty pushy about getting his daily dose of snuggles. Kahlua is a big friendly idiot that chirps at house guests and even plays fetch! She often gets the zoomies at 3am. She's the emotional support buddy of Bombon, who is a skittish, spacy oddball.

5.) Lightning Dust knew Rolling Thunder had a cousin in the Wonderbolts, and thus a potential pawn to be used for revenge purposes.....or at least some use getting herself and her dad reinstated in the 'Bolts. Yep, Light was more than eager to meet this exploitable flyboy.....but she didn't expect him to be cute.

further compounding this, Thunderlane is not the typical smarmy jock hotshot flier she's used to.....but kinda just a regular nice dude. Friendly, warm, and too sweet for his own good.....oh no, he's meeting all her standards!

ps now u see where zipperflash gets his panic floofing from

6.) Pondering how ponies display their marital/relationship status, since wedding rings don't seem fitting for a population of fingerless nudists.

There is no single uniform way ponies signify that they're taken, but certain ideas are very popular. Matching tattoos are a simple and low cost idea for couples who spend too much time kneading dough and whipping buttercream to wear flashy jewelry. The most common is a simple design done inside one ear (which has had the inner fur shaved). Most older ponies, as well as the wealthy aristocracy, deride ear tats as tacky, childish, and low class. Mister and Missus Cake do not give a solitary fuck. They got their marks when they eloped after high school, having been too broke for anything fancier. The marks, though cheesy and perhaps a bit crudely drawn, are regarded with much affection (and are a prime target for fond ear nibbles).

In the event a relationship doesn't work out, ear tattoos can fortunately be hidden by letting the fur inside the ear grow back. Ponies often joke and tease about finding an old lover inside their partner's ears~

7.) i think i wrote a while ago that Vogue owned "a beloved pet corn snake named Noodles", and people asked to see it. I've since upgraded Vogue's pet to a big ass python, by the name of Monsieur Nouilles au Beurre (Buttered Noodles).

Vogue always begged her parents for a pet growing up- a parakeet, a puppy, a hedgehog, a ferret, a cat, anything- but sadly, they never granted her wish. Fleur couldn't bear the thought of some animal mussing up her artfully arranged home decor, and Fancy is allergic to nearly all manner of beast. Besides, Vogue had her studies to attend to. On one of her birthdays, they "gifted" her a massive aquarium full of glittery jewel-colored fish, but it was to be cared for only for the servants, more of a big ornament than any sort of pet. Vogue enjoyed the fish, but more than anything, she wanted a pet all her own.

However, jumping from an arduous education into a busy career didn't afford her any time for browsing pet shops. It isn't until one day, while running her modelling agency, Vogue spots something slithering out of one of her junior photographers' duffel bags. It's a giant python, brought in to be a racy prop for her models to pose with. Possibly nude, adds the photographer pleasantly.

Vogue is.....not happy about this. Not at all. Words are exchanged, a certain photographer is found to be "intolerably perverse", "criminally stupid", and "not at all good fit for the agency", and Vogue ends up with this abandoned, ownerless snake.

Welp. She doesn't really know what to do with it, she's honestly a bit afraid of the little beast, but when she reaches out to give it an awkward, totally-not-terrified pat.....it boops it's head against her hand. And looks up at her with the biggest, doofiest eyes imaginable. Oh no.

This is no foul creature. This is babie. Vogue loves babie. Vogue loves Buttered Noodles.

Zee, upon seeing her roommate walk into their home with a gigantic snake, said something to the tune of "what the fuckety fucking FUCKAROO NO NO NOOOOOO", but eventually warms up to Noodles, and can often be seen letting him wiggle his head into her hoodie pockets. They're bros.

Star! Star! EDIT: OH MY GOOODDDD LOOK Y'ALLStar! Star!

Take Me Awaayyyyyy by heyits-hardy

8.) Concept art. Zecora is a Vodun medicine mare hailing from West Zebrica. She is the sole survivor of a relentless dry season that slowly destroyed her herd. The foals and the elderly were the first to succumb to the heat, and then came mysterious illness, striking down herd members so quickly and mercilessly that Zecora, despite her tireless efforts, couldn't discover a cure in time. Her grief and feelings of failure were unbearable. From each home, she took a totem to remind her of the lives that slipped through her hands, then fled as far away as she could, to start anew, somewhere she could be alone in her mourning, somewhere she could study the magic of alchemy and commune with the ancient spirits. She is not at all an evil enchantress, and is instead perfectly polite to anypony willing to extend her and her culture proper respect and dignity. As ponies as a whole kinda fail to do that and view her as a spectacle, Zecora is content living alone within the Everfree Forest. She is a dear friend of Fluttershy's, Twilight, Discord, and Applejack, and is always willing to aid any in need of her help. She's entertained a number of apprentices over the years, including Twilight, Apple Bloom, and Midnight Abyss.

I based her garb on that of ceremonial voodoo practitioners in Glidji Kpodji. This is a ceremonial/leisurely look for Zecora, she tends to dress in more conservative, comfy clothes when out and about.

bonus hc: Zecora's eyes are naturally brown, and light up blue when she's performing magic. Her rhyming is a vocal tick, often done to lull the otherwise-skittish ponies....and as an easy way for her to slip actual incantations into what seems like a goofy witch-doctor shtick. Beware, beware, you pony folk.

9.) Once upon a time, young Princess Novo ran away from the luxuries and tedium of royal life. Instead of finding adventure, she found herself hopelessly lost, in a world that wasn't particularly kind to spoiled little hippogriff chicks.

Celestia is going about her chores one morning when she finds this strange birdy whatchamacallit hiding in her family's barn. As the illegal daughter of an earth pony farmer and a unicorn noble, Celestia is often frustrated with how the upper class mistreats the low born. Kind, humble, and with a strong sense of justice, Celestia vows to help Novo get back home, no matter how dangerous the journey.

Cue an Emperor's New Groove-style adventure between a teeny snob and a pony just trying to do the right thing.......and yes, along the way they do have a major fall-out where Tia calls Novo out on her shit and nearly abandons her out of frustration......leaving Novo angrily sniffling but too proud to call out after her. Of course Celestia does return at some point, probably in the nick of time to rescue Novo from one of the infinite monstrosities that prowl ancient Equestria, cuing a shouting match for making each other worry, and then soggy hugs, and the forging of a lifelong friendship.