# Become the battle mage... siren... thing For those who know me well, you're aware that I'm a slow collector of [[Manifesting Gemmy|eccentric tattoos]]. Recently, I've finally decided to get the Siren tattoo I've been dreaming of for years. So, what exactly do I mean by 'Siren'? It's a [class](https://borderlands.fandom.com/wiki/Siren) in the [Borderlands](https://borderlands.2k.com/) game series, basically a battlemage with a side of gun-kata. Beyond having almost magical-like powers, every Siren has a unique tattoo that represents them and their powers. Rather than appropriate an existing Siren tattoo concept (As cool as the existing ones are), I took the idea, and added my macebre twist: The tattoos are the elements being unleashed from my body, at the cost of my organic being. I.e., Casting a spell doesn't drain mana, it consumes my skin, muscle, and bone—turning my body into the magic itself. I chose to use the elements found in [[Tiny Tinas Wonderlands|Tiny Tina's Wonderlands]]: [[Incendiary damage]], [[Explosive damage]], [[Cryo damage]], [[Corrosive damage]], [[Dark Magic damage]]. I also requested my own addition that is found in the game but is not one that players can use: [[Necrotic damage]]. These choices were not only due to the variation available for myself as a "battle mage" but due to the superb amount of reference material available in the [Tiny Tina's Wonderlands Art Blast](https://magazine.artstation.com/2022/05/gearbox-entertainments-tiny-tinas-wonderlands-art-blast/), [Tiny Tina's Wonderlands Season Pass Art Blast](https://magazine.artstation.com/2022/11/gearbox-softwares-tiny-tinas-wonderlands-season-pass-art-blast/), and the [The Art of Tiny Tina's Wonderlands](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/720522/the-art-of-tiny-tinas-wonderlands-by-written-by-amy-ratcliffe/) materials. It was something I knew my tattoo artist, [Erin Hunter](https://weirdink.com/erin/), would appreciate. This is going to be a multi-month, multi-session tattoo, and is going to take a lot of time. Feel free to join me on my journey towards the finished product. > [!abstract]- The evolution of this tattoo concept > A long time ago, even before I had first played the game, I had wanted something a bit more tribal, but demented. The very first iteration of this concept was a snake burrowing its way in and out of my skin from arm, to shoulder, and all the way down to feet. > > Later, as I gained more understanding of [[The Dragon|how my mind works]], I shifted from the snake idea to something more runic, that would work on both the body of a human and the body of a dragon, and represent different abilities and aspects. ## Session 1: [[11-September#2024]] Day 1, we start at the wrist and work our way up. ![[IMG-Becoming the battle mage-20250425163032194.webp|500]] ## Session 2: [[25-October#2024]] Day 2, we fill in a lot of the coloration. Highlights and fixes next, and then we move onto the next part. ![[IMG-Becoming the battle mage-20250425163032252.webp|500]] ## Session 3: [[29-November#2024]] On a much colder day than this time last month (a feels-like temp of 3F!), the first part of the piece is done. Next, we will move to the outer arm. ![[IMG-Becoming the battle mage-20250425163032286.webp|500]] ## Session 4: [[17-January#2025]] We have begun working on the incendiary (arm) and dark magic (shoulder) sigils. Outlines first. ![[IMG-Becoming the battle mage-20250425163032366.webp|500]] ## Session 5: [[22-February#2025]] Coloring in the dark magic damage first. This is about 70% done. ![[IMG-Becoming the battle mage-20250425163032446.webp|500]] ## Session 6: [[22-March#2025]] We added some "Goth confetti" on the dark magic damage tattoo, and started adding fire to the incendiary damage tattoo. > [!grid] > ![[IMG-Becoming the battle mage-20250425163032487.webp]] > ![[IMG-Becoming the battle mage-20250425163032505.webp]] ## Session 7: [[22-April#2025]] Still continuing on the incendiary damage. Its about 80% done. ![[IMG-Becoming the battle mage-20250425163032551.webp|500]] ## Session 8: [[16-May#2025]] Here we go again, finishing up the incendiary damage sigil. Next, we'll be working on corrosive damage. ![[IMG-Becoming the battle mage-20250517213314451.png]]