Welcome back Planeswalkers. Join us for another special interview with an artist. This time Lius Lashino who has been working on the latest Magic: The Gathering set Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths. In this interview we asked about his work, thought processes, and who he will side with in this fight for survival. We shall also be featuring some of his work on Ikoria. So, lets swing into action shall we?

Tell us a bit about yourself

Hi, my name is Lius. I’m an illustrator and founder of Polar Engine studio based in Jakarta, Indonesia. I started this career back in 2008 after graduating from Visual Communication Design major in college. Drawing for MTG has been a dream for every fantasy illustrator and I was lucky enough to achieve mine in 2014. Besides drawing, I also enjoy playing games, watching good movies, and hanging out for coffee with friends. I’m pretty much just an ordinary guy.

Are you a Magic: The Gathering Player? If so, how do you play?

Yes, I started to play MTG in 2016, taught by my colleague who is also an MTG artist, Billy Christian, after I received many boxes of card from MTG. I instantly fell in love with the game. I played the standard format first, then eventually I was able to build my own deck and switched to EDH format.

What was your initial reaction to bringing Vivien to life?

I was surprised, in a good way, when I first got the art description. The Vivien character itself is interesting that she could summon animals, that means I got to draw animals too. Then I knew it’s gonna be a great illustration to make.

What is your favourite part of crafting the portrayal of Vivien, Monsters’ Advocate? Take us through the thought process of your work on this piece.

My favorite part would be the face. Vivien has a particular beauty, strong but delicate. I loved depicting my own imagination of Vivien into the artwork. I imagined Vivien here running happily racing with the animal, just like Tarzan did in the jungle. I never saw Vivien’s heartwarming personality portrayed in any card before. My art director was very helpful with the feedback during the process.

Do you have a favourite monster? And if you could be any monster,
who would you be?

Yes. My favourite monster to draw and to be is Bahamut from FF IX.

What monster would you like to bring into card form?

Bahamut.

What other Magic: The Gathering pieces would you love to bring to
the canvas?

That would be many. I’d love to draw the Gatewatch Planeswalkers of course, especially Ajani.

Is there any other card art you love? If so, why?

Card arts of Legend of the Cryptids and Gwent are amazing.

Do you prefer producing monsters, environments, or characters? Or
something else?

I enjoy drawing characters the most.

Who would you side with in Ikoria: the Humans or Beasts? And why?

Of course the Beasts. Just because they are cooler and innocent too.

As Ikoria features the mutate mechanic, what creature would you love create from the real world? And from the cards revealed, what creatures would you mutate?

Sabertooth cause it’s a cat beast. Nethroi, Apex of Death cause he can awaken the dead.

And that is your lot! Thank you for joining us for this special artist interview. And special thanks to Lius Lashido for allowing this to happen, as well as the hard work bringing such wonderful worlds to life. And don’t forget to check other artist interviews here. And if you haven’t done so already, check out our favourite cards from the Ikoria set. Stay tuned for more news, reviews, and guides. Until next time, smile and game.