Kitty Cat Grove
“Blessed by Elune and protected by Druids, the Kitty Cat Grove hides a secret entrance to the Emerald dream Behind the clouds in the sky. During the Sundering, a small rift in space between the Emerald Dream and Azeroth was opened near a small Island by the South Sea that was Mostly populated by Saber Cats. The Influence of the Emerald Dream near the island slowly affected the Creatures and Nature over the years, transforming the place into a beautiful mix of colors from real life and the Dream Land.
This is a important and sacred place for animals and Night Elves around Azeroth Because this is the home of the Blue Cat Spirit, protector of animals and guardian of the rift. The Shrine was made in honor of the Spirit and is Said to greatly increase the power of Feral Druids that drink from its water.”
This Was my Environment entry for this year Blizzard Student Art contest.
When I started this project, I wanted to explore the concept of the Emerald dream affecting a place in Azeroth the same way the Emerald Nightmare acted during the legion expansion.
This created the opportunity for me to apply the Emerald dream aesthetic into a different biome instead of the usual dense green forest and create something new.
The idea of applying a Cat theme into the Grove came to me when my cat jumped on my computer in the middle of a battleground, making me die. Her name is blue, and this is why this is the Blue Cat Spirit Shrine.
Base color and Lighting renders
Tileable Textures and Foliage Cards.
Before deciding on the final look and composition of the environment, I did many quick exploration sketches with different iterations and moods so that I could have a better idea of the final output.
Screenshots of the whole Process and iterations inside the engine