[LFA] Yorgrim - Elderly king's physician (and secretly royal poisoner)

[u/Silver-Fondant-2886]

(warning: long)

I'm looking for art of an elderly male who serves as the chief physician to a king and his household and has secret extra duties as the king's assassin/poisoner. I'll start off here by saying that I don't have a particular ancestry picked out for him, but it feels dwarf or human / half elf. I also have no clear idea on aesthetic beyond some broad concepts - so feel free to go with what feels good. Reference board is much more general inspiration vs prescriptive ideas. Am interested in seeing non-common choices being made as well. Happy for questions but please comment on post saying you've DM'd.

Yorgrim's been in the king's service for a long time and is fully devoted to him. In addition to being the king's physician, he's also secretly the king's assassin/poisoner - his privileged position as head physician gives him access to any guests that might need taking care of (be it immediately or inflicting them with a long lasting illness - or even just keeping them in bed until they leave), and he can easily be sent away to visit other castles as a sign of goodwill by the king (while secretly carrying out other business). He is sent along with the party to keep watch on them and make sure they carry out the king's business without dying along the way.

Pictured as naturally tanned, average-built, and elderly, with a full complement of wrinkles . Has a completely shaved head, heavy grey eyebrows and strong features. Pictured as having a full (but neat) grey beard with a distinctive white streak on one side of his chin, continuing through the moustache and into the eyebrow on that same side.

His most distinctive feature is a large magical tattoo beginning on his forehead and spreading across his shaved scalp. It's a permanent mark of belonging to the king; the design identifies him as the head of the royal medical staff. I'd love this to feel like an original fantasy/magical design rather than a literal medical symbol but its fully open to interpretation - doesn't need to be symmetrical or anything etc. In practice I think newcomers who get sworn in to the king's service have a small insignia showing their placement on their forehead (medical, soldiers, administration, cooking, manservants, common laborers etc), and as they grow in tenure/rank the design expands, with only the chiefs of the branches in the castle having the full design (maybe it wraps back around to the front to make a more complex or completed visible design?). Not sure if it should include a secret twist to include the poisoner/assassin vibes but if something strikes you you're welcome to try it.

Clothing is likely simple, practical fantasy fare for what is essentially a high-ranking servant. The tattoos would identify him to people familiar with the king's household, but I'd also like some more immediately recognisable uniform element. Been considering a cross-body sash in the medical corps colour that expands into an apron-like or vertically hanging panel, possibly emblazoned with the king's symbol so that even people unfamiliar with the tattoo system know who he represents.

He'd carry a relatively small amount of medical supplies in a bag or satchel rather than being covered in equipment; he's senior enough that if he needs something more substantial, he can simply send someone running to fetch it. I'm fond of purples, oranges and yellows for the royal colour palette, although I'm not committed to any particular colours.

Beyond that, I'm deliberately very open. I don't have a firm real-world equivalent in mind, so tunics, robes, vests, loose trousers, breeches, etc. are all fair game. The main things I'd like to preserve are the practical physician feel, the royal identification, and a relatively clean silhouette. Since he is a top ranking servant, its fine if it goes a bit fancier rather than plain.

Personality-wise, he's warm, grandfatherly, calm and slightly tired, with a habit of smiling and putting people at ease. He's genuinely an excellent doctor and takes real pleasure in helping people. At the same time, he has absolutely no qualms about carrying out his king's orders, no matter how questionable the necessary actions might be.

As a result, I'd like there to be a slight sense of something unsettling underneath the kindly physician - not necessarily something overtly sinister, but the impression that this is a man who can calmly discuss your symptoms, make you feel completely safe, and then, without any apparent emotional change, decide that you need to die.

I'm deliberately leaving a lot of this open because I'm much more interested in seeing someone's interpretation than having a very specific design brought to life. The main things I'm hoping to capture are the concept of a royal physician who is also the king's trusted poisoner, and the visual idea of a permanent magical mark of royal service that becomes increasingly elaborate with rank.

I'd particularly love to see what artists come up with for the tattoo, the medical/royal uniform, and the contrast between his kindly grandfatherly appearance and the fact that he's perfectly comfortable with murder when his king requires it.

Again - happy for questions but please comment on post saying you've DM'd as I find the notifications easy to miss