The Night Hound - concept and desing inspiration.

We haven't come up with a definite design for the night hound as of yet, but we do have a general concept down. What I have in mind is a high tech thief that uses the most advanced technology to do his jobs. Cat suits that enhance quiet movement and even grant added agility. Gadgets for just about any situation that an advanced thief may run into. Grappling hooks, zip lines, stealth camo, emp disruption devices, gas bombs etc.


The Night Hound is an enigmatic character that is a constant thorn in the side of the Sylvan government. He\she is a thief that focuses their efforts on government installations that house some sort of delicate and often valuable information. The Night Hound has never been captured or identified. The species, sex, age, and true motives of the Night Hound are all a mystery to the local enforcement agencies.


The Night hound always leaves behind a personal and taunting message to Camus neatly folded into an Oragami dog.

The Night hound is at the top of the Sylvan kingdoms most wanted list right above Fort Foxx.
Many people speculate that Fort Foxx and The Night Hound my be the same person, but the kingdoms best detectives say their methods and motives are too different for that to be the case.

Hopefully we'll have a solid design down to show everyone soon!

ZOICA it could be out there somewhere.

We are currently working out the world of Zoica (the planet the Tail takes place upon). The name is derived from the word zoic which roughly means "pertaining to animals". I want the land masses to have a Pangaea feel, as if the planet was still fairly young. The present form of the planets continental make-up is do to a meteor impact ages ago. The impact was so grand it broke apart the planets land mass. Within the enormous crater lies the secret to life on Zoica. The planet it self is roughly the size of Saturn, but slightly smaller equator diameter 50,000 miles. Azure island is the size of Africa and the Sylvan kingdom borders span the size of the United States.

Calmandi Blueclaw

Calmandi is the first born of the Blueclaw siblings. He thinks of himself as a leader and strives to make his father proud in everything he does. His athletic ability and skill as a warrior has elevated him to a certain level of celebrity. He is the current champion of the Sylvan Cup games, and is highly recognized among all the citizens of the kingdom. Calmandi is secretly threatned by his little brother Crueger. He recognizes Crueger's natural ability and his fighting genius and often picks on him out of sheer jealousy. On the surface you would never be able to tell, but deep down Calmandi cares about his little brother.


All celebrity aside, Calmandi is still a blueclaw warrior none the less. His skill with his hands and weapons are revered among all of the kingdoms fighters. His father is grooming him to be the next millitary specialist of the Sylvan kingdom.

Calmandi is as driven by duty as his father is. But he is often caught up in his own pride and celebrity to truly focus on his fathers teachings.

Roxxie Blueclaw

Roxxie is said to be one of the most beautiful girls in all of the royal quarter. Her prowess as a warrior is no less. She is skilled particularly in defense techniques and can easily turn an enemies strength against them.


Roxxie is feminine yet she is just as tough as either one of her brothers. She has her father's wisdom and her mothers warm heart.



She loves her little brother more than anything, and is always pushing him to focus and take things seriously. Roxxie see's Crueger's potential and is always encouraging him. She likes to spar against her little brother Crueger because she notices his talent for adapting to all of her defense strategies in a fight.


Roxxie is sought after by many of the young nobels of the Sylvan kingdom. Some of them are genuinely intrersted in falling in love with her, while most are simply looking to move themselves up in the royalty ladder through marriage. So naturally its hard for her to tell who she can really trust.

Roxxie is right at that age where she is comming into being a woman. Like any girl, she wants to find love but has a hard time finding any man that can meet her standards....

Setting: Location Inspiration

By: Jason Collins

for the city:

the developing modern scenery blends almost seamlessly into the lush forest from bird's eye view. from the ground, however, the transition is a bit more harsh.

Brazil seems like the closest to Sylvan to me... ancient, yet new, growing yet deeply traditional. city folk stay in the city, unless they need to do something other city folk dont need to know about, or buy something most city folk dont get to buy. all the privileged city kids would die to see the outside, until they get to see the outside, then they realize they dont want to die.

and, for the temple:

natural grandeur, a sense of meticulous order, extreme isolation... the stone may be cracked and obviously aged, but the structure is as solid as the mountain

The Pack

The pack are the heart of the tail story. They represent the disenfranchised and orphaned youth who live in the slums of the Sylvan kingdoms common quarter.

Jay, Finn, Rich, and Burgh have been friends for as long as any of them can remember. They've been together on the streets all of their lives. They have a knack for finding their way into serious trouble and a talent for barely finding their way out of it.

They are one of the cities most underrated crews of grafitti writers and are always trying to earn the respect of their piers. However, their notoriety is slowly beginning to grow with some of their recent stunts.

They haven't joined up with any of the local gangs, but they do associate heavily with Fort Foxx and his revolutionary group. Still very young, they're not too deep into the politics that drive Fort's revolution. But the jobs and tasks that fort offers them feeds their desire for thrill seeking and mischief.

Each member of the pack has a valuable quality they bring to the group. Together the pack are a unique force to be reckoned with.

If only we could get them to take everything as seriously as they do their grafitti........

Lord Malekk Blueclaw

Malekk Blueclaw is the oldest living member of the Blueclaw bloodline. The stern look on his face tells the story of a thousand battles and the victories of a seasoned war veteran. He is wise and has a sharp sense of duty and honor. Loyal to the Sylvan crown, he serves as the Kings military advisor as well as his mentor on day to day matters.

The only thing that overrideds Malekks dogmatic sense of duty is his immense love for his three children. Just after his youngest son Cruegers birth, Malekks wife was killed in battle. It seems as though Malekk somehow blames himself for the death of his wife and that guilt has fuled his love for his children.

A wise advisor in political matters and a loving father, Malekk is still a warrior at heart and that aspect of him spills over into all portions of his life. He is especially hard on Crueger because he see's great potential in him, although he would never openly admit it to crueger. Malekk raises his children to be warriors with tough love and wise words.

Malekk wears the legacy of his bloodline like a badge of honor on his sleve. He is considered to be the most knowledgable on the history of the Blueclaws, and is often reciting fact to his children to remind them of who they are. He has a calm exterior and a very refined demeanor, but during times of combat Malekk is often leading the charge and the first to strike.

Humble Beginnings

Oldest known sketch of the original Tail characters,1991 by Jason Collins.

This project now known as the Tail formally Ninja Force, was originally conceived back in 1990. Not by an ambitious collage student perusing his degree in literature, but a 3rd grader perusing and entertaining afternoon playing in the woods. This classic childhood ritual of role playing soon developed into a cast of comic book characters. A constructive (and attention getting) hobby for any 10 year old. Over the years characters developed along side the young artists skill.

Still the Ninja Force, 1995 by Jason Collins.

Speaking from my personal experiences, looking back at this concept, I've come to realize a lot of things about childhood and what it is in the creative mind. Most importantly I realize, back then there was no established restraint against creativity. By restraint I mean the techniques you learn from art class, collage, or work. As a child then and now I felt like an ambitious artist. Where I grew up, there was little to no access to artistic venues (and there still isn't). Nowhere for a kid serious about cartooning to get exposed to artist, methods, or history about what it is he wanted to do. Nevertheless I taught myself (along side a close friend) cartooning, sequential art, and animation.

The Story of Dregga Blueclaw

The legend of Dregga Blueclaw is in modern times more of an adventurous bedtime story for royal youths of Sylvan. Most of the true details of his story have been lost or distorted with time. The Blueclaw family alone has posession of the ancient tome that chronicles the travels and exploits of their ancient ancestor.

Dregga was born into the eastern plains lion clan. The lions were revered as the most powerful and unified tribe in all the land. During the time of the great wars there was great uncertainty and the shamans of the tribe spoke of a perilous time that would change the world as they knew it forever. The start of the time would be symbolized by the birth of a unique and gifted child.

The tribal elders brushed off the warnings of the shamans momentarily, until a family gave birth to a grey fured lion cub. Immediately the elders saw this as the sign they had been warned of by the shamans. Because of the Omen Dregga was hated by most of the tribe and treated like an outcast. It wasn't until during an attempted surprise attack on his village that he began to be recognized for his natural talent in combat. As time passed he grew into a strong warrior. The elders wanted him lead the elite war parties but Dregga kept away from leadership roles feeling that it took away from his freedom.

From his years as an outcast among his clan Dregga became accomstomed to working alone and self reliance. To the behest of the elders Dregga remained a loner. Yet he was still the lion tribes most valuable and skilled warrior.

Soon an outside tribal leader came to the lions with a proposition to unite against the impending evil tha threatend the lands. He explained that his ultimate goal was to unite all the tribes of the land and bring peace to world. The lions were a warlike people and were leary of a world of peace saying that "In a world of complete peace what good use is there for warriors"

The shamans advised the tribal king to join the outsiders cause for harmony among all the tribes. Dregga saw value in the outsiders plan and knew the journey would take him to many different parts of the world. The tribal king refused. The kings decision split the tribe in half. This was the first time ever that the lions disagreed on what action to take. Dregga requested that he go alone with the outsider to aid him and was denied.

After a short time of contemplation Dregga decided to defy the lion king and travel with the outsider, not solely to unite the tribes and bring peace, but mostly to quench his thirst for adventure.

Dreggas exploits during this time would earn him respect from many tribes as well as the favor of the elemental gods. Many wars would come to pass and Dregga along with others became known as the hero of the great wars.

After the end of the war Dregga dissapeard. His companions say that he simply wandered off into the plains with is weapons strapped to his back. Volaria was unknowingly pregnant with his child and gave birth to the next great Blueclaw who would forge a legend all his own.........

The Blueclaws

The Blueclaw bloodline is legend in the Sylvan kingdom and beyond. Their ancestor Dregga Blueclaw was instrumental in the forming of the three known kingdoms.

Their defining characteristic is gray fur. It's rumored that the gray is a mark of honor from the gods to always identify them among the warriors of the world.

The Blueclaws are naturally skilled warriors with amazing prowess in battle. They are able to learn fighting techniques and master weapons with ease and at an extremely accelerated pace.

Although they are skilled with every known weapon each member of the Blueclaw legacy is outfitted with a weapon they specialize in. These weapons usually compliment their particular fighting styles, be they aggressive or defensive.


Their family has served as protectors and soldiers in the Sylvan kingdom since its beginnings.

Crueger Blueclaw

Initially crueger is brash and impulsive. His hot temper and lack of discipline are always landing him in trouble with his father.

He hates his brother and love his sister with all his heart.

He's constatnly seeking his fathers approval, and seldom receives it. His sister Roxxy sees the infinite potential that Crueger has and pushes him to be the best.

During his training sessions he often displays a fighting genius that is above average even for his legendary bloodline.

Later in the tail Crueger is abbandoned on azure island and held captive for several weeks. He eventually escapes and ends up on a 2 year journey that molds him into a warrior worthy of the Blueclaw legend.

character profile: terrae

terrae knows. he'd tell you, but you're not ready to hear it yet.

(if you catch him something fat for dinner and cook it right, he might tell you.)

(especially if you track down some good smoke)

character profile: fort foxx

fort foxx chooses his words carefully. he's okay with not responding to a comment, or a question. his expression rarely changes much. he snaps into direct eye contact when talking about his beliefs, convictions. part of him just likes to rock the boat, shatter peoples illusions, shock. cares about style, not willing to spend much money on clothes.

the movement.