Captain
Who put her in charge? Swashbuckin' & plunderin'.
Bigger deck than yers.
The beginning of Captain's tale
The first idea of Captain occured to me when I was on a holiday by the sea in 2022 as something raw and deeply nostalgic. As if something inside of me craved to spend the whole day by the shore and just observe the waves, blocking out the noise. Not at the beach—at a cliff, where we hiked with my family, and a view of the vast expanse of the sea blew my mind.
I knew Captain had to be goofy, dumb of ass, home of sexual, always in some kind of trouble or situation, where she either goes feral or could not care less. As I was sketching her out on a piece of paper, and write-dumping oneshots in Wattpad drafts, my intention was to make her a bit cartoon-ish, wild, 'full of testosterone', and morally gray however still living her best life. Upon realization that she is in fact, not intentionally, exaggerated version of myself and my vices, that I don't usually let people see, personification was imminent.
Captain became my persona if I liked it or not.
I was seriously into Nightwish back then and the way they tell story by the music. Captain's carefree manners were inspired by one of their songs Élan. Her facecard is/used to be heavily stylized face of Floor Jansen—current lead singer of the band.
Yes, I read a pirate au fanfiction that contributed to the idea of creating Captain. Inspiration streaks when we least expect it, huh? :)
2022
"Entering my pirate era"
2023 - 2024
"It's not a phase, scallywag."
2025 - today
"Walked th' plank"
Roughly the year I started digital art.
Huge pirate hat, ink, cutlass, questionable attitude & smirk on her face is all she needs.
After writing a few hundreds of words about Captain, and my girl undergoing a glowup, I introduced the mysterious owl pendant to be posessing a magical power, still sticking to the old design.
Jewelry, flintlock and a frock coat were added to make her even more extravagant and bold.
Also, reference sheets for ink and scars were created.
Ink is located mainly on Captain's arms. Imagery is connected to her sailor background and symbolism, i.e. swallows, nautical stars, ropes, anchors, 'HOLD FAST' knuckles. And there also had to be a sexy siren.
Scars are for her a trophy. The most show off gets a rope burn from around her neck when there was an attempt to hang her for commiting piracy.
The most recent addition to Captain's scarring are whipscars and a burned mark on her butt cheek reading PT referring to "piracy" and "theft" which were crimes she was held guilty for before execution attempt .
A calm sea never made a good sailor
Captain's job description ranges from, naturally, swashbucklin' and plunderin', blacking out from booze, having an acquaintance in every harbor, to henning and forcefeeding her crew an apple a day to keep th' scurvy away. Famous for her wild ideas to set sail on a brink of a storm when three bottles of rum tell her to do so, just to find out the treasure she hid is on a totally different island, Captain is respected and feared by her nemesis—the Royal Navy... or a kraken.
Questionable manic attitude, pyromaniac tendencies, and love for the adrenaline rush, make her an unpredictable and unstable opponent. Just to loose a sight of her during a battle, perhaps your ship ends up plundered and mysteriously set on fire. For extra scallywags, there is also a cannonball to spare.
With so many dangerous adventures and fleet-sinking, and not quite available medical attention, Captain suffers from joint pain waist-down. Knees and ankles are killing her, so she has to support and brace her legs with a tight dressing. Painkiller, you ask? A shot or two of rum can do miracles.
Captain's pride, her three-mast frigate Storm. Bearing 50 cannons and teal sails, she has seen a lot. May be old wreck but serves well.
I like to think when Captain has her own quiet moment on the deck, she speaks to her ship as if she were alive being. And I know she is a very good listener.
A 'wench'? Nev'r heard o' her.
Raised by a bunch of old weathered sailors, who consider a woman a bad omen and a beautiful distraction, Captain would mark her gender on a chart to be 'A SAILOR' if possible. The only difference she sees between a man and her is that sometimes she gets the "red-sea-thing" going on and doesn't grow a beard. Vulgar, bold and hungry for booty (treasure?). Does she have maternal urges? Not quite. She does protect little ones if it is worth it but she would be the worst mother.
Are they lovers? Worse, she serves on her ship!
For fantasy sea adventures, I really enjoyed an idea of a 'Don Quixote-esque' couple dynamic which has a hard-headed, idealistic adventurer that chases their dreams and a diametral opposite, a responsible babysitter that sees the reality and often confronts their associate.
To support this silly little idea, I created miss Quartermaster, half-mermaid, who appears to be the only responsible adult on the deck, often coming to a conflict with Captain's either carefree or feral bravado.
Upon careful consideration, I experiment with enemies to lovers trope, although Captain may not be very good and loyal significant other, she surely appreciates a little distraction. Perhaps later on she realizes that she is madly in love. Who wouldn't want a (doomed) pirate yuri???
