First of all, thank you guys for your patience with me while I was judging! The holiday season is the worst and I really appreciate your time and all the work you put into your fantastic entries!
This contest was very difficult to judge, as so many of you had such creative ideas! If RUs were an option I would definitely love to give them, but unfortunately since this is a staff kalon, I can't - still - thank you all SO much for your dedication and effort in putting together your forms!
I'd like to award HMs to:
kanadensis - Can I just say that this piece is absolutely gorgeous? I loved the way you incorporated the markings to the pages and how you wrote fit the bestiary style exquisitely! I was really in love with this entry, such a tough call. I would've liked to learn a little bit more about what the beast of vanity is like, but I think you had a really brilliant concept going, I would've loved to see where you could take this!
Snowlondon - These owls are so adorable, it gave me such a great mental image of them flying around libraries as helpful little companions, nibbling the books. Such a sweet idea - they seem like they'd make a great companion species, it's a shame they aren't real!
vogelbiene - The care you put into this was really obvious, I loved the script and the linework! I thought the lyrebird was a super interesting species to choose and I really enjoyed this, it draws on so many interesting ideas and you did a great job of making it really feel like a bestiary entry!
Divantae - The legend-like story was really fantastic, I had a great time reading it and I love the story that was building - another story that really drew me in and made me want to know more!
bucky?? - The character you put into your drawing was really fantastic, I loved seeing how each element of the design connected with a personality trait. Overall I got great vibes from this entry, definitely a cool way to dive into your ideas!
And finally, the winner is...
Zailune!
Your entry was really fantastically put together, I loved the field research format and all the detail you put into the drawings of your ucarabos species. The personality we got of your character in their personal notes, as well as the folklore attached made this entry stand out. You really checked all the boxes, and I hope Jermond's future studies aren't always so frustrating!
Thank you all once again for entering, and I hope to see more of your ideas around the community! You all seriously stepped up the game to work on a pretty tricky prompt, so I have to seriously commend you for that. And thank you for your support as a member of this team - it means the world to me!