An ink and digital illustration of a girl with long flowing hair, deer antlers and ears, and hooves runs away from a forest. Her dramatic flower patterned gown turns into the ground behind her. Grayscale and red.

Lady Ada

Wildhart

Thesis project

2026

Welcome to Wildhart!

Wildhart is an original 20-page Dungeons & Dragons adventure module in which players must navigate a rapidly growing cursed forest without going mad themselves. The story takes place in an enchanted forest populated by strange, medieval-inspired beasts. The players, set against the clock by a game mechanic involving randomized cards that transform everyone into a different whimsical creature over the course of the game, must find Lady Ada before it’s too late. She is the mysterious half-woman, half-deer who lives at the heart of the forest, and is the only one who can break the curse. 

An ink and digital illustration of the bust of a huge, ghostly white stag with red eyes towering over a small human figure in a red dress. The stag glows and lights up the forest surrounding the figures. Grayscale and red.

The Thirteenth Beast

A process ink illustration of an intimidating stag. The bust fades into abstract ink swirls. The brushes and ink used are on the side of the photo. Black and white.

Process

Wildhart was made with a combination of digital and analogue techniques: illustrations were done with india ink, brushes, and illustration pens, using a lightbox to trace digital sketches. These lineplates, along with analogue textures and ink washes, were then scanned and compiled in Procreate.

A grayscale digital sketch of a girl with long flowing hair, deer antlers and ears, and hooves runs away from a forest. Her dramatic flower patterned gown turns into the ground behind her.
A close-up of a partially inked illustration of Lady Ada, a girl with long flowing hair and deer antlers and ears. Behind the paper with the final inks, the sketch is visible, demonstrating the lightbox technique.
An in-process ink illustration of Lady Ada demonstrating the use of an ink lineplate and ink wash with lowered opacity to create value and texture.
A wrap-around Wildhart dust jacket illustration featuring a girl in a patterned gown walking through a forest, leading a procession of whimsical creatures including a griffin, a dragon, and a unicorn. Grayscale and red.

Wildhart Dust Jacket

An illustrated hex map of Wildhart forest featuring a marsh, river, and town among the trees, and illustrated symbols such as a fairy circle and a sword in a stone. Grayscale and red.

Wildhart Map

Why Wildhart?

The adventure module is a unique mode of storytelling because it spans so many creative practices. Wildhart was an opportunity to do illustration, creative writing, and graphic design all at once. In other words, a dream project! Books fascinate me in their ability to be both information delivery and art object. It’s this interest that I want to continue pursuing in my creative practice.

A close up photo of a printed page from Wildhart; the title is “Fragments Cont.” Illustrations of a dagger, ring, and potion bottle float decoratively among the text. Grayscale and red.
An ink and digital spot illustration of an armored knight waving at the viewer. He holds the reins of a ghost horse, which is just a floating blanket, saddle, reins, and horseshoes. They stand on grass with flowers. Grayscale and red.

Sir Greendown