OPHIUCHUS fae, Ophiras: Her Opalescence

Coiled around the firmament, her lustrous countenance outshines even the stars. Based on Ophiuchus, the thirteenth and oft-forgotten zodiac constellation that falls on the ecliptic. I was not even aware that it existed until the presence of Zodiark in FFXII had me questioning why there was a 13th Esper, and why it was hidden away in the endgame as a powerful superboss. “Ethereal” and “otherworldly” were the descriptors I had in mind when tackling Ophiras. Design-wise, I wanted her to stand a certain degree above the rest, as their supreme ruler. As she is not part of the commonly accepted zodiac, I gave her a mask to create a sense of distance between her and the viewer. Ophiuchus is the serpent-bearer, but I decided to merge both the serpent and the bearer together: Her lower body is a serpentine tail of glass, while she wields a staff reminiscent of the rod of Asclepius, entwined with a smaller snake that serves as her eternal familiar. Her wings encompass the other 12 fae, forming an astrological chart.