Keith Parkinson’s Cavalier Drawings Show a Different Side of His Fantasy Art

Keith Parkinson’s Cavalier drawings in Dragon #72 have a quality that makes them linger: they’re bold, unusual, and full of the kind of fantasy spectacle that can make a character class feel irresistible before anyone checks its abilities. Some readers have argued that Parkinson should have stuck to painting. I’ve always enjoyed these ink illustrations, especially the image of an elf maiden riding a warhorse. It’s a striking premise, and the confident linework gives it a presence that softer treatment might have lost.

The drawings also catch an appealing tension between the familiar and the unexpected. A mounted knight is a classic fantasy image; an elf maiden in that role gives it a different character. The horse supplies scale and motion, while the ink makes the figures read through strong shapes and contrast. There’s no need to know the class rules to understand the picture’s invitation: imagine a character built around chivalry, horsemanship, and a larger-than-life sense of purpose.

Ink beyond Parkinson’s paintings

Parkinson is widely associated with painted fantasy art, so these drawings stand apart within his work. In his Art of books, he acknowledges that drawing could sometimes be a struggle for him. That admission gives the Cavalier pieces an extra point of interest, though it doesn’t need to change how they’re judged. Their appeal is right there on the page: the inking is forceful, and the images have a personality that’s distinct from his paintings.

I’m predisposed to like them. I’m a fan of Parkinson, and I have a particular fondness for ink illustrations. Still, the scarcity of this approach is part of what makes the pages worth revisiting. Beyond these drawings, one other example that comes readily to mind is DL3 Dragons of Hope. That small group of examples makes the Cavalier art feel less like a routine variation and more like a glimpse of a less common side of his work.

A class with more spectacle than balance

The Cavalier concept has an obvious pull. It promises a character who can enter a fantasy story with a clear identity: mounted, formidable, and attached to the traditions of knighthood. The class is easy to picture in action, which is a real strength in game design. A strong concept gives players and referees material to work with before the details of the rules come into play.

Its power level is harder to defend. The Cavalier is overpowered, and older class design could sometimes put the exciting idea ahead of careful game balance. Gary had a knack for finding the parts of a concept that made it feel cool, while giving less attention to how its strength might compare with other characters. The Paladin, in my view, pushes that problem even further. That doesn’t erase the Cavalier’s appeal; it does mean the class needs a referee’s attention when it enters a game.

For a game master, the practical question is how the class’s strong features will sit beside the rest of the party. That conversation starts with the table’s expectations: does everyone want a high-powered, heroic style, or should characters have more closely matched capabilities? A compelling concept can be a good reason to make room for a class, but it helps to think through its effect on the group before play begins. The art sells the fantasy. The rules still have to work at the table.

Seeing the pages clearly

The images here come from the original issue. Online versions were often low resolution, making it hard to appreciate the marks and contrasts that give the drawings their character. Scanning the pages in high resolution makes those details easier to see and keeps the art connected to the publication where it appeared.

These illustrations may not be the work Parkinson is best known for, and the class they accompany may not be a model of even-handed design. Yet the combination remains memorable: a strong visual idea, rendered with assertive ink, attached to a character concept that practically asks to be played. The scans give readers a better look at that pairing—and leave the Cavalier’s central question where it belongs, at the table: how much power is worth the fantasy?