I’m still painting my way through some of my Terry Pratchett...

I’m still painting my way through some of my Terry Pratchett character favorites: Carrot Ironfoundersson, also known as Kzad-bhat, which roughly translated, means “Head Banger”, is a human adopted by dwarves. He was raised in a mine near Copperhead, probably banging his head a lot, but ends up making the journey to the great city Ankh Morpork in order to join the Watch. Even though Commander Vimes and a few others in the Watch possess a pretty strict and streetwise morality, Carrot enters the city fully prepared, with a completely memorized ancient edition of The Laws and Ordinances of the Cities Ankh and Morpork. And he’s ready to use it to ensure the safety of his fellow citizens. What makes Carrot unique–and so different from anyone else wielding a book of laws–is his ability to interpret a law and balance that against an examination of his own perspective and the motives of others to resolve the problems they face. It’s this simple wisdom that usually carries him through the fray–that, and his joyful spirit. Carrot approaches his position in the Watch with such cheer, generosity, and honesty that everyone around him has no choice but to get swept up in the sheer force of his upbeat will. His genuineness and optimism–some might say _extreme_ optimism–balances out and sometimes runs roughshod over the cynicism and distrust that’s the baseline sentiment of the Ankh Morpoork City Watch. His fellow watchmen often stand back and just stare in awe as Carrot singlehandedly diffuses the tension between armed angry mobs of trolls and dwarves, as he cheerfully explains the criminal code–or the tax code–to hardened thieves, murderers, and tax-evaders. He’s not flawless and carries some of the prejudices of his upbringing with him, but he’s honest enough to see what’s right, and what he has to change in himself in order to make his adopted city a better place for everyone. We first meet Carrot in the book Guards! Guards!, where his idealism and hard work make such an impression on the Watch that he’s promoted quickly. In one of Terry Pratchett’s later books, Snuff, Carrot becomes Acting Commander of the Watch, while Vimes is forced to take a vacation.

More of my favorites in the Watch:
Angua
http://the0phrastus.tumblr.com/post/172602193231/sergeant-angua-of-the-ankh-morpork-city-watch
Detritus
http://the0phrastus.tumblr.com/post/172699455011/sergeant-detritus-of-the-ankh-morpork-city-watch
Cheery Littlebottom
http://the0phrastus.tumblr.com/post/173468117621/im-continuing-the-painting-series-of-my-favorite
Sam Vimes
http://the0phrastus.tumblr.com/post/173125339491/we-first-meet-sam-vimes-as-a-miserable-night-watch