Unexplained Art in Tome of Battle Gallery

[Chambers]

There's some Art in the Book of Nine Swords Art Gallery (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/ag/20060816a&page=1) that isn't in the published book. Anyone have a word from WoTC about it? My guess is that they cut some game content from the book after the art order had already been fulfilled.

Stormblade! [Link (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99679.jpg)]. This looks like a depiction of a maneuver.
Discipline Embodiments! [One (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99715.jpg), Two (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99716.jpg), & Three (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99717.jpg)] These look some kind of elemental type creatures except for the last two. Pretty obvious they're tied to each discipline, Stone Dragon and Tiger Claw are the last two and easiest to identify. I see Diamond Mind and Desert Fire in the first set and Shadow Hand in the second set but I'm not sure about the others.
Script Fighter! [Link (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99719.jpg)] This looks like a type of construct, probably one that knows maneuvers. Maybe it can teach people maneuvers too?

[Ryuuk]

Maybe Iron Heart (top) and Setting Sun (mid) in the second one. If you go by Kamate, the Iron Heart legacy weapon, the discipline seems to like lightning, and the second one looks like a setting sun. Which leaves White Raven and Devoted spirit as the tower in the last one and the... thing in the back of the first one. Those are pretty out there, but neat nevertheless.

[Vanitas]

Script Fighter is a cursed Sparring Dummy of the Master. "Oh, so you want to take 5-ft steps?! I'll show you 5-ft steps!!"

[Mr Adventurer]

Apart from the script fighter that all looks like utter ****e; I can see why they cut it.

[(Un)Inspired]

The script fighter is C3PO if he were a warforged monk.

[lsfreak]

If you just showed me those without what they were attached to, I'd think the 3rd panel of Discipline Embodiments was pact magic stuff.
I'd say they're most likely
???, Diamond Mind and Desert Wind
Iron Heart, Setting Sun, and Shadow Hand
???, Stone Dragon and Tiger Claw
I would have missed Iron Heart except for the lightning connection, and Setting Sun doesn't seem to fit much except being red (but better than the two unknowns). The tower makes me think of chess, and therefore White Raven with its emphasis on movement, setting up allies for attacking, etc, and looking at the names of the swords in the gallery, it looks like White Raven was White Tower first, before a rename. But the multifaced-pinecone-with-an-arm thing, I don't get how that's Devoted Spirit.

And not much to go on, but I first thought of swordsage/sorcerer gish when I saw stormblade.

And unless I missed something, Diamond Swordmaster (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99666.jpg) is likely either a generic Diamond Mind picture or an abandoned PrC, not entirely sure what to make of the Noviciate (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99692.jpg) (EDIT: Woops, that IS in the book. On the title page. Shows you how much I've seen the title page...), and looking closer it seems that there were once Discipline Amulets that had the function Crowns of the White Raven do now, and Crown of the White Raven was something else originally (that's right in the book, but I never put it together before).

[(Un)Inspired]

And unless I missed something, Diamond Swordmaster (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99666.jpg) is likely either a generic Diamond Mind picture or an abandoned PrC, not entirely sure what to make of the Noviciate (http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99692.jpg) (EDIT: Woops, that IS in the book. On the title page. Shows you how much I've seen the title page...), and looking closer it seems that there were once Discipline Amulets that had the function Crowns of the White Raven do now, and Crown of the White Raven was something else originally (that's right in the book, but I never put it together before).

That picture is just a gith showing off his iggy pop body.

Edit: or it's a portrait of iggy pop holding a sword.

[Drachasor]

The script fighter is C3PO if he were a warforged monk.
I like it.

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99719.jpg
I'm fluent in over 6 million forms of non-verbal "communicaton".

[CIDE]

I really want to know more about the spirit warrior C3PO artwork.

[Particle_Man]

I think I read somewhere that the original conception/flavour of the 9 paths was different from the final product. Perhaps some of this art comes from the earlier conception?

[Thurbane]

"In Soviet Russia, Sparring Dummy of the Master hits you!"

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99719.jpg

[Vanitas]

"In Soviet Russia, Sparring Dummy of the Master hits you!"

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/tob_gallery/99719.jpg

Thurbane wins this thread.