Some sad news reached the Ultima fandom at the start of the month, which I’ve been lax in reporting: artist Greg Hildebrandt passed away on October 31st, at the age of 85.

Hildebrandt, who often worked alongside his brother Tim (who passed away in 2006), was famous for the paintings he worked on for Magic: The Gathering, Marvel, DC, as well as artwork based on The Lord of the Rings and other Tolkein stories. Oh, and also a certain poster for Star Wars:

Anyone who loves stories set in fantastical realms has likely seen art by the Brothers Hildebrandt, Greg and Tim. With a portfolio of illustration spanning the universes of “Star Wars,” J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth, Marvel and DC superheroes, the Magic: The Gathering game, and others, the Hildebrandts became all but ubiquitous in the wide world of far-out storytelling.

Educated at the Meinzinger Art School, the pair began to create together under the moniker the Brothers Hildebrandt in 1959. Their rise to prominence came in the 1970s, when they began making art for the official J.R.R. Tolkien calendars, their illustrations beautifying the 1976, ’77, and ’78 releases. At the same time, they were drafted to craft a revised version of a poster that has since become iconic in fandom: the famous white-bordered “Star Wars” poster featuring Luke Skywalker holding a lightsaber aloft, with Princess Leia at his feet and Darth Vader menacing in the background. It has since become one of the most recognizable images in history.

To Ultima fans, however, the brothers are perhaps best known for the iconic Ultima Online poster embedded above, and for Ultima 9’s Tapestry of Ages.

A full obituary, complete with tributes from other sci-fi/fantasy artists, can be found at Bleeding Cool.