[WIP] Chick with afro in sci fi/low fi exoskeleton

JGcount

Best description I could come up with:)

Hey guys, I need your help and oppinions once again.


So, after having finished my "first real" portfolie piece I started on my second - which will be my first high detail Zbrush sculpt. Im having fun with the program but I am having some different issues with certain aspects of the character right now:

Firstly: The afro just looks like a big cotton hat or something. Any good tips on how to do dense and puffy hair like that AND make it look like its attached to the head?

Secondly: Do you guys "buy" this exoeskeleton (eventhough its not finished and still needs the arms and a bunch of wires) Does it look believable? I think it does, but then again, I built it.

Base Model:


Zbrush



Ant crits are ofc welcome,
Thanks in advance guys

PS: Yes...yes there will be a big gun. That's why she needs the exoskeleton

maze

Hey JGcount, good you start a second piece, honestly I feel the 'exoskeleton' on this character is a bit weak, it does look more to me like she had a car accident or something and now she is using some sort of medical protesis.
I like the idea but I would put some more time concepting the skeleton, making it more high-tech in a logical way, and also giving it more 'volume' something that can not only support her but also give her some machine advange...if you can say so!, mmm maybe...curved to fit the anatomical proportions, as now it feels too rigid to me, might be because of the straight cilinders on the sides.

Sorry if I am being a bit harsh, hope to see this further man!

JGcount

Maze: I don't mind at all - I ask to get that kindof answer. So thanks alot for that.


I've been working further on the suit, cloth and posed her to make her feel more alive.

I think the suit looks more like a suit now and less like a someting you'd wear after a car accident but I am still very open and interested in idea what I could do to further it WITHOUT it becomming too high-tech'y and beefy. I like this lo fi, almost home made look.

(the gun looks weird because it hasnt been mirrored yet since it is still WIP)


Crits on anything are welcome.

moof

looks pretty cool! Do those servos and stuff work? As for your question do they look believable... I guess. They look like they belong on somebody with a serious hip/leg condition. Bit more medical looking than... augmentation. But there's way around that in texturing. Reserve my judgement till I see what you do with it.

ParoXum

Looks really good, the exo-skeleton reminds me of Forest Gump, not sure if that's good or not.

Character is interesting, with disco colors it would rock.

grimmrobe

I think the main problem I have with the exoskeleton would be that the bars and joints look designed to immobilize her legs. Particularly above the knee, where it's strapped to her thigh and then around her waist that whole area looks like it would be really awkward to walk in.

I guess it might be a lot of work but if you were to place her into an extreme pose like squatting down, you might find that the metal bits and the straps and so on begin to fight with the natural motion of her body.

One other suggestion would be to perhaps replace the current hip joint which is an area that would require more power than the knee or ankle with a larger bit of kit, like a discs or cogs on either side, or a larger motor.

Hope that is in some way helpful.

danshewan

I love the idea - kinda like 70's Blaxploitation meets Barbarella - but the exoskeleton really does look like something you'd need after being in a serious accident. It's well-executed, but it doesn't look very sci-fi. On top of that, it looks really uncomfortable, and doesn't fit with the sleek lines and curves of your character, or her pose.

I realize you're probably not looking to completely redesign the exoskeleton, but it'd be a shame to miss out on the potential of such a promising piece. Maybe something a little bulkier, but with slightly-stylized proportions? Maybe something along the lines of the Metal Gear ninja, with exaggerated plating?

Just a thought - awesome idea, though.

Der Hollander

I would have to add in that the exoskeleton bit looks weak, but I think that could be fixed by adding in some large plates like the Japanese folks are doing with their HAL exoskeleton design. Nothing too fancy, but something to get it out of the medical brace look and into more of a stability/ heavy lifting apparatus.

I have to call shenanigans on the physics of the shirt, I'm not buying it at all. The cloth is extremely fluid, looking like it has no means of supporting itself without it actually hanging from something, so without the strap on her shoulder, well, public decency laws might be in violation. I might either tone back the drapery or add in some sort of support.

Lastly, the hydraulic piston on the front of her knees doesn't look like it has any means of rotation, so the knees can't bend at all. It needs something to allow it to pivot on the lower end, else the knee supports (my favorite part of the model) are completely useless and her knees would be locked in place.

I'm digging the concept overall, it's something you don't see everyday and your models are solid. There's some great detailing going on, and it should be a really cool portfolio piece when it's done.

JGcount

Thanks for all the feedback, guys.

It is obvious something needs to be done about the exoskeleton - working on it right now eventhough I am not sure what exactly todo about it. I have a school deadline for her so there is noway I have time to scrap the exo and start over. Will have to salvage what I can.

Der Hollander:
Thanks for paying attention to the cloth aswel. Its my first time doing cloth, so I have a few clarifying questions.

When you talk about being fluid, I can definantly see what you mean around the cleavage area. Should I just make it a bit more "stiff" and less like a curtain?

And the cloth hanging on her right shoulder, does it look weird on its own or is it only because it feels weird that the top isn't falling of her right breast?

Thanks

roosterMAP

sexy. especially the fro.

Muzzoid

Why does it have to be an exoskeleton, and indeed not a contraption for helping a back injury patient walk?

Imo thats SO much more interesting.

EVIL

I would change the shoes into boots of some sort, something that looks less like old man slippers

The afro also looks a bit, unrealistic, like something that's propped up there like a hat instead of it being her actual hair.

but looks good, I like the use of an exoskeleton, although it might have a bit to medical look and not enough spacemarinechick!

the exoskeleton from deadspace looked sturdy and abuse proof, this looks like it would bend and break easily

JGcount

Muzz: The reason it has to be an exoskeleton is because I originally set out to make an exoskeleton and I don't like to make something else because I failed at what I intentionally set out todo.

That being said, yes I agree - medical contraptions are cool aswel.

Evil: yes - completely aware of the afro/hat issue, just havent gotten the time to work with it more.

The shoes are probably gonna stay as they are, since I really like them for contrast


Nevertheless, I toyed around abit and I think I came alot closer to a proper exoskeleton look.

Added more sci-fi servos at the hip, added hydraulics all the way along the back of the leg, added more cords, added rotation thingie for the front part of knee, added a second thigh strap, added a gun-arm for lifting the weapon and added a thigh plate that is doing a terrible job at keeping the cords together.

A guy with a scissor could take this chick out but I don't mind



Still haven't time to look at the hair and the clothes, and the gun still isn't finished. Guess this will teach me to have a more finished concept next time

As always, bring dem critz!

grimmrobe

Cool. I reckon the exo is looking way better, more flexible more powerful.

With her top I think that it is defying gravity somewhat, especially with the strap that far down her arm. Perhaps she's used some double sided tape.

Jeremi Eldridge

I know this isn't what you're going for but I think the main reason it looks like medical contraptions instead of a balancing device is because it's really not helping at all. Honestly to me if you need an exoskeleton (or some other device to keep yourself steady while using the gun) I would actually make it bigger and more impressive. This gun looks like the typical automatic rifles used in the military or like starship troopers, so to add an exoskeleton actually weakens your character instead of making them more bad ass. (If she needs reinforcement to fire such a small gun, than why is she cool?)

Before adding something because it's "cool" ask yourself how it benefits the character? Like if you were to draw up this concept, come up with a cool way to integrate the "exoskeleton" into her design. If you need a reinforcing exo skeleton, than look at things that can compare to your concept.

Since reinforcing her skeleton effectively makes her a turret, look at walking turrets in games like DAwn of War 40k or maybe Star Craft II, or even the new Iron Man 2 movie had some guys that grafted themselves into the ground before they started firing. If you have to ground yourself into the ground to fire something, it makes you that much more of a bad ass, wouldn't you agree?

Give her a gun worthy of reinforcing, and look at like Gears of War and other heavy mech games in order to look at those big armored pieces. If you gave this woman like big mech encased legs in order to keep her steady so she can fire like a cannon, that would be awesome. In concept art the constant thing they push on you is "silhouette value." If this woman was completely shaded in black, would she stand out? I would think that this concept could be made stronger if instead of asking "can you do it," is ask "why you should do it" and really push the character.

The idea behind this character is great, now you just need to push the execution. In art if you're gonna do reinforcement, than exaggerate it and make this awesome leg contraption, if she's gonna have a big gun, then make it a REALLY big gun that looks like it would need the reinforcement or can take down a building. Always better to have too much and tone it down than too little and tone it up.

Sorry if I rambled. >.>

EDIT: I think you could logically get by just having an upper body contraption as opposed to a lower body. If you really give her a strong reinforced arm and strengthen her upper body she should be fine. No need to reinforce the legs unless you're firing something with RIDICULOUS recoil power.

JGcount

Azuryon: Thanks for writing such an elaborate post. I agree with pretty much everything you said and I am actually enlargened the gun just before I read your post (I had been modeling it in a different scene so hadn't seen them together up until reasontly)

I am hesitant to make the exo too mech'y though. What originally inspired me was the exoskeleton research going on today because it has that rigid/edgy technology going on which I miss alot these days. Seems like every sci fi concept out there is about smooth lines and huge massive bulks of metal - where I really prefere the "low fi" feel of fx the Alien movies.
And now that you mentioned Iron Man 2: The feel of Whiplashes first suit is more what I want and is actually one of my inspirations for this one, whereas his second suit is exactly what I don't want.

Anyway,
The gun will be bigger

LRoy

I think the reason it's coming off as a medical brace is that it's too fragile looking. The exosuit from Aliens looked powerful. It was like a crane on legs.

I really like the concept though, the spine piece especially.

Jeremi Eldridge

Thats a great idea JGCount! As I said before I didn't know EXACTLY what you were going for but the fact that you said IM2 Whiplash's first suit really put it in perspective for me. So really like LRoy said you should just beef up the framework a bit. If you look at Whiplash's it was a network of metal across his back and nice strong looking bars.


The texturing will help it look less frail, but until then think about if you still need the leg braces if you reinforce her upper body enough. I tend to go asymmetrical a lot with character designs, if they have a big silhouette up top I try to make the bottom either even bigger or smaller to make it not one big block shape (which I will agree is a big issue with most of the futuristic mech designs). I honestly think if you build up some nice curve accentuation upper body pieces and strengthen those bars you may not need to go hardcore on the lower body pieces. But like everyone is saying you've got a great idea and it's coming along pretty awesome so far. Looking forward to what you do with it.