Cyborg Assault SWAT Woman

MrHobo

UPDATE!:

So I'm doing a new thing because thats what you do. Keep doing new things and put them in your portfolio, until you get good.

So a while ago I saw this awesome illustration by Adrian Dadich and I thought hey that wold be a cool thing to do someday.


And now its someday
The goal is for a next gen realtime character in UE4 (I'll be texturing in Toolbag2 to start, final posing/lighting/etc in UE4), along with her gun. and because I hate myself, I'll be giving her a bike (a leftover from my Petrol/Blood entry that i didnt finish) as well.

I'll also be pushing things a bit farther than whats in the concept, I'll be replacing her lower legs with cyborg enhancements.

Here's the current progress on the head:
Keyshot test:

Zbrush:


and the monocycle:



There's still a ton of work to do but I think its time to share the progress and get some feedback. So as always if you see something is off and/or horrible lemme know.
Here's some of the reference I'll be using for the body.

DarkStar

Subscribed. Keep it up!!!

codyaq2

I use to work with Adrian, awesome artist, looking forward to seeing more

pongstah

looks interesting. Head sculpt and textures looks realistic.

beefaroni

Hmm. I should have mentioned this in hangouts. I don't think the bike really fits the character. It feels too chunky/low-tech compared to the relatively high-tech and slim cybernetics in the concept.

Anyways, looking forward to progress. N now I'm subbed.

slosh

nice work so far. her cranium looks to thin from the front and her head shape is a little off from the profile. her forehead slopes straight up which is a tad extreme. Also, I think the lower lip/jaw area could come forward just a tad. looking forward to more!

Di$array

This should be one hell of a piece. Good choice.

Slosh has made some great point about the head proportions, my only crit is that the cheekbones are too pronounced but it may read better when the back of the head is wider.

As for the bike, you may benefit from incorporating some of the same tech you’ll find on the character into the bike.

Brian "Panda" Choi

Charles, why you gotta scare everyone with these freaky ideas? :P

MrHobo

DarkStar- Will do!
codyaq2- Oh wow, thats so cool. Ive been following him on tumblr for a little while, really dig his style. Hopefully he wont mind me making a model out of his work
pongstah- I'll be shooting for something that look pretty real in the end.
beefaroni- Good point! I'll be fleshing out the character a bit more in terms of mechanics, which should bring things together a bit more design wise.
slosh- Most of your crits should be addressed in this update, though there's a bit more to tweak.
Di$array- Yeah I think the head shape is a bit better now after the adjustments. Thanks!
JadeEyePanda- Hey man freaky is where its at!

I wanted to post an update sooner but I got a really good paintover that Ive been iterating on after work. Theres still a few more things to update but I thinks its looking much better now. Im also going to be blocking out her cranial implants and her hair today.

Keyshot


Zbrush

slosh

Looks better from the profile but still a couple things...her cranium from the front is still way too narrow. Right now, her cranium is more narrow than her jaw line which would never be the case. Also, her ear looks a tad close to the back of her head. Still, I am digging the overall look of her face.

razz

First of all, thanks for bringing Adrian Dadich to my attention. I've seen his work before here and there, but never knew the name of the artist. Otherwise I can only agree with what others have said. I would also push the cheekbones up a little bit. Looking forward to see more of this!

Torch

Really liking it so far, looks like it would suit something like Mass effect pretty well imo. Keep it up!

MrHobo

@Slosh, The cranium should be a bit better now I hope, and I also nudged her ears forward a bit and adjusted the back of her skull from the profile.
@Razz, Happy to spread that guys name across the internet , I adjusted the cheeks a teensy bit too, thanks.
@Torch, Thanks!

Ok tonight update adjusted the forehead, brow, back of her skull, cheeks, and jaw. I also fixed her nose.
Oh and now her new eyes are in place. Feel a lot better about all of this then I did at first. Thanks for the crits so far everyone.

Keyshot:


Zbrush:

Brian "Panda" Choi

Charlie, where are you getting your references for the pores?

MrHobo

Do you mean in general or like for alphas?
Im using Lucy Lui as my reference for this face so I have a lot of images of her. But the main image for pores for her is a B&W high contrast image of her face.
In fact if you do a Google image search for images of high contrast, B&W portrait, photos you can find some great reference for pores and skin, stupid res examples to follow (Last one is my favorite):

http://www.photographybyben.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/IMG_1782_BW.jpg
http://www.photosbymelanie.com/yahoo_site_admin1/assets/images/BabyFaceBW.18213201_large.jpg
http://gennext.broncolor.com/fileadmin/upload_media/blog/jason-jia/04-black-and-white-portraits/gennext-jason-jia-bw-portrait-main.jpg
http://images6.alphacoders.com/309/309388.jpg
http://hdwyn.com/wallpaper_gray/gray_johnny_depp_bw_cigarillos_mustache_face_hd-wallpaper-26565.jpg
http://www.davidmoratilla.com/images/Portrait5_BW.jpg
http://12monthscreativity.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/dsc_0083_bw.jpg

In other news i just got back from work, I always have my most recent update as my wallpaper and after staring at it all day, i think i need to widen that cranium some more...

Brian "Panda" Choi

OH, okay. That definitely solves a lot of problems with my search techniques. I kept just putting in variation of "pores," but your key terms definitely yield better results, I think.

AtticusMars

Ears look very large

Good start otherwise

BARDLER

Her eyes are really wide apart which is making the shape of your eye socket look weird, especially in the 3/4 view. Maybe it is a stylistic choice but it did jump out to me. Looks really cool so far man.

MrHobo

Thanks AtticusMars, I double checked the ears against reference and they fall within the appropriate range. I did tweak the shape a bit so that might help with what you were seeing.

Thanks BARDLER, I triple checked the eyes against my reference again to be sure and it looks correct, roughly an eye length apart on my sculpt. When things start getting more fleshed out the weirdness will probably get toned down a bit.

Small update, Im probably not going to do too much more to the head and face form wise. I did adjust the ears and eye shape slightly. I also carved deeper into the eye socket to account for the lens of eyes. Before, you could see the socket clip through the body of the eye.
Barring any large scale errors, I'll probably get started working on her cranial implant and her hair tonight and see about blocking out the body over the coming week. I also might do some retop and a bake test over the weekend.

Keyshot test:


Zbrush:

Bonkahe

Man, her eyes got my attention, sub'ed keep up the sexy work.

codyaq2

The only issue i have is that maybe the eyes are angled a little bit too much. I nkow its going for a stylised look, but the angle seems a bit too much for my liking, looking awesome though.

Hofsta

Looking great so far. I would give her darker eyebrows with a harsher angle and a touch more makeup to steer it away from being cyborg Lucy Lui and closer to the original concept. I wouldn't go too heavy handed with it, but right now ( apart from the eyes) the face is looking a bit washed out.

Also will you be adding in the makings and screw port features that are on the face in the concept?

I would love to see some of your Keyshot process too. Those renders look really nice.

Looking forward to more!

MrHobo

Bankahe- Thanks man!
codyaq2- Thanks, Ive checked her eyes a few times against ref and they are appropriate. When eyelashes are fully applies everything should check out.
Hofsta- Good call on the eyebrows and makeup, I'll givem a touch up for the next update, thanks!
As for all the gear on her head, she'll have the main one on the side of her skull but I wont be doing the ones on the face, Id rather not sort through all that when I rig her face. I'll probably be doing the shapes on her forehead as some sort of tattoos as soon as I figure out what they would signify.

Also here's a quick thing I put together on my Keyshot process:




OK here's my current progress. Im happy with the body currently and I'll be working out her skin suit and vest as well as her arm and leg caps next. After some back and forth I decided to keep the proportions leaning more towards realism as opposed to the more extreme proportions in the illustration. I'll bring the lankiness and the height with her leg prosthetics and her extra arms.
I also worked out her cranial implant and started blocking out her hair cards.

Keyshot:


Zbrush:

Bonkahe

Hmmmm oddly enough I'm digging the slightly skinny/gaunt apearence, the more mechanical limbs/body parts she has the less strain is on her muscle, however there seems to be some odd topology issues around her hip region, I'm on a piece meal linux computer, but let me see if I can paint over and give it back to you.




I jotted down what I thought needed more care, now you are much better at anatomy than me so please take it with a grain of salt, or a few thousand. Keep up the good work Charles.

MrHobo

Thanks Bonkahe, I implimented some of your feedback, a lot is lost under her suit though... Speaking of which, hey look! its a thing thats happening! I still have to do the upper arm piece finish the bottom arm piece, some seams, then onto the arms and legs. Oh and her vest and shoulder pads too... Man this is a lot of work

Its probably worth mentioning now that these keyshot tests will be my fidelity targets in toolbag2/ue4.

Bonkahe

I..... didnt even thing about that. Suits looking sexy as hell though, you gonna make the left arm (from her perspective) robotic too?

Hofsta

That suit is looking great. Are you going to stick with the liquid leather look in the final textures or is it just placeholder?

A small crit, Something about her legs and hips looks off in the 3/4 angle. I think it's mainly how far in the thigh dips up toward the crotch, but there are also some strange wobbles in the thighs profile overall that seem odd. Not sure if I'm making any sense, if anyone else who is better with anatomy agrees with me and can word it properly maybe it will be helpful?

Keep up the stellar work man!

P.s thanks for sharing your keyshot setup. Very helpful!

MrHobo

@Bonkahe- Dont get me wrong you had very valid points and I ended up refining the rib cage a bit based on what you suggested, I just meant that a lot of that would be hidden under the suit.
From what I can tell her arms are not robotic but she has a harness type thing on both. I am currently building that out now.

@Hofsta- Happy the keyshot tips were helpful, Im never sure if Im just rehashing things other people already said or not
Im liking the liquid leather look to be honest, haven't decided yet if I want the whole suit to have that.. Im thinking about keeping a lot of the materials limited to Leathers, rubbers, and plastics with metals here and there where logical.

I will double check the legs (The undersuit is a seprate object so its not too hard to adjust things) but Im not sure that I see the wobbles in the silhouette. Im wondering if the way that I cut the fabric is throwing things off visually.

Crazy_pixel

I like your progress, she needs a badass pose Can't wait to see the final :thumbup:

gloriousczar

Thanks for the Keyshot quick tut! I was wondering how to do a render in that style.

I love those eyes and the details on the spine. Do you have any plans yet for colour scheme? I like the "all black but different variations of black" look that the suit has right now.

I think the bottom of the butt could use more sculpting and folding though.

Chantel-sky

I love how you did her eyes, looking forward to seeing this finished

MrHobo

I am super sorry for the late update work is grinding me down, but I have completed the hands and have an update on the body suit.
I actually have most of the arms, shoulder harness and the jacket built just not quite ready to present it for feedback, as soon as I get the jacket sculpted and finish off the arms I will share.

Hofsta

Lookin good man. I forgive you for taking so long.

Brian "Panda" Choi

How long did that hand take you, sir?!

Stirls

That is so clean. Love it. Keyshot?

MrHobo

@Hofsta- Thanks, updates should be more consistent now.
@JadeEyePanda- A couple weeks of evenings maybe a lil less. It's all poly modeled so it took a bit longer than it might have if done in Zbrush.
@Stiris- Yep it'll be all Keyshot for material/color previews until I get to low and bakes, then Toolbag2 and then UE4 for the finals.

Guess its worth mentioning now, but I decided this morning to replace the finger grips with more of a pad surface like I have on the palms. So that and arm work will be on the table for tonight.

MrHobo

Update!!!
Now with 100% more finished arms (and rough hair placement)!
The total black areas are still being built, I really wish I knew how the arms were resting on her body, but I have to wing it an guess based on what I can see from the illustration.

Im off this weekend so I intend to plow through build the back area and maybe sculpt the vest/shoulder pads or I'll start the legs/feet. So far I think this is turning into a not bad things.

... At some point I will need to redo her eyebrows and lashes but for now its all about the body.

MrHobo

Last night I blocked out the prosthetic legs in Zbrush, after a few more adjustments I'll dig into the modeling.

beefaroni

Hmm, the oversized calves and the flat feet feel a bit weird. I've mentioned this before, and im not sure really how far you are on the legs, but Yelena from Deus-Ex has some cool cybernetic legs.

MrHobo

I love her design in DX:HR and thought about something more stilt like in terms of legs but it became a balance issue (in terms of design and actual balance) and a matter of how far I wanted to stray from the concept.

Update time: Updated her skin and did work on the legs, they still need a lot of additional love and the attachment piece for the thigh needs to be made but this should give a good idea of where things are headed.

Chris Kuhner

Looking real nice, man. I agree with beefaroni, I'd suggest making the feet a bit smaller and/or possibly wearing some type of heel. That way her feet don't seem so heavy and floppy. I think it'll really benefit the overall flow & silhouette.

Really good work so far dude. Can't wait to see this one finished.

MrHobo

Coolies, Im going to test out a more shoe like foot and some additional changes and tweaks tonight tonight. Thanks for the feedback!

MrHobo

Small update.
The back stuff is done and Ive been reassigning materials on the arms in a few spots to give things a bit more structure. Im probably going to go for a more muted metal appearance but it is what it is for now.

I blocked out some boot feet to replace the flat ones as well. Whats left is sculpting the jacket and fixing the knees and refining the legs... Annnnnnd that gun... I really should remember.

I also threw the sculpt head (She has scalp hair now!) and fibermesh hair into TB2 just to see if my PC would implode... Which it did not do

Julien Noel

Really nice dude! keep it up!

Brian "Panda" Choi

Charlie, when you're baking the head, do you have the mouth partially open (assuming you also grabbing the interior of the mouth)?

razz

It's moving along really nicely. Could you show the texture maps for the head? Working on some texturing myself, could use a good example ;]

MrHobo

@Julien Noel- Thanks, Lots more to come!

@Brian- I have a base mesh that I work from with a mouth bag already apart of it.
What I do usually do is mask and open the mouth slightly and export subd level 1 or 2 depending on density and layout UV's. Then just bake like normal and rig it up.
Be careful though when opening the mouth, you might have to drop down to the lower levels and massage the corners of the mouth to keep them from getting wonky.

@Razz- Im at work right now but when I get home I'll post up the color map, there are no other maps on the head right now (Its just the sculpt in TB2 currently) except for a detail normal but I will share my default skin material settings, which I hope will help.

MrHobo

Here are my material settings for the skin:


And here is the current color map
I took my base poly paint (Seen on page 1) and blended it with a color map from a Ten24 female bust scan in PS. I then reapplied the texture to the sculpt in ZB and poly painted on additional details like the freckles and color in the pores. When i do the subsurface map I'll be pushing a lot more subtle things into her skin:

Brian "Panda" Choi

Looking forward to how you handle SS and Transluscency Maps. Documentation on how to approach them with Marmoset seems slim online. I'm currently ust basing my knowledge off of Xavier's sailor file and assuming adding noise increases the "realness" of it.

MrHobo

Its not so much noise. Its what that noise is signifying which is roughness of the skin surface. You can do a lot of that with a good detail normal map and mask and just a little noise in the gloss in some places. I haven't used and spec maps for my last couple of characters either.

Update! One week till GDC and I still have a boat load of work to do. Here's a first pass on the vest and shoulder pads/brace. I plan on finishing the sculpting on them tonight. Sorry I dont have zbrush shots but Im was in a bit of a rush.

I also changes the back part of the arms slightly. Hope fully its an improvement. And I desaturated her skin texture just a bit to make her a lil paler.

Dave Jr

Been watching this project for a while, loving the style ! keep it up