Could think of a backstory, then let that inform the design. Paintovers can help to quickly try things.
That's the problem with personal projects you know. Like for me it's easy think of stuff if somebody wants something like a sci fi mech or something. But when it's for your self it's hard to get motivated to think of something. Because I don't make anyone happy with my work, it's hard to finish or even start project. You know what I mean?
search artstation for similar designs, I'd say that more Insect / sea creatures+ implementation would help expand the "alien" look.
I don't use art station that much. I like pinterest more. You get more interesting things there. I mean nothing wrong with artstation. I love all the art there. But I feel like I get too much influenced by other artists if I only use artstation as reference. Maybe a personal thing
Don't think backstory has to be anything complicated or new. Could apply an existing one just it to get started. Take that Conan character for example: was taken as a child, enslaved, former gladiator (headbutts from that noggin must hurt), now out for revenge. In sci-fi probably. How would all that imprint on the alien?
the pauldron, vambrace, greaves and staff head don't really match the rest of the character imo. They're too chunky and shape-wise aren't visually interesting compared to the alien itself. Also think about weight distribution; if this were real life the armour would be a hindrance; not only are they thick and heavy but they don't cover any vitals; head or chest. They're also just floating there, held in place by thin cloth/leather pieces. If the alien were to move, the pauldron would immediately slip off and crush/sever his toes due to the weight.
I think what happened here is you're doing a realistic artstyle with the alien, but for armour you've been looking at stylized fantasy World of Warcraft/Starcraft armours, and I don't think it's working out well for you here.
What I'd do is look at real world references, make the pauldron smaller, and also consider adding more materials and armour variation; there's stuff like scale, mail, brigandine, cuir bouilli, and a whole host of other sort of 'medium' armours that you can mix and match to create a better visual gradient. Think about how the alien moves, fights, animates.
The staff has rings on the wrong side, making a good portion of the cutting area useless. Blade is way too thick. With an edged weapon you need a way to find edge alignment, so an oval or rectangular cross section haft would be more appropriate.
the pauldron, vambrace, greaves and staff head don't really match the rest of the character imo. They're too chunky and shape-wise aren't visually interesting compared to the alien itself. Also think about weight distribution; if this were real life the armour would be a hindrance; not only are they thick and heavy but they don't cover any vitals; head or chest. They're also just floating there, held in place by thin cloth/leather pieces. If the alien were to move, the pauldron would immediately slip off and crush/sever his toes due to the weight.
I think what happened here is you're doing a realistic artstyle with the alien, but for armour you've been looking at stylized fantasy World of Warcraft/Starcraft armours, and I don't think it's working out well for you here.
What I'd do is look at real world references, make the pauldron smaller, and also consider adding more materials and armour variation; there's stuff like scale, mail, brigandine, cuir bouilli, and a whole host of other sort of 'medium' armours that you can mix and match to create a better visual gradient. Think about how the alien moves, fights, animates.
The staff has rings on the wrong side, making a good portion of the cutting area useless. Blade is way too thick. With an edged weapon you need a way to find edge alignment, so an oval or rectangular cross section haft would be more appropriate.
Cool alien though
Thanks for the constructive feedback,
I have been struggling with making the character feel grounded. I think you made some grounded points.
The character has been developed out of doodling around in Zbrush. I started out with the head and did the body for anatomy practice. From there I liked the sketch and wanted to work it out into a full character. I didnt really know what to do with it but I didn't want to do another sci fi alien. So my idea was a more alien tribal gladiator.
I build on top of the character just looking for shapes and didn't really took a good look at reference. I do like the shapes and how it flows with everything but like you say I also feel something is disconnected. It is too stylized or maybe even too easy. It doesn't feel out of this world. I was scared to make a classical armor because it would be too humanoid and that's why the simplicity. I thought by keeping it tribal it would be easier to make it out of this world. But yeah it doesn't really feel true with the character or alien.
I will take a look at your tips, they help me in the right direction. I think the character does need something big because it is a big dude. Like a true classical armor wouldn't work either. Also I still want to stay away sci fi. I guess I have to do some research about armor. I haven't really looked into that yet. Maybe that will help. Guess I have to go play around and take some steps back.
yea it doesn't have to be classical/contemporary plate armour, it wouldn't suit the character like you said. It's a great source of learning and inspiration though. You can think of it analogous to being able to sculpt alien anatomy because you understand how human anatomy works, with all of it's muscular insertions and connection points, how muscle connects to bone, etc.
If you understand classical armour you can take that knowledge and make some really convincing fantasy or scifi armour, made with different materials and in a different context.
A good place to start would probably be asking "how does he armour himself? How does he put it on?" and also "what will he be fighting? Is this armour designed to protect against the threats he will face as well as aid in his intended combat style?"
As he's also a gladiator, the armour might also have more of a showmanship attribute to it, so it might not be entirely for functional purposes either. Thinking about what the rules for alien gladiators are could help too. Maybe they paint marking on themselves, or can only hit each other in certain areas or risk penalties, there's lots of room for interesting ideas here.
Wealth is also something to consider. Is he rich? Poor? In slavery? His financial situation will dictate his possessions and what materials they are made of, unless there's a governing body which only allows certain provided-for equipment.
I liked the initial head design more. The shield looks cool, but I'd change round concaves for some interesting spikes/claws. Big shoulder pad looks a bit too flat and simplistic as well as shin protection.
As for the story, the character can have regenerative abilities. So he doesn't need a lot of protection. And as for the size of the armor, it can be made from an alien tech ultra-lightweight materials/polymers. So the size is not an issue. My 2 cents.
I liked the initial head design more. The shield looks cool, but I'd change round concaves for some interesting spikes/claws. Big shoulder pad looks a bit too flat and simplistic as well as shin protection.
As for the story, the character can have regenerative abilities. So he doesn't need a lot of protection. And as for the size of the armor, it can be made from an alien tech ultra-lightweight materials/polymers. So the size is not an issue. My 2 cents.
Thanks for the constructive feedback,
You are right, I like the head too (it's still the same head just with a helmet). I could have worked it out and let it be more a monk then the eye would be more focussed on the face but on the way I ended up at gladiators. The whole helmet takes away the attention from the unique alien head but the helmet also supports a lot of the shape language in the character. In my head the character is a gladiator in a alien arena. I was more thinking like the aliens from the movie 'John carter' so less sci fi. Maybe a bit less barbaric and more a link with the roman gladiator. Then the helmet would make more sense being a gladiator. Also those gladiators had a lot of exposed body parts, something like the hoplomachus gladiator.
The big shoulders you are right about. I want some rest areas for the eye but I think it can use some more interesting shapes. It's a bit too easy. I'm going to look at that. Also I feel like the big shoulder pad isn't that matchy with the rest of the armor. It need some more work.
I'm trying to balance a strong unique silhouette to make the character stand out and be interesting to look at but yet keep it a bit grounded by trying to do some research about armor. It's a challenge. I'm learning as I go.
A personal project I'm working on.
Replies
That's the problem with personal projects you know. Like for me it's easy think of stuff if somebody wants something like a sci fi mech or something. But when it's for your self it's hard to get motivated to think of something. Because I don't make anyone happy with my work, it's hard to finish or even start project. You know what I mean?
I don't use art station that much. I like pinterest more. You get more interesting things there. I mean nothing wrong with artstation. I love all the art there. But I feel like I get too much influenced by other artists if I only use artstation as reference. Maybe a personal thing
I think what happened here is you're doing a realistic artstyle with the alien, but for armour you've been looking at stylized fantasy World of Warcraft/Starcraft armours, and I don't think it's working out well for you here.
What I'd do is look at real world references, make the pauldron smaller, and also consider adding more materials and armour variation; there's stuff like scale, mail, brigandine, cuir bouilli, and a whole host of other sort of 'medium' armours that you can mix and match to create a better visual gradient. Think about how the alien moves, fights, animates.
The staff has rings on the wrong side, making a good portion of the cutting area useless. Blade is way too thick. With an edged weapon you need a way to find edge alignment, so an oval or rectangular cross section haft would be more appropriate.
Cool alien though
Thanks for the constructive feedback,
I have been struggling with making the character feel grounded. I think you made some grounded points.
The character has been developed out of doodling around in Zbrush. I started out with the head and did the body for anatomy practice. From there I liked the sketch and wanted to work it out into a full character. I didnt really know what to do with it but I didn't want to do another sci fi alien. So my idea was a more alien tribal gladiator.
I build on top of the character just looking for shapes and didn't really took a good look at reference. I do like the shapes and how it flows with everything but like you say I also feel something is disconnected. It is too stylized or maybe even too easy. It doesn't feel out of this world. I was scared to make a classical armor because it would be too humanoid and that's why the simplicity. I thought by keeping it tribal it would be easier to make it out of this world. But yeah it doesn't really feel true with the character or alien.
I will take a look at your tips, they help me in the right direction. I think the character does need something big because it is a big dude. Like a true classical armor wouldn't work either. Also I still want to stay away sci fi. I guess I have to do some research about armor. I haven't really looked into that yet. Maybe that will help. Guess I have to go play around and take some steps back.
Thanks for the tips
If you understand classical armour you can take that knowledge and make some really convincing fantasy or scifi armour, made with different materials and in a different context.
A good place to start would probably be asking "how does he armour himself? How does he put it on?" and also "what will he be fighting? Is this armour designed to protect against the threats he will face as well as aid in his intended combat style?"
As he's also a gladiator, the armour might also have more of a showmanship attribute to it, so it might not be entirely for functional purposes either. Thinking about what the rules for alien gladiators are could help too. Maybe they paint marking on themselves, or can only hit each other in certain areas or risk penalties, there's lots of room for interesting ideas here.
Wealth is also something to consider. Is he rich? Poor? In slavery? His financial situation will dictate his possessions and what materials they are made of, unless there's a governing body which only allows certain provided-for equipment.
Big shoulder pad looks a bit too flat and simplistic as well as shin protection.
As for the story, the character can have regenerative abilities. So he doesn't need a lot of protection. And as for the size of the armor, it can be made from an alien tech ultra-lightweight materials/polymers. So the size is not an issue. My 2 cents.
Thanks for the constructive feedback,
You are right, I like the head too (it's still the same head just with a helmet). I could have worked it out and let it be more a monk then the eye would be more focussed on the face but on the way I ended up at gladiators. The whole helmet takes away the attention from the unique alien head but the helmet also supports a lot of the shape language in the character. In my head the character is a gladiator in a alien arena. I was more thinking like the aliens from the movie 'John carter' so less sci fi. Maybe a bit less barbaric and more a link with the roman gladiator. Then the helmet would make more sense being a gladiator. Also those gladiators had a lot of exposed body parts, something like the hoplomachus gladiator.
The big shoulders you are right about. I want some rest areas for the eye but I think it can use some more interesting shapes. It's a bit too easy. I'm going to look at that. Also I feel like the big shoulder pad isn't that matchy with the rest of the armor. It need some more work.
I'm trying to balance a strong unique silhouette to make the character stand out and be interesting to look at but yet keep it a bit grounded by trying to do some research about armor. It's a challenge. I'm learning as I go.