Plaits in ZBrush

So someone had a question in class yesterday about how to do plaits.  I typed something in the gotomeeting chat box about how an insert mesh can do it, but that's barely the start of the story!  Mulling it over on the way to Sainsbury's and back I figured I'd do a little how-to on plaits.  It's 10 steps, and took me under one hour to work out the theory in ZBrush and make the below in Photoshop.  Efficient use of time for making something historically rather complex.  Plus I'm logging it here as I'm not massively active in the ZBrush community but others in my class might be, and as this is such an elegant solution that I bet more people do characters with plaits so I wanted to time-stamp something here heh.

Stylized Character Design WIP

So I'm currently doing a course online through ZBrushWorkshops.com: Stylized Character Design with Michael Defeo. Learning a lot. Only on week three and because of the high level of anatomy focus it's been hard work. When we get to accessories and posing I'll be all over that but for now, it's surprising me how much actual anatomy we're dealing with in spite of the end-game being a non-realistic character.

Anyhoo, after a week's hard graft on the head of the gal that's the class default project, I felt like sharing my progress. For now I'll spare you phase one and two and leap to a fully painted up phase three.

Both Michael and I agreed she has appeal, even though there's something otherworldly about her.  She's going to be all dressed up in a space suit walking a wee dog when finished.  Next week is hair.  Bring it on!

Beastman Chaos Champion Turntable.

Associated turntable for my Beastman Chaos Champion project.

Beastman Chaos Champion Turntable from Tom Lewis on Vimeo.

Beastman Chaos Champion of Tzeentch

So I finally finished the project I was doing before Xmas cards.  Yikes, this one's been a slow one!  Not really sure what I can ascribe that to, although complexity may have had a hand in it.

Anyhoo, I give you, Traegor Galdbuck, Beastman Chaos Champion of Tzeentch (I'll come on to the backstory in a bit).

The seed here was a skull of a blackbuck antelope from my big book of skulls, and to do a daintier beastman, one that wasn't extrapolated from a burlier ungulate.  Tzeentch was chosen as the patron as I could use my Realm of Chaos book for backstory / ideas, and Nurgle discounted as I'd be forever on the skin doing numerable diseases (yeah this post requires mad levels of knowledge of Games Workshop in the 90s)

I like:

• Chestpiece - Fiddly, masses of detail, painted and sculpted, scratches, good result.
• Face - Brief fulfilled.
• Eyes - They're version four, and hand painted.
• Horns - Just right.
• Horror hand - Ludicrous but it works.
• Legs musculature - Largely made up, but it's sensible enough.

I dislike:

• Chainmail - It's too perfect, despite being sculpted geometry.
• Hoof hair - I should've added more further up getting progressively shorter.
• Photoshop composite - Wound up too saturated and not enough contrast, possibly, seems quite monitor dependent.  The 90s GW colour scheme didn't help there!
• Symmetrical ears - It'd be simple to just adjust one, an oversight.

NERDY BIT:  Okay so this chap's a patron of the chaos God of change, Tzeentch, hence the blue and gold colour scheme, and the choice of decals.  He's been awarded the following visible gifts in service to his God:  Hand of Tzeentch (the pink one, it's a manifestation of one of the demons of the God), Rune of Tzeentch (but on his right shoulder so you can't see it, check the turntable), and a warpstone charm, fashioned into his watch-like bracelet.  The runes behind him are correct for spelling his name and title.  The colour scheme is VERY Games Workshop circa 1992, with its very saturated look.  Souce material - Realm of Chaos - The Lost and the Damned, Games Workshop, 1990.