Comp #18---((YOUR DARK SIDE))---Comp #18

[BiG ToE-3DT]

Low Poly Mini Contest #18
Subject – Your Dark Side

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g129/DJBiGToE/darkside.jpg

ALL WIPS AND CONCEPTS ARE TO BE KEPT IN THIS THREAD.

Guide Lines:

You know the voice that keeps talking to you, whispering in your ear, telling you to do “bad” things. The same voice that has you taking a shower once a week and eating sweets before dinner. Not to mention driving 2, 3, 4, or even 5 mph/kph over the speed limit. That voice is your dark side, and it is time for your dark side to see the light.

The best part about this comp, which is the same thing with all our competitions; there are no limits/restrictions to what you can’t think up. Go wild with this, have as much fun as you can with this. It truly is a time to shine. I only ask that you keep this comp crazy.

The specs for this competition are the same as the last (10,000 total tris), it may sound like a lot, but the idea is to keep you all ready for the up-coming Dominances War. We need to defend our championship. So consider this more training. You get about 6 weeks, so do not try and over do it. I want people to finish. So start now.

Above all,
Have Fun!


Judging: 3 categories of judging will apply. 10 points possible for each:

Concept - How well your idea fits the topic
Model – How well the geometry is structured, how well it looks like the subject.
Texture – How well the texture space has been used, and how well the texture is painted/applied.

DUE DATE: December 9th: a Sunday, 6 weeks and a few days from today! 11:59 pm GMT - SUNDAY

Idea:
Your mission if you choose to accept it, will be to show your dark side, the light.

Poly limit:
10,000 Tris Total. You can do whatever you want with these, just don’t get carried away and don’t exceed the 10,000 Tri Limit. Remember, the limit tells you where to stop, there is no minimum, so use as much of the limit as you see fit.

Textures:
(1) 2048 x 2048 texture. This means (1) 2048 for color, (1) 2048 for bump, (1) 2048 for normal, (1) 2048 opacity, so on and so forth. You can chop it up into whatever you want, but you still need to go all out in your texture.

Textures can be hand-painted or you can use photographic sources. Do what you do.

Prizes:

Great ranges of products from 3DTotal shop:

-Digital Art Masters Book - Vol1
-Design Studio Press books
-texture CDs
-Shorts DVDs
-Lots of training DVDs
-12 month subscriptions to 3DCreative Magazine
-12 month subscriptions to 2DArtist Magazine
-SwordMaster
- Joan of Arc
-Elements Digital Painting Tutorial Series volume 1 & 2
-Plug-in Blue Cherry

1st Place
Any 3 items from the 3DTotal Shop. as list aboved, and 12 month subscriptions to 3DCreative Magazine and 2DArtist Magazine.

2nd Place
Any 2 items from the 3DTotal Shop as listed above

3rd Place
Any 1 item from the 3DTotal Shop as listed above

Final Pictures:

Required In The Final Post (1 post per entry):

- 1 x Winning pose shot. This image can only have "One" pose of your character. No multiple shots or different angles. Just one!

- 1 x Beauty shot of your character. Feel free to put multiple angles of your character or just one big version or your character on this page. Even better, try to composite a nice art piece similar to the ones in the Winners' Gallery. Be careful how you do this though, simple is often better. It’s up to you. Also add a picture of the character your redesigning. Like a before and after type thing.

- 1 x wire frame shot of your character. Feel free to put multiple wire frame shots or just one big wire frame shot on this page. It is up to you. Must have polycount included.

- 1 x texture sheet that includes all your used sheets squeezed into "one" sheet.

- Concept Sheet (Only if you have a concept)

You must provide a screen grab of your wire frame with your poly count, with the actual model and all its parts selected. Please don’t Photoshop your Poly counter with a bogus count. Make sure you post all work in progress, including final poly counts and wire frames in the work in progress thread.


A Final Entry Thread will be up and waiting around the end of the third week/beginning of fourth week. Don’t forget to submit your work by posting it in the final thread.

Good luck everyone!
BiG ToE.

[omnicypher]

im thinking evil clown for this one. fat, greasy, disgusting, posessed evil clown... on a unicycle juggling 2 severed heads and a machete!

[defaultalias]

man, you guys don't waste any time setting things up now days...

WAIT!

we have prizes this time!? thats awesome.

[shadowbreeze]

wow nice tri limit, that got me I'm in:smug:

[EvilKnight]

Mmmmh, since I couldnt finish the last one due to computer restrictions (too slow)!!! I'm not 100% sure I'll be in this one! Although it seems great cause of the nice prices, and also the Topic kicks ass!!!!

I'll let you guys know later on!

[omnicypher]

i jumped right in with a 10 minute base mesh and started zbrushing a concept. its a bit early to be adding color, but i might just use this as my concept phase.

[poopipe]

wow, loads of polygons.

This is going to make a change from working for a renderer that belongs in the late 90s

[L3XICON]

nice start omnicypher :D clowns always scared the hell out of me for some unknown reason =/

well, hopefully I shall be taking part yet again :) though not sure yet what lines to go down on this one.

I am thinking of either. a werewolf / beastman. The embodyment of all those animal desires that we humans get from time to time.
or a pair of models. a styalised duo of good cop and naughty crook ;p

i ll do some concepts when I finally get some time out of work,

[Tetsuya]

I'll start sketching concepts today, should i go with a cool scary one or a cute and cuddly one O_o

gl to everyone

[DaddyDoom]

my darkside would probably resemble an IRS agent...

[Mosmuis]

*quick reply*

w00t i 'm in.. i know, i know. stil need to finish the last contest :$ but wil do that in a sperate thread. already have a cool idea for this one. sketching/thinking atm about it :) wil post it later (first time i ever have a concept before i start i think :p )

*EDIT*

ok got a few drawings up.. wil post the 'story' behind it soon :p (because yes there is! ) just silly webcam shots btw ^_^ the general idea is to make 4 of these guys. splitting up the specs for this comp.. and making them a bit different or with there own advantages or something :)

[katana]

I'll step in to this mess as well, is the concept supposed to be a self-portrait as well, or just a representation of what you believe your dark side is?...Thanks.

[bb0x]

count me in....over 3 weeks XD


and katana if you see your dark side as a huge ass mofo evil dragon then so be it... alltough it would have been cool if you hadmade something that says that it really i you.

[katana]

count me in....over 3 weeks XD


and katana if you see your dark side as a huge ass mofo evil dragon then so be it... alltough it would have been cool if you hadmade something that says that it really i you.


yep..already got it layed out....love that lunch break.

[defaultalias]

cool. i get to make a faceless dude then. going to go for a silent hill kinda look and really try to stick with it this time around. my portfolio is getting thin...

[Robbiek1000]

I think i got a pretty cool idea in mind for this contest. Lets just hope i have the time to pull it off. Concept TIME!

[HollowReaper]

I believe I'll do this one for sure, we'll see though what kind of concept i can get for it, would be fun to get into this and finish one for sure. I think I'll try to do some kind of rocky/lava evil type dude or something lol.

[katana]

I thought that I would start a separate thread in the WIP section, for my own process and then post occasional wips here, that way I won't clog up the thread...any issue with this?

[yoyomon]

Interesting, if I get the time, I might join. I'll probably do something more along the line of a self portrait.

[Mosmuis]

I thought that I would start a separate thread in the WIP section, for my own process and then post occasional wips here, that way I won't clog up the thread...any issue with this?

from the start post

"ALL WIPS AND CONCEPTS ARE TO BE KEPT IN THIS THREAD."

that should answer your question ;)

i am curious to see every one there designs :eek:

[katana]

Yea I read that, but I thought I would ask anyway...guess I'll go to the scanner now...lol.

[katana]

OK, so while I was at work, I was able to layout my idea. Given the fact that I don't have a dark side (yea right) it was pretty difficult to figure out what to do (not really - it came to me quickly). I have disposed of the idea of going with a self portrait, because my work flow over the past year and a half changed to drawing a lot of simple figures for poses and proportion. I used this same technique when I conceived my Nautical Dwarf. It works well for me, but no one ever really knows just how many of these guys I draw, so I started with that. I love rabbits, so naturally, my darker self would hate them, I mean pure loathe and oppression hatred. I also use pen exclusively for my sketch work, so that became my weapon. Initially I wanted to use a writing pen, as it has a nicer shape, but I have decided to go with a technical one to show artist and not writer. I make notes and quotes if they come to me. And i like the archaic armor with a modern twist, with lights...so in went that. In the end we have a villain carrying out the extermination of a primitive, but not defenseless band of rabbits who are in a state of rebellion....

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/layoutnotes.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/prelim1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/prelim2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/prelim3.jpg

[Robbiek1000]

Great stuff Katana keep it up!

OK, so I decided to kinda go the same route. I tried to think if things that I hate about...well, people. I used that for the start of my design then moved forward and thought about things that creep me out and freak me out, and BLAM...my darkside, or at least the start of it anyway.

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k187/Robbiek800/Dark%20Side%20Contest/Darkside.jpg

[Robbiek1000]

you know I was just thinking Katana. You say you love bunnies....what if you did an evil bunny for your design....you know some kinda of creepy bunny that made you hate bunnies if you looked at that evil, evil rabbit! Your evil side wouldn't hate bunnies.....your evil side would be an evil ugly BUNNY!!!!

[katana]

you know I was just thinking Katana. You say you love bunnies....what if you did an evil bunny for your design....you know some kinda of creepy bunny that made you hate bunnies if you looked at that evil, evil rabbit! Your evil side wouldn't hate bunnies.....your evil side would be an evil ugly BUNNY!!!!

Yea, I did consider that, but i just can't bring myself to draw an evil rabbit...

...And a Hare shall rise...


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/RGKatana.jpg

[L3XICON]

lol, i love the idea of the rabbit killing hare ;p

I have had a change of heart, and am gently sliding over towards doing more of an 'evil me' kind of concept though very styalised :D. very quick 10 minutes in photoshop..

[Fenixy]

katana: this ass kicking rabbit xD

L3XICON: nice start

Robbiek1000: trying to imaginate your good side O_o

So, since my last model was prity easy, this time i want to make somthing... more complex.
My dark side, whene i sought about it i just closed my eyes and imaginated how do i feel whene i realy mad, and i want to burn and destroy evrything >=).So here is my dark side

http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/2339/dark2copysc7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[x99x]

I keep checking back for something to get me started posting in these competitions so im hoping this is going to be my first because i like some of the ideas i see, looks like were gonna have some great submissions for this one.

Katana, Im especially lovin yours man. The Design, the idea, the background, all of it. At first reading the description i didnt quite know where you were goin with it but i love the concepts, lookin forward to seeing what you do with it.

[yoyomon]

Looks like it's starting to pick up already. It's kinda contradictoray to have a fluffy bunny as an evil side, but hey, sometimes it's the most unexpected things that are the most umm evil ;) . I did a quick concept. Decided to do something more human and modern. The RPG is something random I plopped in there, doubt it'll stay. If I get time, I'll flesh him out more over the weekend.

http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/8718/teaserconceptbl4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/8718/teaserconceptbl4.31b791fb5b.jpg (http://g.imageshack.us/g.php?h=522&i=teaserconceptbl4.jpg)

[BenniKImmel]

Okay, my concept so far. And, before the picture, a bit of reason why I chose this. A lot of people picture a dark side as huge, or grotesque, or along those lines (with exceptions like some of the posters here) And I wanted to go for something more elegant, not physically imposing but intimidating. So my Dark Side would be a tall, alienish creature that isnt physically built, but intimidates.
http://img507.imageshack.us/img507/2323/concepttoshowcopyoc6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

C&C Very Appreciated!
P.S. Head will be done seperate, I suck at drawing heads in a small scale :)

[Robbiek1000]

yoyomon - love that concept! Stick with it!

[Mosmuis]

wow you all have such great idea's! :) cant wait to see the first start of every model :D

i'm stil drawing / thinking of idea's to get the 4 guys together but already started a smal bit on the first one :) , trying to keep it under 2500 tr's each (including weapons/ armor / wings / etc)

[L3XICON]

Goust great concept man! looks awesome, and the flaming arm is a nice touch :D

yoyoman looking great, really like the design for the long coat. he isnt looking terribly evil at the moment though, (except for the ruddy great RPG strapped to his back ;p) look forward to seeing how you develop this :)

ok another couple of veru quick concepts from me, to try and get a feel for the character I want. one of these concepts (with white background) is actually something I did years ago when bored, but I caught a glimpse of it while going through some old documents and thought that as an ultra styalised concept it could work for this challenge :)

[setschaos]

Ok then, this competition looks very promising! Now that mid-terms are over, I actually have a chance at focusing on this piece. I decided to go for a more representative image of myself than just a dark creature. I used symbolism more than image likeness though, hope it counts. Vans shoes, Black and gold regalia (school colors)

[SeanBear]

Ok. I'm gonna join in with this one...seeing as i haven't able to for over a year!
Here's my concept...(quick sketch in photoshop)...
Its how i could of turned out if a couple events in my life had happended a little different. I was pretty messed up around 18-19... doing stupid things with the wrong people... got kinda serious but i managed to get out early enough. So this is me if i hadn't...if i actually had of been sent to prison. The Evil me!!!
He broke out though... note the hacked up arm still hanging from the handcuffs. Not the final version... still thinking of a couple details i want to add.

[SeanBear]

L3XICON: & setschaos:

Sketeches look sweet:cool: you use a tablet?

[Tank[NL]]

hey all. been some time isnce my last post here. been kinda busy with new school. got some cool projects tho. but they suck up time. i was really hoping i would have to finish the last comp. i would love to join in on this one aswell. hope i can finish this time.

some cool looking concepts going around already. lets hope next term is gonna be a bit slower...i doubt it tho :P

[L3XICON]

thanks SeanBear :D and nop, all done with mouse. I really want a wacom but bank manager says no =/

[Fenixy]

wow, this topic becomes some pice of art O_O

L3XICON mouse? i dont belive it, buy some tablet that cost 90$ its not big but its a tablet.And i like "evel game developer" :D
here is last sketching so i am ready for modeling

p.s fast question: enyone know what the best way to create glow for low poly character in 3ds max?

http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/9711/frontconcetzg2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[katana]

More 'at work' concepts...working in some detail. I have a bit more to fill in on the page I'm working here at the house, so I'll hopefully will post some more tonight...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/prelim4.jpg

[setschaos]

SeanBear: Thanks for the comment, I actually (now feeling like even more of a loser) do use a tablet. L3XICON, you rock man, I really liked your last entry in comp# 17. Keep up the good work everyone, progress is looking fantastic.

BTW I changed my concept a little bit, thought I'd slap it in with the lot of compliments ^_^

[katana]

...And if you all aren't already sick of my postings...here's tonights work, in between watching Resident Evil.....I figure one more night of working out some details and then start working up the model over the weekend. Since I have to learn all of the various maps still (I've only done Texture/bump and Alpha). it will take the whole term of this project....as always...crits welcome...although it is early...thanks for looking.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/prelim5.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/prelim6.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/prelim7.jpg

Quick question...do you all think that the next DW will continue the machine theme for this site?

[BenniKImmel]

Everyones drawings are looking really good
Katana: Looking at the gun drawing with the rabbits on the side of it made me think of like, having scratch marks where hes been counting how many he has killed, dont know why though.

[katana]

That's what they are....kill markings...The pen will be a weapon.

[Keylitho]

Well I think this is what my dark side would do if it could see the light, because I spend way to much time working and not enough time playing..:D

[L3XICON]

setschaos thanks mate :) glad you like. and might I add that your concept is frankly awesome! reminds me a lot of Tim Burton's sketches. great work, and really looking forward to seeing this modelled.

katana really like your sketching style. and not getting sick of your concepts. keep posting them, i am enjoying each and every one :) it is really instructive seeing peoples concept development, as for me it is almost certainly the most important and vital stage of doing a model like this.

keylitho lol i like it. I think most people who use a computer on a daily basis will have a twinge of happiness seeing one being brought low by an angry evil man weilding a large weapon ;p

Goust :p I've being 2d digital art for many more years than I have 3d :D I did a few years back buy myself a really cheap £15 tablet. but it was clunky and so in-precise it made me feel drunk.. really one of these days I will get myself at least a semi-decent one, and try to get to grips with it.
btw dude your concept is looking really awesome.

as for doing a glow in 3ds.....
well my initial response would be to use the volume fog environmet effect. but I am not sure if that would be within the rules of the competition or not.
My second response would be to setup the arm itself with a self-illumination map and more geometry around it with a low opacity map to create the 'glow'
thinking about this actually got me intrigued, so I thought I would give it a blast :P

ignore the terrible quick modelling and texturing, but this is possibly one way you could think about doing it...

[poopipe]

looking good in here so far isn't it?
I won't rant on about everybody but setschaos: im liking that one a lot


I spent an hour or two fiddling with artrage and this came out of my head.

I'm still thinking but I'm kind of happy with the basic idea, suspenders, scary feature free face and the extra hands coming out of his back. I'm thinking he needs embellishments so I'll revisit with a fresh head on before running off to Max.

I don't need to tell you whats under the black box - if I put a bag over the end does it still count as nudity?

[DaddyDoom]

you could wrap it around the waist and call it a belt :D

[poopipe]

har :D

I'd have to make it longer and it wouldn't be entirely accurate anymore.

[MaggieQue]

Poopipe: It's kind of SM...haha.
L3xicon: I like the vertices topology for hand!

[Tank[NL]]

L3XICON: cool little mini-tut you made. should come in handy....

srry, bad joke.

i got a concept ready. i want to stick close to the theme, and make an evil me. so im gonna be make a character very much based on myself. the concept is more for feel and mood and stuff, then a real guide.

http://www.firstcelestialwar.com/pics/evil-me2.jpg

hope i will be able to finish. still bummed about the last comp, not finishing.

[Fenixy]

L3XICON my 2d is prity sux, i started learning it some weeks ago, yet have big anatomy problems. That exemple you did looks awsome, i think with normal maps and rendered glow(just discoverd glow is simulated by game engine :P) shuld looks fine, thx for fire texture idea =)

[Leandro SH]

Hi fellas! my first try on a contest here. :halo:

Thinking about my dark side at home and trying to be creative and crazy... I looked at my gold fish... he looked back at me...and I started thinking... It could be the little devil that wispers naughty ideas into my ears...so here is.

Gold fish ready for chaos! :P

[Robbiek1000]

Hey everyone, I see a lot of stuff that I like....keep it up guys!!

Heres a little update of what I'm up to right now. I'm looking for a little C&C. This head only has a turbo smooth on it right now, but plan on making it very detailed in mudbox once i get the body finished.

Heres my big question....ears or no ears? I was thinking about making it look like they were cut off.....but i don't know.....maybe you guys can help.

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k187/Robbiek800/Dark%20Side%20Contest/wip_1.jpg

BTW those are metal spikes through his eyes!

[BiG ToE-3DT]

no ears, or at least one ear missing and the other had a run in with Mike Tyson.

[katana]

So I think I have enough on paper to commit to a full color comp. The two things that I haven't shown is the loading mechanism on the launcher, which i imagine will either be a cartridge system built into the weapon or loaded from the back. The other thing is the fletchets themselves, which I envision being something like Blade's spikes in a bandolier....and no set of concepts would be complete without a look at the rabbits....crits welcome and also if you all prefer one lower torso over another, let me know...good luck all...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/headstudy.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/armstudy.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/torsostudy1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/torsostudy2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/rabbitstudy.jpg

[Fenixy]

katana so he is your dark side who shoting rabits from rocketlouncher or somthing? :smug: i am confused.
I just get trial of 3ds max 2008 and first new thing i found is this (viewport scrin) O_O yet i dont realy know how it works

http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/7271/glowwwkx7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[katana]

Yep. I like rabbits, so naturally my dark side would loathe them...hence the extermination....I was even thinking of giving him bunny rabbit slipper's...

[Pedro Toledo]

This is going to be a great contest :)

Leandro, he could have a bunch of dead cat skulls on a belt or something. It's payback time!

setschaos - cool concept man!

yoyomon - That's very nice too, nice realistic approach. Is he (you) holding a camera? First he shoots his bazooka then he takes some pictures to enjoy later?!?


I'll keep coming here, really wanna see how this contest goes.

Good luck to all you guys! :dance:

[omnicypher]

i think im going to change my concept. killer clowns are so over done and they really dont represent me well. i think im going to start with a self portrait to some degree and evil it up a bit. does anyone know how to make multiple morph targets and render the transition? in max or in zbrush2? if i can just figure that out, this could turn into a pretty sweet avatar.

[BiG ToE-3DT]

omnicypher: what do you mean by render the transitions. Cant you just render out a short animation cycling the the morph targets? Giving each target like 30 or so frames of face time.

[omnicypher]

well i wasnt sure how to acctually use morph targets on max. on zbrush 2 i can make a single morph target and morph to it, but i dont think i can make multiples. but on max i found a tutorial, but i havent found time to follow it. i started a new head and heres what i got so far.

[katana]

Question about model work flow..I read through the DW pages and some prefer LP/UV mapping and then HP. other's I've seen go the route of HP/ LP and then UV...is there any advantage of one over the other or is it personal preference? Also to reask, do you all think that DW3 will continue the Machine theme?

[lampshadehead]

This sounds awesome, glad to see this topic was chosen :)

I'm just a hobbyist, and this would be my first competition. I hope to get some sketches up here soon, woo!

Seen some awesome stuff in this contest already, keep up the good work everyone :)

[BiG ToE-3DT]

katana: for the Dom War 3, the theme will be different, infact, this time around each site will have to fight it out in a one week comp to see who gets to pick the theme for their site. As for the high to low/low to high. Its really up to you. I do low poly first because thats whats needed to enter the competition, if there is time, I'll use the low to create a high, the people that do high poly first, do so to get the best normal map results. But if you play with your normal map enough you will get good results either way.

[L3XICON]

omnicypher looking good so far mate, good edge flow on the face :)

ok an update from me. not sure if i am happy yet with the evil grinning face, but I am happy ith the clothing :D

[katana]

Nice L3xicon...and thanks for the response...that helps.

[Leandro SH]

Real nice L3xicon. I like the proportions.

[Pedro Toledo]

omnicypher - You can use ZBrush Layers to create different morph targets too.
Create your model with all details, then create a new layer for your tool and tweak it. This layer will work as a morph target.

Katana - For the High poly/Low poly workflow, I truly believe you will get nicer model when starting from the High poly model and then making a retopo mesh out of it. I'm using Topogun now for this purpose, but you may use Silo, Polyboost (for Max) and I know there are other plugins as well for Maya and other softwares.

As Big Toe said, starting from the low poly is good when you have a tight deadline, after all what you will really use in-game is the low poly. So, if you start from it you know you will have something usable at the end.

Cool model L3XICON!

[Marv]

So here he is. The evil lord of my subconscious. I didn't want him to look entirely evil. More like a trickster that fools you into doing stupid and evil things. A corward working in the shadows. Will work some more on the concept, then on to making image planes.
Pls C&C

[Mosmuis]

*quick reply*

looking nice to all so far :D

update on my end,, just a start :)

[Robbiek1000]

OK, so heres a little update of what I've got going on! I'm pretty happy with the low poly mesh so far, but i have a few kinks I wanna go back to and work out before I move on to mudbox.

It looks pretty plain as of right now...hopefully that will change within a few days!
http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k187/Robbiek800/Dark%20Side%20Contest/wip_2.jpg

[Tetsuya]

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/windreaver6/ThreedyChallenges/darkside/wire1.jpg
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/windreaver6/ThreedyChallenges/darkside/shade1.jpg

i'll post my concept later @_@

[omnicypher]

is there a good way to take orthographic pictures? its really hard to get anything to line up perfectly and perspective always distorts things like ear position and jaw width.

[omnicypher]

ive been messin with zbrush and max shaders and this is what i got from zbrush. in max, so far it looks more like wax than skin, but i dont have any maps on it yet. anyone know if i can use the mental ray skin shader with normal maps?

[poopipe]

quick update. decided to leave any changes to concept till halfway through the modelling stage - ought to make life interesting :)

so yeah, character sheet and an hour or so spent on the torso.

ill be back later - on baby duty now

[Leandro SH]

looking good, so far poopipe

here's my progress

[BiG ToE-3DT]

omnicypher: the only way to truly find out is to pop open the mental ray skin shader and see if it has a normal map slot. Should be the same as the standerd material, where you apply a normal bump material to the bump map slot.

[Fenixy]

yes you can aply normal bump at skin bump slot for sss

and here is my start,base mesh of head 3 hours of max modeling

http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/2277/headbasemeshes6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[Tank[NL]]

whoa, cool work everyone. i really like the renders and concepts.

i gotta hurry up. and i really didnt like the way my earlier design looked in 3d. i also figured i'd go for a more aggresive character, as i'm a pretty laidback guy.

i made this drawing in, dunno, 2 hours or so. i really like the way it turned out.

http://www.firstcelestialwar.com/pics/evil-re.jpg

time to get back to work for school. lots to do still. gl everyone.

[MaggieQue]

Hi, is this a gun?

Looks like many guys like to model man in high heels.....cool.....

[katana]

Somehow that's just...wrong...Glad i had something in my stomach.

[poopipe]

Hi, is this a gun?

Looks like many guys like to model man in high heels.....cool.....

I think we decided it was a belt :D

[Ghost-D]

well, that size... looks like a gun to me...:D

[Pedro Toledo]

omnicypher - if you want to use SSS shaders you should check the real scale of your model. SSS is based on true world scale.

[imaginart]

Gonna try to start & actually finish this one. It's faceless but ultimately it'll be my face with tweaks.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/Moonimation/threedy-comp-18-concept.jpg

C&C more than welcome.

[poopipe]

another couple of hours wasted :)

There's a few holes and naughty non-quads and the head's only there to make up the basic mass but I'm feeling it already...

Those sticky out bits on his back will have forearms and hands poking out of them.

it's just tipped over the 2000 poly mark atm, I've never made 10k poly model before so I've no idea whether it's going to come out at around the right mark or not - how's the general density looking?

crits etc welcomed - as long as you're nice to me:p

[BiG ToE-3DT]

poopipe: overall model is looking good. Mesh flow and density look good too. Make sure your counting tris and not pollies, then if all is well, you can add a nother loop or two in the calf area.

[Robbiek1000]

Little update!

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k187/Robbiek800/Dark%20Side%20Contest/wip_3.jpg

[omnicypher]

i think its in 3ds max units right now, how do i change it to real world scale? and would it go by metric units of mesurement if i did?

[poopipe]

check your system units - customise > units setup > big button at the top

look in there - I think it defaults to centimetres (does in the UK at least). This is totally independent from the display units so you can leave them as Max units.

once you know what it's set to - just rescale everything so it's the right size in whatever units you're using - ie. make your little man about 180cm or 6 feet tall (you probably need to reset the scales after)

oh yeah... changing system units from inches to cm (or whatever) does NOT rescale your scene - ie. a 6 foot tall character will become 72 cm tall character - not a 180cm tall character

[Pedro Toledo]

I believe it doesn't matter the system, as long as your model is made in real size scale.

You just need to know that the SSS shader takes in consideration the thickness of your mesh in order to let the light pass through it. It's easy to understand why... when we think about the light coming through our skin, we will specially think of thin areas such as the ears and the nostrils. Light easily pass through these areas because they are thin. So, if your model was not modeled in a real scale, these areas could be simply huge... Light would have a very rough time trying to pass through a 10 meters thick earlobe, right? ;)

In Max you go into Customize>Units Setup.

You can pick metric there.

Then you create a cube with an approximated size of a head and match your model to it.

Hope it helps :)


EDIT: Poopipe - you were faster than me.

[omnicypher]

i switched the units and realized my character was 10 feet tall!i resized it and added a noise normal map. i think it will look right once i add some color and specularity, but for now i should probably get back to modeling a body. i have a feeling i might just end up doing a self portrait and forget the evil part. i still have no ideas for a concept that represents me as evil. all i can think of is to model myself, throw on some red eyes, barrow goust's alpha flame cage idea (maybe make it more like evil purple smoke or somthing), and pose him in a cool position. or maybe i should just start over and make a monster. heres the max shader im currently tweaking.

[poopipe]

EDIT: Poopipe - you were faster than me.

I'm like lightning me :cool:

Since I'm new to all this next-gen, normal mappy business...

At which point do i head into mudbox and start sculpting to generate my normal maps?

Do I to unwrap first and generate a normal bitmap in mudbox or import the high poly version and use the projection wotsit in Max to map the normal map into my object - or what?


cheers :D


omnicypher: The way I figure it is that your dark side is the part of you that isn't affected by your ego. To illustrate... imagine what you'd be like if you were a dog - dogs have no qualms at all about eating their own poo or chowing down on their sack in public and thats exactly the sort of mindset I think a dark side would have.

[Pedro Toledo]

Dude, I find baking normals map in Max usually gives a better result. But it's slower than simply baking it directly in Mudbox.

If you don't have much time, or if your system is not strong enought to handle a very high poly mesh in Max, then you should probably unwrap it first and bake it directly in Mudbox.

Another interesting software to bake normals and ambient occlusion is XNormal.

But I usually bake it with Max...

[BiG ToE-3DT]

poopipe: which ever route you take, make sure you unwrap your model before you start your high poly. Can't make a normal map with any program if the mesh isn't unwrapped first.

[Pedro Toledo]

Well. if he wants to make normal maps in Max, he can mudbox his model first, then unwrap the low poly in Max, import the high poly mudbox model and bake.

I believe this is what he was talking about. :)

[BiG ToE-3DT]

opps, my fault.

[omnicypher]

i made some clothes in max and sculpted them in zbrush. so far its looking kinda cartoony. theres nothing really special about this character and im kinda loosing interest (except for the skin shaders, thats new for me). i think ill go back to the drawing board on this one and go down the demon path.

[Fenixy]

finished the base mesh.

http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/5091/basemesh2ee3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/5091/basemesh2ee3.c975fce199.jpg (http://g.imageshack.us/g.php?h=512&i=basemesh2ee3.jpg)

[Robbiek1000]

KABLAMM!! Last update of the night. Gotta finish up some homework...gaaaahhhhhH!!!!

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k187/Robbiek800/Dark%20Side%20Contest/wip_5.jpg

Goust- awesome work, keep it up! What happened to his hair?

[shadowbreeze]

yah i had some free time so here's where i'm at.

some really cool work going here.

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q287/shadowbreeze99/dark/start.jpg

[omnicypher]

i went back to the drawing board literally and acctually put pencil to paper for once. this is the first time ive drawn in about a year, and i realized how easy it is compared to using a mouse. i need to get a wacom!
this time around im ditching the boring self portrait and making somthing geared more towards video games. his name will be Baal Durok!

[poopipe]

Well. if he wants to make normal maps in Max, he can mudbox his model first, then unwrap the low poly in Max, import the high poly mudbox model and bake.

I believe this is what he was talking about. :)

That was the second option - I'm concerned about seams with that method as Max's texture baking doesn't bleed outside the UVs and I'm not really sure what happens if you start smudging bits of normal map about. I'll figure it out though.


time for some compliments now I'm at work and can comment at leisure ;)

robbiek1000 - I'm feeling that, you've gone all hellraiser. have you considered tearing his lips off like that clockwork dude from hellboy?

l3xicon - love it, really solid forms and you've captured evil clown without making a clown.

As a relative noob on here the quality of work on this forum never ceases to please me :D

[L3XICON]

Leandro SH lol really love your concept idea here. and frankly I find the idea of a killer goldfish in a mech suit more than a little scary ;p also a great start on the modelling, looking good.

poopipe really disturbing concept mate, but looks great, and probably the most 'dark' of all the concepts being developed here. great work. your modelling so far looks really clean.

Robbiek1000 great start! nice idea for the concept and as always your anatomy spot on. Another character from you that could really use a couple of Super sized meals ;p

Goust wow, my favourite so far! really like your modelling, and the boots especially are really nicely detailed. whats your poly count at completion of the final mesh?

omnicypher finding it hard to decide on a concept design mate? :D all your concepts have been great ideas, though its a shame to abandon your head model from the previous one, as it was looking very smart indeed. personally as a Game low poly challenge, myself I would avoid using SSS and materials like that. I find they have a horrible way of enphasising rather than hiding the edges of the low poly model. also something that is physically correct such as sss can really not feel 'in-place' when on a model that shares typical game level art assests in terms of textures and normals etc. Though if you get it working for ya. am sure it would look amazing :D As for the most recent of your concepts. I really like it also, has a real old world demon feel to it. almost like you would see in a medieval fresco, or carved into scenes of hell on a medieval building. good work mate.

sorry if I have missed anyone in my comments, everyones so far is looking really good!

[omnicypher]

for now ill abandon the head model, but i think ill stick with the workflow. i started the same way as i did with the locust speed model, but i changed the later half of the process for the better. i still need to work on ears and i never got a really good neck meshflow either. looking back through some anitomical references, i realized the back of the head is wider than the front and my model didnt show that well. once i get a good head in under 30 minutes, ill write another speed tutorial. but that wont be for a while. and i have realized that skin shaders are great for high poly, but on low poly, handpainting just seems to fit right.

Lexicon: great work on those clothes! the character really captures the hip hop feel. if it were me, i would have probably turned the cap backwards or in a weird direction. that mouth looks super creepy, i cant wait to see how it looks textured!

Goust: thats some great meshflow! i see alot of meshes waste polies forming the abs, but if you just texture it right, maybe add a normal map, it looks just as good if not better, and saves on unneeded pollys and confusing topology. the proportions look good and those belts look tight! nice work man :)

[Pedro Toledo]

Max's texture baking doesn't bleed outside the UVs

Dude, this is absolutely not correct.

In the Render to Texture panel you will find a Padding value.

The higher the value the bigger the pixel border.

[poopipe]

you mean it actually works now? I gave up on it with v5 or 6 cos it didn't seem to be doing anything useful.

my god, all those wasted hours smudging things in photoshop :(

[katana]

Goust : Nice model you got going there...

...I've got about 50-60% of the color comp done on my concept with about 3 hours or so left to paint through. I tend to like to have it all worked out before I start modelling. It's also very educational to read the workflow stuff, as I'm planning Maya for LP and Mudbox for HP. Nice work everyone, hopefully tonight I can get it finished and posted. I'm anxious to get to the model...more later

[Pedro Toledo]

HAHAHAHAHA, I haven't used Render to Texture with v5 or 6, but I'm sure since v7 it works really fine.

[Fenixy]

thx guys glad you like it

omnicypher it's HP, at the moment 15k polys, will optimize low poly after.Last concept of your looks diabolic ,stick with it
Robbiek1000 looks creepy, will you add cloth on "bottom" parts? kinda empty "there"
poopipe no comment
here is some sculpting ,and painted hair for robbiek :). planing to make normals and alphas from max hair,so i dont realy wont to sculpt theme
http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/8335/sculpt12ss5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[SeanBear]

Mwaaa... finally managed to make a start on the modelling...

[yokunaru]

I have been silent for quite awhile now, though I have been watching the forum actively I have not posted. Mainly because I am even more busy then I was before, but right now I"m on a one week break. So hopefully I can get most of this model before then. So here my concept. Nice and evilish? Not sure!

Here's the link just in case. http://yokunaru.deviantart.com/art/Dark-Side-69081131

[Tank[NL]]

wicked. reminds me of hellsing and some bleach maybe. really cool concept

[DaddyDoom]

Cool concept, but he looks too skinny for the size of the sword :D Maybe a harvesters scythe (which I find sexy as hell) would fit his slim looks better.

[Shiskebab]

This is my concept, a crazy samurai. hope to start modelling tomorrow.

[omnicypher]

goust: thats the most bad ass character ive seen in any of these comps so far! is that zbrush or some other program for the high poly? id love to see your workflow for the low poly model.

[omnicypher]

ive started to model with a 8 sided cylinder for the ribcage and used medical references as orthographics. so far ive been pushing verts and using edge extrusion and im at 240 tris at the moment. in the end ill probably resize things because i like the size of ribcage in my drawing better than the anitomically correct version.

[omnicypher]

quick zbrush update:

[omnicypher]

since all of his muscles are showing, im going to have to model following the muscles as much as i can. so far im only at 849 tris and if i keep it this low poly through production, i might use the second or third zbrush subdivision for the final product.

[katana]

Still have one more night of work on this color comp, but here's a glimpse....

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/tile.jpg

[Fenixy]

yokunaru nice mix of characters, i like it

omnicypher i don't realy understand how you making character, why to put unfinished mesh in Zbrush for sculpting? arn't more simple to make full mesh and after put it all on sculpt.Or you was just playing with how it looks?.By the way program where i'm(robiek and alot of others) sculpting called Mudbox, you shuld try it.

katana hmmm i saw him alredy somwere, what is this color comp you talking about?

edit: ice blade wip

http://img48.imageshack.us/img48/3734/icebladeox1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[omnicypher]

i was just messing with the looks of things. sometimes i throw an early mesh in zbrush because i like modeling, but i love sculpting. also i usually make a simple, undetailed basemesh throw it in zbrush for a sculpt, then put the first subdivision back in max to add to it, then back to zbrush to sculpt the addition. it may not be the best way of doing things, but for me its like when painting in photoshop, you should flip the drawing horizontally once in a while and you might see mistakes you got used to or just overlooked. in zbrush i feel like im working with clay and in max i feel like im working with geometric constructions.
and as for mudbox, i havent tried it. i see that you can sculpt like in zbrush, but can you create boxes/extrude edges/chamfer/bevel/weld verticies like in max?

[omnicypher]

im not sure if i want to go with a ****** red meat look, or more of a desaturated dead cadaver look. i didnt know b l o o d y would get beeped.

[poopipe]

I don't think mudbox does much more than sculpting

- I've only messed around with it for an hour or so but it looked to me like z-brush without the completely insane interface and a lot of the tools I'll probably never use removed

no doubt ill be made to look like a complete ninny in about 20 minuites when somebody who knows what they're talking about comes along but meh, I just got to work and I'm bored...

[katana]

Goust : It's just a full color 2d piece for concept. Color Comp = Color composition.

With all of the work that has been done, I wouldn't be that suprised to see something along similar lines, but then thats why we have reference. When I post the entire piece, it will stand on it's own...thanks

[omnicypher]

i started using zbrush in june, and after 5 months, ive gotten used to the interface. the only thing i wish it had was a replacement for the projection master. you have to drop your model into a 2d picture, then edit it with 2d alphas, then pick it up and it translates into 3d. i wish i could just paint with alphas as my brush instead of the basic push/pull circle brush. if mudbox has that im sold. plus zbrush2 doesnt show perspective, which works for some things, but id like to see what it would really look like. i would also like to be able to navigate better. working on fingers or toes while their connected to a body is a nightmare. i wish there was a way to tell the camera what your focusing on, rather than it always pivoting around the center of mass. does mudbox have its own normal mapper? zbrush made normal mapping easy for me and i didnt even need a tutorial. once i figured out where to put the plugin, the rest was self explanitory.

[omnicypher]

although i like what ive done so far with the high poly legs, i think i have more than enough time to go back and make a better low poly set of legs(which also means remaking the high poly). at first i thought following the muscle edgeflow would make sculpting easier. i soon realized starting a sculpture with a cylinder is easier than starting with badly placed, awkwardly subdividing muscleflow. all the musclework can be better defined by a normal map anyway. but if it means i get to resculpt it, its more fun for me anyway. plus i always do better the second time around. i also had a second concept floating around in my head:
has anyone ever made a futuristic skeleton warrior?
all skeleton warriors ive ever seen were wearing dated armor. but i think ill save that for another comp. im glad i have too many concepts and ideas rather than not enough, even though its my downfall every time i try to finish one of these comps. heres what i had so far:

[DaddyDoom]

A skeleton wearing a HR Giger Alien like armor would kick butt! With a reflective black texture, over the warm red tones of the muscles and tendons... a real killer :D

[Tetsuya]

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/windreaver6/ThreedyChallenges/darkside/wire2.jpg

feeling nubbish =/
currently modeling the base mesh, i'll add details depending on how many tris i have left at the end, never learned normal mapping/zbrush @_@

[mqpska]

I was waiting for this challenge. I will do it !!!! ...I think...

[yokunaru]

omnicypher: Zbrush 3 allows you to paint direct to the model. They still have projection master but now there some pixelpaint or something so u can do it direct. Zbrush 3 is way better, 2 is like a dinosaur already. =D

Goust: Thanks sir, lets see if I can get the base mesh done and normaled before the timelimit. =D

[SeanBear]

Goust: your sculpting is tight... do you use much reference when sculpiting?

anyway...here's an update. I pretty much hit limit on the head, so...not sure...might rework it a little so it has more substance... seems a little dull maybe???

[DaRkAnGeL88]

:smug:hey guys.
am new member here and i like to particepate in the challenge
good luck everyone

[SlurkSlisker]

This looks like fun, and I'm absessed with blood & gore and such. Pretty new to this whole thing, so Could someone please take a few minutes to answer my questions? I'd really appreciate that :)

1) I'm no good at Uwv unwrapping and that, can I apply textures to my character the old fashioned way?

2) Do I need to sign in to his whole contest-thing?

3) 10K tri's including the environment?

[defaultalias]

1) you'd need to be able to unwrap, at least with a planar map. procedural textures and the like are not allowed unless you bake them down and make them count towards your texture budget as well
2) nope
3) just the character

[yokunaru]

So, I splashed out some of the character today. Finish making the body proportional. Added the mask and hat. Now I just need to go in and hash some of the details later tonight when I get time. So far I'm impressed with how much I've improved and I havent touched max in a while. All the traditional skills I've been learning are really starting to help me!! woot!!

My poly count is around 2268 for the moment.

Link:http://fc03.deviantart.com/fs21/f/2007/310/8/b/DarkSideRender_by_Yokunaru.jpg

[poopipe]

mudbox is fun...

i think I've fallen into the beginner trap with this sculpting lark - ie.it's lumpy and anatomically incorrect.

looks freaky. what do you chaps reckon?

[DaddyDoom]

BAHAHA! Now that's probably John Holme's darkside :D
Man, I let out such a loud laugh that I woke up my baby daughter ahaha!
The model looks really cool, looking forward to some more from it.
For the genitalia you could try something like the indigenous men at Papua New Guinea use... but in a more twisted way, almost like extreme masoquism.

[omnicypher]

with those arms, it would be damn hard to be anitomically correct! id say its looking pretty good, but the chest seems kinda out of place. most of him is emaciated, but he looks like hes been doing some pushups with the pecks. (or maybe got breast inplants, i dont know) the hands out of the back is a sweet concept, and for some reason reminds me of the god of war website. are you going to rig all those arms? and if so, im wondering how they will be posed. i dont want to think about it too much. so far this entry has creeped me out far more than anything ive seen here so far. keep up the creepyness and you might win this one. peace!

[katana]

Now to the model.. (yea I know about the painting issues...it's just a study, but crits still welcome)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/dscolorweb.jpg

[poopipe]

daddydoom : good call, I'm reminded of a site about a man called rhymer rigby - he has a thing for penis gourds (worth a look for his site, he travels a lot and has a sense of humour). If I don't go that way I might stick a mouth on the end .

omnicypher: You're definitely right on the pecs, I have this temptation to give him a nasty boob or two but that would be stepping a little far from the self portrait thing.

I'll be rigging everything that sticks out because I love rigging things nearly as much as I love unwrapping things (is there a sarcasm smiley?) I'll probably pose the hands much as they were in the concept picture, I can't see them having any practical value beyond feeling himself up.


when was the deadline again ?


edit::

ooh, katana. I like him - I'm not sure I can ever forgive you for the dead bunny though

[shadowbreeze]

ok so here's an update, im going to rework some of the high poly and bake out the normal maps again as i want some more detail, but i'm happy with the texture so far, oh and the pipes around the coat will be fur in the end.


http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q287/shadowbreeze99/dark/color.jpg

[yokunaru]

shadowbreeze: Very Nice I likey!!

Here my update as well. I also have a question? On the sword, the eye in the middle of the hilt should I model that or normal map? I'm not sure which would be more effective in the end. Right now I"m looking at around 5638 polys....=D

Links: Character:http://fc01.deviantart.com/fs24/f/2007/310/e/b/DarkSide_Modelupdate_02_by_Yokunaru.jpg

Sword: http://fc03.deviantart.com/fs22/f/2007/310/9/f/DemonSword_by_Yokunaru.jpg

[EvilKnight]

Great work everyone, some very cool ideas around!

I'm still not sure If I'll be able to finish in time! Hopefully!!! I'll use this concept I just did for it, and I kinda like it, so I'll go for that, we'll see how it turns out :)

Any C&C welcome as usual :)
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/8026/3dtcomp18yourdarksidecofl2.jpg

[DaddyDoom]

Coolio EK!

[PowerCat]

Hi hi, was trying to come up with a nice idea for my Dark Side, but looking at what everyone done, Wow, I think I'll give up Lol!

[omnicypher]

i gotta get zbrush 3!

slurkslisker: what software do you use? if you have 3ds max 8 or 9 the pelt unwrap is pretty easy to use, if you have 7 or below, youll need to use cylindrical mapping.

seanbear: i like your topology, especially on the face. but the forhead seems a bit short. but then again it could just be the style your going for. looking good either way.

Damn! shadowbreeze! that model is looking top notch!

[setschaos]

Alright, as per usual, I'm slow in my progress. My WIP here, still have to slap on some more cloth around the waist and the sock, just have to optimize manually so the mesh doesn't look sloppy. (still need the bottom jaw too ^_^)

[Fenixy]

setschaos sweet ^_^

shadowbreeze low poly? amazing is this emissiv glow on eyes?

and here is mine final update of HP rendered in max,starting low poly soon

http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/9553/aaaaa2dzw8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[polysmooth]

Should be fun, I'll try to get my concept art up by tomorrow.

[Robbiek1000]

shadowbreeze - great stuff dude....let see some wire frames!!!

[yokunaru]

On textures I have several different pieces. Like character and mask...for texture that means I need to make it all one char and do ONE texture or is it ONE texture per object in the scene? I'm guessing it's one object perscene and if it is....is there way to unwrap all the pieces and later merge them into one object and merge the textures?

[BiG ToE-3DT]

yokunaru: it would be easier to attach all the objects in the scene, then when you unwrap, it will all be on one texture map. Not to confuse you, but if you refer to the first post, it does say you can chop you the texture space to fit your needs. So you can do 1 2048, 4 1028 maps, or 8 512's.

[Leandro SH]

Wow, lots of great stuff here!

SetsChaos- Love your concept!

[shadowbreeze]

yokunaru - thank you, i'm looking forward to seeing how your turns out it has a very cool style to it.

omnicypher - thanks a lot there's still a lot to do.

Goust - yeah the body and head are, but i might have to take some polys out so i can make my sword a bit better, and yes the eyes are, but i noticed your character has straps around his lower leg which is funny because thats what mine has:o but my character has bare feet.btw great HP

Robbiek1000 -thanks and i will show some wires next post.

EvilKnight - man great concept, i hope you do finish it even if you have to tone down your detail on your HP so your computer can handle it, i know thats what i have to do frustrating as it is.

[obibok]

ok heres my basic evil avatar ... well actualy thats me but im planing to give him some more weapons and mayby some body armour ...

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/7415/avatarlh8.png r8 now its about 5000 tris comments and critic is welcomed

[yokunaru]

Man, I had a time with this. I found out that zbrush 3 couldn't normal map until I updated to 3.1. So now I got that all fix. Here a look at the actual zbrush model and low poly one. The low poly one which is featured here is not finished being texture. I was just testing out how the normal map would look. However the zbrush one is to big or something so sadly you have to visit the posted link to see it on my deviant site.

Link:http://fc01.deviantart.com/fs23/f/2007/311/0/a/Zbrush_Masked_by_Yokunaru.jpg

http://fc02.deviantart.com/fs23/i/2007/311/7/2/LowPoly_Mask_WIP_by_Yokunaru.jpg

[omnicypher]

does zbrush 3 use zmapper? or somthing similar? or is it totally different?

[yokunaru]

I'm not sure if u can use zmapper. In z3 I know for sure it will crash I think in z3.1 u can use it cause I saw pic of ppl using that version. However I used just the in house normal map maker. Nothing fancy!

[Oniram]

here's a question... do we have to submit any concept art with this?

[Gordon_Freeman]

well, heres my basic head

[omnicypher]

concept art is not necesary but it is usefull. you may think you have your concept down in your head, but eventually you may run into details that you didnt realize you didnt think about. planning ahead usually saves time on reworking things, but everyone has their own workflow. even if you dont use concept art, references are always a good idea.

i came up with a new way to sculpt an arm. i started out with the basic deformed cylander to get the basic shape. then in zbrush, i kept subtracting until it was all skin and bones with no muscles. now im in the process of adding each muscle one by one looking at youtube anatomy references. theres no better way, that i can think of, than to learn anatomy by sculpting it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wB8ki6o3Enw
it does show alot of cadaver, so squeemish beware! but it is very interesting and shows what each muscle does and where it attatches.

[PowerCat]

Gordon_Freeman - Looking really awesome!

[palp]

Poly limit:
10,000 Tris Total. You can do whatever you want with these, just don’t get carried away and don’t exceed the 10,000 Tri Limit. Remember, the limit tells you where to stop, there is no minimum, so use as much of the limit as you see fit.


i was just wondering if u have a 10000 tri model but imported to zbrush to give it the "extra details". is it still a 10000 tri model? because from wat i see the models tat have been "zbrush treated" looks like it should have been 100 000 tris. i dun really know much abt zbrush. i've been a max user since school although i really wan to learn the other 3d packages. tats basically wat i wan to ask. so anyone wanna enlighten me on this?
good challenge by the way, hope i have the time to do this.

[poopipe]

the high poly versions are used to generate normal/bump maps for the 10k poly version.

[Gordon_Freeman]

Body completed! now I need eyes, teeht and fur

PowerCat - thank you!

[katana]

Thats nice. I wonder what it would look like if the hands were slightly longer and larger ?

[L3XICON]

hey palp :) when you first port a mesh into zbrush it retains the same number of polygons as it did in the 3d app you used to create it, though to detail the mesh in zbrush you would subdivide it, probably a good 6+ times. thus taking it up often into the millions level of polygons. for the basis of low poly modelling you would use this new sculpted model to create things such as normal / bump maps. and then you would either apply these to your original mesh or if your sculpts have altered the base mesh a great deal, then you can 'un-subdivide' back and apply your normals to that :D so the final model would be within the low poly limit.

hope that makes sense to ya :D

[EvilKnight]

Heres my final concept!
C&C welcome as usual ;)

http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/3153/yourdarksideconceptfinafl9.jpg

[PowerCat]

Evilknight - Looking really good, but I would make the chicks heads less peaceful, make it like the eye lids open, eyes rolled back, and mouth open, due to gravity and such.

[lordpisang]

hi! All, im Lordpisang and i present you my concept art of my darkside!

http://lordpisang.org/conceptart.jpg

My darkside is a little puppet Kawai, he make strange things!
and now, i try to make this in 3D! ^^

I hope you like it :).


//Sorry for my english, i try to improve it! :wave:

[poopipe]

I love that lordpisang.


evilknight clearly shouldn't be allowed near women :p

[merlyn]

sounds like allot of fun! sign me up baby!

[SeanBear]

Hey guys, I'm trying to create a normal map in mudbox for the first time. It seem straight forward enough... but after completeing the operation, although it says "Map extraction finished without errors" there is no file to be found??? any ideas?

[lordpisang]

Théoriquely you doing specify the name of your displacement map or normal map, this is the place of your files.

http://validen.christopherwcook.com/forum_images/mordren/mudboxBakeDisplace_normal.jpg

that's all ^^

[katana]

Thats very helpful lordpisang...thanks.

[EvilKnight]

great work everyone!!!

After about 4hrs of poly modeling in maya, here is my basemesh for the High Rez Sculpting with Modbux or ZBrush, I'll see which one will be best later!

Any C&C welcome!
http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/3193/mydarksidewip001am3.jpg

[BiG ToE-3DT]

EvilKnight: will you be modeling the straps and skulls in low poly, or justusing the normal map? You got 10,000 tris, might as wel model them.

[lordpisang]

EvilKnight, Nice Begin! Continue

[EvilKnight]

Big-Toe: I'm thinking of modeling the belts yhea!

lordpisang: Thanks:) Will do!

[poopipe]

more progress.

I think I need to move this to my big computer, the laptop makes whimpering noises when I hit a million polys in mudbox.


so, yeah, I made his pecs smaller as advised, got shot of the extra rib bits, decided to move away from a pot belly and make him a bit more gaunt.

I'm having a bit of a tough time at this level of detail to be honest, all my 2d work is pretty minimalist and sketchy so I've never really taken the time to properly study muscle layout n stuff. I'll keep plugging away though

[BiG ToE-3DT]

poopipe: good news, this is only the second week, you still have 4 more to go. Take your time. Google body biulders and get a feel for what the muscle placement "could" look like. Right now, your on a great path. The ab area looks good. Could use some vien poppong goodness between the legs area. That has winner written all over it.

[merlyn]

scary enough??

[Tetsuya]

zomg i think i wet myself o_O xD

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/windreaver6/ThreedyChallenges/darkside/wire3.jpg

bleh trying to sqeeze out polies now

[merlyn]

its a start, lots to do.

[lordpisang]

Merlyn, this guy scared me! And i think is not a good dancer , in real life.

i think your hands are little big? no?

[Robbiek1000]

Little update, got the normal mapping done and now I'm working on the texture.

http://i88.photobucket.com/albums/k187/Robbiek800/Dark%20Side%20Contest/wip_7.jpg

you can see a bit bigger version of this WIP here...

http://robbiek1000.com/nightmare_creature.html

[yoyomon]

Wow, seeing some good stuff.

Pedro: It wasn't initially a camera, but it sounds like a cool idea. I'm thinking of changing the rpg into a electric guitar (with disguishing a gun??) The canisters are little data banks of stuff, the good, the bad, etc. His mouth is sewed up, doesn't say much.
All he does is cracks open the canisters a little bit whenever he's angry and all hell will break loose (spirits and such appears, whatever -_- )

Meryln: I think you should stay truer to your concept by making him stumpier and broader, like a dwarf.

[EvilKnight]

Here is an update in ZBrush of the head! I tried to not put too much details this time and keep it kinda stylized!

Hope you guys like :)
Any C&C welcome!
http://img48.imageshack.us/img48/4826/mydarksidewip002ed8.jpg

[VegaMan]

OK so i think ill try to join in, its been a while, and i have alot of homework compared to last year ( last year i had no homework, this year homework for all the courses im taking :P My previous 3d school has spoiled me...)

Lets see if i know how to multi task ;)
Heres my first concept sketch gonna see if i can develop it further... and make it darker...

[katana]

Thats a wild concept VegaMan...

[omnicypher]

TOO MANY MUSCLES!!! i had no idea there were so many muscles on the arm. they all weave in and out of each other, some branching from the same tendon, others split into multiple direction, its alot to remember. in the end theres only a few that really make a difference when covered with skin, but if you ever make a character made of meat, it might be easiest to model it normally and just texture muscles on. but then again, ive learned more about anatomy from this comp than any before. next time i sculpt an arm, ill know exactly why its shaped the way it is. heres what i got so far (id say its about a quarter of the way there) i made the wrist flexors/abductors (4), the forearm pronator and supernator, the bicep, and tricep.

[lordpisang]

Evilknight: cool expression.

Robbiek1000: Nice!!

[Aleks]

Robbiek1000: Really nice work there.Those metal things look a bit disturbing,though...But good stuff anyway.

EvilKnight: Hey,man :) Nice concept and progress so far.Hope you finish this one in time ;)

[Bampe]

here is what im am going for;P
may change some things along the way... but we will se;)

[EvilKnight]

lordpisang: thanks man :)
Aleksandr Kir.:Tanks man, I'll try! :) I'm done most of the sculpting in ZB, only the arms, the hands, the skull heads and the cool knife... I'd show some PrintScreens, but it apears so small on my laptop, that you wouldn't see much of my nice detailing :P I'll post some close up shots of each part later on! ;) BTW I'm a fan of your work!!!

[BiG ToE-3DT]

Aleksandr Kir: where's your model?

[keleb78]

Quick question: are subdivision surfaces and displacement mapping allowed?

[poopipe]

we're all doing normal maps on our 10k poly models if that's what you mean.


bigtoe: I feel all warm inside and also encouraged, ta :)

[yokunaru]

Robbiek1000 are you using camera projection in maxs to paint your textures or do you paint straight from the uvs in photoshop?

[EvilKnight]

hey all, little update on my side!

BTW: good job everyone, sweet comp :)

Any C&C welcome!
http://img130.imageshack.us/img130/408/mydarksidewip003sq9.jpg

[yokunaru]

I was having trouble trying to texture then I had a idea and boom I went from crap to neato. Hopefully if I keep toying with it and throw some grudge and dirt on it at the end it will be really cool looking. But sadly I still got a whole guy and a sword to texture O_O and this is only half the mask textured in this pic. I haven't gotten to do the other side....

Link: http://fc02.deviantart.com/fs22/f/2007/313/1/1/Texture_Test_by_Yokunaru.jpg

[omnicypher]

id say im about 80 percent done with the arm. i still have to mess with some of the buldge and it looks good from some angles, but it still needs some adjustment from some views.

[DaddyDoom]

EK... Looking very very good dude"

[Marv]

Great work everyone. Seeing some real grade A+++ stuff here. Keep up the good work.

Heres a litte update from me. Basemesh ready to go into Zbrush or Mudbox or whatever.
Edit: 7332 tris right now.

[ussyless]

Hey, so this is my first post on this forum, i joined mainly beacause of this thread, anyways, you'res is looking amazing knight and everyone else.. anyway, to the point, heres some concept art i just whipped up, i may not get around to modelling though
ill probably update the concept a lil later today

Anyway, i've always been fascinated with extremely accurate projectiles, and people with the lack of certain sences with amazing abilitys.
he's a blind, high-tech ranger relying alot on his equipment.

[lordpisang]

Hi! Ussyless! Welcome and good Luck!

EvilKnight, your carachter look amazing, you working so fast!!!Now im mad!! lol
Go working!!!!

[ussyless]

Thanks, just reformatted though, so i dont have 3dsmax on this computer just yet.
Have to use a program designed for nintendo 64's >.>

[Aleks]

EvilKnight: Looking good,Jonny :) I'm not sure,but I'd probably make the ears a bit more interesting.Looking at the overall shape of the head,I'd make them pointy,or maybe less round.But it's up too you really :roll:
Is that "skirt" still a WIP? I see you added some stitches on the front side,but the back is lacking in details.Some wrinkles there could do the trick.Or are you planning to do that with the textures?
Anyway,keep it up ;)

BiG ToE: My model? Right,right,right let me search for it... :lame:
Nah,I'm not participating in this one.But I got to tell you that this comp is quite inspiring.I've got an idea of my "dark side" so I might actually do something with it if I have some free time.

[ussyless]

ok heres a front view concept art, didnt bother screwing with it this time, head isnt included beacause i've already modelled it ^_^
i think it came out ALOT better than i thought i could do lol, anatomy websites really help ^_^
EDIT: sorry about image size, its only 53 kb though.. fresh from scanner.

[yokunaru]

Just a little update...My mask is done. There is so much more I could do to it but I feel it's at a spot I can stop touching it. I need to finish modeling the sword and zbrush the char. I have to go back and shrink the textures a little to keep them with in the guidelines of the comp. But hopefully I can get this all done. Sadly, I have some commission portaits to do and school gonna start soon. So wish mah the best to get this one done. I will finish this model no matter what cause I am really learning and liking this one alot.

Link: http://fc03.deviantart.com/fs22/f/2007/314/6/b/Final_Mask_Texture_by_Yokunaru.jpg

[katana]

Getting this one band of geo faces that isnt being read right..using Maya 8...anyone know what the cause is? Generally I end up rebuilding stuff, but would like an idea...thanks.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/head.jpg

[Marv]

Katana Dont use maya myself, but it looks like something's up with the smoothing groups.

[ussyless]

Yourano, its looking good, but perhaps make the teeth a little more crooked+ rotten?

Anyways, i need a lil help, i have a huge space on the back of my back view reference image, anyone who would like to help, go ahead =P

[lampshadehead]

Katana In Blender faces can appear that way because the normals are facing into the model, instead of out, like the rest of the faces.

[Fenixy]

i don't know maya very well, just learning it to, but looks like mabye this is some bad extrude of polys that shuld not be exist? (on pic. is sphere with extruded polys to 0.) but mabye i am wrong
http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/7752/sferaou2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[bb0x]

Omnicypher nice work man, keep it up. when your done ima save your pictures as reference XD

katana try checking smoothing groups...

and the rest of ya guys.. good work..

[yokunaru]

I have to go to work soon so I figure this will be a good place to stop. It's slowly getting there a little more detail and then off to zbrush, I go and texture heaven. WEEE!!

Link: http://fc02.deviantart.com/fs24/f/2007/314/1/6/DarkSide_Wip_Render_03_by_Yokunaru.jpg

[lordpisang]

really nice Yokunaru, continue

[Gordon_Freeman]

Now I am working on normal map and I am trying to figure out how to make fur...

[EvilKnight]

Freeman: For the fur, use a feal fur picture, and make it an alpha in photoshop, use it as an alpha in ZB and you'll see fur ;)

[EvilKnight]

Getting this one band of geo faces that isnt being read right..using Maya 8...anyone know what the cause is? Generally I end up rebuilding stuff, but would like an idea...thanks.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v112/katana2665/head.jpg

Hey Katana, for this, first of all, check your normals by going to Display, Polygon component, face normals...

Then if they are the wrong side, select the face, go to normals, reverse...

If they are the right side, go to Normals, conform...

After that go to normals, set to face..

then go to normals and smooth the normals you want or harden the one you want hard too ;)

If that doesnt work, just delete those face and rebuild them with the Happen to polygon tool under Polygons or EditPolygons....

Hope this helps!

[Marv]

Some progress in Zbrush. The head is 95% done i think.
Feel free to C&C.

[Robbiek1000]

Little more texture update!

http://robbiek1000.com/Images/Portfolio_work/Nightmare_Creature/WIP_8.jpg

[Fenixy]

Robbiek1000 this is awsome, face is amazing.I am curious to see more
Gordon_Freeman nice, but i think you forgot tail =)
here is low poly+ normal map 8600 tris

http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/9930/1111xy9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[katana]

Hey Katana, for this, first of all, check your normals by going to Display, Polygon component, face normals...

Then if they are the wrong side, select the face, go to normals, reverse...

If they are the right side, go to Normals, conform...

After that go to normals, set to face..

then go to normals and smooth the normals you want or harden the one you want hard too ;)

If that doesnt work, just delete those face and rebuild them with the Happen to polygon tool under Polygons or EditPolygons....

Hope this helps!


Thanks I actually just rebuilt the area and it worked out fine, but next time I see that, I'll use your advice...thank you.

[ussyless]

Gotta love those shoes: =P
i cant wait for you to texture it.
http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/9930/1111xy9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)[/QUOTE]

[platypus_green]

didn't have enough free time last contest to start on the model. hopefully should have enough time for this contest.

First bash at doodling in 3dsamx to generate a feel of what I want.
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/4396/27985891vs2.jpg

[poopipe]

not a great deal of obvious progress from me...

I sorted the leg muscles out since last time and gave it a bit of a tweak in mudbox. It's not finished but I didn't want to go further down the sculpting road without making sure I knew how to use it. Most of my time on it since last update has been mapping and fiddling around trying to remember how to bake out normal maps etc.

While I'm here can anyone point me at a way to get a decent ambient occlusion map out of Max without waiting for a GI render?

so yeah, images below are the 6,786 triangle mesh with the normal map applied. I'll be adding suspender belt etc. shortly - I'll model that rather than relying on just the normal map I think.

[ussyless]

good going poopie, i believe that goust had the same problem withe the ambience of his model's fiery arm.

[Tetsuya]

i swear they messed up photobucket so badly @_@
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/windreaver6/ThreedyChallenges/darkside/wire5-1.jpg
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/windreaver6/ThreedyChallenges/darkside/wire5-2.jpg

not very happy with the face at this moment gonna remake it after i finish the other stuff, though i like how i did on the hair so far @_@

[ussyless]

Ok, just finnished a extra low poly mesh =P
gonna start adding more detail soon.

[Fenixy]

tetsuya cool hair, reminds me Tidus from FFX

so...i started texturing ( hair drawn with photoshop)

http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/3339/2copygs3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[EvilKnight]

Nice update Goust! ;)

Here is my update, its a skull head I just did from a sphere in ZB and I'll use it for the paddings on the knees, the shoulders the heart pad and the belt pad :) Hope you guys like the little evil I tried to put in :)

Any C&C welcome as usual ;)
http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/3865/mydarksidewip004hm5.jpg

[omnicypher]

im only at around 6,000 tris, but i still have to make a head and 2 hands. heres the low poly with a wip normal map and a shot from zbrush. the final normal will have more detail.

[Tuxedokat]

Hey everyone, i just saw this challenge yesterday and wanted to try it out. This is my first challenge ive ever done and it looked/sounded fun. I worked a few hours yesterday and today to try and catch up with everyone, here's what i have so far. everyones stuff looks good. i wanted to do the last challenge but i saw it too late.


http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee188/tuxedokat/8limbHigh.jpg
http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/ee188/tuxedokat/8limbLowTexture.jpg

[lordpisang]

you working so far, i have started the modeling :
http://www.lordpisang.net/Darkside2.jpg

All coments are welcomes!
Go to wrk send you another pics so fast.

Bye and continue all, level are so good.

[Oniram]

woah.. im really liking that Tuxedokat. looks awsome!

i just started mine earlier today. im going for a buggish look. so i thought of a mantis type look.. ill just make it a bit deformed and demonish. lol. here's a rough model.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v666/Oniram/models/untitled.jpg

and goust.. lookin nice, been following the progress on that and its gotten better and better looking each time. :D

[Yam Fries!]

Hey everyone!

This is my first time participating in a challenge. I imagined that my inner monster would be very animalistic. I plan to pose him soon. I imagined the arms would touch the ground, think of a Gorilla.

So, here is the model.
8,500 tris.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff99/etd382/Model.jpg

I am just starting the textures and after that I will normal map him. There is a slight bump and specular on him now.
http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff99/etd382/Texturestart.jpg

[Robbiek1000]

'nother little texture update. I feel like its all starting to look the same so I'm starting to rethink some of my design and add some more to the texture and normal maps. If anyone has any suggestions I'm open to hearing them.

http://robbiek1000.com/Images/Portfolio_work/Nightmare_Creature/WIP_9.jpg

[defaultalias]

those staples are really obvious and clean. add in some discoloration, bruising, and maybe some skin deterioration. even on fresh sutures, the skin is often bruised and discolored.
i also think you could work the silhouette a little bit more with the amount of polys you're using. 10000 is way too much to let go to waste.

[omnicypher]

nice work tuxedokat, i like your style.

im at 6572 triangles and i have a normal map, specular/bump map, and color map. still havent worked on the hands or head yet. i think i might change the head from my original sketch. it doesnt seem to have enough detail when compared to the rest of the concept. plus it was oversized for a human skull. heres what i got so far.

[Fenixy]

w.i.p ( no specular)
http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/1289/side2ts5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[lordpisang]

Goust, your job look amazing!!!!!

[poopipe]

Robbiek1000 : It looks to me like he just needs some embellishments - it's a bit hard to tell what he does that makes him dark (apart from the big spikes through his eyes obviously)

Have a look at hellraiser and that other clive barker job (nightbreed maybe?) that ought to provoke a few ideas.

[EvilKnight]

Goust: Looks awsome man! :)

[katana]

Dang....Goust.

[katana]

It seems that some of the toons being shown appear smoother than what I would think a 10k poly object would look like. Are they converted to SD or nurbs? or am I missing something to maximize the positioning of the vertices? Hope I'm being clear...

[poopipe]

its probably the normal maps