Mentallic3D

34 - The GraveYard

2012-02-27T15:44:00.002-08:00

Greetings all!

I have been hard at work on my newest assignment from Imagineer Games. This time we have the GraveYard! This is an eerie location above a mysterious mausoleum.

I received a great concept piece as well as a very detailed block out. So far I have been working on details mainly as the majority of the major walls and objects were already blocked out for me. Everything will get a detail pass though to ensure that we have it matching as close as possible to the concept artist's sketch.

Thus far I have added mainly the candles, the vases, and rebuilt some of the walls for poly flow.

Concept Art

WIP:

As always your feedback is most appreciated.

Enjoy!

Cheers~

33 - Gioz Units Progress 1

2012-02-27T15:38:00.000-08:00

Greetings all!

Today I have 3, count them, 3 WIPs to share with you. :)

I have been hard at work on the enemy units for the Gioz: The Defender tower defense game.

First up we have the Infantry unit. This is the weakest enemy of the bunch, the cannon fodder if you will. He has a standard armour layout of a helm, pauldrons, gloves, a belt, and boots.

Next we have a double render of the Infantry and the next most powerful unit, the Soldier. The Soldier has a horned helm with decorative pauldrons, slightly larger gloves, a front hanging tabard, and boots.

Finally we have a very early render of the Scout unit. This guy is all about speed. From his slicked back pointy hair, to his winged boots he is ready to sprint past your defenses. Bring him down fast! I have much still to do for this model and some to redo that is not working well yet.

As always your feedback is much appreciated.

Enjoy!

Cheers~

32 - Gioz the Defender: Concepts

2012-02-18T05:34:00.000-08:00

Greetings all!

Here for your viewing pleasure is the latest concept art for Gioz the Defender. The lead and I have been working hard together to bring you a blend of good old favorites and fresh medieval unit designs.

First up we have the Infantry, the Soldier, the Scout, and the Archer.

I am awaiting feedback from the lead but I expect he will be pleased.

In the meantime, what do you think? :)

As always your feedback is most welcome.

Enjoy!

Cheers~

31 - The Secret Lab - Done!

2012-02-18T05:28:00.000-08:00

Greetings all!

The Lab is done. This has been a very fun model to create. I love the atmosphere of the piece and the cannon / laser thing was challenging. The final poly count came to: 2777 / 3000. Just made it, whew! :)

All in all I've had a great deal of fun with this piece and I am looking forward a great deal to the next.

As always your feedback in most welcome.

Enjoy!

Cheers~

30 - The Secret Lab: Nearly Finished

2012-02-11T05:14:00.000-08:00

Greetings all!

I spent a few hours last night pushing to get to the finish line on the Secret Lab scene. I am happy to tell you that I'm almost done! I have a very short list of very minor things left to do:

- fix camera position slightly (you can see along the left and top edge of the image there is a bit of the behind the scenes magic being revealed! That is a simple fix of moving the camera just a tad.

- top left wire connection (the vertical beam furthest to the left has a wire just sticking out of it. I need to bend that up and terminate it off camera. Again, a simple and very minor fix)

- wires (LP) (all the wires you see in the scene are made with an object called a Spline. A spline is a 3d line that normally does not show up at render time. What I have done is check the show in render button and given it some thickness to show where the wires will be. Now once the rest of the model is cleaned and finalized I will go back and model a sort of half cylinder shape that faces the camera to take the place of the splines as the final wire geometry

- cleaning (last but not least general model cleaning. This consists of checking the model carefully and any faces that will never be seen by the camera are deleted. All the lighting in the scenes of the game are baked in, meaning there is little to no dynamic light, so faces that would normally provide shadow detail are not necessary. Also during cleaning I check to make sure that an object will not move during the game. If an object moves then I need to find out how it moves and be sure not to delete any faces that could show later on. For example there is a hidden room in this scene and I need to make sure the object that moves out of the way to reveal this room has all it's faces intact.

So that's all for now. As usual please let me know what you think of my progress. All feedback is greatly appreciated.

I've had a lot of fun with this model and truth be told I'm a little sad to see it come to an end. I told the lead for ImagineerGames that I really liked the canon/laser thing and would consider doing a High Poly version if they needed or wanted it for promotional reasons.

Enjoy the render (which has been brightened up a bit for your viewing)

Cheers~

29 - The Secret Lab: Tangled

2012-02-04T07:04:00.000-08:00

Greetings all!

I have been hard at work on the Secret Lab and have some progress to share with you.

Last night I spent some time getting most of the various wires put into place. At the moment I believe I have a little over half of the wires placed. After placement they will require some hand editing in order to become game ready.

The gun/laser thing in the ceiling is just about complete. The concept shows a little bit more (what looks like brackets to mount it to the ceiling) however based upon the desired camera angle you can not see it. I modeled it anyway but have hidden it for this render.

Still to-do is:

- Books on shelves
- Finish wires
- Various pipes / gauges in ceiling
- Clean up and budget check

As always your feedback is welcome. Enjoy!

Cheers~

28 - Gioz the Defender: Tower Defense

2012-01-27T20:44:00.000-08:00

Greetings all!

I have been contacted to assist with a tower defense game being developed for most mobile and tablet platforms.

The game is called Gioz: The Defender. During the tower defense style action you take control of Gioz and are able to assist the towers in fending off the Creeps; an endless wave of evil minions.

My first task is to create the 10 different forms of Creeps. For this task I was requested to develop Creeps of 3 different sizes: Small (.5 units), Medium (1 unit), and Large (1.25 units).

To begin I gathered as much information and reference from the client as I could on what style he was looking for and from there I built up a proportion sheet. Next I created a base character mesh from which the other proportions would be sourced.

During the process I generated an even larger still Creep to use as reference and any possible boss Creeps.

From this Boss Creep mesh I tweaked, pushed, pulled, and smoothed my way to victory; 3 different proportioned meshes, all from the same source, and all with the same vert count and uvs.

This should make the animator's job a lot easier.

See below for all 4 of the base meshes:

My next task is to take the drawings I have done for each of the classes of Creep and create their armour and weaponry.

As always any feedback is greatly appreciated. Enjoy!

P.S. Link to the Tower Defense game thread: http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=92751

Cheers~

27 - The Secret Lab: Continued

2012-01-27T20:31:00.000-08:00

Greetings all!

Work on the Secret Lab is going well. I have got most of the major forms nailed down for the room. The only major form remaining is the laser cannon.

Not counting the duplicated master instancing objects and the wires (which are not final) I am sitting at 1,373 / 5000. There is still room for tweaks however I am not sure yet how much the laser will eat up.

Below you will find two WIP renders; one with and one without the laser gears I've been working on this evening. Even though there is not much to see yet behind the gears I figured this would make viewing the scene a bit easier.

As always please let me know if you have any feedback as it is always welcome.

thank you for reading and enjoy!

Cheers~

26 - The Secret Lab

2012-01-22T08:53:00.000-08:00

Greetings all!

I have received my next assignment from Imagineer Games. This time I am to create the Secret Lab that exists under the Manor Interior that I have already created. (See blog post #20 - Mansion Interior).

Below you will find the original concept as provided to me along with my current progress.

As always your feedback is much appreciated.

Enjoy!

Cheers~

25 - 3D Training 2 - Train Harder

2012-01-15T18:15:00.000-08:00

Greetings all. I have been quite busy with personal things this week but I have new progress to share.

Having completed the Low Poly pass for the TV Remote I did a test bake of the Normal Map for it.

The results are fairly good but I am not yet satisfied by the result.

See below for the Flat Render and Wireframe comparisons.

As always any comments or feedback are greatly appreciated.

Above you can see the wireframe for each pass. The High Poly pass is sitting at just under 4,200 polygons (with a TurboSmooth of 3 added for baking), while the final Low Poly is just 125 polys!

Cheers~

24 - 3D Training

2012-01-07T10:55:00.000-08:00

Back to ~~the Future~~ Basics!

I have been working on learning all I can from several tutorials and fellow artists to improve my skills.

First up I am learning more about proper Normal Mapping basics from my friend Warlock279. He is a freelance artist in Pennsylvania.

To begin we set forth a task for me to create simple household items and study their physical properties in order to better understand how to paint the various texture maps that mimic those properties.

My first model was a very simple light switch. Here you can see the model in both it's high poly and low poly state (with the resultant normal map bake applied). On the left is the high poly model at 4,800 polygons, and on the right we have the low poly (game ready) model at just 46 polygons!

Below you can see the wireframe of each model:

Next I will be working on creating the Light Switch's Diffuse and Specular maps.

After the Light Switch model is complete I will be moving on to a TV Remote model for which I have the high poly already complete. (See below)

Thank you for viewing and if you have any questions or comments I would greatly appreciate any feedback.

Cheers~

23 - (Undead) Armored Pegasus

2011-08-24T15:26:00.000-07:00

Greetings all, it's been a long time since I posted here. I've been keeping quite busy with my recent trip to SIGGRAPH and all. I've so much to tell about the trip, but that will have to wait for another post.

Tonight I have an update on the Armored Pegasus that I owe my friend Dave. Here is the latest. I believe all I have left to do on the actual horse is to clean up the hooves and then some minor smoothing here and there. After that I will be moving on to the wings and the armor.

As always any comments, ideas, or suggestions are most welcome.

Cheers~

22 - Bookstore Update

2011-05-28T21:32:00.000-07:00

Another long night of hard work and I have the bookstore nearly complete. I have 1 book left to make yet and some book ends to place around but everything else is built. Next up (after the book and bookends) is clean up and then we wait for approval and/or tweaks. :) This has been a fun build. I can't wait to see it in game!

Enjoy!

WIP3:

WIP4:

Cheers~

21 - Bookstore

2011-05-27T19:51:00.000-07:00

For my new assignment from Imagineer I am creating a bookstore. After a few hours of work I have most of the room complete with only a few tweaks to make. I need to tweak the arches and the size of the large center bookshelf. It is about 90% of the way there but it needs to be balanced based upon the surrounding elements.

At the end of the first day here is what we have:

Concept:

WIP 1:

WIP 2 (about an hour later):

Cheers~

20 - Mansion Interior

2011-05-21T19:39:00.000-07:00

Greetings all once again. I know it has been a huge jump but I have been super busy so here is the latest.

My newest assignment for Imagineer was to create the Mansion Interior scene. This one proved difficult as I had to get a lot of detail in and my budget was tight. I was able to get everything done as well as create some additional assets that may be reused later in the game. Below is the original concept art and my final render of the scene. Note: we discussed the drastic difference that was bound to occur with the extreme perspective in the concept. I have adjusted it accordingly and with his approval.

Enjoy!

Cheers~

19 - Mansion Almost Complete!

2011-05-10T16:55:00.000-07:00

Update on the Mansion Exterior scene. I have completed just about everything for this scene. All that is missing are the alpha planes for the grass. Current poly count is approx. 3800 /4000. I spoke with the lead over at ImaginnerGames and he said that he will handle the alpha planes since he will be texturing them as well. So other than any tweaks they may have for me I'm about ready to call this one done! :)

Below are two renders, the first is with every object in the scene (including the alpha plane backgrounds which will be removed/edited) and the second is with the backgrounds and gate hidden so you can see the house better.

C&C are always welcome. Enjoy!

Cheers~

18 - Mansion Update: Now With Building(s)!

2011-05-08T09:41:00.000-07:00

Greetings all. I've been hard at work on the Mansion Exterior. Since last time I have reduced the poly count for the walls and the ground plane as well as added the alpha planes for the gates. Now I present to you the first pass on the Mansion itself. I have added several edges to allow the building(s) to bend as shown in the concept drawing as well as deleted any faces not seen by the camera angle. Let me know what you think!

Cheers~

17 - Mansion Exterior: Now With Walls!

2011-05-02T16:42:00.000-07:00

I have added the walls that line the fence outside the Mansion. Still to add: Alpha planes for the iron bars, Alpha planes for the grass and flowers.

Concept:

Mansion Exterior (WIP):

Cheers~

16 - ImagineerGames: Mansion Exterior: Dolls Sneak Peak

2011-05-01T15:05:00.000-07:00

Ok, so they aren't final yet but here is a sneak peak at the Dolls (modeled, rigged, posed, and set to the right camera angle).

Cheers~

15 - ImagineerGames: Mansion Exterior

2011-04-29T12:00:00.000-07:00

New ImagineerGames client work to share! This time I am creating the Mansion Exterior.

Concept Art:

So I've broken it down by section starting with the Dolls that are posed on either side of the main gate. First order of business is to tackle the most complex parts so we begin with the Dolls.

Below is the first pass for the Dolls, including a Head sheet showing the Base Head and the Damaged Head (seen on Doll_RightSide).

Cheers~

14 - Base Mesh Done!

2011-04-24T17:41:00.001-07:00

Here is my completed Base Mesh, ready for sculpting! :)

Cheers~

13 - Keeper Staff (High Poly) Complete

2011-04-20T16:59:00.000-07:00

The High Poly pass for the Keeper's Staff is now complete. The following images show the staff as a whole, a bottom element close up, and a top element close up.

Cheers~

12 - Keeper Staff: Scroll High Poly

2011-04-18T16:37:00.000-07:00

Here is the result of the High Poly pass for the Scrolls in the Keeper's Staff. Feedback is appreciated.

Cheers~

11 - Keeper Staff Update

2011-04-17T14:41:00.000-07:00

I've been hard at work on the Keeper's Staff. The top consists of scrolls with their parchment bent in curves briefly representing a Poseidon like stature.

Let me know what you think.

Cheers~

10 - Don't Call It A Comeback, Cause I Never Left

2011-04-15T11:40:00.000-07:00

Latest with the DWV character "The Keeper" Enjoy.

The Keeper has a library built into his one arm

Here is the Library Arm with low poly block out

A stone floor for the second level of the Library arm

Ionic Columns

Ionic Column testing a column array

Cheers~

9 - Keeper WIP (5)

2011-03-24T17:30:00.000-07:00

Tonight's progress: Model sheet (started), staff concepts (started) C&C are welcome. Thank you!

Cheers~

8 - Armed and Dangerous

2011-03-23T16:10:00.000-07:00

Just finished a page full of arm possibilities for you folks. Please let me know which ones you like best. Thank you!

Cheers~

7 - Finally Getting Somewhere

2011-03-21T16:35:00.000-07:00

I've finally got a good shape going. Here is the latest for the Keeper. I've included the body shape as well as some rough sketches for the robe/toga and his scroll staff.

C&C are most welcome. Thank you!

Cheers~

6 - More Ideas

2011-03-18T17:20:00.001-07:00

Still not finding a design that I love. Here are a few more ideas in a different direction. C&C are welcome.

5 - DWV Thumbnails Round 2

2011-03-18T11:45:00.000-07:00

Moving forward with the design I am attempting to create a "lumbering giant" of sorts. Here are the latest thumbnails. Please give me some feedback on which are your favorites. (1-12) (far right S1-S3)

Cheers~

4 - Thumbnails, Round 1

2011-03-16T16:35:00.000-07:00

Here are the results of about an hour total of thumbnail sketching. The idea at this phase is to get an interesting shape that can be taken and elaborated into a more concise character. Even after a thumbnail is refined that is taking further and details such as muscles, clothing, armor, and so forth are drawn over top of it.

For tonight I ran with the idea of the Keeper, an ancient deity that protects all knowledge throughout time. At the end of all things he/she/it returns to mankind, selects the most worthy, and presents them with the knowledge needed to start anew.

The idea I had was that the Keeper is a massive golem the size of a mountain and on his hand/arm would be a stairway or some sort of entrance to a library. The chosen worthy would ascend into the Keeper to gain the knowledge necessary to save their species.

Please leave comments and let me know what you think of the following:

Cheers~

3 - The War Horn Has Sounded, The Gods Shall Answer!

2011-03-16T06:04:00.000-07:00

Dominance War V has officially launched! This being the last of the Dom War series the theme this year is The Rise of the Gods. See below for the full brief and rules:

Theme
"Immortality! We strive for it, we long for it, we fight for it. For as long as we can remember, we have even died for it. But what is immortality?We have always believed that our goals, our beliefs and our ideals, when forced on others through Victory of War - had ever, lasting, meaning. Because in being remembered, we ourselves became gods. But we were wrong... After centuries of war - they finally came. To guide us? To punish us? To destroy us!? We do not know. But what we do know is that the results of this immortal war, will shape the universe forever more.

Come, join us, for a final chapter in the legendary series, Dominance War V... The Rise of GODS."

Brief
Create a powerful GOD that shall defeat all other gods and determine the future of the universe forever more!! Your God must symbolize one exceptional trait - God of War, God of Machines, God of Peace, Demonic God of Chaos, God of Torment, God of Love, God of Mercy, God of Swords, etc. The design and style of your GOD can be made in any fashion, except cartoons. Here are examples of what NOT to do - [links removed...two images of sunday paper style cartoons], etc. Additionally, NO real/known gods (Allah, Brahman, Elohim, Jesus Christ, Waheguru, etc) or current fantasy gods (from Dungeons & Dragons, etc) can be used for this challenge. You must invent a God from scratch and from your imagination. Show us why your GOD is THEE GOD of ALL!! The time period for this challenge is set in the utterly destroyed and distant future.

World standings await the best designed GOD! Be it for fun, for practice or to show the world your skills, Good luck to all those brave enough to enter!

Guidelines
12500 triangles
1x 2048² Texture set
All textures must be original and hand painted
Renders must be in some sort of 3d Engine (i.e Unity, DXStudio, Marmoset Toolbag, etc..)

Where you come in
Please visit my blog regularly as I will be updating near daily with progress. I will post polls, ideas, sketches, and all work in progress (WIP) images of the model as it is created. I will do my best to explain each step of the 3d process to both illustrate to the 3d community and prospective employers that I know what I'm talking about, and to you my non-3d friends and family so that you can follow along and help me to critique each phase of the build process.

Edit: Please vote in the poll on the right hand side for your favorite god/goddess idea! Thank you!

I deeply value and appreciate your feedback and your support during this intense competition.

Cheers~

2 - Still Waiting

2011-03-14T13:49:00.000-07:00

It appears that Dom War has been delayed. For how long we have not been told. I'll be posting some WIPs (Work In Progress) of my latest work later this week,

Cheers~

1 - All Set Up and Ready to Dominate

2011-03-07T14:58:00.000-08:00

Greetings all to my 3D Modeling blog. Tomorrow begins the 5th Annual Dominance War and I am ready to compete! Please join me in the contest of epic proportions. I will be updating this blog with my Dom War progress as well as any any all artwork I create. Feel free to leave any constructive comments and critiques.

Cheers~