Matthew Archer, BSc
Characters
Clone Commando - Beginning of January to Early February 2016
Made for a 2nd year University assignment, I created a 'Star Wars' Clone Commando figure using Pixologic's Z-Brush. I made use of various simple techniques in production such as 'Move', 'Mesh Extract', 'FBX Import/Export' and 'Polypaint'.
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On the model's armour plates I made use of a very subtle amount of 'Surface Noise' to give it a more rugged look resembling battlefront wear and tear, but this was lost when merging the Subtools for the Game Asset (lower poly) version.
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I also used the 'Blaster Config' model from my 'DC-17 Interchangable weapons System' set of models (available on the "Models" page) at a later date to provide a better and more accurate weapon than the first (created with 'Shadowbox').
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I also decided a better and more contextually appropriate scene to show off and display the model would be in the command centre of the 'Rishi Outpost' level I created.
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Medieval Knight - Early to mid August 2016
I designed and created this as a way of honing my Z-Brush skills over that summer, I decided on history over fantasy this time to give myself a change of scenery so to speak on my 3D Character Modelling.
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I decided to expand my repertoire of tools during the development process from the ones above in the Commando model. As a result, I implemented tools such as 'MatchMaker', 'IMM Insert Mesh', 'NoiseMaker' and 'Curve Insert Mesh'.
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I textured the model initially through the use of applying texture images through UV's but I found the 'shiny' appearance it gave the model to be unrealistic, especially on elements like the skin and fabric. So I turned to simple Polypainting like the Commando model to bring the textures and colours to the model instead.
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As with my Commando model, I designed and build a thematically accurate scene (a medieval village/town square in this instance) to house the low poly version in made with UE4.12.5 complete with baked lighting.
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Modern Assassin - Mid November to Mid December 2016
My first 'Modelling & Game Design' assignment of my third year at University that earned me half a mark away from a First. I decided to do my interpretation of what a 21st Century operative of the Assassin Order would look like from the 'Assassin's Creed' franchise.
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As before, I made the model in Pixologic's Z-Brush (while utilising Maya 2016 for the weapons) and I also made sure to expand my range of tools and techniques when designing it from the ones above in the previous models.
Therefore, on top of all of the techniques already mentioned in my other characters, I also used 'Polygroups' and 'Curve Insert Mesh' on this model. The latter was a custom brush I designed myself to give the high poly version stitching along the clothes for aesthetic effect.
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As with my previous Character Models, I built a thematically appropriate scene in UE4.12.5 to house the low poly version of the model (50,000 triangle limit this time), with baked lighting included.
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For optimal viewing experience, consider watching on a desk/laptop system.
Spartan Warrior (300) - Late May 2017
Created in a single afternoon in less than 4 hours as a very simple and straightforward companion piece to the "Spartan Gear" set (found on my 'Models' page) to show them off in a more contextual manner and to ensure my Z-Brush skills didn't wane over Dissertation season.
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Besides 'FBX Mesh Importation', the main technique used (as it was the only one actually necessary in this instance) was the 'Extract' tool to create the clothes, straps, armour and cape of the character. The 'Move' tool was also utilised to pull the model's cape down to foot level after it had been extracted as its own Subtool.
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The scene was created like all the others; through the utilisation of Unreal 4 to create something very synonymous with the film.
Also, unlike the other character scenes, this one features multiple copies of the same character. 96 specifically arranged in an 8x12 phalanx formation, making it more reflective of the film's Thermopalae scenes.
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For optimal viewing experience, consider watching on a desk/laptop system.
Targaryen Kingsguard - End of August to Beginning of September 2017
This I developed as the final piece on my list of things I wanted to create over the Summer of 2017. The helmet, weapons, belt, and sheathe meshes were created in Maya 2017 while the rest of the model was done solely in Z-Brush through the use of 'Extract', 'Move', 'Shadowbox', 'IMM Insert Mesh' 'Matchmaker' and 'Polypaint' tools.
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I discovered during development of this model that if you were to apply textures to the Subtools after masking them 'By Alpha', then the texture would then be applied on the model in a much more realistic manner than Polypaint.
Unfortunately when the Subtools were merged for the game asset version, the surface noise on the skin, weapons and armour would vanish (as 'Apply to Mesh' under "Surface" wouldn't work) and so the visual appearance in all the textures reverted to the standard Polypaint look. This compromised most textures such as the subtle diamond stitching unique to the clothes covering the character's thighs.
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For the small 'Tower of Joy' scene I put together, I took the standard Kingsguard model I created and turned that into 2 versions with their own unique characteristics, directly based on the two individuals present in the scene in the TV show.
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Changes from the template but also each other were nuanced, scene-specific details like facial hair (in individual colours), unique weapons, different scale as one is taller than the other, one not wearing gloves also no second sheathe.
Click on the images for larger size and better quality.
For optimal viewing experience, consider watching on a desk/laptop system.
For optimal viewing experience, consider watching on a desk/laptop system.