Concepting
I was particularly inspired by horns, wings, and skulls. I also tended to like swords with holes in the middle of them. I ended up with a combination of the two
Final Design
Ideation
Moodboard
Reference
My goal with the art style was to mix realism with a more painterly style. I planned to model the sword fairly realistically, perhaps with a bit less high end detail than true realism in the skull. I also had to do a lot of work in texturing to create this style.
Modeling Reference
Textural Reference
Modeling and Sculpting
I modeled the base mesh using Sub-D modeling techniques in Maya. I avoided modeling the skull and horns, as I felt like they would be easier to model in ZBrush.
I used ZBrush in order to sculpt the skull and add detail to the rest of the sword. I relied heavily on reference for modeling the skull.
I brought the skull back into Maya for retopoing to create a low poly model for texturing.
Final Mesh:
Quads: 4840
Tris: 9583
Final ZBrush Sculpt
Low Poly
Texturing and Rendering
I used Substance Painter in order to create my Diffuse Map. I tried to aim for a more hand painted, but realistic look when creating the texture.
I rendered in Marmoset Toolbag.
Materials
Photoshop: Concepting, compiling reference images
Maya: Base mesh modeling, retopology, UV unwrapping
ZBrush: High poly sculpting
Substance Painter: Texture baking and texturing
Marmoset Toolbag: Lighting and rendering
Maya: Base mesh modeling, retopology, UV unwrapping
ZBrush: High poly sculpting
Substance Painter: Texture baking and texturing
Marmoset Toolbag: Lighting and rendering