Future Tribes

 For the Future Tribes project I had a few ideas from the beginning, which I put into some messy sketches:

My main idea was one of a world where humans live as tribes in isolated domes, sending warriors outside to scout the immediate area and hopefully slowly eliminate the danger that has initially forced them into hiding. Though I had this idea about a warrior monk, I prefered to keep the general idea (asian inspired future tribes character) and experiment more. So I made a moodboard:

I also put together a mood board with materials I could use for my character:

I then went on to make the iterations:

I chose a few that I liked best from these, dividing them by the category I meant them to be in a game: Ronin, Brawler, Assassin and Healer. I experimented with the warrior monk idea too, but I ended up choosing a completely different iteration.

I then detailed my favourite from those:

By this time, I already knew which one I would choose. To be quite fair, I had set my eyes on this one from the first iteration stage, but decided to experiment more just to be safe. I chose the top left ronin character since I liked its flow and the unique weapon. Then I experimented with the values:

I chose these three as my favourite values since I considered them to be the most clearly readable ones, with most contrast and punch. From these, I liked the first one best. 

I went on by experimenting with colour:

I liked the blue and orange one most and detailed it to see where I could go with it.

Next, I started sketching the character. Since my main interest has always been character art and I had taken some classes in drawing human proportions, I didn’t find drawing anatomy especially hard. Still, I made sure to double-check the proportions and use reference.

I added the details to the sketch, building up my character:

Then added colour and rendered it, adding the back and the cut-outs:

After getting feedback I added more detail on the straws as to show their texture, as well as on the gloves. I did my best to apply what I learned from the material studies. I also added a ribbon tied to the weapon so it would break up the monotony of the metallic surface. Also, I added some seams on the clothes to make them look more realistic:

Overall, I am quite proud of what I achieved during this project, and I will do my best to learn and do even better in the next ones.