After you create your concept for your 3D project, you have to begin the process of creating a model of it. The best way to do this is illustrated in the lower right corner. You essentially create a box out of the reference images that you or your concept artist made, and then build your model from that. This is a handy way to create something quickly. I made the mistake of forgetting to make a concrete concept for the main portion of the machine because I knew it would be covered in webbing. So I wound up with a lot of freedom in making something creepy and fleshy for the main portion. While that worked out fine here, that is really bad practice, so don't do it!

The spokes on the Devil's Machine are what you would call modular pieces. Modular pieces are assets that you use to create environments or as parts on character models. The spokes are not attached to main body in any way, and were not exported for sculpting. Instead, their high poly model was created first, and then I deleted a large number of loops to create their game mesh versions.

This low poly model is really simple because it is going to be put into ZBrush, a digital sculpting program. To do that, you take your model and place it at world zero (XYZ coordinates 0, 0, 0). You place it at world zero or else when you import your model, it's suddenly three miles...over there. This is essential when bringing assets into other programs or into an Engine. Especially if you're making modular parts for the level designers. I've heard horror stories about people who forget to export at world zero where the level designers do horrible things to those people. Anywho, now you select it and export the selected piece. Then import it into your digital sculpting program of choice, and have fun! :)

For this section, there isn't a while lot of creative thinking outside of making good polyflow for subdivision and making the shape look nice. And being low poly models, these aren't too exciting either. Next time though, we delve into the high poly models which are a lot more interesting.

For lighting, I used a simple three point system consisting of a Key (your main light), Fill (opposite your main light, this one fills up your shadows with light so they aren't black), and Rim (which is a white light that is high and above your model and is used to create a kind of halo around their shoulders and head).

Models and design by  AtticusKotch