3 Projects: Stylized Witch House, Forge, Hamsterween

Stylized Witch House

Halloween house real-time environment based on the concept Halloween Witch's House by MD H @MDStudio https://www.artstation.com/artwork/baOrAv.

This was a quick project made during my pre-mentorship term at Think Tank Training Centre with help from Johnny Malcolm. I wanted to work on understanding a game workflow and get more comfortable working in Unreal and doing a full project from start to finish.

I did most of the modeling in Maya but did take a couple of things into Zbrush like the tree and pumpkins. I used a Mash network to make the bushes and paint fx for the grass. There was a big learning curve for figuring out my workflow here, particularly UV's and texel density. 

Next was texturing which I did the bulk of in Substance Designer. I made tileables for a lot of the materials so that I could get uniformity across different pieces while still having the flexibility to make changes and build on them for the different assets. I did end up using Substance Painter for the broom and tree however, as being able to paint directly on the model and uv saved a lot of time.

In Unreal I really wanted to explore decals so I used that for the moss on the stones and the breakup of the plaster on the house. After working with them and learning more I would make a different choice for the moss next time. I also wanted to get into shaders so I had a lot of fun making the lights flicker in the windows using a light function controlled by curves.

Overall I am happy with the project. It was a great learning experience. I encountered challenges that I didn't anticipate which will help me make better choices and art in the future.

Forge

This was a project for my second-term 3D modeling class. It was built in Maya, though I used Zbrush to start the dragon head on top. Rendered with Vray. No texturing on this one other than creating some really basic shaders in Maya. 

This was based on a Warhammer model - The Magmic Battleforge.

Hamsterween

This was my first term final at Think Tank. Based on the concept by Lynn Chen https://www.artstation.com/artwork/BmmBw9.

This was the very first full project that I made at school. Was also a Maya, Zbrush build. This was textured entirely in Substance Painter. Rendered in VRay with a little bit of editing in Photoshop for the final image. I still love this project. It was the perfect size for me as a beginner. I got to explore a lot of tools and learn what workflow even meant.