To get the general shapes needed, I used ZSpheres. I had simple meshes from the blockout phase but I still needed detail pieces such as the leather straps and forged metal pieces. This means that as I sculpted details I had to avoid adding unique details along the axis being mirrored that would look repetitive. I wanted to optimize this project for games and was going to mirror as much of my UVs as I could to save texture space and allow for the highest texel density possible. I knew this shield was rugged and battle-worn so I grabbed my Clay Buildup brush and started sculpting some angular features until I got something that felt both battle-tested and “badass”. n the low-resolution concept, I could tell there was some form of detail on the lower part of the shield but I couldn’t tell what it was. When I started my sculpt, I had a concept image in a lower resolution than the one I eventually found. try to keep your mesh light in triangle count for as long as possible not only does this help keep files performant but you can also avoid having a too noisy or busy sculpt just for the sake of having details.focus on large forms first, make sure they read well before moving on to any other smaller forms.

Two things I would recommend to any artist trying out digital sculpting are: This mindset helps me not get too attached to any brush stroke while I am working. It’s just clay: it can be shaped, added to and taken away from, and so on.

I try to think of digital sculpting the same way as I would think of the traditional one. Once I am confident with my blockout, I export those meshes to use as a reference during the sculpting phase. Will the shield clip into the character mesh? Does the distance between the grip and the arm brace match the mannequin's forearm? I also check basic functionality and how all the pieces fit together. This is where the blockout phase allows me to check things such as: I knew UE4 was the end destination for this asset so I started with Epic’s default mannequin in a blank scene and box-modeled some simple meshes to start the shield. This is why I always recommend taking time to do a blockout of your project - it may take up some of the production time but it makes it easier to spot and resolve any possible design conflicts before things get complex. Scale and proportions are just as important in the environment and prop design as they are more commonly thought of in character art.

Zbrush environment sculpting