405th Cosplay Handbook

Status
Not open for further replies.

storm427

New Member
Hello all,

This is my first post and one I didn't really expect to be making. Apologies if this is not the correct place to have posted this.

So as the title suggests I had an idea that the 405th could have a beginners handbook that they could hand out at conventions as a way of getting people interested as well as being a good starting place for halo cosplay concepts. This all began as I was walking around the floor at the Chicago Halo Outpost and continued to see small booklets that I think were titled "405th handbook" or something along those lines. I thought that they were like a starters guide so I went to ask if I could grab one before I left late Sunday afternoon. I spoke with someone (don't remember the name, just the ODST build. If you see this let me know so I can start learning names) about it and turns out that what I had seen was a coloring book for children. Embarrassed, I was about to skulk away like the idiot I felt like, but whoever I was speaking to had actually said that he liked the idea and that he was going to pass it on.

I was really excited that my mistake/idea could actually be something helpful to the community so it got me thinking about what a complete beginner like me would like to have as starting information before they took their first step. So the following are some topics that I would think would be nice to briefly cover in a handbook style guide.

----------------------------------------------

Introduction to Halo Cosplay
- A quick intro discussing reasons for cosplaying, dedication required for a build, general price ranges to expect, ect
- basically a primer page before diving into the actual content

Methods
- discussion of the various methods of building armor, basically the methods section of PerniciousDuke's tutorial... Selecting Your Character (guide)
- discuss the pros and cons of each method
- price ranges of each method

Softwares(???)
- List out helpful softwares as well as their purpose (Pepakura is the only one i have researched so far, not sure if there is really enough to justify this page, maybe just one page on the pep software itself)

tools and supplies
- lists of tools and supplies needed for each method as well as why someone would need them

Starting your build: make it personal
- referencing PerniciousDuke's tutorial again Selecting Your Character (guide)
- "Now that you’ve seen how other people do it, what are you going to do different? Any good costumer will tell you, find one thing that is your crown jewel. What is one thing that would be really cool to have on your character? A chest with a spotlight? Speaker for music? Maybe a material that looks really unique or some battle damage that develops into a character back story. This is my rifle. This is my gun."
- A page that basically discusses the above sentiment

Hard armor build: Pepakura
- general description of the steps required to build pep armor

Hard armor build: foam
- general description of the steps required to build foam armor

Hard armor build: other methods(???)
- don't know if it would be good to include steps for 3d print and cast methods, since they are less common than pep and foam

Soft armor build
- general description of the steps required to create the lower layer of an armor build

Maintenance and repairs
- how to store/transport your armor safely
- steps than can be taken to increase the longevity of your creation
- how to repair common breaks/issues

Tips and tricks
- things that don't really fit in the previous sections that are important to know
- things that you would really only know after having a certain amount of experience

Enlist in the 405th
- A quick mention of how to become a member and participate in the community

Notes
- a few open pages at the end where people can take notes when they ask the pros questions at the convention

---------------------------------------------------

So those are some topics I think it would be cool to cover in a small (like 15 pages) handbook that could be handed out at conventions and meetups and such. Are there any topics I missed? I'd like to hear feedback to know if there would actually be any desire for this type of thing. I would gladly help on consolidating info for this idea if people think it would be useful to new members (It would also be nice for me to work with current members so I can get more involved).

EDIT: In perusing the forums I think I had my conversation at HOD Chicago with SGT Razor. (If anyone could tell me how to do the name link thingy it would be greatly appreciated)
 
Last edited:
I for one like the idea. I think it would be good to have a thing to hand out.

For the time being, maybe consolidating everything onto a Google docs page? I can't see this being ready to hand out for outpost discovery, but maybe by next year it'll be up and running. Or any conventions in the interim.
 
I like the idea too, sounds like a more generalized approach to PerniciousDuke tutorial index(which is a great tool) and then some. You could always link back to some of the guides in his index, or his actual tutorial list too if people wanted to learn more if you do it in a pdf as well.
 
Thanks storm427 !

We have pursued a pamphlet, but the powers that be were not a fan of the pamphlet idea. So instead we've been working on a packet, something that could be emailed or printed. I'm pretty far along on the packet, but I like your idea of a handbook. I will restructure mine with your outline in mind and see what happens. :)

For being a new member I am very impressed with your grasp on the building process! Thank you again for posting.

EDIT: I'm a promoter of transparency so for those interested, here is the table of content that I will be pursuing. Please comment if you have anything to add or alter.

16 half pages printed double sided (our coloring book is 12 pages for reference)

Page 1: Cover
Page 2: What is 405th + Table of Contents
Page 3: Areas of Operation / Joining Up
Page 4: Intro to Building
Page 5: Universal Supplies + Software
Page 6: Pepakura generalized
Page 7: Foam generalized
Page 8: 3D Print generalized
Page 9: Soft Parts generalized
Page 10: Maintenance + Repair
Page 11: Tips + Tricks
Page 12: Cosplaying in Armor Comic part1
Page 13: Cosplaying in Armor Comic part2
Page 14: Cosplaying in Armor Comic part3
Page 15: Cosplaying in Armor Comic part4
Page 16: Back - Usage and Mission Statement
 
Last edited:
I'm just on my phone. The job I'm assigned to today is pretty laid back and conducive to it. This afternoon will probably be busy, though.
 
(Thoughts out loud) *hmmmmm. People in IT... Kid building a Heads Up Display... 3D printer people... CnC machine people...real suit possible complete with wifi, heads up display and maybe some sparkler dispensers for that shield effect...I want icecream..."
 
Thanks storm427 !

We have pursued a pamphlet, but the powers that be were not a fan of the pamphlet idea. So instead we've been working on a packet, something that could be emailed or printed. I'm pretty far along on the packet, but I like your idea of a handbook. I will restructure mine with your outline in mind and see what happens. :)

For being a new member I am very impressed with your grasp on the building process! Thank you again for posting.

Thanks for the feedback, good to know I don't sound like an absolute nutcase coming out of the woodwork. Luckily for me anytime I try to undertake something new I try to learn as much as possible about it before I take any concrete first steps (unfortunately this really slows down the starting of the actual project) so that's probably why it sounds like I have a decent grasp.

I love coming up with ideas like this and organizing information in an easily digestible way. Let me know if you'd like any further beginners perspectives since it sounds like that would be the intended audience of what you are working on. Although it looks like you have pretty much everything covered. Glad to know that I was able to help out before I even started my own build.
 
This is actually a kind of thing I've been thinking about as well, as I've been looking into making a "master builder app" that guides people through the suit building process in a super new-user friendly and hand-holdy fashion. I'd be interested in seeing where this idea goes, and what becomes of PerniciousDuke's secret packet thing.
 
This is actually a kind of thing I've been thinking about as well, as I've been looking into making a "master builder app" that guides people through the suit building process in a super new-user friendly and hand-holdy fashion. I'd be interested in seeing where this idea goes, and what becomes of PerniciousDuke's secret packet thing.


There is one big challenge with doing things like these walk throughs for a whole group (rather than just an independent thing like writing your own book or youtube series). The reason it's that not everyone is the same.

Not everyone has the same circumstances. Not everyone learns in the same way. You can list products, but not everyone has them available in their country, or can afford the ones you list. Climate will change how/when people can paint. Some people might not have space to work with chemicals. The list goes on.

Creating a "How to do it the best" guide can alienate others who now feel that their way is not good enough. I don't want to discourage you from creating a master builder app, but just want you to be aware of this hurtle. From what I've seen, this is the main reason there is not a lot of universal 405th brand things like walkthroughs... in theory it could limit us. But, this is why Battalions and Regiments are so useful there is a lot more freedom on a local level. We are trying though!
 
There is one big challenge with doing things like these walk throughs for a whole group (rather than just an independent thing like writing your own book or youtube series). The reason it's that not everyone is the same.

Not everyone has the same circumstances. Not everyone learns in the same way. You can list products, but not everyone has them available in their country, or can afford the ones you list. Climate will change how/when people can paint. Some people might not have space to work with chemicals. The list goes on.

Creating a "How to do it the best" guide can alienate others who now feel that their way is not good enough. I don't want to discourage you from creating a master builder app, but just want you to be aware of this hurtle. From what I've seen, this is the main reason there is not a lot of universal 405th brand things like walkthroughs... in theory it could limit us. But, this is why Battalions and Regiments are so useful there is a lot more freedom on a local level. We are trying though!
I agree with most of what you said, yeah. Though I just wanted to note that my idea doesn't target 'how to do it best' but rather 'how to get into it/started' and make that experience as simple as possible.
 
I understand. The "best" was more of what the user can come away with regardless of your intent.

When I work on stuff like this I try to keep it generalized and if I do go into specifics I try to counter it by saying things that encourage out of the box thinking on the same topic.

If you ever want someone to take a look at something you're working on I would be happy to lend an eyeball or two.
 
If you ever want someone to take a look at something you're working on I would be happy to lend an eyeball or two.
I'll likely take you up on that whenever the time comes, though that's likely a ways away as I've currently got 3-4 builds on my plate along with the HUD 2.0 development.
 
For sure.

This is even the reason I was hesitant to do the tutorial index despite how helpful it is. Now someone has to determine which tutorials are "good enough" to be on the list. There are a bunch that I wish I could add, but either are just a little too confusing or the pictures don't work.. Either way it's not fun to be that guy. :/
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top