New to builder excited and intimidated

[TrUeKiLa]

So I'm no my tech savy in the least and I'm trying is as a first go.

I like many of you have a life long love of Halo and have been looking to build or commission a set of ODST armor (would love Spartan but let's face it I'm not tall enough and it's not believable lol). That being said I have 0 idea of what I am doing and am looking for any type of advice you guys would like to give. In the intrest of disclosure I work afternoons 7 days a week for the next year and a half or so but I would love to join and be a bigger part of the 405th. Thank you for your time Semper Fi

 

[Viper 466]

Welcome aboard man. So in regards to building there's lots of people here with a lot of experience. I recommend checking out some threads in the newbie area. Get a feel for what kind of material you want to make your suit from. I'm Foam Forge from Installation 00's Discord. If you're wanting to get a built commission, Sean Bradley once he opens back up is a good place to check out on Etsy. Or you can check the marketplace. Sometimes kits and suits will be sold there.


Build Materials:
Pepakura vs EVA Foam
One is hard armor and takes a little more work but lasts a long time. The other is a little easier, slightly soft and more friendly to first time builds as it's cheaper. I'm currently following TurboCharizard and PerniciousDuke 's build threads to work on a new set of armor in the form of a Halo Reach Army Trooper. My build is primarily floor mats from Walmart. They cost me like 12$ for 4 sheets 2'x2'. I use mostly hand tools, a dremel/rotary tool is a good investment.

If you go the foam route I suggest checking out some guys on You-tube.
Namely Punished Props Academy and Evil Ted Smith
They work in Eva foam a lot and are a good resource for seeing some different ways to work with foam.

Next up your gear. I would recommend a list of all the parts you want to build. As you're doing an ODST I know there are templates here for a Halo 3 Varient if you want to build some stuff. The armory up at the top is a good resource for pepakura and foam templates. I do live streaming a lot and tend to show the build process from start to finish on my gear as I go, and don't mind answering more questions there or on Discord.

As for joining a regiment there's numerous regiments to sign up with based on your location. I would recommend poking around in there.

Don't be afraid to just sort of look around and get a feel for the place, and welcome aboard.

 

[TrUeKiLa]

Thank you so much for your information. I will definently be looking around for info and instructions as well as ideas. It's still a little intimidating for me but I'm sure itll pass I have no artistic ability either so that doesnt help I'm sure.

 

[PaiganBoi]

Artistic ability is not a skill needed to build armour. Members of many artistic or not have all completed a full suit of armour. Granted most have had to go back and rebuild parts because either it was a failed attempt due to incorrectly scaling the part or not happy with the end result and wanted to do better.
Do your homework before you start your build. Like Viper 466 mentioned, check out build threads of members who have done an ODST (like myself : Foam - ODST: Version 1 was okay. Now for Version 2).
Also look up tutorials ls on YouTube on armour crafting.
Don't feel intimidated. All of us on the forums are here to help if you ever need it.
Welcome to the 405th and good luck.

 

[TrUeKiLa]

Thank you I hope I can make it look like it does in my head (I have dumb hands though). I dont wanna be the guy going on a deployment looking like a bag of crap because he cant get his suit right but I might as well jump in and get my feet wet rather than sit and whine about it right?

 

[Viper 466]

Just remember everyone starts somewhere and if you aren’t satisfied with something you can always upgrade it.

 

[TrUeKiLa]

I feel like between the 405th site and YouTube are going to by my bestfriends.

 

[PaiganBoi]

There's also the 405th Discord as well.... And Facebook.

 

[TrUeKiLa]

Could I get an invite to the discord then or do I need to wait for the 90 day angry 50 posts in this thread?

 

[TrUeKiLa]

There's also the 405th Discord as well.... And Facebook.

Could I by chance get an invite to the Discord? I dont have or use Facebook so I cant join that sorry.

 

[Coreforge]

The invite link is somewhere in the Offtopic section I believe. Could be another subforum though, I'm not 100% sure.

 

[TrUeKiLa]

The invite link is somewhere in the Offtopic section I believe. Could be another subforum though, I'm not 100% sure.

I was able to find it thank you. It only took me 5 hours of looking

 

[LinksSword117]

Thank you I hope I can make it look like it does in my head (I have dumb hands though). I dont wanna be the guy going on a deployment looking like a bag of crap because he cant get his suit right but I might as well jump in and get my feet wet rather than sit and whine about it right?

Hey man good on you for having that kind of attitude, just don't do what i did which was say your going to do something and wait a few years before you do anything because honestly building is a lot of fun. Just a quick tip when you start reaching the end of your build think about where your going to store your costume because I finished mine and then it sat in my living room for a week before I found a spot for it. Other than that good luck! looking foward to seeing your build.

 

[ArBiTeR1400]

My recommendations; Start off slow with some prop guns to build like the battle rifle, magnum or assault rifle from Halo: Combat Evolved & Halo 3. They don't have lot of detail, pretty simple geometric shapes to follow. For a full body suit, maybe the Halo: Combat Evolved marine to start off? Learning the basics of shaping a materiel such as pepakura (papercraft), EVA foam & wood would be a great start, don't throw yourself in the deep end just yet.

Andrew DFT on YouTube is great for beginners, go check him out.

Andrew DFT

I am just a regular 27-year-old New Zealand dude, with a passion for Gaming and Prop Making. FAQ: Q: What materials do I use A: I work with EVA FOAM and XPS ...

www.youtube.com

He does great detailed instructions on a lot of Halo weapons. He helped me a lot & boosted my confidence when I started 5 years ago with prop-making, so I know how you feel how starting out can be intimating, daunting & looking at fellow cosplayers saying I wish I was that good straight away.

With your newly acquired skills, you'll building in no time, remember the key to it all is knowing the smallest detail, breaking down a 3D asset into basic shapes you want to copy which all adds up in the end.

Go out there & smash it, Spartan!

 

[TrUeKiLa]

Hey man good on you for having that kind of attitude, just don't do what i did which was say your going to do something and wait a few years before you do anything because honestly building is a lot of fun. Just a quick tip when you start reaching the end of your build think about where your going to store your costume because I finished mine and then it sat in my living room for a week before I found a spot for it. Other than that good luck! looking foward to seeing your build.

I'm actually in the process of house buying so I have no place to store anything else but I've already told my wife tought. I'm making it lol

 

[Nob1e Actua1]

Welcome my advice is to make amazon and harbor fright your best friend for tools and stuff.

 

[TrUeKiLa]

Welcome my advice is to make amazon and harbor fright your best friend for tools and stuff.

It's a good thing my wife has a prime account

 

[he4thbar]

I'm a little late to the party, but just to let you know. my ODST was my first ever cosplay and I by no means have any artistic background. It came out as good as it did due to patience and learning from other members here.
this thread will be your lifesaver as it was mine (tutorial index): Tutorial Index
Also since i was new I made a seperate thread dedicated entirely to questions I had and wow I cannot believe the amount of support that came out of it.
So take your time and you will have an amazing build, and if you need any help we are here for ya. especially discord has a fast turn around time.