Praise be to Alduin! Skyrim Dragon Priest Mask WIP

[Maverick Hunter]

So, as a form of self motivation, I figured I'd use this to keep general track of the Dragon Priest mask I'm making. Eventually I'll be using this for a mold. There will be a good set of robes to go with it, so there's no real armor to post. As we all know, 100% Magicka regeneration is boss, so this will be painted as Morokei!

EDIT: I'm sticking all the various skyrim props I put together in here.

The papercraft model wasn't too bad at all. I've definitely done more arduous, even if the chin was a bit of a pain to hot glue. Fingerprints are overrated for reals. The pep has almost no intra-piece folds, which is on one hand nice because it helps the whole mask be more smooth, but it's a bit nerve-wracking as you bend the pieces into place.

With resin it fits just fine, which is a relief. I had to use a dremel to take down some of the edges on the other side of the mask so it would fit snugly on my face. I'll probably put some nice friendly foam and felt on the inside so it can remain on without straps. Also used it and some sandpaper to take down the occasion glob or protrusion of resin, and soften a few edges. The whole piece is now back in the garage with another layer of resin and fiberglass curing on the inside, and I was just delivered a pound of Apoxie Sculpt to do the surface. I debated about bondo, but I really want that extra work time to give it a nice carved stone look.

Feedback is welcome!

 

[Jimmy Da Moose]

Looking good man! You really should take the extra step and do the bondo to get it nice and smooth. The best way, at least in my opinion, is to do "rondo". Its a mix between the resin and bondo. It makes the bondo more fluid, and allows it to be brushed on, making it much, much easier to smooth. If you want to try it, just ask here and I can give you better instructions for using it.

Also, for the raised details on the forehead, I recommend using mat board. You can get like 1/16 inch board and cut the details out and glue them on, then re-resin them. It makes them really stand out.

You can check out my build thread (link in my sig) to see how the mask can turn out using the methods I just mentioned. And I have a basic pattern for the hood there to if you want it.

Good luck, keep up the good work!

 

[Maverick Hunter]

Oh! I hope I didn't give the impression I was going to skip smoothing the mask out! I'm just using Apoxie sculpt INSTEAD of bondo! Rondo is good stuff but I actually skipped rondo on the inside in favor of fiberglass, which I find is a bit stronger in the long run (My protoman armor actually survived an impromptu mosh pit, I am SO proud of it).

The idea is I'll cover the entire surface with a thin layer of Apoxie sculpt and then add on and sculpt away where need be (it's got a 2-hour work time). Cereal Killl3r was actually the one to suggest using Apoxie instead of bondo for textural purposes.

However, I'm working on a few other props that aren't at a stage worth posting about, and I'd be happy for any rondo advice you're willing to share since they could DEFINITELY use it.

 

[DagothDraal]

It's always nice to see another Skyrim build :v

 

[Maverick Hunter]

So, I've basically fallen in love with Apoxie. I don't care if I'm a man, I'll figure out how to have it's babies.

Coated the entire piece with Apoxie Sculpt, which is a 2 part epoxy clay/putty. I kept the whole thing rough and spread it out by roughly pushing at it with my fingers. I want a rougher, crafted look to my mask, so that spreading method actually worked out really nicely. I'll go over it with very fine sandpaper to smooth it out a bit but not so much as to kill the crafted feel of it. I'm overall modelling it after a texure mod of the Dragon Priest masks. Next step is to figure out the best way to make a mold.

 

[Maverick Hunter]

It seems exceedingly silly to post a new thread for this, so I'll just stick all the various Skyrim bitties I'm making in here! Finished the Ebony Dagger pep (mega thanks to zombiegrimm for making the pdo). Need to figure out the best way to reinforce this sucker outside of the typical resin application. One of my friends really wants the Nightingale Blade to carry around, so that's probably next on the pep list.

 

[Maverick Hunter]

Had the time to sit down and sand it. Went over it lightly enough to keep that hammered metal look. Next step will be to make a mold. Debating on how to go about that, however. I've done a large amount of research, and I see a lot of really good things about platinum silicone. On the other hand, since this is the general size and shape of a face, I'm tempted to use a lifecasting silicone to save time and expense. Input is more than welcome!

 

[Robborboy]

How hard is apoxie to work with? Is it easy enough to coat something so that minute details are reserved? Or would something else be better for that?

 

[Maverick Hunter]

I find apoxie to be really really friendly. It's got the consistency of blu-tack to start, and then transitions into more of a clay. It's non-toxic so you can work it with your bare hands, I coated mine with a little olive oil so the apoxie wouldn't stick to them. It's got ~2 Hours of work time before it's beyond workable. It's not quite as easy to coat with as bondo or rondo (you can't brush it on), but if you're patient you can spread it out with your fingers or other tools. You can definitely keep more minute detail since you're working it with your hands, and since it's like a clay, you can carve out details as you go. I definitely would say it's ideal for work that needs minute detailing.