Tutorial: How I Made the Honored Heirloom Cape for My ODST Armor (Helljumper Crossover)

[Skidmorpheus]

Hey everyone, bear with me—this is my first time writing a tutorial like this, but I wanted to share how I made my Honored Heirloom Cape for my ODST armor! I designed it so I can swap back and forth between ODST and Helldiver looks.

---

Inspiration​

When the trailer dropped for the ODST x Helldivers crossover, I was hyped. I think a lot of us have been waiting for something like this. I didn’t have much to go on besides a few screenshots and replaying the trailer on loop.

Here are the two key references I used:

• A screenshot showing the cape’s texture and logo
• The Helljumper card showing the cape’s rear stripe layout

Design Details Noticed:

• The cape’s subtle checker pattern matches the Auntie Dot matrix from Halo: Reach.
• The main difference between the standard ODST logo and the Helljumper version is the text — “ODST” becomes “HELLJUMPER”.

---

Designing the Cape Pattern​

I used Fusion 360 (because that’s what I’m comfortable with) to overlay a back-facing photo of myself in armor, scaled to my actual height (5’10”). From there, I laid the Helljumper card and cape reference over the image to estimate scale and pattern dimensions.

Bonus: if added the SVG files I made/used for this project. See the Zip file in the attachments.

---

Cape Dimensions​

• Bottom width: 36 inches (3 feet)
• Top width: 24 inches (2 feet)
• Neck opening: Half your neck diameter (mine was just based on measuring my neck directly)

If you’re around my height (5’10”), these measurements should work well for you.

I drew the pattern on 12” wide brown packing paper, taped together to make a full-size template.

​

Materials​

I picked up my fabrics from a local big box fabric store:

• Outer cape: Black cotton-blend thermal weave
• Lining + stripe: Gray one-way stretch with a bit of sheen

---

Cutting & Sewing​

1. Pin your paper pattern to the fabric.
2. Cut out the outer layer and the liner, leaving ¼ inch seam allowance.
3. Sew the outer fabric and liner together (thanks to my daughter for helping—she’s better with a sewing machine than I am!).

​

️ Turning Drawings Into SVGs​

To convert my designs from Fusion 360 into cuttable files:

• I temporarily subscribed to Adobe Illustrator
• Exported the drawings as SVGs for use with a Cricut cutting machine

Vinyl Design Dimensions:​

• ODST logo (white part): ~9.5 inches wide
• Black border: ~¼ inch around the emblem
• Auntie Dot squares: 2.5–3 inches corner to corner
  • Fit 4 rows on a 12” x 24” Cricut mat

Cricut Design Files Here!

---

​

Painting the Pattern​

1. Used temporary vinyl stencils to lay out the Auntie Dot pattern on the outer cape.
2. Set up a painting area in my garage with masking paper over a folding table.
3. Mixed Vallejo Model Air paints:
   • Black Gray + Dark Sea Gray + Thinner
4. Sprayed 3 light coats for even coverage.
5. Let it dry 24 hours, then peeled off the vinyl stencil.

Result: A dark gray fabric with a subtle black checker pattern — just like in-game. It’s visible in bright light but fades in shadows, which is perfect!

​

️ Final Assembly: Logo + Stripes​

I based the emblem scaling on a screenshot where the logo spans from the mid-shoulder to the bottom of the elbow. I tested this on my ODST mannequin to get the placement right.

Iron-On Process:​

1. Cut the black vinyl background and white ODST emblem separately.
2. Layered them using the Cricut (black first, white on top).
3. Re-scaled the stripe pattern in Illustrator to match.
4. Used the checker pattern as a guide to align and iron on the stripes symmetrically.

​

Attachment Method​

Still testing this part! But my current plan is to:

• Sew Velcro straps at the neck of the cape
• Attach them to the existing Velcro points on my ODST chest armor

​

Final Thoughts​

I’m super happy with how the cape turned out! It’s been an awesome way to celebrate the crossover and add some unique flair to my ODST armor. Can’t wait to show it off at the Halo World Championships later this month.

If anyone has questions or wants templates/SVGs, I’ll try to share those in a follow-up post.

---

Let me know what you think or if you try to make one yourself! Happy crafting, Spartans. ️

 

[ArcaneGhoul]

That is so sick, I love it!! It's such great quality and looks dope, nice job!!

 

[Skidmorpheus]

That is so sick, I love it!! It's such great quality and looks dope, nice job!!

Thanks. I have been working on it since the trailer dropped so it’s taken a while. I will be adding the files from my pc hopefully tomorrow so others can make one for them selves.

 

[Skidmorpheus]

I've added more photos that were on my PC and also the .svg files and a link to the Cricut design project so you fine folks can get cutting right away!

 

[Skidmorpheus]

Lil update. Working on this helmet to go with it. It still needs a mat clear coat and some weathering/ grime.


I also added photos of the armor on the mannequin.

 

[Illstartmonday]

Hell yeah that's sick! Thank you for the step by step. Saving this for future projects!

 

[sir howard]

Hey everyone, bear with me—this is my first time writing a tutorial like this, but I wanted to share how I made my Honored Heirloom Cape for my ODST armor! I designed it so I can swap back and forth between ODST and Helldiver looks.
View attachment 367822

---

Inspiration​

When the trailer dropped for the ODST x Helldivers crossover, I was hyped. I think a lot of us have been waiting for something like this. I didn’t have much to go on besides a few screenshots and replaying the trailer on loop.

Here are the two key references I used:
View attachment 367784View attachment 367783View attachment 367869

• A screenshot showing the cape’s texture and logo
• The Helljumper card showing the cape’s rear stripe layout

• The cape’s subtle checker pattern matches the Auntie Dot matrix from Halo: Reach.
• The main difference between the standard ODST logo and the Helljumper version is the text — “ODST” becomes “HELLJUMPER”.

---

Designing the Cape Pattern​

I used Fusion 360 (because that’s what I’m comfortable with) to overlay a back-facing photo of myself in armor, scaled to my actual height (5’10”). From there, I laid the Helljumper card and cape reference over the image to estimate scale and pattern dimensions.

View attachment 367867View attachment 367875View attachment 367874View attachment 367873View attachment 367871View attachment 367872

---

Cape Dimensions​

• Bottom width: 36 inches (3 feet)
• Top width: 24 inches (2 feet)
• Neck opening: Half your neck diameter (mine was just based on measuring my neck directly)

I drew the pattern on 12” wide brown packing paper, taped together to make a full-size template.

View attachment 367786View attachment 367787View attachment 367788View attachment 367789​

Materials​

I picked up my fabrics from a local big box fabric store:

• Outer cape: Black cotton-blend thermal weave
• Lining + stripe: Gray one-way stretch with a bit of sheen

---

Cutting & Sewing​

1. Pin your paper pattern to the fabric.
2. Cut out the outer layer and the liner, leaving ¼ inch seam allowance.
3. Sew the outer fabric and liner together (thanks to my daughter for helping—she’s better with a sewing machine than I am!).

View attachment 367791View attachment 367792View attachment 367813View attachment 367814​

️ Turning Drawings Into SVGs​

To convert my designs from Fusion 360 into cuttable files:

• I temporarily subscribed to Adobe Illustrator
• Exported the drawings as SVGs for use with a Cricut cutting machine

Vinyl Design Dimensions:​

• ODST logo (white part): ~9.5 inches wide
• Black border: ~¼ inch around the emblem
• Auntie Dot squares: 2.5–3 inches corner to corner
  • Fit 4 rows on a 12” x 24” Cricut mat

Cricut Design Files Here!

---

View attachment 367795View attachment 367796View attachment 367797View attachment 367799View attachment 367800View attachment 367801View attachment 367802View attachment 367803​

Painting the Pattern​

1. Used temporary vinyl stencils to lay out the Auntie Dot pattern on the outer cape.
2. Set up a painting area in my garage with masking paper over a folding table.
3. Mixed Vallejo Model Air paints:
   • Black Gray + Dark Sea Gray + Thinner
4. Sprayed 3 light coats for even coverage.
5. Let it dry 24 hours, then peeled off the vinyl stencil.

View attachment 367798View attachment 367804View attachment 367805View attachment 367806View attachment 367807View attachment 367808View attachment 367809View attachment 367810View attachment 367811​

️ Final Assembly: Logo + Stripes​

I based the emblem scaling on a screenshot where the logo spans from the mid-shoulder to the bottom of the elbow. I tested this on my ODST mannequin to get the placement right.

Iron-On Process:​

1. Cut the black vinyl background and white ODST emblem separately.
2. Layered them using the Cricut (black first, white on top).
3. Re-scaled the stripe pattern in Illustrator to match.
4. Used the checker pattern as a guide to align and iron on the stripes symmetrically.

View attachment 367815View attachment 367816View attachment 367817View attachment 367818View attachment 367819View attachment 367820View attachment 367821​

Attachment Method​

Still testing this part! But my current plan is to:

• Sew Velcro straps at the neck of the cape
• Attach them to the existing Velcro points on my ODST chest armor

View attachment 367827View attachment 367828​

Final Thoughts​

I’m super happy with how the cape turned out! It’s been an awesome way to celebrate the crossover and add some unique flair to my ODST armor. Can’t wait to show it off at the Halo World Championships later this month.

If anyone has questions or wants templates/SVGs, I’ll try to share those in a follow-up post.

---

Let me know what you think or if you try to make one yourself! Happy crafting, Spartans. ️

first time my ahh that was so easy to follow along with! cape is awesome too, but the tutorial format was solid!!

 

[Skidmorpheus]

Hell yeah that's sick! Thank you for the step by step. Saving this for future projects!

Thanks I hope to see many Heirlooms passed down to future HellJumpers!

 

[Skidmorpheus]

first time my ahh that was so easy to follow along with! cape is awesome too, but the tutorial format was solid!!

NGL I had some help from ChatGPT to organize the word vomit in my head. I am just proud that I remembered to document all the steps so I could actually make a tutorial post.