How to Experiment with Metals, Textures and Materials to Create a Sword

Introduction

I'm Alex Smirnov, a Concept and Hard-Surface 3D Artist with around eight years of experience in AAA game development. A few months ago, I shared insights into my work on the TR-1 Assault Rifle from John Wick 2 in an article for 80 Level. Since then, things have been going very smoothly. I continue working on exciting AAA projects while also dedicating time to personal, portfolio-focused work.

One of these projects is the Transubstantiation sword, which allowed me to explore high-detail sculpting, intricate engravings, and damascus-style materials in ways that don't usually fit into my everyday work.

Transubstantiation – Idea and References

The idea for Transubstantiation came from my long-standing interest in fantasy and medieval weaponry. I'm fascinated by how real weapons are made, from forging to finishing, and I often watch the YouTube channel That Works, where a team of professional bladesmiths forges all kinds of weapons, including replicas from famous video games.

When I decided to create a personal project, I spent some time considering what I wanted to make. I ultimately settled on the sword forged by Ilya Alekseyev, known for his extraordinary craftsmanship. My goal was to translate the beauty and realism of his work into a 3D model, exploring high-detail sculpting, intricate engravings, and damascus-style materials, while keeping it believable as a functional weapon.

Since there aren't many references to this sword online, I collected as many useful screenshots from the videos as possible. I focused on images that clearly showed the blade’s silhouette, engraving patterns, and material flow, which helped me reconstruct the sword in 3D as accurately as possible. In this project, I specifically wanted to experiment with metals used by real bladesmiths, such as damascus steel, silver, and rough iron, to better understand their visual qualities and translate them into a digital model.

This allowed me to explore not only the sword's shape and details but also its materiality, creating a piece that is both visually striking and technically informed.

Modeling

The design of Ilya Alekseyev's sword contains many curves and flowing forms, which presented a challenge, knowing I would later need to perform retopology. To manage this, I began by creating a polygonal blockout of the sword, carefully planning smoothed surfaces and using crease edges where necessary to preserve sharp details. I built up the model gradually, adding more detail with each pass.

This step-by-step approach allowed me to maintain a clean topology while capturing the elegant, flowing shapes of the original design. Once the base high-poly model was completed and I was satisfied with its overall quality, I exported it to ZBrush to add all the fine details and engravings. Until that point, the model was a clean high-poly mesh without any decorative elements.

In ZBrush, I extensively used the Morph Target brush, which allowed me to rollback changes or adjust details without compromising the underlying form. This was crucial to avoid over-sculpting or making the sword look stylized, ensuring it stayed true to the original design while adding intricate surface details.

After finishing the high-poly sculpt, I moved on to retopology, but I didn't focus on creating a strict low-poly mesh. Instead, I worked with a mid-poly/high-poly hybrid, prioritizing a high-quality final result over polygon count. Because the sword contains many curved and flowing surfaces, I still paid attention to even quads along edges and key contours to preserve detail for Normal Maps and texturing.

For retopology, I used a combination of tools depending on the part of the sword. In some areas, I used ZBrush's auto-retopology, while smaller details were retopologized in 3ds Max. For the blade core, I manually retopologized in 3D-Coat, then stitched and refined the mesh in 3ds Max to ensure the blade stayed sharp and clean.

Once the mesh was ready, I performed UV unwrapping using Rizom UV, arranging islands to keep distortion under control and make good use of texture space, creating a flexible layout ready for texturing and material setup.

Texturing and Rendering

To start texturing, I calibrated the base metals, forged steel, iron, silver, bronze, and gold in neutral lighting. This allowed me to evaluate not only numeric values but also visual appearance, ensuring the metals looked correct and consistent. I used a Spec/Gloss workflow, which gave me greater control over the reflectivity and quality of the metals.

I experimented with realistic damascus patterns using a specialized simulation program that bladesmiths use, but I didn't like the results. Instead, I created the Damascus steel more artistically, sacrificing some realism for a visually appealing look.

I like to build up details gradually, layering scratches, edge wear, dirt, and oxidation logically to make the materials feel natural and believable. Although Ilya's sword was new, I added some damage and dirt to make it more visually interesting in the renders. This approach resulted in a rich and realistic finish, highlighting both craftsmanship and artistic style.

I created the final renders in Marmoset Toolbag. I decided to make several artistic renders with the sword lying on burgundy velvet, as Ilya originally drew the concept on a burgundy background. To achieve this, I used Marvelous Designer to simulate the fabric and performed a series of adjustments until I was satisfied with how the cloth interacted with the sword. I also made renders on a light neutral background, so the viewer's eye could focus on the sword.

For lighting, I usually use one fill light for general illumination and 1–3 additional lights to highlight specific areas, making the sword look appealing and emphasizing the details I wanted. It's important to remember that metals react very differently depending on the lighting. Harsh or soft lighting can change their appearance drastically due to their physical properties.

For post-production, I use Photoshop as needed to adjust color, contrast, and other details. I keep the edits subtle to enhance visual impact while maintaining realism and the integrity of the renders.

Conclusion

Working on the Transubstantiation sword was a great opportunity to explore the combination of craftsmanship and artistic expression. I enjoyed experimenting with metals, textures, and materials while staying true to the original design. This project also allowed me to delve into my interest in dark fantasy and medieval styles, which I've always been passionate about, from swords and armor to props inspired by games and historical weaponry.

Overall, it was a rewarding experience that reflects my passion for hard-surface modeling, weapon design, and creating visually compelling 3D art, and it's the kind of work I love bringing to both AAA projects and personal artistic explorations.

Alex Smirnov, Concept & Hardsurface Artist

Interview conducted by Gloria Levine