Modeling 3D Character with Medieval Fantasy & Post-Apocalyptic Elements

Introduction

Hello! My name is Seori Nam, and I am a 3D Character Artist based in South Korea. I began my career in 3D modeling at a 3D printing company. I later worked on VR and metaverse content, where I gained experience with a variety of 3D tools and real-time production environments. After exploring different areas of CG, I found character creation to be the most engaging and decided to pursue a career as a game character artist.

More recently, I was responsible for creating key characters for an MMORPG project. Working within the project's requirements and incorporating feedback throughout the production process allowed me to gain valuable practical experience.

Following the discontinuation of the project, I am currently preparing for new opportunities while continuing to develop my character art skills through personal projects.

Princess of a Lost Planet

This project began with my desire to explore a wide variety of materials within a single character, including fabric, leather, metal, and fur. Inspired by the harsh and desolate worlds of Dune and Mad Max, I began developing a character that combined elements of medieval fantasy, post-apocalyptic fiction, and science fiction.

I first created the story of a princess who sets out in search of a stolen ancient treasure in order to restore her fallen planet, and used it as the foundation for the design. I then used AI and a variety of references to explore supporting ideas for the costume and equipment. Rather than following the generated concepts directly, I combined and modified different elements to fit the character’s story and gradually developed the final design.

The most important aspect of the design was finding a balance between the dignity of a princess and the strength of someone who had spent a long time traveling through dangerous battlefields. I adjusted the shape of her face through several iterations so that she would appear neither overly rugged nor overly glamorous. For the outfit, I used jewelry and decorative elements to suggest her royal background, while worn fabrics, aged leather, damage, and dirt were added to convey the hardships of her journey.

I carefully adjusted the amount of grunge so that these two sides of the character would remain balanced. I also wanted to go beyond simply presenting the character model and explore how different scenes and poses could communicate her journey and the world she inhabits.

Modeling

Planning

Before beginning the modeling process, I gathered and organized visual references for each part of the character, including the face, clothing, materials, hair, and equipment. This helped me establish a consistent direction before working on the individual elements.

Face

I started the face using an existing base mesh and modified its forms in ZBrush. While gathering references, I found a face that suited the character's overall mood and used AI to explore additional facial variations based on it. Rather than treating the generated images as exact blueprints, I used them as references to establish the character's overall impression and direction. I then went through several iterations of her facial proportions and contours, refining the individual features until her face conveyed both a refined presence and the resilience required by her journey.

Skin & Eyes

For the fine skin details, I used TexturingXYZ data and added further sculpted detail in ZBrush with alpha maps wherever the existing information was insufficient. For the eyes, I used Marmoset Toolbag's Parallax feature to give the iris a greater sense of depth and prevent it from appearing flat. I based the iris albedo on an image I found during my reference research and adjusted it to suit the character.

Hair

For the hair, I first created a blockout mesh in ZBrush to establish the overall volume and flow. I then used it as a guide when placing the hair cards in 3ds Max. I began with larger cards that defined the main masses and gradually added smaller strands and flyaways. Some of the cards were created with Ornatrix, while areas that required more precise control were placed manually. For the braids, I first created a braided base mesh and then added smaller hair cards and loose strands on top to achieve a more natural result.

Clothing

I created the basic silhouettes and major folds of the cloak, top, and pants in Marvelous Designer before bringing them into ZBrush for further refinement. There, I adjusted the volume and folds of each garment and added surface details and damage. The torn fabric edges were created in ZBrush through a combination of direct sculpting and alpha brushes.

Fur, Feathers & Hard-Surface Elements

The fur around the shoulders was created using hair cards. For the feather decorations on the chest, I created four different alpha variations and altered their shape, scale, and direction while placing them to avoid a repetitive appearance. Hard-surface elements such as the armor and rifle were first constructed in 3ds Max to establish their main forms and structure, then refined in ZBrush with surface damage and smaller details.

Time-Saving Techniques

I also considered how repeated elements could be produced efficiently. For the inner layers of the hair and fur, I mirrored the base cards to save time, then placed additional cards with different lengths and directions on top to reduce the symmetrical appearance. Small decorative elements such as bones, beads, and feathers were also created from a set of base assets, which I reused in different areas after varying their scale, proportions, and angles. This allowed me to reduce repetitive modeling work while preventing the elements from looking identical.

Topology & UVs

I handled most of the retopology in TopoGun. For the high-poly garments created in ZBrush, I built new low-poly meshes while preserving the silhouette and major folds. For hard-surface elements such as the armor and weapons, I cleaned up and optimized the topology of the base meshes created in 3ds Max and used them as the final low-poly models.

I created the UVs in RizomUV. Excluding the face and hair, the character was divided into four texture sets: the upper body, lower body, accessories, and weapons.

Rather than assigning the same amount of UV space to every element, I prioritized each area based on its importance in the final presentation and the level of detail it required. Parts that needed fine alpha-based details were given more UV space, while the upper body was assigned a higher texel density than the lower body because it is closer to the face and appears more frequently in close-up shots. Although I generally use overlapping UVs for repeated or symmetrical elements, I did not use them for this character because I wanted to preserve individual variations in the forms and surface details.

Texturing

I baked the maps in Marmoset Toolbag and handled the texturing in Substance 3D Painter. I began by applying a base material to each part, then gradually built up variations in color and roughness, along with surface damage and dirt. Throughout the process, I frequently brought the textures into Marmoset Toolbag to evaluate them in the actual rendering environment. In particular, I repeatedly adjusted the colors and roughness to ensure that the materials did not appear overly glossy or flat under different lighting conditions.

For the skin albedo, I used TexturingXYZ data as a base and painted additional details on top of it. This allowed me to refine the color variation across the face and adjust specific areas to better suit the character’s overall appearance.

For the fabrics, I started with fabric materials in Substance 3D Painter and added woven patterns and subtle surface variation. The torn areas were created during the high-poly modeling stage, then baked into an alpha map and applied to the low-poly model. I also added fine fibers and subtle fuzz to prevent the surfaces from appearing too smooth.

For the leather, I studied references of naturally aged and worn leather and tried to reproduce its color variation and frayed appearance. For the metal, I focused primarily on adding scratches around the edges and exposed areas so that the forms would remain clearly readable.

The most challenging part of the texturing process was not creating the individual materials, but balancing the colors across the entire character. Since I had developed the concept myself, the colors of the upper and lower garments, poncho, metal elements, and jewelry had not been fully established from the beginning. I went through several iterations of adjusting their hue, value, and saturation so that the different parts would feel connected without becoming too similar or visually monotonous.

Among the individual elements, the poncho was the most difficult. Because it is made from a light-colored fabric and covers a large area, it could easily appear empty if there was not enough surface variation. At the same time, because the character is a princess, I did not want it to look excessively dirty or severely damaged. I therefore focused on finding a balance by adding subtle color variation, fibers, fuzz, and restrained amounts of staining and wear. My goal was to show traces of her long journey while preserving a sense of dignity.

Lighting & Rendering

I handled all of the lighting and rendering in Marmoset Toolbag, using an HDRI Sky as the main source of ambient light. Because the project included several scenes set in different locations and at different times of day, I did not apply a single lighting setup to every image. Instead, I created an individual setup for each scene based on its environment and intended mood.

For most outdoor scenes, I relied primarily on HDRI lighting to maintain a natural sense of environmental light. When the character needed more definition, I added a single light aligned with the direction of the main light source visible in the background.

For interior scenes and scenes depicting significant story events, I generally used a three-point lighting setup. I placed a key light in front of the character to define the face and main forms, added a fill light where necessary to soften darker areas, and used a rim light from behind to keep the character's silhouette from blending into the background. For each scene, I adjusted the position, intensity, and color of the lights to match the direction and color temperature of the background lighting. 

For rendering, I used Ray Tracing in Marmoset Toolbag and applied Depth of Field to control the focal point and create a greater sense of space. I used fog and bloom only minimally when a scene required them, as I did not want these effects to obscure the materials or soften the image too much. I placed the background images using Marmoset Toolbag's Backdrop feature and exported the final renders as JPG files.

I did not use any separate post-production software. The final adjustments to the lighting, background, camera, and materials were all completed directly in Marmoset Toolbag, allowing me to achieve the intended atmosphere and color at the rendering stage.

Challenges & Lessons

The main challenge was combining elements of medieval fantasy, post-apocalyptic fiction, and science fiction naturally within a single character. I wanted the characteristics of each genre to remain recognizable without making the design feel like a collection of unrelated elements. I repeatedly adjusted the silhouette, materials, colors, and equipment to ensure that everything felt cohesive and believable within the character's story.

This project taught me how important it is to define the direction of an original concept as clearly as possible before beginning production. I revised the costume, equipment, and color palette several times during the process, which extended the overall production time beyond what I had initially expected. Discovering new ideas and making adjustments during production is sometimes necessary, but I believe the process would have been more efficient if I had established the core silhouette, color palette, and purpose of each element more clearly from the beginning.

Advice

My advice to beginners is to take multiple characters through the entire production process from beginning to end. Having created several characters myself, I have seen how each completed project has helped me gradually improve. With every character, I discovered issues that I had not noticed in my previous work and was able to apply what I had learned to the next project.
Completing a character involves experiencing every stage of production, including modeling, topology, UVs, texturing, lighting, and presentation. I believe that recognizing areas for improvement in the finished result is also an important part of the learning process. If you reflect on each completed project and address those areas one by one in your next character, you will continue to grow with every piece you create.

Seori Nam, 3D Character Artist

Interview conducted by Emma Collins