Modeling & Texturing a Comic-Style Character

Introduction

First, I wanted to express my gratitude to everyone around me who inspires me every day to grow and create. This story highlights the importance of being part of a community that challenges you to step out of your comfort zone.

I started learning 3D while studying for a bachelor's degree that wasn't related to art at all. Toward the end of university, I started considering what I wanted to do in my life. One evening when I was hanging out with friends, we began talking about developing games, and little did I know that this chat would completely change my future.

Having no artistic background, I really just threw myself into learning through watching tutorials online and asking a lot of questions to people already in 3D.

My first job was toward the end of 2020, on a small project, when remote work became a part of everyone's life. It was stylized props and environments for a mobile game that, unfortunately, never saw release. But that experience was so much more than a line on my CV; it connected me with wonderful and talented people.

After that, I went to work for a big outsourcing company, where I got the opportunity to work on some cool titles like Paladins and Risk of Rain 2, and, finally, led a team of artists (as a Lead Character Artist). Working on many projects with different visual art styles gave me invaluable experience in blending artistic directions and taught me the importance of never standing still creatively, always expanding and exploring new areas in art.

In retrospect, it's amazing how talking with friends about game development has brought me to this point. If I could go back, I wouldn't choose any other path.

I was inspired to create Zhuo Sal by the concept art of the amazing artist Lin Chill (寒小兯). I really liked the vision of a steadfast guardian, someone who protects the city of Sham with absolute devotion, even while suffering from the curse that comes from this place. Her determined look and unusual outfit immediately caught my attention, and I wanted to capture the essence of this protector and reinterpret her in a new style.

When I first started the project, I didn't expect it to turn into a comic-style character with hand-painted PBR textures. It was only during the texturing stage that I felt a strong desire to make something vibrant, saturated, and different from anything I had done at my workplace.

Workflow

I started working on Zhuo Sal by creating the base mesh of the body. The head blockout had been made a bit earlier, before the project began. Even though most of the body is covered, I still had to consider the main anatomical proportions to make sure the clothing and armor would fit properly later on. I tried to keep the subtools at a low subdivision level for as long as possible, using Dynamic Subdivision and the Crease tool to maintain control over the large shapes until the very end.

Actual subdivisions were applied only at the final stage of sculpting to refine details, add wear, and define smaller forms. For the hair, low-poly curls with creased edges were created using ZModeler. After subdivision, the DamStandard brush helped refine the finer details. Clay Polish also came in handy, it sharpens the hair's forms nicely and gives them a cleaner look. This tool works especially well when combined with the Morph brush for better control.

The head was built from a low-poly base to avoid spending time on retopology later. A standard set of brushes, such as DamStandard, Clay Buildup, and Smooth, was used to polish and define the main shapes.

The same workflow was applied to the weapon. The sword's base shape was modeled in Maya, then exported to ZBrush and subdivided there. This approach helps achieve a clean, crisp look on the high-poly model without unwanted bumps or uneven surfaces.

Once the high-poly model was complete, I moved on to the retopology stage. It was done in Maya using the standard Quad Draw tool, while the UVs were unwrapped in RizomUV, which I find the most comfortable for this kind of work. I created several material sets and didn't really limit myself with the polycount since this was a personal project.

Of course, keeping proper optimization is essential for specific projects. You shouldn't neglect the technical specifications provided for the project, but in personal work, I believe it's fine to give yourself a bit more freedom.

Texturing

After looking through, analyzing the art of the characters from Marvel Rivals and Arcane, I realized I wanted to texture Zhuo Sal, drawing inspiration from the artists behind those projects. From that point on, I couldn't stop; I just kept texturing and refining her endlessly. In my opinion, the textures and the final render played the most important role in presenting Zhuo Sal.

All the texturing was done entirely in Substance 3D Painter. I started by blocking in the base colors and then hand-painted broad brushstrokes on top. My idea was to apply a Sharpen filter over the base to make the strokes look crisp and readable even from a distance.

To add variation, I also used a custom Normal Map with visible brush strokes. I usually apply it at around 40 percent opacity so it doesn't stand out too much. This small detail changes how the light reacts on the surface and gives the textures more depth and variation. It works great on different materials, from fabric to metal.

After finishing the hand-painting stage, I added a few standard generators like AO and Curvature to bring more volume and richness to the materials. I prefer to tint those generators rather than keep them gray, it helps maintain the stylized look.

At the final stage, I started adding comic-like strokes and outlines in different colors, placing them somewhat randomly to make them feel organic and spontaneous. I think using both black and bright accent strokes from the model's palette is a simple but effective way to guide the viewer's eye and make the textures more dynamic.

Rendering & Lightning

For rendering, I used Marmoset Toolbag 5. At the moment, it's the most comfortable software for me when it comes to presenting my models. Since I also work with animation, it was quite easy to learn camera and light animation inside the program.

Before setting up the lighting, I created a reference grid showing Zhuo Sal with different camera settings. Vertically, it displays various focal lengths, and horizontally, different camera positions: from above looking slightly down, at waist level looking straight, and from below looking slightly upward at the character. This kind of setup can be helpful for anyone rendering full-body shots of their character.

The lighting in the scene was fairly simple. I used a few cool-colored rim lights shining from behind to emphasize the silhouette of the character (I usually use Directional Lights for that), and a few spotlights positioned in front at different angles. One thing I realized while studying character lighting is that there's no universal setup that fits every model, each character has its own shapes, colors, and balance that affect how the light works.

The general rules remain pretty standard: don't overuse light sources (for Zhuo Sal, I used two rim lights and three front/side lights), and try to avoid overly white highlights or deep black shadows unless they serve an artistic purpose. Since the character was hand-painted with an Albedo map, the lighting didn't play the main role in the final render, but rather helped enhance what was already painted.

I also created a shot with camera animation and a different mood, using two cool lights from above and a red light from below. This setup gave a completely different feeling and helped diversify the ArtStation post. Interestingly, that shot ended up becoming the thumbnail of my work and was one of the favorites among people who gave me feedback. Once again, it proved to me that sometimes the simplest setups work best.

For post-processing, I added a colorful comic-style outline. The setup was the same for both the rotating video and the main still image. It's a simple technique: I duplicated the layer with the character (make sure to render the model with transparency in Marmoset Toolbag), placed the duplicate underneath the original, filled it with color, adjusted it with HSL for easier control, and then transformed it slightly to achieve the outline direction I wanted. The same approach works perfectly for videos or frame sequences in Photoshop.

Conclusion

The hardest part of working on Zhuo Sal was going away from what I usually do in art, especially with textures. I wanted to try something new, take risks, and see where it would go. There were times I wanted to stop with this character and start another project. That happens. Sometimes you just have to stop redoing the same thing and move forward.

Over time, I understood that growing as an artist isn't only about skills or hard work. The people around you make a huge difference. If you're just starting, stay curious and keep good company, people who motivate and support you. Discord groups help a lot, you can share work, get advice, or simply talk. It's funny how a short chat with friends can help you grow as an artist.

Stanislav Lozitskii, 3D Character Artist

Interview conducted by Gloria Levine