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Trooper looking to access his Sith side - Starkiller Sith Robes build


kaabous

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Hello all,

 

I am a relatively recent 501st joiner, but I am really getting into it. I really am happy with my first build but I want to get something to troop in that I can have a saber, because really that is the iconic Star Wars image. I'm too short to pull off Vader, so I needed to find something else.

 

My long term build project has been for a TOR dark council member that doesn't appear to have been done much, if at all. So while I go through the trial and error on that monster, I wanted to build an established Sith character so I can get some glow-stick time at troops. Galen has a great story and I like a lot of the costumes he has approved. My two favorite are the Sith Stalker and the Sith Robes. The stalker is awesome but looks like a huge investment in time and money. I want two things out of this build, lightsabers and to do it all on my own from scratch. I think this can be done with the robes version. I have quickly acquired some basic competence in swing from doing all of the soft armor for my shadow scout myself. I have also been messing around with sintra, kydex, etc. for hard parts. I can push both of those skill sets with this build.

 

A couple questions before I really get going (I already started cutting and shaping the chest armor last night).

 

I strongly prefer the "game" look, all black, to the red lined version which looks like a B-movie vampire to me. The CRL in the main resource only mentions the red version, but the black version has an essentially identical CRL on this forum. Is that version approved as well but just not updated to the CRL?

 

And regarding the fabric for the cape and skirt. Do people go with the same fabric for both? I ask because most shots I've seen look like it, but the skirt on some sources, particularly the action figure, show a much more textured fabric on the skirt.

 

Thanks for any input, I'm sure I'll have many more questions as this thing gets rolling.

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OK, so curiosity got the best of me and I bought the game on steam and played through it until I got this costume.  Here are some higher res images than the old ones in the gallery. 

 

 

6mH7psm.jpg?1

 

0twnOqo.jpg?1

 

Other than the obvious rendering limitations in this now ancient game, these shots are a bit better lit and show what the in-game version looks like.

 

I will continue to get other angles and try for different areas of lighting effects to get more full data on it. 

 

I have already noticed a few interesting bits.  The under skirt pieces are there, though they are the same color as the skirt and not embellished.  There are a couple of rectangles on the lower part of the left chest armor.  The dark maroon bands on the upper forearm are more visible too.  There also appears to be at least some texture on the cloak and skirt, though only visible from certain angles.

 

Now that I have my own image source (and some support to go for it), I am definitely going to pursue this version of Starkiller.  

 

Thanks again for the guidance so far!

 

EDIT: Updated with imgur hosted images.

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Try hosting the images on imgur.com as photoshop requires you pay now.

 

As stated before, if you have references for a version that you want to do, then go for it!

 

P.s. I love the dedication to the research aspect! That sort of passion is exactly what this detachment is built on.

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Good job, I don't have access to the game or these pics, so more power to you in your journey in making this costume a reality.

 

My gaming days are pretty much over, but I am still interested in getting my hands on this game for research purposes, some time down the road.

 

Edit:  I removed all the posts above about the confusion, so now your post starts off clean, and everyone knows what costume you are creating.

Edited by Yankee71
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Great, thanks for cleaning it up!

 

This is the first game I've played that isn't an MMO or PC FPS since maybe Halo 3, 10 years or so?  And playing a console ported to PC is not the best idea either.  But, I thought this was the best way to get full 360s and close ups of specific pieces, should I need them.

 

And it refreshes the story of the character for me, which was part of the reason I wanted to do this costume!

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Still working on this kit.  I have a rough of the body of the vest, a start on the soft and hard chest armor too.

 

wb05uu8.jpg

 

I'll try to get the sleeves on the vest next and clean it up, then finish up the chest pieces.  I have the fabric for the cape and skirt picked out as well.

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Well, after stalling on this for a while and life getting in the way, I'mm back at it.  Here is an update of my progress:

SRIK39I.jpg

 

I already know what I am going to do to make a new vest.  I'm not happy with how the sleeves lay.  I'm also looking at improving the upper armor piece.  I think I may have an idea for that too.  We'll see how it goes.

I am currently sewing the cape and obi.  I have sufficient leather strapping for the belts and straps, so those are next. 

 

My goal is the get this approved by the end of summer.

 

Edited by kaabous
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Updates:

Skirts are done.   I also still have attach the cape and hood, but they are done other than that.

New body armor.  Made this one more customizable so I can make improvements or replacements more easily.  It also more comfortable and holds its shape better to boot.

First draft of the obi.  It works, but I think I have a couple ways to improve it.  

Rough cuts of a new collar armor and belt buckle.  Still working on the belt.  I have the leather strapping for it, but it is really stiff (8-9 oz).  I ordered some thinner straps, I'll see how they work then decide which to use.

r6AZPEU.jpg

New shoulder armor is next, I have the next version of that patterned out and it is ready for sewing.  I learned alot by attaching the collar to old one and I think I have that all set too.

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I have a few new questions.  

The CRL says the belt closes in the back.  Is there any guidance on that closure?  I plan on using hook & loop, because it won't show much and I can't get a view of the back of the belt.  I doubt it gets rendered in game since he never has the cloak off.  The art for the the concept costume shows some rivets or snaps, but I can't tell what the rest of the closure is.  What have other people used?

I plan on securing the shoulder armor to the vest with some hook and loop.  Is that common?  Is there a better method?

I have also been talking to my garrison's senior GML. He said I'd need to get a CRL to get the costume approved.  It is essentially the same as the concept costume that has a CRL, just with a couple of color changes.  I hope if I get it "approved" by the detachment, he'd approve it, but this stuff is all pretty new to me still.  I'd be happy to help with a CRL, but I gather it is a lot of work for the leadership and I know you are all working on many others.

On another note, I have the hard parts shaping done and they are primed (except the foot pieces while I work out the strapping): 

e4ma8om.jpg

I'll get them painted, then finish up the belt and I'll be ready to post some full costume pics to get feedback on the build!

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OK, progress time!

I'd like to get some feedback on the fit of this costume thus far.  I think it is getting close to submission worthy, but I want to get the fit and finish just right before I do.

Front:

yRH96BK.jpg

Right:

12BobF4.jpg

Back:

OgsLnIU.jpg

Left:

HKkX6Ya.jpg

A few things: The boot straps are done, I just didn't put them on for these pics.  They are pretty straight forward though.  The flap on my belt is a placeholder for the pouch.  I wasn't happy with the first few I did, so I have another in process that I think will work. 

 

The primary issue I see is how the cloak rests on the shoulder armor and the draping on the right side.  I think I may need to secure it in the back somehow or put a draw closure to get it to hang better.  Any suggestions for this would help a lot.  I am also working securing the shoulder armor to the vest.  I think I am just going to hook & loop it to keep it in place.  Any suggestions on that?  I also need to think about securing the skirts to the obi or vest or to belt them more heavily to keep them in place.  I also think I'm going to add some hem weights, at least at the front corners.

 

 

Edited by kaabous
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It's looking good to me! 
My suggestion (and it just might have not got to this point yet) is to make sure you weather the armor and the midsection with some blackwash. Not too much, but just enough to get it a bit dingy. 

On the cloak part, I have seen folks keep their Nihilus parts back behind their shoulders with a snap hidden on the inside of the cloak and on the covered part of the back, or even velcro.

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Awesome!  Thank you for the feedback!

I was planning on dry-brushing and shading the hard armor to give it some more character.  I am fairly skilled at that.  However, I have not weathered pleather before.  Any tips on that?  I was mostly looking at scuffing it up as bit, but I'll have to do some homework on it first.

Also, the pouch and boot armor straps are done, so I am pretty much finished up the construction.  So I am doing some final fitting and the weathering this weekend.  Hopefully that will be it and I can submit for approval really soon.

Edited by kaabous
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I used regular craft paint on mine. So long as you aren't covering huge areas with solid sections of the paint, it works pretty well. You  can also slightly sand the pleather and it will give the paint more grip. Just don't go too crazy or you will get spots instead of grime.

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I'm trying out some weathering on my first prototype vest:

0NmLCYe.jpg

Good?  Bad?  Too much?  Too little?  It looks washed out because of the flash, but the right side of the picture shows it.  I mixed a few colors to get a dark grime color and brushed it on in the seam lines, tapering up from the bottom.  It stops around half way up.  I also did some light scrubbing to make it look less pristine.  

I'm trying to keep it pretty light because there isn't much weathering visible on the game images or the concept art.

 

Edited by kaabous
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Did some more work on this costume today.

I think I improved the fit of it overall.  The vest has been taken in a bit (a bit more even after these pictures) and fits with less wrinkling.  I tinkered with the skirt, sashes and cape too and I think they all fit a bit better now.

5qByFfm.jpg?1

lcyZxp0.jpg?1

I did some shading and highlighting on the armor, so it looks less pristine.  The pictures don't seem to capture it much, it is different when I compare it to the pieces I remade that have not been weathered.

The boot armor straps are complete and on in these pics, as is the belt pouch. 

I think the weathering is the last outstanding issue?  Is there anything else that needs to be fixed before I look at doing some approval pics?  I really appreciate the detachment leadership feedback on this, it has been helpful in getting this ready.

I am very excited to be getting close to (hopefully) getting approved and joining TFE officially!  

EDIT:

So I went after some more weathering after really going through and getting some more game images.  The armor is just base weathering in the pic, no dry brushing or highlighting.  

Thlrj4Z.jpg?2

This is the vest (still the old vest, not my current one!) with some more aggressive inking:

hIds8Dy.jpg?1

It doesn't photograph well, but is that about right?

 

Edited by kaabous
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Weathered hard armor:

YA8xJYA.jpg?1

My phone isn't really capturing any of the weathering well, but I am happy with it in person.  The pieces have more depth and look used now.

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Weathered soft armor:

W9po4O6.jpg?1

I went with some of my good inks for this and I think it went pretty well.  It definitely dinged them up a bit, but they don't look overly fake.

I think I am pretty much ready to submit pics for approval.  Are there any red flags I should fix before I do?  Thanks in advance for any more feedback!

 

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Update time.

So I went ahead and did the CRL version to submit and hopefully wear while the game version goes through the NttL process.

Front

3MmLMKQ.jpg

Right

hvplikb.jpg

Back

3JaFE2I.jpg

Left

2WCamCL.jpg

 

Any feedback welcome!

The red is actually growing on me, the more I work with it.  

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I just submitted for approval with the concept costume. 

Hopefully if that goes well, I will then start on the NttL for the in game version of the Sith Robes costume.

Edited by kaabous
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