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Darth Malgus


Volund Starfire

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SOFT PARTS

The soft parts are probably the easiest thing for me to make because… I am not going to be the one making them. Last time I used a sewing machine, there was an issue that ended with a grenade and a battle hamster. Don’t ask, you don’t want to know.

 

So, because of that, my wife will be making as much of the parts as she can make for me. The only thing she won’t be making are the gloves and the boots. However, I have a couple of people lined up who can take care of those for me.

 

softpartspost.jpg

 

CAPE

The cape will be made of a black gabardine material. It will hang down to the floor when it is worn (unlike in the video, I do not want it to drag for both safety and cleanliness reasons). It will snap to the top of the shoulder blades under the shoulder armor and velcro across the top of the back. The hood is a separate piece that can be pulled up with the drape free.

 

UNDER SHIRT

The undershirt will be made of a black shiny material. It is only seen on the neck and sleeves. It will include pillow-tucks around the neck and a stiffener or velcro to connect it to the mask. The tucks will have some light detailing to it. The sleeves are tight against the arm and have 1/2-inch seams from shoulder to the wrist. It will include a stirrup for the hand. There will be a line of velcro along the forearm to secure the gauntlet and a snap on the wrist area to secure the gloves.

 

GLOVES

The gloves are black leather wrist-length gloves. They have leather patches across the main knuckles. The seams appear typical of driving gloves, but are of a pull-on variant. They will include snaps on the inside to secure to the undershirt sleeve and a set of snaps to secure the hand armor.

 

TROUSERS

The trousers are made of a gray cloth and are loose but not baggy. They have a 1-inch quilting from the waist to the knee. They will include a normal fly as well as suspenders and stirrups. There is a bit of elastic across the shin in line with the hole on the calf padding to keep the material taunt. There is velcro around the waist to hold the torso padding, velcro on the crotch and butt to hold the cod/butt padding, velcro on the thighs to hold the thigh padding, velcro on the knees to secure the knee armor, and a strip of velcro down the calf (above and below the calf padding hole) to hold the calf padding in place.

 

BOOTS

The boots are a custom make from black leather, reaching to mid-calf. There is a black toe detail strip that comes to the top of the foot. There are heavy black locking zippers on both sides of the boot (yes, the first actual view of a zipper in the Star Wars universe). The sole is a low boot sole and will require some light sanding and dremmeling to produce the lines visible in the picture. The boot will have a piece of elastic on the back to ensure a good fit (much in the same way as the sides of the Boba Fett boots). It will also have the necessary grommets for the armor connection.

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Thank you both. Yeah, I'm spreading this around a few different sites. Vaderjeff, thanks and feel free to use any of this info for yourself. I'm planning on using the forums to document every moment of my build, maybe even some video.

 

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FIRM PARTS

The firm parts are slightly more difficult, but are still going to be easier than the hard parts. They are solid, unlike the soft parts, but are able to flex and bend, unlike the hard parts. Primarily, they will be made out of EVA foam of 1/2-inch and 1/8-inch.

 

firmpartspost.jpg

 

BICEP PADDING

The bicep padding is made of three sheets of 1/8-inch foam glued together and painted a similar gray to the trousers and vest. The top layer will have the necessary detail lines burned into it on the front and back. The black padding strips will be made with two layers of the 1/8-inch pads with the top being separated along the horizontal with a very slight bubbling and having the detail lines burned into it. The entire set will connect to the vest at the shoulder.

 

VEST

The vest is made of the same gray cloth as the trousers. It has a series of according folds on the front made with plastic canvas under the cloth. The canvas is sewn over a piece of elastic to it stretches but still returns to its original shape. It will have faux seams up the front, but will zip up the back. It has a small t-shirt sleeve that is permanently attached inside the bicep padding. It includes the necessary snaps for the shoulder/back armor and the necessary Velcro for the torso padding.

 

TORSO PADDING W/ COD AND BUTT

The torso padding will be made with 1/2-inch black foam. It will be cut into faux strips of approximately 1.5-inches in thickness. The three top strips will have rounded ends and Velcro to the vest and back armor. The two strips under those will be solid and wrap around the body. Below those is a 4.5-inch thick strip that is used to hold the belt. The back of the pieces are cut out for another piece that velcros them together and extends up to also velcro to the back armor. The cod padding is connected to the front and includes sanded down pieces as well as bend pieces. The butt padding is connected to the center piece. The padding will have all necessary detail lines burned into it. The belt piece, cod, and butt armor will have Velcro under them to secure to the trousers and the belt piece will have a strip of Velcro over it to secure to the belt.

 

THIGH PADDING

The thigh pads are made from three pieces of 1/8-inch foam glued together. The top section is cut in strips and bubbled up slightly. The rear has a 1/4-inch thick flay piece with two holes cut through it. The front have two holes cut through the top layer only. It will Velcro to the trousers.

 

CALF PADDING

The calf padding will be made of 1/2-inch thick foam. It will be cut with faux strips and will have the vertical detail lines and holes burned into it. The back hole will by cut all the way through. It will use elastic on the front to hold closed around the lower leg. The bottom will tuck into the boots and it will have strips of Velcro to connect to the shin armor and snaps on the elastic.

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HARD PARTS

The hard parts are going to be the most tricky to pull off. They will be made of EVA foam and sintra. Some pieces will only use the foam as a padding, but others will use it as a base.

 

hardpartspost.jpg

 

SHOULDER ARMOR

The shoulder armor is made of 1/2-inch foam. Both sides are identical and it is also mirrored front to back. The detail lines will be burned onto it. The top also contains a pair of 1/2-inch foam pieces glued down 1/8-inch from the edge. There will be a Chicago screw under the top foam detail to connect the shoulder to the chest/back armor. It will also include a pirce of elastic to keep them from spinning or moving around.

 

CHEST/BACK ARMOR

The chest/back armor is made with a base of the 1/2-inch foam. Detail lines are burned onto the chest. The center piece of the chest has a piece of sintra over it with the various details built on it using sintra. The lights will be pieces of red acrylic that are back-lit by LEDs. The shoulders have a black stripe at the top made of a 1/8-inch piece of foam for strength above and below. The back armor includes inset details and some 1/8-inch raised pieces of foam. The back also includes a 3/8-inch raised ‘Y’ that goes down to the belt piece. Additionally, there are three 1/8-inch faux strips on the edge. A small ½-inch box is located on the right side of the back. Finally, there is some detailing on the armor toward the sides which can be burned on carefully. The neck piece appears to be solid and has a pair of red back-lit acrylic pieces. It includes the necessary velcro to attach to the torso padding.

 

GAUNTLETS

The gauntlets are made with 3 sheets of 1/8-inch foam as a base. It will be made to separate at the underside of the arm with a Velcro piece to connect it. The gauntlets have two white acrylic back-lit pieces on either side of the display. The display itself will be made of sintra and include the necessary pieces of back-lit acrylic with the details painted on them. The hex pieces on the top of the gauntlet are designed with layered sheets of foam. It includes a strip of velcro to attach to the forearm.

 

HAND ARMOR

The hand armor is made with 3 layers of sintra with a 1/8-inch foam base. The detail work is built-up layers of sintra. It secures to the glove with a set of snaps.

 

BELT

The belt is built with a series of layered 1/8-inch foam pads and sintra. The silver details are made of sintra while the belt layers are the foam. The back of the belt has a connection piece with a flap that is 1/4-inch thick. The rear detail is made of layered sintra and hides the connection point of the belt in the back (as well as the belt foam). It has Velcro that connects it to the torso padding.

 

KNEE ARMOR

The knee armor is built with a piece of 1/2-inch foam under a sintra box. The base wraps around the entire leg and uses a piece of 1/8-inch foam to appear flush to the box. The details are built into the box with a sintra box over another piece of the ½-inch foam. The details are sanded into the sintra. The back has a piece of velcro to secure it to the trousers and it slips onto the leg.

 

SHIN ARMOR

The shin armor will be made with layers of sintra over a foam base. It will have a single layer of sintra with a single layer of foam under it as a base. The top detail includes another 1/8-inch piece with a third in the center for the raised detail. The wrap around piece will be made with foam and velcro under the calf on one side. A single piece of sintra is located under the top detail. The lower detail has separate “wings” on the sides with the main face being a single layer with a second layer over it that has a piece cut out, and a third layer over that. A separate strip will be included to provide the detail in the cut-out. It connects to the calf with velcro and belt-clips/snaps on the calf armor straps.

 

ACHILLES ARMOR

The achilles armor is made with layers of 1/8-inch sintra over a foam base. The main piece is bent and formed. It will have a sintra band across the top of the face. The sides will have a piece cut out and a separate piece under it that extends out a little on the top. Foam is used to give it the appropriate thickness. The four holes are used for Chicago screws to secure it to the boots (and hide the elastic back to the boots).

 

BOOT ARMOR

The boot armor is three pieces and made of 1/8-inch sintra with a foam base. The forward piece is made of a layer of sintra with a second piece on the top and the detail lines carved into it. The rear will include some foam to give it the appropriate thickness. The rear piece on the top is made similarly to the forward piece, including the foam to give it thickness. Both pieces connect to the boot with Chicago screws. The wrap-around piece on the back of the boot will include a detail carved onto it, as well as a bit of a detail bend around the bottom. It uses Chicago screws and velcro to connect to the boots.

 

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This is going to be it for today... Tomorrow begins the fun part of actually beginning the build.!

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So, I lied... I forgot one part...

 

MISC PARTS

These parts aren’t part of the actual costume, but I’ll post them here anyway. They mostly include the FX of the makeup, the lightsaber which I am custom ordering, and the mask that I still have no idea how I am going to do it exactly.

 

 

MASK

maskr.jpg

The mask is probably going to be made of sintra and attached to a wrap-around piece made of PVC and rubber tubing. It will include a pair of back-lit red acrylic buttons and a pair of silver mesh panels. The main mouth piece will have a mesh cover hiding a fan (for air and to give the chopped sound to the voice). I do not know exactly how the mask is held on besides it bracing to the nose with the neck piece pulling it around the jaw (possibly spirit gum on the top of the back to hold it up).

 

MAKEUP

makeuprd.jpg

The makeup will include a set of Sith Eyes contacts as the main part. The scaring on the cheeks will be done with collodion and some light shadowing. The eye sockets will be darkened with makeup. A bald wig with paintd details will be used for the top of the head and will be spirit-gummed to the scalp. The bald wig will also connect to the neck piece in the back to help support it. The bald wig will be long enough to cover the eyebrows.

 

LIGHTSABER

malguslightsaber.jpg

The lightsaber is 15 inches long from pommel to tip of the emitter. There is a pair of blades on either side of the emitter. It appears to have a MR Force FX battery pack/speaker in the pommel. There is no clip for the belt on the lightsaber and it has a single button for the activator.

 

(the lightsaber image is not my own, but a good one I found online, the real saber may vary slightly from the image)

 

As for the contacts, I have just the thing…

yhst-17384296366144_2161_11855824

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Completely AWESOME updates!!! Love the enhanced pics breakdown, along with your VERY DETAILED descriptions! All will be EXTREMELY helpful to me when I get started on my suit! Keep up the good work! I'm SALIVATING to see more! KEEP IT COMING BRO!!! :D

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Update:

 

The second of the three picture sets are up, this time from the Hope Cinematic Trailer. These show a clearer view of the Malgus costume than the Deceived Cinematic Trailer, but lack the Breath Mask. Even so, the majority of the detail in this trailer is on the gauntlets and the lightsaber. However, it also shows how the neck piece looks without the breath mask.

 

Here is the link to download the Hope Cinematic Trailer pictures of Darth Malgus. I have removed all pictures not actually showing his armor as well as some that are too unclear or distant to see him clearly. On top of that, I have trimmed some of the less ‘actiony’ shots down to a handful (from several dozen) to save space.

 

Hope.rar - 842 pics, 869.07 MB (zipped)

 

I will post the Return pictures by the end of the week, if everything goes well. Additionally, I will start taking pictures for the other costumes and posting them to my megaupload page.

 

On top of that, I might have an idea how to do the breath mask so it stays up. I will be screwing it in place in my jaw! No, just kidding. I will look into actually attaching it to the bald cap. It will require a more expensive and thicker variant of bald cap, but it looks like it might be hopeful. Either that or I will have to try running a latex strap under the bald cap (which would be a pain in putting it on. With attaching it to the bald cap, I would only have to spirit gum it down in the front, at least.

 

If you would like screenshots like those above for other characters, please let me know. I can do them for any of following characters:

 

Armored Jedi (includes facial shots for Satele’s Zabrak master and Ven Zallow)

Darth Malgus’ Pureblood Sith master

Eleena Daru (Darth Malgus’ Blue Twi’lek slave/wife)

Republic Soldiers (Jedi Temple security force)

Republic Trooper (Armored troops)

*Satele Shan (female Jedi)*

Shae Vizsla (female bounty hunter)

Sith Acolyte

Sith Shocktrooper

Smuggler/Gunslinger

 

*italics* indicated that the pictures are already taken and ready for posting. Send me a PM and I will PM you the link.

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Update:

 

The final picture set is up from the Return Cinematic Trailer. This set has a little more detail in the movement and the reactions of the fabric (you can see it bunched at his hip a couple of times).

 

Here is the link to download the Return Cinematic Trailer pictures of Darth Malgus. I have removed all pictures not actually showing his armor as well as some that are too unclear or distant to see him clearly. On top of that, I have trimmed some of the less ‘actiony’ shots down to a handful (from several dozen) to save space.

 

Now, to starting drafting parts out…

 

Return.rar - 966 pics, 722.57 MB (zipped)

 

If you would like screenshots like those above for other characters, please let me know. I can do them for any of following characters:

 

Armored Jedi (includes facial shots for Satele’s Zabrak master and Ven Zallow)

Darth Malgus’ Pureblood Sith master

*Eleena Daru (Darth Malgus’ Blue Twi’lek slave/wife)*

Republic Soldiers (Jedi Temple security force)

Republic Trooper (Armored troops)

*Satele Shan (female Jedi)*

Shae Vizsla (female bounty hunter)

Sith Acolyte

Sith Shocktrooper

Smuggler/Gunslinger

 

*italics* indicated that the pictures are already taken and ready for posting. Send me a PM and I will PM you the link.

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not yet, it's still in planning stages, we haven't got to the building point yet.

 

No problem! I know these things take time to plan out & do right! CAN'T WAIT to see some pics once you get into the building phase though! I hope this build will inspire me once I get ready to start on mine! BEST OF LUCK TO YOU! :D

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other than the dolphin pitched squee sounds coming from the other side of the house? :lol: no, I don't have any other details on it, but I hope that they have it at other cons cause it's just that cool. My request would be that someone attending where this thing is take a BUNCH of close up hi-res pics so we can compare it to the screen caps we have. I know I'd be grateful and so would Volund.

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Life size Darth Maul statue at SDCC 2011

 

bioware_base_sdcc11_006.jpg

 

Darth-Malgus-the-Overly-Friendly-Sith-Lord1.jpg

 

darth_malgus_statue.jpg

 

IMG_0572.jpg

 

Anyone have more details on this?

 

NICE!!! Too bad there aren't some clearer, more highly detailed pics in good light though! :? I know how hard it can be to get really good shots some times at events like these though! It is nice to see a fully realized 3-D representation of this character! THANKS for sharing! :D

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That did conform some of my previous suspicions. Thanks! Although, I will say that

my lightsaber will be more along the real-life proportions instead of the v1 of the

SWTOR in-game lightsaber proportions. In other words, it won't be part Japanese

combat fan...

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Guest Anonymous
other than the dolphin pitched squee sounds coming from the other side of the house? :lol: no, I don't have any other details on it, but I hope that they have it at other cons cause it's just that cool. My request would be that someone attending where this thing is take a BUNCH of close up hi-res pics so we can compare it to the screen caps we have. I know I'd be grateful and so would Volund.

 

Found some: http://kotaku.com/5831660/get-up-close- ... /gallery/1

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Well, I have been spending my time... um... researching, yeah, researching the

costume from in the beta. However, with the recent updates, it is like playing a PS3

game on an Atari.

 

So, I am back into planning for this. It is looking like the midnight release will be 22nd

of November. I am wary about this date, but it is what I was told from Gamestop.

So, I have to get my nose to the grindstone. Not just on this costume, but also on

the Sith Acolyte and Jedi Armor for two of my Garrisonmates. So, look for my coming

on the third day... wait, wrong genre. I mean, look for more pics and stuff SOON™.

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It is now official, right out of the Ronto's mouth! The date for the release is now the date I have to finish this project by...

 

datez.png

 

Now to contact Gamestop and set up a troop at the release, possible a midnight release.

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It is now official, right out of the Ronto's mouth! The date for the release is now the date I have to finish this project by...

 

datez.png

 

Now to contact Gamestop and set up a troop at the release, possible a midnight release.

Indeed! Can't wait, although I do have to wait until 22nd December for EU release :(

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Guest Anonymous

Hi guys (& girls)!! I just registered here on the forums, you can see my introduction here. Like I mentioned in my intro, I'm planning on starting my Darth Malgus as soon as my Captain Rex clone is complete (which I hope will be the end of this year). Even though I'm a noob at costuming, I do have a long history of wood and plastic working, painting and all around turning everyday objects and materials into something else.

 

Anyhow, back on topic: when I start Malgus, I'm willing to experiment and try out ideas here when it comes to materials and construction suggestions (as much as my time and money will allow).

 

First off, a big hats off to Volund Starfire for all the research you've done so far! It's a great to have a lot of the info laid out already. Even though I am working on a clone right now (which has been done 100s of times over) I'm still coming up with new ways to do the "hard" and "semi-hard" pieces. I've even experimented with small parts molding. A strength of mine is basic electronics: lights, LEDs, power, switches, etc. I had some ideas I wanted to toss around for some of the Malgus parts, but we're talking only rough draft brain storming right now.

 

Like I said I'll be mostly lurking here at the Malgus research area until my clone is done, but I'm ready to jump in full force soon as my current costume project is complete.

 

Can't wait to help out! Thanks!

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Welcome, welcome. I post my WIP threads so that others can share in my dissections of how to do what to make a costume. Please feel free to ask questions and such in my thread as I am always willing to answer. I am good with the dissecting, it is just the skills (and money) that I lack. Though, I pick up "book-learned" skills fairly quickly and am pretty certain that I can do this costume. Well, baring a couple of parts.

 

Pretty soon, there will be a little more detailed dissection of the Malgus costume as I have had far too much free time on my hands and my writing muse hasn't been biting. It will include details on each individual piece with pictures to go along with them. Did I mention my massive amounts of free time?

 

The two hardest parts for the build are going to be the gauntlets and the breath mask. The rest will be fairly simple with the materials I am using. Mostly, the costume will be made of sintra and EVA foam, as both are easily accessible, cheap, and take to costuming like a moth to a flame.

 

If you are good with the small parts molding, then this is definitely a good costume for you. The smallest parts will be the chest detailing, the mask, and the gauntlets. As for the wiring, it wouldn't be that difficult, all things considered. There are two LED-backed pieces on the chest, two on the neck, and two on the mask. Each gauntlet has a few lit pieces, also. I've even figured out how to do the voice modification... a fan. Just have a fan behind the breath mask and talk through it. That will give it the digitized sound as well as the slight raspiness.

 

At the moment, I have a couple of friends working on pepakura models of the gauntlets and the breath mask, the two most difficult pieces. Once they get done, I will probably be making them of sintra and reinforcing them like an Imperial Garrison.

 

Otherwise, I look forward to the input. Say tuned troopies, I'll be back soon enough and will even be posting some potential build pics in the near future, too!

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