Tales of the Jedi-First Brother Research/Development/WIP (SL-19836)

[Phaeton]

Hi all,

I am finally beginning the journey to creating this costume.  I plan to organize this thread by costume component.  To start with, I will be posting reference material.  The two main reference sources will be screen captures from the episode:  https://www.cap-that.com/starwars/tales-of-the-jedi/106/index.php?page=8

and the artist concept drawing from Star Wars.com: https://www.starwars.com/star-wars-tales-of-the-jedi-concept-art-gallery

 

Just a little background on me, I normally am Darth Vader at 501st events, but sometimes we have more than 1 garrison member whose main costume is Vader that would like to troop the same event.  I think this character has a fantastic look and would be a good alternative for those troops with more than 1 Vader.  I am not an experienced costume creator.  My Vader build was sourced out to various established vendors and not created by me.  I just do not have those skills (and am jealous of those of you that do!) 

For this build I will be working with local makers on the parts.  My hope in making this build public with all of you is to get your feedback when you are able to offer it and to work to an eventual 501st approved costume.  Most of you know this costume does not have a CRL yet and due to the nature of this costume, it will be a Detachment level approval process rather than a garrison level approval process.  Assuming we get to that point….  

If I am successful, then hopefully this WIP can be helpful to others.  

 

So if you have useful feedback to share as I move forward, please share it!  I plan to start with the mask, so my next post will be sharing the specific references of the mask. 

Edited November 19 by Phaeton

[Naasad Tal]

The other thread in this section, titled "Unknown Inquisitor" is for this same character and the author has a good start on some of the soft parts, might be worth checking in to for your build. I'm also fairly certain that someone has completed this build, but for the life of me I don't remember where I saw him.

 

Definitely a GREAT looking character and I wish you luck on your build!

[Phaeton]

Hi Chris,

It was CrazyMarlin that completed this build a while ago.  He submitted his work for the CRL and decided to pause on the build based on the feedback that he received.  He was generous enough to share that feedback with me.  As I add to this thread, I will include that information as well.  My hope is that my thread will support the other build, and his will support mine. 

 

 

[Naasad Tal]

Always great to see the cooperation here and I look forward to seeing further progress from both of you!

 

I also just noticed your profile pic and your name clicked for me! Not too many of us around that know/remember Exo Squad. I used to own a couple of the toys.

[Phaeton]

Hi Chris,

 

"I also just noticed your profile pic and your name clicked for me! Not too many of us around that know/remember Exo Squad. I used to own a couple of the toys."

 

I really liked the writing of Exo-squad, just wish it had a longer run. 

Edited September 6 by Phaeton

[Phaeton]

The Mask

Reference Material

Artist Concept Drawing: 

Screen Captures:

I am going to use the Galactic Armory 3D print as the base for my mask.  

https://galacticarmory.net/collections/helmets-and-armor/products/tales-of-the-jedi-inquisitor-mask-diy

 

I am working with a local maker and 3D designer to get the mask sized correctly to me and printed.  

The goal here is to have a printed mask with weathering, red eye led lights, and some sort of attached headband.  

The first hurdle is the eyes.  You can see in the pic below how we are thinking to handle the eyes to include the leds and so that I can still see.    We will cover the open space of the eye slots with a black mesh that I can see through, but will not allow anyone else to see behind the mask.  

Here is a pic of the 3d model, we will be scaling it to the size of my head.  

Any thoughts on this? 

Any suggestions on good leds to use?

Any suggestions on the headband idea?

[DarthValkyria]

There is an additional interior layer of the eye sockets that is missing from the 3D file. That also seems to be what allows the, "eyeball" to look more deep set than the shallowness of the current depth of the print. The outline of the eye is also more rounded in the inner eye and not as sharp as the 3D currently has.

 

There also seems to be additional depth necessary on the, "beak" areas that isn't in the 3D file. 

 

Otherwise seems fine.

[Phaeton]

Hi,

Thanks for the feedback, I really appreciate it!

[DarthValkyria]

Np! Overall it's pretty good interpretation.

[Phaeton]

Hi all,

I passed along the feedback from Darth Valkyria to my 3D modeler and maker.  The 3D modeler is not sure he has the skills to modify the Galactic Armory files with the given suggestions.  So my maker suggested looking at a different source file.  Linked below.

 

https://www.cgtrader.com/3d-print-models/art/scans-replicas/xth-brother-mask-of-inquisitor-from-tales-of-the-jedi

 

The hope would be that this source file would be closer to the the final look and need less modifications, while still being accurate to the character we see on screen.

 

Any thoughts?

[DarthValkyria]

I do like this one more. So long as the proportions are good for length of the beak.

[Phaeton]

Hi,

One concern I have with the cgtraders mask is that the bottom of the eyes looks flat. The screen captures look more rounded.  Here is one of the cgtraders images.

 

We did do a first print of the GA file to get a physical object to look at rather than just computer animations.

You can see that the bottom of the eye in the GA mask is quite rounded, and I think that is a better match to the screen capture. Here is screen capture for comparison.

As to the depth of the vents on the beak of the mask, I would agree that the screen capture looks like they are inset quite a bit.  I am wondering if this look can be achieved with the paint and weathering effects?

Are you all seeing this too? 

[Glory530]

Hey Todd, I see what you mean about the eye shape and nose vents. Just a suggestion from Ryan, since I was asking him about the feasibility of modifying .stl files, if you bring up the discrepancies to GA, they may be willing to modify their file, especially if you tell them that you want to use it for the CRL. Ryan brought up something in a Bad Batch build group about an inaccuracy in their Wrecker armor, and the GA guy saw it and fixed the file a couple days later.

[Phaeton]

Hi all,

Here is the first print of the mask that we decided on after your feedback.

Next step for the mask is paint, weathering, eye inserts, and eye hole coverings.

[DarthValkyria]

Nice quality print!

[Phaeton]

Hi,

Work has continued, and we have a new question:

 

There seems to be a visual difference between the concept drawing and the animation when it comes to a detail on the forearm vambrace. 

Here is a closeup of the vambrace on the concept drawing.  Notice the pointed notch section that extends towards the wrist.

 

Now notice its absence in the screen capture.

 

This is the current model we were going to use.

But, now that this detail has been noticed, should we go with the concept drawing or the screen capture from the animation? 

Thanks in advance for sharing your perspective.

[DarthValkyria]

I would say stick with a cohesive version. Whichever you choose.

[Phaeton]

Hi all,

Just a quick little update on the mask. Base coat complete!

[Phaeton]

Starting the weathering process.

[Phaeton]

Do we have a name!?!

This image comes off the web from the new Star Wars encyclopedia that will be released Nov. 19, 2024.  I will confirm once I get my copy! 😁

[Phaeton]

Hi all,

Exciting update!  I have the completed mask in hand!

 

Eyes not lit

Eyes lit

The leds in the eye slots are resting on my eyebrows and this allows me to see right under the eye slots.  The vision is actually pretty good! It is a wider range of vision than my Vader.

 

Next steps for the mask will be for me to attach a harness so that I can wear it.  I am thinking of going with a hockey mask style so that I can slip the harness over my head.  I will also need to add some padding on the inside to help it sit off of my face a bit. Any helpful suggestions are greatly appreciated!

[Glory530]

I was so excited to see this in person this weekend! I'm not sure how Revan masks attach, but this seems like it could probably attach in a similar manner.

[Phaeton]

Hi all,

Got my copy of the new Star Wars encyclopedia today and it is true that the Unknown Inquisitor is actually the First Brother!  I have changed the name of this thread as a result of this new information.

[planktonimore]

That looks sweet! Nice work so far