Well, uh… I fall into that category. And since fashion is one of the main ways players stand out from each other here, as well as to show my love for Terraria, I’m currently embarking on a new small project for the time; converting my Terraria vanity to a Minecraft skin. It’s something I’ve done before, but I haven’t done one in a while. So… I wanted to change that, especially since my vanity has changed with it. This post and following replies will show update images and a final product once completed.
As of current, I have only finished flat colors for the head and body with use of both layers. Just getting it established first is very important, and shading, as it’s extra details, comes second.
Sadly I’m somewhat of a perfectionist, so as to how long I’ll take to finish, I dunno. I’ll continue to chip away at it, tuning it to my preferences and looks in - game, and then afterwards I’ll change up my cape to match with it. Though, if I’m offered to migrate to my Microsoft account before I finish, I think that’d fit in quite well on the skin, too!
Flat coloring I would say is mostly complete, if not fully done at this point, having finished both flat coloring for the arms and legs, in addition to very slightly adjusting the skin tone to slightly more closely reflect both the original reference as well as my own actual skin tone.
The hardest part for me with all of this was the detail for the boots. Originally, I tried only putting them on the second layer (my vanity uses Amphibian Boots, with Jim’s Leggings underneath), which did work, but in doing so, it meant I would only have 1 layer to work with for adding on details present from the original boots. I referred back to my current skin by SolScribbles on Twitter and saw “oh hey, yeah, the shoes use both layers, why not do that for my boots”, which I then immediately put to use. It doesn’t look that great right now, but here’s hoping I can fix it up with shading!
From flat colors and no limbs to details and shading, also without limbs! I briefly mentioned in the DG Discord how I was concerned about making the Red and Black Dyed Chlorophyte Headgear both in 3D and also look detailed with only 2 layers to work with. Ah… well, it’s definitely not perfect, but I’m happy enough with this to keep it.
If there’s any bright side to this, it’s that it’s not hair that I’m trying to shade and detail. If you look at any “modern” Minecraft skin based on simple designs, the hair is fairly complex, using the most of both layers to be rather convincing. Here, the only thing I had to account for was the alternate perspectives of the Headgear, since normally you only ever see it from the side, as a Terraria player playing Terraria in control of a character. Because of that, making sure the front and back were fairly convincing while somewhat staying 3D was a bit of a challenge, but I’m satisfied with what I put out, given my limited skills compared to other, better artists in the Minecraft community.
Once it’s finished… hmm, the cape will be something else to tackle, what with OptiFine capes being able to be set to almost any banner one might want. But I do have my migrator cape now, so that’ll be something to try out, too. Hurrah, options!
WOOOOW, I’m horrible at keeping this updated. I finished the skin the same day I posted that last update, but then forgot to post the finished product because it was a bit late at night. Then I got caught up the following days and just kept forgetting while taking care of other things. Anyways, it’s been finished for 4 days now, and I’ve been using it playing on various servers. How is it now? Well… a bit low in contrast. On one hand, I kind of like the style. On the other hand, it really pales in comparison to a lot of artists with better shading in the Minecraft community.
But hey, at least I can say it’s unique and that I made it myself! As an amateur artist who’s out of practice and likely will get very little if any with college starting up, I think I did alright. But I like using it, and that’s why I made it; for my own enjoyment and customization, in the same way my holiday skin was just Madeline from Celeste but with a Santa hat. Will I do something for Halloween? Probably not anything major at this rate.
A point raised in CrabBar’s server was the back of the skin (especially the helmet). Overall, the different perspectives that wouldn’t be seen in Terraria had served to be the most challenging without a direct reference, but at the same time it was also the most fun since it could easily lend its way to imagination. I played it relatively safe overall, not having too many new details along the backside, but then again because the games I play in Minecraft often demand greater movement capabilities (i.e. sprinting, and this isn’t a Source game where you can run backwards), the front is still more important if watching for only the skin for whatever reason. I can’t just leave it in flat colors, though, so in went the details!
The back doesn’t blend as well into the leggings as the front does with how I shaded it, but if it’s any consolation, you won’t see it all that often due to a cape being in the way. Which, though? Depends on what you’re using. If you have OptiFine enabled, you’ll see this relatively simple cape I threw together in 3 minutes without any particular ideas in mind.
What was I going for? Good question, I don’t know. But if you don’t use OptiFine, you’ll just see the migrator cape. Nothing special about it.
