Project 1: Research

I've searched and read quite a number of tutorials on how to do models of dinosaurs and claws, since Aron himself appears like a dinosaur. Thus far, most of my research shows similar ways on how to make sharp edges of dinosaur-like models with ease and it isn't entirely new to me: Vertex and extrusion.

Modifying vertex little by little along with multitudes of extrusions seem to help achieve shapes which may appear intimidating to make at first, despite its simplicity and tedium. Taking my time to modify the vertex for the detail and extruding to move on to another limb may yield good results. Extrusion especially helps when dealing with a cube since quad faces needed to be maintain. Regardless, however, once I make the pointed edge of the claw, the faces around it will be triangles when I merge the vertexes together.

This may apply to Aron's horns. Initially, I wanted to make a separate model for it, using the primitive cone. This may seem simpler but I will have to merge the vertexes of the two models later, adding to tedium. Then, I switched to using a circle and a curve for it to extrude on but once again, it will produce a separate model. Hence, I have to add in more edges to the main body using the edge loop tool and pull out the vertexes little by little from the main body, making a horn.

Regardless, some of the "failed" techniques is still useful in other areas, most notably the tail. The tail lays on the ground and bends to Aron's right, losing any possibility for making symmetry for it unless I use a method which allows it to bend, which I was unable to find. Merely extruding the tail from half of the main body will not yield the intended result, unlike the horns or claws, which has symmetry.

Hence, for the tail, I will use an extrusion along a curve, using a circular drawing or a cube. Scale shall be set to 0 to make a pointed, a method I initially planned for the horns.

Another method which I researched on is to simply make a large plane polygon and place a texture on it, showing an image of your intended model. It can then serve as a guide and multiple images can be used for the different views. Some videos show that this can greatly help in making virtually any model, even the ones that may appear complicated such as a dinosaur shaped model. Along with extrusion and vertex modifying, I won't have to rely on imagination or assumptions anymore.