Dura, kit WIP

[Mercykiller]

I think I posted originally in the wrong place so I'll upload my process of making kit here as it seems to be the more fitting spot.

Everything has come a long way since I first started making orcish kit.
There's been several variations and modifications made to each piece of clothing over the course of a year or so, which included going from a skull mask and headdress to the mask I have currently, and the customisation I've made to it. Each time I've learned what has, and hasn't worked along the way and I'm happy to share that.

Sept/oct 2017 First version made, very light but still earthy tones. Very lightly weathered without real wear and tear added to the garments.
Leggings under a skirt, shirt then vest with the cloak attached to that.


December- Janurary 2017-18
Darkened kit significantly, upgraded jewellery to more durable pieces, detailing added. More armour acquired. Kidney belt made to cover modern looking belt on the skirt and remove the weight of sword and dagger that dug in uncomfortably.
Got a latex mask from Ungebilde around this time as well.



Died from overheating for a few months before I figured out and got around to rearranging the layers of the kit so the cloak can be removed without also taking with it a large portion of what makes the kit look orcish.
Finally made some gloves but hardly used them.
Mask went under intense customization. Added facial piercings, warpaint, earrings, decorated the hair, darkened around the eyes so facepaint would blend better. Velcro strip added to the back of the mask so the mask hugged my face a bit more which improved visibility and speech.
NPC for another larp with a bunch of other orcs, May 2018


September 2018
Entire rework of clothing, starting with the skirt layering and the tunic. Using an old large shirt as a base, transplated the sleeves across. Dismantled the skirt and stitched them onto the base, this created less bulk around the waist/stomach and removed a chunky belt that served no real purpose. Added a couple of patches to the wrists to prevent bracers from sliding on the thin sleeves. Made a sleeveless overtunic to cover the black torso section when armour wasn't been worn and it served as padding against leather chaffing.
New pants constructed. Leather gloves acquired, only available in shops around winter in Aus.


Also created a alternative ritual, 'fancy' kit for a weekend event that used a modified body suit as a base. It needs to be revised and changes made to it for the sake of some comforts.


Current kit which is still having changes made to it and is undergoing repairs.



Currently working on a secondary set of clothing as a change of clothing for longer events.
Concept that has been started and already some pieces have been changed:

[Urok/Worgahr]

Oh the Light Bodysuit looks interessting.

Ungebilde masks are a medallion with two sites On the one hand there are well sculpted but very generic ( Understood its necessary, cause Ellen sells a lot of masks and when she created to characteristic models it would even more look like a clone army. So its better to make generic models which you can better modifier.)
But on the other hand there are way to many of them

I guess its the same problem with these epic armoury Mask like the non ungebilde on your Foto.

Dont misunderstood. Wont tell bad things about Ellens mask. Iam just a little supersaturated but i still think that there really cool for orc beginners who are not able to make there own masks or cant pay enough money for a good artist.
And at least its very cool that a german larp product find its way to Australia.

[Mercykiller]

Ungebilde masks are a medallion with two sites On the one hand there are well sculpted but very generic ( Understood its necessary, cause Ellen sells a lot of masks and when she created to characteristic models it would even more look like a clone army. So its better to make generic models which you can better modifier.)
But on the other hand there are way to many of them

I guess its the same problem with these epic armoury Mask like the non ungebilde on your Foto.

Dont misunderstood. Wont tell bad things about Ellens mask. Iam just a little supersaturated but i still think that there really cool for orc beginners who are not able to make there own masks or cant pay enough money for a good artist.
And at least its very cool that a german larp product find its way to Australia.

Haha Understandable, I know what it can be like to see a lot of same face characters
We mostly find EA masks here due to the suppliers in Aus, EA and Of Science and swords, which is primarily supplied by EA. So 90% of the orcs we get are very generic as a lot of players I've come across do the whole "buy and wear" without to many changes made. There's a few that will add hair but unfortunately not much else.
When we originally discovered Ungebilde it was something new for us and not many orcs in Aus have the masks due to the price jump from EA. Yaaay conversion rates.
Still we've found her masks to work a lot better for us because they are set on a balaclava so we're not all overheating super quickly haha. And it meant there was a bit more variety.
I encourage my warband to heavily modify their masks so there's some originality even if there's a couple of the same masks on field.
EG:
Mulag vs Dura. Both the same mask, but due to different face shapes of the wearers, the addition of the velcro for a closer fit so it's close to the wearers face, warpaint markings, etc You can still see some similarities but they also look like 2 different characters.



I can't wait for the day when I can get around to being able to sculpt and molds masks of my own, or be able to get something on the level of Seggo's artwork (FB)

Really want to get back into sculpting again, I've done a couple resin masks but they were fairly simple in design in the grand scheme of things

[Mercykiller]

Oh the Light Bodysuit looks interessting.

Haha it's actually so good when you want super super light kit. Because it's made from that light swimmers spandex it breaths like a dream and pretty much works with you in terms of mobility.
I used a combo of acrylic paint and fabric medium (turns normal paint into fabric paint), to try and match the skin tones of my mask so it blended and looked more natural. The base colour was an olive green to start with.

Our goblin did the same thing but mostly so he can be more 'naked' to gross out the humans... and the rest of us.

[Urok/Worgahr]

Yes Seggos Masks are really cool. But he dont use molds he sprays directly on the sculpt.

I used plaster molds for my and my Clansmates masks.
I guess most other Artist do it the same way.

But cool, iam excited to the your mask work

[Mercykiller]

Finished hand stitching the white detailing on the hood last night.
Kit is ready for some runs through dye and hand weathering with paints, liquid boot polish, dirt and talcum powder
Not pictured are the pants.

Other components will be worn over the top.

All high wear places have been reinforced with extra stitching along the seams. I will be hand sewing an extra patch on the inner thighs as that place wears through super quickly for me... thick thighs might save lives but they murder pants.

[Mercykiller]

First round of weathering done.
The clothes around going to be put through the dryer to heat set the paint and bond it, hopefully, permanently to the fabric.

Second round will be coming through with a spray bottle and some dye just to bring the brightness down further.

[Mercykiller]

Finished up the kit, and did a test wear with some of the other pieces I have.
Mobility is still good, though I made the pats a smidge to tight, thought that should stretch with wear as it's denim like material.
Cloak is easily removed and is just there to add some bulk.
Only things missing is the armour but for a quick test I just wanted to know that everything looked right.

[Krith'Rup / Slarn]

I like the improvements, Dura.

One thing about Ellen / Ungebil's masks:

I don't like the masks she makes with an integral balaclava, because it makes it very difficult to wash the balaclava (and it is HIGHLY recommended to wash the balaclava after each game, because of the huge amount of sweat that the balaclava absorbs, and the bacteria that builds there if it is neglected).

Thus, I think it is much better to have just a mask, and wear a separate balaclava under it it.

Also, if you ever decide to go up a level and order a custom-made mask for yourself (or even make one yourself), I think it's much better to have a full-faced mask; it will save you the trouble of having to put so much makeup on your chin, and it generally looks more like a real creature's face, and less like a mask.

Anyhow, keep up the good work, and I hope to meet you at either DF or EE or both, in the future

Slarn

[Mercykiller]

I like the improvements, Dura.

One thing about Ellen / Ungebil's masks:

I don't like the masks she makes with an integral balaclava, because it makes it very difficult to wash the balaclava (and it is HIGHLY recommended to wash the balaclava after each game, because of the huge amount of sweat that the balaclava absorbs, and the bacteria that builds there if it is neglected).

Thus, I think it is much better to have just a mask, and wear a separate balaclava under it it.

Also, if you ever decide to go up a level and order a custom-made mask for yourself (or even make one yourself), I think it's much better to have a full-faced mask; it will save you the trouble of having to put so much makeup on your chin, and it generally looks more like a real creature's face, and less like a mask.

Anyhow, keep up the good work, and I hope to meet you at either DF or EE or both, in the future

Slarn

Cheers

there's definitely pros and cons to each type of mask for sure, I do prefer the balaclava mounted ones just for the fit and the ability for it to breath a bit more. Aussie humidity is a killer to any sort of mask. I would be wearing another balaclava under it to absorb most of the sweat before it gets to the mask but it's to damn hot here.

Cleaning is a bit more difficult but I've found ways around it even if it is a touch more time consuming.
I let the mask air dry after each use, flipping it inside out and putting it on a stand outside, but in the shade cause direct sun would kill the mask super super quickly.
Once every couple of weeks I come through with a damp clean cloth and a tiny amount of liquid hand soap and work it into the fabric, it pulls out the sweated off face paint super quickly as it wants to go where the most moisture is.
Once I have most of the face paint removed I spray the balaclava pieces with isopropyl alcohol to kill bacteria, avoiding the bare latex parts, then let everything dry before dusting talcum powder onto the latex and turning the mask the right way out again and putting it on a wig head when I'm not wearing it.
I constantly check for dry rot, decaying latex.
So far the mask is lasting really well, despite being very regularly worn.

[Mercykiller]

Still working on improving some soft kit pieces.

- boot covers for when I'm not wearing my shin armour (which hides the boots currently)
- hand plates to cover the join between bracers and leaver gloves.

[Mercykiller]

Reworked how I had my throwing knives holstered.
Originally it was 2 out of the 3 slung across my chest with the last tucked into my belt, but they kept falling out.
Now there's one across the chest plate, one clipped to the belt and one tied to the shin armour.