Goal: "Establish a clear visual direction before starting any 3D work"
Start by gathering references. Reference is key—no matter how strong your imagination is, it is always helpful to have good visual material in front of you.
Before opening any 3D software, collect images of creatures, materials, and shapes that match the role of your mob in the game. Pay special attention to silhouette, color palette, and surface details, as these define how readable and believable your character will be.
Next, create a moodboard to organize your references. A tool like PureRef is ideal for this. It is a free program that works like an infinite digital canvas where you can easily drag and drop images and arrange them in a way that makes sense for your project.
Goal: Create a detailed high-poly model with strong shapes and clear structure.
Open Blender, which is a powerful and free open-source 3D software, and begin with the blockout.
Use simple base shapes such as cubes, spheres, and cylinders to build the basic structure of your mob. Combine and adjust them until the proportions and overall silhouette feel right. At this stage, avoid focusing on details—only the overall shape matters.
Once you are satisfied with the blockout, switch to Sculpt Mode and remesh the model. This step rebuilds the geometry and creates a more even surface, making it easier to sculpt details.
From here, refine the model step by step. Always work from large to small:
Use different brushes to gradually add depth and character to the model. This process helps bring the mob to life while maintaining clean and readable forms.
Goal: Create an optimized, animation-ready mesh.
After sculpting, the model will be highly detailed but not usable for a game. The sculpting process usually results in messy geometry with potentially millions of faces, which is very performance-heavy and difficult to work with.
The next step is to create a clean low-poly version through retopology.
Rebuild the model with significantly fewer polygons while preserving the overall shape. Focus especially on creating clean topology and good edge flow, as this is crucial for animation later on. The goal is to reduce the polygon count as much as possible without losing important details.
Once the low-poly model is finished, move on to UV unwrapping.
Cut the model into logical sections and unwrap it in a way that minimizes distortion. Then arrange and pack the UVs efficiently within the available space to ensure consistent texture resolution across the entire model.
Goal: Create believable and visually rich textures for your asset.
Import your model into Substance Painter for texturing.
Start by baking the necessary maps from the high-poly model onto the low-poly model. This transfers all the sculpted details into textures, such as normal maps and ambient occlusion.
Next, begin defining the materials using layers:
Gradually build up detail and variation until the result looks believable. Small imperfections and color variation are important to avoid a flat or overly clean look.
Once everything is finished, export all required texture maps. Now the Model is ready for being rigged and animated.