General Rahm Kota's Armor

[Koda Vonnor]

Since I plan on re-creating this costume, I wanted to open up a discussion.



I will need to make an armor breast-plate, shoulder 'bells' and bracers, and hand-guards. I'm leaning toward sculpting the BP and shoulders, then casting them from poly/fiberglass, similar to what Thomas Spanos did with his red Imperial Knight armor.

To do that, I'll have to start with a torso/upper-arm casting of some sort. I saw that Thomas used a duct-tape bust for sculpting his BP. Has anyone here had experience with making a duct-tape mannequin or torso-casting? I've seen some instructional pieces on the web, but they all say to stuff the casting with poly-fill or cotton batting, which I wouldn't think will be sturdy enough to sculpt clay on top of without collapsing.

I will most likely cast the hand-guards first, just to practice with the liquid-plastic, using plaster casts of my hands.

The only pieces I have any firm idea for so far are the bracers...



I see using the "control box," machined from PVC, as a closure key that slides over the notched edge-pieces and keeps the bracers closed around the arm. I plan on making plaster casts of my arms to use as a mandrel for heat-forming the PVC sintra.

I'd also have the belly-control-box (on the BP) machined from PVC.

The one thing I just can't get my brain around though, is how to attach all the armor plates to the costume. By this screen-shot, it looks like Master Kota has some kind of harness straps going over his shoulder and down to the small of his back in a "V" shape...



If any of my fellow costumers has a good engineering brain, or has any ideas on how to implement this contraption, I'd be eternally grateful.

[Koda Vonnor]

Oh and here's the ref-pic of the hand-guards. I wasn't sure if he wore any until I took freeze-frame snaps from the game preview clip...



Probly just attach those to the fingerless gloves with velcro.

~ K³

[J'aii-Gun Jiinn]

Just a suggestion.Could you modify a stormtrooper chest piece? It might be easier

[Koda Vonnor]

Hmmm.... never thought of that. Thanks J'aii! I'll take a look at one when I get a minute.

Even though I've never done ANY sculpting, mold-making, or casting before in my life, I'm leaning that way in the interest of accuracy. I don't plan on doing anything except make the body castings, until after the game and it's related media (books, etc...) are released in March. There should be a boatload of reference pix available after that. ;D

I was mostly looking for ideas on how to harness all the armor pieces to my body. Since there is no back-plate to offset the weight of the BP, I have to figure a way to anchor the harness in back. Also need to figure a way to attach the shoulder bells, AND how to get the tabards/capes to not interfere with the harness... grrrrrrr.... my brain hurts.

[Cozmo]

<interest piqued> I'm sorry, did somebody say "game?" And what game would this be?

[Koda Vonnor]

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.

[J'aii-Gun Jiinn]

I would modify the stormtrooper piece enough to recast it.Use it as a base,According to the pic the chest piece looks like 2 pieces,sort of like Fett's chest piece,but a bit thicker.as I said a suggestion.I'll ask my friend he does masks,props and things.He did his own fett armor.I'll see what he says,bear with me.He's hard to get a response from right away

[Cozmo]

kodavonnor said:

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.

I figured it was probably that. But a little part of me was really hoping KOTOR 3 would hav surprised me and hit the market.

I really like that armor. It looks battered and dinged, and it has that "lived-in" look or "used universe" feel that the original Star Wars had. It also looks somewhat Mandalorian.

[Koda Vonnor]

neesonfan said:

I would modify the stormtrooper piece enough to recast it.Use it as a base,According to the pic the chest piece looks like 2 pieces,sort of like Fett's chest piece,but a bit thicker.as I said a suggestion.I'll ask my friend he does masks,props and things.He did his own fett armor.I'll see what he says,bear with me.He's hard to get a response from right away

Yeah like a left side and a right side, both attached to a thinner common plate, and the "belly-box" in the middle. I like the idea of re-casting the TK BP. It may save a lot of sculpture. Might could re-cast some TB shoulders too... they look kinda close.

Great idea J'aii!

[Koda Vonnor]

I found the perfect fabric for the split-cape/tabards today. It's 100% wool and drapes fantastic! It's a bit lighter weight than my robe fabric, and a very loose weave and airy. A deep chocolate brown with a hint of red. This pic makes it look like burlap, and it has that look if you saw it on the bolt, but it is very soft to the touch. The color shown here is very accurate (yay photoshop! ).



Also, here is a lightsaber concept sketch I did today. It is based on screenshots from a preview clip, and combines elements from concept art, the action figure, and textual descriptions I found in a googling frenzy. It's only a draft and will likely change before I get the parts cut.



Lastly is a first cut at the belly-box on the chestplate:



Next up .... the bandoleer.

~ K³

[J'aii-Gun Jiinn]

This looks like a cool costume already Katarn,I sent an e-mail to my friend..waiting...waiting...for a reply

[Mon-Jas Charan]

Take a look at this tutorial ... It may give you some guidance www.jedielfqueen.com/elvenwarriors/elvenwarriors.htm

[AMP]

kodavonnor said:

Lastly is a first cut at the belly-box on the chestplate:



~ K³

I've been thinking about doing this costume as well.
I have access to a 3-D router at work that I could run a prototype to see how easily that could be made. Are those sliders at the top? Would you say that was about an inch thick?

[Ky-Wan Zann]

Alright Kota I mean Koda. I love this character already. I have that as my desktop at the moment. One thing that may help as well is the action figure being relased

www.yodasnews.net/wave2/kotafront.jpg

www.yodasnews.net/wave2/kotaback.jpg

Not always the best refrence but helpful.

I was planning on doing a similar thing for some Jedi armor or doing the secret apprentice now that my hair is short.

Hey btw great pic idea for a next con..armor Jedi Generals pic

Only thing I can think of for attaching it is using the 'v' connection and having that connect to a belt that you wear under the armor and the normal looking jedi belt will go over that and the armor

[Koda Vonnor]

Amp, the box is 1/2 inch thick, with 1/4 in routed out (inside-corner radius of the route-out is aprox 0.063). External filet corner radius about 0.12

The black lines are slots about 0.05 wide give-or-take. The white squares are just flat plastic stoppers (I'm imagining from the concept art) and the grey squares are thumb sliders about 1/4 in thick and maybe contoured a bit for thumbs (like keyboard keys). The grey and white circles are push buttons (aprox 1/8 to 3/16 thick) and the black circle is a hole. I won't implement moving sliders, just glue them in place.

Zann, You'd be the freakin' perfect S.A. Also, I thought about attaching the "V" straps to a belt, but may be better to just velcro them to the inside waist-band of the pants. Only engineering problem is if I sit, the straps will pull to the rear and pull the BP up toward my neck in front. Plus if I attach the shoulders to the strap system, they get pulled outa wack too. It may end up being a standing-only costume, unless I can solve that dilemma.

~ Vonnor