Black Templar
This project was made for Sci-Fi Valley Con 2023.
The inspiration for this cosplay were the Joytoy action figures.
Since the majority of this project will be freehand, I needed a way to scale my reference material. This is a very old method I’ve used for both my Terminator Chaplain, and my Jim Raynor costumes.
It starts by making a grid of squares. These grid will then represent 1ftx1ft spacing. I am 6ft even, so I can figure out how big I want something to be, based on me measuring 6 squares high. In this case, the character will be roughly 1ft taller than me.
But originally I was going to use a template. This template was from Crawdaddy Cosplay on Etsy. He had templates for the entire mark X armor set, but these Sword Brethrens armor has a few key differences. And I’d find myself modifying all of the templates. So from here on, I decided to freehand the rest.
The process for free-handing such a large costume requires a ton of cardboard. Thankfully, we had just moved the year before, so we had a lot of cardboard boxes.
This method uses the reference images show previously, and on the cardboard I draw out the 1ftx1ft squares. And from there I draw out the armor pieces within those squares in their profile position, front, and side.
From there, i then just fill in the gaps as best I can, until I have a 3d shape.
Once that is done, I wrap the 3d cardboard model in plastic wrap, and then duct tape. This is your basic duct tape template. I then draw out my edges, remove the template from the cardboard model, and I cut the template in strategic locations so that it can lay down flat.
Once the template is flat, i transfer that to foam, and cut and glue it all together. The end result should be very similar to the cardboard shape originally made.
I repeated this same process with all the other body pieces. These being the shins.
The backpack.
For the shoes, I used a pair of loafers glued to some thing EVA foam blocks using a ton of E6000. The toes would be articulated, so that walking would be a lot easier. At the tip of the toe would be a weight, to drop the toe, and I added a strap to hold the toe from sagging past a flat position, so that I wouldn’t snag the toe while walking.
I also used the same technique to build the base arms and legs. (These are the most photos I can find of this process.
I also started making the midsection as well. I did this by wrapping foam around my midsection to get a basic shape that i could slide into, glued that together, and then cut out sections for under my arms, so this could slide up high.
I then started adding bits for the stomach plates, and the belt.
I left the bottom portion open for ease of mobility and to make it easier to put on and take off.
Detailing comes after fitment and proportion checks.
Before I moved forward with detail, I started putting pieces on together to check how they were looking together. I did this alot, with each piece that I made.
And propertion issues were addressed before detail. If a piece was too big, too small, too short, or too long, I took note, and adjusted them as needed. In some cases, remaking a piece entirely.
I wish I had more photos for the helmet. This was also a hand made template, that went through several modifications.
The internal cooling was a USB powered fan, that connected to an external USB charger that would be tucked in the chest piece. The fan pulled air from the opening in the forehead, and blew cool air onto my forehead. Not only did this help keep me cool, but it also helped to defog the visor.
One major modification was widening the helmet. Originally the helmet was too thin, but the visor in front looked too good for me to cut up. So I chose to split it down the back, and pull it apart that way, and that worked to get the width that I wanted. (it also helped fit the lenses in the eyes later on too.)
With this extra width in the back, I took advantage of the gap left inside the inner shell of the helmet, and made a channel leading from the fan to the rear of the helmet. This doubled the source of fresh air for the fan!
I Then started the detailing phase. The gorget on the chest armor looked good at first, but wasn’t correct to the action figure. so I ripped it off, and lowered it about an inch or two.
I also added details on the back, and added more support material inside the chest, where there were originally open cavities, with a stronger foam brand.
-Take note of the last photo, you can see that I had added layers of foam to the shoulder. This was not just to raise the chest, but to also fill in the raised portions in the armor, that runs from the chest, over the shoulders, and down the back.
Then came the arm details. I made the chains and cuffs out of foam, and cut and sanded each chain link round, so that they wouldn’t get hung up on each other.
Then they all got put together, and attached to the arms.
For the arms, I added a shoulder bit to the top of the forarm. This will be what attaches the arms to the body, and where the pauldrons will mount.
I also made the gloves as well, these were made from a regular pair of work gloves, with EVA foam glued to each finger. 2mm on the sides, and 10mm on the tops. And then 5mm for the extra plating over top the wrist.
Then I started detailing the shins. I added a sword to the left shin, added the knee guard, the ankle guard, the extra lip over the ankle, and some extra foam inside to bump up against my leg, so that the shin wouldn’t bend backwards in an unnatural way.
I then started detailing the Pauldrons. I started with the trimming first, and the guard at the top. The shield in front is made of 2 pieces of foam, 10mm and 5mm. I did this solely to maintain its curve. I glued them together bent, and then trimmed the 5mm layer to size afterwords. This way that 5mm piece is always pulling on the 10mm piece into it’s current shape.
I then made the Templar cross and skull. This was a free-handed pattern, using several layers to get it to piece in the center, and to be elevated off the pauldron. The skull is foam clay, from a hot-glue mold I made from a large plastic skull.
This write up still needs finished, please come back later.