Here's how the full high-poly sculpt looks at the moment. Excluding the cloth and tree leaves, it's close to finished.  I might scale down the long arms, as they look very large when connected to a small body frame. There could be additional detail added or fixed, but time is running out. I've already decided to ignore the hanging wires to save the extra headache. 

(Yaaay, you can finally see his backside!)

Hello again! Very close to completing the sculpt, but time is running out. Spent a couple of days pushing on this, focusing on the Brain tree next. Started with establishing the base first, I used a Curve Tubes Brush with a semi-steep horizontal falloff to create the trunks and branches. The most important aspect for this is judging the shapes and silhouette of the tree from all angles, to make sure it looks readable and interesting from any angle. 

I kept paying attention to how the tree looked in the original concept, but I decided to make the trunk base a little chunkier so it looked less frail. 

When I was happy with the base, my next objective was adding the alien-looking tree decal with the bumps and bird beaks. (I think they're branch saplings, but all I see are bird beaks.) The most efficient method was modelling these parts individually in a separate tool, then creating an IMM brush from them to quickly add them to the tree. I spent some time experimenting with adding them, figuring out how to add them in small groups and individual variations, while also making sure I didn't add too much that would make the tree detail hard to read.

Next part: actually sculpting! Now this time I was a little stumped as to what these lines were. I wasn't sure if it was just wood grains or an alien pattern to emphasise this isn't a regular Earth tree. I opted with the latter idea because I believed it would push the sci-fi aspect further, but I would still add wood grains later to create texture. I did a small section of the pattern to visualise how it would look. I went with the thinner style to keep some negative space in this repeated pattern.

Below is how it turned out (I swear I worked on the backside area too. I keep forgetting to take screenshots of the backside, haha.)

I liked it, but I felt it was still a little clay-like. This could be remedied in the texturing phase, but I pushed further with texture sculpting just in case. However, I didn't want to add too much realistic detail since it's a stylized concept. My solution is below: To create wood grains, I used a default ZBrush alpha to sculpt the grains around the tree, paying attention to the flow and intersections between grains. Once I was happy, I applied a small Polish effect in the Deformation menu to smooth out the sharpness of the grains. I like how it turned out!

To push the sculpting slightly further, I used a combination of the Morph tool and Standad brushing with these alphas to add some bumps and clean up some grains. (I had the 'Store MT' function set up before each phase to be able to utilise it.)

This is the result of the Brain tree. It could use some extra polish, but the deadline is looming and I can't afford to spent extra time. The other parts missing are the hanging cloths and leaves. I decided I'm going to leave the hanging wires out, as I feel they will become too much of a pain to control with the time I have left. Especially if I decide to rig this model.

At long last, the arms are complete. Before working on the small arm, I wanted to add/tweak/remove specific parts of the other arms that I felt didn't connect properly. I highlighted them in the second image below.

Regarding the small arm, I was a little confused about a couple details in the 2D concepts. One: the shoulder joint is obscured, so I wasn't sure how the arm was connected to the main body. Is it fixed? Does it rotate? I felt if it was fixed, the small arm wouldn't be very flexible. Two: There was the forearm section because I wasn't sure how the concept artist visualised this arm from all angles, and the joint designs seemed to look different on both sides. 

The deadline's approaching sooner, so I need to hurry with the final parts that haven't been created; the cloth and the tree. (Maybe the wires too. I don't know if I have time to work on the wires.)

4 weeks left.

Phew. This was a pain to put together. Compared to organic modelling, the one thing about hard surface modelling that can be tedious is making sure every piece connects properly with visual clarity. The best way to make this easier is modelling everything on a hard X or Y axis before transposing and connecting the entire set where it needs to be (i.e. connecting arm to body.) I've also been worried if each modular piece has enough interesting detail, or if there would be too much detail and lack of harmony that makes it a visual mess. May go back and add more boolean parts, but I need to make progress. There's a 3rd arm design to model!

Here's how the robot currently looks. Of course, the arms will be mirrored to the other side when I'm satisfied.

One month left. I'm not terribly behind, but as I've been distracted by other tasks, I may need to push harder to get this challenge complete in time. Saying that, I've completed the Shield Arm! I got to utilise a combination of techniques I learnt from my Udemy course, which has been super helpful. I plan to reuse some of the modular parts like the pivot joints and the forearm for the other arm to save time, as they share very similar designs. I may need to scale down the entire arm, but I'm liking how it turned out.

I may want to add more to the top part of the shield design, since the original concept had basic designs, but I feel it may look a little too basic. However, I'll decide that later as I need to work on the other arms.

More progress on the main body, adding more details and creating cavities for the main eye and arm holes. I'm still figuring out how to apply hard surface patterns and details without turning it into an eyesore. Plus, I scaled the main eye up as I noticed it was a little too small for a focal point in the design.

I've also edited the bottom portion. Got rid of the fan blades and turned it into more of a propulsion hole for whatever makes this badboy float. Jet stream? Fire? Levitation? Who knows. I separated each layer into its own separate object, thinking that they might rotate in opposite directions if this were to be animated. 

Spent a couple of days this week beginning modelling/sculpting. Focusing on the main body first, most of the effort so far has been spent on the central eye. It's looking good so far! I feel I may need to add small details later, such as screws or indentations. My next task should be establishing the cavities, where the mechanical arms will be inserted.

Nice curves there. o3o

I've also created three seperate piston segments for the bottom portion, and added a cute lil' exhaust fan. (It may get removed though, 'cos I haven't decided what this hole should be. It may be advanced levitation tech for all I know.)

Been slightly absent, but I didn't give up! Since last time, I've been following an online tutorial session on Udemy to learn new techniques for hard surface sculpting and modelling. I've learnt some neat tricks and new functions I didn't know about in ZBrush, which has given me more confidence in tackling this Worker Alien sculpt.

Besides that, I've slightly tweaked the proportions for the hands, the eyeball, the tree and the bottom portion of the main body. Proportions may be altered during the project, but for now, let's get sculpting!

Phew. I've established a blockout of the worker alien mech. Very basic, made up of simple shapes and primitives to figure out the proportions and scale of each component. I've learnt It's not as quick to bash up a hard-surface model compared to doing an organic blockout. 

I've decided the hanging cloth and wiring will be left to model last. I need to make sure I'm happy with the placement of the pivot shoulders and the final model of the main body before I decide to hang decorative table mats over my floating robot decor.

Hello! This will be my first time taking part in an Artstation Challenge, and I look forward to this journey.

I will be basing my submission on this Worker Alien Mech design, created by Lucian Acatrinei.

After thinking about which concept to choose, I figured I should choose a concept that will push my hard-surface modelling skills. Lucian had created an awesome variety of alien mechs with different purposes for his Character Design entry. With his permission, I picked his Worker Alien mech, because I felt it had a great silhouette and a balance of subtle details and interesting body shapes and anatomy. Plus a cute lil' organic alien tree on top. 

Before jumping into the blockout, I put together a moodboard for visual reference of what to acheive, and a breakdown of each component of the Worker Alien to help me understand what to create step-by-step.