@Night: I wanted to have a folded steel look for the blade, but I guess on that resolution it just doesn't work if you show the gradient, it gets to thick and strong, so I removed it.
@Manupix:
I was lazy and hoped no one would actually check it.
However I edited it by now.
The shoulder pads won't be really affected if the soldier raises the arms, so I was just off - The only thing I actually constructed very carefully with the given horizon line was the head - because yeah the face is... difficult and if it isn#t right the whole thing would be a case for the wastebin.
I went through the trouble and edited it.
Also edited the leg and multiple other small spots, no gif this time.
Also thanks foor your edit Mathias. Honestly I don't really like how the transformed forms came out.
What I really liked was how you applied some drapery to the skirt.
The legs are prett yhard to place. In this case it luckily is a soldier and can have a stiff soldier pose (well which is also a reason why I drew a soldier) - of course a more dynamic pose might be even better, but it's also a lot more complicated to get right and for the next sprite I have the horizon height established - maybe I will move further away with the vanishing point. But in terms of depth for conversation if I place the chars in groups togehter, it's better to have that a bit more exaggerated to get a more intense feel of depth.
Won't really bother with the legs any more - 2 redraws should be enough.
Also "for me" there is no point to draw realistically and use 100% realistic proportions. In that case I could get through the trouble and get every part, build it together and take a photograph.
Realistic proportions aren't feeling elegant to me, they look just blunt, especially with helmets. That's the only thing where I personally think it's really better to deviate a lot from nature.
A question - how much of this guy's design is based on historical/existent soldier garb and how much is dreamed up? I honestly have no idea.
I find it so interesting, I'd like to know.
Practically everything is dreamed up, although everything has a lot of sketched basis material, so that it looks believable. I want to keep the design simplified down to the essential needs, except from a few spots or if I am in need of something really fancy.
So there won't be any fancy gears, or applied detail just for the sake to have this detail in. That's also what I dislike the most about "generic" steampunk.
about the pieces:
Helm is based on Prussian's Pickelhaube, which were also pretty famous in the Austrian Empire and in general during the First Worldwar.
Crow peak is actually based on plague masks from medieval times, although I combined it with a gasmask and the peak is mounted directly to the gorget.
Gorget is except the connection piece for the peak historically correct.
Cuirass is mostly historically correct, I jsut altered some of the decoration lines - it's a pretty basic form, used in late periods o platemail.
Tassets are fiction, I am not sure if the fluting would work that way, if it would be less exaggerated, it could be historically correct.
Boots are a mixture out of various army boots.
Trousers and coat aren't that characteristical, the shoulder pads of the coat are dreamed up - it's mainly because I like the effect of wide shoulders, but I hate the "Blizzard" or "Warhammer" approach of shoulders, so they are light, but fulfill the look requirements.
Fur... was mainly added for visual interest and to show that it's a nordic division, but just from the crafting process it makes sense to wear fur inside-out.
Bracers are completely self designed, mainly because there aren't any which allow a good finger movement while not being connected with them, but what is really important if it comes to firing the gun.
Ammo measurements are taken from Soviet machineguns, don't have the skills to calculate that, so I went with something fitting.
The weapon is my personal design, as far as I calculated it through, it should work - the only thing I am unsure about is, if the barrel of the gun actually would held the stress from a halberd-impact and if it does, when that steel was available - but here I deliberately go without second thought with the fantasy approach and say: it's a game. It would also be quite heavy as halberd, but since that's just an additional function, that could work. The gun part is based on revolver-technology.
That's it.
