Blackbird's Custom Mando "Norin Fynnris"

This is my intro post here on TDH, though I've been lurking for a long time. I wanted to share my custom Mando WIP and see if I could get some feedback on the design and concept.
I'm going to post from the early stages all the way to my newest pics. Please let me know what you think!
First is the concept art I did.
From Mandomaker:

Custom designs from Heromachine:

Blaster WIP:

Blaster Complete:

Blaster 2:

Saber 1:

Saber 2:

Early Padawan Braids:

First pic of my kit together:

Most recent pic of the full kit:


My helmet is a 1:1 Bobamaker Boba Fett. The armor is sintra.
The character is a Norse-inspired beast hunter and Jedi hunter.
My kit has not been approved at the Mando Mercs yet. There are some problems I'm going to have to fix before everything is up to code.
Outside of the Mercs, what do you guys think?

wow primitive

Very cool looking suit. It reminds me of the Vikings. Altough I don't like the idea of the padawan braids, it's like you are wearing scalps of highschool kids (not too honorable because of the easy kill). And you might do some extra weathering for the armor, because it looks naked. But the overall concept is awesome!

I like the ragged viking-look of it. Have to agree with RafalFett on the padawan braids, though. That sounded so wrong, in more ways than one...

I disagree padawan braids make you look ruthless possibly psychotic and ok if the critics disagree call em Jedi scalps

An interesting take on a theme while staying true to the look of a Mandalorian. Good job. Everything looks to be sized and fitted to you. Again, good job. I like the colors you used.

Now for the other side. Number one thing I see it needs is weathering. You've got the dings and scratches, but no dirt, grime, carbon scoring...nothing. It looks deliberate and two diminsional. Dirty it up and don't forget your soft parts, they need it too. Also your gauntlets need something, anything. Plain plastic tubes on your arms...boring. That's really all I can see in those pictures that you need to do.

Couple things I'd suggest, but that would be up to you: the pelt hanging from your belt is a bit wide and doesn't match the fur on your boots very well. It's a little distracting, but not a big deal. Also, I tend to warn people away from carrying sabers unless they are a jedi. The reason being that, by having one swinging on your belt you just made yourself a Jedi to the general populace.

There you go, get 'er done.

Thanks for the feedback. These are some comments I've never received before. That's a good thing.
I feel like I've been working on this thing so much for the past few months that I've become blind to some of the problems.

About soft parts weathering. I sweat a lot. Like, a lot. My flight suit has already gotten a few shades darker and there are a lot of dark splotches. There are also some rips and frayed edges that have happened naturally and this kit is less than a month old. I have added some weathering but I think by adding unnatural weathering it will eventually grow to be a bit too much.
I will still consider some more weathering.

I'm going to repaint my torso armor and add a lot more details like clan symbols and lights and such after I get approved by the Mercs. I want my armor shape and sizing to be right and I want my kit to meet minimum standards before I start adding all the extras. I'm going to add some different types of weathering like lightsaber damage and some more claw marks. The armor is supposed to be Mandalorian Iron so it doesn't dent, scratch or rust (at least I don't think it rusts). I'm going to research the color of the iron and use it as a base coat, then add more layers of different colors and chip it away.
I've blackwashed the armor several times and added many layers of graphite dust for weathering but it must not be clear enough.

About lightsabers. I've never been confused with a Jedi before. It may not be apparent from the images I've posted but the sabers themselves look very old and damaged. The more funky looking one now has a lot of mud caked on it and the other is heavily weathered and stained. The sabers hanging with the braids usually make it pretty clear that these are trophies. They are also largely covered by my cape and serve as extra detail to the kit. I had the idea to move them to the forefront to show them off but someone at the Mercs suggested that I keep them as a subtle detail. I like that idea best.

I'm keeping the Padawan braids for a few reasons. First is to make it obvious that the sabers are trophies. Second because I wanted to add a Jedi hunter element to the character (the backstory heavily involved Jedi) and I need to have something that signifies Jedi. Third... well, the character is a little like Dexter (from the Showtime series and the novels, not from Cartoon Network). He's psychotic and has some pretty evil, murderous thoughts, but he knows how to control them. He doesn't *understand* right and wrong, but he knows the difference between right and wrong. He isn't against murdering kids if he has to. Plus it gives him a little bit of an edge without having to go into his backstory.
I bought some braids from a Halloween costume website and they are pretty thin and short. They're similar to Anakin's from Episode II. Obi-Wans from Episode I is really pretty long and thick, so I tried to replicate that one as much as possible to make it seem like they were older Padawans that were near Knighthood. I think I made them a bit too thick and will have to tighten the braids.

The loin cloth pelt needs to be wide to cover my... area. I've tried some thinner skins and they look strange. I have 2 rabbit pelts there, one wide and the other long to give some texture and to help with coverage.
The idea of the pelts is that they are all supposed to be from different creatures. The cape and horn are from a Wampa, the boots are supposed to be Wookiee. The loin cloth will be upgraded at a later date to a fur that resembles Ewok, plus I want to remove as much real fur and leather as possible from my kit. I certainly would not want to be covered in the same kind of fur. Kinda seems boring to me.

I'm going to upgrade my gaunts but I'm not sure how. I want to maintain that sort of primal look, but I don't want him to look like a caveman. I want to add some technology, but I want it to be useful technology. I won't need a droid computer scomp or anything. I'm still in the planning stages here.

I had thought about adding a blaster hole to my cape, and I just might do it now. This material seems to want to rip or come apart at any incision, and I'm a little afraid of getting it hung on stuff but I'll think about it. This material responds very well to hot glue, so I've used that around my eyelets for my various bolts and it has held up well. Maybe I can add a thin layer of hot glue around the hole to keep it from coming apart.

I would also add that you might paint your gloves. I have painted similar gloves and it works better than you might think. For your kit I might do a red ruddy primer.

Mullreel said:

I would also add that you might paint your gloves. I have painted similar gloves and it works better than you might think. For your kit I might do a red ruddy primer.

Click to expand...

That's a good idea.
The gloves were originally a kind of yellowish color. I lightly sprayed them with brown and it responded well.
Here's how it originally looked:

I've wanted to add some subtle blood to my kit. Something besides just dirt and grime. I don't want straight-up gore, but some ruddy red on the gloves might help achieve what I'm looking for.

Here's a pic of my sabers and braids. Some of the braids had been tangled up on my belt and we didn't notice. There are 3 or more that aren't visible.

i kind of feel like your plates may be a little too big, or just not quite formed right. without the return edge they look a little thin and wonky. like if you got a thicker material, or did a double layer it would visually give it the thickness and strength that the rest of your costume implies.

That's a good idea. I have enough Sintra for another set of torso armor and I already have the templates made so I might give it a crack.

You should carry around a head on a chain to add effect who needs braids when you have a trophy! Lol sorry really digging this mando build

I'm back with a few updates.
I took a lot of the comments made in this thread into consideration and I think I've worked to make things a bit better.
These items are all still WIP, but it's a decent representation of where I'm going.
First, I've upgraded my weapon. The horn gun was a little small and the dart gun was smashed, so I got a Bowcaster.

It's huge and made of heavy, sturdy resin. I have added a pale yellow / orange reptie hide on the stock that is supposed to be Trandoshan. I've also wrapped the forward grip with leather and added a Wookiee braid. I think the braid adds a little depth and makes the gun a bit more dynamic, and maybe shows that I killed a Wookiee and took his gun - and his scalp.


I need to get a better close up of the hide on the stock but it matches Trandoshan pretty well.


Next, I painted my Wampa horn black to better match a Wampa. I also dirtied up my cape quite a bit.



I also weathered my flight suit but I don't have any pics of that one. I have one of my vest (the dots are snaps).


I've added kill stripes and ear decals to my helmet:


I've also added some saber crystals to my padawan braids.


And last but not least I've re-painted my armor. I used the same colors but added a lot more weathering as well as my mandalorian Mercs Clan logo on my chest plate:

Some detail:





My plans right now include:
Weathering my Padawan braids and crystals.
Re-paining my knees, thighs, shoulders.
Adding greeblies to my gaunts.
I need different trophies. My kit is covered with hair and fur. I need something different.

Any ideas, suggestions and criticisms are welcome.

that bowcaster is very cool