Empire Challenges | Dintober 2023 - Stylized Speed Modeling Challenge

The Dintober stylized speed-modeling challenge uses a prompt list (a bit like the original Inktober!). The list contains simple objects to model, which together can become a diorama. The idea is not to have the most polished and detailed model every time, but to stay consistent in the style and focus on the bigger picture.

While the title of the challenge is “stylized”, the style you chose is actually open. We thought of it as stylized as having a full PBR workflow and making specific materials do take time, so using a diffuse only style could gain you some time, but if you are more comfortable doing it in a more realistic style, go for it! The point is to pick a style you feel you could consistently make these models every day. (You can even be creative with it, make it in a Lego style, make it in an extremely low poly style/geometric shapes, have fun!) I have put a little tips and tricks section at the end of the page 😊

Due to the list being a little too difficult to follow last year, we have reduced the amount of objects to model so you can adapt your time as you please.

Tips and tricks

• Read the whole list before starting and try to think early of ways to compose the diorama. Iterate a bit every day by putting them alongside each other and experimenting 😊
• Choose a color palette early. It will help having a consistent style throughout the month.
• Work non destructively when it comes to colors in the texture (substance fill layers or photoshop solid color layers for example) so you can tweak all of the colors at the end and they all fit well together.
• Choose your modeling ideas wisely depending on the time you have. Choosing simpler versions of the object will help to manage your time. Consistency will make this project shine rather than a big amount of detail, which is harder to balance.
• It is supposedly a month but we’ll open the channels for longer so you have time to finish even if you couldn’t model every day. It is important to go at your rhythm, and it is a self-challenge, so feel free to adapt it to your needs. We propose a few modifiers in case you feel it’d be overwhelming 😊

Modifier ideas to make it a simpler challenge

1. Choose half of the items in the list and make it one mesh every two days
2. Make it a modelling-only challenge, with solid color materials for color
3. Make it a sketching or concepting only challenge.

Here is the official background we have used below if you want to use it to present your individual props: