Valla: The Beginning.
Last night, after the Blizzcon talent and cosplay contest was over. I turned to Bandit and said, "You know, I bet I could make a really good Valla."
"Yeah, you're probably right," he said.
That was all the validation I needed.
I've costumed before, but I've never cosplayed. I've always had an amazing breadth of freedom in costume design; larps generally have few if any concrete costuming details, leaving almost everything up to player interpretation. With cosplay, on the other hand, there is a very clearly defined source material, and the goal is to emulate that look as closely as possible.
I plan to model my costume off of the Heroes of the Storm version of Valla. The two official depictions above are my main reference models, and the in-game model allows me to turn her around for a better view of her cloak and other things on her back. Obviously I'd like to make a costume that's as accurate as possible, but given possible time and money constraints, there might be a detail or two that have to be glossed over.
I made a list of pieces and split it into Essential, Optional, and Negligible sections.
Essential:
- Red hood and cloak
- Shoulderguards
- Breastpiece
- Corset thing
- Red shirt or something to wear under those last two
- Hip armor
- Red tights
- Boots
- Hand crossbows
Optional:
- Red or orange contacts (the exact color is unclear)
- Large bracer
- Leather leg bands
- Boot toppers (greaves)
Negligible:
- Smaller bracer
- Dark gloves (full or fingerless)
- Pouches (three)
- Quiver
- Boot toppers (on the toes)
Fortunately this is one of the few characters that I don't have to get a wig for - my natural hair looks pretty much perfect for it right now. At most I'll have to get a haircut before I go into costume. (Though haircuts can get just as expensive as good wigs...)
"Yeah, you're probably right," he said.
That was all the validation I needed.
I've costumed before, but I've never cosplayed. I've always had an amazing breadth of freedom in costume design; larps generally have few if any concrete costuming details, leaving almost everything up to player interpretation. With cosplay, on the other hand, there is a very clearly defined source material, and the goal is to emulate that look as closely as possible.
I plan to model my costume off of the Heroes of the Storm version of Valla. The two official depictions above are my main reference models, and the in-game model allows me to turn her around for a better view of her cloak and other things on her back. Obviously I'd like to make a costume that's as accurate as possible, but given possible time and money constraints, there might be a detail or two that have to be glossed over.
I made a list of pieces and split it into Essential, Optional, and Negligible sections.
Essential:
- Red hood and cloak
- Shoulderguards
- Breastpiece
- Corset thing
- Red shirt or something to wear under those last two
- Hip armor
- Red tights
- Boots
- Hand crossbows
Optional:
- Red or orange contacts (the exact color is unclear)
- Large bracer
- Leather leg bands
- Boot toppers (greaves)
Negligible:
- Smaller bracer
- Dark gloves (full or fingerless)
- Pouches (three)
- Quiver
- Boot toppers (on the toes)
Fortunately this is one of the few characters that I don't have to get a wig for - my natural hair looks pretty much perfect for it right now. At most I'll have to get a haircut before I go into costume. (Though haircuts can get just as expensive as good wigs...)