Making my FFXIV Roegadyn character!

The announcement and preorder of Dollfie Dream Y'shtola reminded me that I used to play FFXIV and really enjoy it. I quit back in February due to burning myself out on it, and then fell out of friendship with my current guild members after they all started playing Genshin instead of XIV around that time, so I had very little reason to pick it back up...and then Y'shtola came out and made me all nostalgic, so I decided that instead of pre-ordering her, I was going to restart my sub, find a new guild, start playing again, and (most importantly) make a doll of an XIV character I already have a strong bond with: My beloved Warrior of Light, Solemn Horizon!

Couple of problems, here. She's a darker skin than most vinyls out there, so I was locked to either getting a Dollfie Icon in Tawny (💸) or finding a Tea Smartdoll that looks kind of like her. Her big nose and small eyes, however, presented a different problem with finding a sculpt, but both of them ended up getting solved very nicely with a single head!

I've always wanted to "genderbend" a male head, and was very lucky to find this Tea Eiji/Crimson on FB after posting up a WTB. Turns out the person who was selling him is ALSO a faceup artist, so now I won't have to worry about getting her facial features to look right on this head! (and they're very cute facial features)

Personally, I think this is the best match I'm gonna get for her without finding a 3D sculptor!

I've hit my budget for doll stuff for this pay period with this head, but I've already got plans to track down a body, wig, and eyes. I might not get her exact outfit made, but I definitely plan on sculpting her axe myself somehow. Not sure if I'll do Sculpey with a wire frame underneath or try my hand at some hardcore woodcarving for it and just paint it metallic. Thoughts?

I'm so excited, I've got a lot of lore tied into this old lady and it'll be awesome to finally have her around for my adventures, not just the other way around!

 

Edited September 25, 2021 by Oculae

Wow!! I'm so excited to see your progress on this lovely doll! She's gonna be amazing!

Update!!

Faceup progress has been made,
and I have a wig and outfit picked out!

She's meant to have a more anime-esque look to her, so it will be a bit stylized, but it looks really good! I asked to have the scars lightened and the brows darkened a bit, that should be done later today or tomorrow. I should probably have waited until they've been adjusted, but I was too excited, so I'll just share what I have and edit the post with the newer pictures whet I get them. 😁

EDIT: newer pictures, yay! These colors are MUCH better.

As for her wig, a quick browse through LegendDoll's site let me find what I'd consider the closest I'm gonna get to her actual hairstyle:

Her hair's a bit less colorful, but whatever, it'll be super cute.  😂

And for her outfit...it's not the right color, but this uniform Gudako has on has been up on Mandarake for a while, and it'll fit Solemn perfectly!

Now all I have to do is figure out how to get her some purple cat eye glasses. If anyone knows of a glasses maker that could do something like that, let me know! ^^

Edited September 30, 2021 by Oculae

Small but significant update this time around! Solemn's faceup is nearly complete, the black on her tattoo needs just a little bit of a touchup before it's completely done!

Honestly blown away by the details here, this is way better than I could have managed.

I also tracked down a vintage Avon pin that I'm going to make into her glasses!

I don't think I'll include the chain, but I'm definitely keeping the sculpted tassels, those are very cute. The goal here is to remove the pin backing and either glue or solder glasses arms (stolen from a different pair of doll glasses) onto the back. They're not purple, but I think I can achieve that using some of my UV resin to kind of faux-enamel them with a translucent purple. If that fails, I have purple metallic paint I can use instead.

And just for funsies, here's my extremely artistic edit of the head with the wig and glasses...

Looking good, gram-grams! 😁👍

I love all the updates and I can't wait to see everything come together! She's looking so amazing!!

Gorgeous! It is so nice to see fellow Warriors of Light get excited about something related to FFVIX again.  Your doll version of your character is going to be amazing. Congrats 🎉🎊🍾!

I love this!! I can't wait to see your WoL all finished up! She's looking great so far

This project is amazing!! I love seeing the process and I can't wait to see her finished!!

Man I can't wait to see the continuation of this! So far it's amazing

Bigger update this time around! I'm pleased to report that Solemn is now ASSEMBLED! Mostly, anyway. 😅

The eyes I bought fit her perfectly! The wig here is temporary - her real wig is still trapped in an airport in China (since October 16th, RIP), so I bought this grey one when I picked up her medium bust and bodysuit from Fabric Friends. 200 bucks. Smartdoll stuff is so expensive. 🤣😭

As you can see, her glasses are also assembled now, and BOY that was an ordeal:

This was my first attempt at soldering ever and uh. Well. It's assembled and that's all that counts.

I still need to go in and enamel them with purple, but that probably won't be for a while yet, since these next few days are going to be EXTREMELY busy. Maybe her wig will show up by the time I get around to it!

As for her outfit...the current one is also temporary, save for her boots and socks:

Perfect for adventuring, I'd say! Her more permanent outfit is currently on the way from Volks JP, and I'm extremely grateful to my Discord server for letting me know it was still on JP - I was almost extremely stupid on eBay. Yes, even folks who have been in the hobby a few years are not immune to eBay scalpers. 😅

After waffling a whole bunch, I abandoned the Gudako outfit in favor of the Volks Herbalist Girl set! Pretty much everything I wanted, all in one set.

With any luck, my next update will be a much nicer version of the poorly 'shopped pic above. 😁

That one will also mark my 80% done mark, as I still plan on putting together her axe and probably assembling her Shalloweye minion as well. I'm thinkin faux fur, an eyeball cab, and some magnets in the bottom so it can ride her shoulder!

And lastly, some fun accessories for her! A set of matching bracelets for each of us, space themed for my little Shepherd to the Stars...

And her soulstone, which I'll be putting the Azem symbol on when it arrives.

It's green because of her personal plot reasons, but also because I simply like green more than Azem Orange. 🤣

She looks amazing!!

I'm not familiar with FF but...this girl is GOREGOUS and the glasses are a work of art! I think older ladies in video games are truly underrated.

On 9/25/2021 at 12:53 PM, Oculae said:

I might not get her exact outfit made, but I definitely plan on sculpting her axe myself somehow. Not sure if I'll do Sculpey with a wire frame underneath or try my hand at some hardcore woodcarving for it and just paint it metallic. Thoughts?

I would recommend looking into EVA foam. It's commonly used for cosplay weapons. It'd be easier to carve than wood, and the lighter weight would make it easier to pose her with it.

If you're leaning more towards the Sculpy route, they also have modeling foam. It starts out like clay, but after a few days it cures into foam. Then you can carve it further if you want. 

1 hour ago, Tira said:

I would recommend looking into EVA foam. It's commonly used for cosplay weapons. It'd be easier to carve than wood, and the lighter weight would make it easier to pose her with it.

If you're leaning more towards the Sculpy route, they also have modeling foam. It starts out like clay, but after a few days it cures into foam. Then you can carve it further if you want. 

This!! EVA comes in a variety of thicknesses too, so you can choose the scale that's right for your doll. It takes well to heat forming and I believe a lot of people cover it in fabrics like metallic spandex to make it look like armor. You can also seal it, prime, and paint it.

 

Congrats, Oculae! She's really cute!

HAPPY ENDWALKER EARLY ACCESS DAY!!!

I'm back with another update! 😁

After a month and a half (!!!) of waiting, Solemn's wig is finally here! I've also received her Volks outfit, gotten her soulstone and added the symbol to it, and crafted her minion, a shalloweye, out of two pompoms, an eye cabochon, and a magnet. The magnet lets it sit on her shoulder or head, just like in-game!

Another angle of the wig, because it's beautiful. It's styled perfectly, I love it!

All that's left now is to make her axe and re-make her Moonlet earring. First draft was too big and kept smacking her shoulder instead of dangling properly, so back to the drawing board! She's so close to being done. I'm very much looking forward to finally having her complete!

She looks amazing!

So late to this thread but I love the face up you've done for your FFXIV character. I've been wanting a doll that is reminiscent of FFXIV style (I'm unlucky in that I haven't been able to play the MMO but I hope one day that will happen.) Y'shtola is really beautiful (both in and out of doll form) and I'd like to create my own Miqo'te or possibly Au'Ra (is it weird I want to create a character from a game I've never played???) Seeing your work gives me hope. I think it's especially inspiring to see you do a Roegadyn character.

This is late but wow what an awesome project! And a spectacular looking doll at the end of it. Beautiful work!

Oh she is so wonderful! I am so thrilled she's everything you dreamed of! She's honestly so unique and beautiful! <3

Ohhh I love Roe's and yours is so beautiful! I always love your customizing you really can bring a character to life!

Omg yes!!!!!!! I love seeing people make dolls of their WoLs!! She's gorgeous!

Looks awesome 

I fell in love with this elegant lady looking at your other photos, and wow is her journey incredible. I wouldn't imagine an Eiji head falling into my lap like that. She's perfect!  And it's amazing how well she translated, from faceup to wig to eyes. All of your crew is fantastic and diverse, but she definitely stands out.

She looks gorgeous! All your choices fit the FF XIV vibes perfectly

She is BEAUTIFUL!!! I love FFXIV and shelled my own version of Thancred and Sthola in resin (iplehouse). A smart doll is a good choice! My first Smartdoll was a Crimson, so it's cool to see the mold used differently. I think Solemn Horizons is wonderful. Thank you for sharing her and I hope to see more pictures!

Edited September 16, 2023 by Scholar