Asset Development - Model 1: Hatchet

This was my first main 3D modeling, unwrapping and texturing project that took 4 lessons to complete. This model was a followup to the referenceless axe model I created earlier in this Unit. The hatchet was modeled after this reference I took from google images:

Session 1 - Modelling the Handle

The modeling of the hatchet's handle was more time consuming than difficult, having split it into 3 different elements based on their material. Instead of using a cylinder for the wider grip of the handle, I chamfered a rectangle with loops through the middle to restrict the curves so that the handle isn't too loud.
To round off the end of the hatchet handle, I capped off the border at the end (I deleted the face at the beginning since it's easier to maneuver than if there were a poly there) then inset the face so that the vertices were close enough to weld. This what the border looked like before the operation:

And this was the result after chamfering the the inset cap:

One thing I learned from this practice is that chamfer curves sometimes separate the vertices along certain edges that need to be welded back together.

Session 2 - Modelling the Blade and Applying Smoothing Groups

For the height and width of the hatchet's blade, I used the image reference above however once it came to replicating the depth and how the blade wraps around the handle, I was stumped. Fortunately, There's a service online called Sketchfab that allows modelers such as myself to upload and share finished models that can be viewed in a 3D space. Using this, I found a similar hatchet and used that a secondary reference to capture the curvature:

Hi-End Hatchet by nevil112

A mistake I realized eventually is that not every separate part of the mesh needs its own smoothing group. What I was doing initially was applying a different smoothing group to each smooth surface. I tested this by assigning two different polygons separate from one another on the same mesh surface the same smoothing group and, low and behold when I flattened by smoothing groups in the UV Editor, they separated despite sharing the same value.

Session 3 - UV Unwrapping

As mentioned in my last blog post about advanced UV unwrapping, consistency with the texture stretched over the surface of your model's mesh is key to achieving believable and realistic results when it comes to texturing. That's why I reset the X-Form on the model so that when I apply the UVW modifier, it'll project the proper proportions of the polys with deformation.

This a view of the UV Editor before I began unwrapping the hatchet:

And after flattening the smoothing groups, normal mapping the surfaces to create seam either side of the cylinder, and relaxed the surface to resolve stretching, this was the final unwrap:

Session 4 - Texturing and Rendering

For texturing the hatchet, I used Substance Painter because it offers a vast library of preset materials a modeler such as myself can apply straight to their models for application into their game, cinematic or other means. To understand the basic, I used the following tutorial which taught the in's and out's of the software as well as how to bake normals from higher poly versions of your models:

I applied materials through layers before restricting where they showed on the model using masks. Once I was happy with the result and felt the materials I'd applied reflected those from the reference, I exported the 2k (2048 x 2048) texture and detail maps from substance into Unity where I acquired this magnificent render:

Summary

For my first finished game asset, I must say it turned out a lot better than I thought it would. I initially thought it'd look like a model better suited for a game running on an old Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3, but the quality textures make it look next gen and more suited for a modern console or high-end PC title.