8 / 12
Feb 2021

I have a zine submission due in 2 weeks and I still can't figure out how I wanna draw my character...tbh I've always sucked at coming up with cool poses; that's why I'm always drawing character designs...

Anyway, here is the character I'm supposed to use (I drew this ref sheet hoping it'd inspire me...spoiler alert, it did not):

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    Feb '21
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    Feb '21
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I mean doesn't it depend on the style? I mean you can go historical but it doesn't really look like that's the intent

You could try hero forge to build the character in 3d then pose it. They have a couple decent poses

Focus less on the "swordsman" aspect and more on the character's personality and how you can get that across, possibly using the sword as a prop.

I actually have some training in various martial arts, but when I draw my sword-wielding characters, the only time I really think in terms of "how do I depict perfect sword form" is when the character's personality type is "always uses textbook form" to show that they're very serious about doing things properly.

For everyone else, it's all about what showcases the design best and what showcases their personality best. Aggressive characters might be leaning forward and aggressively slashing, prickly characters might be holding the sword up as if to ward away the viewer, anxious ones might have their weight on their back foot in a guard stance, energetic heroes might point with their swords like "let's go!", formal guardian types may have their hand on a sheathed sword while they stand straight, very laid-back characters might lean on their sword like a cane or sling it over their shoulder like they're carrying a heavy piece of lumber.

Rekki is frequently posed with her sword like it's a big baseball bat, because she's energetic and likes getting attention for being the hero, like a sports star. She's also all about power rather than finesse! Sarin meanwhile, the sword is often a barrier. She's usually holding up her arm or sword with some tension in a way that crosses her body, between her and the reader, showing that she's careful and guarded.




Make it all about using the sword to tell us "who is this person" and "what is unique and interesting about THIS swordfighter?"

I don't have any advice for a swordsman in particular, but when I can't think of an interesting pose, I just trawl through my collection of reference pictures until one jumps out at me.

I absolutely adore Grafit Studio for high-quality reference. I spend most of my commission money on their ref packs. They have a lot of packs with swords and other various weapons. (Not linking them because nudity, but they're on Gumroad.)

Like some people mentioned pinterest is always a good recourse,
you can also look on figurosity they have a lot of cool sword fighting poses which
you can adjust to your character.
I often use a poses pack I bought years ago from pose data.
The good thing about figurosity and other programs is that you can change
the angle which you can´t with pinterest pictures

some great resources here!
Yeah posing a character with a sword can be tricky. Make sure that they don't hurt themselves with it (unless that is your intention).

Maybe look up poses from a movie you like with fighting in, such as Star Wars or Pirates of the Caribbean.

Or, here's some cool poses from Google:
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