Work continues on Tu’lia’s Staff, one of the hero narrative assets being developed for Planet Postmoderna: The Advent.
After completing the purple grip and the narrow brass band beneath it, the next section of the staff was the carved bone midsection — a decorative area that needed to feel less like a clean manufactured surface and more like something old, handcrafted, and carefully preserved.
The goal was not simply to paint an engraving onto the surface. I wanted the geometric carving to have real physical depth.
To accomplish that in Substance 3D Painter, I built the section in layers. A darker base material sits beneath the raised bone surface, while the geometric designs are cut through the bone layer using a mask. That exposes the darker material underneath and allows the carving to read as actual recessed detail rather than lines painted onto the surface.
The bone itself also needed some aging.
Pure white felt too new, so the color was warmed to a muted ivory tone. Subtle scratches were then added to the raised areas, but kept restrained so the wear supports the design rather than distracting from the carving.
The finished section now sits directly below the purple grip and brass band, creating another transition in the material language of the staff.
That matters because Tu’lia’s Staff is more than a decorative prop. Within The Advent, it is a narrative artifact associated with Tu’lia and the protection of the settlers at Base Camp. Its design is intended to suggest age, handcrafted construction, careful preservation, and something that may not be entirely ordinary.
Each material pass helps reinforce that history.
The carved-bone treatment is now complete and locked. The next step is to continue working downward through the remaining sections of the main shaft, developing each area individually rather than treating the staff as one uniform material.
Development Status: Material Authoring — In Progress
