Fantasy Armor Design: Creating Epic Armors for Characters and Creatures

Start by drawing five cylinders, each at a different angle. Keep them simple and focus on making the ellipses and sides feel consistent and three-dimensional.

These cylinders will act as the base forms for your armor studies, so clarity is more important than detail at this stage.

Using a different colored pencil, begin wrapping organic shapes around each cylinder. Think about how the forms follow the surface, curve around the volume, and change direction as the cylinder turns.

This step trains your ability to draw forms that feel attached to the underlying structure rather than floating on top of it.

Choose at least two armor pieces to study. Start by carefully copying each armor object, paying close attention to how it wraps around the underlying form.

Next, redraw the same armor pieces from imagination in at least two different angles. Use the cylinder and form wrapping techniques to keep the designs feeling solid and believable.

This process helps bridge the gap between copying reference and designing from memory.

Using everything you’ve practiced so far, design one fantasy armor piece entirely from imagination. Start with a simple cylindrical base and build your design on top of it.

To add a fantasy feel, draw inspiration from external forms such as animals, flowers, leaves, or natural textures. Let these influences guide the shapes and details while keeping the underlying structure clear.

Great job making it through this exercise. Learning to draw armor takes time, and every cylinder, study, and design you complete adds to your visual library. Keep practicing form wrapping and studying real armor, and you’ll notice your designs becoming more confident and consistent.

We love seeing your progress, so don’t forget to share your work with us on Instagram and Discord. Keep practicing, keep experimenting, and keep building your fantasy designs.