I started researching this costume in late 2017, but aside from buying some fabric and getting samples, I didn't really start working on it than just recently. Costumes are widely available from China, but, as usual, they cut a lot of corners.
Along with some images on the web, the season 5 finale was been an excellent source for reference shots.
I'll just go over the main pieces in this post and edit/add later if I forgot something:
Hood
The hood itself is rather simple, but I have been unable to find a material with the right perforation pattern on it. I bought some synthetic leather with just a grid of small holes punched into it and will probably make a first iteration that way. People have suggested laser-cutting leather and I have been wondering about using a cricut or vinyl cutter to make it.
The closest I have found is this, but it is not available: Siera Cutout Faux Leather Star Black
Robe
I haven't been able to locate the exact fabric, but I found a Chinese faux brocade fabric that I think will look good. I also bought some inexpensive black fabric that I used as a lining for a project last year that will probably be ok here. I'm going to use some existing patterns as starting points and modify to replicate the costume as well as I can.
Compound bow
The bow used in the TV show is a PSE Chaos with modifications to make it safe (you can see the bow string is quite loose in some shots and there's just a single string). I actually found a used black PSE Chaos on eBay in 2017 and bought it. Even with shipping to Finland and taxes etc, it was a very good deal. I even took some archery lessons and have shot the bow (it came fully equipped, including arrows). It obviously can't be used for cosplay as is and I would hate to damage it, so I will be making a 3D-printed non-firing replica for cosplay. This should be a fun Fusion 360 & 3D printing project and having the actual bow at hand makes it much easier than working from reference photos. I will also make con-safe arrows.
Quiver / harness / shoulders
This will be mostly "leatherworking". I put leatherworking in quotes, because I will also use some 3D printing and probably some faux leather as well. I almost got thrown out of a local leather shop for mentioning faux leather... This is going to be a bit of a jigsaw puzzle to build from the reference photos. As always, I wish I had better reference photos, but what I have should be enough to make a pretty good version.
Sword & sheath
I recently modeled and printed the sword. I think it's close to a Chinese dao. Is the "black squiggly" graphic on it Arabic text or just decoration? I mirrored it to both sides, but if it's text, I'm not sure if that's right. I did a first round of sanding already. I'll try to put a bit more than my usualy amount of effort into painting it. The sheath will be a combination of 3D printed internals and more "leatherworking".
Knife / Dagger
I don't think I've seen the knife drawn in any episode, but I may have missed it back when I wasn't really planning on creating this costume. I'll just have to come up with a reasonable blade design if I can't find a photo of it when it's drawn out.
Gloves / wrist protectors
I bought inexpensive long black gloves, but may look for real leather ugprades at some point. I managed to get a small sliver of red vegetable tan leather from the leather shop and will experiment with that some time soon & then determine if I will make the wrist protectors of actual leather. Alternatives are flexible 3D prints, foam and faux leather.
Pants & Boots
I decided to go with inexpensive faux leather ready-made items for these. The pants lack the details around the knees, but I think they are "good enough". For boots, I found something I thought I liked even though it wasn't accurate and since it was inexpensive, I bought it through eBay. The boots arrived in record time, but didn't really match the eBay photos at all. I left a negative review and moved on. I bought another pair of boots that are actually quite close to accurate. They are only slightly shorter. I moved the upper strap a bit higher last night. Still not 100% accurate, but surprisingly close.
I'll add photos to future posts, but please post comments if you are interested and indicate what you would like to see. I'll try to post more detailed updates on my progress regularly, because it also helps me keep my momentum going.
In terms of time frame, I hope to have the costume completed well in time before Dragon Con this year (not sure if I'm going, but it's a good target to have).
Along with some images on the web, the season 5 finale was been an excellent source for reference shots.
I'll just go over the main pieces in this post and edit/add later if I forgot something:
Hood
The hood itself is rather simple, but I have been unable to find a material with the right perforation pattern on it. I bought some synthetic leather with just a grid of small holes punched into it and will probably make a first iteration that way. People have suggested laser-cutting leather and I have been wondering about using a cricut or vinyl cutter to make it.
The closest I have found is this, but it is not available: Siera Cutout Faux Leather Star Black
Robe
I haven't been able to locate the exact fabric, but I found a Chinese faux brocade fabric that I think will look good. I also bought some inexpensive black fabric that I used as a lining for a project last year that will probably be ok here. I'm going to use some existing patterns as starting points and modify to replicate the costume as well as I can.
Compound bow
The bow used in the TV show is a PSE Chaos with modifications to make it safe (you can see the bow string is quite loose in some shots and there's just a single string). I actually found a used black PSE Chaos on eBay in 2017 and bought it. Even with shipping to Finland and taxes etc, it was a very good deal. I even took some archery lessons and have shot the bow (it came fully equipped, including arrows). It obviously can't be used for cosplay as is and I would hate to damage it, so I will be making a 3D-printed non-firing replica for cosplay. This should be a fun Fusion 360 & 3D printing project and having the actual bow at hand makes it much easier than working from reference photos. I will also make con-safe arrows.
Quiver / harness / shoulders
This will be mostly "leatherworking". I put leatherworking in quotes, because I will also use some 3D printing and probably some faux leather as well. I almost got thrown out of a local leather shop for mentioning faux leather... This is going to be a bit of a jigsaw puzzle to build from the reference photos. As always, I wish I had better reference photos, but what I have should be enough to make a pretty good version.
Sword & sheath
I recently modeled and printed the sword. I think it's close to a Chinese dao. Is the "black squiggly" graphic on it Arabic text or just decoration? I mirrored it to both sides, but if it's text, I'm not sure if that's right. I did a first round of sanding already. I'll try to put a bit more than my usualy amount of effort into painting it. The sheath will be a combination of 3D printed internals and more "leatherworking".
Knife / Dagger
I don't think I've seen the knife drawn in any episode, but I may have missed it back when I wasn't really planning on creating this costume. I'll just have to come up with a reasonable blade design if I can't find a photo of it when it's drawn out.
Gloves / wrist protectors
I bought inexpensive long black gloves, but may look for real leather ugprades at some point. I managed to get a small sliver of red vegetable tan leather from the leather shop and will experiment with that some time soon & then determine if I will make the wrist protectors of actual leather. Alternatives are flexible 3D prints, foam and faux leather.
Pants & Boots
I decided to go with inexpensive faux leather ready-made items for these. The pants lack the details around the knees, but I think they are "good enough". For boots, I found something I thought I liked even though it wasn't accurate and since it was inexpensive, I bought it through eBay. The boots arrived in record time, but didn't really match the eBay photos at all. I left a negative review and moved on. I bought another pair of boots that are actually quite close to accurate. They are only slightly shorter. I moved the upper strap a bit higher last night. Still not 100% accurate, but surprisingly close.
I'll add photos to future posts, but please post comments if you are interested and indicate what you would like to see. I'll try to post more detailed updates on my progress regularly, because it also helps me keep my momentum going.
In terms of time frame, I hope to have the costume completed well in time before Dragon Con this year (not sure if I'm going, but it's a good target to have).