Abaddon's Rest UE5
Establishing shot

Establishing shot

Quick video showcasing the environment

Close up

Close up

Showing a tree and some of its roots. I opted to do a separate trunk and roots, hiding some of the intersections with big lumps of moss

Showing a tree and some of its roots. I opted to do a separate trunk and roots, hiding some of the intersections with big lumps of moss

Progress gif

Progress gif

Sculpt for the skull

Sculpt for the skull

Bones sculpt for the centerpiece

Bones sculpt for the centerpiece

Tiling tree bark sculpt

Tiling tree bark sculpt

Some simple sculpts for the smaller assets scattered around

Some simple sculpts for the smaller assets scattered around

Some initial sketches I did, ended up with going for a different look but it was useful to get the creative ball rolling

Some initial sketches I did, ended up with going for a different look but it was useful to get the creative ball rolling

Some screens from Miro, which I like to use to structure my process, gather reference, etc

Some screens from Miro, which I like to use to structure my process, gather reference, etc

I used Gravity Sketch early on to sketch out some ideas, doing a quick paintover on top of it. This was really more for myself to put some of the ideas I had into something visual in a quick way

I used Gravity Sketch early on to sketch out some ideas, doing a quick paintover on top of it. This was really more for myself to put some of the ideas I had into something visual in a quick way

Fun to see that though I ended up going for something that is quite different, there are still many elements that I kept

Fun to see that though I ended up going for something that is quite different, there are still many elements that I kept

Abaddon's Rest UE5

It was at the beginning of the third age of man, memories still fresh of burning homes and rampant plague, when whispers of a new evil started to spread through the realm. Travelers gone missing in the woods and dead animals fanned fears that the Great Cleanse had not eradicated evil after all.
Some in society still secretly held allegiance to the Angels of the Abyss, as they were called by those who followed them. When it was discovered that one of the so-called 'angels' called Abaddon survived the cleanse, they secretly went to work to ensure his survival. However, this plot was discovered and an army was hastily assembled to ambush Abaddon and his followers in the forest where they were hiding.
At the cost of many lives Abaddon, the last of his kind, was defeated. Though, as if evil seeped from his remains into the soil, sickness spread through the forest.
It was many years ago since Abaddon was defeated, but there are some who still worship him in secret. They tend to his remains, practicing elaborate rituals in an effort to return Abaddon to his physical form.

I started working on this about a while ago, but at the time got burned out on it and shelved it for almost a year. I recently came back to it to finish it and I'm happy that I did! I ended up having a lot of fun with this environment and learned quite a bit from it. It was also the first environment I did in my free time that was fully lit with Lumen.

I wrote the top bit of text to give a bit more substance to the idea I had for the environment, some of the names are inspired by real-world mythology and religion, but don't have any connection to what I made.

Feedback/thoughts are of course very welcome!

More artwork