The reference for my sword model was the golden ceremonial sword below. 

The texture was created ​in substance painter. To create the gold and silver look I had to follow the  chart below to obtain the correct colour. The final step is to then set the material to metallic

In order to create the look of the iron for the blade I used a material called 'Iron Forged Old'

The first major problem that arose was that due to having other 3d models for other units and for my thesis to create, I might not be able to finish in time. There are two solutions to this, either search for free texture less 3D models from an online store or create 3D models that I can use in the qualitative questionnaire of my thesis but not as my final project. Going with the first option will require me to spend some time online searching for 3D models. I will then have to make sure that the models I found have good topology and check whether or not the UVs are already sorted out or not. On the other hand, making the 3D models of my own will prevent me from having to create realistic models for the questionnaire separately, and since I would have done it myself, I would be sure of what the model consists of.

Due to schools closing and social interaction at a minimum as a response to the wake of COVID-19, it has become challenging to contact lecturers quickly. There should be some sort of milestone meetings held when I finish specific tasks. These meetings can help with both the student and the lecturer keep track of work and maintain communication. Setting up milestones along with a daily timetable are good time management practices that can also help me to finish the work in time.

My gaming computer is my main workstation; however, if this suddenly stops working, I will not be unable to work since I also have a gaming laptop with the required software. If both fail to work, I might be able to work on my dad’s computer, however, in shorter amounts of time. A worse and more realistic scenario would be a nationwide power cut which would leave me unable to work since I do not have a generator at home. Another computer-related problem is data loss. In order not to succumb to this I will be keeping two backups on two separate external hard disks and uploading my work on a cloud service.
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To prevent ending up with unfavourable work, I will keep referencing and research ongoing. I will try to make various textures for each model if necessary until I have one, I am satisfied with. I can also ask for advice from both the lecture of this unit and other lectures that have thought me 3d modelling before. Since I am a part of several CGI related groups, I can consider seeking out opinions from individuals with more experience than me.

I decided to create  a test piece while I am doing my research. I learnt how to create a stylized game asset from beginning to end. The process along with research can be found here.