For this project, I’ve decided to make a scaled model of one of the siege engines used during the medieval ages – the trebuchet. The trebuchet is a siege weapon that were used to hurl huge boulders at enemy castles and walls at a distance of about 300 meters away during battles. The trebuchets were considered superior to other siege weapons during its period because of its long-range abilities.
I’ve decided to scale the size of the trebuchet to about a feet tall to make it look like an artifact while retaining its core functionality. The aesthetic I am looking to achieve is to make the trebuchet look like its been in a number of battles. I’d like to achieve a worn out look to the wood I’d using to make the trebuchet. Some other ideas are to include some sword cuts and arrow edges. I’d really like to invoke a sense of war on looking at the trebuchet. One more suggestion that came out during my presentation is adding a crest and flag. These could also be incorporated into the design.
For the prototype, I made a simple mock-up with cardboard to test out the scale of the final product I want to make. The total height of the prototype was about a feet tall. I could not bring out the aesthetic I was hoping for with a cardboard model. So I need to start working on wood as soon as possible and start testing out my aesthetic goals soon.
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I love how you’re continuing with your destruction theme (first batman, now trebuchet). The inspiration is very cool and I would love to see how it turns out. I would have liked to see a little more focus on the aesthetics of the trebuchet but historically, they aren’t designed to be in any aesthetic. This will be a cool challenge!
Your project choice is really exciting! kudos for having a strong direction with respect to your aesthetic. The war torn look is great! I like the Idea of incorporating a crest into your design.!
I would be excited to see it hurl tennis balls !
Recall that these prototypes are supposed to be aesthetics-first, function-second. It seems you have a highly functional model with almost no artistic approach. I would suggest immediately transitioning to an aesthetics focus by doing research into medieval artwork and architecture, prioritizing perhaps either historical accuracy or the sort of grandiose filigree, inlay, and elegance of royal furnishings. I would probably lean towards the latter… historically these siege weapons were likely not very artistic, the goal of course being function over aesthetics. If, instead, you treat this as a model that a rich king might have in his war room, you have the opportunity to apply a wide range of extravagant designs that were relevant for royalty or nobility.
On the other hand, you have the ability to apply wildly different styles to this as a model… a far-future weapon to fight robot hoards with swoops and angles like Xavier’s wheelchair from the X-Men, a blockish or pixelated trebuchet to mimic the stylings of games like Minecraft… the possibilities are endless, but right now it’s quite bland for an aesthetics course. I’m excited to see it in action though!
This will be a really cool project! I like how you’ve planned out your aesthetic (weather, shredded, endured many battles) but I do believe you could add to it. A royal/family crest may help you achieve this: crests have colors and symbols (animals, plants, weapons) that could help you enhance the overall design and detail of the trebuchet.
Your use of cardboard for the prototype is genius — wonderfully low-budget and well-representative of your project. The inspiration from the game is really interesting — I would have thought of building the castles before the weapons! I really like how you included the animation in your presentation. Overall a really cool idea, I’m excited to see it in action.
I never knew there was something even more intense than a catapult. How cool.
I really like the aesthetic idea of making the Trebuchet look used and battle-worn. I’m interested to see how large scale you could make this/ what you can actually launch off of it.
The cardboard prototype turned out well! I suggest adding burn marks to the final product in order to achieve the aesthetic you’re looking for. Alongside Sofi’s suggestion of adding a royal crest, I also suggest adding a flag or replicating the aesthetic of trebuchets in Age of Empires 2 (as in the colored wrap around some of the ends).
Trebuchet’s have always fascinated me due to their pure mechanical nature and capability. Your cardboard model is well put together and represents the final product you have in mind quite well. The aesthetic your trying to achieve is perfect for this model, bringing out the sense of war on the Trebuchet will really add to its visual appeal.
Great prototype! It shows great design and function. I’m curious to see how far it can hurl and object and how much weight it can hurl.
I love age of empires. The prototype looks good and I think the size is perfect. I like the idea of making the Trebuchet looking war torn! I think you could get it to shoot super far.