I suppose I better introduce myself! I’m Hydroxate, I’m a content creator for Warframe and I make fashionframe videos. My series “Off The Runway” is all about inspiring people to get creative with their warframes! Outside of Warframe, I’m a UX and Interaction Designer. You could say a lot of my process to design my looks follows certain principles of design. You’re going to get in my head and find those out today!

So what is fashionframe? My personal definition is that fashionframe is a system of colouring and accessorizing the Warframe to represent the player. With 99 helmets, 80 syandanas, 22 armour sets, and 24 palettes as of writing this blog, we have a great selection of items to work with.

Now people also refer to fashionframe as “the true endgame”. I refer to it as this also but more in an ironic sense. Endgame is traditionally the content you do at a veteran level once you’ve done everything else and it is the hardest content in the game. Now there are many players that find colouring their frames the hardest thing to do, so in a sense it is an endgame!

So let’s begin my process for fashionframe, in this case a favourite of mine, Zephyr!

When designing, doing a requirement analysis of the system proposed allows you to get an initial idea of what features are to be included and also a good initial judgement of constraints for your design. Here I start with the theme of the warframe. Zephyr has avian influences physically, and wind influences thematically.

For the purpose of this blog, we’re going to expand the avian side and look at some birds to get inspiration. In particular; the kingfisher, flamingo, and toucan.

Colour Analysis:

The next step I do is a colour analysis of reference images to create a palette. Picking the main colours in each of these images yields the following palettes:

The next step is colour matching. Since I have reference palettes, I try to get the closest match in the colour palettes in Warframe. Now I update the reference palette with the equivalent colours palette, column position, and row position.

For example with the Kingfisher, in game I got the following colours:

Corpus C2 R2
Classic C5 R16
Lotus C2 R2
Twilight C3 R8
Dojo C1 R14

A close fit, not always going to get an exact match.

Now to the physical choice! I look at the available helmets and skins to see if the mapping/colour ratios resemble any of the reference images. Colour ratios are important here, i.e. which colour covers most of the frame. I place the colours from the updated reference palette on the frame next.

I’m choosing the Tengu helmet due to its long beak and profile being similar to that of the kingfisher. Default skin will do as the colour mapping is similar!

As with the user-centred design models, iteration is key to creating the best experience. This means that through repetition we refine our final product. I look at the colour on the frame and see the effect the material has on the colour. Zephyr has some glossy segments so we need to reduce saturation of colour. Saturation is how vivid a colour is.

Saturation should, in my opinion, only be used as a contrasting accent colour or energy colour. You don’t want 5 colours fighting for attention. Another thing you should pay attention to regarding materials is the shadows present in the frame. If you use dark saturated colours, you cover the shadows created by fine details and it becomes flat and plain. (Classic C1 R18 is good, Smoke C1 R18 is bad).

A bit too much to take in, but it’s starting to resemble a kingfisher!

So we iterate, finding shades of the reference colours to match the look we want, making it a bit nicer. A key thing for me, as a designer, is to create an easy mental model for the user. Similarly here, I want a player to look at one of my looks and think “That looks like a flamingo”. Not “It’s clearly inspired by the fall of the bourgeoisie during the late 1700s in the civil war of France, more explicitly inspired by the rouge used to redden the cheeks of the upper classes”. Abstract is not always good. Not to be confused with an obscure pop culture reference!

Now the colours are:

Classic C2 R7
Dojo C3 R17
Corpus C1 R1
Lotus C3 R11
Corpus C2 R2

After I'm happy with the colours on the frame, I head to attachments! I look at the lines present on the frame and see what armour pieces continue the flow. I try to complement the choice of materials. If there are metallic accents on the frame, I’ll choose metallic armour! Syandana is more thematic, “what would go well with the theme of Wind?”. Also pay attention to the space available at the back of the warframe.

This all leads to the final product…. until a skin or helmet comes out that makes me redo it all again.

Kingfisher:

Classic C2 R7
Dojo C3 R17
Corpus C1 R1
Lotus C3 R11
Corpus C2 R2

Flamingo: Skeiron Skin and Misugi Helmet

Storm C3 R1
Smoke C1 R10
Storm C5 R2
Corpus C1 R1
Corpus C1 R5

Toucan: Hagoromo Skin and Monsoon Helmet

Classic C1 R16
Classic C5 R16
Corpus C1 R9
Corpus C5 R10
Corpus C5 R2

As you can see there is no beak, so I’m bringing the beak colour as the accent of the frame. No one said we couldn’t get creative!

This is the process I do for thematic frames, sometimes I just want something luxurious, then I do something slightly different. Perhaps we’ll cover it in the future!

I get asked for tips from people, for the most part I’d ask yourself “Would I allow a room to have those colours in it?”. If you want to paint an entire room hot pink, go for it. The main point of fashionframe is to wear what makes you happy! The hardest critic is yourself.

My current set up in game, Hagoromo Skin by Hitsu_San

If you want inspiration, you can check out my videos at www.youtube.com/c/hydroxate or tweet me your fashionframe @hydroxate

P.S. PBR Zephyr and Zephyr Deluxe Skin pls