How I Actually Tried This
Alright, so I saw this idea of drawing shields in 5 minutes and honestly thought, “No way that works.” But hey, why not give it a shot? Grabbed my kid’s sketchpad and a regular pencil – nothing fancy. Figured if it worked with junk supplies, it was legit.
Started simple. Grabbed a cereal bowl from the kitchen, plopped it upside down on the paper, and traced around it. Boom, instant shield body. Looked like a lopsided potato at first. Didn’t stress. Rough circle-ish shape done. Took maybe ten seconds.
Next up, the boss in the middle. Skipped fancy lions or eagles. Went for a basic square “shield boss”. Drew a smaller square right in the center of my potato shield. Made the edges thick. Like really thick with the pencil. Instantly looked heavier, more solid.
Where I Nearly Messed Up
Tried to get fancy with curves on the sides next. Bad idea. My hand wobbled, lines looked like spaghetti. Scrapped that quick. Went stupid simple:
- Straight lines only.
- Drew two vertical lines straight down from the top curve, about halfway.
- Connected the bottom with another flat line.
Looked blocky? Sure. But also sturdy. Added two diagonal lines cutting across the top corners on each side. Suddenly looked like metal reinforcements. Happy accident.
Final Touches That Actually Worked
Felt it needed some grit. Scribbled light pencil lines horizontally across the whole shield body. Like scratches or wood grain if it was wood. Didn’t overthink it, just quick back-and-forth motions. Darkened the areas right next to the central boss and those metal corners I drew. Added some random, thick short lines along the bottom edge for dings and dents.
Grabbed a regular school eraser – not even a proper art one – and erased bits inside the shield boss square and along the raised metal parts. Boom. Highlight effect. Looked like light was hitting it. Shading cheat code unlocked.
Total time check? My oven timer showed about 4 minutes and 37 seconds. Honestly shocked. It looked basic, yeah. Not museum art. But it definitely looked like a proper shield. The thick lines on the boss and the fake metal bits, plus the quick scratches, hid my messy start.
Why This Sticks
Here’s the real takeaway I scribbled in my notebook: Don’t fight the wobble. Embrace the potato. Start with something dumb like tracing a bowl. Make that center thick and important. Use straight lines if curves suck that day. Fake depth by darkening corners and scratching the middle. Bam.
Tried a few more. Second one was a “kite” shield using a big spoon shape. Third one, a plain rectangle with a rounded top – traced my phone for that curve. Each took less time than brewing coffee. Didn’t aim for perfect. Aimed for “recognizable shield, fast”. It works. Seriously.
