DIY Life

It's ironic: the target audience for this article may never know it exists. See, if you didn't notice -- it would have been nearly impossible for anyone who owns a TV and watches networks other than NPR, let alone those of us who spend a lot of time online, not to notice -- Halo 3 came out on Tuesday.

How many gamers planned their vacation days for this week? How many living rooms are slowly filling up with empty pizza boxes and spent Mountain Dew bottles, as the inhabitants frag, frag away? (If not Mountain Dew, insert favorite over-caffeinated beverage -- er, I mean, "beverage with just enough caffeine to keep you going!" -- here. Gamer fuel!)

I'm assuming the number is massive... as massive as this game launch. Which means that those people probably aren't spending too much time browsing the Web. Nevertheless, we have some awesome Halo-based DIY projects for everyone. When the people who would appreciate them most finish the game, or at least come up for air, this article will still be here.

Join us after the break to get your Master Chief on. You know you want to.

For those who don't know, Master Chief -- formally, Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 -- is the iconic main character of the Halo franchise. He's a tall, nearly silent "space Marine" who does what he can to save as many of his comrades' lives as possible (or whatever else he does when you're controlling the character). There's a Master Chief figure in the Las Vegas outlet of Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, and he's practically synonymous with the X-Box.

When I said "get your Master Chief on," I meant it literally. Every fandom seems to lead inevitably to cosplay: "How do I make a Master Chief outfit?" is a common question on Yahoo! Answers. There are some wonderful Master Chief costumes out there... with tutorials! (Would I ever leave you high and dry without a tutorial? Of course not!... Not right now, anyway.) We like these:

• Master Chief on the Cheap: This is probably the least expensive way to get a Master Chief outfit. The supplies (pencils, markers, aluminum foil, etc.) are extremely accessible, to boot; the downside is that it may wind up feeling like a school project. It's not beautiful, but it would be fine for a Halloween party.
• Chris Bryan's Master Chief: Not fast. Not easy. Not all that cheap. But wow, does this look good.
• This Cardboard Costume Helmet tutorial can be adapted for the character.

But that's not all! What else are Halo fans supposed to do between game releases? Read the novels? Play... other games? (Actually, there's a pretty good chance that they are playing other games, but never mind!) Some of them like to make creative tributes to their favorite game franchise, not all of which are 3D graphical renderings. I'm afraid that, in a few cases, I do have to leave you without a tutorial:

• Lego artist Nathan Sawaya builds a tribute to Master Chief, and allows you to watch, through the magic of time-lapse photography. (Video.)
• Some kids figured out how to build their own Warthog (a vehicle from the game). (Video.)
• I bet you didn't think there was any crossover between Halo players and Dance Dance Revolution players. This hard wood DDR dance surface with a Halo theme proves you wrong! Even if you aren't interested in DDR, check the project out for some Halo stencils that you can use anywhere.
• Some ideas for modding an X-Box case with a Halo 2 DVD window, including some art you could use.
• Here's another Master Chief X-Box mod.
• Our sister site, Joystiq, posted this Master Chief Papercraft the other day; really, it's by DeviantArt user BillyBob884. You can download the PDF, print it out, and build it yourself. Justin McElroy rightly makes the point that anyone likely to build it is probably too busy playing Halo 3 to do so, but hey, like everything else, it'll be there during that blank, depressive period after everyone finishes. It combines basic paper model skills with complex origami, so it's not for papercraft novices.
• Nomi's Paper Spartans make for much easier papercrafting... and awww, they're so cute!
• This Master Chief toilet seat is stunning in more ways than one.
• Someone else did a Master Chief stained-glass window.
• Brickshelf has oodles of Halo-related Lego mods.
• Over at Instructables, a few people seem to have the building of Halo weapons with the K'Nex toy building set down to a science: they've even made a K'Nex Halo Weapons group. Some of the items you'll see there include an Energy Sword and a Needler.
• It's a little bit disappointing that most of the Halo-related posts at Craftster involve a girl making something for her boyfriend -- girls game too! -- but the crafts themselves are fun. Check out this Master Chief shirt, an Energy Sword Shirt (the slogan: "Run"), ideas for a Master Chief Doll, and ideas for a Halo hat. Get a giggle from this art featuring Optimus Prime, Master Chief, and a Clone Trooper.

Finally, if you're a Halo fan or would like to become one, you'll want to check out this contest that Joystiq is having: a huge and insanely awesome Halo 3 giveaway, with more swag than I can list here. One winner will take away a special-edition X-Box360, all the Halo games, a Halo Zune, the books, the soundtracks, some t-shirts, and a pile of other stuff. I weep at my own ineligibility.