From Trash to (Ripping And) Tearing: Doom 2016 Collectible

Do you worry about the demons that lurk in your closet or under your bed?
Do you want a companion for your next trip to Mars?
Do you want the Doom collectible without shelling out fifty bucks?

If you answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions, you’ve come to the right place!

(If any of you are asking why we’re making Doom 2016 collectibles instead of Doom eternal ones, the Doom 2016 ones are simple and come in multiple colors, making them a great starter project. If you want to try making Doom eternal ones, go ahead.)

*Disclaimer: DIY Doomguy is still kind of a prototype, and is still being worked on. my dimensions will all be of the prototype. I don’t know what you have. do what works for you.*
This is my second ‘ible. You’ve been warned.

I apologize in advance for the pictures.

Oh and Doom is owned by Microsoft

Supplies

-plastic caps and other bits. You’ll need about 25 of them for this one, which is about 6 inches tall

-string or elastic

-spray paint/paint markers/sharpies/tape

-something to make holes with

Step 1: Part 1/2. Research

The Doom wiki page about Collectibles describes them as:

“...small 9-inch, articulated action figures/figurines manufactured by the UAC. They were most likely made to celebrate or venerate finding the Doom Slayer. There are 26 Collectibles to find, with two in each level. When find one, a short bit tune version of "At Doom's Gate" plays.”

While this one doesn’t play the E1M1 theme and is only about 6 inches, He is still articulated and fist-bumpable.

In terms of articulation, The Gaming Heads Page where you can buy one of the real deal ones says “...articulation of the head, arms, wrists and waist to depict him as found in game.”

DIY Doomguy has all these articulations.

The Collectibles come in lots of colors, so you can choose one to make or choose one based on your supplies. If none of those work for you, you can create your own custom designs!

Step 2: Part 1/2. Gathering Supplies

There is a discipline when it comes to cap collecting. There are lots of ways to get caps. You can gather them in easy but slow ways by collecting caps after someone uses something up, or you can gather them by other means. (i.e. The Trash) Any way you gather caps, make sure to wash them and recycle the bottle.

Some things to watch out for when collecting:

-multiple shades. Refer to the pictures on this step. 7up, Doctor Pepper, and Coca-cola (pictured top to bottom) are all red, but all have different shades of red. (This really only applies to people who want the same shade all around)

-asking people for donations. Asking your friends and family to give you all their plastic crap might seem a bit embarrassing, but it’s an easy way to get supplies, especially after a party or something where someone buys one of those 12-packs of Soda.

-Not the right color. You should aim to gather the only colors you need, but of the need be, you can color them. In order from best to worst options, there is spray-paint, paint markers, and Sharpie and tape. I’ll get into those later.

-Sizes. Above are the different sizes of caps. There are three main ones, which Are assigned a letter. An A is like a soda cap. They’re about 1 1/4inches across. B Is 1 1/2, and so on, with the biggest caps you need Are a D, at about 2 inches across.

Also, water bottle caps, like the one pictured above is something I don’t use. Some water bottle caps are good, but the thin flimsy ones are harder and don’t come in as many colors.

I also have Three big rules to cap collecting:

1. Don’t kill yourself trying to gather things. As nice as that cap is, your life is worth more.

2. Don’t get things just for the cap. This is supposed to be an art/environment project. The only exception is getting Something from a gas station on a road trip or something, because you like it, not because you like the cap.

3. Know your limits. you should only start stockpiling once you have a project in mind. my rule is once you have more than three of one thing that you don't have an idea for yet, you're kinda hoarding.

Step 3: Part 3. Arranging

Since DIY Doomguy is just caps on a string, arrangement is everything. Below is what I used for the different parts and their sizes, (From the bottom up) and above is what they look like and diagrams. Remember, you can experiment and try your own combinations!

Head: I used a Gatorade scooper With the handle cut off and a bit of a lid for the head. It doesn’t matter what size goes inside, but the bigger the better.

Arms: three As, and a long A. These caps are the same size of two As. I used a toothpaste cap and a jumbo push-pop cap for the shoulders. You’ll need Two.

Legs: The picture I made for this step as D, C, C, B; My prototype is D, C, B, A. You’ll need two.

Torso: this is where things get complicated. The waist is a bit I found on the street, and I don’t know what it is. You can use Two Ds stacked for the waist. The Chest is an old ketchup cap with a C inside. If you don’t have ketchup caps, there are many others that will work, mostly from food containers.

Bonus: Stacking. Pretty self-explanatory. Stack the caps bottom to bottom. these are what you can do for the shoulders. however, you have to try to keep their holes as aligned as possible.

Step 4: Part 4: Holes!

this is the easiest yet most dangerous part. Make holes as close as to the middle of the caps. The only exception is the waist, which needs two holes near the edges for the legs. I Highly recommend using a drill, but if you can’t, there’s always the Swiss Army knife method and the Pushpin-Scissors method. Whatever you choose, be careful and go slow.

Whatever you choose, measure twice, cut once. Always make the holes small when starting. You can always make them bigger.

Special holes: the waist needs two holes, near the edges on each side. if you have clumped shoulders, you'll need three holes on the top one: one in the middle, one near the edge, and one on the side. this keeps the top cap from staying in place.

Step 5: Part 5: Tying

Refer to the ugly diagrams i made. i know they look really stupid, but they show the steps of tying the caps. the ends should all be knotted on themselves, except for the head, which has two holes at the top and the ends are tied together.

The string you use is entirely up to you. if you want to really use trash, if you know people that use them, broken hairbands could be used. just make sure to clean them thoroughly.

Step 6: Part 6: Finishing

this step is pretty self-explanatory. Time to decorate! it will mostly be drawing on the details, but if you need to color parts, this is the step for it. If you have spray-paint, you should spray the parts before making holes and tying. If you are using paint markers, you should paint them before making holes and tying, but touch up spots that need it. The worst option is to use is some sort of marker and you will have to use them for the details, but since caps are round, permanent markers Have trouble being permanent on them. I use packing tape over the marker so it can’t rub off. Dry erase/washable markers can also work. You can erase designs before putting tape on them.

So that’s it! You now have a little slayer that could have been lost in a landfill.

Rip and tear!