work is so hard #New Designs #Newmodel #noAI(Edited)

Hi everyone, The "The Breach" contest has officially come to an end, and I am thrilled and proud to announce that my Illuminated Warp Gate has taken 3rd place on the podium!I want to start this post with a massive THANK YOU. Thank you to all the Dungeon Masters, makers, and 3D printing purists who downloaded the model, left comments, and supported my vision over the last few weeks. Your warmth and feedback across the forums and MakerWorld have been the real grand prize, long before today’s verdict. When I designed this portal, I did it with a clear goal in mind: to prove that real 3D design takes time, calibration, failures, and real-world testing. I wanted a model that printed flawlessly, almost support-free, and remained accessible to everyone. That is exactly how the balloon LED idea was born (those cheap 5-cent party lights). I wanted to show that with smart design engineering and 5 cents of hardware, you can achieve a premium look on the tabletop without forcing anyone to spend a fortune on official hardware kits. With its 778 entries, this contest was a true watershed moment that highlighted the most complex challenges of managing such a massive community. We witnessed two mirroring trends that risked burying genuine designers: on one side, an influx of low-effort or AI-assisted models; on the other, a staggering amount of completely off-topic models uploaded opportunistically by users looking to exploit the contest's traffic and tags just to farm views and quick points. Seeing one's passion drowned out by files that had absolutely nothing to do with D&D or the "The Breach" concept was deeply frustrating for anyone who invested weeks of actual, hard work. Because of this, I want to give a massive shout-out to @everythingDND. It was no easy task to manage such a mountain of files, clean up the feed from spam submissions, and handle the intense pressure in the discussion threads. By keeping his word to personally review every single model based on effort, thematic consistency, and actual printability (craftsmanship), he sent a powerful message to the entire platform: raw algorithms and automated downloads cannot and should not replace a judge's human eye and intellectual honesty. I come away from this experience exhausted from the hours spent calibrating the 3MF file, but with an even stronger conviction: the MakerWorld community knows how to recognize and reward time and passion. I truly hope this contest pushes the platform to introduce stricter pre-filtering and reporting systems against off-topic farmers, protecting those who dedicate pieces of their lives to making a single project perfect. The Warp Gate is officially on the podium, the lights are on, and the battle is won. Thank you all once again. See you at the next project on the tabletop! DungeonForge Studio #Thebreachcontest #Noai #Contests #Thankyou #Tabletop

Today I’d like to share the project I entered into the current contest. While browsing the entries, I couldn’t help but notice how difficult it has become for handmade creations to be seen. Many submissions are generated or heavily assisted by AI, and genuine maker projects can easily get buried beneath the sheer volume of content. The Portal was designed, modeled, tested, printed, refined, and presented entirely by hand. No AI-generated models, no AI-assisted design process. just countless hours of creativity, iteration, and passion for the hobby. If you believe there should still be room for human-made creations in these contests, I would be incredibly grateful for your support. A download, a like, a boost, or simply sharing the project can make a real difference. Let’s make sure original makers still have a place to shine. Thank you for your support. Contest The Breach: https://makerworld.com/it/contests/147 #Dnd #Contests #Newmodel #Questions #Dnd #Noai #ai

I got a question the other day if I used ChatGPT to create a rotatable and posable model based on a game character. I had to count to 10 befor I answered that one. So instead, I thought I would counter it with a video, 20 minutes of designing a little ball at the bottom of the legs of the next ARC raiders enemy I'm designing. Sped up 15 times so it doesn't get boring and you don't notice how slow I am 😉 Mind you I have a 2nd reference open on my 2nd screen, so I get everything as accurate as possible. #comingsoon #Blender #Arc Raiders #Wip #noAI(Edited)