L18 — Model a collectible (starshard)

Goal

Build a tiny low-poly collectible from primitives. Readable silhouette > fancy topology.

Target

Something that reads as a shiny pickup from behind a follow camera: crystal, star, gem — your call. Course placeholder is a stretched icosphere (starshard).

Steps (minimum path)

1. Delete default cube if you want a clean scene.
2. Add → Mesh → Ico Sphere (subdivisions 1).
3. Scale Z up a bit (crystal).
4. Object → Apply → Scale.
5. Optional: shade smooth.
6. Save starshard.blend.

Keep triangle count low (tens, not thousands).

Course generator (optional)

./scripts/build-course-assets.sh
# writes assets-src/blender/generated/starshard.blend + .glb

Use this if you want a known-good mesh while learning UI.

Check

• Object origin near center/bottom (easier to place in game)
• Not microscopic / not planet-sized vs player

Lesson code

Module 3 is Blender-first — there is no per-lesson C ROM for L17–L25.

Runnable code that loads the course meshes lives in the Module 3 asset lab checkpoint (lessons/m3-asset-lab/).

Next

L19 — UVs & textures — or skip to vertex paint if you only want colors first (L20). For N64, vertex paint alone is valid.