Cosplay Cosmodrome Lands on Tharsis Outpost

Welcome to the Lawless Frontier, Guardian - strap in as we unveil our best of the best cosplays from across the globe. On November 6, we revealed eight amazing cosplayers who were going to bring some Destiny 2 characters to life – you can see our introductions for each of these cosplayers here.

In this third iteration of Cosplay Cosmodrome, we’ll show you some old fan-favorite characters and also introduce you to new friends and foes. Our cosplay community members are limitless in their mastery of the craft and we’re so proud to showcase their artistry and immense talent.

Last week we introduced you to amazing cosplays of Drifter, Eris Morn, Aunor Mahal, and Premier Lume. This week, buckle in as we present to you some of the shadier characters from Renegades and the Tharsis Outpost. 

Cinderys (she/her) as Dredgen Bael

Oh, Dredgen Bael. How his name rings out as a warning against hubris; of a poor, wretched soul manipulated by an Outer God; of a petulant child playing with knowledge beyond his grasp. Leader of the Barant Imperium and the Guardian’s antagonist in the Renegades campaign, Bael has been the trigger of some truly horrifying events for Guardians and Ghosts alike. Cinderys from France shows us her cosplay of Bael.

"This is my third Cosplay Cosmodrome, so I'm again excited to share with you my new cosplay: Dredgen Bael. After Savathûn and The Witness, I was super happy to work on another project with hundreds of intricate and tiny details, and a lot of challenging techniques. I really enjoyed creating all of them. But to me, the best part of this project is that I can say that I'm learning Praxic Blade moves for my job!
"I first worked on all the 3D models (almost 30 different ones). Bael has so many details! Just the chainmail was 149 pieces, so 298 halves to clean, sand, prime, assemble, and paint. I crafted the other parts like the belts, the pauldrons, all the leg pads, and more details with EVA foam, so they can stay flexible. Sewing the coat was very challenging. Such thickness of fake leather is a nightmare for the sewing machine. I twisted several needles during the process. I really enjoyed doing the painting and the weathering on the costume. These final steps really bring the character to life!
"We had a lot of fun during the photo and video shoot with my team! We loved to recreate the lights and smoke from the cinematic scenes. It was again a challenge because I can’t see with the helmet on. I had to trust my friends when I was walking. For the final results, I discovered what I was looking like only after the photoshoot finished and I took off the costume, and I was mind-blown! So, I hope you will also love the result of all our hard work!"

Cinderys can be found on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Twitch, and her website.

Tingilya Cosplay (she/her) as Boss Riliks

Time to meet our Syndicate leaders! Boss Riliks is the leader of the Pikers – a clever, mechanically-minded group of Eliksni – who can bust down doors with their hacking skills. Tingilya Cosplay from Germany brings Riliks to life.

“Bringing Riliks to life was a very significant challenge, but also an amazing experience. It was incredibly satisfying to work with so many different methods that were needed to bring this character into reality.

“A very special part of it was also the help I received from not only some incredibly helpful friends, but also from my younger sister, who was a huge help in the workshop as well as assisting with the shoot, and who was essentially able to be part of the entire process.

“Altogether, it was such an unbelievable ride. I hope you find this cosplay just as exciting as my friends and I did.”

Find Tingilya Cosplay on Instagram and Facebook.

LilyBean (she/her) as Zephyrus, Autonomous Mind

Zephyrus is the leader of the Tharsis Reformation, a group of Vex operatives who have declared their individual sentience, and – yes – they wear clothes! U.S.-based cosplayer LilyBean shares her version of Zephyrus.

“Having the opportunity to create Zephyrus was a huge privilege and challenge. Not only was the scale of the build creatively and physically demanding, but the majority of the costume was built inside my college dorm between classes and other projects. Over 260 hours were devoted to this cosplay across two and a half months! An additional fun fact is that the Fatebringer is actually a prop I made over eight years ago when I was still getting started with EVA foam. It was nice to be able to use it for a costume again, since the last time I brought it out was during PAX West when I cosplayed Sweeper Bot.

“The key challenge of this project was achieving non-human proportions on a human wearer. Vex Minotaurs are around eight feet tall, and I am not, so I had to do a lot of work using 3D software to create the patterns and carefully scale them before building. Minotaurs also don’t have necks, so I pushed the chest and shoulders up to allow the head to sit properly. Platform boots with five-inch heels helped create the illusion of digitigrade feet, and using my elbows as shoulder joints allowed for the wide frame that would’ve been difficult to pull off with regular human proportions.

“Everything in this costume, except for the bodysuit and shoes, was made by hand from EVA foam and sewn fabric elements. About 20 hours went into the 3D patterning and scaling processes alone, after which an additional 240 were dedicated to fabrication. All of the LEDs were wired from scratch. To paint this build, I used a mix of metallic and hammered spray paints, then weathered everything by hand with acrylics and airbrushing. Prepping the costume for the photoshoot required about 10 - 15 minutes of assembly beforehand because each piece can be deconstructed for storage. Most of the pieces are held together with velcro attachments, snaps, and strong magnets. It was like building a life-size action figure!

“I really loved getting to experience building a Vex character for the first time through Zephyrus, and I have a new appreciation for all of the robotic details that are distinct to their design palette. The concept of Vex with free will and individuality is so interesting, so I’m really curious to see how the Tharsis Reformation functions within Renegades. I’m so thankful to have gotten the opportunity to bring the leader of the clothes-wearing, crime-doing Vex syndicate to life, and I hope everybody enjoys the final product!”

Find Lilybean on Instagram and check out her past work here.

Kamichan83 (she/her) as Enforcer Rao

The lead officer of the Totality Division – a stealth unit of the Barant Imperium’s intelligence division gone rogue – Enforcer Rao keeps tight grips on her favored Psions. Kamichan83 from Italy cosplays as Enforcer Rao in all her glory.

“I never imagined I'd find myself making a Psion cosplay and yet here I am, on my ninth Destiny 2 cosplay (two of which were worn by my boyfriend—it's become a tradition!) For this project, I experimented with a lot of new techniques and even had to change my proportions, which terrified me a little. In the end, though, I'm incredibly proud of the final result.

“I put in a lot of effort to bring Rao to life, and every piece was meticulously crafted, including the rifle, which is taller than me, even though I promised myself I'd avoid giant weapons for a while. Spoiler alert: I have no idea where to put it at home.

“Destiny 2 and Star Wars continue to challenge my creativity... and I love every second of this chaos.”

Find Kamichan83 on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok.

Little Blonde Goth (she/her) as Drifter

If you’ve already gotten through the introduction of the Renegades campaign, you’ll know we accompany our good old friend Drifter as he navigates through some... unique challenges. Here is UK-based cosplayer Little Blonde Goth’s take on Drifter.

“I've been playing Destiny for well over a decade now. The world and the characters inside it have become old friends to me, so I'm always excited to be able to bring another one of those friends to life for the launch of Renegades. The Drifter is someone I'd have never thought to cosplay, but after making two Savathûns, it looks like morally ambiguous Lightbearers are definitely a thing I do now.

“This was a big shift away from armor builds, so I needed to up my sewing game to make all the articles of clothing Drifter wears. I carefully selected a variety of materials and textures for the different garments - faux leather, linen, cotton, shaggy fur - so each layer would contrast slightly with the next. Each piece needed to be patterned, tested, and tweaked to match the character design. This was also the first time I've ever tackled proper leatherwork, since you're not going to find Drifter belts or bracers off the peg. It was great to have an excuse to learn a new skill like this, and it turns out the process of punching sewing holes with a mallet is incredibly therapeutic. There were a few pieces of armor though and again I used a mixture of materials. Some elements like the kneecaps and shoulder spikes are 3D modelled and printed, while others suited a more old-school foam and Worbla approach.

“I'm honored to have been part of the Cosplay Cosmodrome for a third year. It's humbling to be in the company of such talented cosplayers from around the world and the amazing work they create. I'll see you in Tharsis Outpost, Guardians. Transmat firing!”

Find Little Blonde Goth on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Where Is Danielle (she/they) as Eris Morn

Who can forget about Eris Morn? Former Hive God, bane of Crota, ruin of Xivu Arath, slayer of Savathûn, all-around badass? Cosplayer WhereIsDanielle hailing from Australia cosplays as Eris Morn.

“Eris Morn has always been such a powerful character with an incredible backstory and story arc over the years. From sole survivor to a legitimate god, she is hands down one of my favourite characters of all time, so this is a dream come true.

“For Eris, I spent over a week browsing fabrics both online and in person, trying to find the right weight, colour, and texture that I felt would be correct for both her vibe but also to hold the shape I needed it to. Her clothes have such a specific form and volume that creates her iconic silhouette, and if I didn't get just the right fabric, it wouldn't read as Eris.

“Sometimes fabric choice still wasn't enough to get the perfect shape, so for her iconic cat ear-like hood and her armoured vest I used an EVA foam base to give it the structure it needed. It was so much fun making the foam parts of this costume, getting to put all that beautiful texture into her shoulder, neck, and arm pieces was awesome. I sanded, sculpted, burnt, and sponged texture onto the surface so that when I used a combination of washes and dry brushing the overall impression would land somewhere in the realm of insect, crustacean and petrified wood. Looking at the underside of the shoulders kinda gives me the ick.

“There are also over 200 rivets on the costume, each hole individually punched, and each rivet hand-set. For the skirt I digitally drew up the patterns, creating about 30 unique symbols and then using a cutting machine to cut them out of tape to stencil onto the skirt. Cutting, weeding and applying the stencils took over seven hours to make sure everything lined up, and the patterns didn't repeat or have the same symbols too close to each other.

“All of the costume pieces received heavy art finishing, loads of blacks, browns, and grey paint to make it feel lived in and like it survived a crawl out of the Hellmouth. I cannot wait to wear this costume at a convention in the future, because wearing it makes me feel so spooky – I absolutely am standing under the stairs muttering about eyes as soon as possible.”

Find WhereisDanielle on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok.

Anhyra (she/her) as Aunor Mahal

She might be a new addition to our group of close allies, but Aunor Mahal has shown during Renegades she is someone you want by your side, even if our relationship with her Praxic Order started on the wrong foot. Anhyra, a cosplayer based in Spain, has recreated Aunor in her image.

“Creating Aunor Mahal has been such a fun experience! Her design is full of textures and intricate details, which made the whole process an exciting challenge. To craft all her small accessories, I decided to model them in 3D and print them in resin. This way, even the tiniest details look incredible.

“I also used other materials like EVA foam so I could move comfortably while wearing her armor. For the fabrics, I worked with materials such as neoprene and a special futuristic-looking faux leather that helped me achieve the effect on the sleeves.

“I really enjoyed combining modern and traditional techniques for this project. For example, her skirt panels are made of linen but decorated with 3D appliqués to give them a more futuristic appearance. My favorite part was definitely making her headpiece; it’s full of details and was such a joy to create! I’m very grateful for this opportunity. It’s amazing to bring characters like her to life.”

Find Anhyra on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Twitch.

Solomon_Taisa (he/him) as Premier Lume

Finally for this week, we’ve got a certified baddie in the house. Premier Lume is second-in-command of the emergent Barant Imperium with a bounty on his head placed by the Empress Caiatl herself. Japanese cosplayer Solomon Taisa brings us his vision of Premier Lume.

“I’m honored to be able to participate in this year’s Cosplay Cosmodrome. The character that I’m cosplaying this time is a new character, Premier Lume. The design of this character is super thrilling, and he has an immense character presence. I fell in love with the character instantly!

“This time, I wanted to emphasize his overpowering presence as the focal point, which meant making a large-scale cosplay. The final result turned out to be a massive piece which was over two meters tall. The finish on the cosplay is a distressed paint finish, to give off the vibe of wear and tear, which I think adds to character realism.

“This cosplay was made possible by everyone at Solomon Studio – thanks to everyone who worked on the production, photography, and videography, it turned out wonderful! I’m really grateful to you all.” 

Find Solomon Taisa on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

That’s it for this year’s Cosplay Cosmodrome! We’re always so impressed with the caliber and quality the cosplay community brings; they manage to knock it out of the park every time. Please send our fantastic cosplayers some love!