How to Draw a 16×16 Ridged Steel Rapier in Pixel Art

Published on July 17, 2026 · 9 min read

This rapier begins as a narrow diagonal, expands into a dark raised section across the middle three rows, then narrows again before the hilt. The outer silhouette changes only slightly; most of the expansion is communicated by deep-steel pixels inside the blade.

The exact CC0 reference contains 72 visible pixels and 9 visible colours. We will build it in five stages. Coordinates use (x, y), starting at the top-left.

Explore the complete drawing history

Step through the saved frames before drawing. Show changes isolates the pale edge from the charcoal and deep-steel cells that form the middle ridge.

Start with an empty 16×16 canvas

The history viewer, automatic player, and editor share one exact 16×16 ridged-rapier target.

Step 1: block the ridged blade in one steel value

Start with black at (0,0) and (1,0). Then grow the blade down-right:

Row 1: black x0 and x2; base steel x1.
Row 2: black x0 and x3; steel x1–2.
Row 3: black x1 and x4; steel x2–3.
Row 4: black x1 and x5; steel x2–4.
Row 5: black x2 and x6; steel x3–5.
Row 6: black x3 and x7; steel x4–6.
Row 7: black x4 and x8; steel x5–7.
Row 8: black x5 and x9; steel x6–8.
Row 9: black x6–7 and x10; steel x8–9.
Row 10: black x8; steel x9–10. The guard closes the right side.

Fill all 24 blade cells with base steel #A5C9C9. Rows 4–8 have three metal cells instead of two. That wider chamber gives the ridge room to expand without making the entire weapon look broad.

Keep the extra outline pixel at (7,9). It creates a small notch where the wider blade compresses into the hilt.

Step 2: grade the pale front blade edge

Leave base steel at (1,1), (1,2), (2,3), (6,8), and (7,8).

Use light steel #CEECEC at (2,4), (3,5), (4,6), and (5,7). These four pixels form a clean one-cell diagonal through the wider part of the blade.

Place shadow steel #83A3A3 at (8,9) and (9,10). The front edge therefore moves from base to light, returns to base for two cells, and then darkens at the joint.

This pass establishes the blade’s length before the raised middle section adds extra visual weight.

Step 3: expand the dark central steel ridge

First place charcoal steel #2F4049 at (2,2), (3,3), (3,4), (6,7), (7,7), (8,8), (9,9), and (10,10).

Now add deep steel #476367 at (4,4), (4,5), (5,5), (5,6), and (6,6).

Read the deep-steel group row by row:

Row 4: one cell at x4.
Row 5: two cells at x4–5.
Row 6: two cells at x5–6.

That one-two-two expansion bulges away from the charcoal path, making the blade look like it has a raised central rib. It ends before row 7, where the two charcoal cells begin the taper back toward the guard.

Step 4: build the compact gold-and-copper guard

Draw black at x11–12 on row 9. On row 10, place copper #C07F3A at x11 and black at x12.

Row 11 contains black x9, gold #FBBD5D at x10–11, and black x12. Row 12 adds black x9 and gold x10. Close the lower arm with black across x9–11 on row 13.

The guard is intentionally compact because the blade’s middle ridge is already the main feature. One copper cell separates the upper arm from the three-cell gold cluster.

Step 5: finish the leather grip and gold pommel

On row 12, place dark leather #7E4E26 at x11, copper x12, and black x13. Row 13 uses leather x12, gold x13, and black x14; the guard’s black x11 is the left boundary.

Row 14 uses black x12, leather x13, gold x14, and black x15. Finish the pommel with black across x13–15 on row 15.

The grip returns to a simple one-cell diagonal after the blade’s more complex middle. That contrast makes the weapon feel controlled and balanced.

Exact row blueprint

Row	Final non-transparent pixels
0	x0–1 outline
1	x0 outline, x1 base steel, x2 outline
2	x0 outline, x1 base steel, x2 charcoal, x3 outline
3	x1 outline, x2 base steel, x3 charcoal, x4 outline
4	x1 outline, x2 light steel, x3 charcoal, x4 deep steel, x5 outline
5	x2 outline, x3 light steel, x4–5 deep steel, x6 outline
6	x3 outline, x4 light steel, x5–6 deep steel, x7 outline
7	x4 outline, x5 light steel, x6–7 charcoal, x8 outline
8	x5 outline, x6–7 base steel, x8 charcoal, x9 outline
9	x6–7 outline, x8 shadow steel, x9 charcoal, x10–12 outline
10	x8 outline, x9 shadow steel, x10 charcoal, x11 copper, x12 outline
11	x9 outline, x10–11 gold, x12 outline
12	x9 outline, x10 gold, x11 leather, x12 copper, x13 outline
13	x9–11 outline, x12 leather, x13 gold, x14 outline
14	x12 outline, x13 leather, x14 gold, x15 outline
15	x13–15 outline

Watch the middle ridge expand

The automatic player first creates a flat blade, grades its front edge, then replaces the middle cells with charcoal and deep steel. Pause after the ridge appears to compare the one-two-two expansion with the surrounding narrow blade.

Automatic drawing

Start with an empty 16×16 canvas

0 / 91 pixel changes

The replay separates blade width, pale edge, raised dark ridge, compact guard, and grip into five deliberate passes.

Draw the rapier yourself

Complete the base-steel silhouette first. Add the four pale diagonal cells, then use Diff while building the dark ridge—especially rows 4–6, where one misplaced deep cell changes the blade’s volume.

Draw the ridged steel rapier yourself

Match 72%

Rebuild all 72 visible pixels. Use Diff view to check the three-row deep-steel expansion at the blade centre.

Target

Editor

What this sprite teaches

Reserve width for the feature that matters. Only the blade middle expands to three metal cells.
Use a small value group to imply relief. Five deep-steel cells create a raised rib.
Taper with colour as well as outline. Charcoal cells lead the ridge back into the hilt.
Keep secondary ornament compact. A small guard leaves the blade ridge dominant.
Return to a simple handle rhythm. The straight grip gives the complex blade a clean endpoint.

The source sprite is by Shade and is released under CC0 on OpenGameArt. The finished tutorial frame matches every source cell exactly.