How to Draw a 16×16 Wavy Steel Rapier in Pixel Art
This rapier does not travel down the canvas as a regular 45-degree line. Its lower edge pauses on short black ledges, then jumps two cells to begin the next section. A continuous charcoal spine threads through those bends, while a pale front face grows and narrows around it.
The exact CC0 reference contains 85 visible pixels and 8 visible
colours. We will build it in five stages. Coordinates use (x, y), with (0, 0) at the top-left.
Explore the complete drawing history
Move through the saved frames before drawing. Turn on Show changes to separate the irregular silhouette, pale face, dark spine, guard, and grip.
Step 1: block the wavy blade in one steel value
Begin with a four-pixel black cap across x0–3 on row 0. Then trace the first bend:
- Row 1: black x0 and x3; base steel x1–2.
- Row 2: black x0 and x3–4; base steel x1–2.
- Row 3: black x1 and x4; base steel x2–3.
The doubled black edge at x3–4 on row 2 creates the first change in direction. Continue with larger ledges:
- Row 4: black x1 and x5–6; steel x2–4.
- Row 5: black x1–3 and x6; steel x4–5.
- Row 6: black x3 and x7–8; steel x4–6.
- Row 7: black x3–5 and x8; steel x6–7.
- Row 8: black x5 and x9–10; steel x6–8.
- Row 9: black x5–7 and x10; steel x8–9.
- Row 10: black x7; steel x8–10. The guard will close the right side.
Fill all 24 metal cells with base steel #A5C9C9. The three-cell black ledges
on rows 5, 7, and 9 are intentional. They create the stepped wave; shortening
them turns the weapon back into a straight diagonal blade.
Step 2: grade the pale curved blade face
Keep base steel at (1,1), (1,2), (2,3), (7,8), and (8,10).
Use light steel #CEECEC at (2,4), (3,4), (4,5), (4,6), (5,6), (6,7), and (6,8). The light face widens to two cells on rows 4 and 6, then
narrows back to one cell.
Place shadow steel #83A3A3 at (8,9) and (9,10). These two darker cells
lead the pale face into the hilt without breaking its curved path.
Unlike a simple gradient, this face changes both value and width. The repeated one-two-one pattern echoes the outline’s wave at a smaller scale.
Step 3: run a charcoal spine through every bend
Place charcoal steel #2F4049 at (2,1), (2,2), (3,3), (4,4), (5,5), (6,6), (7,7), (8,8), (9,9), and (10,10).
The first two spine cells share x2, matching the blade’s initial pause. Every later cell advances one column and one row. That transition from vertical pause to perfect diagonal is what makes the curve feel controlled rather than jagged.
Check the spine before adding the hilt. One missing charcoal cell splits the blade into separate pieces; one extra dark cell makes a local section look twice as thick.
Step 4: build the extended gold-and-copper guard
Start the upper arm with black at x11–12 on row 9. On row 10, place copper #C07F3A at x11 and black at x12.
The lower arm is deliberately longer. On row 11, draw black at x7–9, gold #FBBD5D at x10–11, and black at x12. Row 12 adds black at x9 and gold at x10.
Close the arm with black across x9–11 on row 13.
The leftward black ledge on row 11 counterbalances the blade’s earlier ledges. It also keeps the two gold cells from reading as part of the steel spine.
Step 5: finish the leather grip and gold pommel
Begin the handle on row 12 with dark leather #7E4E26 at x11, copper at x12,
and black at x13.
On row 13, use 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 with black across x13–15 on row 15.
The material sequence leather → copper → gold shifts one cell down-right per row, so the short handle continues the weapon’s motion without copying the wavy blade edge.
Exact row blueprint
| Row | Final non-transparent pixels |
|---|---|
| 0 | x0–3 outline |
| 1 | x0 outline, x1 base steel, x2 charcoal, x3 outline |
| 2 | x0 outline, x1 base steel, x2 charcoal, x3–4 outline |
| 3 | x1 outline, x2 base steel, x3 charcoal, x4 outline |
| 4 | x1 outline, x2–3 light steel, x4 charcoal, x5–6 outline |
| 5 | x1–3 outline, x4 light steel, x5 charcoal, x6 outline |
| 6 | x3 outline, x4–5 light steel, x6 charcoal, x7–8 outline |
| 7 | x3–5 outline, x6 light steel, x7 charcoal, x8 outline |
| 8 | x5 outline, x6 light steel, x7 base steel, x8 charcoal, x9–10 outline |
| 9 | x5–7 outline, x8 shadow steel, x9 charcoal, x10–12 outline |
| 10 | x7 outline, x8 base steel, x9 shadow steel, x10 charcoal, x11 copper, x12 outline |
| 11 | x7–9 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 blade bend without breaking
The automatic player draws the complete wavy silhouette first, grades its pale face, and then runs the charcoal spine through every bend. Pause before the guard appears to inspect the ledges as one continuous blade.
Automatic drawing
Start with an empty 16×16 canvas
Draw the rapier yourself
Complete every black ledge before shading. After adding the charcoal spine, switch to Diff and check rows 2, 5, 7, and 9—the places where the blade changes rhythm. Add the hilt only when the curve is continuous.
Draw the wavy steel rapier yourself
Rebuild all 85 visible pixels. Use Diff view to check every lower-edge ledge and the uninterrupted charcoal spine.
What this sprite teaches
- A curve can be built from pauses and jumps. Short horizontal ledges change the diagonal rhythm.
- Repeat the wave inside the silhouette. The light face widens and narrows with the outline.
- A dark spine should remain continuous. One cell per row unifies an irregular blade.
- Use the guard to counterbalance the blade. Its long lower ledge echoes the earlier black steps.
- Let the handle return to a simple rhythm. A straight material sequence gives the eye 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.