What You’ll Need
Cowboy Hat
Brown Distressed Trench Coat
Brown Leather Gloves
Brown Leather Vest
Bullet Belt Prop
Brown Western Belt
Brown Button-Down Shirt
Blue Fabric Paint
Face Sculpting Wax
Brown Pants
The Ghoul’s outfit is a battered post-apocalyptic gunslinger rig defined by heavy desert weathering, layered western garments, and severe facial damage. Rather than clean movie-western wear, everything here looks sun-baked, stiffened with dust, and worn through decades in the wasteland.
The foundation relies on a long duster coat, utilitarian leather layers, and ammo rigging, paired with special effects makeup to handle his distinctive irradiated appearance.
The Duster and Core Layers
The long brown trench coat forms the primary silhouette. A heavy cut falling past the knees with broad lapels sets the proper frame. A retail brown distressed trench coat provides a solid starting shape, though distressing it further makes a noticeable difference. Concentrate grime along the lower hem, elbows, and shoulders using sandpaper and diluted acrylic washes or dusting powders.
Underneath the coat, layer a brown leather vest over a standard brown button-down shirt. The vest needs to sit close against the torso so the coat moves freely without catching. Keeping both garments within muted tan and brown shades establishes the dusty desert palette. If the button-down shirt looks too clean out of the package, scuff the collar points and cuffs with coarse sandpaper to fray the edges.
Blue fabric paint comes in handy for adding worn Vault-Tec accents or customized seam highlights on the inner clothing layers. A dry-brush technique along selected seams or pocket edges gives the impression of faded pre-war cloth peeking through accumulated grime.
Trousers and Leather Accessories
For the lower half, sturdy brown pants keep the utilitarian look intact. Choose a straight or relaxed cut that breaks naturally over heavy work boots. Skip slim modern cuts; the character requires durable trousers suited for wasteland travel. Working fuller’s earth or dry powdered pigment into the knees and shins ties them directly to the weathered coat.
His hands and waist gear reinforce the gunslinger silhouette. Pair a wide brown western belt with durable brown leather gloves. The gloves benefit from broken-in creasing across the palms and knuckles, which can be emphasized by working a tiny dab of dark leather balm or brown shoe polish into the folds.
Ammunition and Prop Rigging
A bullet belt prop slung across the chest or wrapped at the hips is essential to his combat-ready profile. If the prop ammunition has a shiny plastic finish, mist the casings with a matte clear spray and wash black or dark brown acrylic into the crevices. This knocks back the artificial shine and gives the cartridges an aged brass appearance.
The Hat and Facial FX
The cowboy hat anchors the upper silhouette. A brown western hat with a pinched crown and rolled brim fits the profile when worn tilted slightly back. You can shape the brim using steam from a kettle if the curve needs adjustment, then dust the crown crease with chalk powder or earth pigments to match the rest of the weathered gear.
Recreating the ghoul face is the most involved part of the project. Because the character lacks an external nose and exhibits exposed muscle tissue, face sculpting wax is useful for building raised scar tissue around the nasal bridge and cheeks. Warm the wax between your fingers, apply it to clean skin, and smooth the edges with a metal spatula and a drop of mineral oil. After sculpting, stipple mottled red, brown, and sickly flesh tones across the skin, then paint the tip of your nose black with sweat-resistant cosmetic pigment to create the illusion of a hollow nasal cavity.
