Costuming:CRLGuide

CRL and New Costume Survival Guide

What is a CRL?
A CRL (Costume Reference Library) is a guide for GMLs to judge a costume. CRLs are published documents that can be updated as new or more accurate references are available. CRLs exist both in the wiki and in the Member Database, but are only entered into the latter after a member has completed a costume that is eligible for 501st inclusion. For more specific information on what our Operations Protocol has to say about CRL's, please see here.

Detachments
Detachments are Legion communities that are helpful for members who wish to create a costume. CRLs do not offer advice or give specifics on on how to construct a costume. Detachments do offer guidance and support for costumers in that area. They also offer a place for like costumes to post tips and tricks or tutorials, host “Work in Progress” of other members’ costumes and ongoing information on current CRL development. A listing of Detachments, their "themes" and their contact information can be found at https://www.501st.com/resources.php. Detachment CRL building is supervised by the LMO (Legion Membership Officer).

Want advice on where to make your build thread, or do you want to know if your costume will have inclusion into the 501st? Email [email protected].

Who can make changes on the 501st CRL website (Databank)?
The LMO and designated members of Detachment Command.

Who publishes New CRLS?
The Legion Membership Officer (LMO). The LMO has the final say on what goes into a published CRL.

What is an LMO?
From the Legion Charter, the Legion Membership Officer is appointed by the LCO, and ratified by Council. They are "responsible for reviewing and processing applications for membership and maintaining member information in the Legion database. The LMO drives costume policies, including acceptable costume types for membership and quality control of costume submissions. The LMO is the final arbiter of member costume issues and approvals. The LMO supervises and advises Detachments, Garrison Membership Liaisons, and Garrison Web Liaisons." There can be a single LMO, or a team of multiple LMO's. In the case of the latter, there is typically a Head LMO.

LMO Email: [email protected]
Detachment Contact Info: https://www.501st.com/members/displayUnits.php#detachments

Character Approval

The costume should be based on an official Star Wars canon source. Legends media is still acceptable, provided it is licensed. Assuming the quality of the build is in keeping with the level expected of the 501st, and that the character is affiliated with the darker side of the stories at the time that the costume in question is worn, anything from the current canon is eligible by default.

The costume must work within the constraints of human anatomy. Costumes that can only be accurately rendered as puppets (IG-88, Battle Droids) are considered props and as such not allowed. Costumes must be a complete ensemble, not a partial version or in a state of undress. Video game characters must be part of the official story line of the game, and cannot be player customized. For example, Starkiller's Sith Stalker costume is acceptable, but a player character from Star Wars Galaxies would not be.

The character must be represented visually by an officially authorized Star Wars publication. Ideally, clear full body front/back/side reference should be available, but can be examined on a case by case basis. Costumes based only on text descriptions cannot be approved. An action figure or statue may be used as supplemental reference, but cannot not be the sole reference. McQuarrie concept characters, and other characters whose only reference exists in concept are open for Legion consideration on a “case-by-case basis”.

NOTE:Some costumes, while approved for Legion membership, may be deemed inappropriate for certain events. The local command staff / event coordinator reserves the right to make this judgement as needed.

New to the Legion Costumes (NTTL)

Whenever you begin work on a “New to the Legion” costume, it is always best to connect with the Legion Membership Officer and relevant Detachment before proceeding. It is recommended that a “New to the Legion” costume is not kept a secret. One of the best ways to receive feedback on a “New to the Legion” costume is to make an account with the relevant detachment forum, and solicit feedback from the membership base. An ongoing and regularly updated info-page, New to the Legion Costumes in Progress is kept, listing out costumes with links to their designated Detachments.

Effective January 2016, the 501st Legion requires that all “New to the Legion” costumes must have a CRL before being approved in the database.

A “New to the Legion Costume” is a costume that has no CRL. Below are the steps for a “New to the Legion” costume and how it is added to the membership database.

• Contact [email protected] and ensure the costume is applicable for inclusion into the 501st Legion. Please provide the following information:
  • Name (and TKID if applicable )
  • Name of costume
  • Media this character (in this exact costume) is seen in
  • Links to reference
  • If contact with a detachment has already been made, and links to any WIPs

• The GML and/or costumer will be guided to the appropriate Detachment where CRL development will then occur.
• Once CRL development is complete, the costume will be entered into the Membership database, announced, and then the costume may be approved on current and prospective members.

Notes to Keep in Mind

• Typically as much time will be spent researching and looking at reference sources as it will take to make / assemble the costume. Ideally, there are clear full body pictures of the front, side, and back. When in doubt, email and ask [email protected], providing all reference for the character in question.

• Understand that a CRL undergoes many revisions by many people before publishing and that it is possible that there are multiple people working on the same costume at the same time. There are no guidelines on creating a new costume aside from reference material, and a costumer may be asked to change things multiple times.

• Understand that a CRL is not intended to be a detailed how-to on costume construction; rather it is a visual guide to be used for 501st costume approval. Detailed instructions, designs, and specific measurements are to be recorded within the detachment forum’s WIP documentation.

• The costume will not be approved in the Membership Database until all of the steps to create the CRL are completed. The wait period from completion of costume to approval can be lengthy.

• Pictures of the costume being worn, as well as costume parts may be requested. The first completed costume is not always the CRL model. Sometimes multiple applicants images are used to complete a CRL. Images should be captured against a simple, contrasting background, at high resolution, with good lighting.

• The Detachment and/or LMO may ask for assistance in writing the text of the CRL, but this is not always the case.

• Before any CRL goes live, it will be reviewed, edited, and approved by the LMO Team. Once approved, the new costume will be added to the membership database, and the CRL published on the wiki (Databank).