I decided that i need to improve my model skills a lot so i decided to try and make a chess set, i need C&C what to improve. Should i use a area light instead?
Good, but IMO the wood “shines” a little too much. Other than that good job 
Wait, doesn’t the groove in the cap of the bishop go at a slanted upward angle?
Oh, the wood can be shiny if highly polished.
tweeby -
I can see the wood grain, but I think it could be better. Rather, I think it would show better if you changed the world color from the blue to something a little closer to sunlight or even incandescent light. That blue environment isn’t doing your pieces many favors. I bet if you change that it will look much better.
The other two things that immediately came to mind were to use an area light to soften the lighting a bit (what you asked, I agree) and secondly to “scuff up” the board - add dirt and grime - not a lot, just enough to make it a bit more real-world. Yeah… contradiction in terms… rendering the real world.
I know you wanted input on your modeling, but that will be loads easier if the pieces are more easily seen.
Best of luck!
-critter
Thanks for the replies soon gonna post some improvements just wait!
Okay here are the things i changed:
New world color
Added a King
Added som dirt and bumps in the board
Is it to much dirt on the board and should i add a hemi light to light it all up a bit?
If you haven’t already, turn AO on. It makes any render look a gajillion percent better and gives a better look at the materials.
As for the wood, you might want to try what I do: Get a premade material from a library and tweak it to your liking.:o
Typically, the slot in the bishop is more of a slot- think a groove from a saw- than a mouth. Also the grain on the pawns doesn’t look right. Aren’t pieces typically cut so that the round shape of the grain faces upward? It may just be personal opinion, I don’t know.
Yeah i realised (don’t know how i spell it) that it forgot AO, i’m going to change the wood materials too.