Well, one of the best craftsmen of 'Mechs is shutting down the main factory. http://battlemechclub.blogspot.com/. CEO Fusco has some very legitimate reasons and I can't argue with any of them. Unfortunately for the few of us still sending forces to the front lines, it makes an already small supply line, even smaller. However, he can't maintain what he has been. The market is just not supporting the load, and there's no reason for him to suffer for it. Better to retool for a different process and work on one-offs and specific commissions.
This pretty much means that the only open production line left is Thor's Mechworks. http://wingnutscockpit.blogspot.com/ He has some seriously good looking products rolling out and has a good production capability. So there will be products available for those that want them. The catch is that the machines need serious work to get to a high-level of finish. His designs are really good, and very accurate. They're light and fairly durable. They also have an extremely high level of detail and accuracy to the MWO universe machines. However, the production methodology means that we need to do some seriously intensive finishing work. The printer leaves a layer of gridlines that needs to be sanded down. The best method I've found for that is good, ol' fashioned sandpaper and elbow grease. I tried using acetone, and it has some positive results, but it does melt the surface and leaves behind some residue I don't like.
I did start hollowing out the torso for a cockpit and the way these are made does make it easier. It's a honeycomb of material once you break through the skin, and that's easily dremel'd out. It was far easier than what I had to do for the MK II Timberwolf.
That leads me somewhat to the point: 3d printing is easier for the manufacturer to develop and deliver, but the quality of product for the lower or intermediately skilled modeler presents a serious challenge. There is no casting, no molds, no huge up-front investment, and so it's a much more affordable process to go with. And if you can overlook the gridlines, it's got a lot of detail and finished work/look to it. For the more advanced modeler, the challenges can be overcome with patience and technique. However, speaking as someone in the middle of building a model of my own from scratch, I have to wonder if that time and effort isn't much different than actually building from the ground up.
The kits coming out of Mr. Fusco's pipeline are amazing, and the effort required to get a very good result was minimal at best. The techniques I need to apply to achieve the effect *I* wanted were very straight forward and focused for a specific effect. But even a novice modeler, with just a knowledge of basic pinning and painting techniques, can quickly and easily produce a very good looking result.
Basically, the two types of manufacturing address two separate needs. One puts a huge variety of models out there at a fairly affordable pricetag, more specifically for the manufacturer. The other has a very large initial expense outlay, which minimizes both the variety and quantity available. The skillsets are very disparate but both specialized, although I believe that the 3-D skills are far more prevalent and reinforced throughout our society at this point.
I'm glad Tim will still be working, and will take commissions. Sharing Techniques and tricks is a great thing and it helps the rest of us, and for that, I really appreciate his blog and effort. I am just sad that his work will be much more limited in scope and availability.
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Decisions.
Work on Project A continues apace. I am just about to the point where I'm going to call done on the legs. I need to scribe in panel lines and other small details and then pin things together.
The hip assembly is framed up and I'm in the process of applying the armor plating and those details. Still have some details to look at there, and then drill the pin holes so I can pin the upper legs to the hip transmission pieces. Speaking of those, I ended up pulling a mold for left/right hip transmissions. The same modeling for hips are used in MWO for the Atlas, Timberwolf, Highlander and several others, so I figure that if I find that I want to try another one of these, I'll just pull 2 more castings of each and I'll have those. The detail came out better on these than the foot, basically because they're much simpler.
Once that's all set, I'll turn my focus to the torso. The main weapons mounts are things I plan to make modular, but the primary model will likely be as a bog-standard DDC. The torso ballistic weapon is something I can easily make a magnetic-swappable module, with PPC, Gauss or AC20. The same with the torso missile housings, I can build it with a 'bay' that will take a modular LRM/SRM etc.. mount. The arm-mounted weapons are all external to the forearm housing, so that's also a simple swap.
This brings me to the other question that I should answer at some point: Kit it or just build it for me? I was talking with He-who-musn't-be-named, and he thought I should kit it out. The thing is, I have no idea where to go or what to do about that. There's no way I want to try doing it myself, I just don't have the resources, equipment or space to try creating all the castings. Starshipmodeler.com lists one resource that might, and I could reach out to find out what I'd be looking at to kit it out. (Timeslip Creations... they list 2 others but both links are dead) Of course, there are tons of considerations here.
First, this is my very first attempt at making something like this and once I paint it up, detail it and so on, it might look just fine. For me. I'm really not convinced it'll meet the scrutiny and standards of the kinds of folks who would want a kit like this. I've seen the work of the modelers out there who've done this kind of thing and I'm definitely in the "raw apprentice" category in comparison. All the techniques and tricks are new to me and I'm just getting to the point where I think I grok what can be done. Second, and a corrollary to the first, is cost. The kits out there are in the average of $120+. FCY's Timberwolf II, which has been restocked ( If you want one, go *here* and act fast!) at $175. His Dervish, (same link) currently in pre-order, is an even century with a req'd 15 for the model to go to production. That tells me that the cost of having a kit mold made and cast up has to be in ballpark of a grand at minimum. Yeah, I can ask, and I should just to know.. but..yeah. Cost. Thirdly, demand. Let's face it, I know I'm something of a rarity, being that big of a battletech fan *and* a 28mm gaming fan at the same time.
If I want to kit it out, I have to *not* do the painting and detailing to finish it off. The caster will have to work with the base/primed pieces. The other thing I can't do is put it all together, so I really can't see it all together at once either.
/shrug. Dunno. I don't have to decide right now, but as it is, I'm leaning toward just building it for me and that's that. I'll be happy to have it and will have the experience and reward of having done it.
The hip assembly is framed up and I'm in the process of applying the armor plating and those details. Still have some details to look at there, and then drill the pin holes so I can pin the upper legs to the hip transmission pieces. Speaking of those, I ended up pulling a mold for left/right hip transmissions. The same modeling for hips are used in MWO for the Atlas, Timberwolf, Highlander and several others, so I figure that if I find that I want to try another one of these, I'll just pull 2 more castings of each and I'll have those. The detail came out better on these than the foot, basically because they're much simpler.
Once that's all set, I'll turn my focus to the torso. The main weapons mounts are things I plan to make modular, but the primary model will likely be as a bog-standard DDC. The torso ballistic weapon is something I can easily make a magnetic-swappable module, with PPC, Gauss or AC20. The same with the torso missile housings, I can build it with a 'bay' that will take a modular LRM/SRM etc.. mount. The arm-mounted weapons are all external to the forearm housing, so that's also a simple swap.
This brings me to the other question that I should answer at some point: Kit it or just build it for me? I was talking with He-who-musn't-be-named, and he thought I should kit it out. The thing is, I have no idea where to go or what to do about that. There's no way I want to try doing it myself, I just don't have the resources, equipment or space to try creating all the castings. Starshipmodeler.com lists one resource that might, and I could reach out to find out what I'd be looking at to kit it out. (Timeslip Creations... they list 2 others but both links are dead) Of course, there are tons of considerations here.
First, this is my very first attempt at making something like this and once I paint it up, detail it and so on, it might look just fine. For me. I'm really not convinced it'll meet the scrutiny and standards of the kinds of folks who would want a kit like this. I've seen the work of the modelers out there who've done this kind of thing and I'm definitely in the "raw apprentice" category in comparison. All the techniques and tricks are new to me and I'm just getting to the point where I think I grok what can be done. Second, and a corrollary to the first, is cost. The kits out there are in the average of $120+. FCY's Timberwolf II, which has been restocked ( If you want one, go *here* and act fast!) at $175. His Dervish, (same link) currently in pre-order, is an even century with a req'd 15 for the model to go to production. That tells me that the cost of having a kit mold made and cast up has to be in ballpark of a grand at minimum. Yeah, I can ask, and I should just to know.. but..yeah. Cost. Thirdly, demand. Let's face it, I know I'm something of a rarity, being that big of a battletech fan *and* a 28mm gaming fan at the same time.
If I want to kit it out, I have to *not* do the painting and detailing to finish it off. The caster will have to work with the base/primed pieces. The other thing I can't do is put it all together, so I really can't see it all together at once either.
/shrug. Dunno. I don't have to decide right now, but as it is, I'm leaning toward just building it for me and that's that. I'll be happy to have it and will have the experience and reward of having done it.
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Project A. With Pixez
So. Now with Pix.
Keep in mind, this is the "rough, still working on it, etc..etc.." stage, so do bear with me.
The initial sculpt of the foot seemed to be ok, and while I could see some imperfections, they didn't seem to be too bad. Now that I look at the closeup images, it's much more obvious.
Yeah, then I cast it. Like I said yesterday, I didn't make absolutely certain that the foot was flush with the base of the mold cylinder, so it was slightly off true. That meant it cast up in such a way that would mean a lot of sanding of the base.
Keep in mind, this is the "rough, still working on it, etc..etc.." stage, so do bear with me.
The initial sculpt of the foot seemed to be ok, and while I could see some imperfections, they didn't seem to be too bad. Now that I look at the closeup images, it's much more obvious.
However, that wasn't the worst of it, since all those imperfections were really magnified by the casting. I LOVE this mold/casting material. All the nice detail comes out crisp and clear. Even the guitar-wire details looked good, but the supposedly "flat armor surfaces" didn't because..well...they weren't. So, putty, sanding and filling time.
Moving on to the joint, I still think the best place for the knee is at the upper-shin spot. It seems to give decent articulation and should look right when posed.
There is still more needed to finish off the thighs and the hip actuator, along with filling in the knee with details and armor.
Looking at the general dimensions of the legs vs the overall height, as compared to the 90-ton Timberwolf Mkii, I think I'm fairly close on size. It should come out just about right.
This is quite a challenging project, filled with all kinds of engineering hurdles and need for creative solutions. Slow going, and it's driving me nuts, but I'm really enjoying it.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Next update - Project A and part casting.
Updatedness..next wave.
So, the last couple of weeks, I've been absent from my workbench while taking part in a martial arts event. Upon returning, the mold-making material had arrived and it was time to do my first cast attempt from a clay-sculpted master. Let's say it didn't quite go as planned. I used moldstar 16, the first time I'd used a mold material that set up that quickly. To be fair, I think the mold came out quite nicely. There were a few bubbles present, but when I pulled the air out of the cylinder, they mostly appeared near the top, away from the part.
The issue presented when I found that the flat side of the part didn't quite mate cleanly with the floor of the mold cylinder, making it off-level a bit. This meant that when I poured the plastic resin, it didn't fill quite properly. It also manifested many more bubbles than I expected, and so I had to pour a bit differently, to avoid huge bubble gaps. In the end, that didn't matter as much because of the other main issue: my sculpting ability sux. Well, to be fair, I got the general part dimensions ok, but I didn't see all the surface imperfections and out-of-true lines. They all showed up when I poured the part. In the end, what that meant was that I spent a great deal of time with putty and sandpaper. I still have a little more to do with it, but they are close to being ready for what I want them for.
Project A also needs a bit of decision making. Looking at the legs, there are two locations that serve as the knee joint. In fact, it's entirely possible that the bottom of the thigh and the top of the shin parts BOTH articulate in the MWO model. It's hard to tell and the fact that I can't get a good yootoob of it is frustrating. So, I need to decide which point is the actual knee articulation. The more I look at the stride and stance, the more I think I'll go with the upper shin point. It's also easier to pin and work with at the moment, so that's what I'm going with. Unless, of course, I see something that changes my mind.
Goal for tonight, finish detailing the thighs and cut the main pieces for the hip joint. I test fit the pieces together so far, and stood them next to the Timberwolf II, and I think the dimensions are coming out just about right. The Steiner Scout Mech should be just about the same shoulder height as the missile pods, if they all work out. So far, so good.
So, the last couple of weeks, I've been absent from my workbench while taking part in a martial arts event. Upon returning, the mold-making material had arrived and it was time to do my first cast attempt from a clay-sculpted master. Let's say it didn't quite go as planned. I used moldstar 16, the first time I'd used a mold material that set up that quickly. To be fair, I think the mold came out quite nicely. There were a few bubbles present, but when I pulled the air out of the cylinder, they mostly appeared near the top, away from the part.
The issue presented when I found that the flat side of the part didn't quite mate cleanly with the floor of the mold cylinder, making it off-level a bit. This meant that when I poured the plastic resin, it didn't fill quite properly. It also manifested many more bubbles than I expected, and so I had to pour a bit differently, to avoid huge bubble gaps. In the end, that didn't matter as much because of the other main issue: my sculpting ability sux. Well, to be fair, I got the general part dimensions ok, but I didn't see all the surface imperfections and out-of-true lines. They all showed up when I poured the part. In the end, what that meant was that I spent a great deal of time with putty and sandpaper. I still have a little more to do with it, but they are close to being ready for what I want them for.
Project A also needs a bit of decision making. Looking at the legs, there are two locations that serve as the knee joint. In fact, it's entirely possible that the bottom of the thigh and the top of the shin parts BOTH articulate in the MWO model. It's hard to tell and the fact that I can't get a good yootoob of it is frustrating. So, I need to decide which point is the actual knee articulation. The more I look at the stride and stance, the more I think I'll go with the upper shin point. It's also easier to pin and work with at the moment, so that's what I'm going with. Unless, of course, I see something that changes my mind.
Goal for tonight, finish detailing the thighs and cut the main pieces for the hip joint. I test fit the pieces together so far, and stood them next to the Timberwolf II, and I think the dimensions are coming out just about right. The Steiner Scout Mech should be just about the same shoulder height as the missile pods, if they all work out. So far, so good.
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Updatedness
Well, this is both incredibly frustrating and extremely satisfying, all at the same time.
I have been working on Project W somewhat, although I've hit a bit of a snag in the surface finishing. The acetone works, but I don't like the look of what it leaves behind. The sandpaper also works, but it is a ton of manual effort. I also don't like the way it leaves the surface and there are locations that are nearly impossible to reach. I'm working on a possible dremel solution for the hidden spots, but I need to pick up a different mount for it, which can happen later this week. For everything, the right tool.
So, while I work on figuring that out, I continued to work a bit here and there on Project A. I have the mold rubber and casting plastic coming, so I'll be able to cast the foots. The right and left shins are basically done except for scribing in the plate lines and detailing. I started on the thighs tonight. If the dimensions work out right, this thing should stand about 10 1/2 " at the shoulders, maybe a little bit more, and that should be just about right.
I'm working to follow the basic lines and layout of the MWO Atlas, but I'm leaving some room for creative license and "I just don't know how to do that .." But, I'm trying to keep it as close to what I see in my mechLab as I can. This is, as I mentioned, a very challenging project. It's the first time I've tried to build something up from scratch, more than a kit-bash to get "something" and it's pushing some of my engineer buttons. The dynamics of the joints, the layout and dimensions are interesting. I find that I spend a lot of time sketching and looking at the thing from various angles, just to see what I have to work with. At first, I was concerned that my measurements for the foot were off, but now that I'm seeing the way those base measurements are scaling up, I'm less worried.
To be honest, it's frustrating, but more than that, it's pretty rewarding. I'm seeing this thing come together in layers, piece by piece and it's really making me smile. Every little success is one more challenge overcome and one more bit of encouragement to keep on going. I *have* to be patient while I work it, and that's taking some effort. I keep wanting to move to the next phase, and the next, and the next, but I have to work this thing in order, and take it step by step.
Once I have the lower half worked up, I might just put a pic or two out for show.
Until then, keepin' on, keepin' on.
I have been working on Project W somewhat, although I've hit a bit of a snag in the surface finishing. The acetone works, but I don't like the look of what it leaves behind. The sandpaper also works, but it is a ton of manual effort. I also don't like the way it leaves the surface and there are locations that are nearly impossible to reach. I'm working on a possible dremel solution for the hidden spots, but I need to pick up a different mount for it, which can happen later this week. For everything, the right tool.
So, while I work on figuring that out, I continued to work a bit here and there on Project A. I have the mold rubber and casting plastic coming, so I'll be able to cast the foots. The right and left shins are basically done except for scribing in the plate lines and detailing. I started on the thighs tonight. If the dimensions work out right, this thing should stand about 10 1/2 " at the shoulders, maybe a little bit more, and that should be just about right.
I'm working to follow the basic lines and layout of the MWO Atlas, but I'm leaving some room for creative license and "I just don't know how to do that .." But, I'm trying to keep it as close to what I see in my mechLab as I can. This is, as I mentioned, a very challenging project. It's the first time I've tried to build something up from scratch, more than a kit-bash to get "something" and it's pushing some of my engineer buttons. The dynamics of the joints, the layout and dimensions are interesting. I find that I spend a lot of time sketching and looking at the thing from various angles, just to see what I have to work with. At first, I was concerned that my measurements for the foot were off, but now that I'm seeing the way those base measurements are scaling up, I'm less worried.
To be honest, it's frustrating, but more than that, it's pretty rewarding. I'm seeing this thing come together in layers, piece by piece and it's really making me smile. Every little success is one more challenge overcome and one more bit of encouragement to keep on going. I *have* to be patient while I work it, and that's taking some effort. I keep wanting to move to the next phase, and the next, and the next, but I have to work this thing in order, and take it step by step.
Once I have the lower half worked up, I might just put a pic or two out for show.
Until then, keepin' on, keepin' on.
Sunday, July 13, 2014
I decided, in typical Mal fashion:
So, I chose "let's try two projects at once, for $1000, Alex."
I managed to acquire the foundation for Project W. The raw material for this one requires far more surface prep and work to finish than most that I've worked with. Of course, I also have to do my typical customization and personalization to it, which means there is a ton of work to do here. But, that's what I signed up for.
The parts are 3-d printed. This means that there are a couple of challenges. First, they have this very fine but distinct line pattern on them. It's actually an interesting effect but it does take away from the ferro-fibrous look to the armor plates, so it has to go. I might leave it on a couple of pieces, just for the look. There are a couple of things I can do here. I'm told that acetone works to help smooth them out, but the only acetone I have here in the house is nail polish remover. It didn't do such a good job. I can pick up a tin of full-strength acetone at Hell's Depot, and if I get out there today, I will. The other option is the typical sand, prime, sand, prime routine. I tested that out on a section of the back and that seems to work just fine. The catch is; OMFG TEDIOUS!!!1!!ELEVENTY. That process is definitely going to be one of those "how many movies does it take to get THIS to work? There are lots of interesting angles and tiny spaces that will be difficult to get into. We'll see how it goes. But If I want it to look good, there you go.
A second challenge is the null-space. The printing process means that in many of the negative spaces, there is this latticework of material. I have found that it's not entirely difficult to remove, but you do have to be careful about how you cut it away, so as not to slice into the surface of the model or into your own fingers. I haven't bled yet..so that's good. However, when it's done, you're left with an even more rough surface that needs to be cleaned, and typically THAT surface is in a quite difficult place to reach. We'll see how the acetone works, else I'll just get comfortable in a chair with a dropcloth and listen to some movies for a few weeks.
The second Project is Project A.
I had an opportunity to find one of the old Armorcast Atlas models on EvilBay. Unfortunately, this guy has a reserve, and he has a good idea of just what the market will bear on this kind of kit, if his past auctions are any indicator. I don't bid on reserve auctions as a rule anyway, and as I watched the price climb, and indeed it's still out there as I type, I got into looking at it and found I really don't like the look of Armorcast's sculpt. It looked decent when it was the only incarnation out there, but now, I compare it against the MWO Atlas and I find that the MWO design just looks much more.. Rarr. It has a heavier, meaner, more thunderous look to me, and it has more of the feel of the 100-ton behemoth it's supposed to be. So, I decided that I'd rather not pursue a model that is very expensive and only has a "meh" design.
Here's a pic of the two designs side-by-side.
Last night I reached over and grabbed some of the grey firm sculpey off my desk and figured, what the heck. Let's start from the bottom up. I pulled up the image I have of the Atlas, and started to make stuff. I probaby worked on this thing for a couple of hours, off and on. I took breaks when I got to a point where I was ready to just chuck it all in and went back at it later. As it is now, I have a very rough approximation of about 85% of a foot. I'm reminded of the Foxtrot cartoon where Jason is building a colossal snowman, one giant molecule at a time. I'm actually pretty happy with it, especially considering the fact that I don't sculpt. Sure sure, I see a lot of things that can be improved on it and I'll do some more work before I actually put out a pic of THAT piece.
I'm learning a great deal about my skills and techniques while doing this. I suspect that when I do finish, IF I finish, I'll feel as rewarded by this one as I was about the Serenity.
I managed to acquire the foundation for Project W. The raw material for this one requires far more surface prep and work to finish than most that I've worked with. Of course, I also have to do my typical customization and personalization to it, which means there is a ton of work to do here. But, that's what I signed up for.
The parts are 3-d printed. This means that there are a couple of challenges. First, they have this very fine but distinct line pattern on them. It's actually an interesting effect but it does take away from the ferro-fibrous look to the armor plates, so it has to go. I might leave it on a couple of pieces, just for the look. There are a couple of things I can do here. I'm told that acetone works to help smooth them out, but the only acetone I have here in the house is nail polish remover. It didn't do such a good job. I can pick up a tin of full-strength acetone at Hell's Depot, and if I get out there today, I will. The other option is the typical sand, prime, sand, prime routine. I tested that out on a section of the back and that seems to work just fine. The catch is; OMFG TEDIOUS!!!1!!ELEVENTY. That process is definitely going to be one of those "how many movies does it take to get THIS to work? There are lots of interesting angles and tiny spaces that will be difficult to get into. We'll see how it goes. But If I want it to look good, there you go.
A second challenge is the null-space. The printing process means that in many of the negative spaces, there is this latticework of material. I have found that it's not entirely difficult to remove, but you do have to be careful about how you cut it away, so as not to slice into the surface of the model or into your own fingers. I haven't bled yet..so that's good. However, when it's done, you're left with an even more rough surface that needs to be cleaned, and typically THAT surface is in a quite difficult place to reach. We'll see how the acetone works, else I'll just get comfortable in a chair with a dropcloth and listen to some movies for a few weeks.
The second Project is Project A.
I had an opportunity to find one of the old Armorcast Atlas models on EvilBay. Unfortunately, this guy has a reserve, and he has a good idea of just what the market will bear on this kind of kit, if his past auctions are any indicator. I don't bid on reserve auctions as a rule anyway, and as I watched the price climb, and indeed it's still out there as I type, I got into looking at it and found I really don't like the look of Armorcast's sculpt. It looked decent when it was the only incarnation out there, but now, I compare it against the MWO Atlas and I find that the MWO design just looks much more.. Rarr. It has a heavier, meaner, more thunderous look to me, and it has more of the feel of the 100-ton behemoth it's supposed to be. So, I decided that I'd rather not pursue a model that is very expensive and only has a "meh" design.
Here's a pic of the two designs side-by-side.
Last night I reached over and grabbed some of the grey firm sculpey off my desk and figured, what the heck. Let's start from the bottom up. I pulled up the image I have of the Atlas, and started to make stuff. I probaby worked on this thing for a couple of hours, off and on. I took breaks when I got to a point where I was ready to just chuck it all in and went back at it later. As it is now, I have a very rough approximation of about 85% of a foot. I'm reminded of the Foxtrot cartoon where Jason is building a colossal snowman, one giant molecule at a time. I'm actually pretty happy with it, especially considering the fact that I don't sculpt. Sure sure, I see a lot of things that can be improved on it and I'll do some more work before I actually put out a pic of THAT piece.
I'm learning a great deal about my skills and techniques while doing this. I suspect that when I do finish, IF I finish, I'll feel as rewarded by this one as I was about the Serenity.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Next up...
So, what's next?
With the TimberWolf Mk II just waiting for a few finishing touches, the Manufactorum is ready to be retooled for a new project. I have a couple of options, and just need to make a decision.
1) Resume Project T-1. I started out to work on a Prime-variant Timberwolf, when the Mk-II came across my desk. I could return to this one and finish, although it's much more like "getting started" as I really hadn't gotten very far.
2) Project W. The iconic Mechwarrior Battlemech, now unseen, and "the" mech along with the Phoenix Hawk and Jenner that I ran with almost exclusively on the tabletop game.
3) Try my hand at building from scratch. This one is the biggest challenge. While both the above will require heavy custom work to make them what I envision, including custom cockpits and detailing, this is the project that is "all new." Then again, this is also the project that would push my limits more and make me learn. There are some models that come to mind immediately:
Atlas. I mean..seriously. The ultimate Steiner scout mech, and the "other" iconic Battlemech that just says "badness." It's big, it's recognizable and it's a menace to the badguys on the field. I think Armorcast did one at one point, but I never did see it if they did.
Jenner. This one is a personal favorite, just because it is my current favorite scout Mech. Jenner-7F, Twin SSRM and 4 ML, along with 150+ kph of pure annoyance.
Phoenix Hawk. Again, a personal favorite. One of those "are you frakking kidding me" moments during the first table-top campaign we ever ran. Took out a stalker at long range with a bloody lucky headshot. Yeah, I know, it's another of the unseen, but I still like it.
Wolfhound. If you grok the lore, it makes sense. : )
Decisions to make, things to do.
With the TimberWolf Mk II just waiting for a few finishing touches, the Manufactorum is ready to be retooled for a new project. I have a couple of options, and just need to make a decision.
1) Resume Project T-1. I started out to work on a Prime-variant Timberwolf, when the Mk-II came across my desk. I could return to this one and finish, although it's much more like "getting started" as I really hadn't gotten very far.
2) Project W. The iconic Mechwarrior Battlemech, now unseen, and "the" mech along with the Phoenix Hawk and Jenner that I ran with almost exclusively on the tabletop game.
3) Try my hand at building from scratch. This one is the biggest challenge. While both the above will require heavy custom work to make them what I envision, including custom cockpits and detailing, this is the project that is "all new." Then again, this is also the project that would push my limits more and make me learn. There are some models that come to mind immediately:
Atlas. I mean..seriously. The ultimate Steiner scout mech, and the "other" iconic Battlemech that just says "badness." It's big, it's recognizable and it's a menace to the badguys on the field. I think Armorcast did one at one point, but I never did see it if they did.
Jenner. This one is a personal favorite, just because it is my current favorite scout Mech. Jenner-7F, Twin SSRM and 4 ML, along with 150+ kph of pure annoyance.
Phoenix Hawk. Again, a personal favorite. One of those "are you frakking kidding me" moments during the first table-top campaign we ever ran. Took out a stalker at long range with a bloody lucky headshot. Yeah, I know, it's another of the unseen, but I still like it.
Wolfhound. If you grok the lore, it makes sense. : )
Decisions to make, things to do.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)