8/26/15 Product Update - KNight's 3D Printing Adventures

Once it was something I wanted but I came to realize my limits years and years ago, both in in terms of my 3D skills(not talent) and in regards to my drive.

Not to mention that being an artist is a bit different from being a "game designer" and frankly, of the two I'm maybe ever so slightly more suited to being a Game Designer. Though it seems my experience in that regard isn't worth all that much compared to what a "real" game designer thinks...

Mike

Ah ok. You actually answered my question pretty well. It was mostly a question of whether you were a professional game designer or 3D modeler.

Well it also depends on how you define it. I mean, while the overall process we used for BlackOps and what not weren't the kinds of things you'd find in a "proper" developer house a lot of the smaller actions were mechanically similar. We brainstormed ideas, fleshed they out a bit, do any testing/prototyping for new systems to make sure we could do what we wanted/needed I'd design the unit's aesthetic while Hawkeye worked the code end of things and we did game testing and revisions as we felt they were needed.

Sure the work we did isn't on the same level as a "proper" developer house but where does it fit in? I like to think that if you were to "0-10 it" with 0 meaning no skills/knowledge at all and 10 meaning AAA-Release Skills/Knowledge The BlackOps team probably sat somewhere between 5-7 by the end of active production on BlackOps, at least in regards to the kinds of things we were doing that is.

One way to look at it is that doing something professionally and doing something as a hobby isn't a distinction of skill, but rather just application of the relevant Skills/Talents. So yeah I might not be a Professional 3D Artist, but within the scope of my skills I think I measure up pretty well.

Mike

Got a package in yesterday, I haven't had a chance to do a full set of pictures/descriptions yet so just think of this as a preview for now;



Although the Basilisk Figures are each already available these are the new tweaked versions with some details that have been improved over the initial prints I got.

Mike

Just a little something to tide you guys over while I work on the other pictures!

Picture Removed due to redundancy.

Mike

It's finally here!



Wooooooo! It feels like all this 3D printing "non-sense" was all leading up to getting my Basilisk MKII and Tyrant Printed and they're both finally within my grasp!

And it feels weird, but also good! It feels weird because while I've been doing 3D models for awhile now, even getting a bunch into games via Mods and the like these Prints just make me feel so different compared to the other "realizations" of my work.

Anyways, mushy stuff aside once again I'm surprised by the level of detail found in the small 30mm print, not perfect by any means but considering the scale it pretty damn nice! The 50mm version is also now my largest single part print, not only standing about 5mm taller than the Basilisk but also having much more mass to it. Case in point the Basilisk uses 7.8cm^3 of material while the 50mm Tyrant uses 9.5cm^3 of material.

Now for some Tyrant fluff:

On the Bleak Battlefields of the future war is carried out by Proxy Armies, robotic tanks and mechs march to war by the thousands under the networked control of bloodthirsty Commander AIs.

The Tyrant is the most ruthless Commander AI yet seen on the Proxy Battlefields. Unlike other Commander AIs the Tyrant Leaves it bases to entire platoons of Forgers to seek out glory on the frontlines. The Tyrant is well suited for it as well, it's Right Arm mounts a seemingly underwhelming Mass Driver yet it is connected Directly to the Tyrant's Reactor allowing for a much higher rate of fire compared to what would be expected. It's simply but efficient ammunition is easily manufactured by a dedicated NanoForge unit and is Forged on demand, allowing it's magazine space to be kept for a selection of specialty ammunition types.

Even the Tyrant's Primary NanoForge mounted on it's left arm can be used for destruction as it's been specifically calibrated to make periodical use of what is described as a "Corrosive Nanite" attack, cause units to seemingly crumble into fist sized chunks of scrap metal. These nanites are unstable and short ranged and ineffective against the Regenerative Armor of other Commander AIs.

Even in death the Tyrant seem dead set on causing maximum destruction is a special overload circuit and breaching mechanism built into it's reactor.

As usual these are available through my Shapeways Shop;

30mm Tyrant
50mm Tyrant
Micro Army Miniatures

Hope you guys got a kick out of it and thanks for following along and I can now firmly agree that I'm hooked so expect to see more soon-ish!

Mike

That's pretty badass.

Thanks It certainly feels way more badass to see them staring at me from in FRONT of my monitor instead of simply inside the monitor! xD

Mike

So it's been a bit and while I don't have anything "new" to show yet I figure a bit of an update couldn't hurt.

I also realized that I never shared the results of the Modular Rifle Kit I designed!



It's only really of potential interest to anyone that's familiar with Gundam Model Kits, in particular the 1/144th range for which these are compatible with. Naturally with all the different parts you can get some pretty neat combos as well.



In particular that combo on the far right turned out to be quite inspiring and resulted in a non-modular variant of it!



It's not modular, but the upside is that it'll also be cheaper to pick up! I'll be doing a bunch of "one-off" type designs like this in the future, I actually just had a neat concept for a ...uh..."Pistol" pop into my head right before I started typing this so once I'm done with this I'm going to block that out so I can mess around with the proportions and such!

I also did some assorted designs for another project I'm working on, There was a sale going on that I only found out about the day before it ended so it was a bit of a blur to whip these models up and get them ordered in time! xD





I've also started working on a companion for the Basilisk, the UEF Goliath!



It'll be a bit of a challenge as I'll probably have to tweak a lot more details for the Goliath compared to what I had to do for the Basilisk but overall it doesn't seem like there is anything drastic I'll need to tweak at least.

All this should make the next month or two really interesting! xD

Mike

It's been awhile but I finally put in an order last month that I've had a few things sitting on for awhile and got it in last week, most of it was Gunpla Related but there were a couple of items that'd be relevant here;

First up, completing the "Ultimate Showdown" grudge match against the Basilisk MKII is the Goliath Armored Assault Bot!




Had to tweak a fair bit to get it all printable but it turned out great! You might not be able to make it out in these pics but even the UEF Logo in the chest turned out great!

You can pick up your own over here at my Shapeways shop! Don't forget to check out the Basilisk too if you haven't yet!

Next up is an addition to the Micro Army Line, the Thundercrack!





These turned out great! From here I can work out some of my other aircraft designs, I've at least got a couple of gunships designs kicking around! xD

These, along with the rest of the Micro Army line, are also available at my Shapeways shop! Don't forget to check out the 50mm Tyrant if you want something to lead your armies into battle!

That's all I have for now! xD

Mike

Hey guys back again! I've been working on a lot of tanks for all this 'Proxy War' stuff, I was putting off the Mechs because I wasn't sure where I wanted to go with them yet. Took some time to think on it and got around to figuring it out and got to work! Came up with 4 Mechs and a new Tank to boot!

Badger Light Mech


Badgers make up the Rank and File of any Mech Formation, they're cheap but effective in numbers.

Comes in a set of 8 Badger Light Mechs.

Rook Heavy Mech


Rooks can be found in any defensive Mech Formation, while their heavy armor limits their offensive mobility it does allow them to take the hits and dish out destruction with a pair of grenade launchers shooting high explosive rounds down range.

Comes in a set of 4 Rook Heavy Mechs.

Strider Missile AA Mech


Striders form the first layer of air defense for Mech Formations, their missile pods fire the long range Spearpoint Missiles which can take down all but the most resilient or evasive aircraft in a single salvo. Striders have the ground speed to even keep up with some Tank Formations to lend them their firepower.

Comes in a set of 4 Strider Missile AA Mechs.

Rapier Artillery Mech


Rapiers can be found in many Bot Formations and van even be seen supporting Sledgehammers in the mid-to-close range where the Sledgehammers are most vulnerable. Armed with a pair of Hellfire Cannons loaded with Napalm Shells ideal for area denial and crowd control.

Comes in a set of 3 Rapier Artillery Mechs.

Tremor Tank Hunter


Tremors are the army's most capable Tank Hunters. Their heavy armor and low profile allow them to line up the perfect shot. Once it does the Tremor's unique Aurora Beam Cannon can make short work of almost any armored unit, even if it's distinctive discharge marks it's location like a beacon.

Comes in a set of 2 Tremor Tank Hunters.

As usual, these are all in my Shapeways shop along with the rest of my Proxy War Designs alongside several other Mecha themed Miniatures and Gunpla related products!

Mike

Ahhh ha hahaha , Thundercrack .. lol .. I get it
Nice A-10 styled Aircraft, i want one.
The A-10 "Warthog" Thunderbolt and the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird are my most favorite Aircraft,
Would be awesome if you made one with a bit of a Lockheed SR-71 Look to it too.

8/26/2015 Shop Update!

I'll keep this quick because I doubt there are that many Gunpla Fans here but I just added 6 new gunpla Compatible items to my Shapeways shop, Metal Core Collectibles!



If you're more so a fan of Miniature Mechs and such you can check out my last update here or just go straight to either my Proxy War or Miniatures Shop Sections!

Mike