Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Future Wars => Topic started by: Michka on August 09, 2012, 03:31:45 AM
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Since so many people are talking about Robotech and Macross I thought I'd post some photos of my buddies game at Cyphan this year. Cyphan is a Science Fiction convention held in Chicago for the last three years.
(http://i1183.photobucket.com/albums/x480/Michka5000/AliensandCyphan2086_crop.jpg)
(http://i1183.photobucket.com/albums/x480/Michka5000/AliensandCyphan2075_crop.jpg)
(http://i1183.photobucket.com/albums/x480/Michka5000/AliensandCyphan2074_crop.jpg)
(http://i1183.photobucket.com/albums/x480/Michka5000/AliensandCyphan2064_crop.jpg)
(http://i1183.photobucket.com/albums/x480/Michka5000/AliensandCyphan2062_crop.jpg)
I'm just posting the photos for now. Maybe Mike will come on and comment later. It was his game, after all. I just provided the map and the six battle pods without bases. (Reminds me I need to get those bases attached soon.)
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Looks brilliant. Very well done.
Are those gashapon?
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Is the cartoon that spawned all this any good?
I must say those green coloured baddies look rather nice. I think I will have to get some of them in 1/100
It's very dated now, probably appealed more to kids back in the day and was apparently butchered for the US market... but I quite enjoyed most of it a few years ago when I bought the DVD set. Enjoy it for what it is I guess.
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Thanks for posting those pictures, Michka. I've been meaning to post something myself but never seem to get around to it...
The game played quickly and was a heck of a lot of fun, even though the UN Spacy got thoroughly trashed by the Zentradi. All of the Veritech/Valkyries are Bandai gashapons. The Zentradi battle pods and the command pod are 1/200 kits. The fighter pods (which sadly did not survive through the first exchange of fire) and the Queadluun-Rau powered armor suits (the green coloured baddies) I had 3D printed, as those models are otherwise unavailable in the right scale.
I must say those green coloured baddies look rather nice. I think I will have to get some of them in 1/100
I'm presuming that you mean the humanoid powered suits. I'm not sure if those are even available in 1/100, but there is a 1/144 scale kit from the eighties (and recently re-issued) which is not terribly expensive and relatively easy to find.
Mike
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Those zentradi seem to be lots bigger than the human stuff anyway.
There is a reason for that, but I won't give it away since you haven't seen the cartoon.
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I also really liked the way they animated missile swarms with the crazy contrails and the drunken guidence systems that flew them all over the shop until they converged on the hapless gamalon ship ripping it asunder. If Robotech has those sorts of missile swarms I would download it in a heartbeat.
Sometimes referred to as the Macross Missile Massacre. lol They're in there, especially when the Qeaudluuns are on screen. ;)
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1) What kind of female power armour are you using? They look the same scale as mine, but a different model (boxy forearms and legs?) - edit, just saw they're printed!
2) Where, OH where could I find some of those 3D printed Zentraedi Fighter pods? That's one of the four missing links in my current line up. I'd pay good money if someone can make some for me.
3) PS: Are your super Veritechs 1/200 kits?
Looks simply brilliant.
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Now THAT is one of the best things I have seen in a long, long while! Would have loved to see that game in person, stunning work. Hopefully the Palladium game won't be complete crap and we can see this kind of thing more often.
It's very dated now, probably appealed more to kids back in the day and was apparently butchered for the US market
It IS fairly dated, especially the animation for Macross which was done by 3 different studios, so some of it looks OVA quality, most of it looks average, and some of it is downright dreadful. Apparently they're re-animating the whole thing right now in japan for a blu-ray release, which I can't wait to see if it hits here in the USA. As for the bastardization bit, Macross wasn't long enough for syndication, so they rewrote it, and then rewrote 2 other animes that had similar themes and appearances and, with some heavy handed narration, turned it into one long story which mostly works pretty well. Most of the "purists" that say Robotech is a bastardization weren't even alive when it was first airing on US television and don't realize that it was one of the big reasons we even have so much anime now. An entire generation grew up running home from school to catch it on TV. Some of the dubbing is pretty bad, some is great, but all of it was amazing if you caught it when you were young, and many gamers got their start with Palladium's Robotech RPG. Battletech only caught on the way it did because most people saw the macross figures and wanted to play a game with em.
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Should I get macross with subs or robotech?
Personally, I would get the Macross with subs, because at least the voice actress for Minmay can actually sing in the original version. If you want to hunt it down, there was an English dubbed version of Macross done ten or so years ago, which is pretty good. It has a different cast than Robotech, and Minmays' Japanese voice actress reprises the role in English. I picked up a copy at a convention last year for about USD $20.
Where, OH where could I find some of those 3D printed Zentraedi Fighter pods? That's one of the four missing links in my current line up. I'd pay good money if someone can make some for me.
I could always make them publicly available in my Shapeways shop....
Are your super Veritechs 1/200 kits?
They are Bandai Macross Fighter Collection Valkyries, which are technically 1/250 scale. I find the size to be a bit closer to 'correct' than the 1/200 kits, so I use them. Of course, the original animation plays pretty fast and loose with scale on a regular basis, so I think my decision is justified. The Fighter Collection figures show up regularly on eBay and run $8 to $15, on average (though some get pretty expensive).
Looks simply brilliant.
Thank you.
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Robotech was so awesome. A soap opera with tons of teen angst, like the X-men with giant robots instead of super heroes. I missed the middle series, but when they came back on the motorcycle battle armor fighting the bio aliens that was even more awesome than the veritechs.
That game looks great. Go micronians!
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I could always make them publicly available in my Shapeways shop....
Please do :)
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If all your wanting to watch is the Macross Saga, then just find a copy of the 1980's movie "Macross, do you remember love?" Animation is way better and has the majority of the main storyline intact, and vast amounts of missle swarms.
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I'm moreso hooked on the Robotech universe...not so much the show. I have watched through the series (Macross predominantly) numerous times. I just really dig the mecha, and the general storyline. I can't stand Minmei, and sadly a lot of the episodes don't feature nearly enough fighting between mecha. The animation is very dated, BUT as a kid, it was a shockingly adult cartoon.
Characters drink actual alcohol, main characters die...with some frequency, etc. The whole idea behind the Zentraedi is quite good, semi-unique, and intriguing. It's good stuff, but very much hit or miss with some people.
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teen angst and singing! Oh well too late to stop now.
Oh yeah, there are a few episodes that are all angsty relationship nonsense. Real filler material trying to pad out 20 minutes. There is a nude shot of Minmei in the shower though at one point which was a little surprising for a kids show and especially one where I was never really certain of that characters age. lol
Still, missile swarms and big robots knocking the shit out of each other more than makes up for the padding. :D
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Just grabbed my 14 DVD boxed set off the shelf and will watch a few episodes throughout the day as I work. :D
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I'm moreso hooked on the Robotech universe...not so much the show.
Very much this. I'm just a bit too young to have watched Robotech on TV, but a friend gave me a few of the Next Generation novels when I was 12 or so (far too young to read them in fact, I had to have a dictionary next to my bed for most of them). Another friend gave me a few of the RPG books since he had no clue what they were and the local library had the rest of the novels. I caught episodes here and there but it wasn't until some years later when it released on DVD that I was able to sit down and actually watch it, and by then I had read the books and comics and RPG material to the point I knew more about what was going on than was shown in the cartoon. Because of that the setting always seemed much more serious than the show made it out to be and (for me) it held up a lot better, a lot longer, and was far more in depth than the show ever could have been. Just like al those annoying friends that tell you the book was better than the movie you just watched and loved :P . For me, the show was more about seeing these stories that I already knew given form on screen, and battletech was initially just a way to play with robotech mechs. Robotech very literally got me reading novels for fun, got me into gaming, and through those things got me some life long friends I still hang out with 20 years later.
Macross purists, on the other hand, can kiss my arse. They spout on and on about how much better macross was and how horrible Robotech was, but I'll take that "butchered" show over aliens that steal your emotional energy, zentraedi captain Ahab hunting the great white space whale, valkyries that you pilot by playing a guitar, singer-pilots that literally fight each other in the mecha as part of a Battle of the Bands, or singing holograms that hypnotize and mind control an entire city just to convince the main character that it loves him. All of which actually happened in macross sequels. Robotech never jumped the shark anywhere near the same extent Macross did.
That said, watch Macross Plus. Despite the singing hologram, it's hands down one of the coolest mecha animes ever created. OVA quality animation, great story, fantastic characters and awesome battles. And the English dubbing is top-notch
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Macross purists, on the other hand, can kiss my arse. They spout on and on about how much better macross was and how horrible Robotech was, but I'll take that "butchered" show over aliens that steal your emotional energy, zentraedi captain Ahab hunting the great white space whale, valkyries that you pilot by playing a guitar, singer-pilots that literally fight each other in the mecha as part of a Battle of the Bands, or singing holograms that hypnotize and mind control an entire city just to convince the main character that it loves him. All of which actually happened in macross sequels. Robotech never jumped the shark anywhere near the same extent Macross did.
Now you're getting into Macross 7, which is just plain silly, and was considered to be a comedy by its producers. If you're talking about sequels, Macross Plus is worth watching, as is Macross Zero and Macross Frontier. You may or may not want to check out Macross II, which was produced by the same team who made the Movie back in '84 and is considered non-canon by the producers of the first series and sequels. It's not great, but its not Macross 7, either.
There really weren't a whole lot of changes made to Macross to turn it into the first segment of Robotech. Most of the 'butchering' that took place was in the second and third segments (Southern Cross and Mospeada respectively). I got into anime by watching Star Blazers, so by the time Robotech came around it was rather exciting to see an actual mecha combat show make it relatively unscathed onto US TV screens.
Maybe at some point I'll post some pictures from my old Mospeada project....
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Can anyone point a finger to a page with these minis? Huge fan of the show and was supporting a person trying to get a figure line off the ground, but Palladium would budge.
Thanks
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The palladium stuff is all in early development. Paulson Games was doing the test minis (which were PHENOMINAL!) in 1/285th, but when palladium announced they were going to be getting essentially bargain price freelance sculptors to do minis he removed all of his pictures so nobody could use them as examples of what to expect since he would not be doing any of the actual sculpting. Sad, both because they were gorgeous and because it was him and the guy from the Robotech Battles blog that pitched the idea so hard to Harmony Gold and Paladium. So we'll see, Palladium has announced a 2013 release, but I don't think Palladium has ever come remotely close to hitting it's own deadline on any RPG book ever, let alone a new game and minis line. Very little hard information has been released yet, its too early to know anything about the game othe rthan it's in the works.
In the meantime, most people are using the slightly larger but harder to find 1/200 scale figures. But few of those people finish and make it to an actual, usable force like this convention game did, and the 3D printed fighters and Queadluun raus are something completely unique (and AWESOME!)
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Personlly, I am not ll that happy with Palladium's response that it would cost too much to make miniatures and there would be no market for them and then turning around to announce a miniatures game.
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I'm late to my own party here. I leave the forum for about a day and this explodes. So one of the small disagreements Mike and I have is Macross over Robotech. I love Robotech. He loves Macross. Neither of us hates the other show. It's just a mater of taste. My biggest confession is I love the Robotech music. (No, not Minmey's singing, the theme music.)
While the translation of Southern Cross and Mospeada aren't the best, Macross comes pretty close to the mark. Besides, Southern Cross is pretty bad to start with. I mean, there's a transformable helicopter that is used in space battles. We aren't talking about a well thought out story here. The original Mospeada, on the other hand, is fantastic. I actually like the original series over New Generation.
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Ordered a couple of fighter pods, and one Male Power Armour (time to be a guinea pig!). Will be ordering more if it fits well.
This now rounds out my entire Robotech lineup, minus ONE gap. I'd be stoked if a quality figure line was available from Palladium, particularly in 1/285th scale as it would be better for the large size of the mecha etc. However, I don't trust Palladium or HG...as I feel they've all but suffocated the entire franchise in the US. Shadow Chronicles was garbage, the rpg is decent but nothing has changed in 10 years (even with the new books). Being a Robotech fan is relatively tough here in the US, lol. I did just receive my custom action card decks for my game though, so I'll be able to start playtesting shortly!
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While the translation of Southern Cross and Mospeada aren't the best, Macross comes pretty close to the mark. Besides, Southern Cross is pretty bad to start with. I mean, there's a transformable helicopter that is used in space battles. We aren't talking about a well thought out story here. The original Mospeada, on the other hand, is fantastic. I actually like the original series over New Generation.
But you love the transformable space helicopter! lol
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Ordered a fighter pod for starters, will have to get more and some Nosjadeul ger and Queadluun rau power armors after payday. I grew up playing the Palladium RPG and waching the original Robotech badly dubbed to swedish... I got the complete series in a fit of nostalgia and I am going through it slowly. I've also seen Macross do you remember love, but would love to see the originals as well. Well to bad the fighter pods etc aren't available in 1/100 as it seems to be easier to get the mecha in that scale.
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1/200 seems to be the most comprehensive line...BUT most of it is incredibly hard to get. Here is a quick breakdown on the 1/200 scale at least.
Veritechs (all types): available in models, and gashapon figures.
Super Veritechs (all types): available in models, and gashapon figures.
Armored Veritechs: available in models, and gashapon figures.
Tomahawk Destroid: available in models and gashapon figures.
Spartan: available in models.
Defender: available in models.
Phalanx: NOT AVAILABLE.
Monster: available in models.
Tactical Pod: available in models and gashapon.
Light Artillery Pod: available in models and gashapon.
Heavy Artillery Pod: available in models and gashapon.
Command Pod: available in models and gashapon.
Recon pod: available in models.
Female power armour: available in gashapon (and 3d printed now!)
Male power armour: available ONLY in 3d printed model.
Fighter Pod: available ONLY in 3d printed model.
Zentraeid Foot soldier: NOT AVAILABLE.
Now when I say..available, this is semi-misleading. I only mean that the products do actually exist. Finding/affording them in another matter entirely. I am happy to say I have all of the now available Zentraedi stuff, and I'm about to start ordering a bunch of Veritechs ( have some enroute already). I have plenty of destroids, and I am building my own Phalanxes.
It's not an easy task, or cheap, but assuming I dig the 3d printed models, I'll be extremely happy with the end result. I'll post up some updated pictures later.
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I noticed that searching for models, the veritechs are easy to find cheap in 1/200 but destroids seem to be rarer, not to speak of the zentraedi stuff.
I've got a spartan (model), a female power armor (gashapon) 2 Veritech battloids, a jet and a gerwalk/guardian mode veritech. On it's way I have a couple of regult battle pods and a MAC II monster.
In 1/100 I have a lot of stuff enroute, including a Glaug/officers battlepod, 3 heavy missile Regult/battle pods 1 Regular battlepod, a veritech and a Phalanx, and a Tomahawk.
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I tried to get my own children addicted, renting the series from Amazon. They put up with it, but sadly they weren't as wowed as I was when I was a kid. :-[
I seem to remember recently noticing that it's now available on netflix.
And I think most of you have got it backwards. The angst wasn't filler for the robots, it was the other way around! Come on, we were teenagers for goodness sake. Of course we wanted teen angst. ;D
And yes, Minmei was a complete beeeyatch. But that was the whole point, wasn't it? :-*
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Netflix just yanked it unfortunately. Here are some pics I snapped of some updates to my work in progress...
My first batch of dice straight from Chessex. Dice are tiered in my game, so each is color coded.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/002.jpg)
My custom action card decks arrived from Gamecrafter. I already spotted a few changes I'll make, revamp the deck and then order some replacement cards.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/004.jpg)
A Gashapon Glaug. It's an okay figure, lots of joints, may require some glue (leaving them "moveable" for now). I don't paint very well, so all my models only receive a gaming paintjob.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/006.jpg)
A pair of Queadluun-Rau (female power armour). These two are painted in a generic scheme.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/007.jpg)
I took a chance on one of my other QR's and while I'm not stoked about the colour scheme result, I'm probably too lazy to change it. This one will be used as an ace or special character, squadron leader yada yada.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/008.jpg)
The assembled 1/200 scale(ish) Gashapon Zentraedi so far. No UN Spacy stuff has been touched just yet.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/010.jpg)
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Honestly, right now, on average people pay $20 per Bandai figure...so $40 for a box of two models (basically GW pricing). To put it in perspective, I ordered several Monsters from HLJ, new for $20 a pop. The Monster is a big kit - 5x bigger than the other mecha. So, if HLJ had the twin-kit boxes for $10-15....I'd buy...a ton.
The early Bandai kits were sold with single models inside (or so I hear). The later releases had two identical models in each box, each one in a different colour plastic.
I'd actually prefer a smaller scale for gaming, but looking back, besides a smattering of 1/250 scale stuff, there isn't much of anything smaller than 1/200. I'll admit if HLJ comes out with a reprint of the 1/200 stuff, I'd have wasted a ton of money, but a kit is a kit.
Here's hopin'.
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Well, lets not get carried away here. There are certainly gamers that would love new 1/285 and 1/200 macross kits and buy a whole helluva lot of them, but I think it's actually a drop in the bucket compared to the number of modelers worldwide that would rather build in larger scales. The wargaming market is still very fringe, and the people that are wargamers AND into macross/robotech are even smaller. And we're continually getting smaller and older with very little new blood getting into it since there's newer and shinier animes out. The people that are into it are VERY into it, but a passionate minority doesn't necessarily make for a good market. I think if done right it could be a small, viable market, but it will never be more than a very small corner of the gaming industry unless HG somehow gets it together and produces a new (and good) series, or Palladium surprises the hell out of everyone and makes/markets a fantastic game. But don't tell HLJ that, I want my new kits!
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Oh, I'm fully aware of the battletech unseen thing, I've spent quite a lot on ebay over the years getting some of my own, both the ld plastics and the metals. As I said, I got into miniatures with Battletech just so I could play with the Macross models, and I was working at a FLGS when catalyst rereleased the box set. The minis certainly weren't the same quality as you'd expect from GW or Privateer Press, but for the price they were simply amazing and FAR superior than the cardboard standees that FASA/FanPro had used for years. And like most so-so minis, they look pretty darn good if you just take the time to give them a proper coat of paint. Even though the game really hadn't changed any, the new box set got a LOT of people back into the game, and a surprising amount of new players into it as well, newer high school and college age gamers that had only heard about the game from the veterans but never seen it. The game was the same, but the production quality, visual design and layout was leaps and bounds ahead of what FASA and FanPro had been doing, and with the minis in the box (even cheapy ones) it took off for quite a few months. Palladium COULD do the same with their Robotech game and it COULD potentially be a wonderful and popular game, but they won't because it's Palladium. Thats why I said they may surprise everyone . They won't, but there's always that far out possibility.
But even so, Battletech didn't have the staying power and after a few months became just another box in everyone's closet, occasionally brought out again for a week or 2 and then back in the closet. The people that play Battletech regularly are a very, very small amount of the gaming industry, and even Heavy Gear which has been around for years but has really taken off is in a similar category: great game but there's just so many other great games it has to compete with, especially when playing at a shop where you tend to bring the game you know you'll have opponents for. The people that play it week in and week out are the small groups playing at somebodys house, a small niche market which, as I said, may not thrive but could definitely be sustainable and profitable enough to keep going (like Battletech and Heavy Gear have been)
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I agree with both sides. I think also you have very much a chicken/egg issue here. Let's say HG/Palladium managed to develop some beautifully sculpted 3D plastics (like many new companies are doing right now), and released an excellent range of models (a box of 3-5 battlepods for $25 etc.) in a battle-tech scale etc...you could very well see an overwhelmingly positive response from old and new gamers alike, battletech veterans, and 40K new guys.
However...as the poster above aid, the chances of that are slim. I suspect we'll see a mediocre line of white metal minis half-assed, with poor rules (or no rules, as they've hinted at using models for simply enhancing their RPG)...and it will go un-noticed, and then they'll use that as an excuse "well, we released models and no one bought them!". It's basically a no win situation unless some young, motivated people get behind it from the get go.
It would be very simple though for Bandai to simply re-release old 1/200 kits...that's about the most likely outcome. We shall see.
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Watched the first 3 episodes of macross. It's good stuff. Lots of shooty kill kill with giant robots, little angst and no singing so far.
And the two best mecha pilots in the entire series haven't even been introduced yet....
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But, be advised with 36 episodes, there are probably 6-7 which are entirely teenage soap opera. :D
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Watched the first 3 episodes of macross. It's good stuff. Lots of shooty kill kill with giant robots, little angst and no singing so far.
I've seen those first three episodes at least a hundred times. When Robotech just came out we could only get the first three episodes on video tape. The rest of the series wasn't being shown here in our town, so we shelled out $20 a tape, and each tape had only one 30 minute episode on it. :o
Anime fandom has come a long way baby!!!
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That roy fokker bloke is pretty cool. Flys drunk, chases the birds and has a pirate theme. He is my current fave.
Roy definitely has the cool factor. My previous reference to 'best' pilot was in terms of skill, not coolness. :D
When the studio first pitched the show idea that eventually became Macross, it was supposed to be a parody of the then-current batch of mecha shows. Most of that changed in pre-production, but there are still a few vestiges to be found; such as the most eye-poppingly skilled mecha pilot in the series not being the main character (or his mentor).
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Never watched Gundam...though I saw one episode I think, called MS 08th team or something, and it looks rather gritty/realistic - not the white shining laser-sword super knights that I typically see in the models. I tried to watch VOTOMs for a bit, but it was pretty bad (despite having cool mecha).
I agree with you on Battletech. I was a big battletech kid for a while too, but I did always find it amusing that the most popular Battletech mecha were all of the stolen designs: Robotech/Macross/VOTOMs/Dougram basically provided the entire 3025 books/mechs. The homebrew mechs from FASA were quite horrible by comparison.
You've seen the Dougram boxed set on HLJ right? I'm not entirely sure of the scale, but it's a boxed set of 10 old school Battletech mechs as well. Let's see if any of my old Battletech comes back, looks like a Griffon...Battlemaster...Thunderbolt...Goliath...possibly a Wolverine? Shame it says discontinued. It was only $68 for like 8-10 mechs. 1/144th scale, which is pretty popular for Macross too.
The Atlas of course was basically just a VOTOMs armored suit, so I'm not sure what scale would work with 1/100 mechs...as the 1/48 VOTOMs is slightly larger than 1/200. Perhaps 1/35 scale?
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I did always find it amusing that the most popular Battletech mecha were all of the stolen designs: Robotech/Macross/VOTOMs/Dougram basically provided the entire 3025 books/mechs.
They weren't really stolen. FASA had a perfectly legitimate agreement with TCI to use the images of the models that TCI imported.
As for Gundam, some of it is pretty good, some of it is dreadful, and some of it is downright silly. Gundam is one of the three pillars of anime fandom (the other two being Macross and Space Battleship Yamato) and there is a lot of it out there. They launch a new series every couple years and not all of them are set in the same universe. Michka and I are partial to the Universal Century stories, which are fairly gritty 'real robot' war stories. The UC stuff includes the original series (available shortened into three movies), Zeta Gundam, Double Zeta Gundam, Gundam 0080, 08th MS Team and a number of others. I would start with one of the shorter series like 08th Team or 0080 to see if you like them - just be aware that they assume that you know the basics of the backstory, so if that sort of thing bothers you it would be best to start with the original series (or the first compilation movie). Otherwise, I'll leave it to Michka to give a better review - he's a bit more of a Gundam geek than I am.
Did I mention that the 1/144 scale Universal Century kits work great in miniatures games?
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Perhaps stolen is a strong term...but let's be honest - all of the good stuff came from other designers. lol
I'll have to try Gundam some time.
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Michka, some great looking stuff.
I had some other links saved from other Robotech projects. thought some might enjoy.
http://boyntonartstudio.weebly.com/index.html
http://theminiaturespage.com/boards/msg.mv?id=147276
http://theminiaturespage.com/boards/msg.mv?id=132819
http://www.miniwargaming.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=47764
and some new generation
https://plus.google.com/photos/111810242921855890858/albums/5207146602291766497?banner=pwa
Can't wait to see more of your stuff.
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Perhaps stolen is a strong term...but let's be honest - all of the good stuff came from other designers.
No argument there. :D
and some new generation
https://plus.google.com/photos/111810242921855890858/albums/5207146602291766497?banner=pwa
Earlier in the thread I mentioned that I might dig out the pictures of my old Mospeada/New Generation project, and now Booboo has saved me the trouble by finding the link to one of my playtest games..... lol
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I don't know if you all have seen the Japanese version of Battletech but it's interesting to see so many of the Macross and Dougram designs re-interpreted.
http://jubei.ceyah.org:8081/~jandrese/jbt/
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Booboo has saved me the trouble by finding the link to one of my playtest games..... lol
Glad to bump into you here, I found these a few months back and was awed by them. Great stuff. Did you sculpt the cyclone armors?
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Glad to bump into you here, I found these a few months back and was awed by them. Great stuff. Did you sculpt the cyclone armors?
Yes, I did. In retrospect I probably should have tried to cast them, but those were the first three figures I ever sculpted from the dolly up and I wasn't sure how they'd turn out.
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Yes, I did. In retrospect I probably should have tried to cast them, but those were the first three figures I ever sculpted from the dolly up and I wasn't sure how they'd turn out.
A cartoony look, but fitting, and I like the character in them more than the 3d print I got form shapeways. And sadly, that model was removed after I ordered my first test figure. Looks like I'll be having to sculpt some as well. :)
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Downloaded everything from Macross (that's a lot of GB!) and watched the first episode. Okay, a bit old and dated but I enjoyed it. Brins back (good) memories.
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Shame this came up now, since, as mentioned, Netflix had Robotech on there for a bit. I have an old set of the dvds (5-8 years old). It's only $40 or so for the whole collection, though I've never taken too well to the Masters/New Generation (though some of the animation is much much better).
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Is that the 100gb torrent?
Started with that one, but stepped down to the 50GB torrent. The 100GB had too much 'junk' in it, like tons of audio stuff I didn't care for.
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Hey, and don't forget that nude model you mentioned earlier! :D
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Personally I really dont mid if the entire thing turns into a complete disaster because while taking time out from the floppy arm conundrum I went through my phone book and found a buch of old numbers and scored a date with a chick who I have not seen in years who used to do nude modeling for next weekend. Never would of happened if I was not making mechs and chicks beat toys every time. :D
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So I just spent an entire day on youtube rekindling my love for Robotech. Thanks. ;)
What rulesystem did you use for the game?
/Jaeger
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What rulesystem did you use for the game?
I was running it at a science fiction convention, so I set it up as a participation style game, where attendees wouldn't have to commit more than fifteen minutes to half an hour to play the game. I wrote up a single page ruleset based upon Force on Force, and it did play very quickly - you could clear the enemy off the board in less than half an hour, then reset and have it ready to play again.
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So, for the US guys here, are there any decently priced/available Macross series here in the US? I've seen Macross Plus and Macross II...both quite horrible. I can't really figure out if Macross Frontier is available here or not.
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Macross Frontier is at times amazing and at times abysmal, but worth watching (it's FAR better than Macross 7 and Macross Zero). It's not available in the US, but I got a DVD of it off ebay a few years back that just had all the fansubbed episodes that people were torrenting. Because they are fansubs they are FAR superior to any of the hong kong bootlegs that are quite common (the macross 7 subtitles are barely readable). It's set aboard one of the other colony fleets a few years after Macross 7 happens-in-story, and is a loose retelling of the original series in much the same way Gundam SEED retold the original gundam series. Similar characters, similar overal plot arcs, and it hits many of the same beats, but different enough that it's not actually retelling or rebooting it. It also plays off of your expectation at times, some characters seem to be about to meet similar fates at times and then it winds up the writers were just messing with you, while others change very drastically from the original. It's pretty good overall, but it suffers not just from the same love-triangle and teen angst that the original did but from a few horrible tropes that I really hate in modern anime: all the pilot main characters are also still in high school and deal with high school drama (ugh) and the whole "military is bad, so we are in a different not-military that is totally not bad and fighting for peace" trope that was thought provoking and interesting the first time you saw it in anime, not so much a decade later. Definitely worth watching.
Honestly I'm a big fan of Plus, even with the silly hypnotizing hologram singer, it had some of the absolute best action of any of the series with really cool, well animated mecha and a much more interesting love triangle than most of the others had. It felt a little more grown up, a little more serious than the other series. I also like Macross II for what it was, but it had a LOT of potential that it wasted. It captured my imagination more than any other macross series, in no small part because I played a lot of the palladium RPG for it back in the '90s. It works very very well if you watch it right after watching Macross: Do You Remember Love. It was not a sequel to the Macross series, it was a sequel to that specific movie, both in themes and in design styles. And the Marduk were very intereting aliens, kind of what I envision the Robotech Masters should have been. If only it had just ignored that godawful reporter and centered on the pilots and been more than 6 episodes long. It also has my personal favorite mecha designs of all time. The VF-2ss is hands-down the best looking valkyrie, indeed the best looking mecha, of any series ever created and I wish there were more models of it. It's got all the lines of styling of the VF-1 but sleeker and sexier.
@Mpennock- Those are awesome Cyclones! Unfortunately while I can paint very well I can't sculpt or I'd copy those for myself. Those matchbox and toynami toys are awesome. Invid are a little big, Alphas a little small, but close enough that it looks amazing, with the gang members and terrain it really looks like a scenario straight from the show.
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Got some fantastic new Gashapon for UN spacy stuff, will post pics shortly. Finally a few good guys so I can start play-testing!
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Received the first of three sets of the Kaiyodo Gashapon figures (Super Dimension Fortress). They are simply fantastic. It's a shame only set 2 is readily available (and expensive!).
The first set would be nice...but not $100+ nice.
The figures are harder plastic, and beautifully painted, nicely articulated, and have opening missile pods etc. The scale is pretty large, matching the other Gashapon figures, so there will be some scale discrepancies, but the beautiful Tomahawk and Armored Veritech are worth it!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/002-1.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/003.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/004-1.jpg)
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Those are pretty! Nicely mounted on bases too. Great find.
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I'm a bit torn...but I think I'll cope with the scale issues. The Spartan destroids I have in plastic are perhaps 70% of the size of the Tomahawks...so when placed next to each other they look a little odd. BUT, in the pursuit of decent miniatures, I suppose beggars cannot, in act, be choosers.
The Gashapon are being built first because they're quick, easy, and give me models to play-test with. I have a 3' stack of plastic Nichimo kits about to be built to flush out both sides.
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When it comes to scale issues for a limited interest subject or a pet project I always go with what's available right now. If more compatible scale models become available down the line I can upgrade. That way you can play the game right away, and still have something to look forward to when new stuff comes out.
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They look good, and as Michka said, it gives you something to put on the table. You can worry about getting the scale closer when you actually find an alternative model. Until I decided to model the Queadluuns in 3D I was going to use the 1/144 scale kits alongside the 1/200 Regult and Glaug battle pods.
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I'm not THAT worried about it...just that I'm normally a stickler for scale, so I'm out of my comfort zone. I know full-well the Robotech/Macross options are few and far between.
I will only try to avoid different scales of the same unit...as I have a Yamato 1/200 Veritech which is easily 1/2 the size of the Gashapon ones, etc.
When I have more models/items built and assembled I'll do some quality pictures to give other gamers an idea on scale between the various "1/200" stuff. I found it rather difficult to find good scale photos comparing the various options.
I'm extremely excited though as a life-long wargamer, and a life-long Robotech fan, finally putting some pen to paper, and paint to plastic... :-*
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One thing I'd suggest is a quick oil wash and dullcoat to take away the plastic-toy look. Your zentraedi look great, but the gashapons need some panel lining at the least. I'm not keen on the scale issues either, but there's just too few options for using these things as gaming pieces, you gotta go with what you can get for a reasonable price. Just like the MOSPEADA game that Mpennock did, it looks good enough on the table and the end result is just too cool to get caught up on the scale.
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All the models should be getting an Army Painter Anti-Shine spray eventually. The Veritechs are glossy, the Tomahawk is not, but yes they'll be matted hopefully.
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Honestly, I think you just answered your own question. The vast majority of common european kits literally are from the 1950's-1960's. My father is an avid modeller and when we hang out he's always making models now that he made when he was 15-16 years old. :D
I agree though Japanese kits are quite astounding by comparison. You want tough? Try Russian kits - no pegs or seems...just eye it, and glue it. :D
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Also, of course, Airfix, Revell and Heller don't have particularly large ranges of big stompy robots.
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While we're having this thread --- I'd like to source some semi-generic space shuttles for use with 1/200 scale stuff. Anyone think of models/kits which fit this kind of look? I'm willing to bend on non-authentic shuttles, and aircraft which will only see scenario use.
Some typical UN Spacy aircraft:
(http://cdn.obsidianportal.com/images/210870/905201252_s4mK3-S_1_.png)
(http://warpedproductions.echonetwork.net/screenshots/recon_shuttle.gif)
(http://ptn.home.xs4all.nl/images/sc_27.jpg)
(http://www.kent.net/robotech/vehicles/rdf/star_goose.gif)
Sorry, only small images available on google. Anyway, so near-future looking stuff, nothing too extreme. I've been perusing Macross models and can't find much suitable. Would like them to be 2-4" in length. I've been eying the Dropzone Commander stuff to see if they have anything close enough, but ideas would be appreciated!
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Holy Jackpot...
http://www.toysdaily.com/discuz/thread-802-4848-1.html
^5000 page thread on some Japanese site...nothing but models, pictures, art, kits, toys, etc...it's a ridiculous resource. I'm grabbing a TON of excellent images and material. Amazing!
PS: This is a bit of Geek "perfect storm" for me. Some fan-art of a UN Spacy fighter...in my father's squadron's livery. VF-31 "Tomcatters"
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/VF-4SVF-31combined.png)
lol
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Some fan-art of a UN Spacy fighter...in my father's squadron's livery. VF-31 "Tomcatters"
I mentioned earlier in the thread that I was using Macross Fighter Collection gashapons for the Valkyries. That collection does include a model of the VF-4 Lightning, though it is on the rare side and the last one I saw on eBay was going for USD $37.
This is me being helpful..... :D
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I am just not going to do it to my neice, I remember getting kits as a kid and f&%$#ing them up with glue fingers or losing bits or painting the bloody things with enamels which ruined them. THen of course you would take em out the backyard and shoot them with .22 hollowpoints or fill em with black powder and blow em up or some such to get a measure of satisfaction.
Well kids cant have .22's anymore and if you blow something up these days you end up on a watch list. So if she cannot have the fun of destroying them then she will get kits that remove all the triggers that led to explosions or gunshots.
This post made me laugh and smile. I remember fighting with the old kits when I was a kid and they led me to the joys of flame. This caused my Mom no end of concern, but eventually I found something else to occupy my time. I think you have the right idea.
Avoid destruction. Buy good quality stompy robots...
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My father and I blasted many of his models to smithereens with a high-power pellet gun...now I have plenty of real firearms, so if anything catches my ire, it'll be disposed of good and proper.
Japan seems to still be in the throws that Germany and other countries used to be in - lands of 100% dedication and craftsmanship. Germany is slowly moving out of it, but Japan strikes me as continuing the traditions. I have to admit the kits/toys/models I've received lately (outside of Gashapon) are quite freakin' good.
Particularly when you realize the Nichimo kits are all re-prints of a 30 year old mold. Not too shabby.
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With some Monsters on the way for UN Spacy, I just picked up this 1/720 Quel-Quallie or Bug-Eye "Cyclops" recon ship. I only found one scaled picture, and it looked to be quite large (which would make the 1/720 incorrect). Either way,if it scales nicely enough, the Zentraedi now have a large mecha for scenarios. If not, I'll sell it off on ebay.
(http://webzoom.freewebs.com/superrobots/plasticmodelkits/quelquallie.JPG)
I didn't know they even made them until recently...
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Got another pack of Kaiyodo Gashapon models today...did a little bit of messing around with them. Built up some of the Guardians/Gerwalks. Tonight's goal: Spartans and Battlepods!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/002-2.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/006-1.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/009-1.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/016.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/018.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v455/Elbaus/ROBOTECH/019.jpg)
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Ooooooh, nice! Looks terrific! How big are those bases?
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I almost forgot about the hairspray flamethower vs model kit. (it was the 80's everyone had spray) lol
Simpler joys of the 1970s: set light to model aeroplanes and throw them out of an upstairs window. "He's been shot down in flames!"
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Got another pack of Kaiyodo Gashapon models today...did a little bit of messing around with them.
Those look great!
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Bases are 60mm mdf circles. I have a buddy who has a laser shop, so I just hit him up with dimensions. I guessed correctly it seems, as all of my models fit reasonable well so far.
I have some Heavy Artillery Pods and Spartan Destroids I just primed - hoping to have them started by tonight. I'm very pleased so far. I have a massive amount of models sitting in the wings waiting to be assembled. With the 3d models from Mpenock, I'll have an almost 100% lineup for the entire Macross saga.