06.21.05 » Story

It is said that more contestants are killed in this arena by the extreme environment than enemy fire. Set deep in the bowels of an abandoned toxic waste processing facility, this arena is one of the deadliest in the "tournament". Teams must navigate their way over rivers of toxic sludge via narrow catwalks and jump pads to reach the opposing teams base. Once there, pitfalls and narrow corridors make reaching the enemy flag a treacherous experience.

06.21.05 » Concepts and Variations

Although I haven't played in some time, I love playing first person shooters, especially my favorite: Unreal Tournament. This kit is my "homage to capture the flag". The Heinrich suit lends itself well to this idea since it sports a nice open glazed canopy and has a similar appearance to some of the gene enhanced humans in UT 2003.

The Heinrich (H1) will be carrying its panzer faust in one hand and a red flag in the other. I'm making a rickety metal grate bridge that will be positioned over some glowing green toxic goo. My plan is to have the H1 running with one foot on the bridge. To make him "stick" to the bridge, I'll be using 2 rare earth magnets. One under the bridge panel and another in the foot of the H1.

The color scheme for this one is simple. I'm using a two-tone gray fractal camo highlighted with blue stripes to signify that this H1 is on the blue team. I may tint the upper half of the canopy with clear blue (ala car windshield) as well.

06.21.05 » Initial Progress

I've actually been working on this kit for a few weeks now off and on while waiting for supplies for my Hovertank and working on some freelance. It's pretty far along now as all the parts have been cut, sanded, and the many seams, gaps, and poor fitting parts have been puttied filled and leveled.

This kit definitely has more part fit issues than the other MaK kits I've done. The body needed a good bit of putty since the parts didn't line up correctly. The lower legs had the same problem. Noting major that putty couldn't fix, but extra work none the less.

Next I need to make the joint covers from Magic Sculpt and texture the kit with Mr. Surfacer. The bridge is made from screen and angled styrene.

07.07.05 » Oops... forgot to take progress shots!

Yeah... I got a bit carried away and forgot to take progress shots. Here's where I'm at so far though:

The kit is almost done. I just weathered it today and am ready to build it. After the build I'll be adding a bit of slime, dust and dirt to it then it's done. I'm weathering it so that it looks like it's being corroded by a harsh chemical waste environment. Because of this the paint is really peeling and chipping and the suit is prematurely rusting. For the story, I'd say this suit was new a week earlier. That's a harsh arena. ;-)

The base needs to have the gell medium dry for the toxic waste. I still need to paint and weather a few pipes, build the bridge and finish painting/weathering it, and light up the goo.

The flag needs the same weathering as the kit except the flag will have burn marks from being used in many matches. The flag was made from heated sheet styrene and the pole was made from various leftover bits and styrene rod.