Friday, June 24, 2011

Drop Bunker: First Cuts

I worked on getting the key shapes for the base of the building figured out. I'm not very good at getting objects made by using math, I prefer to create some "beta" items using cardboard first. Once I get the general shape done, I move on to working on getting the folds and angles started. Once those are close, I move on to transferring the shapes, angles and folds to foamcore. That's where I am now. The next step will be to get my measurements and create a precise, reproduce-able template on the computer.

I'll go through those steps for all of the parts of the building. Somewhat time consuming, but makes the final product something that is easy to reproduce and very sturdy to play with.

The two pictures show the steps I went through on the main folds for the corners on the building and where I stand with the final folds on the bunker.



Monday, June 20, 2011

Drop Bunker: Initial Ideas

One of the good things about some corporate meetings is that they are really great opportunities to get some quality drawing time done. Think about it - no one can interrupt you, because you're "in a meeting." The presenter usually has a PowerPoint they provide after the meeting, so you don't have to focus 100% on what they are saying. And, in the case of my most recent meeting, the subject had practically nothing to do with me, so I zoned out right after the introductory sentence.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

The things we do on vacation

So I took vacation time to get a lot of things done. Obviously, none of them included anything related to 40K. Haven't posted in two weeks because I've been clearing out some "real world" projects during my vacation. The biggie was to finally rebuild my 1971 Honda CB 750 engine. All the aluminum is buffed and chrome polished, new gaskets everywhere, and soon to be painted - just hope it will run. As far as the photo, that's not my entry in the "Tool Time" fastest lawnmower entry. That's the mobile workstation we put together. You try moving a 300+ pound engine around!

I arrived back at work Monday to find a huge item wrapped in brown paper in my office. They finally had taken down the org charts and someone had put them in my office. Seven 3x6 sheets of foam core!

Looking forward...

I have several projects I've wanted to do and with my cache of board, I'm ready to get going. Just a quick list and short description of some of my ideas.

Ruined Cathedral - I've seen several buildings created with massive cathedral facades and features (large windows, long stairs, flying buttresses, etc.). I want to create a centerpiece item with multiple levels. A great example of this FTW's Ron's cathedral.

Drop-Bunker - I had the idea for this during one of our games where we used our bunkers. We were about to set up bunkers on both sides when I thought how "not real" that set-up would be. In a battle, how would both sides be able to build bunkers that close to each other? I like the idea of a bunker dropped into battle much like a drop pod but done without passengers and put out when the terrain is put out.

Wrecked Titan - A couple of years ago I found LackOf's scratch built titan and various plans for titans. Instead of jumping in and creating an entire titan, I thought it would be cool to test the waters by creating a wrecked walker. That would give me a chance to try some variations on the plans and still have a functional piece when I finished.

Themed Terrain - I've found myself creating terrain that loosely fit into categories. Natural terrain, wrecked ships, ruined buildings, and complete buildings (mainly Mechanicum buildings). Not everything fits into these, but I think it helps the feel of a game if the terrain is coherent. As I work on some of my larger projects, I'm going to fit in as many small ones that build on these different themes.

That's just a few ideas. I've got plenty more that I now have the material to build them with.