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Edit 4/11/2018 - WHISPER mecha are now available for sale on the Impact! webstore. See link: http://www.impactminiatures.com/index.php?option=whisper

So, the WHISPER Kickstarter is live. I thought I might offer some of the text here for those who are curious and have questions.

Original funding goal done.

Headed onto the Raptor now.

5/18/2017: Second stretch goal down! We've unlocked the optional arms for the Bastet and Sokar!

6/8/17: Into the final 48 we go!

Link in attachments.

The link to the Kickstarter is here:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1671822853/whisper-mecha-miniatures-45-60mm/



WHISPER miniatures (standing Poseidon Kraken and kneeling Sokar) next to various 6mm and 15mm infantry and power armor from The Ion Age, Khurasan Miniatures, White Dragon Miniatures, and Onslaught Miniatures.



How Tall Are WHISPER Miniatures?

The standing version of the Sokar and Bastet miniature is approximately 47 millimeters tall.

I spent awhile going over scale options. Miniature wargames come in all shapes and sizes these days, but for this, I wanted them to be physically imposing enough that when you saw one on the table, you thought, "Okay, that looks like a nasty customer."

On final thoughts, I decided to abstract the scale of the game, and simply place WHISPERs in the 10mm range (thus, a 10mm tall infantryman stands at about the height a real human being would to a 8.2-meter-tall WHISPER). However, if you're a wargamer, and you have 6mm, 10mm, or even 15mm miniature infantry, power armor, and tanks lying around, you are free to proxy these into WHISPER for your games. 28mm and 35mm scale wargames can even use the WHISPERs as heavy power armor (or in Infinity's case, mini TAGs) if they so wish.

Another reason to go with the 10mm scale was that I had to consider terrain costs. The wargame I'm creating is intended to be played with heavy cover and concealment (think an urban battlefield, like Infinity, or MERCS). This is one of those things that can cost gamers an arm and a leg to purchase, or, if they're crafty, you can make your own. But time is also a factor there, and not everyone has the hours saved to create massive buildings. 10mm offers a wide variety of affordable but impressive options for terrain.

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The Universe, and WHISPER Armament

WHISPER takes place in the 27th century Anno Domini, and technology has allowed Mankind to spread to roughly 75 different planets (though more are possible, they are usually unchartered colonization and pirate bases, as well as terrorist outposts or "black sites" of the Dominions and Powers of the times). Some are terraformed, some are inhospitable but livable, and others are colonized mostly through Lagrange colonies, ala Mobile Suit Gundam.

FTL travel is accomplished through hyperspace 'jumps', a capability provided through Tiggs-Dyson eventium generators as an energy source, and hyper-acceleration devices.

Directed energy weapons (i.e. lasers), are the primary armament of almost every standard military force in the universe. They don't fire the intense cutting beams that are a trope of mecha action. Instead, they create a pulsed high-intensity 'blast' that vaporizes on impact. Another high-power weapon system is the Gauss cannon, which utilizes railgun principles to accelerate a metal sabot to a muzzle velocity exceeding Mach 7.

How do you dodge something that travels at nearly the speed of light, or a projectile breaking the speed of sound 7 times over? You rely on a limited artificial intelligence matrix and threat-avoidance programming to recognize when a threat emerges, and utilize high-output vernier thrusters and jet packs to juke away from the threat. Plus, you shoot back.

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The Wargame?

It's being worked on, but it is not the end goal of this Kickstarter. This Kickstarter will focus entirely on the initial WHISPER miniatures line. I've decided to emulate Infinity, Heavy Gear Blitz, and other various wargames and boardgames, in that I'll be focusing on releasing the rules in a free version that you do not have to pay to play.

However, for those interested I'll be regularly sharing bits and pieces of the universe, and also sharing some of the basics in the Facebook Group for WHISPER:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/174693989369987/

Who Are You?

A long-time fan of the mecha genre, a veteran, and just an all-around wargamer and roleplayer. I got my start in mecha like many, I think, with Toonami's reveal of Gundam Wing. From there I graduated to the computer game Mechwarrior 3, to Heavy Gear 2, and so on.

The wargames that attracted me the most (outside of the ever-present Grim-Dark-Future-Which-I-Will-Not-Name) were Heavy Gear and Jovian Chronicles, created by Dream Pod 9, and Infinity: The Game, created by Corvus Belli.

I have benefited greatly from my time spent in those fandoms. Now, I want to take the steps to start up something for everyone from my own mind, and the minds of the artists and sculptors I work with.

Shipping

Based on advice from Impact! Miniatures and others, I will be charging shipping after the Kickstarter concludes based on the actual costs incurred to ship. This will be collected via the pledge manager, where you will let me know what WHISPERs you want in your reward after the campaign ends. This is so we can be fair to all our backers (shipping is rarely one size fits all). As a rough estimate, the pledges will cost about $5 within the US, $10 for Canada, and around $15 for everywhere else (Jam Squad and Ambassador levels could be $23). Thank you for your understanding.

Special Mention

No one operates in a vacuum. I have many folks to thank for getting me this far.

John Yechan Seung - The original artist who granted me the use of his art for these WHISPERs. Can't thank him enough, and I will not slack in repaying him for this kindness.

Glenn McClune - Creator of Sacred Sword miniatures and game, Glenn is the man who introduced me to Marchen Atelier and Impact! Miniatures.

Marchen Atelier (Heriberto and Gibran) - For outstanding sculpts. Look forward to working with them on even more sculpts in the future.

Tom Anders and Impact! Miniatures - For working with me so far, producing amazing 3D prints, and all the free education in details of casting. An outstanding provider, critic, and voice of reason.

Elartwyne Estole - For granting me license to the art he created, and concept art for these WHISPERs. I'm looking forward to working with him more in the future.

Todd Farnholtz - For exemplary painting services and tips.

Nathan Burg - Likewise exemplary painting services and tips.

Aris Kolehmainen - For helping create some amazing datacards that emulate both the feel of the WHISPER universe, and also display the aspects of the WHISPERs with style and panache.

White Dragon Miniatures - A small U.K.-based company with big dreams, amazing resin miniatures, and great tips.

Joshua Tumbry (The Gamefather) - For assistance and collaboration in the creation of my Kickstarter video.

Khurasan Miniatures, The Ion Age, Onslaught Miniatures, The 15mm Sci-Fi Wargamers, and other Facebook groups and manufacturers - For the plethora of tips, scale comparisons, and a general good eye for details I might miss.

Veronica Gordon, James "Jimbo" Burrell, Christopher Lynch, Wunji Lau, Brian Jordan-Dean, Greg Perkins, Sonny Von Hofstea, Harley Graves, David Barrow, Harold Crossley, Christopher Lynch, James Ryan Cunningham, Arthur Braune, and many, many more - Your support, observations, and friendship is one of the things that's kept me going. Thank you.

My Family - Always there. Love them.

And, if you have any interest in joining the community as we grow, you can check out the WHISPER Facebook Group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/174693989369987/

Hope to see you there!

Ah, nice, a very good paint/display scale, and they look good next to the White Dragon stuff.

That's thanks to Todd and the respective manufacturers who granted their permission to use their works in scale shots.

Funded.

Yes, sir. Onto the Raptor.

Here's some artwork granted me by Elartwyne I wanted to share.



Wow.

You already know I'm backing. Is that a Tundra in that artwork? I'd love to have onen that pose with the gatling gun loadout.

I don't have any use for 10mm... but I can't resist mecha/power suits so I backed.

Barzam wrote:You already know I'm backing. Is that a Tundra in that artwork? I'd love to have onen that pose with the gatling gun loadout.

I saw you, Barzam.

And here's the updated pose for the Tundra.

Dark Severance wrote:I don't have any use for 10mm... but I can't resist mecha/power suits so I backed.

Your support is appreciated either way, Severance.

One reason why I decided on the size was for scale neutrality. The other, really, was detail, and just the way it presented itself when it was seen on the table.

That artwork makes this irresistible. I'm liking whatever mech is in the art. What is it?

This thing is giving me a weird Xenogears meets Rifts mecha vibe. That's a good thing.

Probably getting a Tundra. Those wings on the thrusters remind me of something.

Are there any scale shots with other mecha miniatures like from Battletech or Heavy Gear?

These would likely be too big for use with Battletech, correct?

No, they'd fit okay, I think.

I don't know about a couple of the designs I have in mind.

But here's a scale shot of the body of the standing Sokar/Bastet.




Automatically Appended Next Post:

 highlord tamburlaine wrote:
That artwork makes this irresistible. I'm liking whatever mech is in the art. What is it?

This thing is giving me a weird Xenogears meets Rifts mecha vibe. That's a good thing.

Probably getting a Tundra. Those wings on the thrusters remind me of something.

Well I haven't brought out all the designs yet. But lots of folks say the Obelisk/Osiris have a Glitter Boy look.

But the original third-generation design, the Sokar/Bastet, has a Evangelion-esque muscle frame that I described in my announcement of WHISPER coming to Kickstarter: https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/723751.page

Thanks for that scale shot. Looks like chassis similar to the Sokar/Bastet would come in at big Heavy or Assault class `Mechs in Battletech.

Is the Tundra similar in size to the Sokar? Both of those designs are ace!

 DarkTraveler777 wrote:
Thanks for that scale shot. Looks like chassis similar to the Sokar/Bastet would come in at big Heavy or Assault class `Mechs in Battletech.

Is the Tundra similar in size to the Sokar? Both of those designs are ace!

Yes. I wanted them all to be of a similar size, but the Poseidon and Scorpio both tip the scales as major threats in their own right.

The Raptor will have the smallest base of them all, as a 27mm flight stand with a pre-drilled hole for the stand in the lower torso, while the others are intended for 40mm bases, and the Poseidon, a 55mm base.

Edit: Now less than $300 from the Raptor being unlocked...

So, within the first 24 hours, we unlocked the Raptor and made it available for those who Back! HOOAH!

Now, onto the next stretch goal, the optional arms for the Bastet and Sokar. That'll be unlocked at $5,200, and we're currently sitting at around $4,996 USD.

The arms themselves include a double-handed Gauss cannon, a missile launcher, and a pair of damaged arms, just for those modelers who enjoy banging their models up some.

Whoah! Congrats! I kept waiting for you to updat the preview thread and didn't see this one until this post. In the meantime you blew through the funding and first stretch goal. It's a nice start!

My apologies, warboss, I felt as though it would help to create a separate thread for when it went live, since I wanted to drum up some interest a couple weeks prior, and then create this separate thread to keep track of things when it went live.

Aaaaaand boom, our second stretch goal has been hit! The optional arms for the Bastet and Sokar are now available to all backers as a $5 add-on. Backers who threw in for a Jam Team of 17 miniatures at $135 will receive one free set of these at no additional charge, as will our WHISPER Ambassadors.

These optional arms adds some serious firepower to our original team.

The Sokar is a more combat-oriented mecha, designed to take a hit and keep rolling, while the Bastet is slightly more flimsy, but with some extra tricks up its sleeves for dealing with pesky opponents.

With the Gauss cannon, they increase their firepower drastically, but lose some of their close quarters effectiveness, and they are limited to a number of rounds per turn while the weapon charges between shots.

The missile launcher retains its CQC abilities, and instead adds an ability to engage indirectly with a guided munition, but its ability to react fire is limited due to a limited number of shots allowed during a fast-paced turn.

The damaged arms are 'just for show', but I've successfully drilled out holes for a 2mm magnet to replace my arms on one WHISPER to show when it's taken a hard hit. I think the modelers of most fandoms will appreciate that.

So, with the change in line-up, that means at $7,200, we will unlock our next mecha, the Tundra with Vulcan cannon!

I know you showed off the downed Sokar on the Facebook group, but is there any chance of eventually doing an alternate Sokar pose with it holding the DEW with both hands, and in a shooting pose?

Also, a couple quick questions about the Sokar/Bastet arm add-ons. Is the combat blade arm different from the regular version? Are all of the arms included in that $5 add-on, or is it just one set of arms for the $5?

@Barzam, To the answer the first question, that would be a separate pose I would need to create separately.

To the second question, yes, the combat blade arm with the missile launcher is straight, whereas the regular one is bent at the elbow, but it's interchangeable if you like.

The $5 add-on includes:

1 arm set with Gauss cannon.
1 arm set with missile launcher and alternate blade.
1 arm set with damaged arms (left arm blown off at bicep, right arm mangled).

Would it be possible to do the two handed shooting pose as a separate set of arms for the current body poses? Sort of like the Gauss Cannon arms. Maybe somewhere down the line do a full second set of alternative arms with more weapon options?

@Barzam, I'll definitely keep it in mind. One of the bigger cries has been for a bazooka (because big boom tube), and a double-handed pose for the DEW would definitely look impressive. For now, though, I also want to add a variety of mecha to ensure that folks aren't just dealing in one particular WHISPER.

Oh, I totally agree. Get the variety out first, then work on alt poses and whatnot. Along with two-handed DEW pose and bazooka, I would also like to request a shield and a heat axe.

You and your damned heat axes. This ain't no Zaku, boy!

Next thing you'll want are heat rods and mega particle cannons, especially on aquatic units...

It's making me crazy how that Tundra design is hitting some sort of nostalgia button for me with those thrusters and wings.

What is it reminding me of? The Gundam Mk. III? One of the Weltall variations? The Gundam Aquarius?

I don't know what it is I'm thinking of, but whatever it is is making me paint one up in Super Robot colors!

I've heard many people asking for shields, I've kind of wandered away from it in part because, as powerful as these weapons are, it wouldn't help. Modern missiles (and missiles in WHISPER) are designed to come in from a top attack angle to detonate.

And with WHISPER DEWs, many of these weapons are firing at close to the speed of light.

To escape, a WHISPER pilot is free to Dodge (which allows them to maneuver 4 inches in any direction), or React Fire if their opponent is in their front 180 degree arc, with a 1-inch movement in any direction (they shoot back while dodging minutely to throw off the aim of their opponent).


Automatically Appended Next Post:
And updated for the optional arms explaining what someone gets with the add-ons, and for those who are new to the KS and the universe, a little fluff explaining the "dudes in suits" look:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1671822853/whisper-mecha-miniatures-45-60mm/posts/1888897

I keep seeing a lot of neat stuff for this.. none of which seems to be in the KS yet. Most (if not all) looks like Infinity figures that are being re-purposed as mecha or Heavy Gear Blitz stuff. That cool 4 legged walker doesn't seem to be added to the main page and everything else just feels kinda derivative..

MY POINT.. there's stuff that seems to be planned that I would probably throw money at but I don't see it anywhere..

Beefier than Infinity. These are closer to mini-TAG size:

The Scorpio is not there because it wasn't finalized until the day of the Kickstarter. I do plan to eventually release it, but baby steps. I don't know how much it will cost to master, mold, and produce yet. I'm not over-promising something and not delivering on it, that kills more Kickstarter creators and projects. I don't plan on this being a one-hit wonder. I'm in this for the long haul, to create a great mecha-oriented game and community.

Didn't see this until now. Congrats, Brandon!

@Albertorius, Thanks a thousand!

And, since I just received some new estimates, I wanted to share the next stretch goal and let the possible Backers and Backers cast their votes as to which will be our next stretch goal following the Poseidon with alternate arms, the Poseidon Kraken.

Link here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1671822853/whisper-mecha-miniatures-45-60mm/posts/1889125

Pasting the faction rules for PAC-NATO here, and sharing their link to the most recent update in the Kickstarter with data cards for infantry:

PAC-NATO

Arguably the first Dominion to ever draft itself in the codes of the United Nations as a separate governing entity, PAC-NATO's military force lies in its premier 'first-among-equals' status. As a result, it maintains some of the best-protected troops in the Dominions. Their development of the first WHISPER, while groundbreaking, has been challenged repetitively now, however, and while they maintain good trade relations with the new kid on the block, the Throne Confederacy, there are rumblings within military industrial structures that PAC-NATO will be seeking a mass-produced fourth-generation WHISPER before the end of the decade.

- PAC-NATO forces may not take Regular Infantry units.

- PAC-NATO forces may not take Common MBTs.

- Light Power Armor and Heavy Power Armor units receive 1 Wound in addition to whatever their base Wound number is.

- PAC-NATO MBTs may React Fire freely without spending their turn's Order.

- Any WHISPER with a Missile Launcher adds 1 to its launcher's Fire Limit.

- One WHISPER in a PAC-NATO force may be equipped with an Advanced Sensor Suite.

- Any WHISPER with 3 Wounds or less may add 1 additional Wound to their total.

- PAC-NATO forces roll 1 additional Initiative dice at the start of the game.

KS Link Here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1671822853/whisper-mecha-miniatures-45-60mm/posts/1893370

We're into the last 48 hours of the Kickstarter, and as promised, I was able to show a quick Live video of how the WHISPER rules are being formulated in the latest update.

Much thanks to those who came in early to support, and here's hoping to see more now as we go for the end line.

An update concerning WHISPER to be found here. The metal masters have been finished, but there was an issue in quality control that I had to make a call on.

In addition, I'll be making updates to the ruleset before the middle of August.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1671822853/whisper-mecha-miniatures-45-60mm/posts/1949115