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 AnUnearthlyChilde wrote:
Fair enough, though't I'd ask lol. So would that mean when it comes to the final piece that you'll do a combination of the two?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm just curious as I've been away from dakka for about two years lol.

Don't worry about it, questions are good. I expect to use just the ball joints on the final resin model, again, assuming I ever get that far. I'm also not the most frequent forum browser either, hence this year+ gap, but oh well.

 fiorehellheart wrote:

 AnUnearthlyChilde wrote:
Fair enough, though't I'd ask lol. So would that mean when it comes to the final piece that you'll do a combination of the two?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm just curious as I've been away from dakka for about two years lol.

Don't worry about it, questions are good. I expect to use just the ball joints on the final resin model, again, assuming I ever get that far. I'm also not the most frequent forum browser either, hence this year+ gap, but oh well.

As I say, ive been out of it two years now where forums are concerned. litterally only been back days.
But glad you've returned as from before I remember how awesome this was looking, so I urge you to see this through!

So, I've been busy the past couple of days with some exams, which hopefully went okay and are finished now. I did the pepakura work for the thigh parts, including the armour, and have just printed them out to build in the next few days. I'll update once that's done.

@blackadder.(he asked how I get such precision on my drawings, over on warseer)

I get such decent drawings because I'm effectively using CAD. I've always liked being able to use a 3d model to get an idea of proportion, because that's one of the biggest contributors to a bad looking titan. From the 3d model though I started to make templates using a program called pepakura. it just unfolds a 3d shape into it's constituent faces, and has tools to move those around and change the layouts, and appearance. Initially I did that with 3d models that weren't really suited to it, and since have optimized how the 3d model is constructed.

For example, on the part in this post, I have a seperate piece for the middle of the thigh, and one for each of the two cylinders at the ends. Originally I would have had it as one part, but this is much less strong in paper, and because paper is about the same as plasticard, doesn't translate well there either. In fact, part of my planning now is still helping contribute to when I eventually build in plastic, because I'm able to use a more geometrically accurate model now. As in, I can create a part in 3d, and know that it will be a certain width, and when built in paper/on the drawings produced, I know I have that dimension preserved. This will help because when I restart in plastic, unlike the first time I built it, I plan to integrate things like plumbing parts for cylinders ect. Then I can make a 3d model which accounts for the precise sizes of those parts that I can't control.


So, I finished up construction of the thigh part. No real problems in building it, and it fits nicely onto the lower half of the leg. Next up is the hips, after which I'll need to build a second leg, but might begin on the body as it's a part I've never properly prototyped, and I always seem to reach the end of a leg and stop before the body is completed.







I managed to get distracted here and forgot to take and build photos, but here's the main part done. This is the bit which was built in seperate parts for the cylinders at either ends, to the middle, so that it's strongest. The bit on top, the armour seperator, isnt glued on here, hence wonky.











Finally a couple of shots showing the range of available motion, this is part of what I Wanted my titan to be able to do, a lot of warlords seem immovable. I forgot to get a frontwards picture, but will do so for the next update. I might show a bit of how the pepakura process works to make the templates I'm using too.

So, no new updates on the paper model. I've been really busy with uni work, so it's gone slow again. However I wanted to show some of the thoughts I had on something else.

I was prompted into thinking about imperator class titans by a post from blackadder about his thoughts on building one. Which I hope he does because it will be awesome. I started thinking about how to make an imperator titan actually look like it could work, mechanically speaking. On the epic model, and also most 40k scale build, there doesn't seem to be any attempt at giving it an ankle. I guess this is because troops are stationed within the leg, and need to be able to exit, so must be able to leave through doors, down the toes to get to the ground. I suppose that the design could work with some strongly articulated toes, but I wanted to try and figure out some way for a working ankle joint, but still with troop carrying capability. This is a cross section through the armour, of what I came up with



The basics are that it's still roughly imperator leg shaped, although that could be changed by design, and that there is detail on the front, of which is seperate to the main bit of armour. To make it look imperatory it would likely be arched window shaped, but to show here, it's simply a rectangle opening. With the armour cut away you can see the base of the foot (blue) the shin 'bone(red) and the platform that has men on it (green).



Cutaway even further and zoomed in you can see how it works. The blue is the base of the foot, and includes a hemisphere as the ankle joint. The red is the shin, which fits onto the ankle joint. Connecting those two are 4 pistons, each of which has a ball joint at either end, so that the ankle joint has a full range of motion. The same pistons are use above, one of which is cut in half to see it work. The driving force of the foot is from the 4 longer, lower positioned pistons, which also act to keep the shin connected to the foot, by maintaining that ball joint.

The platform itself is green, and also has 4 pistons which connect it to the shin. Between the shin and the platform would need to be linear bearings for it to run along when raising/lowering, but I didn't find them necessary to model here. It's cut away to show how it fits without impairing the ball joint. It also has recesses for the ankle pistons to fit through. A key point to make is that this platform is separate to the grey armour.

I made an animation to show how it works for getting troops on and off the legs, as it seemed the simplest way to describe fully.
It's also quite fun to see something I thought of move the way I did in my mind.
These are in spoiler tags, so you don't instantly get a laggy page if your browser is struggling with the GIF.

There is also an uncoloured render, where I show the leg moving, then stopping to allow disembarking.

This one shows the pistons on the rocking motion, with the cutaway.

Lastly a leg that rolls to show the x and y pistons moving at the same time. This ones surprisingly hypnotic...


I'll probably get some comments about the area on the platform seeming a bit small for 50-100 troops. Firstly, I think the scale is deceptive, the leg ends up huge, so the platform is still big. Secondly most people picture things like this in terms of troops on bases fitting into it. If anybody remembers the old krieg trench toops, they were lined up way denser than you might expect, in that way, a lot of troops could be squished in. Lastly, and I'll show this in the next update, I think you could fit a 2nd or even 3rd platform above the first. Then you can increase the total capacity. In terms of travelling down the leg, you just need to have some poles to slide down, fireman style. It might sound silly, but I think it would be both fastest and space efficient. It also stops intruders from travelling up easily.

So yea, they're just my thoughts about an imperator titan. I was also going to play around with the tops of the legs too, as the thighs of imperators are somewhere else I see problems.

PS, if anybody knows what the gorgon bay dimensions are, I'd love to know. Then with the actual density of troops I can figure out a theoretical capacity per leg.

Not one to complain about your work, and the imperator titan work is lovely to see, but where's the warlord gone lol? ;P

Haha, thanks. The lack of any work on the warlord is just a demonstration of my inability to commit to any one project. I like doing the warlord, but sometimes get tired of it. It's nice to have a break and do other things. Aside from the warlord and imperator planning, currently I have a few other things I'm doing. I'm making a 3d settlers of catan set. I'm making some cast metal jewellery for my girlfriend. I also have various other paper based project. I'm trying to make a super detailed viper model from BSG for example. I also have that pesky matter of a physics degree (Meant to be learning general relativity this week)... I know you're only joking but I do a reasonable variety of hobby stuff at any one time.

Tbh I'm quite similar in that respect, as if I don't have a few projects on the go I tend to lose interest. Complete butterfly brain. Needs constant attention or it wanders off...

Talking of which, I'm about to start my Armies on Parade entry for this years competition, and with my being utterly useless with computers I was wondering if I could ask a favour if you've the time... It's basically making a flat image/images within Illustrator for use on a laser cutter. It's work which is laborious to do by hand tbh and the time it would save would be best used elsewhere in the project really lol.

If you think you may be free enough to help, please just inbox me and we can go from there.

Anyways, I'll be looking forward to seeing more of whatever you get on with soon lol

Since there appears to be a Mar's Warlord titan on the horizon will you be modifying your Warlord to conform to the FW model or perhaps even better; producing a slick Mars Imperitor/Warmonger?

 The_Blackadder wrote:
Since there appears to be a Mar's Warlord titan on the horizon will you be modifying your Warlord to conform to the FW model or perhaps even better; producing a slick Mars Imperitor/Warmonger?

Well, this project is effectively on hiatus because I have to do a degree and find a job ect. (I hate growing up...) I would like to be able to continue but neither have the time nor workspace to do so at the moment, or really in the foreseeable future, which sucks. Part of me doing the paper stuff was just a low effort continuation of my ideas. I've also been a bit demotivated towards this by the warlord becoming official. I feel less of a drive to create my own vision right now, so it can just simmer for a few more years.

I have however been thinking about other titans. If my warlord can no longer be a mars pattern, which it wasn't really anyway, I want to try and make my own warhound and reaver of my own pattern too. I find it funny that titans are described as unique to each forgeworld, yet everybody that owns one has the same ones because of forgeworld models. Even for scratchbuilt, people build to replicate that, rather than to reinterpret it. This isn't any critique, after all I couldnt possible build as precise as your build on lucie, but just me wanting to have my own titan legion.

It also means that the next unclaimed territory is the imperator/warmongerer, and I have yet to see a modernised rendition on those in the same way that forgeworld does. Their warlord is a great example of how it is recognisably that model, but so much more detailed and well thought out than the epic one. I want that in an imperator rather than just a scaled up epic model with all of those flaws. But it's not something I can do soon for the reasons above. I really think that you should give it a shot though. If anybody could do it properly I think you should be able to.

Also, my silly long analysis of the warlord stuff so far released. I'll probably revisit this next week.
In terms of what we've seen so far that head looks pretty great.
pic:


I expect that it will be hollow detailed although I need to see the scale on the thing. I'm intrigued if they have gone for the tank princeps that should be there, or if they're following the unplugged ones from the other titans. I like the pipes but think that the other detail is a bit over the top. From the warhound to reaver they ramped up the edging, and they've done that again so it doesn't actually match the warhound now. The way that every interior edging corner is circled doesn't look that great to me. I also don't like the extent of premolded detail on the plates like that cross.
pic:


The guns follow much of the barrel design that came before which is great, and with some nice detailing on the undersides. The armour plates again are too detailed though. The lines on the surface and those circle cut corners on the edges just really don't do it for me. I think that the mars warhound had an amazing clean look and after that they've gone crazy with digital modelling and detailed too much, without actually looking at how the thing will go together. I expect to find the model too busy in that regard.
pic:


The foot picture irritates me a bit. The design of the piston layout is like the reaver, where the leg has a piston to the toe, which is hinged to the foot. That never looked very strong to me, and this one is worse given how exposed that ball joint is. I need to see it with everything in place, but I'm not massively convinced. Of note is that there are 4 posts for the shin armour to attach, all round the leg. Which implies to me a much more evenly covered design than the original beetleback front faced legs, or the standard warlord one with front and side. Something else from the video that I saw was that the pistons seems to be recessed in regard to the armour. For example on mine and the reaver the toes extend past the shin plate, whilst this seems the other way around. Again need to see it properly to judge what I think.

For the overall shape from that teaser video,
pic:

the upper legs and midsection I like. Also the way the arms are hinged and armoured. I find the shoulders make it look too much like a knight titan. I think ideally the warlord should have been first. When they came out with the knights one of the first things I saw was the opportunity for a warlord type design, given that this is the case I'm a bit dissapointed. I also dislike how the dislocated knee is similar to the FW castigator knight, which is very similar all over.

The scale from that video is hugely deceptive. The one just off to the right looks like a good candidate for sizing, but best to just wait for next week. I think it will be significantly smaller than mine would be.


Well, that was a huge rant from a small comment. What can I say, I'm excited for next week.