pombe Posted December 17, 2015 (edited) Location: G03 - New California Tags: Spaceship, Land Vehicle Dramatis Personae: Octan Pombe Courageous, wise, and a gentleman extraordinaire, Pombe leads his intrepid team of explorers on adventurous adventures, in the name of profit for the Octan corporation and its shareholders. His list of achievements is long, from mentoring the now super undercover Octan explorer, Isabel Novak, to destroying all the cacti on New California, to rescuing Octan employees captured by aliens in Sinden's Run and recovering their pants from the dastardly "jeans stealers". He credits his success to his following in the footsteps of his explorer idols, Lu Caslaug-Hing and Wick Nole, even though Wick Nole is really an engineer. Despite Pombe's accomplishments, he still somehow gets reported to HR consistently by Dr. Danielle Long, whose ship, the O.C.S. Axle, Pombe and his team have taken residence aboard. His sister, Pombie, is a special forces agent for the rival M.A.N.T.I.S. corporation. Eshey Reeshia Kolai Pragmatic and logical, Eshey is Pombe's second apprentice, after Isabel Novak. Prior to joining Octan, she was a popular deejay and an absolute beast on the turntables. She applied to Octan, because she wanted a more stable income. She was taken on by Pombe as a temporary hire, despite not having any previous corporate industry experience, because she showed up at the job interview in Octan regulation approved attire. She initially showed promise as an explorer, but has since been disappointing to Pombe, having demonstrated paranoid and hostile behavior to all alien lifeforms, being labeled as "hard" during collaborative exploration missions with Ava Gato, a Kawashita inter-corporate relations officer, which Pombe interpreted as "being difficult", and just not understanding the situations as well as Eshey's new colleague, Normal Guy, who gives her the heebie jeebies. Despite these failings, Eshey has proven to be a remarkable sharpshooter. She has since become a permanent hire, as part of Octan's response to the alien fleet threat from Andromeda's core. She also has a huge crush on Octan engineer, Big Z. Ethel Alkylhal Originally from Mitgard, where she grew up on a farm and developed animal husbandry skills, she failed to find employment as an adventurer there and ended up wandering the spaceways looking for a job. She initially was turned down for the temporary hire position as Pombe's apprentice, which was given to Eshey, because Ethel showed up to the interview in her traditional Mitgardian attire and not something Octan regulation approved. Due to the alien fleet crisis, Pombe reached back out to her and offered her a permanent position on his exploration team. Her preferred armaments are her trusty battle axe and shield. Ethel tends to distrust technology and is extremely vulgar. She also loves to eat sausages. Commander of the O.C.S. Nut III. Hombre Sue Damoness Sue was an ace pilot with Galaxy Squad's red team, having tallied numerous combat kills against the invading buggoid aliens. She was discharged honorably after deciding to leave Galaxy Squad after a certain incident. Immediately, she was courted by potential employers who wanted her skills as a pilot, but she decided to take up Pombe's offer, due to her intuition regarding Pombe's personal agenda: she didn't think he had one. Astute, but laid back, she often just goes with the flow in daily situations, but her habits learned from the military crop up from time to time with regards to adherence to protocols. She does take piloting seriously and enjoys the freedom that Pombe gives her regarding piloting decisions for the team. Normal Guy Normal Guy just sort of showed up one day and started following the crew around the Axle. Pombe, with his keen sense of observation, noticed this, and realized that he needed to help find Normal Guy a girlfriend, so Pombe brought him onto the team. Since then, Normal Guy has been an indispensible member of the team, completely understanding the nature of the exploration situations and assisting Pombe better than anyone else. While the other team members seem unnerved by Normal Guy's presence, Pombe's high praise of Normal Guy have led them to keep their thoughts to themselves. Commander of the O.C.S. Head. Ishmael Haverly A former Merchant Confederate starfighter pilot and leader of Cobra squadron aboard the Betsy May. Though she adheres strictly to combat protocols and utterly respects the chain of command, she prefers to be called by her first name whenever addressed personally. She was the one who spotted a space whale during a routine CAP and reported it to Pombe and Eshey. As a Merchant Confederate pilot, she collaborated with Octan by submitting starfighter designs and test piloting the prototypes. She was hired by Pombe and is now an Octan employee and commander of the O.C.S. Nut I. Bruce Vayne A former Merchant Confederate starfighter pilot whose personal fighter is the T.U.M.B.L.E.R., short for Takeoff Ultra Missile Ballistic Laser Emergency Roustabout, which Eshey mistakes for a missile tank. As a Merchant confederate pilot, he operated out of the Betsy May, a light carrier class capital ship. In one incident, he was out on patrol looking for Zoid slaver activity when he crashed into an asteroid in the Fascini Cluster. Fortunately for him, Eshey and Pombe managed to rescue him and his T.U.M.B.L.E.R. from alien space ducks armed with knives that are indigenous to the asteroid. Like Ishmael Haverly, he has collaborated with Octan by submitting starfighter designs and test piloting the prototypes. He is now an Octan employee and commander of the O.C.S. Sack. His alter-ego is Tabman, since he always buys the drinks. Kawashita Ava Gato A Kawashita inter-corporate relations officer who shared Kawashita technology with Octan alongside Kawashita engineer Alexander Vandangant. Ava also stayed aboard the Axle and worked with Eshey on exploration assignments for a while when Pombe was busy debriefing a Kawashita marketing and sales team on Jurin II. Competent and honorable, Ava assisted and followed Eshey's instructions, highly praising Eshey to Pombe upon his return. She has since returned to Kawashita to continue her other assignments. M.A.N.T.I.S. Isabel Novak/Sammy Nelly Typhi Deceased. Sammy Nelly Typhi was a M.A.N.T.I.S. special operations agent who infiltrated Octan as apprentice explorer, Isabel Novak, to get close to the famous explorer Wick Nole, even though he's an engineer, to learn Octan corporate secrets. Instead, she was assigned to Pombe, where she languished for two years under his mentorship. Finally having had enough, she used a special Octan exploration assignment to fake the death of her alter ego and to head back to M.A.N.T.I.S. space to report of her failure. Unfortunately for her, her spaceship had a malfunction due to the engines being only attached by a single stud, and she was forced to crash land on the planet of Xerillian. Pombe found the remains of her wrecked spaceship and sent a report back regarding Isabel's status. Octan special forces agent, Jebediah O'Reilly, and his team were dispatched to take care of Sammy once and for all, ensuring Octan secrets would not make it back to M.A.N.T.I.S.. Pombie A natural leader with an eye for talent, Commander Pombie is the head of an elite crack special operations team for the M.A.N.T.I.S. corporation. She has gained a reputation for taking employees that would otherwise be considered misfits and outcasts, identifying their talents, and molding them into terrifyingly efficient operatives. Her leadership style is brutal and cold, but nevertheless, her team are completely loyal to her because she took the time to identify and acknowledge each of their individual aptitudes after they were dismissed by others. Her brother, Pombe, is an explorer for the rival Octan corporation. Cassandra A powerful psychic with the ability to take over and control the bodily actions of multiple minifigures at once. She acquired this ability as a test subject during one of Big Sal's "employee weaponization" projects for M.A.N.T.I.S., but was rejected and discarded because she did not develop the ability to shoot lasers out of her eyes, or mouth, or hands...or from anywhere really. Unwanted and suffering from depression, she dwelled in the basements of M.A.N.T.I.S. corporate buildings, subsisting on vending machine food, sleeping in conference rooms, and showering in gym locker rooms, until Pombie discovered her by chance and recognized her talent and brought Cassandra onto her team. Since then, Cassandra has been utterly and completely loyal to Pombie, referring to Pombie as "mistress" and obeying her commands without question. Neko-chan A girl who is half minifigure and half cat alien. She grew up with her mother, and never knew who her father was. Because of her beauty and lithe gracefulness, she was hired by Kawashita to be a spokesmodel for their products. She proved to be hugely popular with Kawashita's customer demographic, driving up Kawashita profits astronomically through her marketing efforts. Despite the success and fortune she earned as a spokesmodel, deep down, Neko-chan felt exploited by the Kawashita corporation, who she felt only wanted to use her for her looks. Really, all she wanted to do was to hit others with her huge and impossibly heavy hammer, which is she able to produce out of seemingly nowhere. One day, she ran away from home, and fled to the Andromeda Galaxy, where she felt no one could find her and she could hit anyone she wanted with her hammer. Unfortunately, she quickly used up her fortune dining on fish expensively exported to Andromeda and became destitute. Neko-chan was discovered in the slums of Torresta by Pombie, who recognized her talents, and offered her employment where she could hit people with her hammer. Neko-chan happily accepted and has been loyal to Pombie ever since. Simon...I mean, Mephistopheles, lord of the 1337 H4XX0Rs A geeky and awkward teenager who was recognized as a prodigy in computer programming early on. Unfortunately, his abrasive personality, combined with his social awkwardness, led him to being kicked out of one team to the next. Pombie took him onto her team realizing that she needed his talent, but was initially unsure of how her team would handle him. Being a hormone driven teenage boy, he, of course, was caught trying to peep on the attractive girls of the team, Cassandra and Neko-chan. However, instead of having to issue some sort of disciplinary action, Pombie realized that the ladies could handle themselves. Cassandra simply made him punch himself in the genitals repeatedly until he passed out and Neko-chan destroyed the harddrives with his porn collection with her hammer. Since then, he's behaved himself and so long as he's referred to by his proper name, he'll follow Pombie's commands. Oddly enough, he has shown no interest in either Commander Pombie nor the other woman on the team, Scooter. Scooter Scooter is the team's pilot, though she wasn't originally trained as a pilot. She started out as a low level M.A.N.T.I.S. administrator, dealing with employee training documents. Quiet and awkward, she mostly just kept to herself and did her job. An avid videogamer, anime and manga junkie, and dedicated cosplayer, she was just working to support her hobbies. She was reassigned to Andromeda and during her trip out, she was incidentally placed on the same shuttle as Pombie. During the journey, the pilot of the shuttle had a sudden heart attack and died. Because of her experience playing space simulators, Scooter recognized the controls of the shuttle and took over and safely navigated the shuttle through a freak asteroid storm. Pombie, amazed at what she saw, commented that Scooter piloted the shuttle "like a leaf on the wind" and promptly offered her a position on her team as a pilot. She has served proudly as the pilot of the team ever since. Zoid Mafia Joey Lucchese. An enforcer for Don Maggiano who has a severe dislike for the Octan corporation due to Octan's aiding the Merchant Confederation, which the Zoid raided for slaves. Mugsy I'm Bugsy. Bugsy Um...I'm Mugsy. Previously: http://www.eurobrick...howtopic=118315 Note: The O.C.S. Head has already been featured in the Challenge 3 Category A build: http://www.eurobrick...howtopic=118306, and should not be judged here. We're in orbit above New California, sir. Good. Now we wait. What are we waiting for? Everyone else. Sir? The ambush by the Zoid above Arium Minor was a wake up call, Eshey. If it wasn't for the timely intervention of one of Santa's reindeer and his crew, we would have lost the Shaft and who knows how many Octan employees. I recognize that I was too reckless and I take full responsibility for that. In order to be better prepared for the next surprise, I've decided that a single ship is too vulnerable and have decided to assemble a fleet. A fleet? Yes. I've requisitioned a few ships to join us. Additionally, I've called the rest of the team from the Axle and assigned each of them their own command. To fill out of the rest of the command positions, I've hired additional help from the Merchant Confederacy. I don't get a command? Nope. A vessel has just dropped out of the GATE, sir! That should be them. On screen. KlIk tHE O.c.s. kLiK hEAd rePoRtINg iN, klIk siR! Oh, HI kLik hOnEy! Normal Guy gets a battleship?!?! He is the most qualified member of the team. He will serve as command over the muscle of the fleet and will have ability to obliterate enemy fleets with the Head's main cannon. Normal Guy, why don't you power up the main cannon as a test exercise? YEs, SiR KLik! Excellent. The Head is essentially just a big gun, but that gun packs quite the wallop. pErMIsSioN tO kLiK puLL ALoNgsiDe iNto KLIK forMaTiOn, SIr. Permission granted. Three new contacts, sir! The O.C.S. Nut I reporting in, sir! Bqllr! Welcome Nuts I, II, and III. The lack of escorts during our last encounter was very costly. Smaller, faster ships completely out-maneuvered the Shaft and nearly destroyed her. We won't make that same mistake again. Nuts I, II, and III, assume the standard formation. The fleet is a head, a shaft, and three nuts?!?!?! Almost. There's just one more ship left. What else can there be?!?! And why are there three nuts?!?! Are you alright, Eshey? Three nuts is normal. A new contact, sir! There he is. Crap in a hat. Don't tell me.... Bruce Vayne and the O.C.S. Sack reporting in, sir. Many apologies for the delay. The Sack seems to have thrust and navigational issues. Hold on, sir. We seem to be experiencing some technical difficulties. What do you mean we can't pull into formation with the rest of the fleet? You're telling me that we're just drifting in space? How am I supposed to buy everyone drinks like this?! YOU LET HIM BUILD A CAPITAL LAND VEHICLE?!?!?! Additional pics under the spoiler tag, and comments and criticisms are all welcome! Edited December 17, 2015 by pombe Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Isundir Posted December 17, 2015 (edited) Glorious, what a glorious fleet. (but not as good as Kawashita fleets of course) Edited December 17, 2015 by Isundir Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
EpsilonEta Posted December 17, 2015 When I read the title I was expecting a transforming mech and got a litle disapointed. But its probably for the best that these ships do not combine Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lego_Nerd98 Posted December 17, 2015 (edited) When all the nuts fire at the same time, the power is channelled through the Shaft and Head, and is fired out the Head's main cannon! Edited December 17, 2015 by Lego_Nerd98 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kodan Black Posted December 17, 2015 Great microships, especially the Head. Always fun having Normal Guy show up too! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andromedas Gates Posted December 23, 2015 The judges awarded you 5 points. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
