MINI TIE MOCs (and lots of them)

[Walter Kovacs]

For those of you following along, I'm nearly to the end of showcasing my MOC designs. I can hear the cries of "Halleluia" in the background.

I used to think MINI scale was the hardest to work in. The scale is so small, and the piece possibilities so limited, that it's hard to imagine designing anything that looks good. The lack of scale means that you only have to get the design close before it looks right, as opposed to UCS scale, where everything needs to be greebled to death before you're satisfied.

You'll notice that there are a lot of TIE Variants that I have not done MINIs of. The reason is simple: at the time I designed these, they hadn't been done (or at least put onto Brickshelf for me to peruse). If a variant had been done by someone else, and I couldn't improve on it (usually the case), then I left it be and moved onto something that hadn't been done. More a fill-in-the-gaps excercise.

There are some designs that I'm truly proud of. Some of these are more mundane. I'll certainly let you know which ones I like.

I'm going to do things a bit different. I have a lot of MINI designs, and each BS folder has at least four images in it, so I'll just link to the folder and let you look at the individual images.

Republic TIE Fighter - I found this variant, as well as a lot of others, on Darksaber's Website. The wing panels are too big for the scale, but with limited options for getting the curvature of the wings right, there wasn't much choice. Not bad, but there isn't a lot too it.

TIE Aggressor - One of the designs I'm happy with, but feel there's room for improvement. The little "tail" extending off the wing panel looks a little blocky, but otherwise the design looks good to me.

TIE Avenger - I used the same type of wing as my TIE Defender, and it looks the same: overly large. Needs some improvement on the wings.

TIE Cyclone - I used a modified piece in this design, cutting down a 4L Lightsabre blade to hold the 2 x 2 dishes in place. I could've left the piece untouched, but then the bar would extend 1.5 studs out the back. I don't see many alternatives, either. Having the Pylons connect directly to the cockpit ball really makes life difficult in the LEGO world. But dear God do I hate using modded pieces.

TIE Defender - The first MINI MOC I ever attempted, and my second MOC overall. The wings don't look AS out of place as they do on the TIE Avenger, but it still looks out of place. A Clear 2 x 2 Dish on the front would make things look better. I've recently updated the design, substituting three of these for the three Technic Bushs. It helps push the wings out a little.

TIE GT - I'll say what I said when I posted this on FBTB: It's a TIE Fighter. With an elongated cockpit ball. Whoppee.

TIE Gunship - An interesting little ship. I'm not sure if the grey pieces on the wings add anything. Otherwise, I kinda like the design.

TIE Hunter - One of the goofiest TIE Variants I've come across. The swept back, V-shaped wings are very difficult to replicate in this scale. Heck, even in UCS scale I'm not entirely clear on how to accomplish it. It is what it is.

TIE Interdictor - One of my favorites of the MINIs I've done. getting five of those Astromech bodies to line up took some real engineering. The outside pods are a little farther apart vertically than I would like, but that is a function of the scale. If the wings look a bit large, check out the Wookiepedia page. They certainly appear to cover all of the pods. I can't wait to see this one in real brick.

TIE Lancer - Also known as the TIE Missile Platform, or something like that. Theres a lot of detail on top of the wing that gets lost at this scale, which is a shame. A very interesting variant. The laser cannons that extend from the back up to the sides of cockpit need to be a touch lower, but overall I am happy with how it came out.

TIE Lancet - I'll be frank. This is probably the best MINI I've done. From the moment it was finished, I fell in love with it. I'll never call it perfect, but I can't even imagine how to improve on it.

TIE M1 Prototype - The TIE M series prototypes are all mostly variations on other TIEs. The designs really don't show much innovation. This one is probably the most oddball of the bunch.

TIE M2 Prototype - A TIE Fighter with Hinge Control Sticks added. Not much to it, really.

TIE M3 Prototype - This one is an Interceptor with Concussion Missile launchers. I must give credit where credit is due. The TIE Interceptor portion is 100% Reto Gieger's design. I merely added the Missile launchers.

TIE M5 Prototype - This actually took a bit longer than the other TIE Ms. Getting the bars to fold from the back of the wings to the rear of the hull was quite a challenge. It looks much blockier than it should (those bars are very thin in the images I saw), but getting the angle is difficult without hinges.

TIE Oppressor - Another design that I am extremely happy with. The two extensions off the back of the wing turned out very nicely. The center wing could come down a stud, and I could replace the 1 x 1 cone with a 2 x 1 slope brick, but other than that, I'm happy.

TIE Predator - Another weird one. The 1 x 8 angled panels really work well here, and even allow the wings to fold back. I'm quite pleased with how things turned out.

TIE Scout - Yet onother of my favorites. The odd looking structure of the hull ended up quite nicely, and the 90 degree bend in the wings works well. I don't have much else to say.

TIE Vampire - Another odd looking variant from Darksaber's website. All I can say is thank god for this peice, because otherwise this one would've been a female canine. Yeah for using new pieces.

TIE Vanguard - The wing design could be better. The upper portion needs to be shorter. I've gotten some suggestions from FBTB, but have yet to implement them. All in good time.

I do have a MINI TIE Mauler that I've started designing, but it hasn't gotten far enough to show yet. That, and it's probably going to end up between MINI and Minifig scale. Not sure what that scale is called.

As always, questions, comments and criticisms are most welcome. I realize there are a lot of images to look through. Please bear with me. Thank you ahead of time.

[JimBee]

wow, thats alot! good job!

[Vaders_son]

Extraordinary Job!

You really are a true Tie-expert Maybe someone from the staff should give you a TIEtle

Great work on the minis, I like most of them, despite my usual opposition to any mini-models

Best regards, Benny

[Asuka]

Very interesting.... an impressive collection. My favorite ones´re your TIE Gunship, TIE Interdictor, TIE M3 and especially your neat TIE Lancet.

TIE mania on!

[commandosevy]

Cool I really like the Cyclone and the Lancet....pretty much all of them!!! Great job Walter.