[Factions Ep. 8 - Cat A] [T10 - Kessel - CE] A run to Kessel

[n1majneb]

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Kessel, the name said it all.
If ever there was a planet known for its ill repute it was here. Spice. Slavery. Corruption. Kessel was synonymous with these.

During the Imperial incursion of Mandalore, many were taken and offloaded as workers to the mines here. It was time to investigate and free the captives.

Additionally, rumours abound of stolen treasures being amassed on Kessel. Amongst this, we’d uncovered reports of ancient Jedi and Mandalorian artefacts such as Holocron’s and Beskar, stolen and hoarded long ago.

But this mission required detailed planning and a small team was tasked by the Duchess herself to extend our protectorate further, we’d been oppressed as a people and a culture before and so we would help others where we can.

 

In the capital, Sundari, preparations are well under way as we join the team in preparation for their journey on to Kessel.

A mix of disciplines, the select team covered all bases - Trackers and scouts, heavy hitters, pilots, mechanics, informants and droids. We’d only be heading there once and we’d get the job done first time.

Without fanfare, an open hangar is where we find a chaos of activity, in readiness for the shuttle to take them to Kessel...

 

Spoiler

 

Meet the team:

 

The command crew

• Boone D'ahl, The lead on the ground, well used to operations in unfamiliar territory.
• Quin Breur, Logistics expert, often referred to in the planning of many missions despite his young age.
• Tate Saxton, Tracker and Scout, no matter the quarry he has proven himself to be outstanding in his field.
• Neane Laine, Mechanic, following an unfortunate accident he has become something of a bio-mechanic too. Capable of making almost anything work.
• B1-N0Cs, a survey and navigation droid. Brought along to get the lay of the land and provide real time strategy.
• Laine Shnei, A scout and second in command of the mission. Also a historian and was brought along to provide knowledge of the rumoured artefacts.

 

 

The Support team

• Hale, One of the two heavily armed infantry troopers. With his heavy armour he’s most comfortable leading the charge in any firefight alongside his RPG.
• Kriff, The second of the two heavy infantry troopers, together known as the Fist they were asked on the mission in case aggressive negotiation was required.
• Sol Pels, A elite warrior and Melee specialist, perfect for CQC in the depths of the mine.
• Tsai Chin, Helping support the team where necessary, she is also a  pilot and key logistics expert.
• Preed, A Besalisk, though not part of the crew he escaped Kessel and wanted to free his friends and family lost o Kessel.
• Korto’a, A similar story to Preed, A Togorian they escaped together and share the same goals as Clan Eldar in this Kessel mission, to work with CE to reunite with their imprisoned friends and family. He wears the scars of slavery with pride.
• Conrad Roy, A young navigator, brought along to provide operational support with the droid team including his Astromech.
• Firrik A'sh, with his Jetpack he is equally comfortable providing aerial reconnaissance as he is providing armed support.

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

Additional Images and detail

Speeder

https://flic.kr/p/2kVSTDn 

 

 

Background not to be judged as used as window dressing (repurposed old build)

 

 

 

https://flic.kr/p/2kVNpMX

Kessel has a mix of terrain and so the Tracker and Scout would need a solution to cross a wide expanse of terrain.
A speeder bike is the obvious solution and so they’ll be bringing one, heavily laden with everything the speeder can carry.

Map room

All plans are made here, the holo display aids building the course of action which will be stored on board the Astromech.
An escapee from Kessel offers excellent insider knowledge on the mines in question

https://flic.kr/p/2kVNpZR 

 

Phoenix gate (The order of the rising phoenix’s entrance)
I wanted to include a little more Mandalorian culture too and the Mandalorians are well known for their jetpacks. Therefore I wanted to include an entrance that would nod to exactly this so I added the ‘Phoenix gate’, a route for those invested into the Order of the Rising Phoenix. I would expect this to have some significant detail to celebrate the Order and so included the Trans Red pieces that would glow as light passed through them

https://flic.kr/p/2kVMf29

https://flic.kr/p/2kVMf2u 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 7, 2021 by goatman461
Massive formatting issues!

[Jody Meyer]

Really nice, lots of small details. All those minifigure heads...jealous.😃

[n1majneb]

Having some massive formatting issues with the second caption so posting here too!

 

Spoiler

Additional Images

Speeder Bike:
The Kessel team are busy sorting provisions and cargo ahead of the journey. On arrival they would need a solution to quickly scout the terrain, as such the team bring the Scout, Tate's, speeder bike to allow him to survey the Kessel terrain.

 

-

 

Background not to be judged on this second image as repurposed from an old entry but shows past use of the speeder all the same.

Map Room:
Ahead of the mission, Korto'a works with Clan Eldar to establish a working topography of Kessel to aid the liberation of his friends and family trapped still, whilst his fellow escapee Preed aids with the cargo preparations. The map will be stored on the Astromech to take with them.

 

 

 

The mechanic Neane, doing a last shakedown of the speeder bike ahead of loading on the approaching vessel.

 

 

 

The duo, known as 'The Fist' are busy doing final weapon checks, ensuring they've adequately overcompensated on weaponry:

 

Phoenix Gate:
Firrick arrives through the gate, overlooking Sundari beyond. As Boone ensures all equipment is accounted for with logistics expert Quin
 

 

I wanted to include a little more Mandalorian culture too and the Mandalorians are well known for their jetpacks. Therefore I wanted to include an entrance that would nod to exactly this so I added the ‘Phoenix gate’, a route for those invested into the Order of the Rising Phoenix.
I would expect this to have some significant detail to celebrate the Order. When required, this door would double as a docking ring for the larger ships.

 

 

Build Notes:

The Duchess and one of her lieutenants survey the preparations of the Kessel mission
 

 

 

Had I the correct colour free tiles, or a suitable brick solution, I would have preferred to cover the studs across the top of the build here. However, the studs don't bother me too much and in the main aren't prominent. I also think it aids the suggestion that the building continues above this open hangar/platform area.

 

I enjoyed putting this build together, I enjoy the plate built lines people employ in their builds and so wanted to subtly add it here whilst i was building Snot for the platform. In turn, this meant the wall required a similar solution and i'm pleased the pattern continues smoothly across the back wall though it meant the door and upper level were tricky but everyday is a learning day!

The figure requirement required a little forethought, and is something I should look to improve on but there are little clusters of activity to try and create zones of activity.
 

 

It was important, being in a similar locale on Sundari to my past builds on Mandalore that some signature elements carried across to continue the narrative in the builds here. This was by the incorporation of the Erling pattern design and Gold accents, along with the building design on the lower level too.
I was also afforded the opportunity to add Bionicle parts to my build too through the crane and small canopy below the Map Room.
 

Finally, I'm pleased with the end result in the Phoenix Gate, i'm glad the cylindrical build came out well and moreso that the light shines through as intended. I felt although the Mandalorians would celebrate the order, it would in some regards be nondescript.

 

Edited May 1, 2021 by n1majneb

[marvelBoy123]

Definitely captures that bustling urban environment. Some really great figures too!

[Darth Bjorn]

This moc has potential - I like the use of dark red, but I'd probably used something different than the light gray. Nice collection of figs, and I like the gate idea! Keep up the good work...

[MKJoshA]

Excellent use of layers for your build. Parts of it feel too busy, probably due to color transitions being more abrupt than not. Something I'm working on improving myself. I also like the round pip to the right. Though I wish the pipe and the top wall were tiled.

[dvogon]

Nice build with a very interesting setup with the three levels. I like a lot that rounded doorway and with so many details. The speeder is also quite original.

[n1majneb]

On 5/1/2021 at 2:36 PM, Jody Meyer said:

Really nice, lots of small details. All those minifigure heads...jealous.😃

 

On 5/2/2021 at 6:18 PM, marvelBoy123 said:

Definitely captures that bustling urban environment. Some really great figures too!

Thanks bot, i've been very lucky recently to collect figures at decent prices and I did want to show that busyness without making it look to busy

On 5/3/2021 at 8:38 PM, Darth Bjorn said:

This moc has potential - I like the use of dark red, but I'd probably used something different than the light gray. Nice collection of figs, and I like the gate idea! Keep up the good work...

Thanks, i keep trying. It doesn't look as contrasting in real life but I should have perhaps looked to have veered towards Dark grey instead here.
I'm really pleased with the gate solution, 

18 hours ago, MKJoshA said:

Excellent use of layers for your build. Parts of it feel too busy, probably due to color transitions being more abrupt than not. Something I'm working on improving myself. I also like the round pip to the right. Though I wish the pipe and the top wall were tiled.

Thanks, I did want to cover those studs but I didn't have enough of the colours used in the build and anything I tried I found distracting

11 hours ago, dvogon said:

Nice build with a very interesting setup with the three levels. I like a lot that rounded doorway and with so many details. The speeder is also quite original.

Very pleased to hear the gate idea is coming across well, 
I'm quite happy about the speeder design, they're something I have quite a lot of now as they are small enough to be a little distraction whilst working (and i'm presenting a build night to my LUG on speeder designs as a fun activity idea)