Scorcher43

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Posts posted by Scorcher43

  3. Posted

    So in previous posts I have shown off a couple of my models so far, however I thought i would collate all of my current Australian Army vehicles into 1 post, to be updated as time goes on and I build more. 

     

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    Here is an overall image of them 

     

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    My Bushmaster, a very well known ADF vehicle, from the sands of Afghanistan to the fields of Ukraine. 

     

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    The 40M, a workhorse of ADF logistics so long as Truckies aren't crashing them. They do this a lot...

    I need to update my canvas cover for the back as well.

     

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    The Cargo G-Wagon, another logistics vehicle. The canvas cover on this one is in even greater need for an update. 

     

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    The G-Wagon Panel Van. I had originally planned for this one to be the 4 doored standard version, but the second set of doors made it look too long. Until I can rectify the issue, I'll keep it the 2 door version. 

     

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    The Surveillance Reconnaissance Vehicle. The sexiest G-Wagon, allows choccos to feel like SAScats when they drive them because it looks like it was made for spec ops. 

     

  6. Posted

    14 hours ago, danth said:

    Mars Mission had some amazing sets:

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    I agree that the stickers were a turn off and the little aliens were lame.

    That it did mate. The Ultra-Drill is an excellent set, perfectly captures everything I love about the theme, very happy you've pointed it out. But its also the bane of my existence because mine doesn't have all of the stickers anymore so it never feels complete, hence it also captures my biggest gripe, the stickers... 

    11 hours ago, Oky said:

    Agreed, it was a great theme. The sleek designs, NPUs, and consistent and appealing color schemes really put this above the previous Mars theme and other Space themes. Wish I had picked up more than just one of the small sets. I don’t mind stickers (if anyone wants to send me theirs, I’d happily take them), so the only thing I didn’t like were the lame alien figs. Never really saw the problem with the “conflict in a box” concept either which existed in other LEGO themes long before this one. And as you said, the visual storytelling of mining vehicles retrofitted with defenses by necessity was excellent. 

    I wouldn’t put Mars Mission above SP3 or Galaxy Squad which also had some great set designs and WAY better aliens, but it’s certainly a good one to look back on and does feel a bit underrated. 

    Exactly what I'm saying, the visual storytelling through the sets themselves and the gorgeous colours make it easily my favourite sub-theme. SP3 and Galaxy Squad are close seconds, but they don't do me the same way Mars Mission does.

    If you'd like to pick up more sets, definitely start with the Claw Tank Ambush or Recon Dropship. They are both great sets in their own right and for whatever reason they seem to have been the most circulated if my ebay and bricklink searches have told me anything, which means they can be easy to find for a good price. 

    10 hours ago, danth said:

    One thing I don't like about "conflict in a box" is it makes sets more expensive and forces you to buy things you don't like or nothing at all.

    For example:

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    I really like that drill mech! But I don't like ANY of the alien ships from Mars Mission.

    So do I buy both, or neither? In this case I chose neither. So, sale lost for Lego.

    Also it means no $10 mech set or $20 alien fighter set for Mars Mission. Instead you get a $30 set that many kids can't afford.

    That's a very valid point mate, the formula is good when we're talking big single buys, but it has certainly got its drawbacks when considering it cuts off access to what would be perfect low to mid range sets. I also would love to get the mech on its own, and if I wasn't also interested in getting the Infiltrator then I'd be pretty frustrated at having to pay 3x as much for it so I can understand the frustration. 

  7. Posted

    Mars Mission had its flaws of course, the absurdly high sticker count in many sets being the bane of children building sets and collectors efforts to complete them and sure, two piece green aliens aren't a brilliant minifigure design on its own. But I do believe that the theme has been overlooked enough and as a fan I would like to present my reasoning. 

    The greatest aspect of the theme is its excellent vehicle designs. The Astronaut vehicles are quite impressive and as aside from a few exceptions, they have the consistent vision of being civilian mining vehicles drafted into military service. Take the Claw Tank for example, between its massive grabbing claw, the elevated glass cockpit designed for spatial awareness more than protection and its cargo tubes, it’s clear this was intended as a cargo hauler. Furthermore, the Crystal Reaper is literally just a crystal harvester with a single gun and a couple of missiles strapped on for self-defence. These aren't the weapons of an organised invading army, it’s the desperate defence force thrown together with what they had. The alien’s designs are also excellent, all of them being sleek, pointed, designed for speed and stealth, the complete opposite of the Astro's rugged and heavy vehicles. They truly look alien, almost animal-like in some respects with the red teeth accents and flowing green tentacles. 

    I will also issue a small defence of the figure designs themselves. The alien drone designs whilst being lack lustre are purpose built for the sake of their vehicles, you know, the thing you’re buying the sets for. Being only two studs wide, they can fit in places where conventional minifigures cannot, which helps with the design of the vehicles as it makes them far less bulky than they could be. Whilst I admit that perhaps the battle droid design could have been used instead, I think it would take away the more unique aspect of the alien drone design and would simply be a copy of the Life on Mars aliens. The astronauts are also perfectly fine, sure they all have the same uniforms, but each has a unique face print as well which does bring some variety. Keeping in mind this is fundamentally in-universe meant to be the early days of Lego space exploration, so it would stand to reason that they wouldn’t all have personalised uniforms yet.

    In particular, I think it’s actually very poor the fact that many are so opposed to the conflict in a box formula, when it emphasises the play aspect of the sets. Sure, pacifism and more diplomatic space themes have their appeal, but I think we need to remember these weren't designed with AFOLs in mind and most kids usually aren’t entertained by pure exploration. Most kids probably won't be getting more than one set for a while as well, unless birthdays and Christmas’s are close together, hence its prudent to get both factions into the single set so that kids can get a basic storyline going at least with the first buy. Maybe this wouldn't be an issue if the theme wasn't conflict focused, sure, but then we wouldn't have many of these excellent designs.

    Also let’s face it, the colour pallet is phenomenal, the orange and white of the Astros is such a good look, very pleasing to the eyes. The alien's black and lime just adds to their mystique, the aura of 'alien', almost evoking the xenomorph with its black form and green acid blood. When put together they create the perfect contrast, complimenting the existing contrast of vehicle designs excellently. It may simply be personal taste, the the colours are the icing of the cake. 

    I would like to hear other opinions on this theme though, feel free to comment and start your own discussions!

  8. Posted

    Mars Mission is a lot better than many people on this site give it credit, I would even argue it is one of the better space themes. Between its excellent vehicle designs, the impressive atmosphere and the excellent colour pallet, I think it well outshines the themes issues. Even the poor alien drone design is not without its merits when placed in the context of the Alien vehicle design philosophy. 

    This isn't even mentioning the supporting material in the form of the themes broswer RTS and Lego Battles, which fleshed out the themes story and gave excellent context to the sets. Personally, I also like the conflict in a box formula, it offers more far more options for play and allows for two unique faction philosophies to be contained in the single set. Those two philosophies are also excellent BTW. 

     

  12. Posted

    5 hours ago, Mirror1810 said:

    Very very nice. A nice refreshment in the holiday stagnancy. First of all, 69th Airborne Brigade, Nice. Second, I love everything about this. The trail in the nuclear materials fall, the castle everything. I am very excited for your future builds.

    Cheers, I do like injecting a little bit of comedy into my stories and mocs, just lightens the tone a bit. The trail and castle were sections I really wanted to get right with how they helped tell the story so it’s great to hear they turned out well.

    3 hours ago, ParmBrick said:

    Very good! Nice shooting scene, btw I would take off the city fire stickers from the cargo, and put an adequate stickers, but it's minor detail, overall, great job!

    Cheers! Yeah I wanted to try and pass it off as the symbol for the Tosul nuclear division, but it’s a little too obvious in hindsight.

  14. Posted · Edited by Scorcher43
    Images stopped displaying, updated the embeds.

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    Location: Kingston Fortress, Central Burke Atoll

    A container bearing the symbol of Tosul's Nuclear weapons development division had crashed through the wall of an ancient fortress, its casing still intact and waiting to be claimed. Despite being out of service for a hundred years, Kingston Fortress was about to become a battleground once more, one that could decide the fate of many more nations that the tiny island it called home. 

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    Having landed on the island the day before, a small team of paratroopers from the 69th Airborne Flaming Dragon Brigade, Tosul's infamous QRF force, approached the container after determining it wasn't leaking any dangerous radiation. 

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    Confirming the status of the cargo, the team relaxes as they appear to have gotten to the cargo before any of the BON task force could, making their job much easier and far less deadly. They had been ordered that due to the sensitive nature of the situation to use restraint when interacting with BON aligned troops, which meant strictly to only fire when fired upon or if the cargo was at risk of being captured. 

    One of the troopers asks the team leader what kind of reward they'd get for this achievement. Extra rations for their families? Exemption for their sons and daughters from conscription? Hookers and blackjack? 

    The team leader simply says "No, shut up Private".

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    Whipping out his radio, the team leader calls in their position and situation directly to brigade headquarters, who respond with orders to secure the position until more troops could be sent to the location. They also mentioned Light Cavalry elements from the Roskilde Army had been sighted in their area. 

    The Team Leader didn't even get to process the information before the sound of an engine and foliage crackling under boots and tires began to fill the ears of the entire team. Then as the sounds got closer, they began to hear the destinct sound of someone complaining in english. The Tosul paratroopers could already tell what type of soldiers they were up against.... reservists.

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    The lead element of the Roskilde Army's 5th Duke of Telson Lancers' A Squadron was approaching the walls of the old fortress, not 100 metres from the position of the cargo according to satellite images. Having already been on the way back from operations in Gorkonam, the 5th Lancers were one of the closest combat units the PSIC had, hence this unit of reservist from Telson City were suddenly deployed to resolve one of the most important crisis of their day. What could go wrong?

    Lance Corporal Mike Dobson and his Section lead by Corporal Wates had been sent to retrieve a smaller container from the crashed cargo plane, denying Tosul the ability to sell its contents to bad guys with less to lose than they did. Mike knew he was a part of history in the making, but between the heat, Scofield's complaining about getting given the minimi again and Gramson's accute observations on "the destinct lack of hot sheila's and cold beers in this island paradise"... let's just say he was beginning to wish he was at home right now. 

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    But as they rounded the corner and came face to face with the stunned paratroopers, suddenly the whole world became very quiet and all the thoughts vanished from Mike's mind. For a solid two minutes, there was just silence. Everyone stood perfectly still in place, the Tosul and Roskilde soldiers simply stared at each other dumbfounded, even the bushmaster's engine seemed to have been drowned out by the adrenaline rush. 

    "Bloody hell, section take up positions now!" ordered Corporal Wates, breaking the tension.

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    After that there was a flurry of movement and the silence was replaced with shouting, the chambering of rounds and the switching of safety catches. Mike's heart was about to burst out of his chest as he ran to take up a position, switched his rifle to instant and took a sight picture of the Tosul machine gunner. To his right, Trooper Alice Musken and Scofield had laid out in prone position, while Trooper Josh Charles took up cover behind a tree. The ROE cards and the pre-patrol briefing had been clear, OFOF was to only open fire when fired upon or if Tosul troops were about to take full possession of nuclear material, Mike didn't hoped the paratroopers had been given similar instructions. 

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    He could see Trooper Enki Shilo set up his Mag on a fallen piece of wall, Hobbes taking up position next to him. The Bushmaster was brought around and Gramson aimed the gun toward the paratroopers.

    As the two sides began to take sight pictures of each other, they both demanded the other stand down. 

    Scofield: "Drop your weapons! Drop your megablocking weapon!"

    Mike: "Stand down! Stand down!"

    Charles: "Down, put it down wanker!"

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    Corporal Wates began to rapidly report the situation to their lieutenant on the radio. 

    Wates: "Chauvel this is Chauvel 3, we have encountered 4 Tosul infantry guarding the container, no sign of any others, over" 

    Chauvel: "Chauvel 3, this is Chauvel, OFOF remains the same, do not fire unless fired upon, reinforcements are enroute, over" 

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    A similar story played out with the Tosul paratroopers. The team leader began to scream into the radio whilst his mean began screaming at the Roskilde Lancers to stand down. To  retreat now wouldn't simply land them in a gulag, they'd be executed on the spot, the officer over the radio reminded them of this as the team leader was practically begging for orders. Explosions began in the distance and a report from the officer saying that other units had already engaged BON troops, had caused the leader's heart to sink.

    As the reality of the situation washed over them, they began to realise they could either die to enemy fire like heroes or by a firing squad like cowards. They had already made up their minds when the Paratrooper team leader proclaimed what were his last intelligable words. 

    Team leader: "For the Glory of...!"

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    Mike wasn't sure who had shot first, but upon hearing the line that Tosulese villains in every action movie screamed as they fought, he let off 5 rounds into the Tosul machine gunner who only got off a single burst in his death throws. Simultaneously, everyone else in the section joined him and suddenly the world got very loud with gun fire. 

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    A massive hail of 5.56 and 7.62 rounds slammed into the paratroopers as they began to fire their own weapons. One of the paratrooper's heads was eviscerated as the full force of Scofield and Shilo's Mag58's fire. The team only managed to get off a few shots before they were annihilated, screaming as they fell. Mike had seen splinters of wood explode off the tree that Charles was behind, and he could desinctly feel and hear rounds whiz by his own head before he had even finished firing himself. 

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    As the shooting died down once it became clear the Tosul paratroopers were dead, Corporal Wates motioned the section to advance and secure the area. Mike didn't even have to think about what to do, their training had fully taken over and the whole section was silent as they stepped over the corpses of the paratrooper team, even Scofield was dead quiet.

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    As they surveyed the area beyond the carnage, Mike heard the voice over radio by the Paratrooper leader's body screaming in Tosulese. It suddenly cut out as the officer on the other end must've realised gunfire, screams and sudden radio silence only meant one thing. 

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    Wates: "We all good lads, Dobbo?"

    Mike: "All good Corporal, 4 enemy KIA, we got no casualties, might be more coming though..."

    Wates: "Yeah, secure the area, bring up the bushmaster, we might need to bug out asap so get ready to load that thing on." 

    The section gathered around the container as Wates radioed in a post-action report to the Troop commander.

    Chauvel: "Chauvel 3, this is Chauvel, we are nearing your position, load the cargo onto your vehicle and get ready to move, intel reports more Tosul troops moving into the area. Out"

    The section gathered around the cargo as the bushmaster drove up to be loaded with the nuclear material. Charles came up next to him and with his hands still shaking from the adrenaline rush, began to ask Mike what had just happened.

    Charles: "Mate that was ducked, why'd they try it? Did you see that one megablock's megablocking head, what the megabluck!"

    Mike: "Mate lets focus up. Just get this thing on the bush and we're getting the megabluck out of here." 

    It didn't even feel real what had happened to Mike. In the space of about 10 minutes 4 men were dead and they had just taken positive control over some of the most highly valued material in the world. This was the job of the SAScats, not a bunch of reservists from Telson City! Suddenly more explosions went off in the distance and a machine gun was barking close by, Mike's world was getting a lot more scary by the second. 

  20. Posted

    On 10/29/2022 at 10:38 AM, TribunM said:

    I really like your concept! The setting displayed here as well as the concept of your regular troops. And it's well executed! 

    Also planning on doing regulars, so happy to see some others :D 

    Yeah mate I always thought that more mocs with regular troops as the focus are a bit more interesting to me. Great to hear you're going down the same road!

  22. Posted

    9 hours ago, Feuer Zug said:

    Field expedient plow, I like it. While not great on the small details, the story does help. Good build. Better lighting would help with the photos. I know, my lighting was trash when I began too.

    Thanks mate, yeah I’m gonna try and make sure my story isn’t the saving grace next time and improve my environmental builds. I’ll try and experiment with the lighting a little too, thanks for the review.

  23. Posted

    3 hours ago, Vliebricker said:

    Oké 👍, I had seen that, but thought it was some kind of truck.  Bushmaster has quite a high profil, isn't it? And a kind of battlefield taxi 🤪 for a squad. But it can stand some IED blast. Looking forward to see the rest of your story..... (as a retired cavalry man 🫡 )

    Yeah they’re quite tall haha, the ADF is actually taking them out of the Light CAV units soon because they’re too large and replacing them with the new Hawkei’s which are more suited to the role. I’ve gotta make one of those too now then haha.

  24. Posted

    3 hours ago, Vliebricker said:

    Nice work, Scorcher43 🫡👍, this reserve unit looks great! As lancers are, usually, light cavalry, you could equip them with wheel bases light armoured vehicles such as ASLAV or the FENNEK (scout car) that we use in the Dutch forces. Especially the latter, with its 3 pax crew would fit perfectly in your squadron.

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    Thanks mate! I was basing the unit off the Australian Army Reserve Light Cavalry regiments who use bushmaster pmvs, but thank you for the advice. I actually have the PMV in the moc, it’s the big Camo blob next to the brick barracks.

  25. Posted

    4 minutes ago, Mirror1810 said:

    Well, for the river maybe some type of waves or little rocks in the water, but for the field itself I can't really say anything. Maybe some 1×1 plates scattered around to give it a bit of texture, or just some grey 1×1 round plates as rocks. You definetly are great at artificial stuff, that car looks amazing.

    That sounds pretty good thanks. I can’t take all the credit for the Bushmaster, I basically took the design from Brick Designers instructions and then remodelled it to the correct camouflage pattern.