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(07-03-2013) I've redone the photographs with a white(ish) background. This should show the model more clearly. Hope you like! Hi all! I'm diving deeper into Star Wars starfighter obscurity with this very niche model. The Missile Boat only appeared in a handful of Star Wars games (like the extended edition Tie Fighter and X-Wing Alliance). Oddly enough, after making my Star Wing/Assault Gunboat known to the public I've gotten requests to do the Missile Boat next (more than one even). So here it is! Not a render: a real brick build ship! As always: it's buildable (duh), in minifig scale, (almost) no rare parts and no flick-fire missiles. And unlike my first MOC (the Star Wing), this one is rock solid from the get go! Seriously, it's smaller than the Star Wing, but still weighs about the same. It's very sturdy and swooshable. TL;DR: model files are at the end(ish) of the post. For those unfamiliar with the craft (which is probably 99% of you ) The Missile Boat was an advanced Imperial starfighter designed by Admiral Thrawn and built by Cygnus Spaceworks. Designed as a countermeasure against the rogue Grand Admiral Demetrius Zaarin and his supply of TIE Defenders, the Missile Boat was a descendant of the Alpha-class Xg-1 Star Wing, also manufactured by Cygnus Spaceworks. The Missile Boat relied primarily on warheads for dogfighting and assaults, a notable difference from other Imperial starfighters, which relied more heavily on laser cannons. The Missile Boat also included an innovative propulsion feature known as the SubLight Acceleration Motor (SLAM). (source: Wookieepedia) And there you have it. Finding source material was even harder than for the Star Wing as the craft only makes its appearance in two games. To make it even more challenging, the models differ greatly between the two games. Oddly enough the X-Wing Alliance Update project also did their (rather excellent) version, which is also diffent. I've included a comparison below. What can I say? I like a challenge! These images and the fact that it's supposed to be 10m long (about 32 studs in minifig scale) was what I got to work with, so I've taken a few liberties as well. Luckily, there are a number of similarities between the craft, like the way the wings are angled, the missilepods on top, big rear engines, narrow(ish) cockpit. I've tried to use similar techniques to the Star Wing; as they are related, it should show. Here are some more views of the result. And I do apologise for my feeble photographing skills: all I had to work with were a bit of cloth, some desklamps and an old compact camera. From the front: Shot from the rear: A side view: Next to it's older brother: Lego®-vision drawing: Render of possible color variations: I'm actually rather taken with the blue one (though I build a red one as the craft in the games are all with red markings). As always, I've shared my lxf files so you can build it yourself. It's 654 pieces in total (165 unique; and that's including the mini-fig) and all can be found on bricklink in good quantities. There are a couple of things you need to mind, but I'll get to that later. Files v1.0: The model assembled v1.0 (in parts): The model broken down in main components. If you are going to build it in real bricks, I suggest you use this file as it will force LDD to generate instructions for each major component, making building easier. Building Notes As I've mentioned before: all parts should be available in good quantities. There are, unfortunately, some parts you need to mind: The Classic grey wedge 6x4; you'll need two and only the 6153a variant is available in this color (which is not in LDD; only the b-variant). There's no alternative (sorry) but the part seems to be available in good quantities. Any suggestions on how to do the nose section without this part (and dump classic grey altogether) is very much welcome. The Light Bley Brick, Modified 2 x 4 x 1 1/3 with Curved Top; it turned out to be way harder to find than I expected, but it looks good on the model. If you have trouble sourcing it, or find it too expensive, you might want to consider using only 2x1x1 1/3's instead. It might require some extra reinforcement underneat though. The Wheel 30mm D. x 13mm (13 x 24 Model Team); it's an older part (last set to feature it is C-3PO from 2001), so most likely you'll only find used ones. Do not confuse this with partno. 60208. The 2695 has a shallower rim and has rounded edges as well. You could use the 60208 (for example if you want the thrusters in dark bley) as it fits, but I personally feel that they don't look right. As with the Star Wing, I suggest that you build it in main components (grab the parts file!) and later assemble those. As always, the LDD instructions are weird and unlogical, so I suggest you spend a little time looking around the model and skipping through the instructions a couple of times just to make sure you won't have to wedge a plate inbetween two brick already there. A quick pointer while building the main hull: LDD will want you to build it in one go, but I advice you to build it in 3 seperate components. A 4-step plan below. Start with the cockpit and internal skeleton (much like the instructions) Seperately, construct the top panel To the same for the bottom panel (just follow the instructions, but don't add it on to the model) Assemble! Unpictured step: the engine part (the dark bley bits at the end) is pretty straightforward. Add it before putting the top panel on. And that should do it. Thank you for reading!
