A little tease

Here are a couple of screen grabs from a Skype conversation today. The picture quality is moderate but should give you an idea of the details they were able to capture. Wai Kee will be sending me a set of legs and I will get you some clearer shots once I have them in my grubby little hands ;)

 

 

Aren't you a little short for a stormtrooper?

Ada is near completion, just some hair details to add.

Enjoy!

 

 

Aren't you a little short for a stormtrooper?

 

 

The rifle is a magnetic linear accelerator, the smooth barrel housing contains coils that are charged by the chambered round.

In game terms it’s a ‘Capacitor Rifle’ each shell is a highly charged capacitor with a ballistic tip coated in Nano fibers. The capacitor charge powers up the coils in the barrel and accelerates the projectile much faster than conventional solid or liquid combustibles. It will punch a small hole through very thick armor. A nasty rifle with a big kick, the Valkir use a similar weapon but they ware power armor and have considerably more mass to deal with the recoil. Ada has learned how to lean into the shot and lock her body into position. When the round is discharged she will remain standing but is driven back a foot or two.

Tough little gal :)

(update) Added some barrel details.

 

Roughing in Ada

Here you can see Ada as a WIP, she looks a little thick but trust me, when she is made into a real world object she will appear trimmer. It’s just one of those things about the translation from CAD to a physical model, what looks right on the screen will look too thin when you have it in your hands.

I have tried not to make the model too effeminate, no chainmail bikinis here, these are soldiers! I tweaked the profile, the hips are wider, the feet are smaller the shoulders more narrow and she is slightly smaller overall when compared to the male stormtroopers.

I will post more later as she nears completion.

Kickstarter Survey

Yesterday was a day of prepping files, making punch lists and phone calls :)

I don’t have a specific day that the survey will go out but we are looking towards the end of this week, WGF is still working on the coding and looking over the best way to deal with additional pledge amounts if needed.

We will try to have a custom account for each backer that uses either/both your name and or you email to sign into the pledge manager. Your pledge amount will auto fill and if you go over what has already been paid, it will open an option to submit the remaining amount through a PayPal account that WGF is setting up. I have a PayPal account but I would prefer not to use it as WGF will need continual access to the account to verify the revised pledges against what they will have in a database. The pledge manager will remain open and available for a few weeks; we will need to close it down before the items are scheduled to leave China. This will likely be late October (I will update when I have a specific date on this).

Soon after the pledge manager has been made available to the Kickstarter backers, I will open up a pledge manager to handle pledges from those that were unable to participate in the Kickstarter. Participating in the Kickstarter was an issue for some customers that did not have credit cards that could be accepted by Amazon Payments. We are still working on the procedure for this to try and limit abuse.

All the best!

Mark

Girl power! Female Stormtroopers are a go!

That was a close one....Congrats!

New strettch goal! Ada needs a squad!

Zeus - APC conversion kit

Here is a sneak peek at a work in progress, the Zeus APC conversion kit to turn your troop mover into a tank hunter

This kit will include 3 crew, a loader, a gunner and spotter. As well as in interior detail pack that will replace the crew compartment with ammo storage and crates.

Two stretch goals down and less than 24hrs left!

The Stuka Zu Fuss will now be a plastic model kit and for the backers of this Kickstarter, the exclusive character miniature ‘Ada’ will be a plastic miniature.

 

I am very grateful to be part of such supportive community.

I have seen many acts of support and kindness, not just from my backers but from people who were complete strangers and stepped up to lend a hand or offer support.

Truly I am humbled.

 

Thank you!

Mark Mondragon
DreamForge-Games

Kickstarter, FREE exclusive item "Ada"

 

I just wanted to add something unplanned as way to say thank you to all the backers for their support, it is very much appreciated!

 

THANK YOU!

 

 

 

Ada is a tank hunter by trade… She uses a MLA rifle to take down the heavy targets. Considering this rifle is primarily used by power armored troopers, it’s quite a feat.

DreamForge Kickstart is coming to a close

We have introduced over 30 individual plastic model kits! But we are not done yet!

The current product line consist of a fully outfitted Stormtrooper infantry section, a range of power armored troops , two Leviathan variants in 15mm and 28mm scale with a host of optional weapons, and a APC to get your troops to the front in style.

 

If you wanted to back one of our amazing plastic models or miniatures, NOW is the time!

 

Stuka Zu Fuss (APC Upgrade)

Sneak peek at the next stretch goal ;)

WIP: The details of the model still will need to be worked out but this should give you a good idea.

Last few days of the Kickstarter!

At 11:45 US Pacific time, the Kickstarter will come to a close.

This Kickstarter has grown into a fairly complicated beast… you have my apologies.

As time went on we had many customer requests to add specific items. If it was within my means to do so, I have offered these items as part of this Kickstarter. Although the Eisenkern faction will now have a fairly complete product line, it has not made the layout very easy to understand. The best way to wrap you mind around the extensive offer is to use the online calculator as your guide.

LINK:  http://www.dreamforge-games.com/kickstartshipping/DFCalc.htm

Still not backing this project or confused by the number of items offered? The calculator is your friend! It will auto fill the free items that have been offered throughout the Kickstarter campaing and get you on your way to receiving some great plastic model kits.

Not sure where to drop your pledge?

Pledging for multiple items?

Drop it in the –CATCH ALL PLEDGE- box, just be sure to enter the correct total for all the items you are backing.

When the Kickstarter ends we will send out a survey to collect the information of what Items you were backing.

Once again, Domestic and International backers, please be sure to use the online calculator to total out your order and get the expected shipping dates for the items you wanted to back.

We will confirm this against your total pledge and the information you provide us in the final survey.

 

A new stretch goal is within reach!

Based on overwhelming success to date, I am pleased to announce a major new kit - the Eisenkern APC..

APC size: 2.25" high 3.25" wide and 7.25" long

This APC was designed to seat 10 troopers plus 2 crew

At $145k every APC will recieve a full crew compliment of 10 seated troopers!

Heavy Trooper Assault Squad unlocked!

And yet another goal bites the dust!

All the power armor troops are now ready to go!

 

Heavy Support Squad unlocked!

Shocking news! The world continues to spin and change while I sleep :- P

Last night we broke $115k and opened up the Heavy Support Troopers!

If you blink you’re going to miss something ;)

Wow! You turn away for a short time and BANG!

 

Now available:

Stormtrooper Command Squad

 

Valkir Heavy Troopers

15mm Scale Mortis

All weapons for the 15mm scale Leviathans….

 

 

Next up:

$115k Heavy Trooper Support Weapons Set

$120k Heavy Trooper Assault Squad

Valkir Heavy troopers now a reality!

Another stretch goal down!

The Stormtrooper command squads are now available!

We also open up the Valkir Heavy Troopers! A core troop choice for the power armor sets. Still a work in progress, each box will contain 20 heavy troopers with 20 heavy rifles, 5 heavy grenadiers and 5 heavy flamers with enough ammo packs and accessories to load out your 20 man squad for the fight!

This core set will provide many new leg poses and thee main weapon options. The goal of this set is to provide the same flexibility you find in the core Stormtrooper box set for your power armored troops. If you like the designs and trust my design sense then I know you will be thrilled by the final box set.

We also have two more stretch goals available for the heavy troopers, the Support Weapons Squad and the Assault Squad!

You can see more here

 

 

 Project update video #1

 

A great project summary video

 

$100k stretch goal reached!

Free left hand Vulkan Cannons for all 28mm Leviathan backers! Both Mortis and Crusader!

Congrats all!

Ohiohammer Podcast

I just found a podcast from Ohiohammer, completely unsolicited coverage, so it was a fluke find for me. They had some very nice things to say about the Leviathan they viewed at Gencon and about the Kickstarter.


 go check it out.

The Leviathan Mortis is now a plastic model kit!

The Mortis joins its brother as a plastic model kit!

Another stretch goal down!

Note on Kickstarter project:

You can pledge for one or more Mortis (Morti?) or you can mix and match between the Mortis and Crusader and retain multi-unit pricing. When the project closes we will send out a survey, just tell us how many of each Mortis or Crusader you wanted!

This is not your grandfathers Hanomag

Here is a preview of the new Eisenkern APC!

This model is still a work in progress, the overall form is complete but there are a quite a few roughed in shapes and quite a bit of detailing that still needs to be done.

 

I thought this would be a good opportunity to go over my work flow and give you a peek into my processes.

 

First, I decide on a project, in this case an APC for the Eisenkern faction.

 

Next I think about what message I am trying to convey with the overall form of the model. In this case I wanted to bring a decidedly retro feel as I have with the Stormtroopers, this keeps the force looking cohesive on the table and allows me to draw from historic examples of vehicles for inspiration.

 

I then decide on a specific vehicle to work from. I have always liked the look of the Hanomag Sonderkraftfahrzeug "special purpose vehicle", or Sd.Kfz.

 

Not wanting to simply remake what can be found in other 1/35 scale models, I needed to examine the use in a modern battlefield and what changes would look good as well as reflect a more updated design. Halftracks are not a common occurrence on today’s battlefield, so I poured over contemporary vehicles and found that the tires now used are bullet resistant and much more suited to the task than they once were. Having a look at the Stryker APC/AFV was a nice point of inspiration. They are large wheeled vehicles, capable of carrying a large troop compliment.

 

The old Hanomag was tiny by comparison, so I knew we would need to drastically up-size from the original design.

 

 

I now have my muse! Having a base idea to work from, I then begin to think about what makes this thing work, what is a suitable armament for an APC and what future innovations might be found on such a vehicle.

 

Powerplant: Gas and diesel is too old school, so I went back to the Leviathans and pulled some reactor details to give this beast some real power under the hood. I kept some details that are important to the fluff and game, such as the reactor purge plugs that protrude from the side of the vehicle, just in front of the side doors.

 

Drivetrain: losing your ability to move is a great way to die, so each wheel has an independent drivetrain powered by the reactor.

 

Communications: Very important, the gunner doubles as a comms officer in the seat next to the driver and handles the tactical display that would project on the wind screen.

 

Armor: The vehicle needs to display some mass, it needs to look like it is up for the task.

 

Crew compartment: This is the heart and soul of any APC and their crews are its deadliest weapon. An Aliens style APC interior with safety roll bars to keep them locked into place…. This thing was designed to move and move fast. Multiple egress hatches to deploy from will help the troops hit the ground away from enemy fire.

 

Weapons systems: This is not an AFV (Armored Fighting Vehicle) it is a troop mover, so the armament should be defensive but effective vs. a host of enemy targets. I decided on a close infantry support weapon. If we need to hunt tanks, that’s what your infantry is for, and nothing says loving like a quad mount :)

 

 

 

With all those factors in mind, I get to work. I rough out a basic shape, do quite a bit of tweaking and adjust the scale to be able to fit a ten man squad, the driver and comms/gunner safely in the interior.

 

I continue to rough out the form until it pleases the eye. It needs to look sleek yet very robust, so I widen its wheel base.

 

Once I am happy with the overall form I start detailing. I pick a small section and eat the Elephant one bite at a time. I started with the wheels, then onto the power plant and finally the interior, leaving the exterior for last.

 

I usually let my new project name itself… spinning this model around I noticed from the front view it looked a lot like an African warthog, or boars head. I went with Keilerkopf “boar head”

This project is about 70% done with the interior so there are still a lot of details missing from the exterior, or roughed in shapes that will need attention.

 

This is also the first model designed from the ground up for hard tooling, all undercuts needed to be looked after and many components separated with the manufacturing process in mind. This slows things down quite a bit. No more simply adding details simply because they look good :) I like where the overall design is going and I hope you do as well.

 

All the best!

 

-Mark

 

 

 

Another goal down ;)

$80k has come and gone, and the Ripper Saw is now available!

More great models on the way!

Eisenkern Command Squad:
Two Sniper teams.
Medic and medical MULE.
Forward Observer team with designator and uplink.
Communications officer with field computer and uplink.
Platoon Sargent
Platoon Commander

Extra legs and weapons if you want your troopers on the move.

A Cargo MULE to assign to either your F.O. or your Comms Officer.

 

 

 

 

4.5” tall  1/100 Scale Leviathan Mortis!

 

 

15mm scale weapons!

All the weapon choices previously available to the 28mm scale kits, made available for the 15mm scale Leviathans!

Power armor takes the field!

Eisenkern Heavy Trooper:

 

(Support Weapons Squad)

 

 

(Assault Squad)

 

(Valkir core troops)