The Massive Taiidan Thread

[Taiidantomcat]

Bear with me for a for a few paragraphs:

As I watched Mossie struggle through a difficult Operation Granby TA-7C build, I noticed how supportive this group of people is and how they are able to give a friendly push or inspiration when a project gets tough. (You can see Mossie's superb build here if you haven't already: http://www.whatifmodelers.com/index.php/topic,29135.0.html )

For years I have had the Idea of taking my favorite aircraft the F-14 and mixing it with the elements of the Taiidan Empire, a race from the critically acclaimed video game Homeworld. This became my online handle of course, TaiidanTomcat. Homeworld ships were largely inspired by Chris Foss and Peter Elson, thus very unique and brightly colored. I have been planning a 1/32 version for years with lots of variations and experiments in 1/48. Years of pondering, planning, sketching, and rolling around ideas and I still have very little to show for it. (I think whiffers fall prey to Idea overload faster than most!)

Yesterday it hit me like a diamond bullet that a year from now I will probably have my national certification done, and although I can blow off studying for modeling, blowing off an actual job will not be as easy (and may lead to more "free time" than I would like) In short, its time to get building on the Taiidan Tomcat before I run out of time completely.

So here is my plan for this thread, I am going to try to work on the Taiidan stuff and update it daily, or at least every other day if possible. I am hoping to run to Kinkos a few times and get some scans of sketches and plans I have made over the years. Not all updates are going to be stunners for sure, and more than a few probably won't even include updates with pictures.  But I think everyone here can keep me on track and this will be a way to keep some accountability and seek advice if I get stuck on something. I also plan on putting up plenty of pictures from the game and other inspirational things (not unlike some of the Color and camouflage threads) And hopefully keep you and I Inspired.

So a blast from the past first circa May 30, 2008 my first Taiidan Tomcat:

And now for something Completely different!! This is a WHIf you just have to squint real hard, and realize its twice removed from reality: its a SCI-FI Whif. I posted this in the ARC Forum but i was hoping i could get more feed back here. My favorite jet is the Tomcat and one of my favorite video games is Homeworld, after thinking about this for a while i finally decided to do it. Its been in and out of progress for a while now, but its about 90 percent done and i wanted to share it. Still plan on adding more decals and doing a light wash. I'm happy with the results thus far but i would really appreciate feedback from anyone who takes the time to tell me. I'm kind of hoping for a general consensus on the overall look and anything that could be changed or improved size and shape wise to look better. This is only about my 5th model since i got back into the hobby, so I'm looking to improve my modeling skills of course, don't be afraid to speak up if you see something wrong with technique, but again size and shape are the big questions for me. I want it to look the part. If you aren't familiar with Homeworld, the screen shots are on top for comparison:









Thanks for looking!!

[Silverfox]

I'm always loving any real-world jet with sci-fi themes applied to it - that's what I always want to aim for with my WHIF's and I'm always excited when I see something like them turn up on the forums - and always sad when they don't come through to a full conclusion.

I'll be watching eagerly for every update, and I resolve to post and keep you motivated as you go on, since this is obviously a really important project for you, and I'd love to see it finished, as much as you would as well!
Keep going, taiidan!

[sotoolslinger]

Go my brother Really looking forward to it.

[Army of One]

Ha.....at last!!!! An explanation...!!!! Oh....good luck with the build as well...

[Taiidantomcat]

Thanks guys! Todays update:



Nine Tomcats on the table if you include the 1/72 cat in the top right corner there.
The two on the left are for Britmodeler's what if GB and our own Viva La France GB (though I have yet to start a topic in either forum-still busy!)
The Six in the Foreground though, are all Taiidan Tomcats. Why build six? and whats the difference? All six have will have features and details I am still not sure about lots of choices between A and B and even C and D  

The tomcat on the far right is being entered in the Test And experiment GB and is the most complete. It does not have a cockpit, this was to speed up construction, and also get a look from the video game itself (windows in the HW universe are just Black, no cockpits to see) This is supposed to represent one of the first Taii F-14s built so it won't be covered in EW, Armor, Sensors, Weapons, Etc like the other five will be and will include a very bright colorscheme:








Two of the Tomcats will be Scale O Rama from 1/48 to 1/35-1/32 scale. I spent some of the afternoon making the a new cockpit floor and other pieces to accommodate the bigger seat and cover up the excess space behind it:



I will get more into specifics later about the different variants later on, don't want to overload ya just yet

Thanks for stopping by, the best is yet to come

[sotoolslinger]

Neato  You are completely nutty buckets

[Eddie M.]

Very interesting and inspirational.

[retro_seventies]

Great to see your thought process at work - i'll be glued (no pun intended) to this thread!

I know what you mean about work.  Mine eats into just about every moment that i seem to have free at the moment, but the ideas never stop coming!  I'm keen on making some of my untouched (for years) stash into WH40k vehicles, but have barely been able to make a start - lots of daydreaming though

Good luck with your endeavours, and know that ALL of us here are behind you! 

[Taiidantomcat]

Neato   You are completely nutty buckets

Awww, means even more coming from you, Ron!  

Very interesting and inspirational.

Thanks Eddie And speaking of inspirational, Thanks to your wonderful Tomcat pics I think one of these cats is going to get the VF-2 Treatment  

Great to see your thought process at work - i'll be glued (no pun intended) to this thread!

I know what you mean about work.  Mine eats into just about every moment that i seem to have free at the moment, but the ideas never stop coming!  I'm keen on making some of my untouched (for years) stash into WH40k vehicles, but have barely been able to make a start - lots of daydreaming though

Good luck with your endeavours, and know that ALL of us here are behind you!  

"Daydreaming" is a superb description! Havn't seen you around here lately, its great to have you!

Some quick background:

In the official story the Taiidan are the bad guys, and the Kushan are the good guys, in a sure sign of genius though, the programmers made the game so you could play either side. Whichever side you choose is fighting the big bad empire that threw you off your home planet centuries ago and as the underdog you are battling through space to retake your homeworld. Now I have obviously been a big fan of the Taiidan, so I tend to think of them as the good guys, but in "official" Homeworld nerd speak (of which I am fluent) The Taiidan are often referred to as the Taiidan Empire.

Here is a 1/140 die cast A-6(E I believe) In Taiidan Elite colors:







Speaking of colors A brief description of Taiidan colors: The primary colors of the Taiidan Empire are yellow and red, or scarlet and gold (The USMC's colors, another reason I am partial to them)


(Chart made by Norsehound On the Relic Forums)




Taii Heavy Corvette

However Taiidan "Elite Guard" units are painted black and gray:


Taii Heavy Corvette (note carrier in the background)


Taii interceptor (note four post tail which is a Taiidan trademark)

As you can see colors are easier than schemes. I am going to get very good at masking over the next few weeks.

Thanks for checking in everyone, see ya again soon

[Taiidantomcat]

Been busy and sick  So this updated is very late!

Taiidan Warthog:


Original by game desidner Rob Cunningham


Art By Norsehound

By Steelharbinger


More by Norsehound



Finally Model by me (long way to go yet!)

Thanks for checking in, more Tomcat stuff on the way.

[Mossie]

Wow, what a project you've got here!  Looking forward to seeing it progress & I for one will be happy to chip in with ideas & encouragement.  You're right, we've got a great bunch here, if your ever low on motivation (yeap, I mean me!) I don't think any other modelling forum would root as much.

[Pablo1965]

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! This can be addicted... you are the evidence. nine Tomcat.
but it don't  mind... good work. I like the Talidan Elite Colours.

[sotoolslinger]

Very nice start on the spacecraft ,Taiidan Sweet craftsmanship

[Taiidantomcat]

Alright folks its been a long time since my last update  I want to update more frequently but the whole idea was to keep me on track so although I am not posting as often as i would like, I am happy to report I am still working daily on this project.

Its very slow going, and heres why. I am designing whole new parts and sections for these models. First I measure then transfer them onto posterboard or thin cardboard. I then test fit, refine the measurements and then try again. sometimes i have to start over using another piece of cardboard. when I am satisfied I mark the cardboard piece for future reference with the date i made it and where it goes for future use. from there I finally trace it on to styrene. So it takes a while!

I have taken scale drawings of the F-14 and sketched all the things i wanted to do differently, and some versions of the Taii Tomcat have over 50 changes!!    Not everything is a single piece structure either. The tail fins for example are at least three (in some cases four) pieces that must fit together perfectly! 


I have decided to change the wing boxes. They will have more pieces but be easier to assemble and better looking in the end.


Tail fins with spare sprue to create depth


Here is the second piece (held down with a marker for photo purposes) The lack of depth on the first Taii Tomcat fins I made was very apparent and did not look realistic so I came up with this design (and another but you will see that later)


These are another variant of fin based on the Panavia Tornado. (they look sharp!)


Lastly, and I know this is not the best picture. But the plan for the new wingboxes. I have to write a lot of stuff down because there is a lot of detail to keep track of on these subsections, and a lot of planning. on ARC a Modeler with the handle PetarB is doing a Taiidan Intereptor:

http://www.arcforums.com/forums/air/index.php?showtopic=215159&st=0
Heres a teaser pic:





PetarB seems to have found a good way to detail his 1/72 scale Taii Interceptor, using a few little greeblies here and there along with a couple recessed lines here and there to create a nice bunch of detail without looking overly busy. I was having trouble with this personally. In the game The 3d renders of ships are well, flat. All detail is "painted on" so knowing what is supposed to be recessed or bumpy is very hard to tell. but PetarB seems to have nailed it. I hope to emulate this myself.

Thanks for stopping by (and stop by and say good work to PetarB if you can-- its an amazing bit of scratchbuilding, masking, and painting) 

[Mossie]

Keep it coming!  Looks like you're well on your way & PetarB's build seems like a good aiming point.