I post most all my mecha=work to my MOCPages profile but I thought I'd share an exclusive first peek of my current mecha (re)build WIP with y'all first

This particular WIP is known as MAS2-002 Izanami.ZX Type-N (Mobile Armor System 2 unit 002 Izanami.ZX Type-Nanoha)

I could go on for ages and ages about its history, design, theoretically functionality, pilot, and all sorts of things but I'll spare you details unless you ask so just enjoy some shoddy iPod Touch 4 pictures of it.

Wow, that looks super-spiffy! I'm impressed that you go so far as to think up backstory, details, and all that other stuff about your mechas. I think you've previously shared some of your mecha pictures in the Candid Photos thread, so it's nice to see both that you're continuing to work on them (and use your summer productively!) and continuing to share with us.

There's an entire war and massive multi-year storyline regarding my MAS and MAS2 units

I'm going to have to start writing it down though because my memory is reaching its capacity on this stuff XD

Looks like a fun build. I'll try and post some pictures of the Technic dragons my brother and I have been building. We've been experimenting with a lot of different stances and body configurations.

My models can never have enough Star Driver based functionality so I gave Izanami's "Piles" (Piles is the Star Driver term for the pseudo-skirt forming fins on the back of certain Cybodies [the show's mechas]) a "Pile Jet" mode where the blue ones "transform" into large thrusters and reattach themselves onto Izanami's back. There are separate pieces for the normal and jet modes. I'm thinking the middle white Pile will become a weapon of some kind.


Also, for those wondering, Izanami's about 11" tall give or take.

Decided to revisit and rebuild a previous prototype mecha which is a modular transformer-combiner.

This is the WIP redesign of Valkyrie Wing (ValkWing for short) called "Neo Valkyrie". New one is on left, old one is on right.





The new one is a nice improvement in both vehicle design and transformation as it doesn't require adding/removing a spare part (a cooling fin that attaches to the backside of the torso in combined robo mode).

This reminds me of RAD, which quite possibly single greatest PS2 game ever created.

More Izanami work
Added a ribbon to its/her chest and redesigned the frontal pelvic armor. Also, added a sleek core pack to the backside (core packs are a staple of all MAS and MAS2 units. They are literally the core systems of the machine. They're armored in a thin layer of a super-sturdy [and super expensive] alloy that resists most normal attacks.)

Is it bad that these all look vaguely like Transformers to me? Mechas are supposed to be a completely different beast than Transformers, correct?

Not at all. The "transformer" style is actually pretty common in a lot of mecha genre shows and transformations and combinations have been a staple for decades. So, it's no surprise that you'd get a "Transformers" feel from non-Transformer robots.

Seriously, go buy a copy of RAD: Robot Alchemic Drive, you of all people would love it like a woman...

Friend on MOCPages suggested I lengthen the legs of the transformer-combiner so I rebuilt Neo Valkyrie to be 2 studs taller (upper legs and lower legs are both 1 stud longer). Think it looks better.

Also, giant sword for it to wield in robo form whenever I finish the top half.

Is that second picture the front of it? Because it kind of looks like that's a penis.

I was going to mention that when he referred to his mech in the feminine, but I wasn't sure if it was the front or the back.

For one, the variable combiner is gender neutral. And that's an armor skirt plate.

Please don't confuse the variable combiner and the Izanami.

*bump*
Posted these to MOCPages but forgot to post them here, so:

WIP torso. Integrates the sword hilt in a pretty cool way if I do say so myself. Hilt transforms into the sword using the magical power of imagination (or maybe ground up n00bs )





Also, for those who enjoy a little backstory to LEGO models, here's an excerpt of the variable combiner project from the related MOC page:

Not to mention loads of wasted energy transforming and maintaining balance during said transformations. Separate specialized vehicles would be far more cost-effective.

Energy has never really been a problem in my storyline universes. Most all of my mechas employ a crystalline power source that defies the laws of physics and has virtually unlimited power output. It's not entirely handwavium, though, as I do have an explanation for how, roughly, they work.

Also, balance isn't an issue because all VariON units combine while flying or, rather, falling.


LEGO is more fun when you start to disregard things like physics

If you have unlimited energy, why not channel large amounts of it into a destructive beam swivel-mounted on an ATV? No need for large, transforming robots if you can just blast everything out of the sky from the back of a small, fast, vehicle.