[MOC] - WIP - Kage Goomba's YT-2000 "Otana" - UCS - Ready for Evaluation

[Kage Goomba]

UPDATE: I've changed some things on my webserver - so some pics will be broken - they are still there - just hiding - happy to fix the links if requested - but these forum boards are horrid at editing links so ill just keep it to the highlights for now.

 

Some of you may have saw my "YT Corellian Transport Thread" - This is what I've been working on. (Those who know - please don't share my pics - as I'm keeping things simple for now)

Tonight I've hit roughly the 45-49% Mark in terms of proof of concept design wise. So now I feel like revealing the work to get some community feedback/encouragement.

To date - no ones ever done one - there's been some miniatures - some rather "smallish" models - but nothing like UCS scale.

EDIT: Seems I wasn't the first. Per @Geihlen who found this -> Vieral's Otana - 2012 - 10 years back - not bad - certainly didn't have the luxery of parts we have today. Google didn't see this either - not in any MOC DB's - I did in fact reach out to him as a result.

I've been wanting to do this since I first saw this ship.

Little background first:

https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Star_Wars:_X-Wing_Alliance

Back in 1999 this game showed up - I grabbed a copy - and saw this Falcon like ship for the first time and fell head over heels in love with it. To be honest - I never liked the falcon that much - yes its the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy - but as Leia said when she first saw it - its ugly (inferred or otherwise) - The Otana however was glorious in shape and design. As a lego maniac I wanted to build one. Fast forward to today - I now understand why no one's really done one yet - or at least tried and nearly went bald/insane.

The ship unlike the YT-2400 and the 1300 is very different in that the cockpit is down the center-line - and it has a larger "saucer/dome" section in the main hull of the ship. Add to that - 1990's computer graphics doesn't help much in rendering. Little to no "hard facts" on this ship which makes it a bit of a challenge to interpret the design.

Funny enough - everyone thought I was building the YT-2400 - which is well known as the Outrider which is funny because its already been done - quite nicely I might add (as did copy off the engine array design of one hehe)

Some Info on the Otana (keep in mind - open to interpretation) - https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Otana

Ive decided to go with this rather nice layout design - with some room to stretch/squeeze as needed.

I've put a lot of thought into this project over the years - thankfully I didn't attempt this until now. As one of my new community friends @Kdapt-Preacher pointed out - there are very nice pieces recently released that make these challenges "possible". Thankfully the biggest blessing as this is a symmetrical ship that allows for clone/copy once I get one side done. Hence my unveiling.

I've also seen as I researched prior to Thanksgiving - that people have been literally screaming for this MOC - so I'm excited to be in the running for the likely first second? one done of this type or scale - certainly what I call "UCS".

So I'm hoping this will get the fans to come out of the woodwork.

 

After many months of work - its ready for poking and prodding before finishing touches.

Some questions I'm expecting that ill try to answer:

1: How big are we talking? - Roughly the size of the UCS Falcon - measures at (currently) 32"x24"x11" at 7.5k-7.6k pieces.

2: Are you going to build this? YES - of course I am - but it will take time to budget and gather parts - right now I need to make sure this thing is ready to be built - still need finishing touches.

3: What kind of model aside from UCS? Playable? Insides? - Not a "play model" - there will be a cockpit that ill try to have something to show for it insides wise but this isn't going to be that kind of design - maybe in the future - but not for this "iteration". It will likely require a stand or a cradle as there are weight concerns/structure wise.

4: Are you going to post instructions if so how much? Yes at some point - but I'm undecided on whether i charge or not. Its taking 10's if not 100's of hours to get here - So I may have to consult with other designers and ask for suggestions advice.

5: This (insert this bit here) looks wrong. - Yep there's many bits that look wrong - feel free to point out and suggest. Right now the following areas are "no touchy" - Dome Suacer sections (There will be 4 - 2 on each side) - that thing has stolen days from me in redesign. I may end up having to redo it - however its looking very good. The rest vary depending on the critiquing. My to-do list will be posted so you can check that if your curious.

6:Scaling is off - yep it likely is - it was VERY bad early on as some of my new friends pointed out. Again - check to-do list before pointing something out.

7: Otana has dual gun turrets! - Don't Care :P I'm going Quad Guns - I however would like to figure out where to stick a/the Ion Cannon(s) at (Suggestions are welcome!) (In truth this is not really a big deal but Its just my little "dispute" from the game) - Yes I totally ripped the Falcon's turret off and "smashed" it to fit. I'm open to redesigning this. Yep ok you win - its not the Otana if its not to spec.

8: You going to make changes after release? - I'm going to avoid doing this for obvious reasons - so I'll try not to "rock the boat" with perfectionist syndrome.

9: Bonus Feature - Gun Turrets that drop from hidden hatches (Ion Cannon/Laser Cannon) with sliding hatches.

Todo list:

1: Get some volunteers who are willing to help me evaluate this carefully and MAYBE do some test builds to make sure this will hold up.

2: Design a Cradle/Stand/Plaque

3: Surface "Candy"/Greebles/etc.

4: Cockpit needs some refinement (inside)

5: Part Audit (make sure I'm using readily available parts and nothing stupid insane aside from obvious (3 parts estimated at this point)

6: Instructions (cringe)

Major Phases:

Phase 1: Proof of Concept - done - ready for evaluation.

Phase 2: Detail it out

Phase 3: Audit to make sure the bloody thing won't fall apart and can be built out (will be looking for volunteers to test/poke) - with colors. Consider bricks and price.

Phase 4: Instruction Manual (I'm not looking forward to this)

Phase 5: Build it! And pray it works.

Phase 6: Release! (1.0)

 

And that's that.....hope you guys are excited as much as I am.

Biggest thanks and shout outs to @Kdapt-Preacher  with his tolerance of my ranting/screaming/spamming of my progress and "Darth Soban" who gave me inspiration for the dome sections.

 

Those who are interested in helping me out - PM me and we can discuss - I strongly advise you get Discord because these boards are not suited to up to minute detailed chats.

The goal is to make sure those who decide to shell out money for this - won't regret the investment (like me for instance).

I will charge for instructions yes - but that's yet to be determined.

Edited August 29, 2023 by Kage Goomba
Editing links.

[Kdapt-Preacher]

You already know I'm looking forwards to it. ;)

[Kage Goomba]

5 minutes ago, Kdapt-Preacher said:

You already know I'm looking forwards to it. ;)

I want to see the Cantwell just as much. ;)

So lets both keep working on our projects!

[Guyinaplaguemask]

RIP Kage Goomba's sanity. Are you using LDD to do this?

It looks nice, but some areas do need a little polishing, but you'll get to that when you get to that.

Interesting project to undertake though, I will definitely follow your progress.

[Kage Goomba]

5 hours ago, Guyinaplaguemask said:

RIP Kage Goomba's sanity. Are you using LDD to do this?

It looks nice, but some areas do need a little polishing, but you'll get to that when you get to that.

Interesting project to undertake though, I will definitely follow your progress.

Stud.io actually.

And yeah...I think my Sanity abandoned me the day after thanksgiving.

[Guyinaplaguemask]

Ah, okay

[MAVERICK26]

Wow. That's amazing!

[Kage Goomba]

5 hours ago, MAVERICK26 said:

Wow. That's amazing!

Much thanks.

Posted an update in the OP as to progress.

TLDR version - got the left side mirrored and now both attached.

Its not perfect - but its looking pretty awesome in all fairness. For something thats never been done as of yet - this is a great start.

[Geihlen]

I'll just lead with that I think this is a great start, and I'm glad to see this after seeing your post about it in the lead up to your reveal here. I'll also say that I am not an expert, I have never tried to design something of this size and complexity myself. I am regularly impressed, even awed, by the creativity and ingenuity shown here on this board. Your build is no exception.

As I was looking at what you've got so far, I can't help but wonder if the...cylinder/neck leading up to and including the area just before cockpit wouldn't benefit from some sort of...stacked brick/plate solution maybe with the stacks on their side. This ultimately means that the neck would be more polygonal, but I think it would give you more control over proportion and details (provided it's even doable). Again, since I'm not an expert, I don't know that I could give you a practical example of this technique and so my suggestion may be pretty worthless. It just seems to me that some of the design and proportion of that part of the ship is being dictated by the part usage.

The saucer and turret domes are very round in the art, but you're using plates and the like to convey the shape. Obviously, for areas that big, there isn't really another alternative. I point this out only to illustrate that I think a similar type of shaping solution on the neck, if possible, would be just as effective and may even unify the look of the overall build even more.

[Kage Goomba]

1 hour ago, Geihlen said:

I'll just lead with that I think this is a great start, and I'm glad to see this after seeing your post about it in the lead up to your reveal here. I'll also say that I am not an expert, I have never tried to design something of this size and complexity myself. I am regularly impressed, even awed, by the creativity and ingenuity shown here on this board. Your build is no exception.

As I was looking at what you've got so far, I can't help but wonder if the...cylinder/neck leading up to and including the area just before cockpit wouldn't benefit from some sort of...stacked brick/plate solution maybe with the stacks on their side. This ultimately means that the neck would be more polygonal, but I think it would give you more control over proportion and details (provided it's even doable). Again, since I'm not an expert, I don't know that I could give you a practical example of this technique and so my suggestion may be pretty worthless. It just seems to me that some of the design and proportion of that part of the ship is being dictated by the part usage.

The saucer and turret domes are very round in the art, but you're using plates and the like to convey the shape. Obviously, for areas that big, there isn't really another alternative. I point this out only to illustrate that I think a similar type of shaping solution on the neck, if possible, would be just as effective and may even unify the look of the overall build even more.

Good eye and observation - and yeah thought the same. Also thank you so much for the compliments - I'm floored frankly being this is my first.

The "Cockpit Tube" I have a little bit of freedom to mess with.

The internal structure has a set of 4 struts (in pairs tied together with linkers) running from the front to the back you see sticking out. The outside bits are just dressing but designed to stay together as you see.

The "Seed" is the falcon's cockpit window part on the front. - I'm tempted to change the front and shrink that down - as for the rest - the scaling should look better when I move/compress it to the main body - right now its a little out of place.

Not sure if I'll change the cylinder or not - I may shrink it. I'm more open to changing that than I am with the dome.
It looks better because in truth its going to get swallowed by the main body's dome top/bottom.

As you pointed out I'll likely use the same techniques to cap it in - but that's a bridge to cross/blow up/nuke an another day.

I've also discovered that other graphics on the net do not agree on the mandible size at all - and my "blueprint" I'm using isn't exactly authoritative.

So ill just chalk this up to best guess and not stress over it.

As it is I've nuked the engine array and currently rebuilding it as shrinking it as its wouldn't do much good other than add frustration and since I want to be able to sneak in some LED's - might as well re do it. It should fit better when I'm done.

Sadly the roundness look of the main core of the ship isn't going to be right - it will be more oval shaped due to the fact Lego doesn't make it easy to make dome/saucers.

The flat top of the dome/saucer section is going to be covered by the capping of the dome top/bottom - but it may shift a bit. Not sure if I'm making any sense.

I'll PM you a picture of the "structure" to give you an idea of whats hiding under the skin. Just don't spread it around. :)

Edited January 3, 2022 by Kage Goomba

[Kage Goomba]

Engine array rebuild is 75% done. :)

seems simpler and less complex as the old one. And it fits at least. Now I have room for LED Strips to give it a lovely white blue glow.

[Kage Goomba]

cockpit sections now more in line with various models (the cylinder bit behind the cockpit window is gone and in its place to make it more in line)

[BarfolomewMog]

I like the way you've eased into building your first MOC by taking on a UCS scale project haha.

 

On 1/4/2022 at 7:08 AM, Geihlen said:

I'll also say that I am not an expert

 

Ya, I'd like to point out that I am also unqualifed but I do agree with the statement below...

 

On 1/4/2022 at 7:08 AM, Geihlen said:

cylinder/neck leading up to and including the area just before cockpit wouldn't benefit from some sort of...stacked brick/plate solution maybe with the stacks on their side. This ultimately means that the neck would be more polygonal, but I think it would give you more control over proportion and details (provided it's even doable)

 

Not sure if you've seen this guy's work: 

 

SNOT circles by lisqr, on Flickr

 

Also there is this guy, who has an entire folder on Circles and Cylinders (not sure how to link to it though):

 

12 sides by Péter Ittzés, on Flickr

 

Might be some good resources if you decide to try to minimise the current scalloped effect on the cylinders behind the cockpit (I understand the challenge of not having appropriate parts!)

So good to catch the early stages of someone's WIP, you must be stoked to finally share the journey and get it out there!

Looking forward to watching your progress

 

 

 

 

[Kage Goomba]

43 minutes ago, BarfolomewMog said:

I like the way you've eased into building your first MOC by taking on a UCS scale project haha.

 

 

Ya, I'd like to point out that I am also unqualifed but I do agree with the statement below...

 

 

Not sure if you've seen this guy's work: 

 

SNOT circles by lisqr, on Flickr

 

Also there is this guy, who has an entire folder on Circles and Cylinders (not sure how to link to it though):

 

12 sides by Péter Ittzés, on Flickr

 

Might be some good resources if you decide to try to minimise the current scalloped effect on the cylinders behind the cockpit (I understand the challenge of not having appropriate parts!)

So good to catch the early stages of someone's WIP, you must be stoked to finally share the journey and get it out there!

Looking forward to watching your progress

 

 

 

 

Holy #### - where were you when I needed you back in November?

Damn - that is a great cylinder design. I've not seen this in all my searches and research today.

Piece count would go up big time but this could be what I'm looking for for redesigning the cockpit tub.

@Kdapt-Preacher you seeing this? Damn - I feel stupid now - seriously.

Gotta say - I've learned so much in this venture hahaha.

Thank you so much - I'll have to give this a try.

Don't suppose you could send me cross sections and other details via PM?

The Snot Circles would likely work better for capping - but the 12 sided hinge plate trick might work for my cockpit tube - slight concerns in size and dimensions - I wonder if there are variations of the size.

I'd have to mess with one and see what if it would work.

Even if it doesn't - its a great technique.

Just did a quick rough estimate - looks about the same size give or take a stud (12 studs long diameter give or take) - Think ill give that a shot - has a much better texture - would take a bit to build out. :)

EDIT - found it.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/legohungary/albums/72157658449024741

Looks like I get to experiment :)

It seems I stumbled across this guys saucer/dome suggestion or someone showed it to me - but I didn't see his cylinders. Very brilliant man this is. Ended up going with a different methodology but def. was worth a look.

 

Again thanks for showing me this. ^_^

Edited January 5, 2022 by Kage Goomba

[That Orange Thing]

Looks like a great start to an ambitious project and hope we can see the finished result in the not too distant future.

Just as a cautionary warning from experience when building in digital only in this scale. Make sure the technic frame is up to the job of holding all the pieces together as they soon become heavy and tend to sage. You mentioned the frame looks over engineered which is a good sign but i would also add that the frame itself can never have enough connection points to the rest of the build.

I also found that that building small test sections in physical bricks can be really helpful as it often looks nice on screen but falls apart or has connection issues once you start to build. Somehow the brain knows how to build for stability with bricks in your hand rather than doing it digitally. I'm not sure how big your brick collection is but in the early stages you can use any old colour or quality of brick just to play around and improve upon and buy the correct colour later if needed.

Again, can't wait to see how this progresses and good luck.

[Geihlen]

7 hours ago, BarfolomewMog said:

Not sure if you've seen this guy's work: 

SNOT circles by lisqr, on Flickr

Also there is this guy, who has an entire folder on Circles and Cylinders (not sure how to link to it though):

12 sides by Péter Ittzés, on Flickr

This is pretty much exactly what I was envisioning. I'm glad you were able to help illustrate the idea farrrrrr better than I did. I think this could be the ticket for Kage's build, provided the increased part count is tolerable. 

[Kage Goomba]

4 hours ago, That Orange Thing said:

Looks like a great start to an ambitious project and hope we can see the finished result in the not too distant future.

Just as a cautionary warning from experience when building in digital only in this scale. Make sure the technic frame is up to the job of holding all the pieces together as they soon become heavy and tend to sage. You mentioned the frame looks over engineered which is a good sign but i would also add that the frame itself can never have enough connection points to the rest of the build.

I also found that that building small test sections in physical bricks can be really helpful as it often looks nice on screen but falls apart or has connection issues once you start to build. Somehow the brain knows how to build for stability with bricks in your hand rather than doing it digitally. I'm not sure how big your brick collection is but in the early stages you can use any old colour or quality of brick just to play around and improve upon and buy the correct colour later if needed.

Again, can't wait to see how this progresses and good luck.

Yeah I've been doubling up/over linking where I can.

Been drawing experiences from building complex models like the UCS Star Destroyer - the AT-AT most recently - etc.

I'm covering up a lot of the structure to keep things quiet - but trust me when I say - there's a lot more there than meets the eye.

There are portions of the Star Destroyer I don't like in structure terms that I'm avoiding in this design for example.

The main core of the ship is a very densely "technic brick" area for example - trying to put all the weight there and ensure it holds up.
If I had to say what weak areas are there - the mandibles and dome areas - but I also put in as many struts and areas as I could to ensure it holds up. Saddly it will need a cradle - not a play model to be sure.

Wish I had bricks lying around to toy with - but I don't - so I do what I can here and draw feedback. I'll throw a screenshot at you showing the "Skeleton" to give you an idea of what its there. :)

[Kage Goomba]

Tried the cylinder out - its not going to work for me due to the fact I can't cap it and adapt it to the other sections of the cockpit tube.

I'm still mentally coming up with some ideas but the biggest issue is its a fraction of a stud too short - so it gets to be a real nightmare that way.

Its a great technique - but square peg meets round hole syndrome. :(

[Kage Goomba]

Welp - stuck with my cockpit tube as it is - although i did improve the front portion.

Its been moved back closer to the main body - now I get the fun job of finishing up.

I'm not looking forward to the oval-ness that it will have - but this is still going to look like a great attempt at making an Otana. Just wish Lego had some more options in wedges/cylinders. I'll hopefully have some sneak peaks here to share in a day or so.

[Kage Goomba]

So WIP pics today - still working on this - just taking time.

Cockpit Tube got corrected a bit and moved inside to the main body.

Built the wall behind the tube.

I had to recenter the tube to the body as it was off buy a plate or so - still is by a bit - but its much better now.

Still not happy with the oval effect of the shape - but with the pieces we have to work with - its still looking good regardless.

Edited January 10, 2022 by Kage Goomba

[Kage Goomba]

Ok guys/gals/fan-atics.

 

Riddle me this riddle me that. - Where the bloody hell...is the Ion Cannon/Laser Cannon on this ship.

Its been bugging me.

All I can confirm is the location of the "Dual" Laser Cannon turrets (Albeit I'm putting Quad Cannons on this - I may have to revert that due to the fact I'm calling this the Otana - sigh) - belly/head - but not the cannons - namely the ion cannon that made the Otana so special.

I've been reaaaaal tempted to find a way to put one on this design....some sort of little signature trait as it was what really set this ship apart from even the Falcon.

Maybe even the Concussion missile launchers. :)

Edited January 11, 2022 by Kage Goomba

[Kage Goomba]

Engine array work continues.

Still going the plate route - may or may not revert to my original brick idea - its fewer parts - but it may prove to be too much of a headache.

I did give myself 1 bricks worth of space between the transparent cylinders and the wall for LED's. :)

[Kage Goomba]

Ended up going back to my original "brick" design (but fewer bricks/simpler) on the engine array <at its current new size> - due to the fact I made a "oops" by making the cargo hatches too big so after scraping 2 bricks of height off the top/bottom of each hatch - and pulling the engine array out by 2 studs....got things sized up much better.

I need to do some more adjustments but I'll give a sneak peek tomorrow. :)

Edited January 11, 2022 by Kage Goomba

[Kage Goomba]

Engine Array is starting to look good - going to be quite the trick to get the hull plating between the saucer/dome sections but ill figure something out.

And no your not losing your mind - I trimmed the height on the cargo hatch to be closer to scale - that was a very painful process. :)

[Kage Goomba]

Laying hull plating on the engine section up to the dome portion - this is just not going to look right no matter what I do - I really wish lego had more dome/saucer pieces.

Doing my best to make a square peg fit a round hole.

 

I have to admit tho...this is looking rather awesome regardless - once again I'm reminded why no one's really done a Otana to this scale.

Also squished engine array to be in line with the drawings - so its not as "tall".

Edited January 12, 2022 by Kage Goomba