Lynx7725

Uhm. I don't see why the symbols may be confusing, especially if you are not interested in the background story (i.e. fluff) but more of the instructions..

My Japanese is rudimentary, but luckily I understand Chinese too.

*flips MG manuals*

Okay, fair.. some may need help to decipher. If you would scan the "road signs" I think we would be more than willing to help. (okay, I would.. can't speak for everyone.. )

As for parts, MG kit manuals always has a page detailling the sprues. This is called the "Parts List" page.

Each sprue is labeled, at top, with A XXX <-- katakana for "parts", I think, B XXX. So it's fairly easy to match them. If there are supposed to be 2 sets of say, sprue B, there is a "x2" behind. Quite clear, right?

Because Bandai standardizes some parts, notably polycaps, in the diagrams sometimes there are crosses over certain parts. This means the parts are not to be used for this kit -- save them.

As for screws and other parts, normally at the bottom right of he Parts Lists page there is a tabulation of other contents of the MG kit. The numbers are usually stated there. If you can scan in one I can do a rough translation for you, but bear in mind that the parts changes based on kits.

I guess I can understand why....

I like kittens (I have two cats), and I think bunnies taste mighty fine in a pie.

Yeah, I still remember the pic of your cat curled up in a Valk Box. Cute, that one.

I need to go for a meeting; will come back to post a rebuttal later.

Like GreatMoose, I would prefer a second season of WHR rather than a Live Action.. but it depends who is cast as Robin Sena et. al.

They better keep the music.

Effect: Just what was the message you got from WHR?

Yup, EVA blows goats.

*Mental Image of an EVA blowing a goat*

Heck, if EVA would literally blow a goat, it would make more sense.. I ain't an EVA fan either.

Back to topic. Yeah, too many lines already, especially of OYW material. I like 1/144 for display purposes, although the 1/400 line is great for wargaming purposes.

Hmm.. What would be nice, IMO, is a 1/60 DYRL Max-1S to go with the 1/60 DYRL Millia Q-Rau. Think of the dioramas we can build.

Frankly, I think a DYRL Max-1S model is more likely.. the one thing about the Max-1S that really stands out for me was that 3-second superdetailed close-up of the Max-1S in DYRL.

Doesn't quite fit IMO.. like brainiac_08 said, too skinny. Maybe the 1S head?

It's a 40ft tall robot with big guns and bigger explosions, what did you expect? We drool over a plane with a 30mm Gatling.

The designs aren't butt-ugly.. certainly, the VF-1 is more stylish over most Gundam mecha. The VF-1 design is that of the sky, something elegant and sleek. Their appeal is that of speed and deadliness.

But Gundam mecha screams pragmatism and foot-slogging in the mud; it's war machines at a very personal level, some thing that appeal to us at a very primeval level. It's face-to-face and fist-in-face kind of appeal.

The VF-1 speaks of a highly glamourous approach to war -- that of the fighter pilot, the movie-poster guy who climbs into the cockpit, fly for a few hours, and get all the girls.

Gundam mecha speaks of the front-line grunts, those who climbs into a foxhole, fight for weeks, and maybe get buried in the fields.

IMO, while the VF-1 design is very good, I have to say that there is more consistency in Gundam designs than in VF designs. Just compare the differences between VF-1, Mac Plus and Mac 7, vs. Gundam from OYW to F91. Gundam may be ugly, but they are consistently ugly.. VFs, they are sort of hit-and-miss.

marauders, a warhammer in need of resoldering , locusts, some type of vf/LAM and another style vf/LAM

This one's easy. Marauders, and 'Hammer you already identified. The VF-style Mechs on the left are Wasps, those on the right are Stingers.

From Top Left to Top Right, row by row:

Victor, Assassin, Whitworth, Orion

Awesome, Clint (?), Vulcan, Zeus

The tanks aren't Battletech, looks like Shermans to me.

From Top Left to Top Right, row by row:

Stalker, ShadowHawk, Wolverine, Bombardier

Javelin, Dragon, Quickdraw, Banshee.

From Top Left to Top Right, row by row:

Dragons

Zeus

Orions

I'm definitely interested in your Marauders, especially the complete ones.

He looks chubby in 'Bot.

Question is, can he go to GERWALK?

If you have pics, it would probably be faster simply to post them and get us to id for you.. Btech and GW I can probably help you out, but there's a limit to what I can help you with.

Given your (incredible) ability to procure old stuff, some of the miniatures you have are probably so old even searching GW archives is fruitless.

Like Skull One, I probably would be interested in some of your stuff too.

Looks interesting.

Any ideas how much will be the monthly fee?

The usual routes; HLJ, but prepare to wait a bit (I ordered some parts "recently"; time to chase I think) and there's no guarantee that Yamato has the parts on hand.

Or a Macrossworlder who stays in Japan, I can think of 2 or 3 who may be willing to help.

Impt thing is for you to get the proper part number. Check your manual, but be careful not to order the normal canopy by mistake.

Sebasitian - I was so disappointed with the Gerbera FIX. I wanted that for so long, and when I got it, you can't pose it at all and the damn arms and legs fall off.

Armour's too restrictive, I agree, but only my Gerbera FIX hands are falling off.. I glued the forearm armour parts together, so that solved one problem.

The FIX line are posable models, not toys. Once I got that expectation correct, the FIX line is okay.

You guys want to know which FIX sucks? The Alex FIX. If you think the Gerbera arms fall off or can't pose properly, wait till you play with the Alex.

I hear that the M60/LAW class is ridiculously overpowered. Is this true, or is it somewhat balanced out by the other classes?

The M60/ LAW is a good balance, but if the player don't know how to use the M60 properly and just spray-and-pray, it's fairly useless. In a game where tanks occassionally pops up, having the LAW as a backup anti-tank weapon gives this particular combination added flexibility.

The Viet-Cong equivalent, the RPG/ assault rifle combination is pretty much the same, and the rifle feels more accurate than the M60. Me, I rather go for accuracy over firepower, but the M60 is appealing for its ability to suppress.

I think it balances out on both sides, but expect a lot of RPGs and LAWs rocketing towards each other.

The SVD is an excellent weapon, accurate and kills with single head shots. I love that weapon!

Tried my hands at heli flying. tricky, lots of things to look out for, but I can now land on the dinky little floating base with a little bit work.

more jungle gives you more depth in gameplay

[..]

if you loose a strategic base you're in trouble

don't like the jeeps though, at least in DC you had MG's and rocketlaunchers

Not too sure about the jungle giving more depth.. I think it's a nice change, at least no more snipers from the Omaha Wall. And it seems like snipers get toned down quite severely for this version.

But at the same time, the jungle.. is irritating.

I'm not sure about online -- it's sure to be tougher -- but at least in single player it's not so difficult if you lose a strategic base. Well, the AI can't seem to hit the broad side of the barn, so normally an RPG/ LAW in a cluster works well.

As for the jeep.. the 2nd position can fire his weapon, so simply put a M60 gunner there; it's almost as good. Coupled with the M.U.T.T., the US jeep is actually quite interesting.

Just like to check -- anyone playing? I got the game 2 days back, haven't had the opportunity to go online yet, but the basic gameplay in single player seems fairly okay.

The graphics definitely looks better and the terrain much busier, but the gameplay is very similar to BF1942 (i.e. biggest infantry guns with the most accuracy wins). One major area is that tanks are fairly ineffective now -- good and bad.

Haven't tried the choppers yet; I'm more of a ground-level person myself.

Recently in the news, an F2 accidentally strafed a golf course and put 160 bullets into a car. The JSDF are embarassed at their long safety track record being ruined.

The article (I can't find it right now) mentioned the F2 has been used for 15 years?

It's interesting that Mitsubishi builds this. Is it completely built by Mitsubishi (who built the Zero in WWII) under liscense from Lockheed Martin or do they only fabricate the custom parts?

How the heck do you "accidentally" strafe a golf course? And put 160 (presumably 20mm) rounds into a car at a golf course?

The mind boggles.

If I remember what little literature I've seen on the F2, it's pretty much a new fuselage/ wing right? For all practical purposes, a new plane?

Forcing the two groups to mix and hoping that they'll get along is a pipe dream. There are too many immature youths on the AU side, and too many elitists on the UC side. The two sides are just too different.

You may have a point there, and your way may indeed work. At least an attempt should be made to integrate both sides together -- so that both sides can benefit.

A mailing list is a poor alternative for a forum.  I'm not knocking mailing lists... they help to keep groups informed and provide a lot of useful news and information.  But a forum is a place for discussion.

Not really. I find forums a magnet for flamebait really. it becomes too easy for people simply to toss an opinion without justification or without due consideration for others.

I personally find mailing lists forces me to think through what I want to say and how I want to say it, and it makes discussions more fruitful.

Quite like the design of the basic armor. Sorta reminds me of the Hard Suits in Bubble Gum Crisis.

That's an idea. Maybe someone can customize these to become BGC Hardsuits? The version 1s, of course.

The major reason why UC and AC crowd don't mix well is because of the target audience.. by intent or by accident, Tomino's UC Gundam struck a chord with a more matured audience (late teens and young adults). There's quite a bit of subtlety involved in the UC shows, which promotes a more critical thinking process.

AC gundam, at least in the early days, was more targeted towards young teens with its bishonen and setai roots -- you can blame Gundam Wing solidly for that, by the way. In its own ways, it attracted a more.. I would use "immature crowd", but what I really mean is a crowd that does not readily think beyond the surface presentation of the series.

Unfortunately, the AC crowds are more of the "Dragonball Z" generation -- there to see big explosions and heroic exploits. Heroic exploits quite different from the type shown in UC. With AC's heavier emphasis on eye candy and action, the crowd it draws is quite different from the UC crowd.

I'm not saying AC shows are all bad -- just different. Unfortunately, not all Gundam fans recognize that a difference of opinion is fine. UC fans are just as guilty as AC fans, though the youth of the AC fans tend to make things slightly worse.

Segregation of AC and UC is probably an interium solution and not the best long term thing to do. Segregation is just going to maintain or worsen the status quo, but mixing the two will force both sides to tolerate and understand each other... of course, while that is happening, it would be pretty tough on everyone's ulcers.

(In a similar vein, I don't ever recall Macross 7 getting this kind of treatment here..)

As to whether there should be a Gundam Forum.. personally, I don't think it's needed, but nice to have. There's a Gundam Mailing List which is fairly good (with Mark Simmions, Daffyd and a bunch of good people there), so an alternative is easily available.

Can anyone else who owns a Takara confirm if the Takara version has tighter joints?

I recently got a Takara, and in general the joints are okay. The hands aren't designed very well to grip the weapons though, and my pet peeve is with the ankles -- they keep popping out, and you do have to be somewhat careful posing Prime to prevent him from tipping over due to the ankles giving out.

"Carl Macek To Be Honoured"

This thread has some borderline personal attacks. Probably going to devolve within the next 20 posts or so.

1/24 line........bah!

It's all about the 1/12 line

Graham

1/6. Then we have compatibility with those large scale action figures/ dolls. You want to pose Minmay next to a Valkyrie? Now you can.

Battletech is trademarked and own by FASA and now Microsoft who purchased them lock stock and barrel. I don't think Kawamori ever did any original design work for them. Perhaps through a recent contract?

I used to work in the gaming field so I know my first line is correct.

That's not quite correct. The BattleTech.. franchise (for the lack of a better word) is not owned lock, stock and (gauss rifle) barrel by Microsoft.

Classic BattleTech (the boardgame) is owned by Wizkids Games, who also publish the newer ClickyTech game. Continual support for Classic BattleTech is achieved with support from FastForward Games and Fantasy Productions.

Microsoft owns the rights to the Mechwarrior and Mechcommander PC games, not the whole thing.

As for the anime design, IIRC, it was done to introduce BattleTech to the Japanese market, but they considered the licensing issue (Macross being one of them) and simply redid the design. Ironically, US BattleTech took some of the designs for the Solaris 7 release.

Definitely, there will be an additional market for Glaugs, Tomahawks, Spartans, Defender and Phalanx (to an extent) -- these are clear copies that exists in BattleTech. Regults, less likely. In particular, the Glaugs, Tomahawks and Spartans are popular designs and will sell well. Unfortunately, I'm just not sure how big the market will be.

Please reference here:

http://www.macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?...opic=5583&st=40

Honestly, if Yamato (or any party, include Kaiyodo!) can produce cheap BattleTech miniature scale models (around 1/160), then it would be a great boon to the community -- but perhaps at the cost of Ironwind Miniatures.