Aurora Dropship WIP

wolfcub · **Posted:** Tue Apr 14, 2009 5:14 pm

Here are my Work In Progress pix of my newest creation, the Aurora Class Dropship!

Remember! It is in progress, I have only completed the engines, turrets, hangerbays, and landing gear. I have not done the main hull or the cockpit yet, nor the fins.

Front Right

Front

Left

Back

The landing gear look strange now,but they have the two cubes for animation purposes when it takes off, it will retract the gear alittle bit.

Source Pic

wolfcub · **Posted:** Tue Apr 14, 2009 8:46 pm

I have a pretty much DONE version now. I would love some commentary for better or worse. This is the most complex thing I've ever made. I don't think it looks that bad. I imagine it will be badass when it has proper textures on it.

Graffix

Left

Front
I did make some artistic decisions on the front, which you may notice in my last post, is slightly different then the source pic.

Back

Front Left

The only complaint I have is that the cockpit looks like crap. I have no ideas on how to make it look better. Also I need someone more proficient in 3ds to tell me how to hollow out the hangar sections (Grey parts) so that mechs may fit in it.

Snow3060 · **Joined:** Tue Aug 12, 2008 4:07 am **Posts:** 433

Looks pretty good.

heres some ideas sugestions, dont take them the wrong way

could you make the landing skid legs skinnyer they kinda look to big to me.
also compairing to the source pict the roof turrets are lower and just barley visible from the side.

for the cockpit could you split it into 3 sections 2 smaller that dont extend to the very front with a bigger one in the middle. not sure if you know what I mean.
Id also make the turet under the front nose bigger or lower so it is more vissible.

Id try making the two vertical tail fins wider also.

DarKOnE® · **Posted:** Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:56 pm

this is a FANTASTIC START!

I agree with Snow the skids need work , but its a great start! Also the cockpit foward section needs to be narrowd down some but with some tweaking this is going to be a AWSOME MODEL!

THANK YOU for the AWSOME WORK!

D1

Grafix · **Joined:** Mon Sep 29, 2008 11:42 pm **Posts:** 596

OOooooo...Nice!!! The textures I can put on that baby 8-)

Karyudo · **Joined:** Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:37 am **Posts:** 222

I was debating one of those since I own one of the ones WK made. I posted some stuff in my section on modeling, should cover on how to do stuff like that.

A few things though, the doors on the model simply flip open. Thats not bad for the ramp but the upper part would realistically fold. The other thing is the turrets. I might look at repositioning them. Since almost all of them are on the top so that they could be used in the game without moving the ship (the bottom one didn't count and the top ones could shoot ground targets). Maybe have to two dorsal turrets and put the front two on the sides or something? Just a thought though at this point.

I can get you close up pictures of the model though as well.

Snow3060 · **Joined:** Tue Aug 12, 2008 4:07 am **Posts:** 433

actualy I beleve this object wont be so static and the bottom turret will be the most useful

Karyudo · **Joined:** Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:37 am **Posts:** 222

That would be part of my point yes. The model has the bottom turret wasn't used in the game, but it was sculpted as being there. The others were all designed for the game mechanics. To make things easy they put the rest on top like that. Realistically a ship like that would want 360 degrees of fire arcs which the model wasn't intended for as it was more for the novelty anyway.

wolfcub · **Posted:** Wed Apr 15, 2009 5:15 am

Yeah bottom turrets would be alot better, I was just going off the source, which has them on the top. and the doors, I wanted them to split and the upper crack, so the bottom part folds down as a ramp.

I do have a set of like 10 pictures that rotate around the source pic from WizKidz.

Snow3060 · **Joined:** Tue Aug 12, 2008 4:07 am **Posts:** 433

o the tail section kinda looks short compaired to the length of the rest of the model

Karyudo · **Joined:** Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:37 am **Posts:** 222

Yeah that's basically what the doors actually do. I don't remember those pictures showing that, but that's why I said I could take closeups of it.

wolfcub · **Posted:** Wed Apr 15, 2009 6:09 am

I wouldn't mind more pix! =D

Also snow, I kinda thought that myself.

DarKOnE® · **Posted:** Wed Apr 15, 2009 6:17 pm

the mech bay doors are clam shell, bottom drops down the top folds up and the face folds in the mechs are then puched out of the drop ship in a cradel then released once they have cleared the dropship. the bottom door also acts as a ramp when the ship is tocuehd down sirt side or on a landing pad.we should be able to make the ship sly around the map on a waypointed script so it can drop mechs along the way ect ect or even better we can replace the titain with it

theres ALLOT we can do with this ship onces it completed!

THANKX for the ideas and feed back and keep it comming guys & gals!

D1

Karyudo · **Joined:** Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:37 am **Posts:** 222

I uploaded a few to HERE. One of the bay pictures shows the shelf down, Think it was for vehicles and infantry to be displayed and is to low for a mech to stand in the bay. Though having some sort of balcony level would make sense.

I was thinking that rather then have it flown by way points maybe have a bridge with a pilot's seat (which could still move like a titan) and turret gunner seats, and possibly a command seat, that would do nothing but keep the commander from looking like some nutjob on the floor in a corner somewhere with a SAW. Just a thought though.

As you can see though from the pics that the bay doors simply open outward on the model. Though for a mech to clear the bay the top surface wouldn't need to move. YOu could just have the bottom surface open into a ramp and the middle surface open and slide under the top.

Grafix · **Joined:** Mon Sep 29, 2008 11:42 pm **Posts:** 596

If you watch the Dave School movie below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvPiu-bBMws

They have a good Aurora Dropship in the video at the 4 min mark showing for 5 seconds

Karyudo · **Joined:** Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:37 am **Posts:** 222

Yeah I kinda laughed when 50 mechs come out of its bays. They don't look bad though the scale looks off, I noticed the same thing on the Thunderfox's with their uber-missiles.

Karyudo · **Joined:** Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:37 am **Posts:** 222

Found the stats for it, good size info and the TRO mentions that bays can alternatively carry a fighter, 3 vehicles, or fuel/cargo.

And the picture HERE. It looks a bit short in this picture then it is of course and it's not dropping mechs

Code:

AURORA-CLASS DropShip
Type: Military Aerodyne
Use: Troop Transport
Tech: Inner Sphere
Introduced: 3069
Mass: 1,600 tons
Battle Value: 3,745
Dimensions
L ength: 116 meters
Width: 72 meters
H eight: 32.5 meters
Fuel: 100 tons (5,000)
Tons/Burn-day: 1.84
Safe Thrust: 4
Maximum Thrust: 6
Heat Sinks: 50 [100]
Structural Integrity: 8
Armor
Nose: 180
Sides: 150
Aft: 125
Cargo
Bay 1: BattleMech (1) 1 Door
Bay 2: BattleMech (1) 1 Door
Bay 3: BattleMech (1) 1 Door
Bay 4: BattleMech (1) 1 Door
Bay 5: Cargo (164 tons) 0 Door
Escape Pods: 3
Life Boats: 0
Crew: 1 officer, 3 enlisted/non-rated, 2 gunners, 8 bay
personnel
Ammunition: 80 rounds Gauss ammunition (10 tons)
Notes: Equipped with 32 tons of ferro-aluminum armor.
Weapons: C apital Attack Values (Standard)
Arc (Heat) Type S hort M edium L ong E xtreme C lass
Nose (12 Heat)
2 Gauss Rifles 3 (30) 3 (30) 3 (30) â€” Autocannon
(40 rounds)
2 ER Medium Lasers 1 (10) 1 (10) â€” â€” Laser
FW/RW (30 Heat)
2 ER PPC 2 (20) 2 (20) 2 (20) â€” PPC
Aft (22 Heat)
2 Gauss Rifles 3 (30) 3 (30) 3 (30) â€” Autocannon
(40 rounds)
2 Large Pulse Lasers 2 (18) 2 (18) â€” â€” Pulse Laser

wolfcub · **Posted:** Tue May 05, 2009 2:14 pm

Nice! This will help tremendously!

Metro · **Posted:** Tue May 05, 2009 4:07 pm

yeah that baby, packs a punch ! Mover over GALACTICA ! :mrgreen:

Grafix · **Joined:** Mon Sep 29, 2008 11:42 pm **Posts:** 596

Metro wrote:

yeah that baby, packs a punch ! Mover over GALACTICA ! :mrgreen:

Come on... lets bring it Metro 8-)

I will put it up against my BSG 3D Model Armada. I even took out a couple of ships since my computer would not render the scene and crashed my 3D Studio Max due to the detail

Yep...time to hit the wife up for at least some more memory sticks for my birthday this thursday.

Here's my BSG 3D Model Armada (BattleStar Pegasus, BattleStar Galactica, BattleStar Posidon, and Viper Mark II escorts) coming at ya at:
Vertices 1,577,134
Faces 2,232,959

Memory Usage
Physical: 1,932.3M/3071.2M

Karyudo · **Joined:** Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:37 am **Posts:** 222

Well if it was easy for you to render it quickly with real lighting and all the ships the show wouldn't have cost very much I would wager heh. Though if that real time caustic render chip does come into production it will murder render times.

The Aurora has a respectable weapons load though, it is a drop ship anyway and most of those can carve mechs to pieces. At the same time this one makes a great civilian transport too. You're welcome Wolf. I was paging through the 3075 manual and stumbled on this one. Pretty good source book actually. Includes some other of the "dark Age" units and the Celestial Omni mechs. Though I think the picture for the ship makes it look half as long as the miniature actually is but the details are spot on.

Snow3060 · **Joined:** Tue Aug 12, 2008 4:07 am **Posts:** 433

lol
I didnt think it looked half as long
just 4 times wider

ColdDawg · **Posted:** Wed May 06, 2009 2:44 pm

I definitely would not mind taking her out for a spin or two around Terra.

Nice job Wolfcub

Aurora Dropship WIP

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