W.I.P. Mando CQC (melee/hand to hand) Specialist (PRE APP PICS UP)

[Solus meg dar'cuy]

hello again all, sorry for the long hiatus but holidays and work have had me pretty much dead in the water as far as costuming goes, i have started my mando costume just this past week but before i go too far into it and find out that what im planning will never be considered feasible, i have some questions.

1: I'm actually wanting to make a mandalorian close combat specialist (2 swords [tac-blades], knives everywhere, crush gauntlet(s), maybe a spear or mythosaur axe, but my question is simply this: would it happen? i mena i have seen mando snipers, medics, commandos, hunters crusaders and the like but i havent seen/heard of anyone doing a melee/small arms(nothing bigger than a "pistol") specialist, i will post pics this weekend and a WIP thread  started this weekend and i should have them put together and ready for the resin process (yay). if this isn't canon at all or would never happen please let me know so i can make the necessary changes

and 2: has anyone come across any stories involving this concept and if so can you direct me to them so i can see the  way the authors envisioned the character concept?

[Remo Jadd]

For your answer, Basicaly, Yes. You can carry as many bladed weapons as you wish, So long as you don't look stupid with it  . But too be honest i would like to see a sidearm of somekind in there aswell  .

[Kora]

My current kit is melee (and the other version of her armor will be melee, as well). Truthfully I haven't finish her swords, but I at least got the blades on her gauntlets done. lol I don't think I'd go super heavy on carrying lots of blades; I've only got two because I happen to prefer dual-wielding. Too many and it would just look kind of . . . over-compensatory if one will. XD  I also keep a pistol on the kit because in all likelihood a ranged weapon would be needed at some point.

[Pointoforigin]

One of our recruits is working on a close quarters Mando. He's not finished yet, but it's certainly working and he's looking the part.

I want to see mechanical crushgaunts done well - not crushgaunts based of the artwork, which essentially boil down to gloves with spikes in the palm. More like a real mechanical piece that looks like it delivers extra power, with pistons and the like.

[Drichar]

More like a real mechanical piece that looks like it delivers extra power, with pistons and the like.

Steampunk Mando?

[Pointoforigin]

Nope. You'd have to tread really carefully to make it not steampunk, because that would be considered a crossover kit and unapprovable.

[Hondo Karr]

Check out the brigades for the Blade Masters and such. Alot of great idea's on weapon types, number etc.

[Solus meg dar'cuy]

ok the idea i have for my mando is simple in my opinion:

i know the helm isnt canon but i have this buy'ce

im thinking i can mod this one to look like the one above and still maintain the "mando" look even if i add the "horns" and maybe even the "hair" to cover my hoses. im thinking to use bondo and fill in the front T completely and bring the top of the browline up to look like the helm above, then cut out a thin line across the eyes and down the middle for the mando "T" and if possible widen the line around the eye areas and give it an overall more "sinister"look. of course ill be adding armor to the shins, modding my gaunts into one-piece crushgaunts, kinda like the gaunts here but more spiky and "swarzy"

and adding some pouches to the belt, im also planning to carry 1 or 2 small sidearms cause lets face it, bringing a knife to a gunfight just aint a smart way to keep breathing. Also i should add ALL of my blades will be made from foam using using pepakura files as templates and painted/weathered to look real
my question then is as follows;
how close to the first picture can i get and still be crl compliant? i know my helm will need a decent amount of modding to even come close to the one pictured above but if i pull it off, would it even be considered for official membership

[Solus meg dar'cuy]

ok well after much sit down time and after making sure the chest piece im using for a base to my costume was salvageable (gotta love a puppy's need to chew everything in sight). i decided the next piece i was going to work on was my right hand crush gaunt, i started wtih a pepakura fold of a republic commando gauntlet and will be fiberglass/bondo it this week, after i finish modding it by extending the length and figuring out how to attach my handplate and affix it all to the fingers which i will be making this week also. anyway here is a pic of the gauntlet and finger design templates i am considering

the gauntlet on my arm


and the gauntlet along with my finger armors which ill be basing my gauntlet fingers off of the third one from the top

[pokesabudah]

i think you are putting way to much thought into this. try and start out with a simple boba fett or jango kit first. sometimes the best looking armor is the most simple one. and a good paint job will make your armor look like the first image

[seugtai]

i think you are putting way to much thought into this.

Really? Did you just say that? Personally, I think a lot of the people here don't put enough thought into their builds when they start, they just jump in with no plan. That's not really the best plan for success in my opinion.

Khaelius, keep doing what your doing. The best place to work out the bugs and be pushed to make the best kit you can is right here. You wont find better help.

On your kit, are you planning on being a Crusader? I wonder with all the spikes if this would be considered Modern. And if you already plan to have breathing tubes it seems a natural fit for that era. Also if you have a question and it hasn't been answered shoot a member of the approval team a PM, they have always been a great help to me.

[Karvas Dral]

Really? Did you just say that? Personally, I think a lot of the people here don't put enough thought into their builds when they start, they just jump in with no plan. That's not really the best plan for success in my opinion.

Khaelius, keep doing what your doing. The best place to work out the bugs and be pushed to make the best kit you can is right here. You wont find better help.

On your kit, are you planning on being a Crusader? I wonder with all the spikes if this would be considered Modern. And if you already plan to have breathing tubes it seems a natural fit for that era. Also if you have a question and it hasn't been answered shoot a member of the approval team a PM, they have always been a great help to me.

This^

[pokesabudah]

im not saying be creative im saying before you get too far ahead of yourself. Start out with a basic set and then add the stuff you want later so you can see how much room you have on your armor for all your mods. Plus you can add a piece of sintra over your t visor cut up to look like the face plate off the first one less cutting, and use a heat gun to shape to the curve of your helmet.

[Ric]

one thing to remeber is that CQB: Close Quarters Battle, does not always mean hand-to-hand. My first Kit was based on a CQB idea, I designed my vest to have riot gear style shoulders and carried two sets of matched blasters...basic ideas work.  Don't get me wrong, I totally support your concept. I really would like to see this idea fleshed out.

[Hondo Karr]

I don't think it's a matter of people "thinking too much" that makes first kits hard. It's people thinking to outside the box.

Remember, our #1 goal is to produce Mandalorians, that look like Mandalorians, that fans will recognize.

My primary issue with the direction here, and mind you I didn't read all the text, mostly just looked at the pix, is there is no in-universe inspiration pix. You have Batman and something I have no clue what it is. It COULD be someones fan art but, even so, it doesn't really look, to me, Swarzy or Mandalorian.

Remember, Boba and Jango were Jack of all trades typs of Mandos. The armor and weapons of Mandalorians are geared almost specifically to counter or match what the Jedi can do. Jedi can jump really really high and far, Mando's (some) wear jetpacks. Jedi use lightsabers, Mando's wear beskar. Jedi have force enhanced sense, Mandlorians have their HUD systems. Jedi have telekinetic abilities, Mando's have rope launchers, flame throwers, mini tractor beams. Jedi can "force stun" someone unconcious, Mando's have darts with a variety of toxins and tranqs. The list goes on and on.

The main thing is to pick your era. If you are planning for an Early Crusader, look at the Early Crusader reference pix and CRL's. If you are doing a Late Crusader (the most wide open in appearance) look at the CRL's and references. Modern Era, same look at what Modern Era Mando's look like, how they are equipt. If you want to be a Modern Era  close quarters guy, look at our membership... guys like Frost and his variety of Mando costumes. Ori'kad etc. Those are guys who have taken the close quarter specialist about as far as they can. They still look clearly Mandalorian.

Kinda the rules are to ask  yourself these questions, or/and to ask them on the forums...

1. Does it look Swarzy at all in any era?
If the answer is yes,move to #2, if not, start over.

2. Does it look Mandalorian?
This can be a little trickier to quanitfy but, the EU and movies give us alot of reference for what Mandalorians look like or/and should look like in a variety of eras. Our membership here does as well. If the answer is yes, go on to #3 if no start over.

3. Does it match the era Im costuming as and if there is a backstory (which we really don't need to know) the timeline within the era Im costuming as?
If you are costuming as a Modern Era mandalorian, carrying Early Crusader weapons rough hewn and bone and leather, is not going to look right. If you are costuming as a Neo Crusader, carrying an E-11 and Fett style gaunts isn't going to work. If your Mando is a "Jedi Hunter" you should target the Order 66 timeline not the Legacy of the Force timeline etc.

If you answer yes here, proceed with it. If not, start over.

While we are all for custom plate designs and ocnfigurations in the Modern Era, keeping the Modern Era armoring method in mind is paramount. Your torso armor should be segemented. Your armor coverage should maximize protection of vital areas while minimizing movement restrictions (although that is seldom the case with the actual costume hence why Boba Fett just stood around and walked). Etc.