11.28.2012

Phase Defender

This contained build was designed to take advantage of the new paint application to the top part of the old Phase Arm. For years I would make customs using the Phase Arm top piece as a head, developing a small team of "Phase Hunters" that I imagined as a kind of offshoot Gendrone creation that would shadow the Travelers. I usually had some form of a Phase Hunter floating around my little games since we first could use the production parts.

With the introduction of the Hub Set some brand new twists and turns have been added to the equation, allowing for more options in the contained build department. When these new colors were put in for production, they seemed like a fun point to get the new painted Phase Arms into the mix.

Based on the data after many different releases over the years, I've noticed that lots of you buy the accessory sets in pairs. Many orders will come in on a drop night that have 2 of each Phase Arm Sets, 2 Axis Joint Sets and 2 Hub Sets in matching colors. I figured it might be easier to be able to grab all of these in one shot and cut down on the torture of button clicking when everything is going live. It also gives a chance for some contained builds to be available for those out there that are not completely into the act of building but are interested in the end result. Not to mention it consolidates things on the production management side, from shipping to database entry. Hopefully this approach makes some sense!

The Phase Defender is pretty simple, and versions of it have been laying around here for a while, but having the actual newly painted parts helped tighten the final combination that you see above. I really wanted to nail a convincing configuration that could be assembled from only our "accessory" sets, right out of the factory.The longer proportions were incorporated because I was also thinking about using this as a Delphi base body at one point (it can be converted to an even taller design with a few tweaks).

The full build is made from 2 complete Phase Arms, 2 complete Gobon Blasters, 2 complete Hub Sets and 2 complete Axis Joint Sets. Originally I had the back collar armor across the chest, which gave it a pretty interesting look but hindered the movement too much. I also had turned a scarf upside down and put it over the Phase Arm top head turned sideways, which looked kind of spaceknight-ish. I ended up going with the most basic mechanical choices which I think make this little guy more fun to actually play around with. It has a solid feel in hand and holds together well in the pocket. Expect to see this configuration show up again in the not too distant future.


Developed by Traveler Ullexono to act as personal bodyguards for the clandestine Council of Travelers, the Phase Defenders have been outfitted with an experimental Advanced Integration Intelligence , giving them the ability to reconfigure at much greater speeds with heightened precision. They are capable of independent thought and have been described as superior to the Buildman Gendrone for combat purposes. 


Shoot over to our buddy Phil Reed's Battlegrip.com to check out some great illustrations of the Phase Defender and Syclodoc he whipped up over the past few days. Thanks Phil!


7 comments:

  1. Thanks for the background on this build. My son and I have been drooling over it since the pics debuted the over night, can't wait to pick up a couple! I like that these builds can help to inspire and give others ideas of where to go, in so far as making their own builds. Thanks!

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  2. These are beautiful builds, Matt! I will definitely be picking a few of them up as well as adding a few more Axis, Hubs and Phase Arms/Gobon Blasters to my metallic blue order for those builds in that colorway as well. I just love that these large hulking suits of armor are the guards for the Council of Travelers. It's pure sexy overkill and I love it!

    Of course my favorite part of these drops are the story lines that go with them. Loving where this one is going with the background and character development.

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  3. What a background on the build, Matt! The old Phase Hunter builds are very much alive through this big bruiser, while still altogether a new and original take on the idea. However, the little snippet of storyline has me worried for how the Council and Legion will interact!

    This actually has me questioning my own designs, which are about as far from "contained" as a builder can get. Originally, I was hoping to grab some metallic blue parts to experiment with my own designs . . . but now, having seen this beast of a machine, I'm making sure that anything I get is in matching pairs. Now, just how would adding two Glyans to the mix play out...?

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    1. Also: are there any plans to add a Phase Defender option for the Gendrone Legion stuff?

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  4. Speaking as one of the "buy it all in pairs" people, I welcome the idea of 1 click replacing 4 clicks + 4 re-typings of amounts + 1 more click to update my shopping cart. :D

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  5. Great build! And the choice to have a single click to buy multiple products is definitely a good idea.
    Would be great to see a "Council Travellers Group" too, with just one click you can buy all the travellers! But I imagine it would lead to some problems if one guy sold out before the others.

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  6. I really, REALLY wish there were EMD Hub Sets, that's the only colourway I have spare Axis Joints and Phase Sets in. And I'm sure it would look pretty awesome alongside Rynevo!

    I'm still curious about those adorable little helpers to the Phase Defender, though. They seem to be made up of 1 Hub Set, 1 Joint Set, and 2 Phase Sets apiece? Though I can't really tell, since they're in the back without clear shots of 'em.

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