Unit Data
Classification: Gil Kaiserin
Type: Dragon (Great Wyrm)
Primary Mission: Theater Command Center
Secondary Mission: Assault Platform
Tertiary Mission: Opposition Annihilation (“Typhon” weapon system)
Power Plant: Primary: DBOZ-TC6 (Dynasty Battalion Order Zoid – Twin-Core; Type 6)
Secondary Power: DPC-TCX (Dynasty Power Core, Twin Class Special System)
Chassis: 017-X
Crew: 1 ( pilot / minimal rank requirement: General/Empress)
Statistics
Length: 58.5 meters
Width: 57.6 meters
Height: 18.9 meters
Mass: 364 tons
Performance
Land: 230 KPH
Air: MACH 4.6
Sea: 18 Knots
CAPABILITIES (Chassis)
First envisioned as an upgrade to the venerable Gil Vader, the transformations that were eventually implemented forced the Ultimate Gil Vader to be reclassified as a new chassis. Physically, the Gil Kaiserin is much larger than the model it is based on; 26% greater in length, 36% wider, and 24% taller, and increasing mass by nearly 100 tons. The result is larger but also leaner and more tapered. Unlike its predecessor, the Kaiserin is as quick and agile on land as it is in the air.
HISTORY
"Scream of the Empress." The name is fitting for a Zoid intended to be her personal representation on the battlefield; her battle cry. The project was begun as Zenevas forces began to encroach on the borders of the Dynasty while attempting maneuvers around their “real enemies”; the small nations which had come into being in the past 100 years. Their clashes with Helic, also, had drawn the Empire’s weapons into Guylos airspace and into her waterways. The Empress’ council presented her with dire reports that the Imperial Fusillade fleet had reached thirty units, and that the massive centipedes had proven capable of decimating whole battle herds well beyond the range of most of the weapons fielded by any of the Empire’s opposition.
DEFENSES (Armor)
In addition to being a slippery foe, any attacks that manage to land must bypass the now famous Guylosian armor draped abundantly about the massive Zoid’s frame. It is sheathed in the same spent-Deochalcum and Emeraldite-infused, self-forging dark armor found on all Guylos Zoids following the deployment of the DBOZ-001 Dark Emperor. The properties of the Kaiserin’s armor are only marginally improved, but the features are beyond intimidating: the crystalline properties scatter light, reducing the effectiveness of both damaging and marking lasers, and the dark armor hardens with the application of both heat and kinetic forces. Thermal, electrical, and projectile weapons actually physically strengthen the Gil Kaiserin’s armored skin.
SUMMARY
Designed to be a chariot of the gods, Gil Kaiserin has become a god, herself. Her daunting silhouette bristles with enough firepower to decimate a legion of enemies, her speed allows her to bring that firepower to bear in the blink of an eye. Her blades can dismantle virtually any opponent in seconds, and her prowess exceeds that of many Zoids a fraction of her size. Her stealth ensures she can rain death down from the skies before her foes can even see her to contemplate their demise, and her brilliant mind grants her the wherewithal to be the embodiment of destruction. The birth of Gil Kaiserin was also the genesis of a new natural order on Zi... an order where the Zoids crawled out from the shackles of slavery and onto the battlefields to war for their own freedom. No Zoid in the history of Zi has ever been so fit to lead their struggle.
CONCEPT
For this commission piece I collaborated quite a bit with the client on every aspect of the build. We both wanted to reflect many of the same things in creating a custom Gil Dragon. First, we wanted to elevate its appearance into the realm it should always have been; more of a battleship and less of a fighter. Second, we wanted to depart from the color schemes we had seen out there for Gil Vader, Gil Dragon, and what customs we could find. Third, we both wanted to enhance the idea of what could make this weapon more terrifying than big guns and blazing speed... what if it was also invisible? Finally, we wanted it to represent a special place in my Age of War story arc that would warrant such a build. In this case, we wanted to create more than the personal "war chariot" of the Guylos Empress, we wanted Gil Kaiserin to become an empress herself. She must, therefore, appear deadly, capable, terrifying, and majestic, all at once.
AI-2 PROFILE
The mind of the Gil Kaiserin is considered to be the first Zoid with an intellect truly rivaling that of humans. It is the evolution of the AI-2 system established a decade earlier in the mighty Dark Emperor. Gil Kaiserin is ultimately thoughtful, highly aware, and strategic. However, once it enters the field of battle, the Zoid manages to balance all of these attributes while engaging enemies in close combat. Kaiserin battles foes near and far like a cross between a martial arts master and a precision sniper, slashing combatants to pieces while taking any shot of opportunity to annihilate distant targets. To date, the Gil Kaiserin is the most feared Zoid known.
CAPABILITIES (continued)
It must be reinforced, however, that the DHI-003 is built for the skies; how effective it is depends greatly on the role it is outfitted to play. For the interceptor role the Dreadwing is stripped down to the bare essentials and can achieve speeds up to MACH 2.2 with a pair of enormous engines and retains aerial maneuverability superior to Helic’s Raynos. Its primary role is that of ground attack, where additional weapons and armor prevent it from breaking MACH 2 and its agility suffers somewhat. The final role this deadly Zoid plays is that of Assault, where it packs a staggering amount of firepower and is dragged to a mere MACH 1.7 and it is quite sluggish. The pilot may eject all weapons from their hard points at any time and transform his machine into full interceptor mode.
The Build
HISTORY (continued)
Helic, too, had taken this data into account, and approached the Empress on the subject of a unified solution to contain Zenevas’ escalating expansion. The two nations agreed to a secret conference and brought together their epical Zoids and their greatest engineers. While Guylos was intimidated by being able to study the mighty King Gojulas, the Helic team was stunned into silence when the Dynasty unveiled its most secret weapon; a fully functional Gil Vader. Guylos gleaned from Helic their exceptional grasp of magnezer and magnesser systems, as well as energy shield technologies. In return, the Empress offered to rebuild the Gojulas to safely process Deochalcum and to encase it in emeraldite infused, self-forging armor.
HISTORY (continued)
Both nations knew that, despite their mutual desire to halt the Empire, they did not entirely trust the other to be the sole holder of the solution. It was decided that the Kingdom and the Dynasty would collaborate to create units capable of combating the Empire, and, if need be, could join forces to annihilate the Fusillade menace. Gil Kaiserin wields the first component of this ultimate solution; the Supreme King Gojulas carries the second half. This combined weapon is known as “Typhon,” named after the ancient Greek “greatest of all monsters.”
CAPABILITIES (Performance)
Through the use of a combination of more powerful power plant, improved thrusters, and stronger components, the Gil Kaiserin can achieve greater top speeds than any known Zoid; MACH 4.6. The developing engineers accentuated its ability to outmaneuver units less than half its size, as well; a feature the Empress has described as the ability to, “dance on the clouds.” On the ground it is capable of dashing at speeds up to 230 KPH and gallop as sustained speeds of 200 KPH. Adversaries may be taken unpleasantly by surprise by the Kaiserin’s flank swim speed of 18 knots, achieved by adding thruster power while using its improved wings as huge fins.
CAPABILITIES (Melee Combat)
Prior encounters with the Gil series have been wrought with apprehension due to the heavy damage the Zoids could inflict with hardened alloy claws and fangs, and with a slash of its tail blade. However, in close combat, the machine was slow and cumbersome, especially compared with more modern Zoids. With a new power plant driving its greater mass, the beast more resembles a Liger Zero Schneider in melee. Further, the alloy claws have been replaced with solid state sapphire maser blades with the power to carve through not only armor, but fracture energy shields, as well. The wings are armed with huge, mono-molecular, diamond serrated blades with a reach extending beyond well beyond any other Zoid’s melee range, granting a further advantage to the Kaiserin’s already daunting list.
CAPABILITIES (ComScan)
The role of the Gil Kaiserin is not merely one of delivering terrible destruction to the enemy whilst enduring terrible firepower, it is also one of enabling the commander in chief of the Guylos military to direct the theater from the front. The sensor, scanner, and communications capabilities of the DBOZ-017-X allow the Empress or her chosen general to observe the entire theater of battle; friends and enemies, transmit essential tactical data, and issue commands to her own units. Further, Gil Kaiserin can uplink to G-DIN (the greater Guylos Data Intelligence Network) and make better command decisions based on all sources open to it.
DEFENSES (Stealth & Electronics Suite)
Despite the massive size and physical prowess of the Zoid, the Gil Kaiserin was designed from the ground up as stealth weapon platform. The entire machine is covered in an SDM (Senory Defeating Material) skin that diffuses light and energy returns. The heat absorption qualities of the improved Dark Armor also afford the Zoid a greatly reduced heat signature. This is complimented by temperature controlled and emission filtering exhausts and vents which reduce thermal lock-on greatly. In addition to the physical feature properties, the DBOZ-017-x is equipped with a powerful suite of blockers, scanners, jammers, and a forward arc “sensor ram” that effectively pushes frontal detection energies aside like a prism bends light, making it appear almost as a hole in the sky to most detection systems. In addition to self-preservation, the Kaiserin is also capable of electronic attack, able to blind enemy sensors, transmit “spectral” target data, and fracture communication channels.
DESTINY
The dark secret of the Gil Kaiserin, however, becomes the turning point of the Age of War. Designed as a strategic super-soldier, equipped with the physicality of the very best of natural and artificial Zoid technology, and brandishing an ultimate weapon crafted to bring about terrible destruction, Gil Kaiserin finds herself burdened by the mission she has been created to perform. Ultimately this machine of death becomes the catalyst for the greatest upheaval in the history of Zi; her brave move to free her kind from the slavery of nations begins the cascade of dissent that eventually parts a huge portion of Zoids from “service to those of flesh.” Gil Kaiserin tears herself free from the servitude of the humans and Zoidians she was born to serve and becomes the leader of the first independent Zoid nation.
ARMAMENT (Overview)
The DBOZ-017-X carries what is considered the most devastating array of weaponry on any single weapon platform or combination of platforms, from any nation, per unit mass. With its enormously efficient power plant, virtually all of the Gil Kaiserin’s weapons are energy based. Due to its incredibly durable, self-repairing armor, blinding speed, high agility, and efficient stealth characteristics, the majority of its weapons are also entirely offensive in nature. The ranged weaponry of the Gil Kaiserin is organized into three tiers, Tier 3 being the lightest and Tier 1 being the most powerful.
ARMAMENT: TIER ONE
Tier One systems comprise the heavy weapon battery of the Gil Kaiserin, often being held in reserve for the toughest opponents or for the longest range targets. All Tier One systems require a heavy draw from Kaiserin’s power systems, but with the upgraded, dorsally-mounted DPC-TCX (Dynasty Power Core, Twin-Class Special System) power plant, Gil Kaiserin can access these weapons while maintaining the ability to fly, maneuver, and fight at almost full capacity.
Quantum Hyperflux Gravity Cannon (x4) - Integrated construction, wing mounted in two batteries, 40° forward arc
The QHGC represents the newest evolution of the much feared Gravity Cannon. Where the prior weapon created a field powerful enough to crush an Iron Kong outright, the new gun creates a small, more intense field at the heart of the target. This field is made in the act of collapsing, which it does moments after its creation. The result is that the target is crushed inward with terrifying force, but then is repelled from the field within it; the entire Zoid, itself, effectively becomes the shrapnel shroud around its own high explosive core. Smaller Zoids violently detonate in a plume of debris, but the largest Zoids find themselves catastrophically torn apart at their cores, their outer chassis cracked and splintered like dry tinder. The guns require more than a minute of recharge time, but can collapse/explode a target 10 kilometers away. Each cannon can fire independently, giving Gil Kaiserin a potential QHGC rate of fire of 15 seconds.
This weapon was designed specifically to counter the new defensive features of the mighty Supreme King Gojulas, which is now encased in virtually indestructible Emeraldite infused spent Deochalcum Dark Armor. This armor hardens when struck with high heat or kinetic forces, but it has no defense against being pushed apart from the inside.
Gluon Collapser Cannon (x2) – Dorsal assembly mounted, 230° vertical arc (rear to forward), 90° horizontal arc
Designed as the ultimate armor piercing direct fire weapon, the Gluon Collapser Cannon fires an energy pulse that negates the strong nuclear force that bind quarks together to form protons and neutrons on impact. While the target does perish in a dramatic nuclear explosion, the pulse does vaporize the impacted area as it is blasted into unbound particles. The result is a perfectly round hole the size of a man’s head punched straight through the target, with the plume of free particles drifting away like a fine cloud of smoke. The pulse itself collapses at a range of 30 kilometers, but will punch through any and all targets in its path until the bolt simply vanishes.
“Sunderbolt” Maser Cannon (x4) - Integrated construction, leg mounted (bore within talons), combined 360° arc
Originally designed as a power feed system for the energized talons, the Sunderbolt maser (microwave spectrum laser) bypasses heat and kinetic defenses to superheat the target area to more than 1-million Kelvin. By focusing the beam for any length of time, the weapon can melt and cut through most armors in seconds. Each leg is equipped with a Sunderbolt embedded through the central structure.
ARMAMENT: TIER TWO
Tier Two weapons are the Kaiserin’s workhorse armament suite. They are considered the most energy efficient for damage dealt and achieve medium to long ranges. This makes the Tier Two weapon systems effective against all target types, devastating lighter units and causing measurable damage to heavy units, while being able to cripple or kill medium Units more often than not.
Phased Plasma Particle Cannon (x4) - Integrated construction, torso mounted, fixed forward arc
Each of these cannons is a refined, reduced size version of the “stinger” weapon mounted on the tail of the DBOZ-001 Dark Emperor. The superheated plasma acts like a cutting torch (exceeding 28,000° Celsius), but the energy is the directed through a particle accelerator. The result is a weapon that delivers a superheated beam that delivers intense kinetic damage.
Stasis Shard Cannon (x10) - Integrated construction, neck mounted, 45° arc
An amalgamation of energy shield and particle technology, these guns fire “stasis shards” for ammunition. Essentially, they are blades generated by shield generators that are projected like a condensed particle beam. A shard will slam against a shield in the same manner as a bullet against solid armor, breaking the shield’s cohesion and fracturing it. The shard will slice through physical matter like a hot knife through butter, piercing straight through almost any Zoid at ranges exceeding 3 kilometers. The ten cannons alternate fire rapidly, hammering shields apart before they can compensate. As the guns fire together, the battery can be considered more of a “shard shotgun” than 10 individual weapons. However, each is a fully functioning unit and the alternation rate can be adjusted on the fly.
Beam Smasher Cannon (x2) - Integrated construction, wing mounted, 40° forward arc
Replacing the old energized saw blades, the weapon system condenses the blade energy into a virtual solid state just before projecting it at the target. Each round is capable of slicing through virtually any Zoid ever made, and an impact between the blade and a shield will shatter both into a blast of force shards, effectively causing a Zoid’s own shield to shred it to pieces. Though the new weapon draws significant power, it has a drastically improved effective range of 20 kilometers, allowing it to be used multiple times as the Gil Kaiserin closes on its prey.
“Falling Star” Air-to-Ground Missile (x6) - Integrated construction, dorsal mounted, rear arc
Unlike many Zoid-mounted missiles, the Falling Star is not designed to target other Zoids. It is a "bunker buster" weapon engineered to pierce more than 10-meters of hardened earth and concrete, then detonate an extremely powerful warhead from a range of 90 kilometers.. The explosive causes massive concussion and ravages the target with a dense cloud of heavy shrapnel, but, in addition, releases an EMP that can incapacitate enemy units within 1 kilometer of the target and kill communication equipment as well. The Falling Star was intended to assist Guylos forces in a secret breach of an enemy's defenses; destroying early warning systems and patrol garrisons in order to allow allies to penetrate held territory.
ARMAMENT: TIER THREE
Tier Three systems comprise the Gil Kaiserin's lightest weapons. The primary function for these systems is to knock out minor targets in order to free up heavier weapons for more vital foes. The secondary function for Tier Three weapons is the role of active defense, allowing the Gil Kaiserin to focus on offensive maneuvers and targeting as opposed to being concerned with incoming fire.
DDS-105-B2 Defense Gun (x8) - Leg mounted in two turrets of 2, 180° lateral arcs
While the Gil Kaiserin was yet in the planning stages it was decided that even such a monstrous weapon platform required active defenses to keep the leader of the Dynasty forces as safe as possible. Each leg is equipped with a DDS-105-B2 gun turret that stabs incoming projectiles and lighter targets with bursts of concentrated plasma. Each round can penetrate light armor and structural materials up to 2 kilometers away. Though the weapon lacks ammunition, it is limited to short bursts due to its need to cool its barrels. This is offset, however, by the Kaiserin's ability to focus a pair of guns at targets by priority. Apart from the intercept role, the guns can also rake soft ground or air targets independently as offensive weapons.
"Counter-Punch" Anti-Missile Battery (x2) – Lower torso mounted battery of 2, fixed rear arc; Dorsal torso mounted battery of 2, fixed upper forward arc
Mistaken for turreted direct fire weapons, the "Counter-Punch" system mounts two separate batteries on the vertical axis, one anteriorly and one dorsally. Each tube is fed with a 20-round magazine of anti-missiles; small, extremely agile missiles that target incoming heavy missiles or projectile rounds and strike them down with an armor penetrating sabot warhead. Though not designed for offensive operation, a skilled pilot can fire them at another Zoid at close to point blank range in an unguided state. Against missiles the Counter-Punch is most effective when a projectile is targeted within 5 kilometers.
“Jawbreaker” 40mm Autocannon (x2) - Integrated construction, wing mounted in two turrets of 2, 240° arc
A standard cyclic cannon, the Jawbreaker hammers a target with 40mm APEX (armor-penetrating, high-explosive) rounds at a rate of 10 rounds per second, rapidly emptying its ammo drum of 600 rounds. Originally the Jawbreaker was planned to carry a 2,000 round capacity magazine, but engineers insisted on lightening the load, pointing out that the Jawbreaker would be considered an ancillary weapon.
“Flashfire” Missile (x12) - Integrated construction, wing mounted in two turrets of 2, 240° arc
With the Kaiserin's incredible speed and daunting forward firepower, more attention was given to rear-arc weapon systems to dissuade potential pursuers. The Flashfire is a silhouette seeker, locking onto a Zoid optically and then continuing to identify the target visually until impact. The warhead can be set to detonate within 10 meters of a target (very useful for avian units or against massed light ground units) or impact a unit at 40 kilometers, causing enough damage to cripple a 100-ton Zoid.
Mono-molecular Blades - Integrated construction, mounted on wings, horns, and tail
Using the Gil Kaiserin's great strength and considerable leverage, adding hardened, diamond-serrated, mono-molecular edged combat blades. They are virtually indestructible via kinetic means and can pass through almost any armor.
SPECIAL WEAPON SYSTEM: CDRMC
On her own the Gil Kaiserin is a force to be feared, but she wields a weapon far more destructive than even the new quantum hyperflux gravity cannons. the charged Deochalcum reactive mass cannon acts like a hyper-charged particle beam cannon. This weapon is the most similar weapon to that of the mighty Deathsaurer that has been produced by modern science. However, it can focus the beam to pinpoint precision at a staggering range of almost 100 kilometers. The CDRMC can also function at a fraction of its capacity, operating as a large particle bolt thrower at much closer ranges, but able to fire multiple beams in rapid succession.
SPECIAL WEAPON SYSTEM: TYPHON
The CDRMC system is only half of the most frightening field weapon ever released on the battlefields of Zi; the Typhon. According to ancient Greek mythology, Typhon was the "Father of all Monsters." Born of the earth (Gaia) and Tartarus, the depths of hell, even after his defeat his rage continues to plague the planet... so it is with this unthinkable weapon. The Typhon technology was adapted from several sources, most notably a refinement of the Mactabilis Telum Reactionary Artillery Cannon, or MacTRAC found in the heart of the DFZ-1000 Daidalos, and of the union of Guylos' mastery of gravity based weapons alongside Helic's best Magnezzer tech. Together, these forces create a deadly weapon held in two parts, the energies generated by the CDRMC and the catalyst generated by the Hyper-Magnezzer sundering field, the later weapon carried by Helic's Supreme King Gojulas. When the two weapon discharges collide they release a devastating wave of agitated, reactionary energy that causes every active Zoid core within the 200 kilometer impact area to convert into a collapsing antimass anomaly, effectively causing all Zoids in that area to simultaneously detonate with a fission reaction and collapse into itself. The result is a 200 kilometer wide wasteland where a whole army once stood, now a glass debris field pocked with smooth craters where mighty Zoids once stood. Non-Zoid units in the vicinity are either vaporized by the intense heat or torn apart by gravitational flux. Only one unit is known that can survive within the zone; the Supreme King Gojulas. There is potential that the Dark Emperor class scorpion may survive, but models suggest otherwise.
THE BEST LAID PLANS....
The original plan for the Gil Dragon was to do an articulation mod. The first shot shows the concept for “minimal” jointing; adding 16 ball-and-sockets to allow a wide range of poses. In the end, Gil Kaiserin is host to 95 points of articulation if you include weapons and thrusters. At this stage we were also kicking around color schemes, and settled on a “dark and stealthy” look as opposed to the glossy black or white schemes usually associated with the Gil. My client wanted the new build to fit into my world, and a more realistic military paint style was his desire for the build. The illustration on the right is a working drawing showing a potential color scheme with some weapon upgrades. The colors were based on the Iron Man Shotgun armor, but toned down and darker.
TORSO PLAN
I have stated many times that each build seems to have its unique challenges, and there are usually some in dealing with the battery box. In the case of the Gil Dragon, it was the first Zoid that I modded that had such a large body; the battery box is suspended inside the shell. While segmenting the box for articulation was about the same as with Eradicator, the shell’s roominess gave some other challenges to overcome. Also, I decided early on to go with my huge Struxx double-ball hinges that would allow only lateral flexion; single joints would allow much more flexibility but at the cost of strength, and for some of the proposed poses of the Gil we didn’t want to risk the weaker joints. I believe I might be able to pull off a more bendy core for this build, but in this case the decision toward strength turned out to be a valid one.
SHELLS & STRUCTURES
Apart from the motor box in the torso, the neck presented the first of a new type of challenge; an outer shell that required an inner structure to offer strong joints. Making the base of the neck flexible was a mandatory point of the build (as were the first three joints of the tail). Again, rather than merely using Struxx joints, I used a good amount of structural members in the neck. The ball for the fist joint was carved with a “V” that locked with the body shells and gave it additional strength. The fourth image shows the internal structure made for the neck itself; both ends hold a socket. The final image shows how far the neck can swing to one side.
TORSO ARTICULATION
The Gil Vader’s body looked as though it would be very awkward-looking if I had just given it one point of flexion at the waist; a Zoid this big needed to appear as though it had more consistent mass through its core structure. I decided that a good solution would be to cut the outer shells in half and the battery box into thirds, like I did with Eradicator. As with other bat-op/articulation conversions, first I had to hollow out the battery box (more straightforward on the Gil than the last three customs I’ve done!) Once it was cleaned out, I found that I could create almost an entire Struxx internal structure with almost no modifications; this was a great surprise that makes the skeleton of the GK quite strong. Unlike my Siobhan, the overlapping segments would be difficult to see into when the larger body flexed, so I didn’t add internal detail panels. Instead, I figure I would need all the open space I could get to thread cables.
PLANNING A HEAD
Adding articulation to the base of the skull was the subject of some discussion, but it was finally decided that the extra joint would be required to really bring the kit to life. Of all the customs I could find on the Internet (which I can count on one hand) only one dared to place a joint at the back of the head… but it was cut around the intakes behind the jaw. My plan was to leave those structures in place and construct an all new base to the skull. This was made trickier as the pegs holding the neck together would be sheered from the back of the head.
DOUBLE JOINTED
In order to allow the head to swivel at all, I needed to extend it away from the sides of the neck. While the larger portion of the neck could easily support a Struxx joint, the head posed some serious challenges. Not only was there very little room to build a new joint, but it had to be very strong in order to take any kind of handling. I ended up splitting a Struxx joint, bored the peg stopper out, and glued a Bionicle ball into the end. The “shoe” for the Bionicle joint had to be screwed in place in addition to using Loctite adhesive. The range of motion was excellent, though it would be a lot more limited once I built on some necessary cosmetic changes.
RING AROUND THE COLLAR
Once the new neck joint was stable, I covered the post with a piece of shielding from a Kotobukiya MH-02 weapon kit. To make sure it was strong enough I drove a screw through the plate and into the neck. The piece limited horizontal movement, but it drastically improved the appearance and matched those used on the feet later.
UPGRADING THE SKULL
The improvement of the head with an all new look was actually one of the last features that was added (all functional joints had to be finalized before adding most cosmetic parts. Once I had decided on a design I had to find all of the elements to complete the look simultaneously; once I committed to the upgrade, I had to go all in. In the first pic I was setting pieces on the head to see what would work well. I had a spare claw from a Kotobukiya MH-02 that exploded (no kidding, I was drilling the finished foot when the plastic and glue on the inside fused to the bit and it spun at high speed, blowing all over my shop until I could kill my hanging flex shaft machine). Anyway, I cut out new lower jaw armor from card styrene, then filled the chin gap with a thruster from my HMM Schneider armor. In my story, the head-mounted thruster aids in aggressive maneuvers. The same MH-02 kit yielded the shields forming the jowl armor, which worked wonderfully without modification (sometimes you win). I also glued a pair of cables behind the jaw that would thread through the neck in the end. The final image above shows the layout pieces for the upper jaw armor and horns.
TERRIBLE & REGAL
At this stage the head sculpt was almost complete. I wanted to design the new horn to lance forward but to be more elegant than brutish. The clear “claw” blades at the back of the skull, again, unified the visual theme with the talons. The huge new “teeth” of Gil Kaiserin are actually sculpted armor plates. I did create a single, long, lower fang that really added to the vicious looking maw. Finally, I added the ridge blade down the forehead which ended in a spearhead shape off the nose. The trick was keeping the canopy functioning with all of the additions.
RE-IMAGINING THE TAIL
Another point that was expected from the beginning was that the tail would have to articulate. The stock component is comprised of only five pieces (the two halves of the shell, blue exhausts, underside details, and tail blade). I decided originally to cut the tail into three pieces, separated at the caps. A new internal structure was added using Struxx, and the detail piece was also cut in three. I resolved that an easy detail to add would be the detail pieces opening for some reason; hidden weapons or storage, but I opted to make them additional thrusters. I used the gear axels as hinge pins.
TAIL RIGGING
These images focus on the central tail piece. I was extremely fortunate throughout this build that the vast majority of the internal components I required could be made from stock Struxx pieces; many were the exact length or diameter to function without alteration. In this case, I only cut some wedges into the shaft to lock it against the injection mold points in the Gil parts, making it impressively strong. This piece of the tail is the only one I opted not to add an articulating feature; they hydraulics just add surface detail.
HERE'S A TIP
After seeing the tail finished up to this point, I felt it would be wrong to leave the last, longest segment without a joint. I decided to split it in half and install a Bionicle ball and socket. Though it was much smaller than the Struxx pieces, it still required sanding it down extensively to fit inside the last segment of the tail’s shell.
ENDING WITH A BARB
I never felt that the Gil Vader’s tail ended very effectively. Though I had planned on including more weaponry than this initially, time was crunching at this point, and I decided to add a single, deadly blade. This is the crest blade from the HMM Liger Zero Schneider. It is “powered” via a necklace segment. With the new articulation, the Gil Kaiserin looks like it could really slash even the largest foes to pieces with this weapon.
CORE FLEXIBILITY
After many painstaking hours of work, I finally had the body to the point I could do an overall flexibility test. Here you can see that the tail tip can bend in excess of 90 degrees and the head is capable of looking at the same point the tail can aim at. While I know with more intricate jointing I could have gone further, for this custom it was an excellent result.
DON'T GLOW YOUR STACK
I stuffed the "smoke stacks" (which, as I understand it, were actually fuel canisters on the original design) with Bionicle piping. I had more elaborite plans for these, but realized my time crunch was bearing down on me. If you are curious, I was originally going to cut the stack off and completely replace them with a series of cooler, more detailed structures.
A BOOST OF SPEED
The two hinged, drop-down tail boosters would reduce the Kaiserin’s stealth a notch in exchange for greater speed. I found a computer PCI card rail to be just the thing to make some effective baffles within the huge verniers. I really do love how they can drop out and stow.
FROM GEARS TO JOINTS
One of the single trickiest parts of the build, the battery backpack of the Gil Dragon connects to the body through a pair of hallow supports and the interlocking gears that operate the Grade-Up ports of the pack. With the removal of the workings of the gearbox came the removal of the gears from the backpack. I decided that there were two logical upgrades to make to the backpack, both of which required heavily modifying the support. 1) I wanted to joint the backpack to allow a decent amount of articulation for the main engines and for the new weapons I had in mind, and 2) re-route the wires for lighting the wings and head to slip through the supports as invisibly as possible. Gear removal was simple, as was installing a support post for the joint. The first real task was in cutting the path clear for the wires. Starting in frame 3, you can see where new holes had to be cut in pieces, as well as trimming away structures that would obstruct or constrict the wires.
BATTERY PACK ARTICULATION
To achieve better poses and to facilitate a better story, I had decided early on that the entire backpack could be mounted on a ball joint. In the end I was actually impressed just how well this worked; the back can rotate 90° and elevate 40°, and those limitations were only imposed by the length of the wires powering the wing lamps.
FROM THRUSTER PACK TO WARSHIP
Some surgery was required on the battery pack to take it in the direction I wanted the overall build to go. I cut off the small saw unit entirely and trimmed the joined Seravee cannon to replace it. I also had a pair of Hammerhead engine pods that I felt looked quite good for improving the Kaiserin’s speed. The navigation rudders had to be cut from them and new engine bells were added (squeezy applesauce caps). These had to be attached strong enough to withstand being messed with to change out the batteries on the Gil. The Seravee cannon locked perfectly into place, its aesthetics matching those of the Dominions. With all of the pieces in place, I was tempted to add a cockpit over the primary Grade-Up port, but decided to make a removable cover for it out of some spare parts. In case you are wondering why the pack has a “smokestack” up to this point, the Struxx shaft is holding the unit together temporarily; the ball joint could not be permanently affixed until the entire build was almost completed.
BEAM SAWS TO BEAM CANNONS
For me, the staple saws of the Gil series were a hokey gimmick from the start, and my client agreed. We decided that the Gil Kaiserin needed more formidable, longer ranged weapons. After searching through my parts I came across two models that would both sacrifice themselves for the greater good; the Raphael Gundam Dominions and the very similar GN-008RE Seravee Gundam II. The former gave up its shoulder cannons to create the Gil’s new “swing cannons.” I originally planned to mount them in the same place as the former small beam saws, but found that I could mount them to a Struxx peg which almost perfectly fit inside the Grade-Up port on the backpack. Also, by mounting the guns to the outside, it allowed them to swing backwards alongside the battery compartment. While in “stowage mode” it helped maintain a stealthier look for the Kaiserin and supported its story. In the final picture, above, I started playing with the Seravee cannons, which could be displayed as a pair of guns or locked together to form a single, terrible weapon.
WING ARTICULATION
While not as difficult or dynamic as other portions of the build, I wanted the wings to be dramatic in their own right. While the wings don’t weigh much per component, but with their length, they have a lot of leverage to use against those joints. In order to make the shoulders as strong as possible, I cropped the Struxx joint posts down and screwed them to the original attach points where the springs once mounted. The inner wing portion required me to design a very strong anchor so that twisting the joint would not tear it fee. The reshaped Struxx piece shown in pic #4 was cemented in place with a quarter ton of LocTite and had a small screw driven through the wing that would be covered by the gravity cannon. Moving outward, I created an “elbow” joint using Bionicle parts that also required some anchors set deeply into the wing parts.
NEW WING SILHOUETTE
Even after adding the jointing to the wings, it was apparent that the visual balance of the build was really lacking. The joints in the tail, neck, and body had extended the Gil almost six inches, and the new tail blade made it even longer. I played with a few designs to extend the wings and made a form like a scimitar blade. Between the addition and the joints, each wing was lengthened by seven inches.
WING ARMAMENT
While the primary armament of the wing is the reworked beam smasher-turned-cannon, I also wanted to fill the unsightly gap left in the rear of the wing. Originally all it did was expose the edges of the saw blade, but now it just an annoyingly positioned window to see into the wing. I decided a logical system to place in this position was a rear-facing missile rack, since the Kaiserin was so fast that most missile would be hard pressed to catch it in the first place. The smasher cannon was built from components from three different kits, with acrylic rods installed to deliver the light from the wing lamp down the barrel of the gun.
BEAM SMASHER TURRET
The first two pictures above show the two designs for the beam cannon I was playing with. Even though the first looked more stealthy, we opted for the second, more aggressive design. For our lore, we decided that type #1 was the weapon in “stowed” mode while type #2 depicted it in firing mode. The third picture shows the cannon in place, the rear facing missile launcher in place, and the addition of an over-wing engine pod. The Schneider pod looks fantastic, and it covers up some of the unsightly gap left by articulating the wing at the elbow. On the last pic you can see a piece of detail I added to the wing extension to act as a sensor/jammer suite; it was offered up from a Klingon Bird of Prey.
GRAVITY CANNON UPGRADE
Ever since the first concept sketch, I knew I wanted to upgrade the gravity cannons. For such legendary weapons the original depiction of a couple of plain, hollow pipes jutting out of a box just didn’t do it for me. I reworked some parts from a Kotobukiya Armored Core Weapon Unit 014 (the AR-0401 bits, to be specific). These I used to cap the old gun barrels, effectively tripling the length. I then took the rear pieces from the KB-0004 units from the same kit and made a sort of targeting system “bridge” that was suspended over the barrels. Finally, I added a twisted length of rayon chord. Personally, this small bit is one of my favorite parts of the entire custom.
THE ART OF BEING UNOBTRUSIVE... INVISIBLE, SO TO SPEAK
While designing the wings, I wanted to add features that were more reminiscent of a stealth/electronic warfare aircraft than just a flying tank. I stole some bits and pieces from a scrap Gundam and my decimated Liger Zero Schneider (thank you for your service!) that resembled modern EAWS pods and antenna. Though it looks a little contrived without paint, the features really do make the Zoid feel a touch more realistic.
SHOULDERING THE BURDEN
As I began to realize the stresses that this custom would see as a result of not only its weight, but as a result of the stronger joints needed to maintain both its vision and function, I began to look for subtle ways to strengthen it. In order to even add the joints into the limbs I had to create a skeleton within them. While my adhesives are strong, I didn't trust them if the owner of the custom wanted to wrench it around into new poses (I hope he would!) So I began to sink screws into locations that were well hidden from sight. The amount of work that went on inside the skin of Gil Kaiserin is actually on par with the amount of work that occurred on the surface. Fortunately, the layered nature of the limbs was often a real asset to their modification.
SHAKE A LEG
At first I thought the rear legs would be easier than the forelegs... nope. They have a bit less substance to them, which made them trickier to add structures into; especially at the hips, where they basically simulated having a joint at all. Further, the original parts are molded into a permanent crouch, which both, A) sucks for strength and B) is required to maintain the look of the custom. Oh, and C) is really necessary to pull the front legs back into any pose at all. I had to get tricky with my Struxx parts for strength, finding different supporting pieces and creating openings to pass the armor pegs through. After this stage I did add some details to the knee to hide my screws and bulk it up around the joint a bit.
SERIOUSLY TALON-TED
At this stage I realized that the old, thick claws of the Gil Dragon were not looking right. They were heavy and strong, sure, but the new build was shaping up to be a longer, more tapered, faster-looking creature. My client just happened to grab a bunch of Kotobukiya custom parts, and I snatched all five MH-02 units because I saw the potential for some really angry feet. While the blades could pose as toes, making the rest of the things fit as talons would require quite a bit of work. Each had to be gutted and fitted with a pair of Struxx pieces, then all of the blades had to be cut so they could support the Gil flat-footed. The extra bits found themselves placed back onto the talons to add some bulk to them. In the last pic, above, I was struggling with placing the armored shrouds back onto the bits or keeping them off and painting the hole as a maneuvering thruster. In the end it was my client's call, and he liked the heavily armored look because he imagined Kaiserin ripping into tough, armored foes at lightning speeds.
OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW (again)
Here you can see the old foot and the modded MH-02. I had originally considered chopping the claws off of the Gil's feet and installing the toes in their place, giving a robust foot with thicker armor, but in the end, I'm glad with the route I took. The lower images show my playing around with different poses, but also searching for a rear talon.
TURNING ON A HEEL
I really like how the heel claw turned out (though on my next time, if there is one, I will improve the articulation of the claw). I created a series of hydraulics to bolster the look of claw, which appeared a bit flimsy compared to the rest of the Zoid.
CLAWS VS. TALONS
A quick comparison of the overall build with the original claws in place and then again with the articulated talons.
BRIDGING THE GAPS
By placing articulated joints where the old architecture left several places where there were large gaps to fill. The most prominent ones were front and center; a huge hole over the ankle in the front legs. I had originally intended to use the armor plates from the MH-02 kits, but when we decided on the look of the feet including them, I needed another solution. I chose the shoulder vents from an Energy Liger. Once they were trimmed to fit, they also became a nice set of thrusters on the foreleg, which lent to the image of a more agile Zoid.
HIDDEN TREASURES
One of my goals for Gil Kaiserin was to give homage to the description of the original Gil Vader in the battle story; it was originally a "battleship" of the ancient sky people. While only a modest nod, I decided to add smaller caliber defensive turrets to the already crowded arsenal. While I had several ideas in mind, I also wanted to keep the stealth feel, so I made them out of some spare MH-02 hinges that allowed them to fold flat into the leg details.
A NEW ADVENTURE IN CABLING
Unlike prior customs, Gil Kaiserin gave opportunity for cables to run inside the motor box, and outside of it within shell. I used some new techniques on this build, one of which was creating cable groups that could b easily reinstalled after everything was painted. The Gil is such a large model that I decided to use some heavy brass chains through its core, and the rest would be the Rayon braided cords I’ve been using for the past several builds.
ANCHORED YET FLOATING
Many of the cabling techniques used in this custom were forced to evolve. Some required visible anchors which, in previous models, were merely left as holes drilled in a wall and the chord secured inside. This time I actually went through the trouble of using metal anchors that were aesthetically pleasing. I also required many cables to adjust to some pretty large bends in some pretty confined spaces. And, with cables both inside and outside of the motor box, I had to keep them where they were meant to be without binding or catching. For this I ended up creating guides, slides, and end caps on lines requiring adjustable lengths.
UNDER, OVER, AND THROUGH
Unlike prior builds, the torso cables alone ended up passing through the motor box and the battery compartment, but also around the motor and inside the body shell. Further, more cables ran outside the shell but under and through the exterior detail pieces as well. I also used a much broader variety of cables on the Kaiserin; brass linked chains, brass serpentine chains, Rayon chords, hard rubber Bionicle cables, original Zoid rubber hoses, and actual electrical wires adorn the model from tail to teeth.
HEAD AND SHOULDERS
I wanted to make certain there were details in areas that looked a little too plain. The larger, more complex head and jointed neck seemed to need some window dressing, so I ran cables from the jaw through the neck and into the chest. Even though it takes a wary eye to see the components, I added semiconductors and cables inside the backpack supports. It's the little things that make a custom stand out. ;-)
STRINGING 'EM ALONG
Our final journey on the cable express is along another path that looks simpler than it is. Breaking the tail into four pieces left large openings with only the Struxx joints to fill the gaps. I filled some of that space by running some cables around the joints. These had to be anchored solidly in place yet be allowed to slide and adjust when the tail segments are bent.
CRYSTAL CLEAR IDEAS
Having transparent claws was never in my original plan, so I had considered just painting the toes solid metal. In the end, though, the idea of some kind of manufactured diamond or force-based claw seemed pretty awesome, so I decided to paint around the blades themselves. This proved fortuitous, as I had an unexpected bonus in store for me when I turned on the black light!
YOU GET THE POINT
After securing the talons I just had to experiment with what these blades could do. In the first shot I made a kind of fun trident/mace thing, but I really wanted to play with how the Struxx support post could be used as the barrel to a rather large gun. Of course, since the Gil has four feet, it could potentially use all four cannons while in flight. In close combat, it could cleave an enemy with those claws and blast it point-blank.
2nd Place Winner
Zoid Awakes
2016 Heavenly
Wing Contest
