Nawara Ven (Twi'lek Officer - Rogue Squadron)

A former attorney, Nawara Ven joined Rogue Squadron during the rebuilding phase. He flew many missions with them before he was shot out of his X-Wing fighter, losing a leg as a result of his injuries. Nawara survived and his leg was replaced, but his flying days were over. Wedge Antilles decided to keep Nawara in the squadron as the executive officer.

Parts: Head (TSC Bib Fortuna), Torso (PotF2 Ponda Baba), Arms (PotF2 Ponda Baba), Hands (TSC Bib Fortuna), Legs (PotF2 Ponda Baba), Jacket (PotF2 Ponda Baba).

Supplies: X-acto knife, Dremel, super glue, emery board, file, paintbrushes, Testors paints and Testors Dull-Cote.

Reference: I used descriptions from the X-Wing books by Michael A. Stackpole.

This is actually a revision of my first Nawara Ven figure. The first was a Ponda Baba body with the head and hands from a PotF2 Bib Fortuna glued on. I've never really been happy with it and it certainly was not worthy of a place in my Rogue Squadron diorama. I got the head and hands from The Saga Collection version of Bib Fortuna in a trade, so I decided to update him. I removed the existing head and hands (which was simple because they had been glued on). Next, I super glued the new neck post in place. Once the glue dried, I popped the head on. Now he can actually move his head a bit (I say "a bit", because his lekku or headtails restrict excessive movement). Next, I drilled two thin holes into the ends of his arms. The new hands were the type that had a peg, so I wanted to be able to insert them into the arms and maintain the articulation. Once this was done, I painted the fingerless gloves black. Finally, I applied a coat of Testors Dull-Cote to seal the paint and reduce shine.

Commander Naraw Corobb (Ithorian Surgical Officer)

Commander Corobb is the Chief Medical Officer aboard the New Republic light cruiser Defiance. It is his job to ensure the training of all other onboard medical personnel, as well as to treat patients as needed. Like most of his people, Commander Corobb is a non-combatant. Despite this, he honors the courage of those who protect the freedoms of others and gladly serves to ensure their continued health.

Parts: Head (PotF2 Momaw Nadon), Torso (Mon Calamari Officer), Arms (Mon Calamari Officer), Legs (Mon Calamari Officer), Forearms & hands (PotF2 Momaw Nadon), Feet (PotF2 Momaw Nadon).

Supplies: X-acto knife, Dremel, super glue, brushes, Testors paints, Polly Scale paints and Testors Dull-Cote.

Reference: Commander Corobb is entirely a product of my imagination, but he does follow the same uniform paint sceme as the other New Republic fleet officers I've done.

I replaced the Mon Calamari head with the Ithorian head. If this is done carefully, the neck articulation can be maintained. Next, I cut off the feet and the lower part of the arms. I used the Dremel to hollow the sleeves and pant legs a little bit. Just enough so that the feet and arms could be inserted into the holes. I used a dab of super glue to secure the arms and feet. Once this was done, it was a simple matter of repainting his uniform to match my other New Republic officers. After the paint dried, I applied a light coat of Testors Dull-Cote.

Imperial Infantry Officer

This is an Infantry Officer in the Imperial Army. His uniform was inspired by the one worn by Lt Janek Sunber during the landing on Jabiim in the Star Wars: Empire comic series. He was created for an upcoming diorama.

Parts: Head (Saga Imperial Officer), Torso (Saga Imperial Officer), Arms (Saga Imperial Officer), Legs (PotJ TIE Fighter Pilot), Load Bearing Equipment (25th Anniversary Cobra Python Patrol Officer), E-11 Blaster Rifle (Saga Imperial Officer).

Supplies: Super Sculpey, X-acto knife, super glue, paintbrushes, Testors paints and Testors Dull-Cote.

Reference: I used a couple of different illustrations from the Star Wars: Empire comic series.

Almost the entire figure was a Saga Collection Imperial Officer. I removed the non-articulated legs and replaced them with the ones from the TIE pilot that came with the PotJ TIE Interceptor. The figure and the load bearing equipment were both painted and left to dry. The ammunition pouches were made using push molds and Super Sculpey. Once the figure was dry, I added the load bearing equipment and then super glued the ammunition pouches to either hip.

Marine Gunnery Sergeant Wendell A. Metzger

Consider this part 2 of my "realistic" take on the G.I. Joe Marine characters - Gunnery Sergeant Wendell A. Metzger (better known as Leatherneck)...

The entire body was an Elite Force U.S. Marine. I added the head from a VvV Grunt figure (thanks for the head, Gene), which I liked better than the actual Leatherneck head. I also gave him a modular M4 / M203 from Marauder. The helmet needed a bit of Super Sculpey added to the inside to make it fit snugly.

Voort saBinring (Gamorrean Pilot - Wraith Squadron)

Voort saBinring, or "Piggy", was a Gamorrean male and member of Wraith Squadron from its inception in 7ABY through the Yuuzhan Vong War. I've always liked this character and decided to make him as a background character for my Rogue Squadron hangar diorama.

Parts: Head (PotF2 Gamorrean Guard), Everything else (PotJ Jek Porkins).

Supplies: Dremel, paintbrushes, Testors paints and Testors Dull-Cote.

Reference: I used descriptions from the X-Wing books by Michael A. Stackpole and Aaron Allston, as well as a color picture I found at Wookieepedia.

I acquired the headless Porkins body in a trade. I spent a considerable amount of time trimming the head down with the X-acto knife and then sanding it smooth. Once finished, I attached the Gamorrean head to the body. I was kind of surprised with how good it looked. I had expected lots of problems with the proportions of the body parts. The helmet is actually a Jek Porkins helmet. I dropped it into a mug of boiling water, let it heat for about 30 seconds and then crammed it onto his head. Surprisingly, it fit almost perfectly. I then dropped the whole figure into a mug of cold water to "set" the helmet. Once it was set, I used my Dremel with a small drill bit to drill holes for his horns. The helmet now fits his head perfectly and can be removed, as desired. I shaved away the molded leg straps and then sanded the areas. The result looked like his flight suit is a bit worn in those areas so I sanded a bit on the rest of his suit, so that it matched. The new leg straps were made with white vinyl tape. It worked out well, but if you're going to try this, you'd better have some patience! The only painting on this figure was a bit of touch up where I'd scratched the paint during the sanding and a new paint job for the helmet.

Imperial Navy Trooper

Originally referred to as "Death Star Troopers", these were actually elite Imperial Navy Troopers. Whereas Stormtroopers were loyal to the Emperor, these troops were loyal primarily to Grand Moff Tarkin. After the destruction of the Death Star, their uniform was spread to other elite naval units. This figure was created for an upcoming diorama.

Parts: Head (XD Elite Force U.S. Marine), Body (Saga Imperial Officer), Helmet (Saga Death Star Trooper), Load Bearing Equipment (25th Anniversary Snake-Eyes), E-11 Blaster Rifle (Saga Imperial Officer), Blaster Pistol (PotF2 Grand Moff Tarkin).

Supplies: X-acto knife, paintbrushes, Testors paints and Testors Dull-Cote.

Reference: I used a couple of different illustrations from the Star Wars: Empire comic series.

I removed the old head and replaced it with the XD head. In order to keep the articulation, I cut the old head off, leaving part of the old post in place. I then super glued the new head to the original post. I added the load bearing equipment and then used the X-acto knife to cut off the hand grenade and to trim a bit of the holster away. That allowed the blaster pistol to fit snugly in a cross-draw manner. I have been considering re-painting his fatigues to match those of the recent Imperial Engineer. I may eventually do so, but for the moment, he is complete!

Marine Gunnery Sergeant Ettienne R. LaFitte

This is something I've wanted to do since I was a kid. While I love the campy and colorful uniforms worn by many of the Joes just as much as the next guy, part of me wanted them to be depicted more realistically. This is my "realistic" take on Marine Gunnery Sergeant Ettienne R. LaFitte (better known as Gung Ho)...

The entire body was an Elite Force U.S. Marine. I added the head and holster from a VvV Gung Ho figure (thanks, Gene), a .45 pistol and an M249 Squad Automatic Weapon from Marauder. The helmet needed a bit of Super Sculpey added to the inside to make it fit snugly.

If I can obtain a head for the other G.I. Joe team Marine, Leatherneck, I'll make one of him, too.

Cobra H.I.S.S. Tank

I was one of the lucky folks who recently picked up the G.I. Joe Ultimate Battle Pack for a whopping $13.87 at my local Target. Since I never really cared for the red version of the H.I.S.S. tank that came with it, I decided to repaint it. And then... because I was repainting it anyway, I decided to try something different. The upper half of the body was spray painted with a dark OD green. The then applied thin strips of painter's tape to mask off some erratic lines. Then, I spray painted it again with metallic green flake. After peeling the tape off, I re-assembled the entire tank. You may notice that a couple of the stickers are missing. This is because they were removed for painting and then did not cooperate entirely when I tried to put them back on. Overall, I am pleased with the way this turned out. Part of my keeps wanting to replace the dual cannons with a large caliber-machine gun (something with cooling holes drilled in the barrels). I consider this to be finished for the moment, but if the right idea strikes me, it'll be back to the workshop!

Trade Federation SCP-90JV Scorpion Droid

This idea was borrowed from Darth Tedious at FFURG. Based upon a transforming flashlight, called LiteFormz, he came up with the Trade Federation SCP-90 Scorpion Droid. I liked his droid so much that I kept my eyes open for the same product. I wanted to change my version around a bit, so as not to be a complete copy of DT's work. Therefore, I decided to use the metallic green flake spray-paint I already had on-hand and turned this one into a jungle variant. The cannon (which actually fires a spring-loaded projectile) is mounted to the same ball-joint that used to hold the flashlight part and can swivel in any direction. You can expect to see this fellow battling the camouflaged troopers of the 41st Elite Legion someday soon.

DT's original custom droid can be seen here: http://www.ffurg.com/FForums/index.php?showtopic=4093&hl=Scorpion.

Inyri Forge (Human Pilot - Rogue Squadron)

Inyri Forge was the younger sister of a Rogue Squadron pilot who had been killed in combat. Despite her less than honorable past, Inyri was given the opportunity to follow in her sister's footsteps. She joined Rogue Squadron following the taking of Coruscant, and remained with them through the end of the long-running war against Ysanne Isard. At that time, she was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. This is my second version of this character, and while the first version was a lot more work, this one is far more accurate. Inyri will eventually end up as part of my on-going Rogue Squadron hangar bay diorama.

Parts: Head (25th Anniversary Scarlett), Everything else (Dorovio Bold).

Supplies: Dremel, paintbrushes, Testors paints and Testors Dull-Cote.

Reference: I used descriptions from the X-Wing books by Michael A. Stackpole, specifically Solo Command.

This entire custom is a simple head-swap. I removed the old head and replaced it with the Scarlett head. In order to fit properly, the new head required a bit of hollowing with the Dremel. Once it was on, I repainted her hair (Stackpole describes Inyri as having long dark brown hair). Finally, I applied a coat of Testors Dull-Cote to seal the paint and reduce the shine.