Here are a couple of shots utilizing my new lightbox. Hopefully these pics are clearer than my last few posts. Some of the following customs ya'll have seen before, these are just better (hopefully) shots. Thanks!
Strategic Hazard Assault/Recon Commandos are the best of the best Republic troopers. Grouped into 4-man squads, supported by various droid models and under the direct supervision of a Jedi Special Operations Officer, the SHARCs are a force to be reckoned with. Afforded more leway than the average trooper, the SHARC squads get to personalize their armor as they see fit, and may employ any and all weaponry they see fit. They are assigned the most dangerous, important missions...and failure is NOT an option.
Unlike other Republic Commando squads, the Red Stripes don't hand out armor greeblies willy-nilly. You gotta EARN them. Right shoulder pad upgrade earned for killing an enemy dropship. Mul'durr and Skull'ee each have one. Kamas are earned by spending a month rehabilitating in a bacta tank. Skull'ee and Wayyne each have one. Left shoulder pauldron earned by defeating a Sith Lord in single combat. Mul'durr has one. Red Stripe on the helmet earned by destroying an enemy commando unit. All members have this commendation, including XR-214 (Frak). Their Jedi Special Operations Officer has earned ALL of the squad's commendations, but doesn't wear them...citing them as "trophies" and unbecoming a Jedi. It doesn't preclude him from engaging in the task assigned to the trophy, however.
SHARC Squad Epsilon Delta Delta, "The Red Stripes" (all FX'd out):
Squad Commander Skull'ee is a no-nonsense, by-the-book commando. Tough, smart and resourceful; there has been talk of using him as a cloning template for future generations of Republic forces. He has declined thusfar. His squad enjoys giving him grief over his choice of weapons: matched pulse pistols. "In a squad of BFG's, commander...why ya gotta pack them lil' pea-shooters?" trooper Mul'durr is often heard asking. Skull'ee's response is that his pistols require finese and grace...not something shared by his squadmates "point in the general direction and blast away" weaponry.
Trooper Mul'durr is the joker of the squad. Always qucik with a witty response, you'd never guess he has so much pain and unhappiness inside of him. When he was a lad, his sister went missing from their living quarters on the moonbase of Epilah VI. He believes that she was abducted by "other beings", while his parents and the colony's police agents believe she was kidnapped and murdered. Mul'durr joined the Republic forces as a way to travel the galaxy, hoping to find a representative of the race he believes took his sister. He ahsn't encountered one yet. Mul'durr wields a dual-barrel high-density plasma cannon.
Trooper Wayyne is the dark and brooding member. Raised in the lap of luxury in Coruscant's Upper District, Wayyne was the only son of Galactic City's most prestigious surgeons. Spoiled and bratty, Wayyne stood to become another trust-fund party kid until the eve of his thirteenth birthday. While out with his parents, their speeder was jacked and the Wayyne's were robbed. His father tried to stand up to the gang, but they killed him and his wife in front of the boy. Wayyne was left to be reared by the family butler droid (A1f3r3d). When he came of age, he wandered the galaxy...seeking to learn every martial art he could, as well as to become an expert in armed combat. He joined the Republic forces at the height of the Sith War because he saw in the Sith Lords and their followers the type of being who killed his parents. Trooper Wayyne wields a six-barrel rotating cannon. It is one of the largest and most devestating weapons available to the Republic forces.
Trooper Graa'Saan is the youngest member of the team. Found as an orphan during Wayyne's travels, he took the youngling in as a ward and trained him everything he learned. Graa'Saan was the youngest member of a family-owned traveling intergalactic circus. His father fell in with a Hutt when buisiness got slow. He borrowed a large amount from the Hutt (with an even larger interest rate) and when he couldn't repay debt, the Hutt's "associates" made sure that Graa'Saan's parents had an unfortunate "accident". Graa'Saan would have been involved in the "accident" too if he hadn't been 100 meters in the air, perfecting his anti-gravity hoverwalk act. His life spared, but forever scarred the youngling wandered the streets of Kol'kol'kihar until he was saved by Wayyne. The two have been fast friends ever since. Graa'Sann wields an ultra-high temp flamethrower, capable of firing a continuous stream or short bursts with the flip of a switch.
The newest addition to the squad is the Republic Automated Soldier (RAS) unit XR-214. Deployed in a battalion, unit XR-214 was the sole survivor of an encounter with the Sith Army during the Battle of Guljino'ah. Gravely damaged, but still operational XR-214 was discovered by the Red Stripes when they were sent to Guljino'ah to root out a trio of Sith Acolytes reproted to have survived the battle. Mul'durr repaired the RAS droid and painted him in the squad's colors, much to the dismay of Skull'ee. The droid's personality matix has several quirks, the least of which is the fact that XR-214 has a foul mouth. Nicknamed "Frak" by Graa'Saan, the droid has fast proven itself a valuable member of the team. It even jokes about it's guns being bigger than Commander Skull'ee's. Much to Skull'ee's dismay.
Unlike other Republic Commando squads, the Red Stripes don't hand out armor greeblies willy-nilly. You gotta EARN them. Right shoulder pad upgrade earned for killing four enemy dropships unaided. Mul'durr and Skull'ee each have one. Kamas are earned by spending a month rehabilitating in a bacta tank. Skull'ee and Wayyne each have one. Left shoulder pauldrons are earned by defeating a Sith Lord in single combat. Mul'durr has one. Red stripe on the helmet earned by destroying an enemy commando unit. All members have this commendation, including XR-214 (Frak). Their Jedi Special Operations Officer has earned ALL of the squad's commendations, but doesn't wear them...citing them as "trophies" and unbecoming a Jedi. It doesn't preclude him from engaging in the task assigned to the trophy, however. The squad themselves decided how to assign accomplishments based on criteria of their own choosing.
WHEW! That's a lotta bio-card info right there! Mul'durr & Skull'ee were TFU Jumptroopers and Wayyne & Graa'Saan were TFU Evo troopers. Their helmet shades are LEGO ARC trooper bits. Frak was an Iron Man 2 Air Force Drone with AOTC Deleted Scene Jedi Research droid head. All of the SHARC's have custom-built weaponry, except for Skull'ee...whose pistols were only modified to accept the "laser" blast effect. Group shot with all four commandos, the droid and their Jedi SpecOpsOff coming soon(ish). I'm still not 100% happy with my pics, but they are an improvement. Comments and criticisms always welcome. Thanks for stopping by!
