Given the lengths to which I’m going to redo all the artwork for 6-Commando, I thought it might be interesting to see where it all started. This, aside from some sketches, was the first 6-Commando drawing I ever did. It’s actually at the bottom of the page, as well, in with all my publishing disclaimers. Originally Mike was a lot smaller, more like a very heavy conventional tank. I have no idea how his turret was supposed to traverse with those two sensor masts at the back, and the Sentinel tanks have a much more conventional look, now. Speaking of which, if you want to Vote To See What Mr. Average Drew This Week, you’re welcome to do so!
This was a very busy and exhausting week for me. I did a lot of travelling, had meetings with contractors, subcontractors and clients, wrote enough boilerplate to fill a binder – a BIG binder. I also had the pleasure of seeing one of my oldest, closest friends get his doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology, and win an honors award for his work in the field, AND have several of his professors tell him he was the most sophisticated and well-rounded psychologist they’ve ever known. It was extraordinarily well-deserved, and I was thrilled to be able to be there. It was also, of course, Mothers’ Day in the United States, so I went to see my ma.
Also, on my travels, I happened to have the opportunity to see, first hand, an M60 “Patton” Main Battle Tank at an American Legion post as I was passing through Pennsylvania. They had it on the lawn. So I thought what the hell and just went over and took a ton of pictures. Though I have a very large library of reference photos, it’s rare that I have the opportunity to get such detailed and close-up ones as I did this week; it was really fascinating to be able to approach a subject that closely.
So all in all, an excellent but very worthwhile on all fronts. And now, I rest. And don’t forget, next week the guest story begins! I’m looking forward to it, myself!
All the best! And don’t forget to give the fabulous contributors below some love!
Well, a smaller Mike would certainly do better in an urban envirnment like this (Big Mike is pretty useless here if you actually care about not flattening every building in the vicinity to let him through) and he’s also got another smaller turret off the side there. I’ve kind of wondered why Mike has such a small number of weapons. I mean, it seems like they’d need dozens of lighter cannons or machine guns all over him to protect all the spots where is main turret ISN’T currently facing. Overall, this seems to be a more cost effective (If less intimidating) version of the rumbler. Also, any reason why you changed the viewscreen (not really sure what to call it) color from red to green for the regular story?
Yeah… that one looks more reasonable…
Still useless in a cityfight. He will simply not fit into small sidewalks? and will not be able to turn effectively outside of main rads.
Also multy-turret tanks were gone once there was ability to build a tank with heavy enough armor that can be penetrated only by a main gun. Because after that any subturrets with smaller guns would be useless… and having two “mainguns” can be less effective than having one “Even bigger” gun…
Well, the concept of the superheavy tank was pretty well exploded by the Second World War (or, Great Patriotic War, in particular, since it was the Russians who learned the lesson first and best). Superheavy tanks are too large to be useful in mobile warfare, because they can too easily be bypassed, and the cost to value index can often be as high as one to five, or more, which is to say that for the cost of five main battle tanks, you only get one Superheavy, in one place at one time. The development of armor sloping and efficient medium bore high velocity guns (again, both Russian innovations first used on the T34/76 and the IS-2), you could produce fast, well-protected battle tanks that could defeat heavy armor. Interesting that whine Russian and American tank builders were taking these lessons to heart and building titanic fleets of Sherman and T34 tanks, the Nazis were reverting to static warfare and bizarre suoertanks like the Maus and the Ratte. The Germans got the message in the end, too, though, and built the Leopard series – the Leopard II is by many standards the best battle tank in the world right now.
–M
Superheavyes are pretty useless in offence if they can not keep up with other units’ speet (which they pretty much can not). Also if they are having a hedstart they would obstruct roads and make themselves anf all following units sitting duck to an airstrike…
Superheavyes are pretty useless in defence, unles they themselves are the target. In all other cases they will be easily outmaneuvered, flanked and destroyed.
True, mort of Russian superheavy projects were stopped and closed before the war even started on a stage of prototype building…
And Hitler’s Maus tanks were… well either a desperate attempt to make his bunker safe, guarged by impenetrable tanks… or just madness…
That is even strangier because by the end of War germans had best infantery AT weapons…
That of course assumes that one even accepts the Rumbler concept to begin with. Though it makes great science fiction, a Rumbler would not be a very useful battlefield unit unless you lived in a world that had never invented blitz warfare.
–M
Why am I reminded of a recreuiting poster?
UNA Marines, On patrol to secure your freedom from the communist hordes. UNA, Be the Best
Actually, I sketched such a poster once, with a play on the UN slogan “C’est Votre Monde:” “UNA Peacemakers: It’s Your World – Keep It Free!”
–M
Incidently, Be The Best is the British army’s recruiting slogan. And why do I imagine the word ‘Peacemakers’ being placed in the same context with ‘Freedom Fighter’ and ‘Tragic But Unavoidable Civilian Casualties’
That’s kind of the idea. Sending heavily armed troops to intervene in former colonial empires as part of an international power play, and calling it “peacemaking.” The irony is not lost on me.
–M
I’m reminded of another 2000AD comic, the ABC Warriors and the origins of a character named Hammerstein. He’s a war-droid, a MK-3 Wardroid to be precise and there is a scene where he is trying to understand the logic they are trying to programm him with
“When they are on our side, they’re Freedom Fighters, but when they are on the enemy’s side they’re terrorists. When we kill civilians, its called tragic collateral damage, but when the enemy kill civilians, its an atrocity”
Control is the only thing that matters. Methods are not important. Efficency is what counts in the end. Exploit what you concquer, for in the never ending war for global domination every ressource is critical. History is written by the victors.
So say the Cardassians, anyway!
😉
–M
In the comic strip in particular that I’m talking about, there were three models of wardroids, created.
The Mark-1 Wardroid was basically an automated gun turret on tracks, given intelligence and a gung-ho personality. It would charge into enemy fire, anihilate everything in its path that wore an enemy flag and do so without pause or mercy. The problem was that it didn’t know when to stop. They’d never programed it to recognise non-combatants, the result was a series of horrendous civillian massacers.
Mark-2 Wardroid, they made mechanical improvements, better armour, improved weaponry and manouverability, but most of all, they gave it a concience, programing it with a sense of morality. As a result, you had a hevaly armed and armoured robotic pacifist, that refused to use any of its weapons and would charge towards the enemy shouting “War Is Not The Answer” and “I Forgive You” when it inevitably got shot to pieces by the enemy.
The Mark-3, Hammerstein underwent years of development to make a Wardroid that was both incredibly gung-ho and jingoist about his side’s cause, but still had a sense of morality. The result was that he killed his creator in a bout of homocidal madness over the clashing information they were pumping into his mind. And as he stood over his creator’s broken body, he exclaimed “Oh! Now I get it…”
Good lord is Santelli a big dude. Yikes!
Yeah in full armor UNA infantry stands about seven feet tall.
–M
Though here he’s closer to nine, isn’t he?
–M
His hips are at other people’s shoulders, and he can use his superior officers as headrests.
armrests, rather. Not headrests. That would be getting a bit too cozy with the CO.
Getting chummy with a Royal Canadian Marine is not a good idea. Unless you’re Colonel Haulley’s wife, or his daughters, I don’t think he’d appreciate chumminess, battle armor or no.
–M
Got sent here by a Six-Commando fan on SJ Games’ Ogre forums. Read it from beginning tonight. You’ve got me hooked… what are those Russkie killbots going to do?!
As I’ve often said, I only wish it were within my power to do a page every day. Some people can do that, but alas, I’m not one of them. I’m super thrilled that you like it, though! I’m doing my damnedest to bring the standard of the artwork as high as I can for the book, and I’m really happy every time someone new stops by to say “We dig what you do!”
Thanks, man!
–M
Looking forward to the weekly update on early Monday morning is what makes the start in the week a lot less horrible for me. 😀
Good work on this week’s revamp!
Mathieu – I honestly don’t know where you get all your drive and energy from. To work full time and knock 6-Commando out as frequently as you have is amazing to me.
Thanks, Denny! I gotta admit, some weeks it’s a real challenge to force myself to do anything but sit and stare after work. Architecture is a demanding profession.
By the way, I want to steal the word “BLAFT” to use as the sound of Mike’s laser cannon. 😀
–M