UGP - a Star Wars WORLD! - news thread

[Phrubruh]

This is an idea that I've been kicking around for quite some time. The idea is to organize the biggest and most ambitious group project we have ever done. An entire Star Wars WORLD. This project would go on for an entire year and hopefully be displayed at C4 next year (if we can get a sponser). I'll donate space on my new customizing web site for work in progress pictures of everything and display the final results.

The idea is to get multiple customizing forums together to create citizens for this world. All these characters would go into a large diorama complete with buildings, streets and ships of our design. We could do a planet that has been seen on screen before or something totally new.

This thread is designed to get ideas and volunteers and try to organize this huge undertaking. Everybody is welcome to submit suggestions, time  and their work. Let's talk about it here and we can talk about this June 24th at 9pm est in the chat room.

[CHEWIE]

It's a fantastic idea... I know that there was a Mos Eisley diorama made before at a Celebration... or at least I think so.

So, in my mind it would be really cool to create something that is not from Tatooine, but instead a Coruscant diorama.  Of course Tatooine is always going to be about the most recognizeable area in Star Wars, and you can make a joint Mos Eisley/Mos Espa area, along with even Jabba's Palace, so maybe that is the way to go.  You could even have a little moisture farm or two out in the corner of it.

This is a big project and it will take a group effort for it to work, but I think there needs to be a clear leader/captain of this project to ensure it goes according to plan - I would suggest something living in the Los Angeles area as that would be most convenient.  After all, you don't want 10 chiefs and only one Indian.

I am pretty sure this is something I won't even be able to attend, but I'd be happy to donate some figures to it and run some updates on the front page at www.yakface.com

We could maybe even make some sort of t-shirts for everyone who participates.

What gets done with the figures afterwards?

 

[Phrubruh]

Since I'm in the LA area, I was planning on overseeing the entire thing but have a number of people be over each aspect of the project. I know there are a few others in the area (Darth Delicious, Darth Anton) that could help with organization. Each group leader would over a specific aspect of the project. For example, I need someone to be over the design of the diorama. Another could be over concept and organization. Another could be over figure and ship customs etc. We need to come up with categories and jobs for whoever volunteers.  Here are a few group sections for this project.

Diorama building and design
Figure and ship building
Concept pictures and overall look
Publicity
Logistics, mailing and transportation

I'm sure we can come up with more duties. Besides planet location,  we should come up with a time period. We could even do a planet that has never been seen before allowing us complete freedom on design.

[CHEWIE]

Good plan Phruby.  I would like to be part of the publicity for it, as well as assist in the custom figures.

 

[CHEWIE]

I suppose another thing that will need to do is create some sort of schedule so it isn't all done at the last minute.

 

[Smartypants1635]

My mom would never go for this sadly, sending my toys of to people I don't "know". But I will be happy to do publicity over at TSE.net. I'm sorry that that is the only thing I can do but my mom is uber strict. Maybe my sister can send them. I dunno, but I'll try and help with what I can.

Smarty

[Phrubruh]

Whatever you can help do is very much appreciated Smarty. There are also concept drawings that need to be done as well as scheduling. I could also use some help on web site design and documenting the work in progress shots we get thru out the year. Lots of ways to participate if you can't send something in for display.

[CloneCommander1]

I'd love to do whatever I can do to help on this one.  I'd be most interested in the figure and dio building, and maybe even publicity.  If I ever get around to making my website, this project will get a TON of space.  What world were we thinking of doing?  Tatoonie?  Courasaunt?  LMK if I can do anything to help.  Great idea Phurby!

[Darth_Ennis]

Well, Im up for just about anything. I can raid my parts box and whip out custom figs too. I wil spread the word on the few message boards I haunt. What ever you need drop me a line Phruby Im on it.

Incidently, I also had another Idea. We could basicly kill a few birds with one stone, and use the Group project and Custom Challenge concepts for making customs for this project as well.

Let me know what you guys think of this, if not Id be happy to run  an additional side project customs thread for this.

What do you think?

[CHEWIE]

I like Phruby's idea of it being a new planet... we could create an all  new planet, and make this almost like a Star Wars Galaxies theme...

For time period, I say go with the OT era.  But then we're probably going to need some Stormtroopers in it... I say that NO POTF2 BUFF ARE ALLOWED OR IT WILL RUIN THE PROJECT.   ESPECIALLY NONE OF BUFF STORMTROOPERS. 

I'll donate a few Commtech Stormies to it, and a customs challenge of "everyday citizens" might be what we need for this to add to the variety where everyone is willing to dontate their submission to it.

Maybe the whole thing could be set up on a ping pong table.

I think it definitely needs to be some sort of city environment, like a Mos Eisley type city on a new world.

 

[Glassman6]

What about a city on the edge of a jungle or water/swamp area? 
That way we could get some great creatures in there...

If you say a ping pong table is the limit, maybe 1/4th or 1/6th of it be jungle/swamp and the rest city?
Then we could do a "great wall" like in KOTOR. Where once you go outside the walls... its dangerous!!

[CHEWIE]

I really like that idea of 1/4 (or more) of it being wilderness... very cool.  Aquarium decoration supplies really could work well for that.

 

[Ryan]

FANTASTIC idea Phruby. I'd love to help in whatever way I can. Preferably with diorama design/constrution and of course with figure/ship creation.

Niub Niub's Death Star set-up at C3 was pretty cool, but it was all done on the spot and was really only set up the last day. And 95% of it was done by amatuers and it was all the same exact hallway. To get the best results I think we will have to do at least 95% of the construction ahead of time. Which means we will have to have some deadlines set and unlike the monthly challenges we need to actually enforce those to make sure this isn't done entirely at the last minute. We are going to need the help of as many people as possible, so perhaps it would be a good idea to post this at FFURG, and maybe even at Scum if you haven't already. With a bunch of people working we are really going to need a good leadership system like you and Justin have said, with you of course being the Project Leader. Reporting to you would be two asistant managers, one on the the production side and one on the logisitical side. Below them would be team leaders for each of the different "departments." And then below them would be everyone else.

I was bored and made a little flowchart to illustrate this...

As for a topic... Tatooine is great everyone always recognizes it and it is fairly easy to do. But at the same time it has been done before at C2. The Death Star is also a great place to do, but like Tatooine it has already been done at C3. Coruscant could be cool but that would almost guarntee that the pieces would all be rather difficult to transport to the convention, either by mail, or car. My vote goes towards a fan-fiction planet. It would be great to throw all of our minds together and see what we can come up with. I was going to suggest a vegeation type planet as well, but there have been about 7 replies since I started typing. We could eventually run a contest to see what the name will be. Perhaps we could do it at the convention and the winner would get some sort of prize.

[Ryan]

BTW I think a ping-pong table may be a little bit small, if we have enough people bigger would be better.

[CloneCommander1]

Nice flowchart, it makes things a little easier to understand.  I think that the size all depends on the number interested, but I do think a ping pone table would be a little small.  And if nobody minds, I'd be happy to post this at 'scum.