M-Zero Asuka II simpified 3D model

[Xigfrid]

Hi guys,

I have been tackling this model lately since I needed to make a pause from modelling the Ghost X-9. Based on pictures of the VF-0 Master File book and Macross Mecha Manual website.

I like the modern look of this carrier, and to be honest I really don't know what to do with this draft. I was thinking of:
1) making a card board model of the Main Island Control Structure, as a 3D diorama base.
2) I could also make the Tube-like silos for the Cheyenne destroids so I can display my custom there vs the incoming SV-51
3) make custom 2D diorama base such as an accurate carrier deck and elevator diorama Base+Background by Coastalkits in the UK

Shocking first impression: the Asuka II pictured in the Master File is wrong and too big! Even if I have taken the revised longer length of 276m instead of original 250m, you still can't put the 4 VF-0  on the elevators between the Island control Structure and the catapults.

 

[Sildani]

Turn on the @Seto Kaiba signal!!

[Xigfrid]

15 minutes ago, Sildani said:

Turn on the @Seto Kaiba signal!!

I would never have thought picking such an alarming issue. But would love to read Seto sama thoughts on this

[Bolt]

Nice project @Xigfrid  all 3 points sound awesome

Looks like you can only fit 2 VF’s between the island and the elevators.. IMO the bigger , master file picture looks right for an ultra modern carrier sporting VF’s..but that’s also a bigger project..

(Also looking forward to your revised Ghost X-9)

Edited June 19, 2019 by Bolt

[Seto Kaiba]

10 hours ago, Sildani said:

Turn on the @Seto Kaiba signal!!

If that's how it is, do I have to call you Commissioner?

 

12 hours ago, Xigfrid said:

Shocking first impression: the Asuka II pictured in the Master File is wrong and too big! Even if I have taken the revised longer length of 276m instead of original 250m, you still can't put the 4 VF-0  on the elevators between the Island control Structure and the catapults.

Yeah, someone on the art/writing staff for Master File seems to have failed a knowledge check...

「全長: 515m」

Failed it REAL hard.  The CVN-99 Asuka II is, as you've indicated, officially 276m long.  On page 079 of Variable Fighter Master File: VF-0 Phoenix they have it incorrectly listed as 515m long... which would explain its magical ability to fit four VF-0s in the space between the island and the catapults in the art from page 097.  They've got her drawn almost twice her actual size, closer to the scale of the CVS-101 Prometheus.

[Xigfrid]

Looks like they made the model 515m long indeed.

Thanks for the clear explanation!

[Xigfrid]

And that would explain why they reduced the island size, compared to the line art. 

[MechTech]

This is a great idea! I thought of doing this in 1/350 scale, but A LOT is wrong in many references. Anime Magic! Most of all, the anime showing the Monster coming up on an elevator. - MT

[Xigfrid]

I haven’t thought of the monster yet but I will consider it too before deciding on the final dimensions.  

[Bolt]

“Gonna need a bigger boat..” 

[Xigfrid]

small update. However the whole island with the 3 Cheyennes is 1m long!

 

[Bolt]

Ah so, your going with option 1 & 2 then?

Wow, so the whole carrier is like 5 meters at that scale??

[505thAirborne]

5 hours ago, Xigfrid said:

small update. However the whole island with the 3 Cheyennes is 1m long!

 

You're living the dream so far man, I sure hope you can make this a reality! 

[Xigfrid]

6 hours ago, 505thAirborne said:

You're living the dream so far man, I sure hope you can make this a reality! 

Haha I don't know if it is called dream or nightmare, my wife is telling me this is a nightmare :P

10 hours ago, Bolt said:

Ah so, your going with option 1 & 2 then?

Wow, so the whole carrier is like 5 meters at that scale??

exactly 4m60 yes

[Xigfrid]

On 6/27/2019 at 9:25 PM, MechTech said:

This is a great idea! I thought of doing this in 1/350 scale, but A LOT is wrong in many references. Anime Magic! Most of all, the anime showing the Monster coming up on an elevator. - MT

@MechTech I think there is enough room for the HWR-00-Mk.IP. But to allow the Monster to be under the higher deck, there must be a special larger room made for the Monster, and somehow the Monster can even be crouched, making the required space smaller than what I have drawn. And since the Monster cannot go through the standard elevators openings, there must be at the back of the Asuka II a dedicated "external" elevator that can rise the Monster to the higher deck.

I have also checked with the actual 276m length that the Asuka II can carry the 36 VF-0 + 20 QF-2200, and more room if needed.

 

[505thAirborne]

On 7/12/2019 at 4:51 AM, Xigfrid said:

Haha I don't know if it is called dream or nightmare, my wife is telling me this is a nightmare :P

Oh it's the dream from hell for sure. LOL

Ever since I saw Mac Zero I've always wanted to have a large scale ASUKA II loaded with Zero's & Ghosts, so far you're much further ahead than I am, keep the updates coming along! 

[F996]

  

Another great project! 

but I think your current model in SU is still smaller than the Asuka II in the Animation

Although the official setting the carrier as 276m, in my opinion, the parameter in Masterfile (515m) is more reliable

firstly, there should be a large part of the dock containing the 'human bird' body

[F996]

And the Cheyenne base behind the Main island should be 6 and in two lines

I have reviewed the 3 episode of MZ, and make some screenshots

P1 shows three Cheyenne stand in line; in P2, there is another Cheyenne behind the first line.

In P3 the first three Cheyenne was destroyed you can see the fire and smoke.

P4 makes an overhead view of the Island. 

[F996]

And it should also consider aircraft numbers such as VF-0A, VF-0D, Ghosts, helicopters, AWACS, and plane for refueling

the VF-0D takes a lot of space in the hanger as it can not fold its wings

 

In the animation, the VF-0S wearing reactive armor and push SV-51 out of the hanger, which means there should be enough height of the hanger, at least the height should be equal with SV-51 on its knees

 

And last, as your considering, the prototype monster should also be carried in this carrier.

I think the GA Graphic group should carefully consider the 515m length data, is not an absurd figure when producing the Masterfile

[Seto Kaiba]

On 7/13/2019 at 6:26 PM, Xigfrid said:

I have also checked with the actual 276m length that the Asuka II can carry the 36 VF-0 + 20 QF-2200, and more room if needed.

Odds are the Asuka II wasn't even carrying that many... the estimated total VF-0 production was about 58 aircraft¹ divided between the CVN-99 Asuka II, her sister ship CVN-100 Graf Zeppelin II, unknown UN Marine Corps assignments, and units placed elsewhere for testing like Grand Cannon III or Earth orbit.  Taking out the VF-0Cs that were given to the Marines and assuming one to two units seconded to the Space Proving Wing for space testing, that's 24-26 aircraft per carrier.  Enough for one full strength squadron, basically, assuming that there weren't any other bases or carriers that were given them.  Assuming each carrier had a minimum of one minimum-strength squadron, that's 15 VF-0s.

Curiously, despite massively overstating the size of the Asuka II, Master File contends it only had approximately 20 VF-0s and 20 other aircraft including things like the Cat's Eye, Mom's Kitchen, Sea Sergeant, F-14++ Tomcats, and the QF-2200 series Ghosts we see in the OVA.

 

1. 24 VF-0A, 6 VF-0B (4 stock, 2 recon pattern), 6 VF-0C, 18 VF-0D, 4 VF-0S.  Bare minimum, the 6 VF-0C were assigned to the UN Marine Corps and we know at least one or two units were given to the Space Proving Wing.

[Seto Kaiba]

45 minutes ago, F996 said:

And the Cheyenne base behind the Main island should be 6 and in two lines

I think he built his model off the rough line art that's all that's really been widely published, which only shows ports for three... even though the shooting model does in fact have six.

Decent line art for the Asuka II wasn't properly available outside of Macross Chronicle, and even then it's printed so dark it's difficult to read.

[jvmacross]

9 minutes ago, Seto Kaiba said:

I think he built his model off the rough line art that's all that's really been widely published, which only shows ports for three... even though the shooting model does in fact have six.

Decent line art for the Asuka II wasn't properly available outside of Macross Chronicle, and even then it's printed so dark it's difficult to read.

What do your Fanky books say about the Asuka II?

[Xigfrid]

Thumbs up everybody!

I have been taking a few screenshots from the show too and was in the process to integrate the detailing into my model. 

A few remarks, @F996 I could have sworn that the animated version only had 3 Cheyenne and not 6. Great screenshot where we can see the two rows of tubes. I should be able to fix that since the Island can be longer without impacting a lot on the design. 

It looks like that human bird is stored at the back of the Asuka with a double deck height. That’s exactly what I had imagined to carry the Monster. However the Monster wasn’t shown in this room at anytime in the show, was it?

@Seto Kaiba I will look closer to scenes in the lower deck, in particular when Shin makes a duel with the gal and see how the VF-0 are stored. I had the 36 VF-0 count from macross.fandom website, that was the highest number I could find and I was ok with it because we can also see a couple Grumman-like aircrafts too. 

Anyway, we have a serious issue with the elevator hole height. In every scenes these doors have a standard height, even when Ivanov tries to enter the lower deck he needs to crouch his valk. I can imagine how the VF-0S is being equipped with the armor at the back of the Asuka, next to the Human Bird, but he can’t be standing and passing through the elevator hole ! That’s typical anime magic! Perhaps the original animation was that Roy pushes Ivanov out of the entrance in a ‘flying superman’ stance. But the director decided to add a robot-fighting scene inside the carrier to improve the thrill! Lol 

[Xigfrid]

Or the fight takes place into the Human bird room, and they go outside through the back door of the Asuka. 

The complete back of the Asuka opens in a rectangular shape, but this is not excluded that there is a larger rounded door for the Monster elevator. And in this case, the anime magic would be solved!

 

 

Edited July 15, 2019 by Xigfrid

[Xigfrid]

a few inconsistencies between sources though such as the asymmetry of the front catapults.

Edited July 16, 2019 by Xigfrid

[Seto Kaiba]

3 hours ago, jvmacross said:

What do your Fanky books say about the Asuka II?

FANKY's Battleships of the Galaxy Vol.1 has the Asuka II-class at:

Length: 353.5m
Width: 90.1m
Mass: 64,000t
Crew: 3,600
Reactors: 2
Capacity: ~80 craft (48 VF, 6 Destroid, ~20 others)

[F996]

About the Monster, I think there is no way to explain that other than 'bug'.

In Episode 5, the monster transported by the elevator in front of Main Island.

[F996]

The catapults were also make a difference in 3rd and 5th Episodes

And there have a more interest senario, when the body of human bird came out,  it get out under the Main island. That means it came though almost all the hanger and the carrier seems no danmage other than the hole.

You could also find the catapults have slightly changed compare to previous screenshot

Personally I think the total length of each catapuls should be same, eapecially the two in the front

Edited July 16, 2019 by F996

[Xigfrid]

9 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said:

FANKY's Battleships of the Galaxy Vol.1 has the Asuka II-class at:

Length: 353.5m
Width: 90.1m
Mass: 64,000t
Crew: 3,600
Reactors: 2
Capacity: ~80 craft (48 VF, 6 Destroid, ~20 others)

I am much comfortable with these dimensions (except for the too low width) when comparing to the show.

Edited July 16, 2019 by Xigfrid

[wmkjr]

It reminds me of the person that built a GI joe carrier to scale with his 3 3/4 figures. When you're done, I'd like to request a pic of the VF-0B on the deck like the Hasegawa box art. 

[Seto Kaiba]

5 hours ago, Xigfrid said:

I am much comfortable with these dimensions (except for the too low width) when comparing to the show.

That's from a doujinshi, mind you... FANKY Publishing tried to go back and rationalize the internal layouts of a bunch of the ships in a style not dissimilar to the Macross II: the Role-Playing Game Deck Plans books, but in so doing ignored or changed the stats for a bunch of the ships and ignored depictions of internal layouts from the shows themselves.

(It's great fodder for RPG stats, mind you, since it has art of the various described-but-not-animated variants of some ships like the Northampton-class and invented a few all-original classes that make good logistical sense and/or just look damn cool like their super-Guantanamo the Kaga-class, or stealth cruisers outfitted with different weaponry under the name Osaka-class.)

[F996]

@XigfridI have found some product on Taobao(Alibaba), you may interested

the 1/48 cardboard material Hanger model in Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni

A 1/72 scale completed model of No.3 elevator platform on Nimitz, which I think the fall arrestor detail was wrong

Another 1/72 Nimitz elevator, 3D print or resin kit

[arbit]

And where will you store this...

[Xigfrid]

22 hours ago, wmkjr said:

It reminds me of the person that built a GI joe carrier to scale with his 3 3/4 figures. When you're done, I'd like to request a pic of the VF-0B on the deck like the Hasegawa box art. 

Sure will do so as I plan to make at least the Control tower portion of the Island.

17 hours ago, Seto Kaiba said:

That's from a doujinshi, mind you... FANKY Publishing tried to go back and rationalize the internal layouts of a bunch of the ships in a style not dissimilar to the Macross II: the Role-Playing Game Deck Plans books, but in so doing ignored or changed the stats for a bunch of the ships and ignored depictions of internal layouts from the shows themselves.

(It's great fodder for RPG stats, mind you, since it has art of the various described-but-not-animated variants of some ships like the Northampton-class and invented a few all-original classes that make good logistical sense and/or just look damn cool like their super-Guantanamo the Kaga-class, or stealth cruisers outfitted with different weaponry under the name Osaka-class.)

That sounds great as a reference, can you share any link or is it only a Japanese / paper reference?

14 hours ago, F996 said:

@XigfridI have found some product on Taobao(Alibaba), you may interested

the 1/48 cardboard material Hanger model in Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni

A 1/72 scale completed model of No.3 elevator platform on Nimitz, which I think the fall arrestor detail was wrong

Another 1/72 Nimitz elevator, 3D print or resin kit

It's nice to have more image reference, thanks!

14 hours ago, arbit said:

And where will you store this...

honestly, I won't build the whole ship ! But I can detail as much as I want the model, that's what is so great with 3D and Virtual world. Perhaps someday my model will be detailed enough so I can make a usdz file, just like what I did with the Drone fighter.

[Xigfrid]

Usdz in action