Subject:
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4x2ReVu: 6977 Arachnoid Star Base
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.space, lugnet.reviews
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Date:
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Thu, 28 Oct 1999 15:07:50 GMT
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Viewed:
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1432 times
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Rock Raiders stationed at the Termitia Helmound colony just realized they've
probably bitten off more than they can chew. The odd noises and vibrations
that RR sonar has been picking up lately have just been explained as an entire
wall of the amphitheater under construction collapses and an enormous
spider-like transport rumbles into the cavern. Bulbous-head aliens pour out of
and from behind the arachnid creature, shooting blasters, destroying equipment
and taking no prisoners. An all-out alarm is sounded for the few Space Marines
stationed on upper levels, but their numbers are few and it is doubtful even
those will arrive in time.
Insectoids have proven to be a much better sub-theme than I thought they would
be (though they're a far cry from classic Space). I've enjoyed a couple of the
medium-size sets but held off on the larger Star Base until a nearby store had
a 20% off sale. Getting a nice heavy box of new Space stuff was exciting and
I'm enjoying the set quite a bit.
The base is actually a large vehicle and what looks like a sentry tower or
storage shed for crystals. The tower is based on six dark grey struts (these
will be great for alternate models) and looks like a dual compartment shed with
a rotating radar/laser mounted on top of the structure. A specialized cockpit
element makes up one half of the shed while the other half is built with bricks
and a dark green windshield piece. There are no stairs for getting up and into
the tower.
The centerpiece of the set is its vehicle. This comes in two modules. The
forward module is a six-legged creature with an enclosing cockpit as the head
and a landing platform for a small flying unit just behind the cockpit (this
add-on flyer is VERY basically built and requires the pilot to stand). The two
front legs of the creature are more like arms that are vertically based and
horizontally hinged so they can grasp crystals. The back legs are also
horizontally hinged so that they can move back and forth for crawling movement.
The bug's body tapers into a sound and light element identical to that found
in the 6909 Sonic Stinger set. This forward module slides and snaps into a
larger six-wheeled body that features two more leg like appendages. These last
two "legs" have magnet assemblies attached to their extremities for picking up
crystals. The legs both rotate and can be raised or lowered. At the base of
the rear module where the fore unit snaps into the body are two compartments
(on each side of the cavity). One houses a sled type vehicle and the other
compartment has a hinged canopy that covers a bin to store utilities. The
entire back half of the rear module is actually a semi-saucer area with room
for figs to stand. The top half of this cabin lifts up to pose or play with
the figures. This chamber closely resembles the forward cabin of the 6198
Sting Ray Stormer and, like that model, the area is not entirely enclosed (with
a slight gap appearing between top and bottom halves when the cabin is closed).
Also, with the forward module inserted into the rear half, that module's
"stinger" takes up about a fourth of the rear cabin's space but it's still nice
to have a spacious interior cabin.
The ship's crew is made up of two Insectoid aliens with dark green helmets (one
has black airtanks and the other has a black cowl) and two identical androids.
The only thing I don't like about this sub-theme is the way the figures are
preprinted with so much circuitry and junk on their faces (though I guess the
garish design is to distinguish these figs from regular "human" figs). The
crew is equipped with a couple of scanner/weapon accessories and have
apparently been quite busy digging because they also come with four crystals.
The set includes a nice array of parts including six of the large dark grey
arched struts, two dark trans-green arched struts, two black saucer bottom
quarters and two dark trans-green quarter-saucer tops (though these are
preprinted), plus a nice assortment of dark grey and blue bricks and plates.
I originally stayed away from this set because of its considerable price and
because I was angry at the new sub-theme that didn't seem to compare to older
Space sub-themes. But a discount price and actually getting my hands on the
completed model have changed my opinion. These guys make for a great alternate
race to interact with the humans.
!!!4x2ReVu Stats!!!
Rating: Five out of eight studs (add a stud if you can get it at a discounted
price).
Thumbs up for: Decent design, good assortment of parts. Great adversary
vehicle to come crashing down on an Explorien surface station.
Wallet-Wise: Approximate U.S. retail $80.00 for 433 pieces.
Date: 10/27/1999
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Message has 1 Reply:
 | | Re: 4x2ReVu: 6977 Arachnoid Star Base
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| !!!!!! *LOL* No sooner do I finish my post than I look back at the NG and find that the oracle has ALREADY answered my post! That is truly spooky. (...) grey (...) plates. (...) Cool. Dark grey and blue plates, huh? How many? Can't see many of 'em (...) (25 years ago, 28-Oct-99, to lugnet.space)
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