Science Fiction and Future Scale

[Microspeed]

I thought I remembered hearing last year that rockets from video games were allowed, but I couldn't find anything explicitly detailing this in the Pink Book. I've got a candidate or two that I'm trying to work out the design of once school gets out Tuesday.

This particular one's (from Half-Life 2, Episode 2 by Valve Software) design is heavily based on the Titan II missile, though the game version has 3 engines and a different paint scheme.

On another note, I thought I'd heard that internal details are not counted towards the static score or difficulty considerations unless they are visible in display and flight configurations. So, for instance, the payload hatch on the side of this rocket wouldn't count (what if I left it open during flight, even if this doesn't reflect how the rocket flew in game).

Thanks.

 

[TheAviator]

It would be fine. The only question that really needs answered is can you get either a full shot of the rocket or enough smaller shots to construct a full shot.

 

[Microspeed]

Full shots aren't a problem. I've got a sandbox program that lets me manipulate the in-game models, which is actually what I would likely use to get all of the details, applicable dimensions/proportions and such for building the model. It also lets me do nice things like embedding gridded objects to get a more quantifiable idea of what certain lengths and shapes look like.

 

[TheAviator]

Just remember SF&F Scale is a Sport Scale type competition (if that is what you are intending this for.) The model is not judged on precise dimensions, mostly because these are impossible to obtain for fictional models. Instead it is judged on if it "looks right" and on craftsmanship. Check the Pink Book for more if you're interested, it's under rule 56.

 

[Microspeed]

Yep, "Similarity of Outline." Being as dimensionally precise as [reasonably] possible is more for my own sake. I just don't think I could bear the thought of something being more than a couple percent off when I've got all the details and information right there on my monitor. I wouldn't go so far as measuring pixels off screenshots, but at the grid overlay gives me a nice way to make sure everything is generally in the range it should be (I like measuring things anyway ).

The same rationale applies to peanut/sport scale (which I also need to get around to building. Tuesday afternoon, he says...). I've got more than enough substantiation data for a full-up scale entry, and the main differences between a peanut/sport compliant model and true scale might just be a few custom tubes and transitions. Then I'd have a model I could enter in either event in the future, which is nice. And again, there's the rather satisfying feeling of making something as accurate as possible.

But, for the time being, 5 hours worth of final exams stand in between me and building.

Thanks for the tips.