Damn J.J. Abrams and his teaser trailer. He unfortunately re-awakened my latent, deflated Star Wars mojo after George Lucas killed it with the help of terrible acting, a plot written by the eight-year-old version of me (actually, I would’ve done better) and too much emphasis on merchandizing. Well, not all the credit should go to Abrams. Even if there weren’t an episode coming out in Christmas ’15, I think I was really inspired by the Darth Bane trilogy novels I bought last May, Clone Wars getting better after the second season (now I miss Ahsoka), Rebels being good and my recent Lego addiction. OK, and a bit of my competitive spirit kicking in against my mother-in-law.
Back in the Summer, I discovered the joys of shopping for Legos online, namely whenever I could save a few bucks. It’s odd, Target and Toys R Us sell the same things for less online than in their physical stores yet you can then pick them up without waiting for them to be shipped. There was this little set I thought was killer. It contained two Sith and two Republic troopers from the KOTR game/period. Since Lego rarely just sells the minifigs, there’s a flying vehicle the Sith guys uses shoot with. The set goes for $13 retail. Target online it was $10.19! I scored a slug of ’em. After the nephews living in Qatar visited and we spent an afternoon putting together a walker (the full-blown AT-AT), a Mandalorian battlesled and a Z-95 Headhunter, I noticed how the two younger kids (Wyatt and Cannon) dug the minifigs more.
Eventually all these influences came together as I discovered how to make a unique gift for my nephews, their very own, customized Lego Star Wars troopers!
- The Lego Store sells random body parts; $10 = 15 heads or hairpieces/hats. Although Star Wars minifigs have been flesh-colored for about a decade, I chose to go with the traditional yellow as it should be for Honkies.
- Various non-Star Wars sets to get variety in heads and hair; Chima, UltraAgents, Ninjago and whatever else was on sale. Star Wars too for the aliens, droids and accessories (lightsabers, guns).
- Only the first Darth Bane novel was any help covering what the Old Republic’s forces were like for the backstory. For the fans, Darth Bane and the Brotherhood of Darkness lived 1000 years before the movies.
- The final touch was the best and my favorite…every trooper was built (head, hair and accessory choice), named and given a backstory by any Star Wars fan I could find at work or in my circle of friends. I tweaked bits a tad, like names, homeworlds (everybody can’t be from Coruscant or Naboo, diversity is the key) and assigned ranks at random. I handled the droids, Jedi Knight (she was a last-minute addition), Wookiee and the starship’s skipper was my pick.
The downside is the boys are back in Qatar. I thought my in-laws were going over the holiday to visit, then I was going to have the 727th transported through them. Didn’t happen, there was a miscommunication. I won’t ship the minifigs. Qatar’s postal service is probably outsourced and can’t be trusted. Lastly, Legos have become the new uncut diamond given all the thefts happening.
I sent them this movie to show what they will eventually be receiving. According to Anje, they sounded pretty stoked.
While I wait for an opportunity to get them into the boys’ hands, I am making a d20 set of stats (second edition rules from WOTC, the best rules!) to throw in and recruiting other master builders in designing the 727th’s drop ship, land vehicles and transport ship, the Ki-Rin, probably an Old Republic corvette/cruiser.