“Data Viewpad” with some secret plans!

Hello Everybody and welcome to this week’s post. Can you believe we are already at the end of January? Well after the excitement of seeing Shredder from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles last week we return to the Star Wars universe for a new non saber prop build. As you know I might be carrying out a “Jedi Mission” as we speak (or am I?…Hm?) and I realised I needed a device of some sort to store my travel documents and mission briefing files on. I wanted something portable and secure and it was whilst watching an episode of The Clone Wars cartoon that I saw what I needed….a Data Viewpad!

Detective Tan Divo with a police issue Data Viewpad

The Data Viewpad was in an episode telling the story of a murder in the Senate which was investigated by Coruscant Detective Tan Divo. He was a sort of cross between Peter Lorrrreee and  Lieutenant Columbo. Now these devices are much like tablet computers found on Earth but these compact computers have many more uses and larger data storage capacity. But where to get one from? I had to look online for an Intergalactic Refurbishment Store. I checked what stock they had and found a reasonably priced Viewpad with one previous owner, so I bought it! This is what it looked like….

Unfortunately as you can see this Viewpad didn’t seem to have been wiped before I purchased it! What’s that on the display? Is it the plans for the….No it can’t be, can it? Only kidding this is actually the 3D model I made of a Viewpad, complete with screen and multiple control knobs plus a Trackball mouse controller. The device has two cylindrical handgrips, one either side that also incorporates the memory modules and can be removed and fitted with larger data storage capacity drives. The viewer also has a Data-Term connector on the top edge, similar to a Ribbon cable to connect this to any computer terminal to access it. This is a seriously powerful piece of equipment! Ok, I just have time to show you a few more pictures, so onto Gallery Two….

As I mentioned before this Viewpad has many functions apart from just storing and viewing data files. You can use it as a Comms device that sends/receives voice and data such as the Death Star plans… or it can be an entertainment media player so you can travel and watch your favourite Star Wars content over the Galactic Communication Grid (bit like the internet). The last picture shows a scene from last week’s episode of “The Bad Batch” and shows Tech using a similar Viewpad to analyse data from a Podrace to help him try and win a race.

Tech with a Viewpad (© Disney/LucasFilm)

So, as you can see this is a very trick piece of kit! I might even see if I can use Blender 3D on it….you never know it might work! Unfortunately what I can’t get this device to do is give me more time to type up longer posts! Yes as you might guess I am running short of time but before I go I’d like to give you an update on what I have in store for future posts. I have more Star Wars inspired builds including FOUR new starships, …there are new sabers too (one of which I designed for myself and a second that will pay tribute to the secret location of my mission). There are even some cartoon and animated movie tie-ins all coming very soon.

I hope you have enjoyed this post and my Data Viewpad , it was a fun build. I also want to say thank you for visiting today and giving me your support. Whether a first time viewer or regular visitor to FTSabersite you all motivate me to keep creating and it means a lot. Now I have to say bye and disappear so I can continue my Jedi duties…..Till next time…….

“Data Viewpad” is a For Tyeth Editions design inspired by the portable datapads seen in the Star Wars franchise movies and cartoons. The original 3D model and renders were created in Blender 3D by For Tyeth/FTSabersite and are ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2023. “Star Wars”, “The Bad Batch”, “The Clone Wars” and all other names, logos, images and related material are Trademark/©Copyright of Disney/LucasFilm.

“Bane” Saber – It’s Bane…Cad Bane

Hello Everybody and welcome to another Bad Batch inspired saber…sort of. You see, the character that inspired this hilt made a recent appearance in the new animated series when something clicked and I felt compelled to create a design for him. That character is the bounty hunter Cad Bane. Cad was highly regarded as the best hunter in the business after Jango Fett’s death at the Battle of Geonosis (in Attack of the Clones) and it isn’t surprising he is so good as Cad trained with Jango for a while. Cad also had many skirmishes during the Clone War period including kidnapping Force sensitive children, hunting down Jabba the Hutt’s nephew , competing to win the job of kidnapping Chancellor Palpatine (only to be foiled by a heavily disguised Obi-Wan Kenobi) to name a few.

Cad was from the planet Duros and had blue skin and red eyes (similar to Thrawn) but had no obvious nose. Instead he had a flat plate running from his forehead between his eyes and down to his mouth. In case you haven’t seen Cad before here is a picture…

“I’ll take on any job…if the price is right!” Cad Bane

As you can see Cad has the face of a western style gunslinger complete with hat and toothpick! And his costume is quite cowboy inspired too with a space age twist. So I had best show you the saber I came up with for him….this is (literally) Bane….

I said that this saber WAS Bane! Cad’s look was so distinctive I just had to try and replicate him in saber form. Of course this isn’t designed for “real” use but as a showpiece hilt. I did, long ago create a “character saber” to look like General Grievous but that was just the cyborg’s head I modelled – this time with the bounty hunter I modelled the whole person! (You can check out “Kaleesh – A saber for General Grievous” by clicking this link: https://ftsabersite.wordpress.com/2018/09/15/kaleesh-saber-a-design-for-general-grievous/ )

This hilt features a lot of details such as the buckles on his waistcoat (or vest for my US viewers) and below the vest are two belts of fake ammunition – all of which is 3D modelled. At the pommel you can see two sets of silvery cannisters which are meant to be Bane’s rocket boot thrusters…and wrapping all of this detail together is his “Duster Trenchcoat” forming the handgrip! Bane’s face can easily be seen just below the emitter. Here is Glamour Gallery 2 showing a few close up details…

Starting with picture 1 you can clearly see the vest buckles (which are in reality “plus and minus” control buttons for functions of the saber – press the left side of a buckle decreases a value, press the right hand segment to increase it) and the twin bandolier belts of gun cartridges. In pics 2 and 3 you can see the emitter with and without the blade – and the emitter and flange reflector plate form…his hat! Yes in picture four you get a full frontal image of Bane’s face – I decided that if I could model Iron Man’s mask on a saber (see it here: https://ftsabersite.wordpress.com/2019/04/06/mark-for-t-40-saber-inspired-by-marvels-iron-man-pt-1/ ) then I could model Cad’s features. Look closely and you will see two hoses project out from a sort of lower face covering. You may think these are some sort of breathing apparatus because he has no visible nose and you would be sort of correct – they do help him breathe but they have a very special purpose. Cad was renowned for bounty hunting Jedi for people like Darth Sidious and the tubes were to protect him from being “Force choked” by his opponent! Though I don’t know of any Jedi that would resort to choking as this is a Sith/Darkside ability normally…but he must have been choked at some point and had the tubes fitted! Anyhow, in this design the two hoses flex down and under the saber to connect to a control box which houses the red lit activation button. This allows Bane to activate the hilt with his trigger finger just like his blasters.

Ok, I will finish off by including a few extra mixed pictures of art and stuff…

The first two images show how I created the title header image and the final picture is of a figurine from a well known company called Sideshow Collectibles which I used as reference when modelling this hilt. I think I got pretty close again.

That just about brings me to the end of this post and it’s time for me to fly west into the sunset…like all good space western films finish but before I go I have a few thank yous and stuff. So thanks to everybody who has called in today it is much appreciated – whether this is your first visit or you are a regular caller, your support keeps me designing and posting. I still have quite a few designs to come in future posts…there is also news of some action figures I have bought…Jedi costume updates…and I have acquired a new starship but it isn’t quite what I thought I was going to be flying off in🤔 I’ll leave a teaser image for my ship below, but for now….Till next time…..

I’m not sure this is the ship I was shopping for!

“Bane” Saber is a For Tyeth Editions design inspired by the Star Wars character Cad Bane. The design, 3D model and renders were created by For Tyeth and are ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2021. “Cad Bane”, “The Clone Wars”, “The Bad Batch” and all other Star Wars related names, logos, images and related material are Trademark/©Copyright of Disney/Lucasfilm.

Crosshair’s “Reticle Saber” – Mystery Saber Five inspired by the Bad Batch

Hello Everybody and welcome to my fifth and final (?) Bad Batch inspired saber design. Can you believe how fast the past four weeks have gone? Well Ihave reached number five and that means only one member of Clone Force 99 is left and he is known as CT-9904 or “Crosshair”! Crosshair is the clone that developed heightened vision and as a result became a skilled marksman with his higher than normal accuracy. He was a complete opposite to the rest of the Batch, being sarcastic, judgemental, argumentative and had a real chip on his shoulder (not to mention the Inhibitor Chip in his head!) That Inhibitor Chip also separated Crosshair as different because when Order 66 was issued, he was the only CF99 member to react to the command and attempted to kill the Jedi forces they were meant to be fighting alongside. Upon returning to Kamino the cloning colony homeworld, Crosshair attracted the attention of Governor Wilhuf Tarkin and he was subjected to a surgucal procedure to INCREASE the effects of the chip in his head. This lead to him pledging himself to the newly formed Empire and abandoning the Bad Batch. Crosshairs’ reward? Promotion to Clone Commander.

Crosshair as a member of the Bad Batch

Crosshair was assigned a mission to test his allegiance where he was tasked with wiping out some insurgents including the famous Rebel mercenary, Saw Gererra. However it turned out when he got to the rebel camp only civilians were left. He ordered his trooper ES-01 to execute one civilian but he disobeyed leaving Crosshair to kill the person himself…then he killed ES-01. Crosshair doesn’t sound like the sort of person I should really be designing a hilt for but I had to to complete the collection. And I have chatted too long so here is the first Glamour Shot gallery of the saber called “Reticle”…

Now this hilt looks simple and to be fair it is but that’s due to the fact I came up with this shape after seeing Crosshairs’ sniper rifle in the show. I noticed a section of the blaster that looked like a Thin Neck saber – part of the barrel and the attachment known as a muzzle brake or suppressor. Here is a picture to show you what I saw…

The barrel and suppressor looked like a saber already!

As you can see the end of the barrel made a neat saber when detached! The image above is of a 3D printed replica I found online so I needed to recreate the model and then add details to it. The first thing you’ll notice about the hilt is the familiar red, black and silvery white colour scheme of Clone Force 99. Also on the emitter I added an “iron sight” lug, the little tombstone shaped object used to aim weapons with. Along the lower handgrip section you will see a strange ridged strip on top and below. This feature is to replicate a device known as “Picatinny Rail” which is a rail with teeth-like blocks which you can attach tactical aiming scopes and flashlights (or many other attachments) onto your blaster. And I also made it out of a rubberised material for comfort. You can see some real world examples below.

This I felt reinforced the sharpshooter theme for Crosshair’s character. The saber has a CF99 logo activation switch mounted on the side of the hilt and if you were wondering how I named the saber, the answer lies on the pommel. I modelled the pommel endcap to resemble the crosshair reticle image you see down a gunsight. The reticle can also be seen as a scar on Crosshair’s face over his right eye.

As I type this the story of The Bad Batch leaves Crosshair tasked with hunting down the remaining CF99 members and recovering the young female clone named Omega, the batch are protecting – she seems to be the key to the story. Sadly this just about wraps up not only this saber offering but the whole collection! It has been great fun building these hilts as the story and characters are so strong. However I may have one or two “bonus” designs linked to this show so stay tuned. And of course I couldn’t leave this post without a group picture or two….so here you are!

Phew! I think I have finished now. It just leaves me to thank you all for checking out these new designs and I hope you liked the series. I also want to say thanks for all the continues support you all give my site, whether you are visiting for the first time or you’re a regular you will always be welcome and please comment, leave a like or two if I’ve earned one and if you really like what you see, then subscribe so you get an email notification when I post new content. Stay safe and from me and the Bad Batch…Till next time….

“Reticle Saber” is a For Tyeth Editions design created and rendered in Blender 3D by myself, For Tyeth. The 3D model and renders are ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2021. “The Bad Batch” and all names, images, logos and original material connected to the show are Trademark/©Copyright of Disney/Lucasfilm 2021.

Tech’s “Terminal Saber” – inspired by The Bad Batch

Hello Everybody and welcome to mystery saber number four in my collection. And this time it was a mystery as to which saber I had to reveal today as nobody remembered to vote! So I took “Executive Action” and ordered that saber 2 in the list be next up. Saber 2 is designed for Bad Batch member “Tech” the clone trooper that was given enhanced scientific, engineering and technical skills and abilities when he was created on the planet Kamino. These skills included rapid problem solving, understanding of complex computer and mechanical systems, linguistic skills and translations…oh and a habit of blurting out information to whoever he is talking to relating to any situation they are in – without necessarily being asked for such info! Tech appeared different to the other Bad Batch members, being slimmer in build, with fairer complexion and looking younger than the normal Jango Fett template the clones were derived from. And talking of looks that brings me to the first gallery of Glamour Pics so here is “Terminal Saber”…

I think this is another striking design and quite a “High Tech” looking hilt too. It comes in Clone Force 99 colours and has a thin neck style. The emitter is mounted on a thin neck that has four power conduit cables that glow. The thin neck attaches to the upper handgrip which has two data display panels on either side, which mimic his customised helmet visor. His helmet is a modified Scout Trooper version with a special tactical awareness and data screen built into the visor (a bit like Google Glass!) I imagined that just like Echo’s saber last week had extra functionality so should Tech’s…and I had the idea that his helmet and saber could link wirelessly and share info back and forth. Tech likes gadgets and has a hobby of recording all manner of sounds into a database (this sound database actually assisted in a daring escape in one episode of the Clone Wars show) and this saber can receive audio data and play it back too. On the underside of the upper grip a Clone Force 99 logo can be seen. The lower handgrip I quite like as I was able to create a neat 3D checkerboard patterned grip, with recessed squares to provide the grip texture. The handgrip is capped off by another CF99 logo pommel decoration.

“But how do you switch the saber on and off?” I hear you say…well there is a “hidden” activation slide mechanism that also reveals other controls for power and blade settings, as well as a micro LED screen. And it kinda works like this…over to you Tech….

Due to having had a burst of inspiration a few weeks back and I built all these hilts in record time I was able to film a small demo video of how there is a sliding cover over the setting controls which also acts to switch the saber on and off. Quickly sliding the cover back and forth either activates or deactivates the hilt or you slide the cover fully open to access the settings…as Tech said…”simple really!” And if the video was too quick then here is a second gallery of images of the saber and switch section…

Pairing this saber with Echo’s “Data Splice” hilt and you have nearly every possible computing or technical task covered, Echo can splice into any system and Tech can then run diagnostics and reprogramming of any network. And if they encounter any Hostiles…they have sabers too!

Once again I think that just about covers everything with this design. I really liked working on this one and fortunately (fingers crossed) I managed to get this current laptop to create another animation (ok maybe not up to Disney/Lucasfilm levels but not too bad 😎) I hope you al enjoyed this one just as much as I did. And that leads me to next week’s not quite so mysterious saber – as there is only one left in the collection (or is there more?…..) you won’t need to vote this week. I will just leave the “reveal board poster” here showing the hilts so far and you can imagine what the final one will turn out like.

So it is that time where I have to end, but first as always I need to say thanks. Thank you to everyone that visited and checked out this latest design, your support for me and my site is greatly appreciated. New or regular visitors, you keep me posting and I have a few more sabers lined up for future posts including a Bounty Hunter themed hilt and a weapon for a Blacksmith. I hope you will all return to check those out too. In the meantime stay safe and please spread the word about FTSabersite. Till next time….

“Tech’s Terminal Saber” is a For Tyeth Editions design inspired by the character Tech from Star Wars: The Bad Batch. The design was modelled, rendered and animated in Blender 3D by me, For Tyeth and is ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2021. “Tech”, “The Bad Batch” and all other names, logos, images and related Star Wars material is Trademark/©Copyright of Disney/Lucasfilm 2021.

“Data Splice” Saber – Inspired by Echo – Mystery Box Saber 3

EDIT: VOTING CLOSED AT 00:00 HRS (GMT) 1ST JUNE SO I HAVE THE TIME TO TYPE UP THE NEXT REVEAL POST WHICH WILL PUBLISH AT 00:00HRS (GMT) SATURDAY MORNING!

Hello Everybody….everybody…..body…..Is there an Echo in here? Wow! I can’t believe I am halfway through this collection of hilts already. As you know in previous weeks I have shown you the hilts I designed for Hunter and Wrecker of Clone Force 99 – aka The Bad Batch. Today at the request of The Atomic Mage we will see the hilt I made for cadet CT-21-0408 who is a former Republic era Clone Trooper that has had a hard life. CT-21-0408 or “Echo” as he was nicknamed was created on the planet Kamino and belonged to a group known as “Domino Squad”. This squad was evaluated by the Jedi and the Kaminoans cloning experts because the DNA used to create these troopers was believed to be deteriorating and dangerous to use any more. After the evaluations Echo managed to pass and joined the ranks of clone troopers. He fought in a battle to save Kamino, then he was promoted to the 501st Legion commanded by Anakin Skywalker. But during a mission to rescue a captive Jedi Master from the Separatists – Echo was involved in an explosion that led his comrades to believe he was dead. This wasn’t the end of his story though and so I have designed a hilt for him and I call it (as I will explain later) “Data Splice”…

This I think is a very unique looking hilt and really represents Echo. You see, Echo wasn’t killed in the explosion during the rescue mission but seriously injured and taken captive. Worse yet was that he was sold to another faction known as the Techno Unionists, a group that specialised in high tech weaponry and technology (they were involved in the design/construction of the first Death Star). The Techno Union and a character named Wat Tambor kept Echo alive albeit in an unconscious state and turned him into a cyborg, who they connected to a massive Droid Control System. They hoped Echo’s knowledge and memories could be tapped into and used to gain an advantage in the war against the Republic Clone Army. Captain Rex later suspected his friend was still alive when a mysterious code kept repeating in a data stream intercepted from a Droid Control Centre on the planet Skako Minor. The code? CT-1409….CT1409….CT-1409. Again I will explain the code later, but here is gallery two….

This saber has an unusual emitter which looks like a cylindrical coil antenna and has windows cut into it to allow the blade to shine through between each coil. The emitter is mounted on an elegant Thin Neck connected to the main handgrip which has an illuminated activation switch on top and a Clone Force 99 logo on the underside. The pommel features a distinct two-toned spike shaped cone that also doubles as a computer terminal probe, used when Echo needs to remotely access a computer. He can insert the lightsaber into the terminal and use the saber as a relay transmitter. Finally the handgrip has some symbols embossed onto it…the Aurabesh symbols….CT-1409. This number is the trooper number Echo was given when he graduated to the Republic Army!

Upon learning of the Droid Control Centre and this mystery code Anakin Skywalker, Rex and a group known as The Bad Batch launched a mission to shut down the Centre and defeat Admiral Trench, the Techno Unionist commanding the droid offensive. The mission was a success but a bitter sweet discovery was made – Captain Rex’s hunch was proven correct that Echo was indeed alive and he managed to rescue his fallen friend. But his friend was more machine than man, however Echo was a survivor and after emergency surgery and rehabilitation was brought back from the edge of death. If you haven’t seen The Bad Batch, Echo looks like this..

Echo has suffered but has also survived. Hunter as leader of the Bad Batch invited Echo to join with them as he was an outsider too. Echo accepted and helped many times in their subsequent missions. You will notice Echo has many cybernetic appendages and look closely at his hand – that is a SCOMP connector used to interface with computer terminals (like Artoo Detoo can) allowing him to “splice” into any data system and communicate with it. Hence I called his saber “Data Splice” – Echo can communicate with the saber wirelessly enabling him to be in “two” places at the same time. Neat!

So I hope this saber suitably represents the heroic Echo…Echo….Echo….Sorry I couldn’t help myself 🤣 Seriously though this wraps up the Data Splice, I hope you liked it. That leaves two hilts left in the collection to be revealed and again I leave the decision up to you which will be next by leaving a vote and comment below. Last week I only got one vote from The Atomic Mage so please leave a vote – you have till midnight (GMT) on Thursday 1st.

EDIT: VOTING CLOSED AT 00:00 HRS (GMT) 1ST JUNE SO I HAVE THE TIME TO TYPE UP THE NEXT REVEAL POST WHICH WILL PUBLISH AT 00:00HRS (GMT) SATURDAY MORNING!

Thanks for checking this saber out and for visiting FTSabersite today. Whether it’s your first visit or you regularly call back it is most appreciated. I still have the two remaining hilts in this collection and I have a saber for a blacksmith coming soon so please call back to see these and more in future posts. Till next time….

“Data Splice” Saber is a For Tyeth Editions design inspired by the character “Echo” from “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” and “The Bad Batch”. The design was modelled, and rendered by For Tyeth and are ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2021. “Star Wars” , “The Bad Batch” and all other names, logos, images and related material are Trademark/© Copyright of Disney/Lucasfilm.

“Demolisher” Saber – for Wrecker of the Bad Batch – Mystery Saber 2

EDIT: VOTING CLOSED AT 00:00 HRS (GMT) 25TH JUNE SO I HAVE THE TIME TO TYPE UP THE NEXT REVEAL POST WHICH WILL PUBLISH AT 00:00HRS (GMT) SATURDAY MORNING!

Hello Everybody and welcome to the reveal of “Mystery Saber” number two! I hope you all liked my previous hilt “Tracker” that I built for Hunter of the Bad Batch last week. Unfortunately the day after I posted it I saw the latest episode of this new series and Hunter’s knife was on show and in much better focus and I saw that it had an etched, glowing circuit pattern on the side of it’s blade which I didn’t see in previous episodes. But at least I added an LCD display screen to my design so it was a bit different. However, the star of the last episode (called “Battle Scars” in case you want to check it out) was the character whose saber viewers have voted to see next…Wrecker!

Ooh Great!

I get a saber too?

As you can see Wrecker embodies his name perfectly – he is big, strong and has a love of breaking things and opponents apart! But deep down he is a softy and loyal. Unfortunately clone troopers have a weakness and that is a mind controlling microchip in their head, implanted when they were “grown” on Kamino the cloning planet. This chip ensured they followed orders and one very dangerous instruction – ORDER 66! Order 66 as you will know was the order given to the clone troops to kill the Jedi when Palpatine wanted to take over the Senate and galaxy during The Clone Wars…and in the last episode Wrecker’s chip activated…not good! I won’t reveal more than this but I will reveal the new saber I have designed for him. I call this the “Demolisher” saber…

This is the weapon for a guy built like a bulldozer…it is large, powerful and has three blades for extra damage potential! It is shaped to also try and mimic Wrecker’s body shape with the side emitters “hunched” slightly to represent his broad shoulder armour. The saber has an overall Bad Batch armour colour scheme as Hunter’s saber also had, and features Clone Force 99 insignias. This weapon is so powerful it needs a good handgrip and I modelled ridges for Wrecker’s fingers to grip the hilt with ease – we wouldn’t want it flying out of his hand now. The saber also shares the same white blades. OK now for a few more close up details…

So in this gallery there are a couple of pictures of the pommel showing off the Bad Batch/Clone Force 99 logo which I’m really happy how it turned out. And the next two images display the emitters and the matrix mesh that produces the blades. Because of the amount of power this hilt has I had to create a new mechanism to emit and recollect the energy used to form the blades. I imagined a mesh basket would work as it features a lot of surfaces to transmit and receive energy flows. It also looks quite pretty in gold – just a little bling for the bulldozer! The last image shows the ventilation grilles circling the massive pommel cap that allow the heat produced out. So I think it is about time I present Wrecker his new saber…

Pretty! Three blades….three times the damage! Thanks Tyeth.

And again a happy customer…I think he likes it, I hope you all do too. This just about wraps up saber number two of this series and you may have guessed by now that the collection is centred around The Bad Batch members and there are three more to reveal. It is down to you to work out whose saber is whose and which you’d like to see next. You can decide this by leaving a comment below and voting for the one you’re interested in. Here is the collection so far…

Thank you so much for checking out “Demolisher” and I really hope more of you will vote for the next reveal. Again I will take votes up till midnight (12:00 GMT) on Thursday so I have Friday to type up the article for the winner. I also have a bit more news to come about my Jedi costume I have assembled so stay tuned for that. In the meantime I’d like to say I appreciate all the support from viewers new and regular to FTSabersite, and please comment, like and/or subscribe…if you really like what you see here maybe tell your friends so they can visit too. Till next time,…..

EDIT: VOTING CLOSED AT 00:00 HRS (GMT) 25TH JUNE SO I HAVE THE TIME TO TYPE UP THE NEXT REVEAL POST WHICH WILL PUBLISH AT 00:00HRS (GMT) SATURDAY MORNING!

“Demolisher” Saber is a For Tyeth Editions design inspired by the character “Wrecker” in Disney/Lucasfilm’s “The Bad Batch” animation series. The design was built and rendered in Blender 3D by For Tyeth and is ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2021. “Wrecker” and all character names, images, logos and related material linked to The Bad Batch are Trademarks/©Copyright of Disney/Lucasfilm.

“Tracker” Saberknife – Inspired by The Bad Batch’s Hunter

EDIT: Please be aware the voting for the next Mystery Box Saber has ended. The next saber to be revealed will be posted on Saturday morning at 00:00 GMT!

Hello Everybody and welcome to the reveal of the first saber in my new collection! Apologies readers didn’t have long to vote for which saber they wanted to see but I wanted to keep to my Saturday morning posting schedule. However, my friends Neil and TheVintageToyAdvertiser both picked hilt number one (and one also voted for number three) so I might as well start with mystery hilt 1. And as the title suggests it is a different type of light weapon inspired by the new Disney/Lucasfilm animation The Bad Batch – and one character in particular….Hunter!

I don’t want to get too deep into explaining Hunter’s backstory as his storyline is still quite new and may contain spoilers. I can say he first appeared in The Clone Wars where he and his team helped Anakin Skywalker defeat a Separatist Commander named Admiral Trench. Hunter is the commander of a bunch of clone troopers that differ from regular clones in that they were genetically modified to develop heightened “favourable abilities”. Hunter has exceptional tracking skills and can detect electromagnetic fields and disturbances, allowing him to pursue and track quarries. He is also skilled with a knife and it is this combat knife that I have re-imagined. This is “Tracker” Saberknife…

I recreated a combat survival type knife and gave the handgrip the same colour scheme as Hunter’s battle armour, dark grey, white and red. I also included a 3D modelled insignia of the squad “Clone Force 99” – a skull atop two numerals written in the Star Wars language Aurabesh. The two numerals are 9s shown as underlined Zeroes. These two pictures were of the first attempt at modelling the knife but as always I liked the idea…I just thought I could do better so I tweaked a few bits here and there. Here is a second gallery of Version 2…

Hunter’s knife in The Bad Batch just looked a little plain and not very high tech, so I amped it up a bit and gave my blade an extra sharp lightsaber-like cutting edge – hence the white glow. The energy in the blade can be activated by pressing the squad logo just below the blade and if you press each of the “9” indices you scroll the weapon through various modes and functions (like an up/down arrow control). But to control the functions you need a display screen or lights right? Well this blade has an electro LCD display on the side of the handgrip illuminated in blue. It shows values such as Battery Level Indicator (Power), Setting (Lo/Med/Hi) and an approximate runtime before the hilt needs a new battery or recharge. The pommel of the blade has two more skull insignias, one either side and in the end cap I added a slot and post to attach a lanyard or belt hook. And just to reinforce who this Saberknife belongs to I added a red band around the base of the blade to represent Hunter’s trademark headband!

Ok! That just about wraps up this hilt, the first of my “Mystery Box Sabers”. I again apologise to viewers who didn’t get to vote but you have another chance between now and Thursday midnight (GMT) to leave a comment and vote for which hilt you’d like to see next. If some of you are saber experts you might just be able to work out who the hilts were inspired by! I will also include one vote for number three that TVTA cast earlier….so number three has a one point lead. Will it change? You can decide…I hope you’ll vote and return next week for the next reveal.

EDIT: Again please be aware the voting for the next Mystery Box Saber has ended. The next saber to be revealed will be posted on Saturday morning at 00:00 GMT!

In the meantime, I’d like to thank you all for checking out “Tracker” Saberknife today and for all the support you show me and my site. It is all very much appreciated, whether a new visitor or a regular caller. I’ll leave you with the updated image of reveals so you can pick the saber silhouette of the hilt you’d like to see next. Till next time….

“Tracker” Saberknife is a For Tyeth Editions design and was modelled/rendered in Blender 3D. “Tracker” and it’s design, model and renders are ©Copyright of For Tyeth/FTSabersite 2016-2021. “The Bad Batch”, “Hunter” and all other names, logos, images and related material are Trademark/©Copyright of Disney/Lucasfilm.