Romulan Seahawk-Class Frigate

[Icy_Penguigo]

One of my latest ships for a FedCom cover. This is the smallest of the "Hawk" series of Romulans ships. The Hawk series were the first ships built by the Romulans from the keel up to utilize tactical warp power. The previous two generations were the "Eagle" series(converted sublight ships, of which the original Bird of Prey was one), and the "Kestrel" series(purchased Klingon ships). Tell me what you think:

 

[Wingsley]

Would that make this pre-"Balance of Terror"?

 

[Icy_Penguigo]

Would that make this pre-"Balance of Terror"?

No, post.

In SFB, the Bird of Prey(it's called the "War Eagle" in SFB) was an old sublight design converted to use warp power. SFB rationalizes the supposed sublight Romulans by saying that they lacked "tactical warp". They could still travel faster than light(needed to make their early war with humans believable), but were unable to fight at warp, which was a decisive advantage humanity had. Their later deal with the Klingons bought them many Klingon ships and a chance to finally reverse-engineer tactical warp capabilities.

After a few years, it became apparent to the Romulans that their old Eagle-series ships were still sub-par, even with the warp drive upgrades, and they wouldn't be able to buy enough Klingon ships to fill out an entire fleet. Plus, Klingon ships were not designed with the cloaking device in mind, so they were very power-inefficient with it. So the Romulans set about designing the "Hawk" series, completely new ships designed for tactical warp and the cloaking device. They are still based largely off of Klingon designs, hence their drastically different shape from the older Eagle ships.

This ship would have appeared in the timeline after TOS, along with its stable mates, the Condor, the Firehawk, the Sparrowhawk, and the Skyhawk.

 

[USS Mariner]

I would inset, or extrude slightly (considering how the BOP's windows were done in "Balance of Terror") the large forward window of the Seahawk to estalibsh a cleaner definition between hull and window, as well as to avoid that part of the model looking "cheap."

 

[Nedersong]

I wish I knew where to find more pictures like this one.

 

[Icy_Penguigo]

I would inset, or extrude slightly (considering how the BOP's windows were done in "Balance of Terror") the large forward window of the Seahawk to estalibsh a cleaner definition between hull and window, as well as to avoid that part of the model looking "cheap."

It actually is inset....it's just a very small amount. Maybe I should make it more.

Nedersong: Have you seen my other SFB art? If not, I'll set up a photobucket of finished renders for you(and whoever else in interested) to look at.

 

[AmbassadorKosh]

Perhaps you could take the approach used on the Klingon Bird of Prey from ST:III. Inset the large bridge window a greater amount and darken it with the upper portion of the hull overhanging it somewhat. I don't mean to copy the BoP bridge module, just use it for inspiration.

 

[MarianLH]

Nedersong: Have you seen my other SFB art? If not, I'll set up a photobucket of finished renders for you(and whoever else in interested) to look at.

Please please do.

As for the Seahawk, your detail work is awesome as always, but the basic design remains awful. Would it be taking too much liberty with the design if you made the front part more of a uniform width instead of narrowing toward the rear?


Marian

 

[Icy_Penguigo]

Perhaps you could take the approach used on the Klingon Bird of Prey from ST:III. Inset the large bridge window a greater amount and darken it with the upper portion of the hull overhanging it somewhat. I don't mean to copy the BoP bridge module, just use it for inspiration.

Hmm. The cover that this ship is on needs to be done today, so I can't really re-work the model right now, but I might try that when I use it later on.

Nedersong: Have you seen my other SFB art? If not, I'll set up a photobucket of finished renders for you(and whoever else in interested) to look at.

Please please do.

As for the Seahawk, your detail work is awesome as always, but the basic design remains awful. Would it be taking too much liberty with the design if you made the front part more of a uniform width instead of narrowing toward the rear?


Marian

Yeah...it's not one of my favorite designs, either. I think that would probably be too much deviation from the miniature though, since it has a very distinct taper there.

Oh, and I will set up a photobucket gallery of renders after I get done with my work today.

Thanks guys!

 

[MarianLH]

Yeah...it's not one of my favorite designs, either. I think that would probably be too much deviation from the miniature though, since it has a very distinct taper there.

That's a shame. The rest of the design isn't bad, but that taper is just ridiculous.


Marian

 

[USS Mariner]

Yeah...it's not one of my favorite designs, either. I think that would probably be too much deviation from the miniature though, since it has a very distinct taper there.

That's a shame. The rest of the design isn't bad, but that taper is just ridiculous.


Marian

Making it straight would be even worse, phallic comparisons aside.

 

[B.J.]

It's amazing how you can do wonders with such turkeys of designs.

 

[Nedersong]

I would inset, or extrude slightly (considering how the BOP's windows were done in "Balance of Terror") the large forward window of the Seahawk to estalibsh a cleaner definition between hull and window, as well as to avoid that part of the model looking "cheap."

It actually is inset....it's just a very small amount. Maybe I should make it more.

Nedersong: Have you seen my other SFB art? If not, I'll set up a photobucket of finished renders for you(and whoever else in interested) to look at.

Many thanks.

I've been a long time fan of the game. I like Starfleet Command but would have much preferred it be more like SFB, with a turn absed game and the SSDs instead of a real time strategy.

 

[Icy_Penguigo]

It's amazing how you can do wonders with such turkeys of designs.

I like to think of it as a challenge. I get to tackle all these "unattractive" ship designs that no one else wants to make, and it's fun to see if I can make them more believable and cool.


Plus, I get paid to do it.


Thanks guys!

 

[Icy_Penguigo]

Got my SFU uber-gallery up:

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v4...SFU%20Renders/

 

[Santaman]

Quite a nice design although somewhat strange, I like the nacelle caps a lot, they almost seem like Chinese lamps.

 

[JuanBolio]

I'm getting a serious dildo vibe from that thing....