Starting to sketch ideas for the Valiant. I still like my overall concept I did several years back, but I’m playing with it. My first photoshopped concept looked more rudimentary and quite ‘50’s era sci-fi. The later more finished version looked much more developed and less rudimentary.
I’m thinking about how developed was the space warp technology before launching a purposely designed “galactic survey cruiser.” Remember that the idea of Zefram Cochrane didn’t exist yet. Nothing we would later learn in TOS or even TNG was conceived yet. I’m reasoning that space warp tech might have come about around mid to later 21st century assuming Jefferies didn’t envision FTL tech happening within the next several decades. The Valiant likely wouldn’t be the very first (relatively) deep space FTL exploratory ship launched, but it still could be one of the early ones. If I recall right this similar notion was put forth in Forbidden Planet ten years earlier.
My present germ of an idea is playing with a 1960’s era Atlas rocket, turning it on its side and putting the Gemini capsule at the aft end as a modified impulse engine. I am trying to narrow my reference sources to what was available at the time in terms of real world and science fiction. I don’t want the end result to be immediately recognizable as a 1960’s rocket booster, but that something about it will seem familiar. Also, since there is no exposition in the episode describing the ship its shape should suggest something distinctly more advanced than what was familiar back in the day yet also looks significantly less advanced than the Enterprise.
Although I will be building the Valiant in 3D, and it will be largely simple shapes, if it was shown on a screen in WNMHGB it would only need to be a schematic or illustration.
When one really looks at the Botany Bay it looks a lot like a pencil with a pointed end and bits and pieces added to it. Sometimes inspiration can work like that.
I’m thinking about how developed was the space warp technology before launching a purposely designed “galactic survey cruiser.” Remember that the idea of Zefram Cochrane didn’t exist yet. Nothing we would later learn in TOS or even TNG was conceived yet. I’m reasoning that space warp tech might have come about around mid to later 21st century assuming Jefferies didn’t envision FTL tech happening within the next several decades. The Valiant likely wouldn’t be the very first (relatively) deep space FTL exploratory ship launched, but it still could be one of the early ones. If I recall right this similar notion was put forth in Forbidden Planet ten years earlier.
My present germ of an idea is playing with a 1960’s era Atlas rocket, turning it on its side and putting the Gemini capsule at the aft end as a modified impulse engine. I am trying to narrow my reference sources to what was available at the time in terms of real world and science fiction. I don’t want the end result to be immediately recognizable as a 1960’s rocket booster, but that something about it will seem familiar. Also, since there is no exposition in the episode describing the ship its shape should suggest something distinctly more advanced than what was familiar back in the day yet also looks significantly less advanced than the Enterprise.
Although I will be building the Valiant in 3D, and it will be largely simple shapes, if it was shown on a screen in WNMHGB it would only need to be a schematic or illustration.
When one really looks at the Botany Bay it looks a lot like a pencil with a pointed end and bits and pieces added to it. Sometimes inspiration can work like that.
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