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Published: 2014-06-26 10:10:58 +0000 UTC; Views: 55860; Favourites: 666; Downloads: 218
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Description
LOCKDOWNFunction: Bounty Hunter
Alternate Mode: Harley-Davidson SuperLow 1200T with sidecar
Strength: 4
Intelligence: 7
Speed: 6
Endurance: 5
Rank: 1
Courage: 7
Firepower: 5
Skill: 8
Hopping from system to system in his gunship Death's Head, Lockdown has made a name for himself as one of the most ruthless bounty hunters in the galaxy. Especially notorious for his unrelenting nature, Lockdown will pursue his quarry to the edge of known space and beyond, and has an unmatched rate of capture. It is no surprise, then, that after receiving a distress call ostensibly from the flagship of the Decepitcon fugitive Megatron, who carries on his head the second-largest bounty in Cybertronian history, Lockdown makes his way to planet Earth. Unbeknownst to Lockdown, however, Megatron has a small army of loyal subjects at his disposal, which he uses to subdue the hunter and destroy his ship. Promised an even more handsome reward (and his life) in return for his services, the once-proud Lockdown has little choice but to ally himself with the Decepticon cause for the foreseeable future. He is unquestionably out of his element working as part of team and under orders, but greed is a strong motivator for change.
Lockdown has accrued a hefty fortune through his work, but prefers to spend the bulk of his earnings on contacts and information networking rather than equipment. Instead, he delights in pilfering weapons, gadgets, and occasionally entire body parts (when the contract allows for it) from his captured prey as trophies. His weapon of choice - which he is never seen without - is his magna-revolver, kept in a holster on his hip. His quick-draw speed and accuracy with said weapon is unparalleled, making it nearly impossible to get the drop on him unscathed. Other favorite weapons in Lockdown's vast arsenal include a phasic sniper rifle, a pneumatic grapnel hook, and a razor-edged throwing disc which doubles as a stylish hat.
-------------------------------------------------...And here's Lockdown, just in time for his appearance in Age of Extinction! Which doesn't really seem to have much to do with previous versions of the character, from what I can tell, other than possibly being a bounty hunter. Legacy Lockdown here obviously takes almost entirely after the original Animated incarnation.
Lockdown is actually one of the earliest designs I drew for Legacy, even though he was never meant to be in Series 1, unlike a few other characters we'll be seeing in Series 2 and 3. Although he ended up going through a lot of changes in the last month as I worked out the design, he was always intended to be a Harley-style motorcycle, and always had the hat and poncho. Originally the hat was going to be unremovable, but I just couldn't make the transformation work, so it just pops off the sidecar wheel (part of the tire forms the brim, not just the hub, in case that wasn't obvious). The end result allows it to be worn or not worn and used as a weapon, so I think it actually works out a bit better, even if it's technically partsforming. The entire idea of the hat, incidentally, comes from art of Cad Bane from The Clone Wars I saw before that character's first episode even aired. Now the series has wrapped after (literally) six seasons and a movie, so that kind of gives you an idea of how long Legacy has been in development.
But yeah, about the transformation. For all the headaches and false starts that accompanied its development, the end result is actually fairly simple; it mostly just involves contorting the limbs into position. Like I said earlier, he wasn't originally supposed to have a sidecar, but it became increasingly obvious as I went that he was going to need the extra mass in robot mode, and it also helps further differentiate him from Arcee, the other motorcycle bot. If you're having trouble sussing it out, Lockdown's chest is formed from the BOTTOM of the front half of the sidecar. The rest should more or less fall into place from there. Although his origin is perhaps a little less Frankenstein-y, I tried to retain the asymmetrical appearance of the Animated and ROTF versions of the character. I'm pretty happy with the result, as it's something I typically shy away from (Blackout being the only other exception in Legacy IIRC).
So Lockdown is the fourth and final sniper in Legacy, the third in a row (oops) and the second to take a motorcycle altmode (oops again). He does have a sniper rifle, formed from the front wheel, struts and exhaust pipes - It's visible in the schematic view - but I'm not super happy with how it turned out, so I decided against focusing on it as it relates to his character or in the art. Instead I chose to beef up the "western outlaw" motif, hence the old-timey revolver and straight-up cowboy holomatter avatar. It may seem like an oversight to not utilize AOE Lockdown's "gun face" for a sniper character, but I really kind of hate that whole idea, so.
Other details to mention... even though the hook-hand doesn't fit thematically so much with the Legacy version of Lockdown, I felt it was an iconic part of the character, so I kept it as sort of a forearm-mounted harpoon thing (it'd be a firing missile in the hypothetical "toy", which is why it appears detached in vehicle mode). You could still retract the normal hand if you prefer a more classical look (likewise, the "hat" and "poncho" are optional). His sigil, like the Animated version, is based on the classic "rubsign", the idea being that its display would change depending on who he affiliated himself with while on jobs, and would be hidden (black) most of the time. His eye color... if you haven't noticed, Legacy abides by the G1/Animated rule that Autobots have blue eyes and Decepticons red. For characters who aren't explicitly allied with either faction, they take any of a number of different eye colors. I have yet to decide whether specific colors are indicative of anything, but Shockwave and Lockdown won't be the last we see of them.
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Comments: 57
Dr-Oblivian [2014-06-26 12:20:52 +0000 UTC]
HNNNNNNGGGG DAT HAT!!!! hands down, my FAVORITE lockdown EVER. love the gunslinger characterization as well, it fits him. As much as i loved me some american muscle with my Lockdown, I like that you strayed away from the muscle car and tried a new alt for him.
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legofan13 [2014-06-26 12:10:30 +0000 UTC]
I like the concept of Lockdown being a lone gun slinging bounty hunter. Excellent work.
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Spiritstrike91 [2014-06-26 10:23:53 +0000 UTC]
Wow, Lockdown! And just in time for AOE, even though I just saw it yesterday. Won't spoil it for you, it's way too awesome. XD
Absolutely am impressed that you based him off of TFA Lockdown, what's even more surprising is that he's stuck on Earth and forced to work alongside Megs. Wow, didn't see that coming. Come to think of it, his hat reminds me of The Rat King from the 2012 TMNT series. Come on, the guy has the same hat as Locky. XD
Good job, Rap! I find this really cool.
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CyRaptor In reply to Spiritstrike91 [2014-06-26 10:37:03 +0000 UTC]
No idea what to think of AOE or when I'll see it. I'm kind of burnt out on the movies, but at the same time a reboot might be just what it needs. Plus there's dinosaurs in it, so.
And whoa, I just looked up the 2012 Rat King and that is very different from what I remember as a kid. Talk about redesigns. I really need to make the time to watch that series sometime, I've heard good things.
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Spiritstrike91 In reply to CyRaptor [2014-06-26 20:14:38 +0000 UTC]
You definitely need to watch the series, especially since there are two voice actors from TFP: Jeffrey Combs and Kevin Michael Richardson. So far.
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