Miniature Monday - Bringing a Psion Back to Life
Last week we revealed some test prints from our work resurrecting Trinity: Battleground. Today, we're going to talk about the process we use to convert an original pewter miniature and into an .STL file ready to print and grace your tabletop. However, before we get into that, we'll provide an example of the heroic Psions we are resurrecting with this process.
Haruhiko was another Psion who was very difficult for our team to find. Originally released in the same blister pack as Hewish (who we previewed earlier) and a third Psion named Nappochelli, it was only through dedicated effort and the support of the Trinity: Battleground community that we were able to locate these elusive miniatures and make them available once again.
Haruhiko was a Psion armed with heavy firepower, both figuratively and literally. His devastating L-K Killjoy Missile Launcher was capable of blowing an Aberrant away in a single shot, while its support harness and his Armor Vest helped protect him from enemy attacks. If his defenses were breached, he carried a Large Medi-Kit to patch up his wounds. As if his missile launcher wasn't dangerous enough, he packed even more firepower in the form of his Ignition Psi Power. This explosive power caused his target to burst into flames, causing them to take damage each turn until the fire burned out or they extinguished themselves. If an opponent managed to get up close and personal, Haruhiko hid another surprise. His Gross Manipulation Psi Power enabled him to grow temporary natural weapons, like deadly claws, to shred Aberrants who thought they had him cornered. Soon, this deadly Psion will once again take to the field to face the Aberrant threat. They best be on their toes.
If you're thinking that today's preview images look a little rougher than the others, that's because they are. This is what the initial results of our scanning process look like. The process we are currently using is called photogrammetry, and involves the scanner taking hundreds of pictures of the miniature from a range of different angles and focal lengths. Before the scanning process starts, the miniature's surface must be painted a dark colour and coated with a special spray that creates millions of tiny focal points. Once all the photos are taken, a specially designed algorithm uses a process called focus stacking to create final images where every part of the miniature is in focus. From there, another computer program uses the focal points from the first step to link the images together into a completed model like the one above. We then carefully compare the original model to the scan to identify any errors or artifacts caused by the scanning, and then the scan is cleaned up to fix any issues. After that, the finalized scan ready to be supported for printing. Photogrammetry is a slow process, and one that sometimes takes multiple attempts to get the highest quality scan, but it is the best method we have found so far. As technology changes and improves, we will continue experimenting with new techniques in our quest to produce the highest quality miniatures.
Stop by next week as we reveal another miniature, and share a few details about how you can create your own Trinity: Battleground characters.