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MEPD October / November 2017 Newsletter


henselmonster
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Wow! I can't believe it has been 2 months already. Time has been flying by this year, and what a year it has been! We are very very close to finalizing our new CRLs. The command staff has been hard at work making the necessary edits and getting the word out that we are expanding. A Special thank you to @LoveMonkey for helping out with the CRLs. Your contributions have been invaluable. 

On a personal note, I will be taking a short break from the MEPD during the month of November so I can get married and go on my honeymoon! 

Also be sure to head over to our social media pages for more updates on the Detachment. We are on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter! 

In this issue:

-A Word from the DL

-Meeting our Newest Command Staff Member

-Learning all about our newest CRL in development

-Troop of the Month

Henselmonster • TD-11787

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HAPPY HALLOWEEN you ghouls and ghosts of the MEPD!!

As we are approaching the end of 2017 I can say that it is becoming a very special year for the MEPD. 

The most important development is of course the adding of several new armors to the MEPD. Who’d ever expected that, the MEPD as being the oldest detachment changing it’s policy regarding allowing other armors. In the end it will make the MEPD a more exciting place with more different armors in our midst. But those CRL’s…the SE-Sandtrooper still needs reference pictures, as long as we don’t have those the CRL can’t go live, and the Battlefront Sullust Magmatrooper needs some new pictures for the final review too.  After that’s done the R1 CRL’s for both the Jedha as the Kyber trooper will be done. Luckily we have already created new sections on the boards for each new armor to host all the discussions about it, so chime in when you want to start one of these awesome new to the MEPD armors!

What still amazes me is that even after 40 years we still make new discoveries about the sandtrooper. One recent find was the “bapty” version  of the DLT-19. Makes me think that how was it possible that such an big item has been in the background for all of these years. Hopefully we can still make new discoveries in the years to come, if not we will always find  a way to keep our accuracy levels the highest within the 501st. 

We also finally have found the trooper we are looking to assist our webteam! So a lot of future IT problems should be solved within a couple of days. 

 For now, stay safe and don’t drink too much blue milk!

-Dutchy

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As our on going series of getting to know the command staff, today we talk to our newest member: @HappyTrooperDotCom our new IT Specialist

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1. When did you first join the MEPD, and why a Sandtrooper? 
I decided to join the Empire (501st Legion) in January of 2016.  This is the time I began looking into my local garrison, and how to obtain/build a costume.  When I committed to joining the 501st, I had already decided that my first costume would be the "roadblock captain".  So, I joined MEPD.net the next month and began my journey.  The MEPD helped me prep for weathering my armor, field backpack construction, and BFGs.  While I was constructing my armor (Anovos), I slowly acquired most of my Sandtrooper parts from folks here on MEPD.  I was approved in April of 2016.  The Sandtrooper was my first approved costume.

Why a Sandtrooper?  Tatooine is my favorite planet in the Star Wars universe, its where it all began.  Sandtroopers were stationed here.  I love all of the props that set Sandtroopers apart from Stormtroopers: the pauldron, the field pack, the weapons, and the weathering.  They just look cool, it was an easy decision :)

2. What is your favorite part of the MEPD?
Building my first set of armor opened a new door for me.  I discovered that I love to build stuff.  I watched many of you build your armor and backpacks, and it helped get me going.  It also gave me my own ideas.  After completing my armor and pack, I decided to try a heavy blaster.  I read over PandaTrooper's T-21 tutorial and bought all of the components.  It was a little intimidating, I've never scratch built something like that before.  PandaTrooper's instructions and templates were terrific, he made it pretty easy for a novice like me, to turn out a  convincing prop weapon.  He inspired me to try my own scratch builds, a few of which are posted in the heavy blasters forum.  Where am I going with this?  My favorite parts of the MEPD are: the heavy blasters section, and the field backpack section.  Oh yeah, I also love the merchandise section.

3. Do you have any meaningful troops or interactions as a member of the MEPD?
While I haven't been able to travel to any cool dunes to get a desert photo, I recall a very memorable troop as a Sandtrooper.  We were trooping at our local library for Star Wars reads day.  An elderly woman with a walker was dressed in all black...and a Darth Vader shirt.  She must have been around 80 years old.  She walked up to us, put her walker aside, and held our hands to take a photo.  Like many of you, I think we all enjoy how Star Wars unites us.  It doesn't matter how old you are, what your race/religion/sex/background is...we are a family.  The MEPD/501st is my therapy and my happy place.  I loved seeing this lady smile with us.  I will never forget her.
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4. Where would you like to see the MEPD go this next year?

I'm very excited to see some new armor join the ranks of the MEPD (Jedha and Sullust).  While I do not actively play Battlefront, I really like the Magmatrooper armor.  He/She is dirty like us, has a cool breather with pretty blinky lights, AND a new field pack!  Can't wait to see some new Magmatroopers pop up here, I'll be following the forums to see some new folks don this work of art.

As a new webmaster, I'd like to try to implement some new custom themes that each user can choose to personalize their experience on MEPD.net.  I was thinking of getting  "Captain", "Sergeant", and "Private" themes, so that an MEPD member can match their theme to their armor.  Perhaps a Magmatrooper theme too.

5. Enough about life in plastic, what do you do in your real life?

I work for a managed service provider as a network and systems engineer.  We assist firms in the Washington DC area that do not have a need for a full time IT staff.  I don't specialize in one area.  In order to support many different kinds of businesses, our employees need to be a jack of all trades.  I work on Office 365 migrations, server virtualization (HyperV and VMWare), network security, 2 factor authentication, site-to-site and remote VPNs, and a bunch of other acronyms.  In sum, I am an IT geek.

6. What is something about you that might surprise other members?

Because I couldn't find the droid I was looking for, I'm going to build my own droid!  I am currently building a styrene R2 unit.  I still have quite a ways to go, and hope to finish in the Spring of 2018.  The dome (also styrene) has been constructed and painted.  The teeces light system is also complete.  I am now working on the core and the legs.  
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7. And last but not least, what would you say to someone who is looking to join the ranks of the MEPD?
Don't delay any longer!  Get out there and promote your love for Star Wars!  Go help your community and have fun while doing it!  Expensive?  All hobbies have some sort of expense.  If you are passionate about this, it will not be thought of as an expense.  The money put forth to join the ranks of the elite is WELL worth it.  

 

Thanks so much for speaking with me HappyTrooperDotCom! We are glad to have you on the team!

Henselmonster • TD-11787

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In a year that has seen amazing growth in the MEPD costume reference library, we are proud to add yet another to the list.  We started 2017 with just the Mos Eisley ANH Sandtrooper CRL.  Last month, we discussed the new editions of the Rogue One troopers (Jedha and Kyber) and the ANH Special Edition trooper.  This month we will be taking a look at The Battlefront Magmatrooper.  

Not to be confused with the Spec Ops red Magmatrooper, this trooper is from the 2015 Star Wars Battlefront video game.  This trooper has all the right elements to be a TD.  There were not enough modifications from a basic TK to justify adding this to the Spec Ops group.  And besides, he’s dirty!! And that’s our territory! 

The Battlefront Magmatrooper CRL has been a collaboration between the MEPD Command Staff and members who have already built the kit for themselves.  Shawn Cantey (Crook Knight), Tom Hobby (Magmatrooper), and MagmaTrooper1205 have submitted pics for the CRL and insight on the additions and colors involved in creating this trooper. The CRL is currently out for review with the LMO’s. 

So, if you are interested in creating a Battlefront Magma trooper for yourself, what will you need? For starters, there’s the armor.  ANH armor will get you basic approval, but if you want the higher levels, you’ll need ROTJ armor.  This TD wears only a black pauldron.  Next, is the grey shin spats worn over the shin armor.  The helmet has a respirator with a hose coming out of where the vocoder and aerator/mic tips would be on a standard TK helmet.

The final addition to this trooper is the backpack.  This pack is unique to this trooper.  There has been some debate on the color (greys vs. greens) and it appears that the CRL will explain the color options in more detail.  Currently Crook Knight offers this pack in his sales thread, but some others have started to make their own at home.  

We here at the MEPD are very proud of this new addition and look forward to seeing folks trooping this kit in the future.  It’s never a bad thing when we see more ways to add the prefix TD to any ID number!

Punisha • TD-10930

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September & October really came through fast! UK Garrison's Britannia Patrol member  Trip / TD-10450  spent his first troop as a newly appointed PO  raising funds for St Helena Hospice and Colchester Hospital.  Congratulations on reaching PO status! Thank you for your service and giving back to your local community! 

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Remember troopers, if you would like to be featured in the next newsletter, make sure you’re updating your troop logs! Explain the purpose of the troop, who attended, and any additional details you can!

Airborne Trooper • TD-82573

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