Dave's Lego Exo-Force Rantlet 8100 Cyclone Defender See http://www.eyrie.org/~dvandom/BW/Lego/Exoforce81 for general line comments. Updated 12/28/06 with Codebrick info. CAPSULE A nice compromise between the old $5 sets and a full-sized bot. Better stability, nicer weapons, better poseability. Definitely snag this one. Strongly recommended. $8 price point. RANT The 8100 series sets lack the techspec panels found in the 7700 series, so I'm making my own names up for weapons for now, and making up my own armor types and thicknesses. This info is available online, I'll note it in parentheses after my versions. There are no official alternate models. Unit: Cyclone Defender Pilot: Ryo Pilot Hair Color: Purple Main Mecha Colors: Dark green, medium gray, yellow, white. Weapons: Cyclone Shield, Stormhammer pistol (Variable-pulse blaster and rotating bladed defense shield) Armor: Petronium, 5" thickness (6" zaylium armor) (Sensors: Enhanced sensor package) (Power Source: Magnetized oroniate) Unit Designation: AT.10 Unit Type: Ground Nickname: Tiger (Cockpit decal) Codebrick Bio: Ryo is using this battle machine, found in the Golden Tower, while he attempts to repair Uplink. He is considering the possibility cannibalizing some of Uplink's circuitry and adding it to Cyclone Defender, although this would be more out of nostalgia than need. Although smaller than Blade Titan or Sky Guardian, its variable-pulse blaster and bladed defense shield means it packs more punch than Uplink ever did. It is also possible to link the Cyclone Defender directly into the golden city's computer banks for swifter entry of codes and downloading of information. Build Time: About 20 minutes, including part-sorting. Dimensions: A shade over 5" (13cm) tall. Shoulderspan is 3.5" (9cm) from tip to tip of the ball joints. Colors: The armor pieces and shield are a forest green (003300). Most of the joints are a medium gray (666666), as are the Bionicle-style (original Toa) feet. The torso core is a mix of white and light gray (CCCCCC). There are several bright yellow accent pieces, including the Exo-Code brick. The fingers and one internal brick are silver. The gun is yellow and black with clear yellow and orange barrels inside. The katanas on the spinning shield are black. The cockpit is a piece of smoky black plastic, more protection than Ryo gets in his other vehicles. :) Stickers: In addition to the Tiger sticker, there's a Japanese phrase on the left leg, looks like a name or some other thing that would use the more complex Chinese-derived characters. The stickers are mainly forest green and white, with some gold bits and black lines. Articulation: Ball joint shoulders, hips and ankles. The elbows and knees are permanently bent pieces (135 degree joints). The cockpit folds down. The two fingers and the thumb on the right hand are hinged (and I'll note there's space for a third finger if you want to dismember a Devastator). The left arm has no hand, ending in the bladed shield. While less articulated than an $8 Bionicle figure, and shorter, the fact it's made of generally "standard" parts rather than largely made of purpose- made limb pieces is a plus. After all, a Bionicle Toa can pretty much be made into a Toa with the pieces provided, but this can theoretically be made into other things. :) Weapons: The right hand holds a pistol using the same combo of hinged fingers and connector rod that Supernova has. It's a pretty simple pistol, made from just eight pieces, but it looks good. And it can be tweaked into a hammer if you want, simply by moving the handle. There's three yellow cones (one on the right and two on the left) on the torso that are probably secondary weapons. The left arm ends in a geared shield made fom a 2" (5cm) diameter dish with two swords connected to the hub. There's a handle running through the elbow that you can spin to rotate the shield, and the shield spins nicely on its own when you let go. Zoooom! Other Features: He has a wrench. Takeshi may have had his wrench taken away for throwing it at things, but Ryo knows how to treat his tools properly. Pilot Figure: The head and hair are the same as the 7700-series Ryo, but the rest of the body is new. The torso, arms and lower body are forest green plastic, with a new gold and black chest pattern. The hands are black. Dave Van Domelen, now to make 8101. And then clear some space for 8102 and 8103.