037 - Heavy Gear Design Works PDF

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Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

L
1
The Ruleb6ok spearheaded the Heavy
4
Gear line. We speht a great deal of time choosing
the a r t style, finally opting for computer-colored
illustrations. The original 256-page manual did not
contain any color section, but it was lavishly
illustrated nonetheless.
The pictures from that book look
slightly dated now, after two years of publication
and constant improvements. This is why a second
edition is coming up, featuring revised artwork and
brand new color pages.
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This book faced the monumental task
of bringing the world of Heavy Gear to life.
Naturally, there had t o be a great deal of
illustrations. We parsed through countless nature
and geography books to create believable locales.
New art techniques were tried here for
the first time, such as using photographs and
painting for backgrounds. The book also
established the looks of many Terranovan vistas:
the amount of architecture sketches produced for
this publication is staggering. II
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ands Sourcebooh
I .
In retrospect, Into the Badlands was
probably one of the easiest books to design for.
The Badlands are like the Far West, evocating
images of vast deserts, immense mountains and
hard-boiled inhabitants.
From an a r t standpoint, the book
allowed us to further refine the computer
techniques pionewed in previous publications. It
~
also established many of the fashions which would
appear i n subsequent publications.
...................................
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The Technical Manual required more

design work than any of the books done so far. It
also forced us to sit down and work out the
intricate details of the Gears, which helped make
them more consistent and believable.
. . . . *. ...-e&=-
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stepping forward t o defend the lives and hoior of
his people. This terrific subject was bound t o
make a great book, and gave us the opportunity
t o delve a l i t t l e more into the Terranovan culture
and psyche.
Art-wise, the book features several
Gears equipped with melee weaponry. The setting
of the book also gave us the opportunity to work
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S
Heavy Gear is the result of nearly two years of collective We wanted the Gears to be very cool, so we got started on
development. The foundations for the world of Heavy Gear were laid them even before we knew exactly just how they would work. After
down i n September 1993, when we sat down over coffee to j o t down viewing a tape on the real-world V-engine, we snapped our fingers and
some notes and scribble sketches about a world that was waiting to said, "THATS the perfect engine for a Gear! It's simple, it's reliable, it's
come out. I n the months that followed, the game designers worked on easy to maintain and it runs on any combustible fluid." And so, the
the Silhouette game engine while the writers and various creators Gears came to have the V-engine i n their backpacks. Sketch after sketch,
brainstormed to merge everyone's ideas into one harmonious whole. Not the machines took shape. As the world evolved around them, we decided
much later, inspired by various excellent British TV series (Dr. Who, that hard, gritty science fiction would be the norm. The overall
Blake's 7, Red Dwarf) and Babylon 5, we came up with the concept of technology would be patchy and imperfect, but cool-looking. The Gears
the over-arcing storyline and developed ways t o adapt it to a game themselves are a perfect example of this: a super-advanced computer
universe i n a consistent, believable manner. (actually, a neural net) i n an old-tech body with nuts and bolts
everywhere.
The universe evolved rapidly. We knew we wanted "giant
robots," but we wanted them t o make sense. They had to be smaller than I n order t o create a consistent universe, a lot of material has
traditional Japanese mecha, more functional and built to last. We needed to be developed, but customers only get t o see the tip of the iceberg.
something closer t o human proportions, something which would not This book contains selected sketches and never-before seen illustrations
dominate the battlefield but would turn an ordinary soldier into a sort of from our files, so that you may get a glimpse a t the other material that
super-infantry. Something that would be closer to super-equipment, was developed for Heavy Gear.
super-gear. From there, we were a step away from the name of those
vehicles: Gears...

The first thing we had t o find out was what was the best art
medium t o produce the style we wanted t o give the book. One of the
'
things we tried was what we refer t o as the "ink wash" method. The
drawing is first done i n pencil, then lightly and roughly inked. Both the
details and the shadows are created through repeated applications of
diluted black China ink, with corrections and highlights being added I
later with white paint. Surprisingty, this method, although somewhat

messy, requires little time; senior artist Ghislain Barbe got quite good at
it, and managed to turn out about four t o five pieces a day.
Upon placing them i n the test layout, however, we didn't get

the effect we wanted to achieve. Sure, it was gritty and war-like, but it
didn't look very futuristic. There was also the problem of detail - i n
short, there was very liffle. So we went back to the combination line art/
computer coloration method that was so effective for Heavy Gear
Fighter. Many of the early ink sketches were later redrawn and
computer colored, as you'll see i n the following pages.

Y
I.
R-
The head unit of a Grizzly fire support Gear. A A caare of Black Mambos opens fire on the enemy. A
. . CI 02-ll1 3. . . .
LIE "Jar of the AlLiance. A
Gears traveling past a stonehead. A

Infantry assaults an enemy position, again during the War. A
c.= 02-12 2 4
I
i
A mixed force of Gears and infantry spreads out i n a Badlands desert. A Redjackets flying over a Grizzly. A
c 02-II3 >
The first King Cobro illustration. A A Jager i s about t o meet a sorry end. A A Block Mamba in action. A
< 02-L4 -> 4

h
The first illustration of the Kodiak. A An early design for the Thunderhammer. A
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Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667)

c 02-15 z
209.180
a
." A young female Gear pilot. A A tanker resting on his pintle-mounted weapon. A
< 02-Lb > 4

! e.
A Gear pilot i n his cockpit. A A technician a t work on an Iguana. A An infantryman springs into action. A
. . . c- 02-27 2
Developing the mechanical designs for the game was one of
the first tasks we tackled, especiatly with regard to Gears (For obvious
reasons). They had to look good,but they also had to make sense.
Rather than just start dropping ideas on paper, we established a set of
guidelines and requirements t o help frame our efforts. The machihc had
t o carry one crewman; it had to be roughly humanoid; it had to be a
small as possible, to avoid presenting a Large bafflefield silhouette; and,
most of all, it had to use believable (and, for many systems, existing)
technologies.
The general Looks of the machines evolved early on i n many

cases. With the aforementioned guidelines, we had a good idea of where
we were headed, so there was much less reworking involved than we first
thought. We had already decided that there would be two large alliances,
both with multiple member-states sharing designs and technologies, so
we took this into account. One side would field hard-edged, utilitarian
vehicles which would feature mostly flat plates, while the other side
would prefer rounded composite panels. Some of the components, such
'as the backpack generators, would share similar looks because they were,
in effect, the same technology with the same function.

' - RaccoeIt,I- - -
This i s a retroengineeredlaok at what
, the Hotthem Gears could have looked
7 * like if the Hunter hadn't m)n ahe
tive of the designsdwalupd by tbe

Southern Republic befbre'ttr8ygot their *
.'
3 . 1 ^ ^
'

football-style helmet. model instead of the more conventional
one shown here.
Mod Dog last aut to the Grizzly, It was Later

reused t o represent an older Gear dmign,
Nicknamed "the Doughboy," it wa5 not
though the proportians were slightly modified
threatening enough and abandoned.
before we reached the final Look.

. .C l 02-22 3 . . . . . ' 4

4 Chasseur 1

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I ILI I
I 4 Anaconda
b f
. . c 02-25 2. .
Csrsaconlysanwofthe whicles used on Term Nova. There
an? many other tada to b e f u W , many of which are umuitablefor a
Gear - air superiority. for example. For this eason, we had to aeate a
large variety of ground vehides and aircraft to field beside our walker
units. I n order to save time, we employed many ofthe same @cd~niqws
that are usedto enginewrealwoddvehicles. A set of requirenrentswas
first drawn up, then a specific design was concekd to match those
specificationr Speciahd tules, such as fietd engineering, would be
filled by variants based on dtipurpose frames and hulls making the
vehides both cheaper to produce and easier to maintain.
The vehides theindves were both easy and hard to design.

Thq(hadtoLookNggedandfunctioM1somethingthatywcan
recognizeata glance. At the same time, though, they had to look d
and Muristic (Heavy 6ear being a xience fiction game) and have a
distinct look.To ensure a unified look tothe game, we used much the
sametechndogyason the Gears whenever possible.

C 02-28 2
Nothing e k t s in a vacuum. We had all those neat people,
vehick and technology. but what did the wodd they Lived i n look like?
We already knew that Tern Nova was a world of extremes, with large
deserb giving way to endless savannahs merging i n turn with immense
forests, jungles and mountain ranges. An entire solar system was
conceptualized, along with the geology and natural histoty of the
planets it contained. Ideas and concepts were suggested, discussed, and
either incorporated or discarded.
We hit the reference books again for images of vast natural

vistas. Canada and Western Europe became the North; South America
became the South;and the deserts and savannahs of the American Mid-
West and Africa became the Badlands. A side effect of all this visual
research was the creation of the stoneheads: while hunting for jungle
images, we stumbled upon Central America and its civilizations. There
were several pictures of OLmec stoneheads lying about, near roads, in the
field, and just about anywhere.
Nustrator Ghislain Barbe having fun with stoneheads, inctuding the Easter Island Look.

. .C 02-32 >.
We had the wmld. we had the people, we hadthetechmlogy.
But something was still missing. In &to have a bdievp#e planet,
yar havetoincludeabdiwableemystem.Tena Nova being a young
planet, we MturaUy turned to EaWs awn eady histMy for ideas and tan
fmmthcle.Thevngebtbnwwldbeprimitkn (fems, lichen. undenkvcl-
oped Rorrers), but immense. The aeatum wwld be built accordingly.
The reptilian lnotifwas the most obvious choice. we wanted

our settlnz to be a& to eatthe aeatunr with Little a c a m m d a t h.so
wegavcthemabiochennstry that was very similar to our own. We darr(y
evdvedthe animalsaccording to theecdogicalnichesthathadto be
filled: hedhms camivma. xavengers.ett Early on, shaped c h a w -
istics a p p e a d thethreefangs; the ficeted -;the rugged knobby
skin; the~spines.AsRwneapatumwweneededitbeam
easier to design tfrm. We just followed Natuds own principle: don't
innovate.just modify existing organisna. ICs e d u t i o n in action.

. . . ,~ .... ~.
,. . . . .C 02-35 >
C=- 02-3b 3 . .

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Gears are both war machines and a knight's armor, so their colors may vary from the
most utilitarian camouflages to a gaudy parade livery, depending on the
illustration. We have developed a set of guidelines that tells us when and how to
use a specific color scheme. These were later used i n game sourcebooks - see the
Vehicle Compendiums. I n most cases, we opted t o keep weapons and mechanical
systems i n their natural metallic tints i n order to better define the overalt shape of
the machine. Realistically, the entire Gear should be painted, but aesthetics have
their place too, especially i n a game.
Each and every piece of artwork produced for Heavy Gear i s done i n full color using
specialized computer programs, starting from a detailed line art drawing which is
then scanned and digitized. Texture maps of an entire range of camouflage
patterns, i n a variety of colors, are already available i n computer storage for both
consistency and ease of use.
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IBryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180
The Spitking Cobra is a Gear usualty assigned to the firc
support position i n an assault cadre. It is the machine of preferer e for,
most Southern pilots due to the thick armor that surrounds the c( kpit.'
Duelists and soldiers who seek great personal honor will often rht this
machine because it rarely sees action. -
,
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3
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Manufacturer: iaf Arlfis 1
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209.180
Final Designs
A l l the research work had paid off, and we finally had some
solid designs to work from. These would be further modified along the
way to produce variants and special vehicles, but the basics were all i n
place. We thus went into the second phase of the project and produced a
series of black and white line art illustrations to serve as reference
material. These would also be used, through computer manipulations, as
base for many of the books’ color pictures.
The following section contains the original line art illustra-

tions of most of the current vehicles of Heavy Gear. These images were
scanned i n at high resolution before being painstakingly colored and
assembled i n dedicated graphics prog:ams. Some were modified either
during or after the coloration t o better fit the overall illustration. The
drawings shown here are the original ones. Whenever possible, we’ve
added a short explanation of the reason behind the design concept that
was used.

C 04-50 3 . . 4

I
Armored Hunter b di

c 04-52 3 4

Strihe Jaguar b F

trihe Cheetah b
. . . ' 4
L 4 Cheetah MP
p 4 White Cat

Strihe Grizzlu b
. . . . .C 04-Sb 2
4 Hodiah
len Mother b d
. . . . .

. . .< 011-58 >
iunderhammer b I

Jager Command b
. . ' ' 4

- - J
I~ * - *
4 Blitz Jager
.lo& of ihe antennae blisters.

4
I Razorfano RM b 1
. . . . . . . 4

. .
I I '
D 4 Snaheqe BM
4 long Fang Bb
b
Blach Mamba MP b llach Adder b

. . . . . . . . . 4

1 4 Chameleon I
4 lnuana Paraho
latterbox b

4 Soittino Cobri
ox-like apparatus at +

4
Oesert Viper Mh I1 b i
A
. . .

4 Naoa

CI 04-67 2. . . .
i
-
Ilioht Tan
[li 4 Tanker
4
C 04-70 3

I II I
lun light Tanh b a

4 Buzzard Bombe
lrca VTOl Transoort b
4 Eagle Interceptor

4 Walfish STOlTransport
Bacchus Transport b -,a VarisVTOl b
. . . c 04-73 2
4

Ranid-fire lazooha
I Anti-Gear Missiles b 1 ieavu Baooha b
P I Heavu Autocannon ~
.. . . . . c=T 04-75 2. .

C I 04-7b 3
L 4 ,lager Command
- * badant dth . l a p was a German

inhfry helmet. The antenha and chin
' * ' guard arebtdr additions. '
t f *
Blach Mam t iizzlu b
est 06 the Gcar and -offers

more sui%@ far markiwgr. *
c 09-77 3
4
c 04-78 2

L 4 Cochpi
Pilot Seat b

I n Heavy Gear, no vehicle i s the complete king of the
battlefield. IYs very much like a game of rock, scissors and paper. One
type of vehicle may defeat another, but there's always somebody
standing over your shoulder with the vehicle that is just right to bum
you right off the surface of the planet. Hence, the Large variety of tanks,
armored transports and flyers.
Like the Gears themselves, these vehicles are first drawn i n

pencil, then inked using mechanical drafting pens. The artwork is then
scanned into the computer and colored with the appropriate programs.
/ same way you paint a main battle tank.
. . ' ' 4

involving Gears. the
rer: ...............

i. comrnunii
they are i
variants a
technical
" 4

Y

.~ " ." . , .~. . . , ,... . . ,

A story is nothing without characters. Despite all the cool
technologies, despite the terrific, well-detailed and consistent setting,
it's the people you come to know and ultimately care about. Since Heavy
Gear i s a game world, we haw to assume that the players will be the
heroes of the story; however, a Larger storyline also needs its own heroes
and characters, and a large cast evolved over the years as the book line
grew. You can see a few of the more popular ones i n the following pages.
We knew from the beginning that we wanted a fairly serious

look for the game, though without making the characters too realistic
looking. We also had t o take into account the lead artist's natural style,
since he would be called to do all the illustrations and needed to be
comfortable with the feel of the world. It was decided early on that the
game was set far enough i n the future that people would look similar i n
term of skin color and other traits. There would be variations, of course,
but not to the extremes we see on Earth today. That made the artists' job
both simpler and harder. Simpler, because they didn't need t o worry
about racial origins and background. Harder, because they had to create
a cast of thousands without going t o extremes, playing around with
factors such as build, complexion, hair color and so on.
C Ob-90 -> . . . . ' 4

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C Ob-92 I,. " 4

4

...... ... .... :... .._... .*. . : . .. . .? , s . .I
I: : ;. :,
. : . .
I: . ,

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4 Ilia Muna.ltabib
Another'Op&on: l n g l e Drums Player
i ~fram the Operation: Jungke Drums set has ~
~ tlaracter, Alia haf,made a few gust
e -become sort of a cult figure*among Heavy + , ;appearance in ather Pooks of the series.
Gear fans. Fbr this reism, dheapprs * Her looks have chafiged littke since the
*time and again-in various qurcebouks, fret time we saw besthough she has
c b d In Aer trademark tank top add gained some muscular mass.
F c- 06-97 3
' I
C Ob-91 2 . . . ' 4

E
. . . . . ' 4

I I i
'I
el c
aracters
I n rr ny ways, how the characters look i s the 3 ice" of t h
universe. Give them a funny look, and you've got a comedy. Make them
tragic and angst-ridden, and you've turned the same story into a tragedy.
Their clothes and uniforms are also part of the setting, and w i l l help
blend them into the rest of the world. When these have to be designed,
the artists generally favor brown and green tones if the characters that
w i l l be wearing them are military personnel or from a remote region. For
city-dwellers, more colorful attires are the norm. In all cases, we are
careful t o include at least one piece of technology somewhere i n the
costume. We also tend to give them rugged footwear.
Likewise, the settings had to look right too. If the buildings

had been overly simple, or the architecture plain - or even worse,
inconsistent - it would take away some of the credibility of the world.
Great care was taken t o ensure that the details made sense, that the
colors were right both for the materials used i n the construction and to
fit with the surroundings. The illustration format that we would
eventually select to show these locations i n the sourcebooks is similar to
a movie widescreen, which i s quite intentional.
. . . . . ' 4

r ht Confederacy!
I
A
the influence of Revisionism. The city

I
gave us room to design elaborate brid
A * _ . _ - _ _ _
................................................

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I
with impossibly high statues and

towering skyscrappers. The most
................................................ ....
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Timbuktu has been designed a

with large buildings in the center surrounded by defense
many companies located there give a corporate Look
area, with clean, neat buildings. Immense factories a
1
communication roads to feed and supply them form t
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I

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What challenges did the artists face in designing the illustrations for the rulebook?

What challenges did the artists face in designing the illustrations for the rulebook?

How did the artists refine their techniques for illustrations in subsequent publications?

How did the artists refine their techniques for illustrations in subsequent publications?

\

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

..... . ..... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . . . . . .. . .. .

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

The Technical Manual required more

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

later with white paint. Surprisingty, this method, although somewhat

Upon placing them i n the test layout, however, we didn't get

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Gears traveling past a stonehead. A

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

< 02-L4 -> 4

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667)

< 02-Lb > 4

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

The general Looks of the machines evolved early on i n many

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

tive of the designsdwalupd by tbe

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Mod Dog last aut to the Grizzly, It was Later

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667)

The vehides theindves were both easy and hard to design.

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

We hit the reference books again for images of vast natural

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

The reptilian lnotifwas the most obvious choice. we wanted

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Manufacturer: iaf Arlfis 1

The following section contains the original line art illustra-

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

.lo& of ihe antennae blisters.

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Blach Mamba MP b llach Adder b

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180

Bryce Hubbard (order #2301667) 209.180