TR-23 Tactical Reconnaissance Droid

Droid Overview

TR-23 is a Tactical Reconnaissance droid dedicated to supporting the Rebel Alliance in its fight against the Galactic Empire. Standing at just under 3ft tall, this agile recon droid is as stealthy as he is quippy. TR-23 balances a low profile with creative expression, sporting a small Rebel insignia tag on his backpack. His espionage abilities pack quite a punch thanks to the assistance of TR-23's companion droid, Scout. This energetic, floating ball of beeps and boops usually resides in the right side of TR-23's head, but when the situation demands it, Scout can detach from their charging station and achieve ultra-stealthy recon.

Scout's dual-antenna fixture transmits directly to the similar receiver built into the other side of TR-23's head, and thanks to the extensive power supply backpack, this dynamic droid duo is capable of sending intel back to Alliance HQ via long range transmission.

History

The TR-series was an Alderaanian line of droids manufactured at the direction of Bail Organa to discretely aid the blossoming Alliance during the reign of the Empire. To preserve the secrecy of their purpose, TR-series droids were designed to appear, and function, like standard computational and utility assistants, drawing inspiration from earlier astromech, BD, and protocol models. Beneath the hood, however, TR-series droids were highly-skilled field operatives equipped with a host of tools to perform espionage and long-range transmissions.

Design Details

The design for TR-23 was inspired by various components seen on astromech, protocol, BD-series, Imperial security, and other droids from the Star Wars universe. Moreover, the general aesthetic of this droid draws inspiration from the design of the Bad Batch as an ode to the rebellious nature of that squad.

TR-23 sports two large lenses protruding from his face which display internal informational readouts of the surrounding environment. His head also includes a vocal transmitter, as well as a long range receiver antenna and a charging port for Scout. A series of cords, wires, and tubing connect TR-23's head to the central part of his body, and two thick wires also extend out the power source located in his backpack.

The droid's abdomen includes an array of greeblies, tools, and vital stims. His arms rotate on shoulder and elbow gimbals to maximize mobility. Meanwhile, TR-23 has pronged arms capable of typing or hacking into consoles. These prongs are bisected by bright pink electro beams, perfect for cutting or soldering. As an added tool, the recessed cylinder in each forearm houses a retractable scomp link.

TR-23's legs remain magnetically suspended in spherical wells, allowing for maximum range of motion. Note that this was modeled as an in-universe representation of the suspended legs. For proper manufacture/3d printing, these legs will need to be moved inward to physically attach to the torso.

Process

Designing this droid from the ground up was a very rewarding process and an excellent challenge. I began by doing visual research, combing through online databases of Star Wars droids, consulting visual dictionaries from the films, and more. I've always loved the relationship between C-3P0 and R2-D2, so I thought it would be especially fun to develop a pair of droids that were conjoined or related in some way. From there, I began sketching concepts and eventually settled on a humanoid form with lots of unique components and small details. Then, I began modeling. My 3d software experience is entirely self-taught. I've been teaching myself to use primarily iPad-based programs like Shapr3D over the past four years or so, but I was really excited to challenge myself and learn a new program like Fusion. I was incredibly impressed by features like the rendering suite built into the software, and I will definitely be using Fusion for future projects.

Overall, this was an incredibly fun process that pushed me to try new tools and expand my knowledge of CAD. I hope you enjoy TR-23!

-Luke