“If Jazwares won’t give us our capital ships, then perhaps other toylines will.”
“No! Never!”
– Imaginary scene from Return of the Jedi
We’ve all been itching for capital ships. We converted the Lightyear Zurg mothership into an Imperial corvette, and repainted Black Adam’s cruiser into Tarkin’s stealth ship. But none of them are truly canon.
So I decided to try paper models to scratch the cap ship itch. I got the Imperial Light Cruiser from 4D Models.
The completed model after 11 hours of build time.
What Is It?
4D Models is an established maker of paper models. They are the only officially licensed maker of Star Wars paper models.
The Arquitens-class cruiser is their second largest model, after the Imperial Star Destroyer.
The model is scaled at 1:492. which doesn’t sound that big. Until you realize the completed model is 66 cm long (26 inches).
Mine came with Slave 1 as a Mandalorian edition (yes Disney, that’s the ship’s proper name). But it’s also available as a standalone package.
The Build
The cruiser has 265 pieces spread across 10 sheets. Each piece is made from thick glossy cardboard, the same material used for retail boxes.
With MGS E-web and TIE fighter for size comparison
Each part slots together like a puzzle using tabs that are glued. It comes with a tube of glue, but you can also use Elmer’s or any craft glue to seal the parts together.
Majority of the parts are for structural support. The inside of the ship is made of rib sections to support the outer skin.
The inside parts are also printed, even if they’ll never be seen once the model is closed up.
It’s actually a shame, because they look like interior compartments perfect for Micro Galaxy figures. If only there was a way not to seal up the model.
The interior is large enough to form shipboard compartments for MGS figures. Sadly there’s no way to access them once the outer sections are in place.
Bottom side of the ship with the outer deck plates installed. You can see how the inside pieces act as structural support.
I was tempted to drill holes and light up the inside. Then I remembered it took me 5 days to light up a Zvezda Star Destroyer, and that was basically an empty shell inside compared to this paper maze.
My total build time was about 4 days, taking about 2-3 hours each day. Most of the time was spent on the keel and interior supports of the ship. Once the interior was done, the final outer sections took only a day.
Grand Admiral Thrawn inspecting my progress.
The instructions were very clear and wonderfully illustrated. Unlike plastic model kits, the build arrangement is logical, starting from part #1 and continuing numerically. There is no sudden jumping from part #10 to part # 1 million.
Protip: Dab a little glue on each tab to make them stiffer and less prone to bending.
The Result
It took a bit more elbow grease than expected, but the result is impressive. This is my largest MGS ship to date.
Ventral side, with MGS AT-ST for size comparison.
Each part of the cruiser is beautifully detailed, down to the maneuvering fins in the thrusters.
One thing I changed was the guns. Like the rest of the ship, the gun barrels were made of 2D cardboard.
The underside turrets with the 2D gun barrels
The topside turrets with upgraded barrels. I used spare parts from unbuilt model kits.
Scaling
The ship is an impressive 66cm long by 29cm wide (26 x 11.5″). The cruiser’s waist is wider than the length of the MGS Falcon.
66cm from bow to stern. Micro Galaxy ITT for size comparison
With MGS starships for size comparison
Despite its impressive length, it’s still undersized for Micro Galaxy scale. MGS ships are 1:96, while the cruiser is 1:492. If the Arquitens were scaled to Micro Galaxy size, it would be 94 inches or 2.4 meters long!
Out of all the MGS vehicles, the massively undersized Gauntlet may be the best fit.
While the ship is too small for MGS fighters, it fits a little better with Titanium or Hot Wheels ships. But Micro Machines fit best, since they’re closer in scale at 1:200 and smaller. According to Rebel Scale, the closest MMs to scale are the Micro Machines Slave 1, AT-AT, and Sith Infiltrator.
Durability and Playability
I used to ignore paper model kits since they don’t aren’t as durable as plastic. As my first paper model, thankfully this ship feels robust.
The cardboard is thick, glossy, and has enough coating to repel water. It also survived a drop which would have shattered my Bandai or Zvezda ISDs.
And unlike Lego cap ships, it’s light enough to be whooshed around instead of being a static table display. The completed cruiser weighs the same as the MGS Falcon despite being much larger. As such, it passes what Katie Gia calls the “whooshability” test!
The ship comes with its own stand, tube of glue, and a giant poster that depicts outer space. The lighting is the micro battery-powered lights that I featured before.
One thing I did: I flooded the inside with superglue, so all parts are bound tightly. The ship has absolutely no flex or creaking when whooshing and zooming around.
Next to an Imperial MU-TT
Is It Worth It?
Yes.
Let’s be honest: when it comes to capital ships we have very limited options. For this particular ship, you can buy the Lego light cruiser, which is absurdly expensive, fragile, and heavy. Or you can get the tiny Arquitens model from the Star Wars: Armada tabletop game, which is nicely detailed but only a few inches long.
This paper model is the best option. It is huge, detailed, and lightweight, while being relatively affordable. The only con is that it takes about 10-12 hours to build.
Where to Buy
The Imperial Light Cruiser is made by 4D Models, available on Amazon. They also have the even more impressive Imperial Star Destroyer (76cm), as well as a massive Sandcrawler.
The Sandcrawler is promising at 1:78 so I also ordered it. So watch for a future review (as soon as I can get off my lazy ass).
Meanwhile, here’s some parting beauty shots.
“Should we really be this close to the engines?”
“Shut up Gary.”
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