History of the A200 Series Mobile Command Fortress

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The earliest picture taken of the A207, circa 2002. Note the engines beneath the wings and the custom interceptor barely visible on the roof

1983 -- I receive my first Construx set from my aunt at the age of 4.

1984 -- My mother shows me how to make three dimensional buildings, using flat panels as floors, walls, and ceilings. Immediately, I become a Construx fan for life.

1991 -- After years of tinkering, I build my first serious fortress, a mobile headquarters for my Wheeled Warriors and Starcom figures/vehicles. It contained a lower storage garage for vehicles (along with drawbridge door), a roofless upper deck for crew, and a smaller two story crew area attached to the right side, which was nothing more than grids of interlocking beams that the figures could "sit" in. Still, it was the most complex thing I'd ever built, and I kept it intact for nearly two full years.

1992 -- I build my first fortress for regular sized action figures. It's a relatively simple two story fort with a garage door style main door that swings inward. I think it was supposed to be the Marvel Superheroes Captain America's headquarters.

1993 -- I start building a second fort, this one borrowing elements from both the "Secret Wars" Tower of Doom and the "Other World" Castle Zendo, my two favorite playsets at the time. It was a three sided fortress, two stories tall, with a large front wall and a second story balcony attached to it. There was a main door (though I don't recall it), and I have no idea what was on the first floor. This was the initial incarnation of the A207 Mobile Command Fortress. I end up demolishing both previous Construx projects in order to keep expanding this one.

1993/1994 -- The balcony becomes a full second floor, the main door moves to the side, a captain's chair is put in, and the whole thing ends up on wheels. I arbitrarily choose the name A207 because it sounds like it's part of a sophisticated fleet, much like Star Trek's NCC-1701.

1994 -- The first significant expansion of the A207. I utilize extra beams to build left and right wing engine rooms off of the second floor. With no spare flat panels, these are literally just small attached cages with radar dishes on the fronts. Eventually, I get a little more savvy with parts utilization and manage to give the wing rooms some flat panels for the floors and walls by replacing portions of the main front wall with curved window pieces. The A200 series' distinct curved window look is established.

1995-1997 -- This is a fuzzy area for me. I don't recall how much more work I did on the A207 nor how much longer the fortress lasted. At some point in this window of time (probably '95 or '96) I temporarily outgrow my toys in order to become a teenager and demolish the A207.

2000-- Not sure exactly why, but I end up pulling out the old Construx while home from college and resurrect the A207 from memory, only with significant improvements. I don't remember many specifics. It eventually comes with me to college and continues to grow (slowly) there.

2001-- Eventually, I use ebay to acquire new parts and start expanding upon the wing rooms in significant ways. I even end up building third floor wing rooms with access to the roof.

2002-- Around this time, I start developing other Construx designs with my leftover ebay-acquired pieces.

2003 -- I start construxion.tripod.com. The A207 reaches its final incarnation, which can be found here

2004 -- After utilizing it in a few episodes, I demolish the A207 in order to build better sets for my webcomic, As Cybertron Turns.

2008 -- After building a variety of other Construx sets, I decide to return to the A207, rebuilding it in a new improved form once again. This time, I rename it the A208 Mobile Command Fortress to indicate how much it has changed since its last incarnation. Much of its more "finished" look is inspired by the sets I built for my now defunct webcomic.

2009 -- I continue to make modifications and additions.

2010 and on -- A dangerous habit begins of my purchasing more and more parts on ebay to make more and more additions and expansions to the Fortress. The A209, A209-R, A210, A211, and A212, as well as sister ships A111 and A112, are all produced over the next three years.

2012 -- The A212 is the first to have its design displayed in the format of a thirty three panel graphic webnovel.

 

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