I love the new click-hinge pieces and had a lot of fun using them on the wings of one of my Futuron II ships. I wanted to take the idea further and the KnightHawk is the result. At first I began with the basic raptor shape, but as I got further along I decided to add some medieval and pseudo-dinosaur touches as well. I also wanted to mix Space and Castle, since those two fan factions have a long, healthy but good-natured rivalry.
It took quite awhile before I was satisfied with the cockpit, especially since it had to be compact so that the belly did not protrude too much. Other than the wing articulation, I'm most proud of the feet. The legs and ankles can move forward and back, the claws can rotate left and right and each toe is hinged. The claws on the wings are also hinged. I was able to give the head over 90 degrees of vertical motion along with a poseable lower beak.
An abundance of wing plates of different sizes in both original dark grey and dark red made possible a way to evoke feathers without a lot of cumbersome and heavy layering.
When the KnightHawk is zeroing in on a target, the wings fold in to bring the deadly claws into play.
The fearsome beak is first to strike, while the claws keep the target firmly clutched so that it cannot escape. You can also see how the pilot is oriented during flight.
Even the best star pilots in the galaxy are bound to have a few enemies buzz their tail, and the KnightHawk is equipped with rear weapons to shake them off. The feet are able to fold completely flat to the body to minimize drag.
The pilot is a mysterious figure shrouded in black. The following shots show how the cockpit unfolds for egress.
Our pilot has wings of her own just in case the situation goes badly. She who fights and flies away lives to claw another day!
The wings are attached by two minifig six-shooters and a 1x1 brick with studs on all four sides. I messed around with this part quite a bit to get it as compact as possible. It's not very sturdy, but I think it looks pretty good.