Japanese
Maschinen Krieger Models and SF3d Independent Mercenary Army
(IMA) Kits M.a.k., developed by Kow Yokoyama.
Maschinen
Krieger (or, Ma.K for short) are models and figures based on the
scifi world of by Japanese artist and sculptor Kow Yokoyama. His
original concepts date back to the 1980's.
Originally
it was called SF3D, and ran as a series of concepts and articles
in Hobby Japan, a model magazine. Around this time, NITTO was
making plastic model kits of some of the home made constructions
presented in the magazine.(That's why some of those older kits
say SF3D on the box). Later in the 1980's, the series was up and
running again, but was renamed the Maschinen Krieger series.
The
story and world behind the models and Ma.K. figures is that there
was a World War IV. in 2087, which eliminates most of the population.
Earth was made uninhabitable, but eventualy, groups returned to
the planet to mine it's resources. This includes colonists, but
also criminals and outlaws.
There
ends up being two basic groups in control of Earth, for the most
part, and two sides to the conflicts. The SDR Strahl Democratic
Republic, and the Independent Mercenary Army (IMA).
NITTO
made around 21 different kits originally. Those were all plastic
injected models. Later, the model company WAVE also made released
some kits, some using the NITTO molds it seems. But they make
vinyl figures, fully assembled, as well.
Hasegawa
makes many of the plastic model kits of Maschinen Krieger Ma.K.
today, They've released various kits over the years, and new ones
over the years. These are primarily plastic kits you assemble
and paint (and weather).
There
are two popular scales to the models: 1/20 scale, and 1/35. The
1/35 scale is a military scale, so there are thousands of other
model kits that can be adapted and converted for use in the MaK
world.
This allows modelers to make custom models, and projects, and
some really great dioramas.
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