The Airborne Armaments - a soldier weapon pack

The Jumper's Trumpet  a rocket launcher replacement





The Reserve Shooter  a shotgun replacement



Ditched name: The Whippet Gun

The Market Gardener  a shovel replacement

Other equipment?

- not going to happen

Aesthetic Notes

Otherwise everything below this point is left as it was at the end of the contest.Seeing this contest on the TF2 blog got me thinking about things to make, then inspiration hit, so I'm in. I've been wanting to have a go at making some kind of rocket launcher, but was unclear what direction to take with one, until this contest that is...Everything has now been submitted. This post now has a set of notes and images detailing the final models below the fake update page image.We all know the Soldier isn't what he says he is, since he was rejected from every branch of the US military. Despite this, his uniform has several elements that show that he considers himself good enough to be among the airborne units. His boots are reminiscent of the paratrooper's jump-boots. His jacket has a high collar, which was a specific modification to their uniform. The screaming eagle motif is actually the insignia of the 101st Airborne Division.Given how paratroopers were deployed into battle, there was a lot of interest in reducing bulk and weight of equipment. The M1A1 carbine with a folding stock was one of their weapons, and modification of kit along these lines was not uncommon.While the Soldier has elements of paratrooper uniform already, there's practically nothing of it in his weapons. That's what I aim the Airborne Armaments pack to be - a set of weapons that reduce weight and bulk, since if the soldier considers himself paratrooper material, he's going to have gotten himself the weapons for it at some point.I'll be honest, the excuse to do a rocket launcher that's based around the various Bazooka models is the main reason for this pack.The name is a play on what paratroopers do (jump) though it could also imply rocket jumping, and is also a reference to the origin of the name "Bazooka", which was the name of a novelty instrument that the GI's decided it looked like.When your primary fails, deploy your reserve.The name Reserve Shooter is a play on the term 'reserve parachute', since parachute is often shortened to 'chute, and reserve parachutes are often refered to as 'reserve's, along with the shotgun being a secondary/backup weapon. I could call it "the reserve chuter", but I doubt people would pronounce that properly without knowledge of the background.This name appears to originate from the so called 'whipit' gun, a sawn down automatic shotgun used by Bonnie Parker in the 1930's. The term since evolved to encompass a fully functional pump action/automatic shotgun that has been sawn down either to bring it within gun regulations or to reduce the size and weight, making it easier to conceal. Since law enforcement appropriated the idea for undercover work and the like, I'm going to assume that branches of the military would find a use for it  especially since the paratroopers' gear was modified to reduce bulk.Entrenching Tool (E-tool)The Soldier's shovel is an entrenching tool (type M1943), a short handled version of your regular garden implement adapted for trench digging and the like while being easy to carry. 'Entrenching tool' shortens to 'e-tool', a term which I've found evidence of use in WW2 and I've decided to develop one based on a variant that first showed up in 1951, the combination shovel-pick folding e-tool (M1951). This choice is mostly based on the distinct shape it has when folded in pick mode.The name 'market gardener' is a reference to the weapon's appearance as some kind of deranged gardening implement, and to Operation Market Garden, one of the major operations the airborne units were deployed in in WW2.Since the Soldier's model seems to already incorporate one of the most recognisable things about the paratrooper's uniform  the jump boots  I don't really feel I have much to do other than the weapons. Since the model's version are simplified though, I might look into a pair of boots anyway if I find the time, since some of the accessories added to the game have added a level of detail quite a bit higher than the original character models.To tie the weapons together visually I''ll be doing a colour scheme that ties them together. I'm hoping I'll be able to find a tone of olive drab (the name of the military green colour) that will complement TF2's existing palette. I'll put a swatch up here once I've figured out my all my colours.