An Architect Reviews the Banu Defender [Star Citizen]

[@Khunez]

Its actually an alien built ship that is then marketed and fitted for a human. Meaning the anything on the list that would not be to human spec (doors, beds, weapon rack, seats, controls) is gutted and retrofitted for human use. The Banu also like to mix tech from any species. If another species has better thrusters they will use them (like the Xian in this case) however they will go another step forward and perfect the tech.

[@selbie]

Major props to the lore team to bring the stories of these ships into fruition. I imagine it really helps your work in manifesting that story into a tangible object. Your intensive design process has produced an amazing piece of art and it certainly has enriched the SC universe :D

[@Khunez]

@@selbie thank you! with this ship and lore i actually had the least amount to pull from. I had to make up my own alien materials based on what was already available. Not to mention the mechanics and technology along with the aesthetic.

[@Butzitube]

But why does it manouver so slow if they use "the best tech"? I love its performance still but its seems weird to me when i think about it having the most advanced tech and then performing worse than described

[@Khunez]

@LEEBO it would be cool to do like a release Q&A panel when we release i think. would be fun.

[@TheeO115]

The Ship reminds me of the F-82 Mustang with the two pilot seats. Giving the defender a similar role to the F-82 which was a long range escort. I could see the pilots taking shifts in the defender one sleeping and the other flying while escorting a BMM in the future.

[@Khunez]

On the time taken, you hit the nail on the head. We wanted an organic sculpted look so being that i have tons of sculpting experience I was asked to step in. The interior "bone" material is completely custom sculpted. This was by far the most challenging and technically difficult asset to create in the time frame given. ( I slept under my desk 3 nights :P ) Tons of R&D sooo much iteration, nail on the head.

[@trulsjohansson6617]

Well hello there! If it isn't the ships design daddy himself! :) Great work on this one also! Are you going for the BMM next I wonder... :D

[@Khunez]

@@trulsjohansson6617 why thank you! ha no, it takes a whole team of guys to do a ship that size. Im doing something else currently :D

[@Morphologis]

The man himself, hello again Josh. Keep up the amazing work. Will you be at citizencon this year? I’d love to meet up and talk design some time.

[@ricksaeta1975]

Appreciate all your work. When this ship was in concept I have ZERO interest in it.. But as 3.7 came closer and they gave us more screen shots of it, I suddenly found myself changing my tune on the ship now happily have one. I even enjoy the view from either pilot's seat.

[@ephalanx1]

Love the work man. Definitely takes a ton of time. But its paid off. Cant wait to see what you and the team pull off next. My only question is was there a reason to not close the gap between the wings and fuselage in flight mode like in the concept? I think that would really streamline the design and make the lines look a lot cleaner. Not sure if there were animation or technical reasons for this. Sort of like the issues with the Hull Series cargo dilemma.

[@horuslux8441]

One day this will be a video about the Merchantman, and I will watch it many times, but this will hold me over for now...

[@outlawbf3]

Iam waaaaiting for my BMM :( but as i've heard they will start with BMM after carrack, so 2020 i guess :)

[@COMMANDERHAWK22]

december 2020

[@Baleur]

But dont you love how us Merchantman owners, the larger more expensive ship, DONT get to fly the Defender as a loaner? I love this ship, but as much as i love it im also a bit pissed at CIG. I'm SICK of the fat cow of a Starfarer. I didnt buy the Merchantman concept to fly a refuelling ship.

[@andrewberg9611]

@@Baleur Its not based of species, or people would flip their shit, getting a fighter. For now they can trade large amounts like intended. Though it wouldnt hurt to add the defender to the loaners

[@Schoolship.]

@@Baleur sick of his large trade ship. wishes to be flying a small fighter. BUT somehow thinks he'll become happy when his large trade ship is ready. lol

[@Khunez]

you are exactly right on pilot/ co-pilot. It made naming conventions confusing in the beginning of the design.

[@Quazgar_of_the_North]

So what did you call them?

[@Khunez]

@@Quazgar_of_the_North Cockpit Right and Cockpit Left :D

[@jiriq8853]

CIG is getting much better in design, I love the look of Banu Defender or the Origin 890 Jump.. Cant wait to see what they have for us in future!

[@thorticus8864]

took an awesome photo of the banu on the 890j and it looks amazing!!! with i think lyria or wala in the back ground.

[@bleu3361]

Im really excited for the 600i rework. Cant wait to see the changes.

[@b3nsu]

Don't forget the new particle effects for quantum travel. I absolutely love the whisps of green the animators did such a good job

[@scribblescrabble3185]

I only saw them in videos, but I think they detract from the impression of being in a warp bubble or traveling fast.

[@fillyharmonic3156]

​@@scribblescrabble3185 T'me, it feels as if I'm in an ocean or aerial current, being swept along.

[@BaneSIlvermoon]

@@scribblescrabble3185 I would imagine that is probably part of the intention.

[@paulvarn4712]

"... quantum travel. I absolutely love the whisps of green..." Many players agree the QT animation is too bright and for some reason they still keep the human QT animation also with a separate convergence point causing a lot of light competition out the HUD also making HUD text all but unreadable.

[@vicsid9606]

Impressive ship, impressive editing, impressive narration.

[@SSKazega]

This reminds me of a story about a Japanese Engineer tasked with solving a problem about the bullet train making too much noise in certain areas. Because of the size and shape of the train, whenever it went into tunnels, the air would have nowhere to go, the train pushed against it too quickly and so it would just build and build and build, until it would reach the end of the tunnel, causing the Air to explode and create lots of noise. The engineer in charge eventually made an interesting observation. a particular bird, the Kingfisher, didn't make a lot of splash when it dove into the water for it's food. Eventually the Engineer modeled the nose of the train on the beak of the Kingfisher and ran it through a simulator, proving to reduce the build up of air in front of the train by astounding levels.

[@Star-Man]

I cannot wait for the BMM, I can’t get over the organic feel of the ship 🙃

[@COMMANDERHAWK22]

december of next year.

[@UNSCPILOT]

It's very Alien/Aliens esque design, And I love it

[@ToumiXful]

@@COMMANDERHAWK22 HAHAHHHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHHAHHHAHHAHHAHHAHHA

[@thatwelshman2713]

@@ToumiXful not December yet

[@MonteKristof]

@@COMMANDERHAWK22 I'm calling from December of next year. Not only do we not have the BMM, but it's been in re-concept. So we have even less than you have in 2019.

[@DevasKnight]

Organic ships and the first thing that comes to mind in Moya the ship from Farscape.

[@Quazgar_of_the_North]

What about Alien / H.R. Giger?

[@DevasKnight]

@@Quazgar_of_the_North True. Giger had that organic flow to most of his artwork. I mean hes the inspiration to Alien lol. The interior of the ship is reminiscent of his work.

[@erebus7205]

I also love how the Banu Defender breaks down. If you lose an arm it begins to leak green nasty QT fuel and pipes inside the ship begin to leak and ship fills up with smoke! The one small detail I feel the Banu Defender should have made better is its design on the MFD. It’s a big design disconnect from the exterior and or interior of the ship. I feel like the MFD should somewhat represent the ships design in someway because that is what Im looking at most of the time. Maybe I’m nitpicking Cannot wait for the Banu Merchant Man!

[@杨简-v5z]

EREBUS all alien ship MFDs are modified and converted to human language/text display, and that was made clear/lore-friendly a long time ago when supposedly “captured” vanduul Scythe introduced; in order to be able to fly this ship and test out the functionalities they swap out the MFDs and computer with human ones. The glitch on the HUD you see when you power up your alien ship is the computer translating alien texts to human text/English.

[@KuraIthys]

I would say the HUD stuff is still very much a work in progress, and I expect various ship HUD's to get more distinct as they actually implement the new UI stuff properly. I honestly wouldn't expect an Origin, MISC and Consolidated Outland ship to all have essentially the same HUD, but currently they do. In the real world, sure, there's standard features in vehicles - all cars have a speedometer, most have an RPM counter, and there's standardised things like a steering wheel, pedals, turn signals... But in the end each vehicle has slightly different indicators, control placement and so on. Same with aircraft. So the degree of standardisation in the SC universe right now is well beyond what you'd expect to see...

[@Omaricon]

It's clearly placeholder currently. The devs have specifically said they don't want a bunch of different HUD's because when testing and seeing what is needed and what isn't it's much easier to itterate on one rather than a dozen (or more). So once they get the functionality of what HUD's require they'll start to diversify them for each manufacturer, and by that extent, for aliens.

[@erebus7205]

杨简 The screens on the MFD is not what’s bothering me but the design language around the MFD (screen frame?). Captured or not, the design of the MFD frame feels very very simple compared to the organic and complicated aesthetic that runs through the entire ship. BTW I thought only AOPOA or Esperia ships were captured and converted ships? Isnt the Banu ship a literally untouched ship?

[@杨简-v5z]

EREBUS Or maybe human couldn’t read or operate on “organic” screens? And Banu ships by default still count as exotic ships; so maybe that gives them excuses to overlook some minor details like mfds, which hopefully they attend to later I guess.

[@Myre]

Awesome video Morphologis! I think the ship having two cockpits may be another nod to its biological design as much of (at least in the case of Earth) mammalian biology does things in pairs; two eyes, two ears, nostrils, even brain lobes. I absolutely love the idea of the hull being 'grown' in some sort of Banu lab.

[@Avokado34]

I think the Banu simply takes more inspiration from nature when they' design things. Where the human brain prefers geometric shapes, the Banu maybe rather copies nature around them.

[@KZ-hu9uj]

Fredrik Åfeldt We don't necessarily "prefer" geometric shapes. In fact the most beautiful architecture you will see is organic in shape. Geometric is simply simpler to mass produce so we end up relying on it heavily in large projects such as buildings

[@onlyaraku]

It's quite reminiscent of the Kryptonian architecture. I very much like it.

[@wotterthose4511]

Definitely reminds me of the wraith ships in stargate atlantis (one of my favorite series), just a different color scheme, but super cool! I thought you were crazy at first with the interpretation until you showed the very first shot of the interior and then it all came together!

[@AnimeLineup]

OMG Morph. I just found your architect reviews and they are so good. Not to mention you picked out the same beauty that I found. Loved the Banu Defender the moment I stepped inside.

[@Husker5454]

Your cinematography here was insane

[@suboptimal4539]

I am SOOOO glad you did this ship! It’s been one of my favorite designs since I first saw it. The idea of the ship just adds to sifi in general. Thank you for your hard work!

[@byron.jennings]

Such a beautiful ship. I have one for my Merchantman, and I spent WAY too much time just walking around it and looking at all the details. Can't wait to have the BMM in game, and they way CIG has been handling alien ships has me super excited for the future.

[@kwa42]

super dope video!! bringing your real life profession into video game videos is pretty cool!

[@katanamaster37]

Love how the "legs" come in and almost make it perch, makes you think about a soldier when saluting

[@baronvonschnellenstein2811]

Thanks for this video and sharing your insights. Setting up a particular 'lens' from which to assess the ship at the start helps 'the rest of us' see nuances that we might otherwise take some time to notice :) To my human eyes, the interior is sligthly unnerving in places, but my, the beds look cozy, lol. That certainly is outstanding work by CIG (some 2.5 years, now)!

[@BigSky5578]

Beautiful. Outstanding work CIG. Also an excellent review with nice background info. Liked, commented, and rang the bell.

[@bubumic2971]

The inside looks like a house from morrowind ...

[@SgtTeddybear66]

N'WAH

[@SuperAWaC]

wealth beyond measure, outlander

[@ikarishinjikum5282]

stop u violated the lau

[@matteosiefert846]

These are by far my favourite Star Citizen videos! Love it!

[@JimJamJaboo]

Carcinisation, given enough time in nature everything becomes crab.

[@Illyenyo]

Some notes on Banu lore: 1) The aliens supposedly have technological parity with humanity, but there are areas in which each species has an advantage (like X'ian thrusters), so the Banu aren't really more advanced than the UEE and biological engineering hasn't been mentioned as a specific stong point. 2) The Banu are extreme specialists, so the second cockpit is for the gunner as a Banu pilot will only concentrate on flying while leaving all gun control to the gunner. For the human export model, guns are controllable by the pilot, however.

[@fodder8062]

I feel like this is the ship I'm going to save up for when I get star citizen. I also like the way you put emphasis on the organic look that is not always appreciated as much. Thanks for the review. I would love to see more of this style of ships in the future.

[@basilskite]

Hello! I love your videos, especially the "Architect Reviews" series. It's such a unique perspective that you have and really opens the layman's eyes to things that the uninitiated would never think about. Endlessly entertaining and infinitely informative! Keep it up :)

[@Tyayo]

Finally another Architect Reviews. You just made my day Morphologis :D

[@balanc3tube]

The format of referencing real concepts from architecture is waaay better. I love this series! Continue this! Maybe other games?

[@papakonzan5127]

First, thank you for these reviews. They're excellent. Second, I love my Defender. I'm a big fan of the original design and shape wise it comes very close to the concept. I wasn't so sure about the new texturing but it has grown on me and I think it better represents the style of the Banu race.

[@timvictor8926]

The Defender is outstanding work by CIG and great review!

[@qownson4410]

We need, " An Engineer Reviews" collab.

[@chrisjackson9031]

Yes, I really like the Defender and I can't wait to see what they do with the Merchantman. And, that was great video editing!

[@abritishguy7295]

have to admit its been a while since i've seen one of your videos morph, not since you were doing survival with shack, (the series where shack gets his little plane with the aerodynamics mod and launches off the ice, many years ago), good to see your alive and well :).

[@flo7844]

It looks like a mix of a Covenant ship + Flood style, i love it.

[@NovaXXX7]

I adore this series. I turning a professional eye upon cool fictional places/things.

[@forsakenwarlord5752]

it's amazing, im blown away CIG is packed with such talent and this just makes me excited to see what they do with the large vanduul ships.

[@pokeface119]

I was genuinely impressed you went through the effort of modeling the interior, and even more impressed that I genuinely believe that your design is definitely superior. ♥

[@LemonToGo]

3:54 That idea is nightmare fuel. Imagine their being rotten crab flesh inside the hull.

[@tacotopia]

Your the only star citizen KZbinr that I watch every video of when it comes out. Keep up the good work!

[@JaumeSabater]

Good summary of the creative process and the design behind it. Love the idea of the Banu growing their ships (although this is a replica made by humans). Not into alien ships myself, but one has to appreciate the effort and the results of the people in CIG that worked on it.

[@johnn720]

I LOVE this design work and you review was awesome.

[@vegassims7]

I love your videos.... I finally saved up to get a more modern computer and this game will be one of them that will purr on Star Citizen, as well as it can, and I can't wait to immerse myself in this beautiful world.

[@AdolfoWWolf]

The cool thing about this organic design, is that we already have something that looks kinda similar, the Divergent Blade car has pieces on the suspension system that already look pretty organic, due to the algorithms that optimized the shapes and even the material composition to achieve a very light yet very strong part, and if you look at the shape of the control arms, they almost look alien stuff, and have a kind of organic shape. If you want a more in depth commentary, watch Jay Leno interview with the guy behind it. Great commentary on this ship, and i agree, they did an excellent job with this design. Can't wait to see the Merchantman, and your review on it.

[@VeronwDS]

Huge Krypton vibes from Man of Steel on this ship. The darker color palette of the interior is an interesting choice to go with, one that I think sort of gives it an almost hostile rather than welcoming atmosphere. Nice review!

[@jwinsatt]

iirc in the lore of the bannu, if there's a job of pilot, and a job of weapon's officer, those would be their discreet, "ordained" and strictly enforced specific jobs for the two individuals. You would crew a ship with individuals ordained to perform those specific functions who cannot/are not allowed to do anything else by cultural norms. That kind of deal. Caste system like. Been a long time since I've looked into that though lol.

[@jhonwicked253]

I love your comentary on engieneered organisms that are grown to form the structure of a ship. I myself love that concept and I've incorporated it to an alien species I'm designing.

[@Bazzuk_]

i dont even play SC, but i love your videos mate. Keep up ;)

[@leonidass3448]

Organic design is one I've always loved, and this ship nails it. Love your architect reviews, dude!

[@euroseph5268]

Is it just me or are these videos incredibly relaxing

[@killer21946]

I really envy this design, i was playing SC the other day when a friend offered me a trip inside one of these magnificent ships. The subtle hints that the underlying ship is actually alive, helps to greatly improve the digeticism experience of players who tend to become attached to particular styles of vehicle. Likewise manipulation of the landing gear mid-fight makes for an entirely different combat style as the angle of the weapons change with the translation of the arms, i wish the game was as far developed as this ship it would blow the competition out of the water.

[@FlesHBoX]

Hit Scan makes perfect sense for a weapon that presumably, based on the name, utilizes particles that move faster than light. I hadn't actually taken a look at my defender yet, but now I'm itching to.

[@DragonxFlutter]

Catching up on a series I loved at the start, and I'm already getting blown away by just how smart architects have to be in order to not only build to modern standards, but to prepare for the next generation of construction standards. So much math and science is involved, and yet they still create works of art.

[@spoopy6359]

currently first year architect and I love your videos!

[@raddofzennla]

I love it. Makes me look forward to what they are going to do with the BMM.

[@C-M-E]

After having trifecta of ideas I'd been mulling over while designing a gas turbine exhaust housing, I caught a presentation on Biomimicry, which naturally sprang to mind upon watching your video. Disregarding the lore around this ship and speaking from purely a design principle, I love that people have begun to embrace the natural world as cues for human devices.

[@sc_diemonds219]

At the 4:01 mark when your talking about growing is actually crazy to think about. I’ve done some hardcore research on ufos an alien technology and that’s apparently how the ships work. Apparently they are organic and grow themselves. It sounds crazy but makes perfect sense if a civilization was 1-2 million years ahead of us in technology.

[@SapereAude1490]

Oh wow, I wanna hear more about that architecture that you showed! Maybe a video?

[@brianmcquain3384]

Love these! Enjoy it every time!

[@subbss]

I loved the video, as usual. I would really like to see an architech's review of the Reclaimer in the future.

[@neonfruit12]

The defender certainly is a marvel of modelling and engineering, I look forward to the stream!

[@kerboy5397]

quality. gj video thx exited for merch man

[@fog99uk]

this looks gorgeous. having seen this I'm glad i pledged for the merchantman.

[@cdgonepotatoes4219]

My take on the two beds, no other amenities thing makes me look at the Merchantman. It's possible the fighter pilots use the ship as their personal cabins when in the hangar, or maybe they have small individual hangars that double as the rest of their personal quarters. For long shifts of flying in formation with the mothership, even though this ship doesn't have a cargo grid you can carry supplies, possibly a latrine as well or their suits are capable of waste disposal by themselves.

[@highwarlord6939]

Aww yis, another architect reviews video. Love these, thank you!

[@Takeoverartist1987]

it will be amazing to see how their bigger ships will look. imagine a luxury ship from the banu

[@lukasvillar9328]

If I remember correctly the Banu species specializes in one profession, so while one crewman serves as a pilot the other serves as gunner. They are also larger than humans, so allied with Defender's mission results in a larger ship compared to human ships of the same type. Another interesting fact is that the Banu use technologies of other races such as Xi'an engines and Tevarin shields which make their ships very efficient as they eliminate many weaknesses in their ships.

[@JaleXelJela]

Interesting perspective on the idea that they are 'grown'. In the absence of them stating that in lore (though we might find out soon...) the interpretation I am leaning towards it that the Banu invented generative design much earlier than we have, and didn't become so interested and invested in simple geometry and trigonometry as we did. If that were the case, they might not actually be grown, but rather just designed following similar rules to growth.

[@nailedt0thecr0ss]

I really enjoy your views(thoughts) Morph. I look forward to your next video.

[@AcheliusDecimus]

The cannons suck at shields but tear up hull if I remember right. So until the shields are off it does little damage. With that said, this was an awesome review, as I am doing art studies in school now I love these episodes.

[@CynicalMournings]

(aka Lepus) Nice review Morph. I think I need to look at one of these babies in person.

[@raimee81]

There are a lot of critics to SC, but your Architect series really shows, that the guys at CIG are putting in immense work and thought into this game. Almost everything is considered and not just thrown in. I myself work in the film/animation industry so I have an idea of what it takes to do what they do. But it still impresses me. Definitely a ship I will work towards in game to add to my fleet.

[@amp4105]

Yeah, how ever long you think this would take multiple that by 5 and thats probably accurate

[@guarddog318]

Anybody else remember the starship "Moya", from Farscape? The show aired from 1999 to 2003. Moya was techno-organic... a living ship.

[@TheZapan99]

You should have mentioned the trippy green effect they added to the Defender quantum drive (and possibly to every Banu ship) that mimics (or maybe inspired) the flowing organic lines of their ships.

[@german_engineering1449]

I absolutely adore this ship, when I finally get my PC to the point I can actually play this is going to be the first ship I shoot for in game

[@Fletchman1313]

I don't know if this has been mentioned here, but this is one of the only ships where you can fly the ship from either the pilot or the copilot seat (left or right side).

[@kairon156]

I have a plant race in my universe and I love the idea of them being able to grow ships. or at least the outer shell of them. In my universe the plant race tend to be the ones who develop "Living" metal.

[@SCDukeLetoII]

Really like the dive into architectural theory.

[@johnaxios6335]

Hey Morphologis, I know this is a step away from your usual content but if you ever decide to cover space vessels from other franchises I hope you decide to cover my favourite ship, the Halberd Class Destroyer from the Halo franchise. I just love how the angular design gives it a sleek but also robust shape that conveys, at least to my mind, a sense of precise destructive power. Anyways, love your videos and I look forward to seeing more of them.

[@lazylime8046]

Honestly, this species heavily reminds me of Species 8472 from Star Trek. They're in Fluidic Space, and not regular space, so their ships and weaponry mirror that different evolution. Their ships are also a lot more organic (as in they're literally living creatures).

[@IronsideGER]

I love the design of the defender. Great review

[@ralaxgaming]

FYI, this is the Banu manufactured human variant of the Defender. The Banu version would likely have different beds and other features designed with them in mind. This goes for the Khartu-al and other player flyable alien ships.

[@battleangel5595]

The Banu Defender is quite the piece of art. Mind boggling beautiful to look at, and a pleasure to fly. While I've not taken mine into combat I'm sure this little beauty can hold it's own against a Hornet or two.Great for local cargo runs as well with the entry ramp. And the Quantum travel visuals... Alien to other ship manufacturers, but quite visually pleasant to see. IF CIG could toss in a bathroom somewhere this beauty could be the light exploration or early warning ship organizations would need. Or a fighter launched from any future carrier ship. Personally I like the ship. Frighteningly alien, yet welcoming.

[@AlbandAquino]

I am missing those Singe cannons SO MUCH. They were tricky to use, but the feeling firing them ! (End of 2021 ATT)

[@lol-wd5cw]

Finally, waiting for this one!

[@creedofrok396]

I almost thought I was watching the National Geographic channel about some crab creature lol

[@jeanwesleynew]

I really want some practical use for those two large armatures. For instance, grabbing cargo boxes, or specialized resistance to Vandul fighter blades. Or even docking clamps to the Merchantman. Anything specialized.

[@GamerFromSpace]

Idk if you read the brochure but the defender was specific made for humans, since there is no copy rights etc in the banu worlds so anyone can remake the ships in their own eyes so they did for human purpose

[@Soliye.]

While flying, the ship reminds me of the Scythe the Vanu uses on Planetside 2

[@Mimas810]

it also looks like that the arms can go back and fit on the side. would be cool if they go back when you are in combat speed and to the front when you are full speed.

[@bluesheepminecraft]

Beautiful video as always!

[@kithsakhai]

from the time I expect they spent on this small fighter, the merchantman, if they dont skimp on the same design language, will be a LONG time in the future. Definitely looking forward to that one!

[@lostmic]

Great video my friend can't wait for the next video... =)

[@pirateradio8420]

Love the Defender! Great video as always. Don't give me one if I win the draw as I allready own one.

[@johnboyd9713]

Defender is PROBABLY the most versatile runabout in the game. No dedicated cargo, but fastest quantum drive with a HUGE tank, big enough to fit a small ground vehicle (maybe we'll get the ranger someday), weapon racks, low signature, and accommodations and roles for two crew.

[@th3orist]

i think they have done a great job here, the detail on this ship is off the charts, it looks, for what it intends to be, gorgeous! - but although i can fully appreciate the ship for itself, i can say that i am the type of person who is put off by organic/biological design in...thing(s)? therefore i will admire it from the distance as a non-owner :) Great video :)

[@flare9757]

Oh my oh my, this will be the first ship I grind for

[@tyoma_14]

I love this series, it would be cool if you did a review of the Caterpillar.

[@Kuberniccus]

Snapshots 4 wallpapers ,baby /pure designe !