Hey all!
I've been doing some talking about making a less-intensive Post-Imperial kit than the one I started planning almost a year ago, and I decided that I should make a concept post with every idea I've got so far. I'm working on a budget-friendly framework as much as possible, and by that I'm certain I will make a ton of mistakes along the way and won't be spending any more money than I have to. Additionally, certain components might not be up to OM snuff from the get-go, but that's okay with me. Once I have a put-together kit, if it ends up being worth something then I'll polish it up, add or replace parts as necessary and apply for OM, otherwise it will be 'my first kit' and I'm okay with that. Anyway, onto the current state of the kit!

The theme of this build can be summarized as "Covert Self-Reliance:" inspired by the Covert designs by Brian Matyas, everything has been scavenged, stolen or repaired from something else, meaning an overall deeply used, patchy and worn aesthetic will be needed for the armor. In lore, the wearer has to build the armor from scraps that have lost their integrity, which can in theory provide leeway for any potential mistakes I make to be cleaned up.
The soft parts are definitely the weakest point of the plan as a whole in terms of application. The flightsuit and flak vest are as low-budget as possible, but as stated I can always upgrade them with better materials and dedicated pieces. The belt, pouches and holster are unplanned as of now, and I'll probably end up with a premade belt and add things to them as needed. The dark red belt and cape shouldn't be too hard to acquire, a trip to Joann fabrics for the fleece and a couple hours of forming the fabric will be all that should be needed and I'll design the cape as a shorter version of Din's, and a similar story for the legwrap.
The plan for the chestplate, backplate, kneeplate and the right bracer will be made of 6mm sintra, to provide contrast with the thinner components not made of 'beskar' or 'durasteel.' That's of course subject to change, and the details of the armor will be treated case by case, such as the raised flamethrower component on the bracer. I've obtained paper templates for these pieces from PaperCraft Univere3D on Etsy that I'm currently working on sizing. I'll use 3mm sintra for the shoulder bells, the left bracer and the right greave; the pieces swiped from shadow troopers, in lore. Again, to build that contrast with the thicker, metal-esqe pieces.
The helmet will be the MMCC Standard Round bucket, 3D printed with the campus printers. Not much to say on that front except that I'm trying to figure out sizing, like with the other pieces.
Finally, the blaster will be an SE-14r that's currently on order from 3DPrint Merc Mart. I'm also throwing around the idea of a long vibroknife for the other hip.
As far as the Post-Imperial CRL is concerned, the main things I'd need to change would be the flightsuit, flak vest, neckseal and adding more leg armor, mostly the posterior and hip plates. Would hip plates count as leg armor on the CRLs for the four-plate minimum?
Beyond that, I welcome any additional thoughts or remarks on the state of the kit, as well as wondering if anyone has access to any stormtrooper templates I could use for the left bracer and right greave.
Vor'e, I appreciate your time friends!