Of all the things we do on Gunpla 101, the thing we get the most flack about is how we pose our models. Posing Gunpla is a difficult but important art that can make the difference between your Gunpla looking like a model or just a toy. In order to share some pointers, we turned to our friend, award-winning Gunpla builder Nanochi. Here’s her advice on striking the perfect pose.

Posing is one of the most important things you can do for your Gundam kit. Unlike figures, Gunpla are designed to pull off poses that they regularly perform in the show. I’m going to give some quick tips on how to pull off poses that will make each of your Gunpla stand out.

Mimic the box art

The best way to start posing your Gunpla is to try and mimic some of the poses on the box itself.  the best one being the front of the box art. Think about it: the cool box art is probably part of why you chose to get this particular Gundam in the first place, so it’s definitely worth recreating.

While some models prove this to be rather difficult in terms of limitations (looking at you, Strike Freedom!), most of the time your model is designed to be able to pose just like it looks on the box. This is especially helpful if you don’t consider yourself creative and you’re looking for a cool pose in a hurry.

Pose multiple kits together

Sometimes when you want to really make a statement, just having one Gunpla isn’t enough. So why not team up a pair for greater impact?

For example, every Gundam can always pair with his ultimate rival, a Zaku, because when isn’t a Zaku trying to fight a Gundam? But put some thought into it—a Gunpla congo line isn’t the ticket here (unless that’s your thing).  Create a combat situation by having each model put their accessories to work. You could have that Zaku swing his axe at RX-78, have Mr. Gundam aim a beam sword at his head, and generally try to really go for suspenseful life-or-death situations. If you’re lost for ideas, try re-watching the anime your Gunpla is from, so you can recreate some canon battle scenes.

Use an action base

To truly unlock the posing capabilities of your Gunpla, you can go for a action base stand to lift them up into the air and to pull off many more poses. With an action base you can simulate some movements that are impossible to pull off on the ground, like dive kicks for Build Burning Gundam, a hurtling mid-air launch for Gundam Unicorn like during its Neo Zeong battle, or even the legendary Char kick. Do a little anime research on how to mimic the suit’s signature aerial moves, and go crazy!

I recommend getting the Action Base 1 for your Master Grade kits and Action Base 2 for your High Grade and Real Grade kits since both are design for those scales. Please do not get an Action Base 3 for anything. In my experience, they don’t hold any grade of model well.

Have you created a pose you’re really proud of? We’d love to see it in the comments.

Photo credits: Dongheon Shin, Raymond Chen, Quan Nguyen.