From FrederickC: Skirting 'The Great Abyssal' aboard Lady Sarah's Star Yacht [Cybertron][Klendathu][Coruscant] (150 points)

 

We have left Arrakis behind us with a terrible case of sunburn, and I'm still shaking sand out of my boots and trouser pockets. The plan is to do a short hop over to Cybertron, and then take Lady Sarah's Star Yacht past the Great Abyssal to Coruscant with a quick stop on Klendathu along the way. So three stops in total and two yacht tickets. I plan to spend some time in the lounge while aboard the yacht to see if they can mix up a Blue Meanie like the ones they serve at the Blauwe Blome bar on Tycho Station.

Interstellar Yacht by Shusei Nagaoka

 

Cybertron (#9 on the map) - home planet of the Transformers, a shining metal, technological world, and the theme is 'Transformational/Transformative'.

Gandalf: Through fire... and water... From the lowest dungeon to the highest peak, I fought him, the Balrog of Morgoth. Until at last, I threw down my enemy and smote his ruin upon the mountainside. Darkness took me. And I strayed out of thought and time. Stars wheeled overhead and everyday was as long as a life-age of the earth. But it was not the end. I felt life in me again. I have been sent back, until my task is done.

Aragorn: Gandalf.

Gandalf: Gandalf? Yes... that's what they used to call me. Gandalf the Grey. That was my name. 

Gimli: Gandalf! 

Gandalf: I am Gandalf the White! I come back to you now, at the turn of the tide.

The figures of Gandalf the White on foot and mounted on Shadowfax are the older Games Workshop Lord of the Rings castings. I have included Gandalf the Grey in the photos for the 'Before' and 'After' comparison.

 

Klendathu (#10 on the map) -  home world of the Pseudo-Arachnids. The planet has many warriors and workers all over its surface. However, its brains and queens live deep underground and are capable of surviving an invasion by the Federal Military. The theme is 'An Invasion Gone Bad'.

 

On the morning of 19 August 1942, landing craft of the 2nd Canadian Division hit the beaches around the port of Dieppe. Red Beach, on the eastern half in front of Dieppe itself was assaulted by the Essex Scottish. The battalion was supposed to have armoured support from the 14^th Army Tank Regiment (The Calgary Regiment (Tank)), but the tanks arrived 15 minutes too late. LCT No, 2 landed three tanks of 13 Troop of 'C' Squadron - 'Cougar', 'Cheetah', and 'Cat'. 'Cougar' quickly became immobilized, and only 'Cheetah' and 'Cat' made it onto the Promenade. 'Cat' was able to take out a 47mm anti-tank gun near the harbour entrance,  however its 6-pounder gun, only able to fire solid shot, was mostly ineffective against the German defences. Eventually, 'Cat' made its way back to the beach, having fired off most of its munitions, and the crew abandoned it.

Churchill Mk III T68696 'CAT' is a repainted 1/50 Solido diecast model I acquired from a friend. It was originally painted in a desert yellow/olive green striped camouflage pattern for service in Tunisia, but I wanted it to match another Solido Churchill that I had that depicted 'Cheetah' (shown in the background). So the 'tank from Tunisia' was repainted using Vallejo Dark Earth, and then the vehicle name, numbers, etc. painted on freehand.

 

Coruscant (#11 on the map) - A city-covered planet, Coruscant is the vibrant heart and capital of the galaxy, featuring a diverse mix of citizens and culture. It features towering skyscrapers, streams of speeder-filled air traffic, and inner levels that stretch far below the world’s surface. The theme is 'Imperial'.

And nothing says 'Imperial' like a legionary of early Imperial Rome, equipped with lorica segmentata, gladius, and scutum. This is a 28mm plastic figure that came as a sample years ago with an issue of Wargames Illustrated. I was never sure what to do with it, and thought I might use it as a gladiator in our 'local arena'. I'm glad I had it on hand for this stop on the Challenge Quadrant.

 

Two tickets for Lady Sarah's Star Yacht - the two figures I painted for passage aboard the Star Yacht are (left to right) a Eurasian Solar Union SAW gunner from Ground Zero Games and a Rebel Commando from West End Games. Both date from the mid to late 1990's. I have painted them up in the colour scheme for the Ral Partha Galactic Grenadiers figures I use as 'Planetary Militia'. In the past I have used both GZG and WEG minis to augment the variety of poses and weapons in my squads.

 

 The points being claimed are as follows:

1 x 28mm vehicle @ 20 points = 20 points

1 x 28mm mounted figure @ 10 points = 10 points

4 x 28mm foot figure @ 5 points = 20 points

3 x Challenge Quadrant locations (Cybertron, Klendathu, Coruscant) @ 20 points each = 60 points

2 x Lady Sarah's Star Yacht @ 20 points = 40 points 

Blue routes were via Lady Sarah's Star Yacht

Time to drop into the Inner Ring
 

You're just rocketing around the planets here Frederick.  Nice work on Gandalf the White, really like those sculpts.  And yes, as we discussed in advance (see Ray he ran it past me in advance) I'll buy this as a transformation.  No arguments on Dieppe as an Invasion gone wrong and well done on those doomed Churchills.   I think I have that Legionary somewhere too, great job on the shield.  And finally nice to see some vintage SciFi figures given some love.