Adamc: Ruse De Guerre Frigates for Solaris (50)

Here we have two 3D print frigates provide to me by my friend Arofan (you should check out the games he's written at Application of Force).  

They are Spanish "Mahonesa class" Frigates (if you have a printer they are a free file: from Simon Mann) and are excellent prints a bit smaller than the Frigates from Warlord but they work well enough with them. 

I dressed them up with figure heads left over from my Warlord Merchants one with a Pegasus and the Red "team colors" that Warlord (and Games Workshop before them) put forward for the Spanish.  It was a fairly uncommon color scheme historically but it does look good. 

The Second has a red headed Mermaid and a typical yellow stripe at the gun deck.

These are among the few 3d prints where the stern doesn't need any special dressing up.  its not decorative but plain sterns were common in frigates. 

Of course two of this class where taken by the English and put into service!  Being Spanish built they are prefect for the Ruse de Guerre  of Flying False Colors. Use magnates to allow me to switch a ships allegiance or to allow players to use this Ruse de Guerre.  So its an open question what fleet these ships serve, Spanish, English, and Chile all used this class and they could serve in any. (note to self fund early Chillan navy flags).  

Frigates are 15 Points each with another 20 Points for Solaris making a total of 50. 

The Spanish built some lovely ships Adam and these are great 3d prints.  I like that you can fly 3 different flags from them, and Lord Cochrane could fly two of them!  

From Mike W - 28mm Dr Who Miscellany (172 Points, Sqirrel, Skaro)

Out of the pile of plastic and lead have emerged a small collection of Dr Who related figures, namely his enemies - Davros and some Daleks, Cybermen and a few Ood.

The Whole Group

First to the iconic Daleks, these are mostly ridiculously cheap plastic figures known as 'Mini Monster Army' that I sourced off of eBay and I already have number of these painted up in a range of bright colours. These guys are going to be Davros' personal body guard. (For those not in the know Davros was the inventor of the Daleks and he's a pretty sinister guy, hence the black and silver colour scheme for him and his followers. 

Unpainted (Mostly - a couple supplied with very poor finish) as of Monday!

Included with these Daleks is a rare Heavy Weapons Dalek. This and the Davros figure are Warlord Games miniatures - if I remember correctly.

By all accounts the Heavy Weapons Dalek is a venerable,
battered and somewhat disillusioned member of the Dalek Forces 

Whereas Davros, is your typical overbearing megalomaniac,
subject to underestimating his enemies 

As these Dalek models are so cheap (30-40 pence each in UK, if you look hard) they often turn-up with broken pieces, I have simply taken to modelling these as destroyed / knocked-out Daleks by taking a pair of clippers to cut off the top of the model and when painted stuffing the hole with some smoke. (Not sure what this 'smokey' material is exactly but rather conveniently Perry Miniatures use it to pack their metal figures, I long ago realised it makes good smoke / steam, when teased out).

On reflection a darker background may have been better to show off the smoke effect!

These models were undercoated grey, given two watered down black washes before using neat back paint to colour in the lower bumper and collar. Oily Steel was used for the grill work and weapon / sensor stems before a touch of orange on the head sidelights and a light blue 'eye' added to the head stem.

These Davrovian Daleks, will join others I have previously painted,
to form a force within a force for the Daleks

And then the gutsy bit, the silver domes on the body of each Dalek - did you know each model has 48 such domes? The Davros model has 56 domes (presumably because he's in charge!), that's a total of 670 domes...

Luckily I have a secret weapon - a silver Sharpie pen - this allows an oil based silver paint to be placed via a relatively fine nib, onto each raised dome. It made a horrible job tolerable!

Repeat that all with the Heavy Weapons Dalek, which was painted white and then a Gold Sharpie pen was used to add the gold/brass detail on the figure. Another 56 domes, this time in gold.

Next we have a group of Cybermen, again from Warlord Games, this time in plastic. These are pretty much straight out of the box, these guys are straight forward to paint, silver washed with watered down dark tone, then the light blue chest light added and a matt varnish.

Cybermen on their frame

The Cybermen crew, heartless robotic foes of humanity

Close-up of a Cyberman

Finally the Ood, again pretty sinister chaps, all dressed in black with tentacles for a mouth and a small white ball that is a universal translator, enabling then to communicate with anyone they come into contact with.

Ood figures glued to bases and undercoated grey.

Again the Ood are available from eBay as part of a Mini Monster Army set that appears there from time to time and are again as cheap as chips! These guys were undercoated grey and then given three very watered down black washes, to build up a black cloth feel. Skin tones were Balor Brown dry brushed with Ivory and then washed in regular flesh tone. The Tentacles were first painted Imperial Purple and the washed in purple ink.

Not sure what the collective noun for Ood is, lets say here's a flock of Ood!

The translator device was painted white before a matt varnish as scenic basing added.

A detailed view

With all this Dr Who stuff, I sound like I know what I'm talking about! Not so. Its all just what I've found on the web! I haven't really watched any of the episodes since David Tennant left and even then I was an infrequent watcher...

...I just like the idea of putting on a Dr Who themed game at some point in the future - another surrealist Survivor type game no doubt!

I've put all the figures on round bases and have used a home made premix sand / grass scatter - not much shows on the Dalek models though.

Finally as I'd like to argue that the Dr Who theme can be considered a 'Strange Doctor', so I'm claiming the Skaro Bonus

POINTS

13.5 x 28mm Dalek Figures         = 67 Points (I scored the three destroyed Daleks at half normal rate!)

7 x 28mm Ood Figures                 = 35 Points

10 x 28mm Cybermen                  = 50 Points

Scaro Bonus                                  = 20 Points

TOTAL                                          = 172 POINTS

Great score on locating all of these Dr Who figures Mike.  You've done a great job at painting them too, especially given the starting point.  You counted the domes on your Daleks?  The knocked out Daleks are great, I am very familiar with the Perry packing material.  My wife is always happy to see an order from perry as their boxes make great cases for earrings and the like.

from BradS Soviet Invasion of Klendathu [Klendathu][150 points]

Soviet Invasion of Klendathu! 

This week my Soviet Army is gaining momentum and I have decided to invade Klendathu! And as with any real Soviet Invasion I am sure it will go very wrong very quickly. 

Soviet Infantry

Here are the next 6 infantry from my pile of 28mm Under Fire Miniatures figures. These cold war troopers are the backbone of my Soviet force I am building. I am driving hard to have enough vehicles, figures and terrain to put on a game in the near future. Don’t be surprised if you see more Soviets next week. 

Soviet Vehicles

As you can guess, my Soviet infantry isn't going anywhere without their trusty vehicles. This week I have focused on more T-64 tanks and BMP-1 vehicles. It is easier to batch paint these then it is to do them one at a time. It takes a while to complete them but it is soooo worth it! 

Kleinhaus - German post war housing

In my research from Cold War terrain to grace my gameboard, I found that the Kleinhaus was a prominent feature in the German landscape during the Cold War time period. After the war there was a housing boom where a lot of these simple yet elegant homes were built. I imagine a Cold War battle among these types of structures so I had to make one. This is my first attempt at a custom building. I designed this and had it laser cut for me. I think it turned out nice and I plan on doing a lot more.

Game Plan

For some inspiration, I put together a game board layout to see how everything looks all together. Not a real game yet but certainly  getting to the point I can put one on. If anyone is interested in joining I live in Kansas City USA.

Points:

6 x 28mm Soviet Infantry = 30 points

4 x 28mm Soviet Vehicles = 80 points

1 x House = 20 points

1 x Klendathu : Invasion gone wrong = 20 bonus points

Total: 150 points

Well I'd be worried if Mother Russia sent these guys my way! Lovely Cold War Soviets Brad. Really like the AFVs. Does anyone else have a hard time saying BMP with out sounding like Inspecteur Clouseau? I also treally like the neat and tidy little house - was it East or West German?

From Curt: Spanish Refugees from Malaga & Dr. Norman Bethune, 1937 (110 Points)

 

Hi All,

Today I return to my Spanish Civil War project with this group of civilian refugees. 

Sarah and I have been fortunate enough to visit both Cebere France and Malaga Spain in previous vacations. Both of these communities are set in beautiful locations, nestled along the Mediterranean coast, but both share a dark history in that they were also sites to horrible events during the Spanish Civil War. I've written about Cebere before, but I've been wanting to do something specific for Malaga as well.

In February 1937, the Mediterranean port town of Malaga found itself threatened by the rapid advance of Nationalist forces. In a state of panic, 120-150,000 people, composed of men, women and children, fled along the coastal road leading to Almeria, 200 kilometers away. In an act of barbaric cruelty, the Nationalists and their Italian allies harried the refugee column for days, submitting it to both air attacks and off-shore bombardment.  Thousands were killed and wounded during the flight, in what many regard as a war crime exceeding that of the infamous bombing of Guernica. 

At this time, a volunteer Canadian surgeon, by the name of Norman Bethune, was working in the area with is independent blood transfusion ambulance. 

Hearing what was occurring along the coastal road, Bethune and his team quickly drove to the stricken column to give what assistance he could.  For three days and three nights Bethune and his assistants helped evacuate some of the most vulnerable to Almeria, and then provided medical care to the most grievously wounded.

In 2007, the city of Malaga officially honoured Bethune's heroic and humanitarian acts with a commemorative plaque and by naming that portion of the Malaga-Almeria road, Paseo de los Canadienses (The Canadian Promenade). In order to visit the plaque and pay our respects, Sarah and I spent a nice afternoon cycling up to the promenade, situated just a few kilometers outside of Malaga.

A fine way to spend a wonderful day in sunny Spain.

Accordingly, I've done up these figures and vehicles in homage to those events in Malaga. The saloon car and most of the figures are from 1st Corps, the Phenom Granit ambulance is from Empress Miniatures and the poor fellow with the crutches is from Eureka Miniatures. 

My only criticism of the 1st Corps range is that there are not many elderly people, nor any children, in the mix. It's very sad, but it is something that I think should be represented in figures depicting a refugee column. Maybe they will add some in future releases.

Small quibbles aside, I quite like the 1st Corps figures as they are well-sculpted and very characterful. Even more so is this wounded chap on crutches from Empress Miniatures - a brilliant mini.  

The two vehicles were fun to work on, especially the saloon, with its roof haphazardly overloaded with all manner of assorted household items. You really get a sense of a harried family that just threw what they could atop their car and headed off.

I had to get a bit creative in sourcing something for Dr. Bethune. I ended up using a German officer figure from Artizan which I cut away most of his military detail and modeled some baggy civilian trousers out of greenstuff. Granted, a bit crude, but I think he does an okay job at mimicking the good doctor.

Another 'one yard squint' is the ambulance. It's definitely not a close match to Bethune's vehicle, but has the benefit of being generally the right shape. 

I really wanted to include the identifying Spanish script on the vehicle's side panel, but my decal-making skills are sorely lacking, so I simply colour printed  what I needed, carefully cut it out, and glued it into place. Again, forgive me in my somewhat clumsy homage. 

As to points, the 14 figures will give me 70 points, and the two vehicles another 40, so 110 total.

This will give me another point for our Squirrel Duel (my fourth).

This will also allow me to mark off the letter 'B' for 'Bethune' in my Alphabet Soup Challenge.

Aaand, it will check off another task for my overall Challenge project list! Four out of twelve... Yeeash, this is going to be a slog.

1. French Indochina
2. 10mm Fantasy
3. Moonstone
4. Malta
5. Italian Wars
6. Sisters of Battle
7. 28mm Napoleonics
8. Spanish Civil War
9. 28mm Modern
10. 20mm WWII
11. Retreat from Moscow
12. Dungeon Crawl

Thanks for dropping in and have a great week everyone!

- Curt

Excellent work on thee refuges amigo.    A part of every war but definitely  must for SCW.  I always enjoy a history lesson and appreciated the Bethune connection.  I especially like the battered private car loaded down with possessions. 

I believe that Bad Squiddo has some Blitz era child evacuees which might fill one gap you noted above.   

At the rate you're going you'll have hunted down more squirrels that Oscar this challenge.

From FrederickC: The Hobbits of the Fellowship (Noel's Comet) (36 points)

 

Well, I managed to use up most of my acceleration drugs on my race around the Outer Ring, and Vulcan could not supply me with anymore. They told me that they don't need them, since they use Inertial Dampers instead. On top of that, they only had dilithium crystals in stock, but no fuel pellets for my Epstein Drive. 

As a result I am going to head out on a Low-G burn down the gravity well from Vulcan to the passing Noel's Comet of the Middle Ring. The theme is Friendship described in miniature, along with a loquacious story. To illustrate the strong bond of friendship that survives the test of adversity I present the four hobbits of the Fellowship - Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin.

"Go Back, Sam. I'm Going To Mordor Alone." "Of Course You Are. And I'm Coming With You."

As per usual, Samwise Gamgee refuses to leave the side of Frodo. He is a loyal gardener-friend-servant, what have you, through and through. In The Fellowship Of The Ring, Frodo attempts to break away from the group to pursue his mission to destroy the ring all on his own. He believes this is the best way to ensure his success. Paddling away from Sam, Frodo calls out to him to let him go alone. Sam, ever emotional, throws himself into the river and nearly drowns as he screams that he will not leave Frodo. Sam stuck to Frodo on the entire journey to Mount Doom. 

"Are You Going To Leave Me?" "No, Merry. I'm Going To Look After You."

And then we have Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took. Their friendship is the most jovial and fun. These two start out as immature, mischief-makers who are naive to the world. They are constantly engaged in shenanigans together. Whether stealing Gandalf's fireworks, or drinking and singing at 'The Green Dragon', the two are nearly inseparable. Only the most dire circumstances can divide them. They are cousins and best friends, and they care about one another a lot.

 “You can trust us to stick with you through thick and thin — to the bitter end. And you can trust us to keep any secret of yours — closer than you keep it yourself. But you cannot trust us to let you face trouble alone, and go off without a word. We are your friends, Frodo.” 

— Merry, The Fellowship of the Ring

The four figures I painted for this Quadrant Challenge are from the Games Workshop "Attack at Weathertop" boxed set. When I bought the set many years ago I was primarily interested in the five Nazgûl, as I already had painted figures of the four hobbits. As a result these minis languished in the 'big box of unfinished projects' until now. Over the week between Christmas and New Year, my wife and I re-watched the extended edition of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, which is one of our holiday traditions. The reoccurring examples of the strong friendship between the four hobbits stuck in my mind as a worthy submission for this stop on the Quadrant Challenge. They are shown with the scratch-built model of the ruined tower of Amon Sûl, better known as Weathertop, that I built to play the scenario with members of our local gaming group.

 

The four hobbits at Weathertop

 

My Quadrant progress so far

The points being claimed are as follows:

4 x 20mm foot figures @ 4 points each = 16 points

(While they are '28mm scale, hobbits are rather short.)

Quadrant Challenge 'Noel's Comet' - 'Friendship' - 20 Points

 My tour of the Middle Ring begins.

Great work on the four Hobbits Frederick.  You've also clearly met the brief for Noel's Comet, a long story of Noel-like verbosity.  Well done.

From StuartL - Normal Normans Exceeding the Norm - 260 Points

Hello again.

For my second post today, I present a Norman Warband for Saga, or a part of one at least. I already have some models painted for this project, so this is largely just bulking up my force to allow for more options when I field them. 

First of all, a few cavalry models. The mini in front holding the baguette?? is meant to represent Bishop Odo of Bayeux, William the Conqueror's half brother, who accompanied him on his attack on England. He became the Earl of Kent, regent of England and eventually died on his way to Palestine during the First Crusade. Accompanying him are two regular Norman knights.  Odo and the left hand model are from Foundry, the guy with the sword is from Conquest Games.

Here we have 8 crossbowmen, all metal minis from Wargames Foundry. The models are okay, but some of their faces are a little weird when viewed close up. 

And to provide more ranged support, 10 archers from Conquest Games. As plastic Dark Age archers go, the figures are all pretty good, especially when compared to the competing kit from Gripping Beast. Conquest made the rather odd design decision to have the arms attach midway between the elbow and the shoulder, which made assembling these guys in believable stances tough. I do like that they included left handed options (The model in the centre of the front rank), something that most companies never bother with.

Though Saga doesn't allow Normans to take heavy weapons, the plastic infantry kit from Conquest includes some double handed axes, which I have used for these 5 chaps. The Normans were originally of Viking stock and as such would have been familiar with the use of these weapons. I'll probably just mix them in with regular troops, or perhaps field them as a special unit some time. 

And here we have the bulk of the force, 22 warriors equipped with spears, swords and shields. Rather than faff about with transfers, I hand painted all of the shields in simple striped patterns. I then added a little weathering using a sponge. This had the dual effect of adding a bit more character to the patterns and also hiding some places where my lines weren't as straight as I would have liked. 

And to finish, a shot of the force as a whole. 45 infantry and 3 cavalry models to bolster my forces. I do have some more cavalry models to do, so I may add some more to this warband before the end of the challenge, but I do have a lot of other things in my painting queue. At some point, I would like to refight the Battle of Hastings as I already have a large army of Anglo-Saxons and some Breton allies for these Normans. I'm torn between adding reinforcements from Footsore's metal minis or Victrix's new plastics as they both look superb. The realist in me tells me that I will probably get both. 

Anyway, for my Challenge score, we have:

45x 28mm infantry at 5 points each for 225 points.

3x 28mm cavalry at 10 points each for 30 points.

For a grand total of 255 points.

Boom!  That's quite the force of Normans Stuart, if you've exceeded the norm does that make them para-Norman?   i am not a big Saga fan as I find them pretty gamey, but I know many enjoy them.

Bishop Odo is one the of the great characters of the Conquest.  Who knows, maybe a three day old baguette would be just as effective as the wooden club he carried at Hastings in order to avoid bloodshed!  Gotta love this many hand painted sheilds too, but you clearly need more knights.  I've upped the point total for the shields.