Friday 12 April 2013

Aliens, Armed Explorers, Xenobiologists, and Hammer's Slammers

by Chris


Rebel Minis has expanded both the Manth and Pangalactic Legion ranges. The Manth are joined by the Command and Heavy Weapons Pack. It includes a Commander, a Communications Specialist, two Automatic Pulse Cannon soldier, a Missile Launcher soldier, and a Galactic Peacekeeper (which is one of new favorite 15mm figures).  


Even if you aren't a Manth player, this pack would make a wonderful narrative-skirmish force. Maybe it's just the excellent paint scheme that Jason Moore gave the Peacekeeper... I see this pack as a senior diplomat/religious leader/chief-of-state with his/her/its personal bodyguard. Grab a handful of other figures from your current collection, some MDF or electrical-box buildings, and you have everything you need to play out a spaceport ambush, an embassy attack, or a mercenary or special forces hit on a high-value alien terrorist leader.



The popular Pangalactic Legion is reinforced by the Shock Troopers


These figures are equipped with "pig sticker" vibro-gauntlets instead of the Legion's traditional energy weapons. They add a much-desired melee capability, making it one of the more versatile 15mm alien figure ranges on the market.

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Early last year, Dropship Horizon founder Mark showed us a sneak peak of Khurasan Miniatures' Horizon Explorer and Iguana Personnel Carrier. They were sadly delayed due to some issues with getting the prints cleaned, but I'm pleased to announce that the Iguana is now available (with the explorer due very soon).


Seeing it painted and weathered like this... it was a vehicle worth waiting for. These are exactly what I've always imagined carrying vac-suited troops through dusty moonscapes and across Martian deserts. Something tells me that we'll see a few sellouts of these vehicles before everyone manages to get one. :)

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Khurasan Miniatures also adds another character to the Sepulvedan Resistance range. Xenobiologist Camilla Bathurst joins the ranks of legends like Dave Rimmer, Desiree Kim, and the Teacup Tornado.


I can't imagine that this will be at all appealing to the pulp and cinematic gamers in the 15mm community... great figure!

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Big news for all you Hammer's Slammers fans out there. The 15mm range of officially-licensed vehicles has now been taken over by Ainsty Castings, who have released the Blower tank and the Combat Car.



Ainsty assumes the license from Old Crow Models. Old Crow has been on a lengthy hiatus while Jez has been busy with real life (and by real life, I mean major involvement in a Hollywood film). While certainly understandable, it has left players of one of the largest 15mm games without the ability to get vehicles for their games. Ainsty Castings not only stepped up to cover the gap, but they worked with Crucible author John Treadaway to update the vehicles. The Blower tank was increased in size - and now looks like the 170-ton behemoth featured in the David Drake books. Here's a comparison with its Old Crow predecessor:



It now scales quite nicely with the larger offerings from Critical Mass, Ravenstar, and Khurasan. For more comparison shots and information about the new range, have a look at this TMP thread. Note that while Old Crow will no longer be producing 15mm Slammers vehicles, the rest of the 15mm range will still be around when the store reopens.

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And speaking of real life getting in the way... A new "product" appeared in my home this week:


As much as I'd like to do a proper review on this new product, I just haven't had all that much time with him yet. But so far he seems very strong, if not a bit fragile. I'll just have to wait and see how he performs in the future. :)

20 comments:

  1. Congrats on the new addition!

    One of the few things cooler than that new Iguana vehicle ;)

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  2. Congratulations! That's a baby, all right. :)

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  3. Yes a big congrats on the new baby. thanks for sharing and enjoy.:)

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  4. Well night time feeds can make useful wargaming time. Congratulations

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  5. Congrats on the new product Chris!

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  6. Congrats on the new product... my own son is just 3 months, so I'll only a little ahead of you. Good luck, hope you can co[e with the sleep deprivation.

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  7. Congrats on the newest addition to your skirmish force Chris :)

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  8. And nice paint job! Not sure I dig the camo though... Congrats!

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  9. What scale is the new addition? Can I have a comparison picture......




    gratz :)

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  10. Congratulations, now you can start planning how to turn him into a tabletop gamer ;-)

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  11. Congratulations on your latest crew member to join the Dropship Horizon...

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  12. Many congratulations on your new addition Chris!

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  13. Congrats Chris! For 15mm, that's a BIG living model!

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  14. Thanks for the congrats, everyone!

    @Phil - I originally had the same idea. But then learned that trying to paint at 3:30AM is a horrible idea. On my workbench is a Mad Mecha Guy shipping container that looks like a preschool art project...

    @Stroezie - I made the comment when placing my Critical Mass ZAS Kickstarter order that those funds really should be spent on baby items... so it's entirely possible that my ZAS will become his first army when he is ready. :)

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  15. Great looking little future warrior.
    Good job CK!
    :)

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  16. CONGRATULATIONS!!! Mine son(firstborn) is just over 7 weeks old!!!!

    Yes, it's a game/life changer!!! Partial pun intended...

    Take care!
    Brian

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