SHM Alien Civilians, Kremlin Miniatures outage, RAFM Sale

15mm.Co.Uk has added four new alien civilians to the growing SHM Range. 

Sculpted by Dropship Horizon's own Eli Arndt, these are perfect additions to any bustling spaceport. What I enjoy most about figures like this is their versatility - they can be great background pieces or objectives in larger force-against-force games, specialty characters in small skirmish games, or characters/NPCs in tabletop role playing games. 

SHM Range - Starport Denizens III

From left to right, we have a Varlish Envoy (a good diplomat/clerical figure), a Nimuan Orator (ideal for a public speaker, singer, or even an alien news correspondent), a second Burgansian (complete with float disc), and a Tandapash musician. These figures are available in the new 8-figure blister Starport Denizens III, and each can be purchased as a single casting on the SHM Science Fiction page.

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It was brought to our attention that Kremlin Miniatures experienced a brief web outage this week, and we received some questions about whether they were still in business. Well, I have good, bad, and more good news about them. First bit of good news... They are still operating, so we are still able to get our hands on the figures in that great little range. 

Cyberian Death Commandos

The bad news? Their casting machine is temporarily out of commission, so it will be a few months before they are able to start casting and shipping again. The second bit of good news? Russ was able to get the store back online, so you can once again see all the packs the entire 15mm Power Spike line. 

Rising Sun MANITOU

So send them an email if you're interested in ordering sometime in the near future... a few advance orders might help Kremlin become fully operational. I can always use a few more Rising Sun MANITOU - still one of my favorite 15mm mini-mech/landmate suits. 

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Quite a few 15mm Science Fiction wargamers were introduced to the scale through the original Traveller figures... and  many of us still use them as the basis of comparison for today's figures. It's no surprise - most of the old sculpts still hold up quite well today. RAFM did a great job arranging them into logical figure packs when they took over the range - very useful for grabbing tons of civilians, pirates, crewmen, etc. in a single purchase. 

So for fans of that range (I still love the old "bucket head" marines) - or anyone who just wants to see what the fuss is all about - RAFM is holding a 35% off sale through 31 August.

Space Vixens

The sale doesn't just apply to the ex-Traveller figures. It covers the entire store - including original 15mm figures and vehicles like the alien Insolani, and the 28mm USX drones (which have no details betraying their scale).

So head on over to RAFM's web store and enjoy the sale.

Rescued Traveller Spacers

Remember I mentioned my old Citadel 15mm Traveller minis? This is a closeup of some of the 'rescued' spacesuits. They were scuffed, grimy and generally a bit poor to behold. Here they are 'rescued' by a wash of Windor and Newton Peat ink (Thank you Craig!).

Citadel 15mm Traveller Minis circa 1979

They haven't come up too bad have they? All the scuffs and scrapes have disappeared. OK, not pretty, but I don't like pretty when it comes to painting miniatures. Peat ink has also toned down the orange to a more Mars / 'dirt planet' colouration. Popping them onto a base makes all the difference - a colourful badge, a stripe, some ground cover and we have a tasty little unit. Seeing them like thhis, i really can't be arsed to highlight - they work for me.

I found some guys with toolboxes etc - and a couple of characters with pistols (huzzah!) - that's the Pulp side sorted. I also have another 20 or so armed, some painted, some (RAFM production) not and could quickly turn out a combat platoon in no time. No support weapons, but if I get some additional Rebel Minis' Earth Force Marine heavies and paint them orange - no one will mind (wink).

Perfect for taking on hordes of Master Chefs new Llhurggs.

Cheers

Mark

 

RAFM Traveller - 15mm Vargr, Aslan and Droyne

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On 17th July I reported news direct from the RAFM homepage which stated that the ex-Traveller line of tanks and miniatures was being taken out of production.

RAFM's homepage has since announced an expansion to the range of miniatures - in essence ex-Citadel Traveller Vargr, Aslan and Droyne. However the larger more expensive ex-Martian Metals' Grav tanks and AFVs formerly in the Grav Tanks section of the website have been removed from sale.

I'm glad the Mid-High tech figures are still available . Undoubtably these new additions will be popular. I checked Ebay today and found three, yes THREE! 15mm ex-Citadel Traveller Aslan miniatures being offered for £10!

Don't forget Critical Mass Games' Protolene Khanate will be released on 23rd November and Khurasan Miniatures' Felids very soon.

Before anyone in the UK rushes off and orders these minis - between the Post Office, HM Customs and RAFM's own not cheap overseas rates, the delivery charges come to about 50% of the order value. It's worth bearing in mind that in the UK, we have to order goods of value less than £18 or get charged 15%VAT, PLUS, an £8 GBP administration charge from the Post Office.

Cheers
Mark
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Sci Fi Rambles in Uruzgan

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I downloaded Operation: Uruzgan, the first 'Ops' (scenario) book for use with Ambush Alley's Force on Force last week.

Operation: Uruzgan takes a detailed look at Australian operations in the Uruzgan Province of Afghanistan and contains:

• 9 Historically Accurate Scenarios
• A Historical Overview of Operations in the Region Since Anaconda
• Special Rules to Represent the Unique Flavor of Taliban Operations in Uruzgan
• Special Rules to Represent the ADF’s Operations in Uruzgan, Including ROEs and COIN based tactics
• 5 New Vehicle Write-Ups, including the Bushmaster IMV
• Uruzgan Specific Fog of War Cards
• Uruzgan Specific Asset Cards
• Guidelines for Using Scenarios with Other Coalition Forces

First off, the production quality is superb - this is nothing less than a professional product. Well done guys!

I haven't had a chance to do more than scan the scenarios and various chapters, due to still being less than par but I have to say that this is pure classic Traveller Book 4: Mercenary territory. You can lift these scenarios and drop them into any platoon level Sci Fi system. Rebel Minis Earth Force Marines conducting COIN on Mars against the Sahadeen - not a problem!

My own classic Traveller Book 4: Mercenary 'tickets' were always less than glamorous. Laserburn Mercs or Asgard Imperial Marines fought lonely and desperate 'police actions' in Peruvian style hills - think Proof of Life (2000, Russell Crowe). I guess because of the visualisation I had of South American guerrilla and COIN warfare imprinted on me at an impressionable age through reading War of the Flea (Robert Taber).

Operation: Uruzgan takes me back to those games and gives me an opportunity to replay these types of missions again - this time with Ambush Alleys' draft Tommorrows War - and also possibly FAD4 using the Traveller supplement, which reminds me - I still have Tom War BatReps to post, though the photos are still stuck on the faulty camera. Stuff it, I'll take some 'supplementary' photos of my figures in 'Mog City' at the weekend to illustrate the BatReps and post them up individually next week.

Cheers
Mark
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Life Work The Universe......The Generals Tent

Given the mixed weather this week it comes as little surprise that it's Wimbledon and lawn tennis season already.

June in Kinkydeenshire

Not really my game, but no warm blooded man should ever pass up the opportunity........and far prettier to watch than rugby. Whilst my mind lingers on beautiful Russian figures.....at the end of last month I ordered both the Flames of War WW2 Engineer-Sappers and Engineer-Sapper Flamethrower sets from Maelstrom Games. Ostensibly for and Berlin '45 Gotterdammerung and Weird World War Two games. You may remember that I discussed the potential for using them as Sci Fi Retro-Neo Soviet troops in a previous post.

Flames of War SU803
Soviet Engineer-Sapper Platoon

Well, the miniatures arrived and are bloody brilliant! They are so stonkingly good, I'm going to make them into one of my core Sci Fi armies.

I want to especially highlight FOW's Sapper Engineer Flamethrower Platoon (SU804).

Flames of War SU804
Soviet Engineer-Sapper Flamethrowers

I was instantly smitten by the figures as they spilled out of the pack! Give these guys visors, a comms link on the side of the helmet and they will make perfect classic Traveller/Mercenary mid-tech Infantry with laser carbines, straight out of the original Traveller Book 4: Mercenary book.

The downside is that there are only 16 figures in a pack, with no officer/NCO miniatures, or heavier squad support weapons - so you'd need to purchase the standard Engineer-Sapper platoon pack for these and convert as necessary if you wanted to represent a full leg infantry platoon - However command and support elements can always be provided by APCs, drones and UAVs, especially with Future War Commander, where I will use them as the dismounts for my Hykranian mech infantry forces.

But this project is more than just putting minis on the table. I don't mind admitting that these Engineer-Sappers have given me a huge element of gaming nostalgia for the Traveller Book 4: Mercenary games of yesteryear that I want to capture again.

Cheers
Mark

Rebel Minis - 15mm Earth Force Marines PREVIEW

Dropship Horizon is delighed to share with you a preview of Rebel Minis forthcoming range of 15mm Earth Force Marines.

Rebel Minis 15mm
Earth Force Marines

These space grunts are the first of a complete range of Marines in vacc / environmental combat suits which will include NCOs/platoon leaders, support weapons and snipers (pictures will follow soon).

15mm Earth Force Marine 'Grunts'
from Rebel Minis

What can I say? A squad of troops that tell a coherent story in complimentary and natural advancing poses, wins me over every single time. Bloody Marvellous!

There's something really down to earth about these figures. The mini's in the photos exude the gritty feel of the universal grunt of the future. I don't think they would look out of place as C21st futuristic troopers on Earth, tumbling out of a hover APC on Mars or moving forward in Mudd Eisley under the protection of plasma cannons on their Untra-tech Grav MICV.

To this 70's teenager, they are very reminiscent of classic Traveller Sci Fi, and that appeals to me at a deep level. I must admit that I'm really tempted to purchase hordes of Rebel's new Earth Force Marines when they are available, give them GZG's new Ultra-tech GRAV armour and warm up STRIKER the Traveller based futuristic mass combat rules for a complete nostalgia-fest.

Nevertheless, these minis will be perfect for FWC, Ambush Alley and the obligatory space corridor guncrawl. Did someone say "Bughunt?"

Mike also plans a complimentary range of Sci Fi AFV's and a corresponding gunship. An opposition force is already in the works, I've seen the greens and you will be pleased!

Keep an eye on DROPSHIP HORIZON for information on further figures in the range and forthcoming release dates.



Cheers
Mark

Sci Fi Reading 1

Last week I took some time out to re-read Future History by Jerry Pournelle, a combined volume of two stories The Mercenary and West of Honor, linked through the same protagonist, John Christian Falkenberg. Both stories revolve around mercenaries in a future where colonised worlds are policed by the Co-Dominion, in many ways similar to the Alliance and "Earth that was" from the Firefly 'Verse.

It's always easy to slip into Future History's pages, as it reads like sipping brandy and swapping late night tales with an old friend. Every time I read it, my minds eye projects the ex-Citadel Traveller Miniatures Mid-Tech troopers (now RAFM's Infantry Pack No.2) into the role of Falkenberg's Legionnaires.

I'm determined at some stage this year to replay the action at Fort Beersheba as a solo mini-campaign. In fact as a campaign setting, one of the great things about the book is that it includes two maps! There's a world map that's pure Traveller! All it needs are the polygons overlaid. Then we are given a more detailed sketch map of the Arrarat region where the majority of the action takes place. This makes the whole thing intensely 'do-able' as a small but fun wargame side-project.

This weekend I've started Ghosts of Onyx, a HALO universe novel by Eric Nylund. Well, I couldn't resist the cover! This is apparently the fourth novel in the series, but I've just dropped in here and don't think I've missed anything by not reading the previous volumes.

The the story begins in the year 2545 with a company of SPARTAN-IIIs being dropped from orbit in an assault on a Covenant fleet refueling depot. Like it so far...

I must admit that I cringed inwardly but then actually thought it was a cool homage that the Spartan 'Company' is 300 strong - '300 Spartans' geddit! Though given the prowess of a single Spartan on the XBOX, I think a company of even just 6 might be a tad excessive!

The Master Chef created a small HALO inspired Spartan force for FWC and they wiped the opposition from the table in double-quick time. More on this in a later blog entry.

If you want SPARTANS in 15mm, look no further than GZG's New Israeli Armoured Infantry in Hardsuits, SG15-Z1. The New Israelis pictured below are an excellent example taken from Chez Ebbles' blog which includes some great painting tips, if you want to recreate this look yourself. Incidentally, I must take a serious look at Chez's 'Guncrawl' space corridor rampage game.

Chez Ebbles SPARTANS.
Great paint job!

I'm currently repainting my own HALO dedicated force of '30 SPARTANS' (there's a credit crunch after all!) to look closer to what Chez has achieved with his figures. I wouldn't mind at all if Jon at GZG expanded this line with more combat, support and command types. Certainly one of the best and most versatile sets of miniatures in his 15mm Stargrunt range.

Cheers
Mark

Blast from the Past

I just thought I'd share a blast from the past. This is the first APC I bought and painted to play Sci Fi tabletop battles inspired by Traveller Book 4: Mercenary. It's a Roco Minitanks 1/87th scale U.S. Army M114, Command and Reconnaissance APC.

This M114 was purchased around 1979-80 at The Harrow Model Shop, my childhood Mecca way back then. At that time was located in Station Road, an old fashioned modelshop that was more bazaar than store. There was nothing else to speak of on the market in the way of 15mm Sci Fi AFVs outside of TTG's Laserburn APC. So the M114, a couple of Minitanks 1/87th Heer Racketenjagdpanzer (Jaguar1) with SS11 missiles and a Roskopf eight wheeled Spahpanzer Luchs, came together as my Sci Fi armour.

The camo scheme? It's based on the 1970's US Army MERDC pattern. The brown base colour is an Airfix Paints 'Earth', which was the best earth tone I have ever found. I was in the 6th form at school when I painted this - 30 years ago now! Unvarnished and never re-touched. They knew how to make paints back then!

Googling Rocco Minitanks for this blog entry, I found that the M114 and Racketenjagdzpanzer SS11 & TOW versions) have been re-released through Herpa and are still available from On Tracks in the UK.

Herpa (Roco Minitanks) Racketenjagdpanzer with SS11 ATGW

I'm delighted to find these in the UK at a reasonable price. Not only can I replace the Racketenjagdpanzers, but I had previously wanted some of the Minitanks 1/87th Heer airportable Wiesals for use in Sci Fi games and can now fulfill that desire as Herpa produces both the 20mm cannon and TOW ATGW versions amongst others from the Wiesal family.

Herpa (Roco Minitanks) Wiesal airportable APC

So, why buy these when there are so many great Sci Fi AFV's available in 2009? Well, nostalgia plays a key part of course, but these models are also sufficiently different that they are not instantly recognisable as Cold War hardware. I also feel they have a retro-Sci Fi style that makes them a great alternative choice for Mid-Tech AFV's. And c'mon, the Wiesals will provide perfect support for the wonderfully gritty RAFM ex-citadel Traveller/Striker Mid-tech Infantry Pack No.2.

RAFM Infantry Pack No.2
Great Mid-tech Infantry!

Whilst on the subject of 1/87th AFV's, here's a lucky charity shop find I picked up ostensibly for AK47 games. It's a diecast 1/87th Soviet BRDM1 Light Wheeled Amphibious Reconnaissance Vehicle. I thought it was Eastern European in origin but just found that it's possibly made by Fidelis Models in the US. Takes away some of it's charm.... nevertheless, once again you can see it has that retro-Sci Fi look about it. In a side by side comparison, it easily compliments Old Crow's wheeled Outrider Scout Car. Comparing dimensions between the two models there's actually little in it, with the BRDM being slightly longer and only 4mm wider.

Diecast 1/87th BRDM1 A/Car

Some spare parts from GZG, such as V15-ACC4: Sensors and Radars, a futuristic camo scheme and it will look superb as a Mid-tech command or recce vehicle.

Cheers
Mark

Listen Up!

OK Marines, take a knee, the Master Chef here.

High Command have noticed that there are far too many unpainted figures out there and something needs to be done about it. I presume you are painting RAFM High Tech infantry and you want to paint them as Spartans. What else do you want to paint them as?

I’ll talk slow, so try to keep up.

One!
Buy some artist mountain card, dark brown shade or whatever
fits the terrain you will fight on most of the time.

Two!

Glue your figures onto the base. Remember, don’t cluster and make it easy

for the alien scum to take all the guys with one frag grenade!

Three!

Let the glue DRY! This means YOU!

Four!
Get your green ink/wash. We use GW Thraka Green but there you go.
Apply the wash liberally over the figures.

Five!
Do it again to cover anything you missed at stage 4.
If you need a 3rd coat, you are off this course, you dumb grunt!

Six!
Let the ink dry!

No one won a war by handling wet figures.

Seven!
Paint the visor – yes paint it GOLD!
What other colour do you paint visors?
YOU DON’T NEED TO ANSWER THAT!

Eight!

Apply unit patches; a simple red dot on the left arm will do.

No patches, no crossed paintbrush insignia ribbon.

Nine!

Paint the weapons and kit black, steel or whatever.
No pretty colours! Repeat

NO PRETTY COLOURS!!

Ten!
Use brown ink to dye the edge of the card and add flock etc to taste.

Eleven!
Find some alien scum and KILL THEM!

The Master Chef's Alien Scum
Ex-Citadel Traveller Aslan with GZG Kra'vak APC