Two more SITREPs this week, and I have another in-progress covering my Dark Eldar character. More details coming soon also for the Enforcers (who I’ve also slowly been working on).
NEWS
Lots of new releases from Knights of Dice down under – 15 new kits. However, the ones I’m most excited about are the two new compounds they previewed over the past few weeks and their new doors pack. I’m really excited about the doors – they were an element I was dreading having to make so having an easy to purchase kit makes it all easier. I’m also very tempted by those compounds – I know I know I have a lot to finish but both of those kits seem ideal for some CQB gameplay.
The White Dragon Mastiff draws nearer! DwArtist is working on it and as you can see, it’s looking like a beauty. Definitely going to be picking one of these up.
UPDATES
An order from Empress arrived last week. First up, the charity Medic figure from the WW2 range. As well as wanting to support a good cause, she seems perfect for my British Chain of Command (acting as a marker for the Medical Orderly). I’m definitely going to be getting some paint on her soon.
The other part was a little experiment. I’m going to write a full SITREP on these guys when I get to it but I’m looking for some alternative models to play the Aden Defence Force in my Bazistan games. As much as I like the Eureka British, I really want something that will stand out when put next to the rest of my British collection. So for this reason, I decided to see if the Empress French would be a good fit. I’ve got some more work to do on them so watch this space.
Finally, after a long long lockdown delay, my battlemats from Geek Villain and Tiny Terrain have arrived. SO far, I’m really impressed with them, but I want to try and get a game in using both these mats and my deep cut one before a write a mat-off. However, very happy with the quality on them and the two free figures from Tiny Terrain was a nice touch!
That’s it for this update, expect more updates next week! See you on Wednesday for more streaming!
So a quick update on the Gage Commando – after the first post went up, I decided to add a few little tweaks to it.
Smoke launchers: pulled from the Spectre accessories kit, these two mounted on the turret seemed pretty much perfect for an internal security vehicle. Possibly launching other types of grenade if needed.
Aerial: taken from the Tigr kit from Empress, the aerial seemed sturdy enough for my purposes and is just a neat additional touch.
Fuel tank. Just to break up the lines I added a jerry can on the side. The aim with this vehicle is not to make it loaded down/designed for long-distance work. Most of its operations will be on-road or in suburban areas, so much of it’s kit is just not needed. I also wanted to reduce how much equipment could be torn off the side of it, if it ended up in a civil disobedience situation.
With these stowage options added, I think the vehicle is ready for the basecoat. It will then get a pure tan base colour, before I go to work on the details.
This week’s stream work, finishing off the Spectre Contractor that came with the Version 2 rulebook pre-order. This is a cool looking model, using a suppressed Glock with a modernised FAL slung across his front. I’ve got a weak spot for the Baseball Cap/Comtacs look, especially as figures using that look can often end up being used for a whole selection of forces.
Now you may notice, I clipped the optic off the top of the Glock. This is really a personal touch – I prefer my pistol optics low profile (and not needing the full bridge over the top).
Painting wise, I originally had this planned for multicam trousers, tan jacket. However, after thinking it through and deciding tan for webbing, I realised the jacket and webbing would just merge together. So instead, I changed to a darker colour top. I really like the overall effect of this, giving them a very different look from the tan figures I’ve been painting recently.
Two models for the price of one this week – finishing off another few elements of the Bazi military. These were fun to paint and I’m quite happy at how they are finished off. The whole point at the moment is slowly working through my stockpile, getting everything painted up.
NEWS
Some rather interesting updates from Laser Cut Buildings in Poland. A really nice looking modular fort setup, which I could definitely see being used for several locations (such as forts or prisons or chemical weapon factories). Not 100% on how they build but there seems a rather good range from them.
UPDATES
Big news this week, the Alamo Kickstarter arrived. With a rather impressive turnaround, the big box of MDF at my door and I eagerly dug in. As you can see, I picked up the two compound sets, giving me a whole host of Adobe structure pieces to mess around with. The package also includes a pile of TTS pieces, to assemble them into a board.
I haven’t managed to assemble much, but the few pieces I’ve put togather are definitely promising. The fact the roof pieces are removable in such a natural way (rather than straight lines) definitely adds to their utility. I’m already seeing some ideas on how best to make these buildings more modern/Bazi/Afghan style, so will definitely be assembling those ideas into a document at some point.
In non-MDF news, my upgrade parts from Anvil Industry arrived. As well as several heads for my Enforcers, I also got a selection of cloaks. Some of these will be going on enforcers (with camo elements added) but one of them…
Has gone onto my Dark Elf Archon. This figure has been sat on the back burner for a while, waiting for me to get down to finishing it’s customisation. A SITREP on it is coming soon, but I’m really excited to get this guy painted up… along with a few of his friends.
That’s it for this update, expect more updates next week! See you on Wednesday for the next Twitch stream.
Tonight’s work on the Twitch stream was a twofer – two more figures for the Bazi Military!
The two figures in question are the Adepticon Special from Spectre and the Hammerhead free model from a few years ago. Each takes a different role in the military – the Adepticon special (technically an insurgent gunner) will be joining the Insurgent Killteam to become a Bazi SF trooper, using a bullpup PKP to lay down some heavy firepower.
The Officer will be a high ranking member of the Bazistan Military, perhaps even a member of the Royal Family. I’m not a particular fan of this model – it’s definitely an older style of sculpt, not quite as crisp as Spectre or Empress. But it will definitely have a role to play.
I quite like the backpack mounted ammo pack on the gunner. I’m also very happy that it’s a different style to the packs on the other guys using bullpup PKMs.
As you can see, the MMG gunner fits in with the rest of the Bazi SF team quite well and should bring a pretty useful chunk of firepower cover the rest of the team. Or clear some rooms.
Similarly, the commander figure also fits the Royal Guard that will be escorting him. Through the use of the same basic colours (although slightly less wash to make him look brighter and less dirty). Particularly like the slight flash of gold on him, just to make him even fancier.
A new week beginning, lots of events going on in the world that I’ll admit I’ve found hard to take my eyes off. I’d like to echo the start of last week’s update – Listen to those in need, to those who are hurting and have had enough, try to help if you can, stand with them if you are able.
Post wise, two more SITREPs of WIP stuff. I’m really excited about both, but the Enforcers have been especially fun to assemble. I’m looking forward to more parts arriving, mainly so I can finish the squad off and begin painting all of them.
NEWS
Right, let’s start off the news with perhaps the most relevant at the moment. I realise people find it very easy to be suspicious of companies posting images of text on twitter whenever real-world events. With the current events in the United States, there has been a whole pile of them. For Wargamers, the big one to see is Games Workshop putting their foot forward – and frankly, it’s a great step to see.
I’m not going to say this much but let’s make it very clear: If you don’t agree with their statement, then sadly this isn’t the blog for you.
Also speaking of Games Workshop, this week see the pre-orders for the next wave of Aeronautica Imperialis. And seeing as this wave adds the Valkyries and Vultures of the Imperial Guard, the models I jumped into the game to collect, I’m about to get very busy.
Back in the modern-day setting, Empress has released a new version of the Danger Close rules, previously covered in the grand comparison. This new update, as well as fixing some issues, also adds two elements I explicitly mentioned as missing in the first review – air support and vehicles. Based on the games they have been running on the Empress Facebook page, this update looks very promising.
UPDATES
Seeing as the Valkyries cometh, I need to get my starter set finished before I allow myself to pick up any more boxes of tiny planes. The other imperial aircraft are designed to be part of a tactical air wing, but these bombers will be from a different squadron. Rather than fancy camo schemes, these will be tan with markings. And because the other aircraft are subdued, these guys are going to be slightly garish, relying on their firepower over camouflage.
I took last week off the painting, but this week I will be back and finishing this guy – the Spectre Insurgent MMG gunner. He’s be painted up as a support gunner for my Bazi SF team, so one last figure in three colour desert and then we can get back to other camo schemes.
That’s it for this update, expect more updates next week!
Seeing as my Bazi Royal Guard are now basically done, it’s time to give them a little support to roll around in. Having picked up the Gage Commando from Empress at Hammerhead (back in the before times), it seemed kind of perfect. Something capable of shrugging off rifle rounds or smashing through obstacles while not quite the overwhelming damage of a fully armoured tank.
Assembly was Empress’s usual ease (and a little bit of shaving down) – I decided to go without the rear-mounted M60 (in Bazi service, it would probably be more likely a PKM) and put a .50cal and a .30cal in the turret. This should make it perfect for covering the other Royal Guard elements, or providing escort to VIPS.
The final touch was the crewman. As you may remember, the knife-wielding gentleman from the main packs for the Bazi Royal Guard was declared terrible and pulled off the painting log. However, his body is still pretty well modelled and so (after an incident with a saw) he is now perfect for a vehicle commander. To replace the undersized head, I pulled a head from the Warlord Paratrooper spure, shave down the cap badge and then did some surgery. Rather than cutting and pinning, I managed to adjust the hand positions just by pushing the arms into a new location. He now has a clenched fist on the turret top while grabbing the side of the
Now, before this is put on the undercoat pile, I just need to do a final tweak to the vehicle crew – sculpting on a headset to make him look a little more prepared for his role.
So Necromunda – the game of gangers and steams pipes, of slowly buildings up heroes only to watch them die to the most ridiculous things. It’s a game I’ve been interested in for a long time, especially as my former housemates got into it after I left (due to the new release of the updated game) and keep being lured back to take part. Now having moved down to Leeds (and within striking distance of the rest of the players) I fully intended to assemble a gang and get to scrapping… until the lockdown occurred. However, this has instead given me time to assemble a crew of my own.
The real question is who to play. And (perhaps at the worst time for it) I decided to go Enforcers. I’ve always loved the idea of playing the Adeptus Arbities back in the old rules – the limited number of figures per encounter, the models in their armour, the concept of turning up to cause havoc for the rest of the players. Of course, they have changed in the new rules, becoming the Hive Lord’s enforcers, along with some rather fantastic looking figures
Now, the campaign I’m joining already has some law enforcing fellows working for the hive lords. This, of course, got my cogs turning, thinking how else to use the enforcers in an alternative role. Back in university, in a Dark Heresy game, I had an mercenary character in the game by the name of Dekko McNespy. He was always written to be one of a family in the same business, so why not go ahead and make that firm?
From this, the idea was born. Based on the setting of the campaign, my warband is going to be a group hired from ‘McNespy, Daughter and Sons’ to “assist” the local enforcers in removing the various gangs. The enforcer’s rules can represent a wealthy mercenary group, backed by a Rogue Trader family that can afford all this equipment and additional recruits.
When assembling these guys, the core idea was to use the enforcer models but then add all the extra details that hardened sci-fi mercenaries would gain throughout their time. Each figure should look like they are part of the same group but also be individual – the way I see it, the company provides the basic equipment, but each merc will then add their own kit and setup. In addition, I’ve added a new common element to each – an aerial on the back of their armour, made from bolter optics from the Intercessor kit.
The main thing though – swapping out the helmet. I think the combination of helmet and armour makes the enforcers look like enforcers. To make a more irregular look to my guys, I decided that everyone would have a different head from those in the box. Now, this doesn’t mean they will all be unique – it makes sense that some of guys in the group might have invested in the same equipment.
The other focus is making sure equipment is laid out correctly. For most of my guys, they are going to be right handed so pistols are design for that. Anything designed to use in the off hand (grenades or other gadgets) should be easy to retrieve without having to drop your primary – handy when preparing to breach and clear.
Merc 1 is the most obviously interesting pose from the announcement box – stub pistol and torch held in a Harries grip for ultimate tactical preparedness. Ideal for sweeping through the underhive. With this gear being good for a point man, I decided to go with the SAS/S10 gas mask head from Anvil Industry and then added a few of the grenades and shock maul from the enforcer sprue. For a little extra detail, a knife and pouch from the Space Marine Intercessor sprue rounded out the look.
Merc 2 is definitely more of a “Breacher” role. It’s also partially modelled off some of my kit for airsoft, mostly inspired from seeing the Ops Core helmet in the head sprues my friend sent me. To go with the role, he’s armed with the combat shotgun with a pistol stapped to his chest. As well as looking cool, it helps to cover up the circular design element on their chest. To get that pistol to fit however, I had to drim it down slightly, before re-attaching the end cap, giving this gentlemen a snub stub pistol.
To finish him off, a whole selection of pouches have been placed on his back and a pair of frag grenades are on his shoulder, easy to snatch off the panel and fling through a doorway.
Merc 3 is the first of the Subjugators (a heavier armour set design for handling the serious bad guys), I decided to go with the classic pistol and armoured shield look. This required a little bit of hand swapping around – thankfully, you can very easily trim away the hand and glue the pistol into place. Similarly, I also trimmed the holster to make it look like the pistol had just been pulled. I also wanted to make this guy seem on the religious side – a trimmed Deathwatch icon on the shield front (again covering the circular element), a Space Marine reliquary hanging from his belt and then the small Space Marine book sat on the shoulder behind the shield
I’ll admit, these first three were built mostly operating on a rule of cool. For the rest of the box, I’m going to assemble a basic list to direct me forward. However, there will still be plenty of models assembled just to look cool (I’m not being that much of a slave to the rules). I also have a few more pieces on the way, such as a few more heads (need all those shades).
In other news, after rolling up my starting territory for the campaign, turns out I’m allowed to recruit a bounty hunter. Time to get my Eldar lady and her powered armour neatened up to assist this group of mercs. Just don’t tell the Inquisition…
