Martian Airships sighted...

   Our intelligence reports indicate that the Martians have obtained two additional airships to menace the good people of Victoria's Landing.

   Made by RedVectors in the UK, these skiffs were custom adjusted a bit to work for 15mm. I am in the process of assembling and painting the first of the pair. The price was quite reasonable, I thought, and the shipment was dashed quick.

   Not quite done. It needs a gun on that forward platform, and a crew. I suppose this calls for a visit to Scale Creep for minis...

New Tracks

   Received in the post this afternoon, a small box of Battlefield in a Box railroad tracks. These will let me vary the layout a bit, adding switches, curves, and stop bunkers. Railroad being so very important in the Victorian Age, I thought this was a good purchase. Plus, they are already good to go out of the box, so more likely to see actual use.

Christmas Gift of Terrain

   One thing I did obtain that is noteworthy for VSF is some new terrain. GF9 finally re-released their popular Badlands series of terrain, and I got two boxes for Christmas: the Plateau and the Tors. These will fit nicely in as Martian desert terrain, I think, and the best part is they are ready out of the box. I also ordered the Badlands Bluff a few days ago from Amazon to help fill in space.

   Back in October I attended the BROADSIDES! Gaming convention held aboard the Battleship TEXAS near my home. One of the vendors there carried Cigar Box Battle Mats, which I already had purchased one of at Historicon a while back. I really like these mats. I decided I wanted to upgrade my Martian terrain this year, so I bought one of the Red Planet 6'x4' cloths. I like it a lot, though I haven't used it in a game yet.

VSF Project Review

   I've decided after many years that I have simply too many ideas and not enough time. So I am evaluating all of my projects, and determining which ones I shall carry on with in an attempt to complete them and which shall be abandoned in the interest of achieving the previous goal.

   For status, I shall use 'planning' (want to buy minis), 'active' (not playable but I am currently working on it), 'inactive' (unplayable but on to-do list), 'dead' (can't play, not doing anything, don't plan on it), 'playable' (enough to play, still adding to it), and rarest of all, 'finished' (can play, no plans to add to it). Thus far, I have decided:

25/28mm

1. VSF Eureka Pond Wars: dead
2. VSF Lizardmen: inactive
3. VSF/Colonial British: playable
4. VSF German: marginally playable
5. VSF Automaton: finished (lacks one thing from Parroom Station to replace the dog-eaten one)
6. VSF Martian: marginally playable- awaiting Parroom Station's eventual release (I hope)
7. VSF Vardu: inactive
8. VSF French: inactive
9. VSF Russian: dead
10. VSF Japanese: dead
11. VSF Turkish: dead
12. VSF Parrotmen: inactive (possibly dead)
13. VSF Characters (HM Victoria I, others): playable
14. Skyrunners VSF Racing: dead
15. EOTD/IHMN Werewolves: finished
16. EOTD/IHMN Gentlemen: finished
17. EOTD/IHMN Police Constables: playable
18. IHMN Lord Curr's Company: playable
19. IHMN Servants of Ra: playable
20. IHMN Society of Thule: playable
21. IHMN Cowboys and Lawmen: finished
22. Terrain VSF: inactive

15mm

1. VSF/Colonial British: playable
2. VSF/Colonial French: playable
3. VSF Martians: playable
4. VSF Venusian Lizardmen: playable
5. VSF Automatons: finished
6. VSF/Colonial Germans: playable
7. VSF Monstrosities (Dr. Vardu): inactive
8. VSF Japanese: dead
9. VSF Texicans: inactive (maybe dead)
10. VSF Papal States: dead
11. VSF Terrain: inactive

Fleet Scale (smaller than 6mm)

1. Dystopian Wars (DW) Federated States: playable
2. DW Prussian: playable
3. DW Indian Raj: planning
4. Sky Galleons of Mars (SGOM) British: inactive
5. SGOM Martians: inactive
6. Aeronef Italians: dead
7. Terrain: inactive

6mm

1. VSF French: inactive
2. VSF German: inactive
3. VSF British: inactive
4. VSF Venusian Lizardmen: planning
5. VSF Martians: inactive
6. Terrain: inactive

   That's a grand total of 46 projects, including terrain in each scale. Of them, only four are 'finished.' And only about half of the rest are playable. I've definitely decided that eight are dead projects, as far as I am concerned. That means I have about 34 projects still on the boil, either playable or not.

   I'm mad. Bonkers. Crazy. Off the rocker.

Additional Protection from Aggressive Saurians

   British subjects and Texican citizens on Venus may breathe a little easier, sleep a little more soundly tonight, as additional pylons for the Anti-Saurian Galvanic Barrier have been completed and are ready for emplacement. These additional pylons will significantly increase the area of protection from pesky carnivorous dinosaurs, lizardmen, Germans, etc.

Four repeating posts. (Two more already finished elsewhere)

Two powered posts.

New Martian Surface!

  Some nice American chaps who work in a cigar store have, for some strange reason, created this rather lifelike representation of the surface of Mars. The whorling red and ochre hues capture the essence of the deserts on this dying planet with startling accuracy.

  The product is available in a 4' x 6' configuration, for the quite reasonable sum of  about sixty-nine of your American dollars. Something every true aficionado of the Red Planet should plan to purchase, I should think.

  You may direct yourself to their telephonic store HERE.

[Editor's Note: I own a Cigar Box Battle Mat already, and like it a great deal. I will be ordering this as soon as funds are available. The material drapes well and is quite color-fast. It's also lightweight and doesn't seem to hold creases badly. I give it two thumbs way up.]

Steam-powered Foo Dog, Anyone?

In case anyone needs one... I think I do. Available here, from Spartan Games.

I imagine it would work in different ways for any scale from 1:1200 to 28mm.

OwlCon Report

   This was the year of VSF for me at OwlCon, the annual science fiction and gaming convention held at Rice University in downtown Houston. I played in three games on Saturday the 7th, all VSF-related.

  The first game was a four player Dystopian Wars 2.0 matchup. I took the Danish fleet in support of Prussian allies, against a combined British and Antarctic fleet. First time with the Danes, and I did terribly. I have to figure out a better way to use those mines than as virtual suicide bombs. Also, the first time with DW 2.0 rules. Not a lot of changes that affected my game.

   The valiant forces of Prussia and Denmark failed to carry the day, unfortunately. However, to brighten things up, I won the drawing for a free box set of minis. I am awaiting delivery of some Federated States forces to beef up my new fleet. Thanks to Garth Bragg for putting on the game and providing the prize.

  Oh - I was so busy playing that I didn't take any pictures!

  My second game was another first, All Quiet on the Martian Front. I took the Martian side in  a massive game. I had some twenty-odd tripods to handle, and got the hang of it pretty quickly. Which was good, because one of my opponents couldn't be bothered to pay attention to the rules and had to be reminded what to do each time. Honestly, he was an older gentleman, and seemed a bit... fuzzy headed, let's say. Pleasant enough, but his attention (and body) wandered away from the table many times. The other player for the Human side (FRY HUMAN SCUM!!!) was more attentive and took up the slack.

   I managed a squeaker of a victory, by not concentrating on eliminating enemy units entirely. A couple of more shots concentrating on eliminating entire units would have seen a solid Martian victory. However, as far as special victory conditions were concerned, I managed to nearly get one tripod off the defended edge of the Human side. My power node was never endangered. Thanks to Coab Evans for putting on this game.

Yup, that's me.

Protecting the Power Node

At the Beginning...

   My third and final game of the convention was an evening of In Her Majesty's Name. The scenario was simple: two rival groups of archaeologists trying to get into the tomb of an ancient god-king. Of course, it wasn't that simple: the local natives didn't want anyone to wander around their countryside, looting antiquities. Also, the god-king has a devoted cult, who didn't want unbelievers defiling their deity's most sacred precincts.

   I took the British Museum's Expedition, complete with native porters, eminent scientists, adventurous American archaeologists, and a Great White Hunter. The GWH drew first blood at extreme range, taking down one of the natives as he bounded across the plains, intent on mischief amongst the porters! I then stupidly allowed myself to get bogged down in hand-to-hand combat, but my valiant porters did quite well against a superior foe. "Tenty" went toe-to-toe with an assegai armed Yahoo for at least four rounds, even knocking the Yahoo down once before finally being double-teamed and skewered from behind.

   In the end, I managed to get the American archaeologist, Ohio Smith, into the tomb on the very last turn of the game. The remainder of my expedition was wiped out to the last man (and woman). Came in second or third on points (out of five), but had a good time nonetheless. Thanks to the fellows from LSHM who put it on (Andy!).

Illuminated Tripods

   These are scout tripods from Alien Dungeon for their All Quiet on the Martian Front game. I saw this photo (and several more) on TMP. The work was done by Scott Washburn, adding what looks like small red LEDs into the head of the plastic tripods.

   Really great job there. I just thought as many people as possible ought to have a chance to see it! Mr. Wells would be proud. Horrified as well, but certainly proud!

EDIT: I just found Scott's "how-to" on this project. Find it here.

Baa Baa Baa...

"We are poor little lambs,

Who have lost our way.

Baa baa baa..."

   Sheep graze across the fields of England and Wales, enriching the nation with their woolly coats, and the soil with their rich manure. And now, they have been transplanted to the solar colonies! Also, we have pictured some native handicrafts. Though rather primitive, they do have a certain charm.

Black Face Sheep

Native Pots

[Editor's Notes: These are 15mm sheep. Peter Pig, I think. I have them for objectives, same as the pigs I have painted previously. While these are grassy bases, I will be adding some Martian based ones as well. Attacking a food supply or economic resource is a perfectly logical reason for a raid or even pitched battle. The pots I did up from craft store beads thanks to an idea I am swiping form Frank Chadwick's VSF game at Historicon 2013. Each has a number on the bottom. When a searching figure approaches the pot, it is turned over and a chart consulted. You may find treasures, allies, traps, or foes!]

Working on These Projects

My two weeks away from home has seemed to refresh my desire to paint and build, and these are the projects I am prioritizing:

1) Gentlemen's Club for Empire of the Dead.

I haven't played a game of this yet, though I took part in the Requiem Kickstarter. The minis are all very nice, and I have already painted up most of the werewolves. I know I can use them as Adventuring Companies in In Her Majesty's Name as well, which is a really nice skirmish ruleset.

2) Prussian Airships for Dystopian Wars

I bought these back at Christmas time, I think. They are pretty simple to paint up - it just needs doing. Plus, it would be progress! And proof of progress helps to keep me motivated.

3) 15mm Spanish Civil War

My friend Zach is very interested in playing some Spanish Civil War. I have chosen the Carlistas, who supported the Nationalists because the Nationalists supported Catholicism. I picked up several packs of Peter Pig's Carlista requetes while in Weymouth. I'll paint up a few bases's worth and see how they look. You'll be able to follow that project more closely on Scattergun Gamer.

4) New Issue of The Aethergraph

I wanted to get another issue out back in May, hoping to do a quarterly schedule this year. Grad school sort of got in the way of that. But, I think I am ready to try and tackle finishing the issue. Any help would be greatly appreciated, naturally.

   So I am going to work on these projects for the next few days. Hopefully by end of the week I shall have something to share.

Naval Brigade Jack Tars Arrive

   Sailors from HMAS Minotaur have been armed with rifles and disembarked in order to secure downport facilities in Victoria Landing. Recent unfortunate events with native malcontents in the Crown Colony have made an increase in downport security a necessity. Government sources indicate that several credible threats have been made against the fuel and ammunition depot, requiring additional security beyond that provided by the Army. Certainly, we all feel much safer with these additional loyal Crown servants protecting our vital interests and infrastructure here in the Crown Colony.

[Editor's Note: These are eleven 15mm naval brigade armed sailors, manufacturer unknown (but I suspect Old Glory), and purchased years ago at Historicon flea market. I finally rebased and touched up the paint on them to make them fit in with my other minis.]

Clockwork Goblin Products

   I found these sort of randomly, while reading Eli Arndt's I See Lead People blog. I thought they looked interesting. Photos are from the Clockwork Goblin webstore.

15mm US "Grizzly" Walker

I'd remove the Ma Deuce for VSF, and add a boiler and smokestack to the back.

Maybe shorten the gun barrel a bit.

15mm US "Hyena" Light Jump Walker

Might re-work the right hand into a gripper of some sort.

This says 'Armoured Combat Aethersuit' to me.

15mm German "Thor" Mechpanzer

Again, needs a bit of Victorian and steam-y flair, but I like the six legs.

15mm German "Spinne" Light Mechpanzer

I really like this one for an Imperial German Scout.

3 for 13 GBP, too...

28mm British Automated Infantry

I'd go with the water-cooled MG for VSF.

Reminds me a bit of the Parroom Station Clockwork Soldier.

Like the labels say...

The RPG armed one reminds me of the upgraded Ogryn from the Imperial Guard.

And last, a concept sketch I think is interesting...

"Shreckwulfen 1"

From the Horizon: Harold's Patent Aetheric Interface Assault Craft!

   Mr. Harold has designed a new type of aetheric craft. Intended to rapidly introduce troops from an aethership orbiting the planet, these Aetheric Interface Craft (known to Tommy Atkins as a 'drop pod') can carry an entire squad of Her Majesty's Loyal Servants in splendid comfort [not really-Ed.] and complete safety [hardly!-Ed.]. Her Majesty's Royal Navy has ordered the construction of hundreds of these disposable units for the Aethermarines, Skywalkers, and even a Naval Brigade Artillery Group. They can also be utilised for the resupply of troops in distant areas!

   To date, attempts to use the Harold Patent Interface Craft to land cavalry have been a dismal failure. The horses, you see.

Seems to have lost its parachute somewhere...

[Editor's Notes: Okay, these are really cool, and pretty inexpensive. You can find out more about them here. And here. I am going to add a parachute draped over the side, and paint them in a lovely Victorian scheme. 15mm, and quite good, really.]

An interesting 15mm Shield Gunner "how to" conversion

   One of the cooler troop types for Martians in the Space: 1889 universe is the Oenotrian Shield Gunner. I have a unit of ten in 28mm that I am slowly getting painted, but there are none available in 15mm.

RAFM Miniatures' Martian Shield Gunners
(Sadly, not mine.)

   Until now.

   Major General Clive G. has come up with a simple and good-looking conversion of Black Hat Miniature's Imperial Guard Halberdier, which he has kindly posted on his own blog. I shan't steal his thunder, so if you would simply follow this link, you can see what he did.

The Canals of Mars... at long last!

   Long story very short, I have always wanted some nice, regular canals for the Martian plains. Never got around to it. Then I saw some custom terrain on eBay, contacted the seller, Anita,who happened to be the maker of said terrain. Foofighterubu is her handle. Nice lady. After a few emails back and forth, we worked out what I wanted and a price we could both live with. Here are the results:

Main section, branch section, and the Y junction

28mm Empress British Infantry walking along the canal path

High Martians taking a canal boat

Scene from above

Taking cover along the canal walls.

Effective cover!

   I have eight feet of both widths, plus some corners in the main canal width and the Y connection. I am going to order more from Anita later this summer, I think, after I see how badly Historicon eats my wallet. I need a piece that transitions from one main canal to two smaller, and a docking area, plus some turns in the branch canal.

Yet more Amphibian/Reptilian Foes!

   The good gentlemen at Khurasan have warned us of the impending approach of a terrifying new amphibian threat...

15mm, and lovely.

A VSF-suitable 15mm OGRE Mk.III?

   Part of the All Quiet on the Martian Front Kickstarter going on for about 5 more days. I pledged a dollar just so I could get this for 55 more as an add-on. I think it makes for a good Mk.III OGRE substitute in VSF terms. One Main Battery, four secondary, and a load of AP (Machineguns). No missiles, and two too many secondary batteries. Maybe convert the midships secondary turrets into rocket batteries?

All Quiet on the Martian Front

  Another interesting Kickstarter project has begun, and is off to a rousing start! All Quiet on the Martian Front is a 15mm scaled War of the Worlds sort of game. The setting is in early twentieth century, and the starting forces available will be American and Martian, although other forces are in planning.

 

  The miniatures look quite nice, and you can get some as a backer reward starting at $80.00.

  As per usual with Kickstarter, the more you pledge, the more rewards you get. And it seems like a pretty good deal, as well. Eli Arndt, over at I See Lead People, is getting into it pretty deeply. I trust his judgment on All Things Small But Cool. However, I am not sure that I am going to get in on this Kickstarter because, well, I have been backing a lot of them in the last few months and my budget is pretty well tapped, at least until Historicon.

   The Kickstarter page can be found here.

 

Popular Mechanicks, Issue #7

ORNITHOPTERA

  Ornithopters, or 'thopters, as they are sometimes abbreviated, are aerial vehicles which achieve motion through the flapping action of two or more wings, in the manner of a bird. The first design was developed by the Italian master engineer and artist, Leonardo d'Vinci. Unfortunatley, Master d'Vinci lacked modern technology for power and lift, so his design was limited to gliding.

   With the advent of lightweight steam plants for power and the discovery of unobtainite for the cancellation of the effects of gravity upon an object, modern engineers have been able to resurrect d'Vinci's dream. The modern 'thopter is a small aircraft with incredible maneuverability and the ability to take off and land vertically. It is easily distinguished by the high-pitched humming or buzzing sound of the wings as they beat against the air, reminiscent of a giant bumblebee. Two companies are currently producing ornithopters for military and civilian use: Tobsen 77 of Germany and Shapeways of America.

   The Shapeways model was designed by a Mister Afrodri.

This model (the Mark I) is armed with a Maxim gun in the nose.

It is designed to go with 15mm troops.

   The design from Tobsen77 is significantly larger than the Shapeways model, designed to accompany 28mm troops. I believe that the French Aeronautique plans to purchase some for evaluation of its suitability as a scouting platform with light combat capability. It is armed with both a pair of water-cooled machineguns for aerial attack and a light bomb load for surface attack.

The "Libelle," testbed in neutral paint scheme.

   

  One final form of 'thopter technology is in development by the British Royal Artillery Research and Design Works in Bedfordshire: the Individual Ornithopter Mount. The size of a horse, it utilizes cutting edge handwavium steam turbines to provide an aerial platform for individual operators. These operators are armed with torpedo lances and galvanic rifles. Able to make use of the extreme maneuverability and speed offered by the IOM, the concept is to use IOMs in a manner similar to lancers in attacks against armored aerial vehicles. One hit from a torpedo lance can cripple or destroy most light aerial vehicles (of, say the Aphid-class), while an entire troop's lances should bring down any conceivable aerial juggernaught.

  Unfortunately, at the time of this article's release, our photostatic crew have been unable to capture an image of the IOM in flight. However, we have managed to obtain this image of one at rest for your enlightenment. The handwavium reaction tanks at the front of the IOM are clearly visible, as are the wings, landing gear, and saddle. Cooling vanes for the galvanic generator adorn the 'head' as well, and a flexible tail-like rudder assembly assists in sharp turns.

Pictured on the tarmac floor of the Design Works aerodrome.

[Editor's Note: I own neither the Shapeways nor the Tobsen, yet. Both are on the 'buy it someday' list. The photos are taken from the makers' websites, without permission, and are used here only as reference and not for commercial purposes (other than possibly as advertising for their manufacturers). If you would prefer I remove them from this site, as always, please let me know. the IOM is a Mage Knight Soaring Gunner's mechanical dragonfly. I am awaiting a shipment of riders from Australia, a la Victoria Miniatures, to provide riders.]