March Mid-Month Progress Report

Overall, the report for VSF gaming is Very Good.

10x "Great Rail Wars" Steam turtles: DONE

Hydra Miniatures's Warbot: DONE

Wyrd Miniatures's Brass Arachnid: DONE

Metal GW Stegadon Crew: DONE

And the whole Stegadon, based and ready.

As for the rest of this month's projects, both the Praetorian Heavy Bolter (aka the McFadden patent Single Barrel 3 pdr. Pom Pom) and the Autocannon (aka the Greelie-Heeby Magazine 7 pdr. Artillery) are about 60% done. This includes a modification of one autocannon crewman to change a control box to a telescope. The guns themselves are painted and done. Just finishing up the crew.

The ten Empress British have been started, and most of the block painting is done on them. I really like these minis. Lots of character. I have decided they will be representatives of the Manchester Regiment, formerly the 63rd (West Suffolk) Regiment of Foot before amalgamation with the 93rd last year. Non-royal, English regiments have white facings, as will these. Single battalion regiment. I think First Company, yes? Anyway, the ten I put in my goal this month are about 25-30% done, I would say. Keep an eye out for a Reginald's on the 63rd once I get these painted.

Besides my goal projects, I am working on a variety of other things sort of part-time. This includes the officer for the Queen's Own Aeromobile Infantry, the "Skywalkers." Just barely started on him, though. I need to back off of them a bit, so I can get my Warhammer Fantasy stuff worked on. Tomorrow and the next day might be bad painting days, as I am supposed to get my wisdom teeth removed first thing tomorrow morning. Pharmaceutical rollercoaster. Next stop, la-la land.

Oh, and I have the cloths ready to dye for my small Car Wars arena and the big green fields of Earth mat. Maybe if I tie dye them while whacked out on pain meds they will look totally awesome! Or maybe not. I think I will wait on that...

Goals for February 2010

As part of my ongoing commitment to getting a dent in the lead pile (which grows daily, somehow, even though I have sold off things and traded away others), I am trying to set achievabel goals to complete each month. Some of the things I will do are projects already started but never actually finished. Some are totally new.

Without further ado, the list for February:

• Finish current vessels for Republic of Venice's Aeronef fleet (need some more ships)
• Finish ten Hydra Miniatures Vardu sprout warriors
• Finish projects from January that are undone
• Repaint on old edition of GW Skink Stegadon for Venus
• Ten 28mm Copplestone German Marines as Atherbattalion
• Armorcast Gothic Laboratory Power Generator

It's a short month this month, so I think that's a good amount. Wish me luck!

Monthly Goal Update

Greetings, Ladies and Gents...

Felt like I ought to update my progress for the month. So first, the stuff that is being painted:

• 40x 15mm Zulus [Stone Mountain]: Mailed to painter. I realized I want the troops, but I don't want to paint them. New painter this time; I'll review the work when I receive the minis.
• 20x 15mm Luftschiffetruppen [Old Glory]: 80% done. Touchup, basing, and clear coat.
• 10x 25mm Feral Martians [RAFM]: 40% done.
• Aeronef Papal Fleet [Brigade Models]: Total of six ships. About 60% done. I made some alterations to the fleet paint scheme that need to be redone on several ships.

Regarding new purchases, I have been a busy boy, on TMP, eBay and company websites. Also, I have discovered the joy of Bartertown (http://www.bartertown.com), and that has been time consuming. The 'take' so far:

• GW Mordian Lascannon and crew. No gunshield. Repaint and fit with 19th C. field gun wheels.
• Parroom Station Clockwork Soldier (NIB). New 'recruit' for Maton.
• Armorcast Gothic Laboratory Power Generator. Power for the Lascannon.
• 20x Copplestone Castings German Colonial Marines. Destined to be Luftschiffetruppen.
• Wyrd Miniatures's Malifaux Brass Arachnid. Nice and big, suitably menacing for Dr. Maton.
• 16x 25mm Japanese cavalry (Russo-Japanese), painted
• 17x 25mm Japanese infantry (Russo-Japanese), painted
• 2x 25mm Japanese artillery, w/ 4 crew (RJW), painted
• GW WFB Lizardmen Stegadon (5 ed.) - only $10! Gex in the howdah... a fearsome weapon on Venus!

And there are still some things I am trying to find at a reasonable price or trade.

• 3x GW Imperial Guard Praetorians with lasguns. Most poses would be okay.
• 1x GW Imperial Guard Praetorian Sergeant, with the powersword.
• 2x GW Imperial Guard Praetorian missile loaders
• GW Imperial Guard Praetorian heavy weapons (especially heavy bolter and autocannon)
• Wargames Foundry Victorian Special "Dr. Jekyll". I will probably order today from Foundry, but at $10.50 for one figure, it hurts!
• A boat to convert to a Martian 'kite'
• And more... always more... *sigh*

So... plenty to keep me busy for the next nine or ten years, at any rate...

Reginald's Regiments of Renown, Issue #4

The Warband of Slee-stak
(Ess’this R’sska Slee-stak)

History

Being both of alien origin and hostile intent, little is known of the origins of the great Gater warlord known as Slee-stak. Slee-stak and his barbaric horde of lizardmen first encountered humans when the German aethership KäF Das Vaterland sent down zeppelin-based scouting parties. One surveying party, which located the eventual site of the settlement of Neu Berlin in the Venusstadt Kolonie was attacked by the warband. Slee-stak’s attack was stalled by German firepower, although three German Ätherbattalion troops were slain in the fighting. The German surveyors retreated to the safety of their zeppelin launch and returned the following day with additional troops. There was no sign of the lizardmen, and the only remains of the three slain troopers were their well-gnawed bones.

Since that day, Slee-stak has become quite fond of man-flesh. He and the Kss’rssa Ess’thiss (Viper Warband) he leads raid all along the southern border of Venusstadt. Mounted on his huge carnosaur, Slee-stak runs down fleeing colonists and impales them on his massive bronze lance. The governor of the Venusstadt Kolonie has placed a 10,000 mark bounty on Slee-stak’s red scaled head.

One element of the warband, some gex archers of the primary green morph

Slee-stak himself, mounted on his favorite carnosaur.

(Photostat found in camera at site of attack)

Organization

Slee-stak’s warband seems to be divided into sub-groups based on color morphology. Most of his followers are of the smaller lizardman type, called gex by humans. They are typically armed with either stone-tipped javelins or bows. A few of the bolder gex carry bronze weapons instead. In total, there are approximately forty gex following Slee-stak.

One group of about ten of the larger ‘gater’ type lizardmen also follows Slee-stak. They share his black and red color morphology, and are likely from the same hatching as their mighty warlord. Like most lizardmen, these gaters are armed primarily with primitive stone and wooden weapons, although they have also obtained some metal weapons.

Slee-stak himself is rarely seen on foot, preferring to stand out form the crowd of lesser warriors by riding the back of a vicious carnosaur.

Painted Minis Arrive, Part 3: Red Gex

More painted minis from White Ape Painting Studio!

This time around, its the red gex getting the treatment. Again, the first photo is the sample I did and sent out with the minis needing paint:

And here are two of the nine I had returned:
Still pretty pleased with them. Cathy's communication was good, and she sent photos a couple of times during the painting process which helped get a few things cleared up. More on that in the next (and last!) installment of this mini-series.

Painted Minis Arrive, Part 2: Blue Gex

Following on from yesterday's posting regarding my newly arrived painted minis from White Ape Painting Studio, this is the second unit of four sent. These were once metal GW skinks armed with javelins. They are now a unit of spear-armed Gex from Venus!

The first photo is a closeup of the sample that I painted and sent to Cathy, the painter. He's obviously a leader of some sort.
And here's a closeup of a typical member of the nine figure squad I commissioned:
As before, the lack of basing is at my request. I think she did a pretty good job of matching my sample figure, don't you? There are a couple of spots on these figs that I think I may need to touch up, but I think that's more due to my OCD than anything else.

More to come!

I've Heard from the Painter

The one that I hired, you know? I expect to see final pictures today or tomorrow of all the minis.

I'll post once I get them. This will get me my British lancers, two units of Gex and one of Gaters. If I get off my duff and get painting Germans, I can play on Venus this summer.

So I've got that going for me.

Painting Service

I am using a very nice person to paint some miniatures for me right now. I will pass the name of the service along once they are done with my stuff, as I don't need them distracted by hordes of orders.

Communication has been good, and I received by email the first photos of the first unit that has been completed. I know the bases are bare - I asked that they be left alone so that I could match to my other bases.

The skink all the way to the left is the sample I sent. I think the others match fairly well, don't you? So far, I am pretty happy with the service, which I was nervous about, as I have never sent off anything to a painting service before.
Obviously, these fellows are bound to be Gex from Venus, one of the two main species of Lizardmen on the Veiled Planet. There should be another ten of these, for a total of 20, plus some Gaters and a dozen 15mm British lancers in the order. I expect it to be done in about a month, and I'll post more when I get it. If the painter keeps this up, I'll be trumpeting their name both here and on TMP.

End of Month Progress Report [ooc]

So, here's the progress on projects this month.

Deathray cavalry: Have received all figures. Three additional lancers, a musician and the unit leader are painted and assembled, just waiting to be mounted on the rays. After these, I have five more to finish, and the units will be done. I say units because I have two. One is the Prince himself, with standard, musician and four guards. I am considering adding three more gun-armed men to this unit to round it out to a full ten. The other unit consists of a captain, musician and eight lancers.

Martian Personalities: I have painted the Incomparable Dejah Thoris, John Carter, a Martian priest, and a Martian king/hero. The butler/assassin is primed, but hardly painted.

Martian swordsmen: Little progress.

Bombardment Sentinel: Purchased Whirlwind for conversion of rockets to Sentinel. Awaiting arrival.

Gunship, 28mm: Received guns, assembled and primed. Currently on painting table. Trying to decide on magnetic attachment option or permanent fixture.

Gunship, 15mm: Main deck cut out. Primary lower hull section built. Mast section assembled but not cut to final length yet. Re-working cabin section design. Forward lower hull needs final desing and assembly. Guns not ordered; considering ERM fittings. Help with 15mm guns would be appreciated.

Parrotman Huts: Prototype finished. Adjustments still to be made for remaining three huts. Back-burner project.

15mm Papal Troops: Two 90% painted as prototypes.

Mordian/German Special Weapons: About 70% painted on lieutenant, sergeant, grenadier, and three riflemen, plus two mortarmen and melta-gunner.

Gex/Gaters: Decided to send to be painted, as I am never going to get around to them. Looking for painting service in US.

That's pretty much everything that's even remotely active for right now. I am hoping to get some projects finished in March, letting me get back to some older projects that have been on hold for a while.

Other goings on...

Work continues apace on the recruitment dirve for Martian askaris [RAFM Space 1889 miniatures]. An additional five recruits are nearly through their training.

We have located another tribe of gex warriors, red of hue and fierce of heart. Ten of these fierce tribesmen are nearly ready to threaten the peace of Venusstadt.

General Sir Edmund Blackadder [Minifigs 25mm mounted British Officer] has recently arrived in the Royal Martian Colony as well. As soon as his baggage is sorted, I shall provide a photostat of his arrival, mounted upon his favorite steed, Baldrick.

Three small but stout-hearted reinforcements have arrived to complete a platoon of British regulars in the colony [Stone Mountain 15mm].

Once basing is complete on these figures, the Pledge shall be updated to reflect this progress, the first in weeks.

A Minor Gex-based quandry

To this point, I had thought that the gex would be in homogenously hued tribal groups, each warband consisting of ten warriors to fall in line with the rules set that we most commonly use.

So, one group would be ten red and orange warriors, one ten dark and light green, ten dark and light blue, and so on.

But now I am reconsidering, especially for the bow-armed gex. It might look better to mix them up.

A quandry, a puzzle, a confused muddle of possibilities now exists where once all was clear. Blast it all!

In regards to progress, a bit has been made today. The first Sentinel (I may re-name them, though it is a very British sounding name, is it not?) has been 'dipped' and now awaits its highlighting, basework and matt finish. A bit more work on the Pappegaivolk has been done, though nothing exciting. I have begun work on the 'ghost gex', those made from modified skink totem bearers into giant club wielders. They will be gray and white, hence the 'ghost' appellation. The sergeant for the Research Platoon is almost finished. And a swarm of snakes just waits for basing and matt finish. Finally, the red and orange "Flammekröte" warband of gex is nearly finished, including their fearsome warchief, Firebelly.

Photostats from Venus!

The first plate here shows a small tribe of hunting gex as they move effortlessly through the underbrush. While much smaller than their gater cousins, gex are just as vicious. Their envenomed bite merely adds to the danger of encountering these primitive brutes.



















On this plate, some of Her Majesty's soldiers, in the Research Platoon, ride upon the back of a large saurian transport. From this secure vantage point, they can avoid smaller carnivorous dinosaurs, the more dangerous flora of the Jungle Planet, and find their main foes, the savage lizardmen of Venus.


















A small herd of Triceratops feeding on the jungle growth. These large creatures are herbivores, but like the Earthly hippopotamus, are large, powerful and very territorial. Extreme caution is advised should a traveler on the surface of Venus find himself confronted by even one of these beasts. If there are young about, I would recommend that you flee the area as quickly as you can without drawing attention from the herd.


















This last photostat shows a gater, mounted on a carnivorous lizard, possibly Deinonychus, as he exits the brush line. These gaters are extremely dangerous, remorselessly bloodthirsty savages. When encountered, I recommend they be treated to volley fire by platoon. Thankfully, most of the gaters encountered thus far on the Planet of Mist are not powerful enough to dominate a mount such as this one. The few that are, however, are even more dangerous than their bretheren.

We are expecting our first photographs of the giant Parrotmen of Venus in the near future, good readers, but were unable to obtain any prior to publishing today. I shall, however, publish portions of a short paper by Doctor Fritz Hammacher and Professor Heinrich Schlemmer, both of the Imperial German Institute for Extra-Terrestrial Study (das Deutsche Kaiserliche Institut fur AuBerirdische Gelehrten), in the very near future, perhaps even this afternoon.

More Venusian sightings!

These Venusians are starting to pop up their ugly scaled heads all around!

The smaller type - though still quite large - have been popularly named 'gex' [GW's old skinks] in the London Press. They seem to be swarming everywhere. They come in a range of coloration, from green, to red, to blue, and every imaginable shade between. Some even have patterned skins.

The larger type of Venusian, called "Gaters" [GW's old saurus] by my journalistic bretheren from the Republic of Texas are not so numerous, thankfully. They are terrifyingly large and equally fierce. Some have even been seen mounted on a type of carnivorous dinosaur! Truly, not something you would want to meet unprepared in the steaming forests of the Jungle Planet, my friends.

I have recently obtained specimens of the gex. I modified one of them, shown above, by cutting the pole he carries down from the original primitive totem to create a large, menacing club. I am pleased with the result, and plan to continue with this modification in the future.

In other news, work has begun on a new river steamer for the Crown Colony of Mars. It will soon be ready to cruise up and down the canals of the Dying Planet, providing support for Her Brittanic Majesty's troops. As the work progresses, I shall post updates, but for now just one photostat, to whet my readers' appetites.

More soon, I hope.