A new Sergeant and some Vardu Minions

   I've been painting, a bit. I've also got a new camera, so I am working the kinks out of it still. But here are a few snaps of what I've been up to lately.

   First is another Empress British NCO. I love Empress's minis, and this guy has been sitting about waiting for his final touches for months. He's now ready to join the rest of the 30th Foot on Mars, defending the Empire for Her Majesty (God Bless Her).

   Also a Bull Snapper, a light warbeast from Hordes' Minions faction. He joins his larger cousin the Blackhide Wrassler as an experimental subject for Doctor Vardu. I made a puddle at his feet, just like the bigger one. Venus is a dreadfully swampy place, after all.

   Finally, there is a pair of Razor Boars, more Minions warbeasts. I have another pair of these that I will paint soon, giving me - er, Doctor Vardu, that is - four of the aggressive piggies.

Gorillas in the Gunsmoke

This here is Cactus Joe, a Gorilla Gunslinger. He's a crazy wild west mutant ape, armed with a pair of Colonel Colt's finest revolvers. He also wears a serape and chews a cigar. I like him.

But is he maybe too off the wall? Is that even possible in VSF? 

First thought is he could be used for one of Vardu's mutated minions. I definitely need to add to that group. I can't even really field a decent IHMN Company for him yet. Joe's actually more in period than good ol' Ape-X, who is currently dedicated as the evil scientist's bodyguard. This fellow might be more suitable.

Oh, and if you like Cactus Joe, you can get him here.

Vardu's Greatest Triumph to Date

   One of the two major mad scientists which threaten the peace of the Solar System, Doctor Vardu twists the very threads of life itself to create warped monsters. He has a fascination with merging human characteristics with those of animals and even plants! In this instance, the base creature was a mighty Venusian Marsh Oak.

A crude intelligence simmers in the orange eyes of the mighty beast.

As you can clearly see, the Marsh Oak is host to a variety of

other plants and fungi.

[I added Meadow Flowers and Wilderness Tufts]

[Reaper Bones: "Spirit of the Forest"]

Doctor Vardu's Mutant Simian Bodyguard

Ape-X, Doctor Vardu's Mutant Simian Bodyguard

   The devious Doctor Vardu, the master of the manipulation of the threads of life, has created a new mutant animal monstrosity. This zoomorph blends Mountain Gorilla with a touch of Humanity, and is fitted with a mindcontrol cap to ensure that his rage is vented only upon those the bad doctor designates. The mad scientist has been assisted it seems by Professor Otto Maton, as well, by the looks of that grafted miniature Gatling gun and the steam-powered gauntlet on Ape-X's left hand.

He's a silverback!

[Editor's Note: Not quite done with this one, but wanted to get some pictures posted anyway. He's a Chronoscope line Ape-X from Reaper's Bones product. First of the Bones plastics that I have painted, and it was very easy. No primer, just a good wash with warm soap and water and straight to paint.]

Beastmen Update

Torgo's Trench Raiders

   Now available to pre-order in metal from Victoria Miniatures' shop, a set of six modular Broolian beastmen, with weapons which make them nicely suitable for VSF, I think. I have previously mentioned how they fit in with my VSF universe's fluff. Think genetic manipulation in Victorian era. On Venus. Secretly, and under the noses of the German colonial officials.

 

 

 

 

   $29.90, in US funds, with free shipping worldwide. Not bad for six figures these days (which is a sad comment on how expensive this addiction/madness/hobby is getting). After payday I will order two sets. Maybe three.

 

   I don't have the official fluff, but I plan on writing up something for myself when I add these to my forces.

Varduvian Beastmen on the Horizon

   If you have been following the storylines I developed here, you will know that I have two mad scientists in my VSF universe. The first, Herr Doktor Professor Otto Maton, is a Mechanickal genius and a would-be Emperor of the Solarian System. He uses automatons to do the majority of his dastardly bidding, though there are some human minions working for him as well. Maton is hiding and plotting somewhere on Mars.

   The other evil genius is Professor Vardu. Vardu lives on Venus, where he is an established member of the German Venusstaadt colony's scientific team. His specialties are biology and medicine. He has discovered that all life is started by what he calls 'threads' of proteins, woven in such a manner that each individual combination creates each unique individual creature. Certain groups of combinations create humans; others create plants, others animals, and so on. Vardu has become fascinated with experimenting in ways to combine the weaves of different creatures to create new beings. In modern terms, he is manipulating DNA sequences to create chimeras. His first success came with various plants. He has since moved on to animal/human chimeras.

   His first speicmens were created from drunken aethermen and goats. The results are powerful and horrifying. And I finally have a source (almost) for purchasing these figures. Victoria Miniatures is  working on a set of beastmen that I will be buying at least ten of, and probably twenty. Perhaps even thirty. I like them very much. Here are the preview (green) photos:

Captain Torgo, part of the swag for Adeptiocn 2013

I sincerely hope she will sell some afterwards - I need one.

WIP Shot. I will need several of these.

   It looks like the line will be produced similarly to the rest of the Victoria Miniatures, where you order it by pieces and assemble as you like. Works for me!

[Editor's Note: These images are not mine. I will, of course, remove them if Ms. Victoria asks, since the products are hers. However, they are just too nice not to share in the meantime.]

HMAS Dragonfly... almost there...

   Almost finished... so, a few more pictures.

View from portside. Notice porthole in lower deck.

View from aft. Propeller shaft and rope railings clearly visible.

Portside. Embarkation point.

Starboard view of deckhouse. Note white ensign and Nordenfelt gun.

Main deck gun. (Not permanently attached yet)

Doctor Vardu's assistant, finished. I like the sunflower apron.

15mm Peter Pig Heliograph team (part of it), nearing completion.

   I threw in a couple of other pictures of stuff I am working on while I was at it.

"V" is for...

VENUS

   Really, what else could it be? I mean, since I have already mentioned Her Majesty, Queen Victoria (God Bless Her!)? Following Mars and the Earth, Venus is undoubtedly the third favorite planet for Victorian Science Fiction games and stories. There is something about the mystery of what is on the surface of the Veiled Planet, the Planet of Mystery, the Jungle Planet: VENUS!

   Modern science tells us that nothing we recognize as life could survive on the surface of Venus, such is the density and composition of the atmosphere. Bah! Frank Chadwick and Edgar Rice Burroughs may not have the science on their side, but they do have the advantage of being mroe interesting. No, my friends, the surface of Venus is covered with oceans, marshes and jungles. A few highland areas thrust upward from the trees and wetlands, more comfortable for humans to live than the incredibly hot and humid lowlands.

   The fertile soil of the Venusian jungles has given rise to many strange creatures. Dinosaurs roam the rainforest. Lizardmen, anthropomorphic reptiles and amphibians live in small villages throughout the lands. In the trees, a race of parrotfolk make their nest villages. Animated plants move through the underbrush. German zeppelins cruise the skies over Venusstaadt, and British, Italian, Japanese, and Texican colonies dot the highlands. The riotous biology of the planet has even brought respected scientists like Doctor Vardu to Venus to study the life forms.

One of the Varieties of Parrotmen
[GW Kroot, converted, from Lead Adventure Forum]

   The Parrotfolk of Venus and the Lizardfolk do not get along well. Some tribes of Parrotmen are allied with European powers. This provides the Europeans with scouts, and gives the birdmen firearms. These weapons help the parrotfolk defend their nest villages high in the trees from the ravages of the far more numerous lizardfolk and dinosaurs.

Venusian Manticore Rose, a deadly plant
[QRF, personal collection]

    Much of the flora of Venus is as deadly and dangerous as the fauna. The manticore rose, shown above, actually fires barbed and envenomed thorns from the bulbous head at the top of its stalk. Any creature coming within a few yards is the target of a deadly barrage.

One of many Lizardmen found on Venus
[Khurasan Miniatures, 15mm]

   As previously described in the "A to Z", there are numerous sorts of lizardmen. You can find more out about them here.

Plantmen, Vardu's Sprouts
[25mm Vardu, Hydra Miniatures]

   The final denizens of the Cytherean jungles are the plantmen. No one knows much about these strange creatures. They are the object of much study by the eminent xenobiologist Doctor Vardu. Unknown to pretty much anyone else, Vardu is actually creating plantmen and animal-human hybrids as part of his studies. He has gone quite mad, you see.

   Venus: the Veiled Planet. Planet of Mystery. Also the subject of novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs (though less popular than the Barsoomian series). A great place for adventure, exploration and danger! Plus, lots of neat terrain to put out on the table.

An Interesting Find for Steampunk Clergy

   Thanks to a news item on TMP, I discovered some new minis that might be of interest to VSF and pulp gamers. They are from Germany, and a bit pricey, but look nice. The company is Masquerade Miniatures. Look in the Pillbug City line. Scale is 30mm, nominally. I can't tell how they compare to other lines.

Electro-priest, anyone?

Good one for a Preacher, but not very Catholic

Catholic. But a bit less VSF-y.

This fellow is a candidate for a monstrosity, a la Doctor Moreau.

   I hope this small selection is helpful in getting the old creative juices flowing. I still need a good warrior priest for my Papal States. Of course, they are mostly in 15mm at this point, but I could do a 25/28mm set. But these guys are 30mm. Oh, decisions, decisions...

Science Gone Mad!

  The photostats below are indications of many future troubles from Science Gone Awry. The first image is of a devilish new device from that mechanickal madman, the master of steam mayhem, the Mad Belgian, herr Doktor Professor Otto Maton. Through some cunning means, Maton has managed to enable an automaton to balance on a single wheel of India rubber. The resulting 'monowheel' device has unprecedented speed and agility - faster than the fleetest Arabian, and as surefooted as a mountain goat! And to top it off, the thing appears to be armed with Tesla rifles, reducing recoil to maintain stability at speed!

  This second photostat is of a development even more disturbing than the first: deliberate mutilation of the human frame. The photo was found in the camera of a missing correspondent to this journal, one Mister Kevin O'Doyle. A reward for information leading to his rescue or the apprehension of his abductors and/or murderers is offered. The camera was discovered in a pile of trash behind a ramshackle warehouse in the downport of the Venusstadt Kolonie. We believe that the limb in the hands of the great monster was that of our missing correspondent. Sadly, it appears that the damage the camera took has affected the color and clarity of the image. Still... horrifying.

[Editor's Note: Okay, I got a little clicky crazy here. The monowheel is a BattleTech clicky monocycle. A dash of paint and a rebase and its good to go. Just need a few more to make a full unit. They can be used for any of three scales, being large vehicles in 6mm, full scale automatons in 15mm, and small ones in 25mm. The big fella is a Lucahdor from HorrorClix. He's getting some greenstuff to adjust his tights to a loincloth and primitive boots, and the arm in his hands may get replaced as well. The paint job will convert to a more Frankenstein's monster kind of look. The idea is that he's an experiment by Vardu. The news doesn't know about it because Vardu's evil has yet to be uncovered. Our correspondents keep disappearing when they get close to discovering the truth.]

Massive Rodentia!

   Scott Pyle, the owner of Four-Color Figures another blog I follow, has posted this recently: Rats of Unusual Size.

   In this post, he mentions that the unit has a "mad science" feel to it. This, of course, perked up my ears. I have, as you may recall from ages gone by, plans for not one but two mad scientists in my VSF universe. One, the mechanickal mastermind Herr Professor Doktor Otto Maton, the Mad Belgian, works with automated minions to sieze control of the Solarian Sphere. Him, you should all be most familiar with!

   The other, however, is the secretive Doctor Vardu. He experiments with life itself, warping beasts, plants and men to his design rather than the Creator's! Evil indeed, and yet very secretive. He conducts his experiments right under the noses of the officials in the Imperial German colony of Venusstaadt! It is Vardu that I expect to be interested in these new beasts. At least one or two as massive personal bodyguards...

February Wrapup

Well... it took a lot of work in the home stretch, but I got a lot of it done. Just waiting on weather to clear coat, so I call them finished. Point by point:

• 10x German Atherbattalion (28mm): Done.
• 10x Vardu (var.): Done.
• 4x Venetian Aeronefs: Done.
• 1x Power Supply: Done.
• 1x Lizardman Stegadon (28mm): 75%. Still working on crew, probably 100% by weekend.
• 10x Feral Martians (28mm): Done. January Leftover
• 40x Zulus (15mm): Done. January Leftover

I also worked on other projects, which were not included in the monthly goal. These included:

• 2x Unobtanium deposits (resin): Done.
• 4x Flagellants (GW Empire - for my sons): Done. Need to do about 8 more...
• 1x Grandmaster of the Knights of the Blazing Sun (GW Empire): 50%. Horse is good, armor is done, still working on details, basing, etc.
• 1x Hydra Miniatures Destroyer Warbot: 33%. Primed, and assembled, and mounted on base. Paint job is a simple one.
• 1x War Wagon (GW Empire): 5%. Still working on paint scheme.
• 1x Castle (28mm): 25%. All I have to do is paint it, and it is nearly primed (black vinyl housepaint) so I can spray the foam safely.
• 2x Artizan Texas Rangers (28mm): For Owlcon Gutshot game

All in all, I am gonna call February a successful month. The only thing I didn't finish was the stego crew, but the other items made up for it, I think. So, at this point, we're batting .500 on the year. That'd get you in the Baseball Hall of Fame. I'll put up the March goals in a few days - I want to see how the poll goes for combining the blogs first.

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!

Vardu Plans

The following is a quote lifted from copy text Matt Beauchamp of Hydra Miniatures' blog. It was posted two years ago...

Xenophobic and defensive in nature, the humanoid plant race of the Vardu rarely travel far from their native rainforests. The Vardu are not one species of plant-being, rather they are a variety of different species linked by collective intelligence of their surroundings. Silent yet ferocious when provoked, the Vardu use dried organic weapons from the forest - large seedpods on rigid stems become clubs, enormous dried leaves become blades. The humanoid Vardu warriors tower over most enemies on the battlefield. Their gnarled bodies are a mass of tendrils formed into strong sinews. A thick wooden hide usually protects their central bodies and their limbs and body often sprout incredible sharp thorns. Their blossom-like "heads" contain all of their sensory and sexual organs and are often opened dramatically in battle to enhance their awareness, aid in comunication, and frighten invaders. the Vardu reproduce by budding, and small sproutlings emerge from the leaf-like structures that project from their backs. These sproutlings finally drop to the ground and gain mobility, easily swarming invaders. The exotic Vardu elders are rather exotic and are easily identified by an abundance of brilliantly colored, feather-like petals sprouting from their heads and backs. Covered in sharp spines and rough barky armor, the Vardu blood thorns are the most dangerous close combat warriors of the forest. Breeds of smaller, muscular, carnivorous quadrupeds known as maw hunters serve as the "hunting dogs" of the Vardu. their strong limbs allow them to overrun their enemies and their gaping maws can make short work of their prey. Ambling quietly along the forest floor, the sporers are bloated multi-limbed fungi with massively oversized heads. A distinctive whoosh sound can be heard as the plant-thing launches a powdery cloud of spoors, choking all non-plant creatures in the vicinity. These floating clouds of spoors are also used to cloud enemies vision, thus allowing the Vardu warriors to advance undetected.

So far, only the Vardu sprouts have been released. I own twenty, for use on Venus in both 15mm and 25mm scale, although they are technically supposed to be 25mm miniatures. I love the scale-neutrality of the sprout figures, which stand between 20 and 24mm tall. As Matt himself says, "They'd be perfect for pulp/VSF games..."

Why do I bother to post about this? I am hoping to drive more business Matt's way so that he'll produce more figures. You should definitely check out his Retro Raygun stuff too, for retro-looking robots that make for great VSF automatons (see them elsewhere on this blog!).

And for the record, I have no financial interest of any sort in Hydra Miniatures, nor have I ever met Matt personally. Just a very happy customer who is looking forward to more products from a talented sculptor.

Painting... actual painting!

Okay, so I finally took up a brush for an hour or so this evening. First time in ages.

I worked on several projects:

• The first three vessels of the Papal aeronef fleet are just about ready to go. They still need flags. [Brigade Models]
• Professor Vardu, a biologist working on Venus. [Reaper]
• Frau Frobisher, assistant to Professor Vardu. [Copplestone]
• Two members of the Kaiser's Fliegenjagers, an officer and a trooper. [Eureka]
• A start on the prototype of my 28mm Aetherbattalion regulars. [Copplestone]
• A little work on some of the Aetherbattalion KFG. [GW Mordians]
• A little re-base work on Herr Professor Maton and a Mysterious Egyptian Gentleman.

Nothing finished, quite, but some actual progress on several projects. Feels nice. I took photos, but the camera is just about out of a charge, so pictures later. Plus, it's late and I am knackered. Still, progress marches on!

Vardu Photostats

As promised, photostats of the strange Vardu plantmen of Venus. We have as yet been unable to verify the veracity of these photostats, and many of our more cynical readers may remain skeptical for the time being. However, be assured that our own correspondent - armed with camera and heavy rifle! - has been dispatched to the steamy jungles of Venus to obtain independent verification. Once he is back (assuming the dinosaurs, diseases, lizardmen or parrotfolk don't get him!), we will happily provide additional confirmation.

More Plantmen Spotted!

News from the Veiled Planet!

Witnesses have described to our Venus correspondent a remarkable creature that has been lurking about our station there. The beast is humanoid, in that it appears to have two arms, and two legs, and a head of some sort, but there the resemblance to Mankind ends. For, in fact, this beast is no beast at all - nor any sort of animal!

No, good readers, your humble journalist has not taken leave of his senses. I do not claim that these tales are true, but merely report on statements made by Venusian prospectors to the chief correspondent of the Unveiled Planet, a news journal of somewhat dubious and sensationalistic character. However, all of the many reports bear out the same story: a plant which moves and stalks its prey, with tendrils of vines for limbs and a great bulbous purple flower for a head.

To date, the largest group of these plantmen (which the Unveiled Planet has labeled the Vardu, after Christophe de Vardu, a noted Swiss biologist currently studying the plant life of Venus) seen at one time is only ten, but surely more must lurk in the misty rainforests of that forbidding planet. Teeming with unknown lifeforms and barely explored at all, the jungles of Venus hold many a strange surprise for the unwary Earthman.

It is hoped that the Unveiled Planet will soon provide photostatic evidence of these strange creatures. Naturally, friends, this journal will reproduce them for your edification once they have been authenticated.

[Editor's Note: Finished the first ten Vardu sprouts today. I've also gotten a new scientist figure from Reaper (28mm), who will be Christophe de Vardu. What surprises have I in store for you all? I 'd bet you can guess.]