Top Ten Manufacturers Of 2015 - A "Fantorical" Viewpoint

The fourth article covering my favourite miniature manufacturers over the years, this period was clearly dominated by my love of British science fiction television programmes such as “Doctor Who” and “Blake’s Seven”, as well as an affection for the Doug McClure fantasy movies of my childhood. Interestingly, I also found my participation in the “Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge” something of a catalyst to start ploughing through my sizeable collection of Bob Murch’s painter-friendly “Pulp Figures” and a dalliance with the free rule-set “Pillow A-go-go” by “Fiendish Fabrications” a surprising motivator to pigment numerous “Heroclix” super-heroes and villains…

No.10 (Joint) - "Reaper Miniatures” - "Chronoscope"

Bought as an experiment to ascertain the difference between their “Bones” sculpts and metal castings, this particular sojourn into the world of “Reaper Miniatures” pigmenting a pair of Black Mist models certainly helped me make up my mind that I wouldn’t purchase any of the company’s unpainted polymer 28mm-sized humanoid figures in the future, as I found their loss of detail disconcerting. However, it did lead me to eventually purchase a fair few of the range’s larger monsters as the financial savings were quite significant. Sadly, both of my Black Mists actually ended up in Canada as payment for entering the Fifth Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge, and I have yet to purchase a (second) metal version of the crime-fighting vigilante to use on my own tabletop.

No.10 (Joint) – “Antediluvian Miniatures” – “Lost World”

Basing their sculpts upon some of my favourite fantasy childhood films, such as the 1976 cult classic “At The Earth’s Core”, this Ross-shire based company completely caught me off-guard with its characterful castings in the Summer and seemed destined to be one of my most popular manufacturers of the year. Disappointingly however, having quite quickly pigmented Professor Peter Cushion, I then found my attention wandering elsewhere, and not even their subsequent release concerning a squad of Guardians of Lemuria (heavily influenced by “The Warlord Of Atlantis”) managed to restore my motivation.”

No.10 (Joint) – “Steamforged Games Limited” – “Guildball”

Intrigued by this alternative to the legendary sports tabletop game “Blood Bowl” by “Games Workshop”, I actually spent quite some considerable time plugging away at the contents of a Union Starter Set for “Guildball”. Yet was ultimately beaten by the incredibly fiddly detail found on each sculpt, an utter aversion to the complexity of the actual rule-set, and a serious dislike for the ‘difficult to reach’ pose of my team’s captain, Blackheart. In fact, my problems progressing the central midfielder with a brush-tip alone were enough to put me off “Guildball” for life, especially after his head fell off part way through the painting process, and I discovered that a far more paintable pose of the player was available; albeit at a significant cost.

No.7 – “Wizards Of The Coast” – “Star Wars”/“Dreamblade”

Fuelled by the speculation concerning the imminent release of J.J. Abrahams’ “American epic space-opera film”, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens", this dalliance with “Wizards Of The Coast” was initially confined to just a pair of their models from the long defunct “Star Wars Miniatures Game”. However, as part of my “Zomtober” challenge I later decided to re-paint three plastic “Dreamblade” Gutsoup Golems in order to turn them into proxy Krynoids for a “Doctor Who” flavoured game of “Zombicide” based upon the February 1976 six-part television story “The Seeds Of Doom”. Lamentably, this rather over-ambitious project was never fully finished, and despite some temptation to simply pigment a few more of the collectable miniatures game’s innovative-looking models just for the ‘fun of it’, no more of the “spawning dream creatures” saw a paint-brush.

No.6 – “Nexus Miniatures” – “Super-hero Dinosaur Zombie Apocalypse”

Encouraged by Simon Quinton’s enthusiastic postings over on “Brummie’s Wargaming Blog”, I rather badly fell in love with this company’s D-Rangers and Caprican Legion Troopers courtesy of their sculpts bearing more than a passing resemblance to the main characters from Glen A. Larson’s 1978 “Battlestar Galactica”. Admittedly, the figures themselves were a little crude and mis-proportioned, with the ‘Cylons’ significantly smaller in stature than their human counterparts. But their attention to the detail of a ‘Colonial Warrior’ uniform more than made up for this, and resultantly I eagerly painted up proxies for Apollo, Starbuck and Boomer, alongside a trio of the Imperious Leader’s finest centurions.

No.5 – “SLAP Miniatures” – “Moon Howlers”

Heartily recommended to me by Bryan Scott of “Vampifan’s World Of The Undead” blog fame, I ended up painting eight He-Wolves as an entourage for my repainted “Heroclix” model of the Hyena. Slightly painful to assemble, with plenty of super-glue, green-stuff and pinning definitively required, these furry fiends were still a joy to paint in a multitude of appropriate browns and greys, and were completed within the space of a fortnight before having them subsequently devour Batman in a Caped Crusader-inspired game of “Zombicide” by “Guillotine Games”. Sadly, my plans to pigment Skipper Fred, Bosun Ace and Steward Gladys for the Sixth Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge as a (not) “Popeye” entry never materialised into anything more than a trio of colourfully-primed miniatures…

No.4 – “Pulp Figures” – “Lost Tribes”

Originally planned to be part of a much larger “Pulp Figures” contribution to the Sixth Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge, these Bob Murch sculpts seemed destined to be the start of a significant expedition into the savage worlds of pulp. However, despite both Jai and Cheetah joining Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor for a mid-year “Doctor Who”/“Tarzan” tabletop team-up, my enthusiasm for the somewhat cartoony range of miniatures never materialised into a full-blown painting spree, and resultantly I simply ‘scatter-gunned’ a few hominids here and gun-toting gangsters there.

No.3 – “Black Tree Design” – “Doctor Who”

It’s incredible to think that a New Year clear-out uncovered the vast majority of this “Doctor Who” treasure trove, and lead to the creation of a sizeable Cyberman force for the tabletop. In fact, with hindsight it is hard to imagine my eventual immersion into “Age Of Sigmar” by “Games Workshop” the following year, if I hadn’t been inspired to pigment quite so many Mondasian and Mark II Cybermen during this period and subsequently used them play-test the fantasy rule-set. At the time though, I was simply determined to provide my “Eaglemoss Collections” Cyber-King with a suitably large retinue, and these silver giants were reasonably straightforward to paint.

No.2 – “Wizkids” – “Heroclix”

Arguably initiated by a desire to field the numerous members of the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, this range of collectable plastic figures proved consistently popular throughout the year, and helped me add a significant number of models, both large and small, to my ever-growing collection of finished re-painted “Marvel Worldwide” and “DC Comics” characters. In addition, this range of super-heroes and despicable villains caused me to re-imagine the “Pillow A-go-go” ruleset by “Fiendish Fabrications” into a short series of rooftop battles which occurred across both the Gotham City and New York City skylines.

No.1 – “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio” – “7TV”

Indisputably down to my love of the BBC science fiction television series “Blake’s Seven” and “Doctor Who”, I not only managed to paint a formidable force of black-clad Federated Troopers, including a heavily-moustached Commander and cybernetically-enhanced Stefan Travers. But also progressed a significant number of Spawn, Robo Rodents and grotesquely-mutated Failed Experiments with which to vex the time-travelling Tweedy Mattinson and his Plucky Assistant. In addition, my enthusiasm for “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio” saw me involve their miniatures in a number of popular Battle Reports which either saw their Freedom Fighters teaming-up with the likes of Rocket Raccoon and Judge Dredd, or the company’s Robo Rodents proving pivotal as proxy Runners for “Zombicide” by “Guillotine Games”.

"Y.F.T. Design Studio" Battle Report: Red Dwarf And The Homicidal Killer Gelfs - Part Two

LISTER AND RIMMER FACE A WALL OF ONCOMING HOMICIDAL KILLER GELFS

"The story so far… Whilst taking Rimmer on an asteroid spotting trip, Kryten has crash-landed Starbug on a swamp moon. Fortunately, Holly's scan of the local area has revealed several deposits of machinery which could be used to help repair the shuttle-craft. Armed with a couple of blazookas and a hand-hoover, the Boys from the Dwarf have managed to almost collect the necessary parts but now face an attack from a tribe of homicidal killer Genetically Engineered Life Forms..."

THE TABLETOP - A SWAMP MOON

"Y.F.T. Design Studio" Battle Report: Red Dwarf And The Homicidal Killer Gelfs - Part One

Somehow sensing that the intruders' intentions were about to change, the Gelfs wobbled towards their prey with four of them approaching Objective One (Genesis Ark). Rimmer meanwhile made his way to Objective Five (Damaged Robot) and recovered the final component needed to complete Starbug's repairs.

However, the Gelfs had certainly not been thinned out enough yet to enable the scavengers to escape, so both Cat and Kryten remained by Objective Two (Space Radio) in order to better fire upon the oncoming storm of genetically engineered life forms. Dave Lister also wanted to make some room for his blazooka blasts, so ran past Arnold to the eastern edge of the Large Toxic Pool.

CAT AND KRYTEN PREPARE THEMSELVES AS RIMMER COLLECTS ANOTHER SPARE PART

Four of the Gelfs approached Rimmer's postion, whilst three more closed in upon Cat and Kryten. Despite his hard light body, Arnold scurried to hide beside his bunk-mate and watched in amazement as the former chicken-soup vending machine cleaner dispatched one of the homicidal aliens. To the north, Cat also fired his firearm at the extra-terrestrial blob nearest to him, and purred with satisfaction as it exploded into tiny globules. Unfortunately Kryten was not so good a marksman with his hand-hoover and missed his intended target.

LISTER AND ARNOLD FACE THE GELFS FACE-TO-TENTACLE

Enraged by the loss of their comrades in blobbiness, the remaining Gelfs near Objective Two (Space Radio) charged into Cat and Kryten, their tentacles flailing and mutated claws snapping [Attack: 4 + 2 dice for the Charge]. Cat staggered back from the assault with three wounds, whilst his robot-in-arms received two wounds despite his mechanical body [Armour: Saves any hits on a roll of 6].

CAT, KRYTEN AND RIMMER BATTLE THE FAST-APPROACHING GELFS

Fortunately, the Gelfs attacking Rimmer were far less successful, with the hologram avoiding any damage whatsoever. Some of the genetically engineered life forms did rush past him though, in an effort to reach Lister. Dave, however, was not about to swap kisses with a giant green blob or two, so ran north into the middle of the Large Toxic Pool. He remained uninjured and the Gelfs had now left a gap in their line which lead straight back to Starbug, but the goop did halve his movement, making his progress slow going...

Realising that the human was trying to escape, one of the Gelfs wobbled north to intercept Lister, whilst another charged Rimmer. Despite the hologram's hard light form [Heavy Armour: Saves any hits on a roll of 5 or 6], the technician suffered a single wound. The Cat did less well though, and a savage blow to the head knocked the smartly-dressed scavenger out for the count. A moment later Kryten joined him as the robot was overwhelmed by the tentacles of his assailant.

DAVE LISTER MAKES A BREAK FOR IT WHILST RIMMER IS OVERWHELMED

Arnold desperately tried to fend off the Gelf attacking him, but failed to hurt the blobby fiend. Lister however, aimed his blazooka at the Gelf moving between him and Objective One (Genesis Ark) and with a cheer shot it to pieces.

With both Cat and Kryten fallen, the Gelfs by Objective Two (Space Radio) moved towards Dave, who was still stood knee deep within the middle of the Large Toxic Pool. Rimmer finally managed to overpower one of the Gelfs wrestling with him, and with some delight saw that Lister had also gunned down the first of the aliens to place a tentacle into the gloopy green water near him. The homicidal killers were definitely closing in upon the two remaining Red Dwarfers, but they were now few in number.

LISTER AND RIMMER FEND OFF THE FINAL GELF ATTACKS BY THE LARGE TOXIC POOL

Despite the thickness of the goo surrounding them a Gelf charged into Dave and caught the curry-loving scavenger with a blow to the head. Incredibly in return though, Lister battered the extra-terrestrial to bits with the butt of his blazooka and looking up, saw Rimmer dispatch the final homicidal killer with an exaggerated karate chop. They'd won... and now needed to simply drag the unconscious bodies of Cat and Kryten back to Starbug before beginning their repairs...

"Y.F.T. Design Studio" Battle Report: Red Dwarf And The Homicidal Killer Gelfs

THE RED DWARF CREW ENCOUNTER HOMICIDAL KILLER GELFS

This game was played using some homemade rules (M.I.S.S.) in order to allow us to quickly field a handful of my painted "Y.F.T. Design Studio" and "Crooked Dice Game Design" miniatures, and took place upon the "Deep Cut Design Studio" 35" x 2" cloth Swamp game mat. The battlefield was populated with a variety of scenery most notably some Dalek-themed objectives produced by "Warlord Games" and some toxic pools manufactured by "Gale Force Nine" as part of their "Battlefield In A Box" range.

The Red Dwarf crew, who started on the western edge of the table, were made up of Dave Lister (10pts), Kryten (10pts), Arnold Rimmer (10pts) and Cat (10pts). Whilst the pack of homicidal killer Gelfs consisted of eight warriors (5pts each) and would only enter the battlefield from the western edge at the end of Turn Two. The swamp moon had five objective markers each worth an unknown number of repair points dotted about its eastern half. These would only be revealed when a player had searched them. In order to be victorious the Red Dwarf crew had to accumulate eight points worth of repair points and have at least one model escape back off the western edge of the table, or kill all of the Gelfs.

THE TABLETOP - A SWAMP MOON

"The story so far… Whilst taking Rimmer on an asteroid spotting trip, Kryten has crash-landed Starbug on a swamp moon. Fortunately, Holly's scan of the local area has revealed several deposits of machinery which could be used to help repair the shuttle-craft. Believing the parts are just beyond a small forest the Boys from the Dwarf, armed with a couple of blazookas and a hand-hoover, have set off unaware that the planetoid is inhabited by a tribe of homicidal killer Genetically Engineered Life Forms..."

THE BOYS FROM THE DWARF LAND ON THE MOON OF THE PEPPERPOTS

Not willing to wait around and find out what is making the horrible squelching sounds behind them, Dave, Arnold, Kryten and Cat all ran [Run Move: 8 Inches] east towards Objective One (Genesis Ark) safe in the knowledge that their pursuers wouldn't be appearing at the outskirts of the woodland for some time yet. They had a plan too, with Lister and Rimmer agreeing to pepper the gelfs with shots, so as to allow Kryten and Cat to race for the various objectives and collect the repair parts needed.

Still unable to see their foes, the quartet split into their appropriate pairs with Dave and Arnold running ever closer to Objective One (Genesis Ark), and Kyrten and Cat heading north-east towards Objective Two (Space Radio). Suddenly, the gelfs appeared from out of the tree-line. They were in three groups, with the larger central warband clearly planning to make a bee-line straight for Lister and Rimmer.

THE GANG SPLITS UP AS THE GELFS CONTINUE THEIR PURSUIT

Keeping the initiative, an exhausted Arnold reached Objective One (Genesis Ark) and was delighted to find five points worth of salvageable repair parts. It meant the guys were already half-way to achieving their first goal. Dave meanwhile, ran further southeast towards Objective Five (Damaged Robot) and took up a position to sweep the gelfs with blazooka fire as soon as they got within range. Kryten and Cat continued running north-east towards Objective Two (Space Radio), all the time hearing the sounds of the tentacled terrors behind them gurgling their way across the swampland towards them.

Moments later, the Red Dwarf crew continued their excellent momentum as Kryten discovered two more points worth of parts whilst examining Objective Two (Space Radio). This called for a change of plans as the quartet now needed just one more part to fix Starbug with. Cat therefore opened fire with his blazooka upon the nearest gelf [Shoot: 3 dice] and despite the life form being hard to hit [Stupefy: A unit always suffers –1 to its dice roll when firing at an enemy unit with ‘Stupefy’] it fell lifeless before the torrent of exploding bullets.

RIMMER AND KRYTEN COLLECT SOME VALUABLE SPARE PARTS

Lister likewise opened fire but lacked the feline skills of his fanged friend and missed. Rimmer meanwhile, huffing and puffing, raced towards Objective Five (Damaged Robot). The gelfs were getting ever closer and they still almost outnumbered the Red Dwarf posse two-to-one, so even when Arnold did collect the final part needed for Starbug's repairs, they'd still need to thin out the homicidal killer aliens somewhat before heading back to the shuttlecraft...

 To be continued...

"I've Been So Worried I Haven't Buffed My Shoes In Two Days."

"I'm so gorgeous, there's a six month waiting list for birds to suddenly appear, every time I am near!"

This 28mm miniature of Felix was made by "Y.F.T. Design Studio" and forms part of the company's limited release 'Scarlet Midget' - Cosplay Away Team. Wonderfully similar in appearance to Danny John-Jules’s character in the "British science fiction situation comedy Red Dwarf", the "Felix sapiens" was initially undercoated with "Vallejo" Dark Vermillion and then later had his hair, shoes, trousers, and shirt painted Black.

Having decided to somewhat darken the descendent from the house cat's jacket, I applied a couple of layers of "Vallejo" Heavy Red to his outer garment and waistcoat, shaded these areas with some "Citadel" Nuln Oil, and subsequently dry-brushed them with (more) "Vallejo" Heavy Red.

"Boys from the Dwarf."

I 'picked out' the vain feline's blazooka using a combination of "Vallejo" Black, "Citadel" Ironbreaker and Nuln Oil, whilst applying some "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna and "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade to his flesh. Later I applied a wash of "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson over the Cat's coat in order to slightly improve its colour and provide a subtle contrast between the jacket and his waistcoat.

Kieron Mulholland has recently caught my eye with his excellent "Cheaphammer!" blog in which he's been exploring the use of the "Marvel Heroic Roleplaying" rule-set by "Margaret Weis Productions" to run a miniatures campaign based upon a story-line from the 2005 "New Avengers" comic book series. This inspirational project, which features a superb battle report entitled "Count On Spider-Man", got me thinking about my younger days playing "Marvel Super Heroes" by "Tactical Studies Rules" and whether a return to the 1984 game would be a worthwhile investment of time...

S.H.I.E.L.D. WIPs - The two agents and "Dum Dum" Dugan need their dark blue uniform 'picking out'

Before I had a chance to dive into my loft however and dig out my original boxed set, I discovered that "Steve Jackson Games" have just released "Munchkin: Marvel Edition", along with a series of expansions concerning the X-Men, Guardians of The Galaxy, Doctor Strange and Deadpool. I've a little experience of the original "mega-hit card game about dungeon adventure" so immediately thought that perhaps the "humorous take on role-playing games" may lend itself to some fun tabletop action too.

Somewhat disappointingly, the starting players for "Munchkin: Marvel Edition" are all S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, and I don't have any re-painted "Heroclix" models of them... yet. As a result I've dug out a couple of basic espionage operatives, along with a languishing model of Dan "Dum Dum" Duggan, and plan to get these guys painted pronto whilst I get better acquainted with the rules. If the worse happens and my idea doesn't work out then I've at least finished a few more miniatures, and my copy of "Marvel Super Heroes" is still waiting for me in the loft...

“The Aforementioned Rimmer, To Whit, Me, Attended Inspection Parade."

"He was totally naked except for a pair of mock-leather driving gloves and some blue swimming goggles."

This 28mm miniature of Barry was made by "Y.F.T. Design Studio" and forms part of the company's limited release 'Scarlet Midget' - Cosplay Away Team. Very much a ‘look-a-like’ for Chris Barrie’s character in the "British science fiction situation comedy Red Dwarf", the second class technician was initially primed using two coats of "Vallejo" Heavy Green, subsequently washed with “Citadel” Biel-Tan Green and dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo" Heavy Green.

In order to slightly break up the model’s somewhat monotonous palette, I ‘picked out’ Arnold’s shoes in “Vallejo” Black Green and strongly considered using the same darker paint for his hat too. In the end though I simply settled for shading his footwear with some (more) “Citadel” Biel-Tan Green and applied a little Ironbreaker to the hologram’s ‘H’.

"Lister to Red Dwarf. We have in our midst a complete smegpot!"

With Rimmer finished, I have also applied myself to completing another of my Work Gang Boromites by “Warlord Games”. This particular extra-terrestrial miner will actually lead my latest unit for “Beyond The Gates Of Antares” and actually proved something of an experiment from the oft-times tedious technique I’ve been previously applying upon this specific genre of miniatures.

Ordinarily, I have been priming my Boromites with “Vallejo” Heavy Bluegrey, and then washing them with “Citadel” Nuln Oil so as to better see all the detail on the sculpts. This initially seemed like a ‘cunning plan’ as this combination of layer and shade is the one I use to pigment all of the aliens’ rocky hides, and resultantly gave me the opportunity to complete a good two-thirds of each figure with a really simple process very early on in the painting process.

"Borom itself vanished into the Antarean collapse at the end of the Second Age..."

Unfortunately however, in subsequently having to ‘pick out’ all of the models’ intricately detailed, as well as occasionally hard-to-reach, armour with “Vallejo” Heavy Ochre and “Citadel” Reikland Fleshshade, I usually end up having to ‘clean up’ much of the grey ‘skin’ areas later on, essentially re-doing the vast majority of it and ‘wasting’ a considerable amount of time. With this figure I therefore undercoated the entire miniature in “Vallejo” Heavy Ochre and only concentrated upon painting his stony flesh until the end.

Disappointingly, because this Work Gang Leader was so much more detailed than his brethren and carried his Mass Compactor in a rather unorthodox manner, it soon became evident that the figure was always going to be a rather long-winded paint-job, so any hope of comparing my ‘new’ approach to his colleagues was never going to really work. All I can say though is that having painted another Boromite using my old technique since, I’ve a feeling I’ll be using the “Vallejo” Heavy Ochre undercoats for any future additions to my 500 point Scouting Force…

"Of Course, Lager! The Only Thing That Can Kill A Vindaloo!"

"There's only three alternatives: it thinks we're either a threat, food or a mate..."

This 28mm miniature of Charley was made by "Y.F.T. Design Studio" and forms part of the company's limited release 'Scarlet Midget' - Cosplay Away Team. Clearly a "doppleganger" for Craig Charles' character in the "British science fiction situation comedy Red Dwarf", the "lowest ranking crewman" was originally undercoated using two coats of "Vallejo" Black, subsequently dry-brushed with Heavy Charcoal and washed with "Citadel" Nuln Oil.

At first I had planned to add some extra colour to the third-class technician by stepping somewhat away from his more recent all-black clothing palette and giving him a red London Jets Zero-Gee football team T-Shirt underneath his leather jacket. Unfortunately however, the paint on this particular figure persistently flaked off for no discernible reason, even after varnishing, so it soon became clear that even my attempt to apply various shades of dark grey across Lister's clothing were doomed to fail...

"This week's Red Dwarf contains scenes which are unsuitable for younger viewers..."

Resultantly, I re-pigmented the majority of 'Cloister the Stupid' with more "Vallejo" Black and used a combination of "Citadel" Ironbreaker with Nuln Oil for his blazooka. I also applied some "Vallejo" Dead White to the skull and crossbones stitched across the self-proclaimed bum's back and 'picked out' some metallic adornments upon his coat with "Citadel" Ironbreaker and "Vallejo" Brass. These areas were later shaded using "Citadel" Nuln Oil and "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade respectively.

I did however manage to get some colour onto the pantheist by using some "Vallejo" Heavy Red on his leg scarf and left sleeve. These scraps of clothing were washed with "Citadel" Nuln Oil to help grunge them up, and then carefully dry-brushed with a bit of extra "Vallejo" Heavy Red in order to try and bring out some of their detail. 

Doombot & She-Hulk WIPs - The robot and super-heroine are slowly being blocked and shaded

Undoubtedly the biggest problem I had with this model though, was a slight miscast over Charley's face. Having viewed the sculpt's computer rendering and some of the photographed crisp-looking castings on the "Y.F.T. Design" website, I applied "Citadel" Doombull Brown over his head and hands, washed them with (more) Strong Tone Quickshade and attempted to 'dot in' the man's eyes as close to where they should have been as I could...

With two of my "Nexus Miniatures" finished, I have continued to make some good progress on some far more straightforward plastic "Wizkids" models I plan to use in order to extend my recent Fantastic Four verses Doctor Doom campaign. Despite being an old "Heroclix" sculpt from the November 2002 "Clobberin' Time" range I'm hoping She-Hulk will provide the super-talented quartet with some additional punching power, whilst I've actually dug out a handful more Doombots to add to Victor's robotic Latverian force.  

"No Silicon Heaven? Preposterous! Where Would All The Calculators Go?"

"I haven't been this embarrassed since I was loosening my adjustment screws..."

"Cast in White Metal", this 28mm miniature of Kry-10 was made by "Y.F.T. Design" and forms part of the company's limited release 'Scarlet Midget' - Cosplay Away Team. Clearly a "lookalike" for Robert Llewellyn's character in the "British science fiction situation comedy Red Dwarf", the Series III mechanoid was initially primed using some "Vallejo" Black and subsequently dry-brushed with Gunmetal Grey.

The robot butler 's groin socket, hand-held cleaning device and central circular chest panel were then 'picked out' using "Citadel" Ironbreaker, before the figure was entirely washed with Nuln Oil. The automaton's hands and cube-shaped head were later pigmented using a combination of "Vallejo" Heavy Skintone and "Citadel" Reikland Fleshshade.

Wildfyre & Dibber WIPs - The two alter-ego "Red Sector" characters have simply been based and primed

As a last touch Kryten's head was additionally given a careful, light dry-brush of (more) "Vallejo" Heavy Skintone in order to try and bring out some of its angular details. I did momentarily consider basing the miniature on a science-fiction themed stand, but in the end went with my age-old mix of "Citadel" Doombull Brown, Rakarth Flesh and "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade so it would fit in with the vast majority of my other finished figures.

With the first of my four Grant-Naylor influenced "clean-up crew" completed, I have actually set about assembling a couple more figures from the "Nexus Miniatures" range to add to my painting queue. Sculpted by Carl Stoelzel these two "instantly recognisable cosplay sci-fi comedy" characters are Arnold 'Ace' Wildfyre and D. Wayne 'Rocky' Dibber.

Boromite Work Gang Leader WIPs - The alien miner still needs his detailed Mass Compactor painted

However, its clear that the Space Adventurers make excellent-looking doppelgangers for Ace Rimmer and the dorky alter-ego of the Cat, Duane Dibbley. I'm especially pleased to get my hands on Arnold, as the sculpt's original planned pose proved somewhat problematic prior to casting on account of him holding a firing pistol in his right hand. I understand the hand-weapon proved too difficult to successfully cast, so was delayed in order for the model's stance to be altered and the gun removed.

Finally I am currently working on a Boromite Work Gang Leader for “Beyond The Gates Of Antares” by “Warlord Games”. I actually had to purchase this particular figure separately from the Nottingham-based manufacturer having lost the original one from my boxed set, and then recently discovered the AWOL alien miner during a big clear up. Despite this though, I had decided to stick to painting my replacement miniature in order to establish whether using a "Vallejo" Heavy Ochre undercoat will make the time-consuming piece quicker to paint...

(Lead) Mountain Musings - "Red Dwarf" July 2018

"Red Dwarf" WIPs - Dave Lister and Kryten

This month's themed attempt to try and reduce my concerning, ever-growing collection of metal, plastic and resin miniatures will focus on a selection of recently arrived models previously produced by "Y.F.T. Design" as part of their "Nexus Miniatures" range. Clearly heavily-influenced by Grant Naylor's British science fiction comedy programme "Red Dwarf", I hope to initially paint up four of these now OOP Perkūnas Mining Corporation "Scarlet Midget" Cosplay Starship Crew figures over the next few weeks, and perhaps then turn to some of the television series' other memorable characters; Ace Rimmer, Dwayne Dibley, Mister Flibble, Kristine Kochanski and Holly.

To begin with though I'll be focusing upon Charley, Felix, Barry and Kry-10. All of whom will make excellent proxies for Dave Lister, Cat, Arnold Rimmer and Kryten. To be honest they're a bit of a mixed bunch, with "The Last Human" proving particularly frustratingly on account of his metal figure stubbornly refusing to take any paint despite being repeatedly primed and 'touched up'.

"Red Dwarf" WIPs - Arnold Rimmer and the Cat

Indeed, even a simple dry-brush of "Vallejo" Heavy Charcoal" caused his undercoat to peel away in places. Very annoying, as I was hoping to make the third-class technician's predominantly black palette a bit more interesting by using a variety of different greys. Now though, the plan is simply to keep the miniature "Vallejo" Black and perhaps as a final stage shade a few different areas with "Citadel" Nuln Oil; a technique which strangely does cause a change in the base layer's  colour.

Fortunately, I have had less problems with Kryten, who has already been primed, dry-brushed and washed, and is ready for some detailing. "Y.F.T. Design" also kindly sent me three separate bazookoids with which to use for conversions, and I was sorely tempted to try and provide the "Series III mechanoid" with one. Ultimately though I thought that would prove too difficult and time-consuming, so I've stuck with the model's original hand-tool instead.

Mister Freeze's "Gotham City" crew

I'll also be leaving the sculpts of Rimmer and the Cat alone too, as the computer-generated hologram's pose isn't very convertible, and Frankenstein's extravagantly dressed descendent is already carrying one of the heavy-weapons. Both of these miniatures should prove fairly straightforward to finish on account of Arnold being almost entirely green and Danny John-Jules' character wearing a lot of black...

Lastly, I have finished the third and final “Wizkids” model of Solomon Grundy I previously converted for this year's annual "Forgotten Heroes" challenge. Apart from using "Vallejo" Heavy Violet and "Citadel" Leviathan Purple for his clothing, this member of Mister Freeze's "Cold Pack" has been painted in exactly the same manner as his two peers, and should provide Victor Fries with some cryogenically-enhanced 'muscle'.

"I'm A Part Of The New Frightful Four!"

"I'm not taking a back seat to anybody in this group!"

This 50mm tall plastic “Wizkids” model of Hydro Man is miniature number 012 from the Sinister Marvel "Heroclix" range and is based upon the water manipulator who formed part of "the antithesis to the Fantastic Four", the Frightful Four. Transformed into a "man-of-water" when he was accidentally immersed "in a deep ocean dwelling bacteria" and exposed to an unknown radiation, Morris "Morrie" Bench's villainous alter-ego was created by Dennis O'Neil and artist John Romita Junior for the January 1981 issue of "The Amazing Spider-Man".

"Able to bodily transform himself into a watery liquid substance", the former the U.S.S. Bulldog crewman was initially primed with two coats of "Vallejo" Dark Blue so as to 'mask' its transparent, blue-coloured plastic and washed with "Citadel" Drakenhof Nightshade. The "typical low rent super criminal" machine was then dry-brushed using several more applications of "Vallejo" Dark Blue, with each one having a little more "Vallejo" Dead White added to the mix.

"Heroclix" Solomon Grundy WIPs - The undead criminal is slowly being transformed into a horde of ice zombies

As a last touch to Hydro Man's arms and lower torso, I applied a second, final wash of "Citadel" Drakenhof Nightshade over the areas and lightly dry-brushed the cusps/ridges of the waves with some extra "Vallejo" Dead White. In addition, I applied two coats of "Citadel" Abaddon Black to the supposed expert street fighter's body and a combination of "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna and "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade to his hair.

Sticking with "Heroclix" I am currently making some slow progress on my test piece for this year's "Forgotten Heroes" challenge, as organised by Dick Garrison and Carrion Crow. Having already done a fair bit of chopping on the five Solomon Grundy "Wizkids" miniatures I aim to 'convert' into some ice zombies for Mister Freeze to use as mindless minions (as per the plot to the February 1979 edition of "Batman" by "DC Comics", I'm now just slowly 'picking out all the "Vallejo" Dead White flesh on the frozen corpses...

"Scarlet Midget" Cosplay Starship Crew WIPs - The four miniatures have simply been primed

Having received a much-anticipated white cardboard package through the post yesterday, I have also added a few more miniatures to my painting queue which will undoubtedly work their way up through my queue in ultra-fast time. Previously produced by "Y.F.T. Design" as part of their "Nexus Miniatures" range, these models from the Perkūnas Mining Corporation "Scarlet Midget" Cosplay Starship Crew are already out of production, but once finished should provide me with some science fiction-based "character-driven comedy" tabletop action.

I've actually managed to 'track down' the entire discontinued range, so expect to see future postings featuring Krissy-K, Rocky, Wildfire, Aunt Petunia, N.O.R.M. and Sputter-bots, as well as an alternative Charley. For now though, I'm working on Barry, Felix, Charley, Kry-10 and a fair few lazookas...

"Plans For Invasion Are Nearing Completion."

"Nothing must be allowed to interrupt them."

This 28mm metal Cyberman model is produced by “Black Tree Design", and can be bought as part of their "Doctor Who" boxed set DW1014 - Cyberman (7). Unlike the other miniatures in this set, this 'Cyber-Leader' does not appear to be available separately. "Hidden in the sewers beneath" London and intent upon utilising a megatron bomb in order to conquer the planet, this particular incarnation of the "race of cyborgs" were created by "Derrick Sherwin, from a story by Kit Pedler", for the November 1968 BBC Television story "The Invasion".

The silver giant was initially undercoated with a base-coat of "Citadel" Chaos Black. It was then treated to a double layer of Ironbreaker, shaded with Nuln Oil, and dry-brushed with (more) Ironbreaker. As a last stage, I picked out the barrel of its "long range... more powerful gun" with a combination of "Vallejo" Heavy Red and "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson.

"Black Tree Design" "Doctor Who" WIPs - Vicki, Harry Sullivan and Kamelion

With the basic beginning of a Cyber-invasion force complete, I have momentarily turned my attention to painting a few companions for my current Movie Doctor. Rather than 'stick to the script' however and prime Little Susan and Barbara 2150 A.D., I have simply turned to a few of the more readily accessible assistant figures in my "Black Tree Design" lead mountain.

Slightly embarrassingly, I originally thought the first of these companions was actually a sculpt of the Second Doctor's "young astrophysicist" Zoe Heriot, and accordingly treated her all-white attire to a wash of "Vallejo" Pale Grey and a dry-brush of Dead White. Only having done this did I realise that she is in fact a model of the First Doctor's "orphan from the 25th century" Vicki, and therefore requires a black dress with a suggestion of blue to it...

Dino-Rangers - The warriors still have plenty of detail left to 'pick out' upon their uniforms

In addition to this "survivor of a spaceship crash on the planet Dido" I have started work on the Fourth Doctor's "Surgeon-Lieutenant" Harry Sullivan, as well as the Fifth Doctor's "shape-changing android" Kamelion. Like Vicki, both of these companions should prove pretty straightforward to complete and I have already got to the stage the Xeriphas robot simply needs his green-hued internal electronics to be 'picked out' before being ready for a varnish.

Finally, in order to help thwart my recently discovered remaining Caprican Legion models by "Nexus Miniatures", I have re-started work on three Dino-Rangers. These particular sculpts will make some excellent proxies as Colonial Warriors for a "Battlestar Galactica" skirmish game, albeit I was hoping to paint one up as Commander Adama in a blue version of the uniform. Sadly however, having done some 'Google-Fu' research, it would appear that "the spiritual leader of the surviving colonists" never wore such 'combat fatigues', and neither did the battlestar's executive officer Colonel Tigh. 

"To Nurgle, Every Raddled Corpse Is A Welcoming Nursery..."

"...For wriggling maggots and cloying plague spores."

This 40mm tall Putrid Blightking is one of the five multi-piece plastic miniatures which can be built from the sprues found inside the “Games Workshop” Putrid Blightkings boxed set. However, as I had actually already used the legs I wanted for this figure on a previously painted "favoured mortal servant" of Nurgle, I actually took the somewhat expensive step of purchasing a second pair of limbs from a 'bitz' seller and subsequently 'stuck' a different torso upon them in order to help satisfactorily mask their similarities.

As a result of this 'Exalted Champion of Nurgle' wearing so much armour and chainmail I initially primed the model with "Citadel" Abaddon Black, before brushing on a couple of coats of "Vallejo" Gunmetal Grey over it. The warrior was then shaded with "Citadel" Nuln Oil and dry-brushed with more "Vallejo" Gunmetal Grey. The bloody desecrator's stained loincloth was treated to a little "Citadel" Abaddon Black, two thin coats of "Vallejo" Heavy Red", some "Citadel" Nuln Oil" and a gentle dry-brush of "Vallejo" Heavy Red.

"Black Tree Design" "Doctor Who" WIPs - These Late Sixties Cybermen needs some detailing work 

With the basics finished, I began slowly working up the highly-detailed figure blessed by "the touch of Nurgle's insectoid messengers" and 'picked out' his pouch, skull trophy and brass symbol of the Plague God with a cacophony of colourful combinations, such as "Vallejo" Heavy Blue and "Citadel" Nuln Oil, as well as "Vallejo" Iraqi Sand and "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade. A couple of splashes of "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson were also thrown into the mix to give the impression of dried blood.

I applied some "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna to both the Blightking's hand-axe, shield and shoulder-pad as a base-coat, and later treated the age-corroded areas to coat of "Vallejo" Brass, a wash of "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade and some dabs of the "Citadel" Technical paint Nihilakh Oxide. These parts were all then later dry-brushed with more "Vallejo" Brass so as to blend in the patina. In addition I decided to change the brute's ghastly green-hued face to a deep reddish one, as if the entire head was grotesquely swollen, so simply re-painted it with Vallejo" Heavy Red" and "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade.

"Nexus Miniatures" WIPs - These Caprican Legionnaires still have some armour plating to 'pick out'

Wanting to progress something a little less taxing than another Putrid Blightking, I have taken the opportunity to dig ever deeper into my recently discovered drawer of old "Black Tree Design" miniatures, and dry-brush some previously painted Cybermen. All of these figures come from one of the company's "Doctor Who: Invasion Earth" boxed sets, and are based upon the silver giants' tear-drop eyed version from the 1968 BBC Television story "The Invasion".

Lastly, sticking with a silver-coloured theme, I have also found some of my long-lost Caprican Legion models by "Nexus Miniatures". These armour-plated extra-terrestrials, which seem to be out of stock these days due to 'someone ordering a bunch', make great-looking Cylons and once finished should finally permit me to get a "Battlestar Galactica" skirmish game on the tabletop...