Plamo: The ATM-09-ST 1/20 Scale Model SCOPEDOG (Armored Trooper VOTOMS)

I've had a long term fascination with VOTOMS, first becoming aware of it during the early days of the interwebs. I've watched a bit of it, while a good show, its not one I've ever got around to finishing. Its very much an anime where I am intellectually interested rather than emotionally invested. The thing about VOTOMS is that, acknowledging the strong 80's vibe, its very hard to come up with a more realistic take on mecha concept and still have the result be humanoid. It is the gold standard of such things.

People just end up reinventing the Scopedog, although in fairness, this may have something to do with creator Ryosuke Takahashi revisiting the basic idea frequently in other projects and thus codifying the trope. A basic argument against mecha as weapons is their size, complexity and how difficult it would be to armor such a thing. VOTOMS presents mecha that sit at the 4 metre mark, looks exactly like a robot you could make in 1983, and generally aren't armoured in any meaningful sense. Tanks and jets are still a thing, and while the first armored trooper was a game-changer, it was not a super weapon. It's like how the the original 1987 version of Robocop looks and moves like he's bulletproof; they utterly nailed the concept right out of the gate. Another defining, but possibly less realistic, aspect are the wheels in a Scopedog's feet, allowing for high-speed slalom manoeuvres. These were rugged, aggressively manufactured, and nimble. And, for most practical purposes, these replaced infantry, while being ultimately viewed as disposable in manner evoking the worst of the first world war. It was kind of a bleak series...

As a kit, the obvious comparison to make is with a Master Grade gunpla circa 2007, this coming in a similarly chonky box, and also being made by Bandai. I've dabbled in such things, but I can't make any deep comments in that regard. How big is it? Well, it towers over the 1/44 scale I normally do, and most of my Transformers, which is about typical for a master grade. There is definitely a similar "this is everything" feel to proceedings, going above and beyond the animation externally, while having a detailed cockpit, pilot figure, and other internals. That said, this kit does put me in mind of a more serious-minded scale model release, despite it being snap-fit. There's individual bolts you have to apply with an included tool, which was less annoying than I feared, as well as a metal rod for the cockpit hinge. As a build, this kit was time consuming if comparatively straightforward, with big polycap joints, translucent plastic for the rotating lens assembly, excessively numerous water slides decals and some cheap-looking metallic plastic. Do be mindful of the lenses. These rely on a tiny peg and I was somewhat brutish with it, prompting a repair job. As a completed mecha, it's got all the posability you'd expect, but not all you'd actually want. Part of this is the subject matter, and part of it is age. I can't claim that a Scopedog is in any way a ninja, so what joints it has are fine, I just feel that a touch better articulation could have been possible, had they wanted to. Achieving a two-handed gun pose is for example is right on the edge of what the arms can handle.

I opted to try a repeat of the Dirty Leo, the Scopedog being exactly the sort of design where a layer of grime makes sense. After initial assembly, I opted against the pilot figure as it looked unfun to finish. Sometimes, they colour the plastic, but not enough, and it looked to a spraypaint job. Same with the Chirico Cuvie figure, as I suck at human skin and could not be arsed with it at the time. The kit was assembled without mods or decals, and panel-lined, before weathering techniques where applied. Limited applications of Game Color Silver was used for chipping and subtle wear, most obviously on the left fist. It never photographs well, for some reason. GW's Typhus Corrosion was liberally brushed on, before being smeared with cotton buds. Stirland Mud was also used in on the feet. I do like how this turned out, these techniques dulled the plastics in an approximately military-industrial-rust-bucket sort of way.

As a project, this was quite satisfying, and if you like VOTOMS, tracking the kit down is probably well worth your time. Especially given how other merch tends to be rather expensive and elusive. Mind you, if something closer to a HG was on the table... I would probably have gone for that instead. As beautiful as it is, I'm indifferent to gimmicks. You might not be...

Battlefleet Gothic: My Thoughts on BFG:XR

So, I had this idea to write a series of tactical analysis articles about a dead game I've hardly played, and am not likely to play for the foreseeable future. Why? Well, its something to do. I'm building some Ork Ships, so why not use the creative energy that's there?

With the completion of Gorbag's Revenge, I find myself having come to the end point of collecting an Ork fleet. I have a more than adequate selection of vessels, painted and built to a standard of "table-worthy" . I've even mastered techniques I didn't know before. The next logical step is to find someone to play against, something hampered as much by my own social awkwardness as pandemic restrictions. I miss gaming, and while this was meant to be a purely creative exercise, it would be nice to have a go. But you might say, "Dude, BFG is a dead game, nobody is playing. You say as much up top. ". Well, apparently not. There are various fan communities with their own rules, such as today's focus, BattlefleetGothic: XR. Now, as the XR ruleset is several hundred pages long, while play-testing is difficult, my observations will be somewhat shallow. I did try and write a full review of things, but decided against it due to inexperience. My general impression is that the rules have diverged so far from the source as to count as a new edition, although this shows an active community for it. This is particularly pronounced in the case of the Xenos Factions, especially Eldar. As I understand it, I'm broadly in favour of how they remodelled the Ork fleet. It seems the basic ideas of 2010 Clans list have been walked back a little, making the older material seem amateurish. So, on the one hand, you've got a convenient and actively-maintained living rulebook. On the other, by definition it's unofficial, and people can be funny about that. I will now discuss what this may mean for my fleet.

With both Gun Batteries and Heavy Gunz reworked, Ork Kroozers are now significantly more broadsidey. Randomised Gunz are now mainly a feature of prows, with flank examples having a standardised minimum of 6FP. I view this as more of a time saver than anything else, but at least you will have fewer RNG embarrassments and it stacks well with other weaponry. Heavy Gunz meanwhile are very different, have a 30cm range, no hit doubling, but a higher strength value within 15cm. The mathhammer comparison for this change is tedious, but you aren't really loosing anything, and gaining more in in the 30cm bracket. I admit that this is probably less interesting than the previous, but these revisions grant the common Ork capitals a basic competency they didn't have before. They also have Lance equivalents now. Zzaps are a little odd in that they damage on a 5+ and suffer infrequent misfires that cause blastmarkers on their parent ship. This makes them less useful than the basic Lance, although you are still looking at an answer to 6+ armour with consistent performance. If you're wondering what this means for the Slamblasta? Well, you get more shots into the bargain. Zzaps also turn up on the Onslaught as an upgrade. This plays into a general reworking of the escort category, a dense topic by itself, but the short version is that Onslaughts are more like Imperial frigates, while the Brutes focus on thier headbutting. So, there's new stuff to do, but its been done in a relatively clean way that feels in line with the original rules.

Does any of this actually count as "good" in the BFG:XR Meta? Maybe not, but is something. There is still a strong justification for aggressive movements towards enemy however. Weapon batteries of any flavour work best within 15cm, and almost everything gets a reinforced ram for happier ramming. But there's the thing; I can easily imagine people complaining because they feel Orks should be terrible, it happened a lot when I played regular 40k. Another example is the characteristic issue with Bombers, which remain, but come across as somewhat more fun. Orky turrets only hit on a 5+, but you have more, and get to fire at all tokens regardless of type. This means bomber tokens are still a worry, but it's not one-sided and boring. If anything, it presents the image of every Ork on board firing their pistols out of the airlocks as something gets close. This amusing mental picture is however swiftly followed by another of someone whinging that they can't destroy a Kroozer in a single pass any more. Given the extent attack craft rules seem to have been rebalanced over the years, this perhaps isn't a uniquely orkish topic, but if anything was gonna provoke a "Sorry, what?" from a foe, it would be the news that you've got 3 turrets. I never did like having to explain to an opponent something they should already have been aware of...

Wrapping thing up

I'm not quite sure what I'm doing next, on the BFG front. This may well be the last article on the subject for a while, assuming I don't feel the need to build some ships. That said, if I were to play, I'd probably play with the XR rules.

Gunpla: The OZ-06MS Leo (HGAC) Yes, AGAIN

 

As you may recall, this is not the first Leo I've done. I can only assume I might like the design at the point. The unfamiliar might ask what a Leo is? Well, it's a memetically expendable and faceless Grunt mobile Suit, made infamous by the series Gundam Wing. My previous comments on the design may be found here, and  here. I'm not repeating myself, when I can instead attempt to drive up traffic by crosslinking articles. We're gonna mainly talk about paints today.

This was an impulse purchase following a trying week which became an opportunity to try something out. The basic assembly and finishing of the Leo was largely the same as the last one, with panels lined with a Unipin Fine Line. The transparent sensor panel was placed atop an area of metallic gundam marker, rather than a reclaimed bit of spare sticker. This makes it a little bit duller, but that wasn't an issue as I was not aiming for shiny. This time, the tip of the gun was painted with one of those newish GW "Contrast Colours", specifically Black Templar. This was a leftover from an abandoned attempt to speed-paint some Ork Boyz. At the risk of going off topic, I found the Contrasts rather disappointing there, which is why the end products haven't been posted on here, but it was acceptable in this project. I suppose black is a hard colour to get wrong. Once the basics had been achieved, I moved on to the matter of "weathering". This was done via generous applications of GW Typhus Corrosion, one of the older but generally reliable Technical range. As paints go, it amounts to something midway between a brown wash and a textured paint which you are encouraged to smear. And smear it I did, placing emphasis on the legs and hard lines. I wanted this to look something that been in the mud like an actual soldier. 

 

The Leo is possibly not an ideal candidate for this technique due to its simplicity and scale, it is still a good one given its obvious grunt stylings. I liked the overall result so much that I decided against trying a chipping effect for the shield. Sometimes, you just look at something, and say to yourself, "Nah, that's great as is.". Plus, I've never seen a Leo survive long enough to chip the paint on a shield. 

 

The Mecha Hack: The Orks Of Warhammer 40,000

Orks, orks, orks, orks, orks, orks, orks, orks, orks. Periodically, I try to force all my obsessions into a huge great nerd sandwich of a thing. So, this article happened. About how you could run Gorkanauts and Morknauts in The Mecha Hack. You might ask, why not do Imperial Knights, or Titans? Or T'au Battlesuits? Or Marines? Surely if you wanted to do a 40K game in The Mecha Hack, there are other more obvious candidates? Well, perhaps, but Orks are the faction I play,  so they get rules instead. What? There's a new codex soon? Oh, its just a happy coincidence, as I've been sitting on this one for months.

A Word On Scale
The Warhammer 40,000 setting has almost every conceivable weapon of sci-fi war, but its treatment of giant robots does not line up easily with the Japanese Mecha genre. On the one hand, we have what are basically mini-mecha with an infantry support role or western-style walking tanks. On the other? Mobile Fortresses big enough to appear on a map, which will be redrawn after they've done firing. These rules aim towards the larger end of category one.

Notes on Converting the 'Orkanauts
Morkanauts and Gorkanauts carry a wide variety of secondary guns just basically because they can and its awesome. It's a mess of rokkits, big shootas, skorchas, & kustom-megablastas. While mainly mentioned for purposes of flavour, they may be collectively represented by a light ranged weapon that does not count towards the hand limit, termed “Ovver-Gunz”. Gorkanauts and Morkanauts also have interior space for 6ish Orks in cramped conditions, the “Belly Cabin”. This is an opportunity for tag-along NPCs, consumables, and tag-along NPCs that work as consumables. I mean, where else is a Snakebite gonna keep his herd of angry squigs? While there is an obvious overlap between a Gorkanaut and a Morkanaut, I've tried to retain the different tactical roles they fill in 40K. As such, the Gorknaut is great at killing Swarms, but mediocre at  ranged combat against other mecha. The Morkanaut is the more rounded of the two in this ruleset, as it was the anti-tank variant, and slightly less melee focused. It comes with a Kustom Forcefield, because of course it does.


Clan Kulture Modules
Ork mecha may at the time of creation choose a single clan affiliation as a module, and once selected, this cannot be changed. If a player decides to defer this decision, it is a big thing, they must instead choose one at level 3. If in doubt, choose Freebooter. The inspiration was the 8th edition clan rules.

Bad Moon: If you have not moved this turn, ranged attacks become critical successes on a roll of 1 or 2.

Blood Axe: You have Advantage on tests to find/use cover, hide, and lie like the sneaky git you are.

Deathskull:  You may reroll dice rolls of 20 on all tests.  

Evil Sun: Once a Moment you may take two standard moves as a single action. Then roll your Reactor Die.

Freebooter: If a friendly ork mecha has already killed an enemy this Moment, gain Advantage on your first attack.

Goff: Melee attacks become critical successes on a roll of 1 or 2.

Snakebite:  You may reroll your Hit Dice when resting, and levelling up. You may also reroll your starting HP.


Gorkanaut Chassis
Hit Die D10  Damage Die D8 Reactor Die D6

STARTING HIT POINTS
1d10 + 4

WEAPONS AND ARMOR
All armor, all weapons, shields

LEVELLING UP
Roll your hit die to gain new hit points. Roll to see if attributes increase, rolling twice for Power and  Presence. At levels 3, 6, and 9, gain a new module.

STARTING EQUIPMENT
Comlink, Klaw of Gork (light melee weapon), Dethstorm Mega-Shoota (light ranged weapon), Ovver-Gunz, light armor (+3 AP), Belly Cabin.

WAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH!
Announce the name of this ability. As a Move action, immediately move to a Near enemy and make a melee attack against them. Roll your reactor die.

BIG BULLY
This mecha inflicts +2 damage on Swarm enemies. However, when making a ranged attack with its Dethstorm Mega-Shoota at another kind of target, it is resolved as d6 damage instead of a d8.

Morkanaut Chassis
Hit Die D10 Damage Die D8 Reactor Die D6

STARTING HIT POINTS
1d10 + 4

WEAPONS AND ARMOR
All armor, all weapons, shields

LEVELLING UP
Roll your hit die to gain new hit points. Roll to see if attributes increase, rolling twice for System and  Presence. At levels 3, 6, and 9, gain a new module.

STARTING EQUIPMENT
Comlink, Klaw of Mork (light melee weapon), Kustom Mega-Zappa (light ranged weapon), Ovver-Gunz, light armor (+3 AP), Belly Cabin.

WAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH!
See above.

KUSTOM FORCEFIELD
As a Use action, create a barrier of 2 AP, usable by yourself or a Close mecha against Ranged Attacks. The barrier lasts until you dismiss it or until the AP is spent. Roll your reactor die.


Sample 40k unit to Swarm conversions
For this mod, I have decided to use the Swarm Enemy rules to represent things smaller than a Morkanaut, as it makes the most sense on the face of it. That said, you may have to do some fine tuning. "Hack" games are very stripped down and minimalist. Warhammer 40k can be somewhat  minimalist for a 28mm war game, but suffers from rules bloat and fanboyism. As such the rough conversions I present below can only be abstract approximations subject to my biases. My assumption here is that infantry should present no real threat to your average Gorkanaut, but the challenge is doing it fast enough. You'll also note that as HD/HP goes up the Swarm die goes down, as a LOT of Infantry in 40k tends to wear armour needing an anti-tank round to bypass, while things like Terminators can happily bludgeon tanks to death. Proportionally, as they get more powerful, the better targets they are for mecha, and the less the Swarm die is necessary. Whatever you end up doing, aim for fun, instead of a slog.


Light Infantry, I. E. Boyz, Termagants, Guardsmen, Cultists etc: HD1, HP3, 1d4 damage, max Swarm die: 1d12.
Medium Infantry, I. E Fire Warriors, Nobz, Scions: HD2, HP4, 1d6 damage, max Swarm die: 1d8.
Heavy Infantry, I. E most Marines and Necrons: HD2, HP5, 1d6 damage, max Swarm die: 1d6, plus an appropriate ability.
Light Vehicles and Elite Infantry, I. E bike squadrons, Battlesuits, Meganobs: HD3, HP8, 1d6/8 damage, max Swarm die: 1d6, plus an appropriate ability.
Actual Tanks, greater daemons, dreadnoughts, your typical "Shoot The Big Ones" Tyranids: Not a Swarm.


Going Further
While certain modules or concepts don't necessarily fit the setting, like handheld shields, most can be renamed with no issue. For example, you can simply rename the 4 basic pilot types as Boss, Mekaniak, Git, and Mouth. Another thing you could do is is adapt the new Hybrid Chassis into a Gargantuan Squiggoth. You'd just have to swap out the Mawbeam ability for WAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH!.

If you end up using these rules, do let me know how it turns out.