Plamo: The UrbanMech Lance (BattleTech)

You know what? Let’s do a bonus article.

 

I've done UrbanMechs before, but its been two-ish years since I did anything BattleTech, so a brief summary is called for. Presented in 4 variations, the UrbanMech is a meme. How much of a meme? Well, Tex felt it necessary to do two videos on it, an initial short six years back, and a recent chrimbo special which was more extravagant. Think something along the lines of a Ball, or a mobile bunker. Its basic purpose is garrison duty in cities, and is known for being a light but slow mech, two words that do not go together well. The BattleTech setting is however not without some nuance, and if used correctly the humble Urbie can be a capable ambusher on its home turf. This lance box features models to represent the classic version and three variants with more specialist weaponry. I am especially fond of the one with triple missile racks in SRM6, I can see that being a nasty surprise for someone. I was certainly surprised to chance upon these in a shop.

when I painted these, I opted for a simple scheme which I then made over-complicated. My inspiration here was Robocop, specifically the blue tinted version seen on the Robocop 2 poster and some other depictions. You might ask why I didn't go for an ED209 scheme? Well, the Urbie isn't a chicken walker, and if you haven't noticed, the text of the first film is that the ED is objectively awful. The UrbanMech has flaws, certainly, but its not that bad. Applying the Robocop scheme to an Urbie prompted applications of blue ink over metalics, and experimental uses of glossy black for the cockpit windows. I'm not entirely happy with either aspect, although I can see the techniques having applications elsewhere. Maybe this idea would work better on a more humanoid mech...

 

The bases were also a touch experimental. I added a few random bits to the bases, before a layer of the GW Astrogranite Debris technical paint. This was then drybrushed with Dark Reaper, a bluey-grey I'd picked up for another project. This was a reasonable approximation of urban concrete decay, although I will admit my inexperience with such terrain at this scale. I need more practice and more size appropriate bits. The three donuts on the base of one was a happy accident; the three beads I'd put there were intended to be vaguely industrial at first, but I painted one in brown, and things flowed from there.

 

I remain a bit unsatisfied with the end result, but that may just be perfectionism. I'm a bit rusty, but people seem to like these.

 

Kitbash: Rough Riders

A lot of my modelling starts with a desire to do something new. True, doing a robot kit is the creative equivalent of comfort food, but I often get bored and insecure. So I look for something just slightly outside of the box. And maybe the end results will prompt some positive feedback to left me up a bit. Thinking about it, that's basically all that Project Chem-Dogs was/is; I'd always wanted a guard force, but that quickly went from doing it easily and cheaply, to being a gender balanced army where every model is some level of kitbash or notable greenstuff modification. Although still hopefully cheaply, even as I increasingly want to build things for tactical reasons. With that in mind, Rough Riders.

The fact that the GRIMDARK Imperium still maintains units of horse cavalry is one of the odder bits of 40K. Their tactical role has been largely supplanted by bikers and jumppack infantry, not to mention the average troop transport. Cavalry in general is pretty rare, with arguably only Chaos Daemons being the only faction being seriously into equestrianism, and they pull double-duty with the fantasy ranges. Actual horsey Rough Riders went without proper rules for a while, and it was looking like they were being put out to pasture, as it were. Sorry. They were however given a new kit for 9th edition, which along with Beast Snaggas suggests that GW is happy for cavalry to be a bigger thing in the setting. The fictional justification for this is basically the same as the use of Abhumans in the otherwise very xenophobic Imperium. Simply, if you have a planet that regressed into a society of horse tribes that look suspiciously like a reference/parody of something, like the famed Attila, you might as well use them as such. Its not like you can expect these equestrian weirdos to make lasguns, so just let them do their thing at today's enemy.

I've never built cavalry before. I don't generally do historical or fantasy wargaming, and while I am English, I am a city boy. Horses are a touch odd to me, especially in the military context, as they don't cleanly fit into the pet/food dynamic, but I digress. Anyway, so making some is a welcome novelty, but one I had to do some research on. First was finding the raw materials, as I didn't want to go for the nice if expensive GW kit. Wargames Atlantic do a very similar kit for their Les Grognards, but that wasn't the look I wanted, and they come in an unhelpful squad size of 9. The look I did kinda want was that of the original Chem-Dog kitbashes seen in White Dwarf magazine, but as those used long OOP metal components that was a non-starter. So I opted to find a fairly basic cavalry model, the specifics not mattering too much, and then dress them with bits in much the same manner as my convict infantry. Eventually, the source material selected was a loose sprue of 5 Oathmark Human Cavalry.

I'm not gonna talk too much about the base models here; they seem fine and are made by the Stargrave people, but I don't have much of a frame of reference. These had the more medieval aspects either removed or obscured, horse and rider painted separately. The spears were lengthened with beads to make hunting lances, although they ended up looking more like those bombs-on-poles they use in Mad Max. That actually isn't bad though, because that's pretty much what a hunting lance is anyway, a pointy grenade on a long stick. A sword was picked to represent a power sabre, although it defied my attempts to make it more visually interesting. The riders were, as mentioned, built like my infantry, which meant lots of green stuff, and a female head. Not that its easy to tell at this scale, with a gasmask on. There's probably an article on gender coding in there somewhere. Anyway, the horse received gasmasks too, although not the full-head WWI style ones as those are fucking terrifying. I sculpted on some rags/barding in the same manner of the riders, and straps for the assorted spare weapons this unit has. Its weird to see a model with a rifle, pistol, and a polearm, but maybe that's just me. Painting then followed in my usual manner, with horse and rider joined just before basing and finishing touches. Painting a passable horse proved easier than I expected too, I just needed some new shades of brown, in a drybrush/wash/drybrush sorta affair.

While there was a prolonged "this looks kinda shit" stage, these came out entirely acceptable by the end. Not the best thing I've ever done, but tableworthy. I dunno if I'd make more, but its nice to know that I can.

 

 

Scratchbuild: Ork Deff Dread

This tale begins in much the same way as those Killer Kanz back in April. It was TFNation week and I was in a holding pattern, expecting a joyous but likely expensive weekend. There's always a tightening of the old belt before that, and I had two weeks off, so I wanted to save something for week 2. But I needed something to do, and an Ork discord server has doing its monthly challenge, specifically the "The "Waaaghust Walker Challenge" held by the 40K Ork Community Discord. " so here we are. A change of pace following all the humies I've been doing lately.

As to why its a Deff Dread? Well, its me falling back into old habits with something comfortable. The thing about Orks for me just now is that I feel I've done all I want to at least twice. What remains is modernization busy work, which would be a chore, or unit types I'm not into. Yeah, I could do Beast Snaggas or bikers or such and such. But they look both expensive, potentially annoying to kitbash, and a ball-ache to paint. By comparison, your average ork walker is a more relaxed and fun form of creative expression. I have too many of these already, but, fuck it, its something I'm good at.

Now, with this I had no real plan beyond making a legal unit with proven techniques. Most of the raw materials came from the bitzbox, old toys, and robot kits that displeased me. We're talking assorted tubes, water pistol bits, choice fidget toys for joints, beads, and a lot of hot-glue. The weaponry was something that took a while for me to settle on. I wanted to go full melee with an asymmetric arm set-up, but it didn't look right, so I went for a klaw and shoulder rokkit combo. The overall form was inspired by the current GW plastic kit, but I ended up giving it a fat gut and an arse-mounted fuel tank. I think I was channelling the Gorkanaut, although its also somewhat cute with those eyes.

I had most of this done before leaving for TFNation, just before weathering and basing. I could have pushed harder, but I saw no point in rushing it. The end result turned out pretty well. 

 

Job’s a good ‘un.

EDIT: And I came third in the challenge!

Plamo: The 30 Minutes Missions Baskyrotto (gray)

Wow, its been a wee while since we last talked about one of these, Isn't it? Allow me a quick summary for the unfamiliar. 30 Minutes Missions is a line of highly customisable mecha models made by the gunpla people, Bandai. These aren't tied to an anime, at least not yet, and the gimmick is that these can be assembled in under 30 minutes. I've never really felt the need to rush like that, but 30MM kits are consistently pleasant builds reflecting the expertise Bandai can bring. They are the platonic ideal of robot model kits, and putting aside teething troubles from the early years or the occasional duff polycap, you're in for a good time. Although... they can get a touch samey through parts reuse, and the lack of fiction hurts my word count. Which is probably why I don't talk about them super-often these days.

The Baskyrotto is a comparatively recent release, new this year, and one that tickled my fancy. Its overall vibe is similar to the Armored Core series of video games, something likely not coincidental as Armored Core will be joining the 30MM line soon. It's like with Lego doing Minecraft sets, but I digress. The Baskyrotto is short, angular and very stocky. Its not that much taller than the adorable egg robo they did, but its much wider, and a chest that would look right at home in a PS3 era cutscene. Its not entirely AC though, with the backpack having a folding rack arrangement like the Gundam Ground Type and a two-thumbed hand design highly reminiscent of the Jo Hound. As a build, its definitely as intuitive as these tend to be, although you get a lot of smaller sprues rather than the consolidated sprues of the 1st gen kits. There is a the original joint sprue in the mix, although not all of it is used, such as two regular hands. Speaking of hands, the Basky is supplied with two open and two closed/holding hands, all interchangeable as left or right, which is good. Overall posability is about what you’d want for something proportioned like it is, although the legs are all knee and are probably better than you’d expect. Meanwhile, the Roy Roy is present, in a chicken walker style. Of note here is that the sensor is for it and the regular head is a duplicated piece, just coloured and oriented differently. Finally, the Baskin Robin features a tower shield and an assault rifle, which certainly fits the vibe, but some kind of melee option would have been nice. I also which that little panel center of the chest actually locked in place, as the pictures show, its rather easy to move without noticing. All-in-all? Another winner, but if in doubt, wait for a colour variant you like.

Because I am basically hardcoded to weather every model I make, I proceeded to make this dirty. Maybe I should use one of these as the basis for a how-to guide. In summary, I drybrushed a bit with metals, before selectively applying Agrax Earthshade. This was heavy on the legs and 3mm ports, but lighter elsewhere, as I figured the legs would be the dirtiest bit. Once this had dried, I applied a light drybrush of Zandri Dust to suggest, well, actual dust and dried mud.

 

 

Jobs a good-un.

 

3D Print: “Counts as” Bombard Field Gun

Added to the Imperial armoury when I wasn't paying much attention, the Field Ordnance Battery was part the 9th edition Astra Militarum line refresh. They slide into niche between Heavy Weapon Teams and stuff like the Basilisk, in that its a crew-served artillery. Like Mek Gunz, but presumably safer to stand near. Ruleswise, the execution of them is a lot like Heavy Weapon Squads. You know, its a big gun, its crew are very squishy, so invariably people choose the indirect fire option, the Bombard Gun, if only to keep them alive. In terms of raw power, these aren’t the best, although they’ve weathered recent rules changes quite well. My experiences with them so far have positive, but not game-winning.

This project represents my first dealings with the Etsy platform, and one of numerous 3D print outfits that lurk there. Etsy functions as a storefront for craft supplies, artwork and such, and much like eBay you get a fair few companies selling bits. The model here was a “Gun Platforms Set 2” as printed by Proxy Wargames, a somewhat anonymous seller with no obvious social media presence. Its not immediately clear if they create thier own STL files, or merely print those by others, but on first impression these were quite nice. The print is at a higher resolution that the Ursa IFV, and did not require the same amount of aggressive sanding and prepping. It did require some preparation though, this being a "spray it with primer, then see what is revealed" sorta situation. Its definitely adequate in the detail, but there were imperfections, notably around the underside of each gun barrel. Also, while the price was right, you have to provide your own crew and bases. In my case this is a mix of Cannon Fodder and Stargrave minis atop a MDF disc. 

 

This would obviously mean that the crew were the most involved part of the build. You know, greenstuff mods, gasmasks, some flesh tones. Its always more steps than you think. The guns by comparison were done mainly via the spraycan method, before going in to pick out key details and exposed metal. As with my vehicles, I see this unit as either unwanted surplus or "acquired via unofficial channels", so a generic green with hints of decay was what I was aiming for. Unfortunately, I was at the point of securing them to base, when one picked a fight with gravity. Twice. Fuck, I'm a clumsy fool. Fortunately, this was a matter of clean breakages, but this revealed a brittleness more akin to Ramshackle Games resin than the aforementioned Ursa by Culverin Models. I feel my inexperience with 3D prints is showing here, but certain tiresome things about the Ursa are a bit more tolerable now. A bitch to sand, yes, but I'm pretty sure that would do better with the drop test, but I digress. Also, I may have overdone it with the mud paint. Everything else came good by the end though.

Job's a good 'un.

Gunpla: The GH-001RB Grimoire Red Beret (HG)

OK, this will take some explaining. What we have here is a mobile suit from an unpopular series, customised to resemble a mecha from another, non-Gundam franchise. And its piloted by someone whom likes the more Wehrmacht aspects of Zeon, whose avatar is a white ferret/stoat/mongoose/something in military uniform, and goes by the name Rommel. Before you file this under "Japan", let me add more detail. Gundam Build Divers takes place in a gunpla themed massively multiplayer online RPG, where players fight with their custom made models. Here, someone has taken the Grimoire, a minor design from Gundam Reconquista in G, and made it into a Scopedog tribute. Yes, that Scopedog, the design I have a minor fixation on. That's why I picked it up. And, as near as I can figure out, Rommel's not actually a Nazi. Possibly a tourist. Possibly a military fanboy ignoring the ugly side. Possibly a tribute to Desert Rommel rather than Erwin Rommel directly, although people can have an unhealthy admiration for the latter. The character in question is, almost certainly, a furry. Now you can file this under "Japan".

I had to go look up the base model Grimoire, as Reconquista is another blindspot for me. It is my understanding that its in the grand tradition of grunt suits, although like a lot of stuff in that series the visual design is a bit distant from the baseline. Rommel's customisation of it, and thus the kit here, is a substantial one, replacing most weaponry with a modular system, adding some very Votoms elements like heelies, and some seemingly creative flair. The design features concealed blade arms on the legs, and notably, spare heads. These function as knife-roombas. During my research, I found myself disagreeing with the fandom wiki. No, it is absolutely a Scopedog tribute, the feet wheels and one red shoulder are a huge giveaway. By the standards of mould re-uses, its an interesting and earnest one. But what's it like as a build?

 

Well, as far as the raw material goes, the Grimoire seems a pretty decent grunt kit, if somewhat numerous in sprue count thanks to the retooling. Like the Dagger L, its a latter-day polycap design with a few plastic/friction joints. A noticeable design flair are the thrusters on the front skirt armour. These are colour separated and rotate, which is very nice on a high grade, and like many a kit, you snip a piece so each segment can move independently. The pair on the buttplate are however fixed and not colour correct, with some hollowness on other areas, like in the inside of the shield. Stickers are also present, and while never obnoxious, are a bit varied in appearance and convenience. You get several that go behind transparent parts in the heads, and these look great, but you have a few that need to be placed in recessed but curved areas, and they don't stick too well. There's also the white star marking for one leg, which you just have to eyeball, but at least you get spares. I sealed the stickers with some mod podge to be sure, but honestly these are fine as stickers go. The new components are also nice. Those leg blades use a clip system which put me mind of some 30MM parts. While the original weapons have been omitted, the new ones get another thumbs up. These have the air of tacticool gimmickry, but I do like a modular assault rifle where the shoulder stock is also a pistol for emergencies. The slight disappointment here is the knives, which store variously about the model, but are cast in the same plastic as the heads, so you're gonna want to paint those blades. Meanwhile, the Minimoires, the knife roombas, are fun bits of fluff, not especially complicated, but characterful. One slight word of warning though. There's a lot attached to this stocky frame, and between the waist design and the foot wheels, you may find balance issues long term. It seems fine just now though. So, generally a good time here, with some minor flaws, but nothing you couldn't handle if you've built a model before.

Now for this I did, guess what? Yes, another weathering job. I know that this is kinda dumb. Build Divers is a video game, and thus weather doesn't happen. And given that Rommel is quite militaristic, maybe he'd like his machine to be parade ready. Then again, he invokes tank warfare, he's probably not afraid of a bit of dirt. Sorry, it's what I like.

Job’s a good ’un.

TFNation August 2024 Report

Well, I just got back, and have yet to pass out from exhaustion, so here’s a write-up while its fresh.

Now, more so than usual, this was a bit of a blur. It was good to see the friends that could make it, but the amount of actual socialising I managed to fit in was a bit light. Part of that was logistics; I was staying at a Premier Inn rather than the venue in an attempt to save money, so I couldn't enjoy the atmosphere as much. Unfortunately the inn abruptly closed its restaurant in the run up to that weekend, which meant I went to Starbucks instead. That wasn't bad by any means, but it was the first several unexpected things that put me a bit off-kilter, culminating in some intense digestive discomfort that I shall spare you the details of. I had the ill. On the plus side, I did have the honour of working on the Toy-Fu charity stall/ailse and doing some good. They passed a big milestone this year. Things picked up on Sunday too, so a good time overall. As for acquisitions? Well, it was a bit lighter this time, but then I got Tidal Wave two months back, so swings and roundabouts, I suppose. Things of interest to this blog include:

Legacy Cannonball: Yes, its the Skids mould again, in a Gordian Knot of retooling and pretooling.

Legacy Vector Prime: Possibly better than the original, possibly worse than what its retooled from.

Kingdom Wheeljack: I missed this first time around. And the second time around.

Kingdom Inferno: No, not that one. Its Hauler’s less memetic mouldmate.

Assorted G1 Candy Models: A gift from one ‪Jake LaBombarbe, whom also kindly gave me some badges that are not pictured. Thanks Jake.

New Continent Machines Adventure: My first “what the hell is this?” purchase. Its an artist-led model kit. Something gunpla-adjacent, but you need paint.

A 3D printed head from a lucky dip: Self-explanatory.

A small robot that turns into the number 1: Also self-explanatory.

Tomiica Rescue Commander and Hyper Rescue: A big and chunky robot combiner, whom I need to do more research on.

I’ll probably do articles on several of these over the coming months, although I currently have a 3 week buffer, so it may be a while before I post anything. Normal service resumes on Sunday. I may also want to reconsider my hotel for next year.

In the meantime, rest.