Update - Starship Troopers, Kill Team and Combat Patrol.

With the hot weather it has been difficult to get much painting done, but I have managed the last 5 of the Mobile Infantry Light Armour troopers. This brings the total up to 42 - 4 squads of 10 and a command of a Lieutenant and NCO. 

There are a few more spares (including another LT and NCO, but I think I might see what eBay will bring me for those) - the squad sizes I have work for the SST game, 40k as proxy guard and Xenos Rampant. I have a few power armoured troopers to go and a couple of Chickenhawk Marauder suits and they are done. 

For the Blooded/Blackstone Kill Team I picked up a plasma and melta gunner - I will get these painted with the Traitor Command figures soonish.

The sprues are for 3 Kataphron Destroyers or Breachers for the Ad  Mech. This will mean using the tank as a proxy for a spider/crawler thing I have the figures for an Ad Mech Combat Patrol for 10th Edition 40k. Must stop looking at eBay now … but I think the Ad Mech could do with another command miniature … and the Marines need another vehicle … must stop the mission creep!

Morts

400th Post so a bit of everything …

This week I have had a lovely week off work - which is always nice. The other half and I (all organised by her), travelled over to Exmoor for a couple of nights in a Shepard’s Hut - with hot tub! Proper glamping. 

The hosts at Orchard Escapes just outside Porlock were really welcoming - the full English breakfast kit was enough for 2 days. The facilities were excellent - only a 30 odd metres to your own bathroom. They had heated up they hot tub for our arrival - it was great to see the sunset from a warm bath.

Before we tried the hot tub we had a little wander over to Selworthy.

A very picturesque hamlet about mile away from the hut. Some lovely views on the walk over. From a previous visit the tea rooms there are very good - but they weren’t tried this time.

After a very good sleep and breakfast we headed out on a quick circular 10 mile walk over to Porlock Weir via Selworthy Beacon, Hurlstone Point, Bossington for a tasty lunch (and a couple of Exmoor Ales) at the Ship Inn. 

The weather was good for walking - a tad cloudy with a cool Easterly wind.  I should have taken more pictures - there are a couple of coastal defence structures on the walk. 

After tidying the Shepard’s Hut, we headed over to Dunster for a mooch - no pictices of the yarn market here. We didn’t visit the famous castle, but we did head up to the ancient Bat’s Castle earthworks.

Some excellent views - reaching over as far as Wales, Dunkery Beacon, Bossington hill (visited the day before) and of course Butlins Minehead. Really nice little walk. A cracking mini-break with the better half. A trip to the Peak District planned for July/August. 

On Friday the full collective headed over to DK’s for a game of Viticulture Essential Edition, with the Tuscany expansion. We took a while to get started, with Sylon making the early running. We took 2 hours to get to the top right picture … the box says that should be the approximate game time! Not with our gaming elite. Tiger-King was on an eating frenzy, demanding cake and pizza from our host.

The game did speed up once we started producing wine and fulfilling orders - with Steedo and Snake-eyes catching up Sylon, before DK and Tiger-King pulled away for a tussle for victory. The end game was triggered by Tiger-King passing 25 points, at 1.24 am! The final scores DK 28, Tiger-King 27, Steedo 22, Snake-eyes 19, Morts 16 and Sylon 15. A close game at both the top and the relegation end. 

I feel that I should like Viticulture more than I do - I like the placement mechanic and the collect this, so you can do that (like Raiders of the North Sea), but I don’t know why it doesn’t seem to gel for me - perhaps there are too many needs - build, workers, orders, plant vines, harvest, make wine going on - especially with the wine orders - there are a lot and the randomness of the card draw of which you get, after all the previous effort of build, plant, harvest can be a bit wearing. The game also took around 5 hours - so perhaps a better 4 player game. It might be that the game theme does work for me - I like drinking wine, but playing a game about making it … I’m not so sure. 

But thanks to DK for hosting - a really good evening’s entertainment and catch up with the collective.

So on to other things - the time vortex of the Dreadnought has been finished.

Painted - waiting for the decals. I actually did some edge highlights - quite well.

Plasma gun, transfers and chipping and weathering done.

Big gun version. 

The final versions with the base completed. 

I have to say that I am pleased with this model - at some point it might actually get used in a game.

A busy week off! 

Morts 

The time vortex - aka Dreadnought

The weather in dear old Blighty has turned rather nice, so that has an impact on painting and modelling time. Also it has been the better half’s birthday in the last week, so that has taken some time away too.

As I rescue the second hand Redemptor Dreadnought I am discovering that it is a time vortex. I had to remove and refit the lower part of the cockpit (fitting in a bar to hinge it) as it had been glued open. 

As can be seen in the smaller picture - the shoulder joints had so much paint on that I had to sand and scrape back to the plastic - while fitting the shoulder pouldron came off - so that will need gluing back on. The elbow joint on the same arm is a bit loose, so that might need fixing in place. The magnets have arrived so I will be fitting a couple to the lower cockpit door. The ones for the alternate weapons are quite large so might end up being visible - but the model only came with one of the joint plugs (there are 2 in a brand new kit apparently) so some fudging here was going to happen. Overall happy with the purchase, but it is going to take me longer to sort than I envisaged. 

Next post is the 400th I think, so I suppose I should try and make it longer - possibly more interesting?

Morts

Infiltrators and others for Kill Team

To be able to field a reasonable Phobos Kill Team I have put together this squad of infiltrators, an incursor and an eliminator.

The eliminator - a bargain off eBay, he will be a used as an Incursor marksman in the Kill Team.

Inflitrator and Incursor (converted from a spare Reiver - I would have like a helmeted head for the Incursor). 

The Inflitrator Helix Adept (converted) and squad Sergeant to round out the squad. I now have 15 Phobos marines from which to make a Kill Team, so that should be fun. The usual basing and varnishing not with standing. 

For the space marine force I had a little delivery today of a Redemptor Dreadnought. I was hoping to get one at the show at the weekend, but nothing about, eBay to the rescue. 

I’ll be honest it is a little bigger than I thought it would be got some repair work to do - and possibly so magnets so it can have different load outs.

That’s is meant to be it on the 40k stuff …

Morts

Legionary 2023

DK very kindly picked me up for a trip down the local show in Exe. This is the first show I’ve been to for a couple of years and was I looking forward to it - I had actually compiled at list of things that I wanted. So on arrival we scouted out the Bring and Buy - which was very good. DK picked up quite a lot of “bargains” - including 8 oldish terrain boards. After the Bring and Buy, we went around the traders to see what might catch our eyes. 

Before we perused the games we headed the cafe for a quality breakfast.

The advantage of using a venue used by the farming community is the breakfast was good!

Some lovely ToonKrieg miniatures and game using NUTS rules - all 3d printed. 

A great “toy soldier“ set up for somewhere in Eastern Europe using NorthStar miniatures. 

Loved the ship. 

The Cornish were there with an impressive Blood and Plunder set up - if we had been earlier we might have had a go - but the 2 hour play time was too much. 

Two Star Wars games - one clone wars using Chain of Command rules, the other using the Legion rules.  

A nice mid 18th century battle where you had get the supply column off the board. 

A massive 30k game was being played - lots of vehicles and knights on the table. 

The tables from the Brethren set up, a Bolt Action game and Wings of Glory airship epic.

DK and I had a good day wandering around and chatting to other gamers - I didn’t pick up everything on my list, but my haul wasn’t bad.

Pleased with all I picked up - looking forward to having a go at the Blitzkrieg game (I had looked at this a year or so ago as a Christmas pressie).

Morts

Some more Reivers for Kill Team or 40k or Something …

 I have now finished off the last Reivers for my Phobos Kill Team - and small 40k force of space marines.

A Space Marine NCO, as I had one extra miniature than I actually needed for my 5 man squads. I probably would have liked a better paint job, but as I was painting him with the rest of the miniatures, so possibly a little rushed. 

The newly formed VIIIth squad - the 2 marines at each end were part of the IXth squad but were transferred (with a literal change of transfer on the knee pad), so that both Reivers squads have a grapple launcher and a carbine. 

The new members of the IXth squad with grapple launcher and carbine. All that figures need some tufts which I hope to pick up at the show at the weekend. 

I have to paint up the infiltrator/incursor/eliminator squad to complete the members of the Phobos kill team (and obviously complete another 5 man squad of space marines for the force I have mission creeped. 

I plan to get a dreadnought for the force - hopefully it would be a playable force in the soon to be released free 10th edition of 40k - otherwise they will be playing Xenos Rampant. 

Morts

A late write up - Raiders of the North Sea

On the May bank holiday Steedo invited the collective around for a game. Only DK and I could make it and because I was knacker from the big event on the moor, I had asked for a quick game. Steedo had asked for Raiders of the North Sea.

An early doors picture of the game - great components. I really like this game it is has a simple place a meeple do the action, then pick up a meeple do the action -  although DK was struggling with this for most of the game, needing reminders to place first. Steedo got a good engine running and started raiding early. I seemed to get expensive crew cards and didn’t decide on a good strategy…

The end game Steedo (red) way out in front, then DK (blue) a solid game and sadly me in last place! I enjoyed the game but my usual game of going for the offerings never got going - there were a lot of Valkyries in the early raiding areas (by the time I started raiding anyway), but I didn’t have cheap crew to expend, so I couldn’t get the commodities and could replace the crew quickly enough. A fun evening - thanks to Steedo for hosting. 

With the big moor event over I have managed to start painting again (well 1 evening) - I have some Phobos marines I’d like to do before the show next Saturday - which i am really excited for (I have been to a show for ages. Hopefully I’ll get another post of some minis up here before then.

Morts