Flee from the Cylon Tyranny!

Behold, my newest fleet of ships from Ravenstar:  A Cylon Base Star with 4 squadrons of Raiders!

The base-star is unpainted - I don't feel it requires anything more to make it look authentic.

The Raider fighters are quite small (the base is maybe 1 inch across), so took some time to paint.  I decided to mount them on small pegs made of black paperclip pieces, and the effect is pretty nifty!  I will probably paint the Base-Star's base black to match.

This ought to prove a match for any Battlestar!  By your command.

Covenant Seraph Fighters painted

Added some light markings to my Seraph fighters:

Covenant ORS Heavy Cruiser

Presenting the largest Covenant ship in Halo: Fleet Battles: the ORS Heavy Cruiser!

Covenant Seraph Fighters

Short post today: got some Seraph fighters from Shapeways!  Plus, my ORS Heavy Cruiser is base-coated!

Covenant CCS Battlecruiser

Today, I painted up my CCS Battlecruiser from Halo Fleet Battles!

I went with Grape Pearl to match the rest of my fleet, with varying shades, with white lights/windows painted in.  My little Corvette now has a big brother!

Covenant SDV Heavy Corvette

I finally have the first ship of my Covenant Fleet painted! This was all done with brushes since I don't own an airbrush.  Testors Grape Pearl base coat, with most of the details done with Deep Sea Blue (dark) or Intermediate Blue (light).  Really happy with how it turned out, considering how tiny these models are!

This is the Battlestar Atlantia

Well, it took a month of work, but it's finally finished!  My build of the Moebius Battlestar Galactica model kit, constructed as the flagship of the fleet, the Battlestar Atlantia:

Mech details, washes, highlights

This week I've gotten my Battletech miniatures washed and highlighted, and they're looking pretty good!

Modeling update - Mechs, Discovery One

The biggest update this week is acquiring a Micron pen!  It's super tiny, great for small details like panel lines:

I think the ship really "pops" now with the windows and panel lines!

Yesterday, I also received a beautiful model of Discovery One (from 2001: A Space Odyssey) from Shapeways.  I'm very impressed with the detail and quality.  

I used the micron pen on the windows, but beyond that haven't touched it.  I may do a wash in some places like the pod bay doors, or maybe some grey panel lines, but the ship in general is very pristine white and I may just preserve that.  The ship is very large for a miniature!

And this weekend I'm working on some Battletech miniatures from Ironwind Metals.

Unpainted pewter.  I have two Vulture variants, a Madcat, and a Marauder, some of my favorite mechs.

I decided to go with tan as the base color, and I'm considering doing a green camo or striping pattern on top once the details are finished.  This is still very much work in progress, and I'll share more pictures as these models progress.  I'm hoping to use these as a testbed for weathering techniques.

Finally, I have a few pictures to share of my collections:

My table of Enterprises, featuring the 1707, Refit, 1701-B, 1701-C, 1701-D, and 1701-E.  Towering over them all, of course, is my gorgeous Diamond Select Excelsior NCC-2000, and my Galaxy Quest NSEA Protector.

On a shelf of my desk at home is my Star Wars display (and my router :P )  These mostly come from the X-Wing Miniatures game, and came pre-painted. This is a collection of my favorite ship models, and has one of everything (I do have several multiples packed away).  I absolutely love the giant Tantive IV!  Also featured in the center is my Star Destroyer from Studio Bergstrom, and my Darth Vader miniature from the old Star Wars Trivial Pursuit, which came with pewter figures of several characters to use as game pieces.  Sadly, the other miniatures have warped over time, but Vader stands strong.

That about does it for this week, thanks for checking it out!

Painted! One Narn Cruiser and two Minbari Fighters

I got my most dreaded ship painted up: my Narn G'Quan Heavy Cruiser, from Babylon 5.  The striping pattern I decided to just freehand, on top and bottom, which took a while!  I had to sacrifice some specific details on this ship, which I'm prepared to live with: Each black stripe pattern ought to have a thin white outline, and I simply don't have the tools for that right now; also, right through the center of the ship beneath the pylons, there should be a green stripe with Narn characters that I presume are the ship name or serial number.  I could not paint that on, as the bridge pylon was already glued on.  I still think it looks pretty darn good!

The red color is Testors Insignia red, and the black striping is simply flat acrylic black.  I also used a black wash for the metal sections in the middle, to give them more depth and detail.  The rear of the engine nozzles are also painted black, although not shown here.

Reference Picture

I also have two Minbari Nial Heavy fighters.  The paint scheme was not difficult: I mixed a base coat of blue, then used a darker blue shade for the detailing along the center and weapon pylons.  The cockpit and gun ports are detailed in black.  Because it's an organic ship design, I actually really enjoyed painting it, because you don't have to worry whatsoever about straight lines.  I could just move the brush around to paint those little lines and blotches and it all looks great without too much effort!

Reference Picture

My Centauri and Colonial Fleets, fully painted!

From Left to right: TOS Tiger Destroyer, TOS Battlestar, Nu Tiger Destroyer, Charon Escort, Berzerk Gunstar, Charon Escort, Nu Battlestar, Moobreaker Dreadstar, Starslayer Dreadstar, Peltast Gunstar.

Based on my ship designs in Full Thrust, this Battlestar Fleet is 4,469 fleet points in total.

Side view.  All ships are from Ravenstar Studios except the Nu Tiger Destroyer, which comes from Iron Wind Metals

Two Vorchan Warbirds in on the sides, a Primus Battlecruiser in the center, surrounded by four Sentri fighters.

Based on my ship designs in Full Thrust,  this Centauri fleet is 995 points in total.

Side view.  All ships are from Agents of Gaming

Moebius Colonial Viper Mk. II

You know you hear the theme song in your head looking at this :D

Painted Models! Plus, the Great Experiment

I ordered a decent Testors paint set and brushes last week, and this weekend I finally began putting some paint onto my models!  I have 3 mostly finished, with only a little detailing work left to do.

Brakiri Avioki Cruiser (left)
Shadow Battlecrab (bottom)
Battlestar Galactica (top)

Narrative Full Thrust Battle Report

I played a little mixed-fleet game of Full Thrust yesterday.

In Fleet A, we had an Omega-class Destroyer, a Battlestar (original series), and my Railgun Gunstar.

The Omega has Beam batteries and Grasers.  The Battlestar has Grasers, Pulse torpedoes, and Beam batteries.  The Railgun Gunstar has, you guessed it, a massive class-6 kinetic gun, and some beam batteries on the side.

In Fleet B, we had two Vorchans, a Berzerk Gunstar, a Battlestar (new series), and my own creation, a Pulsar Heavy Cruiser.

The Vorchan is equipped with Pulse torpedoes and beam batteries.  The Berzerk has salvo missiles and beam batteries.  The Battlestar features a lot of beam batteries and point defense.  The Pulsar is outfitte with 4 wide-arc Grasers, two kinetic guns, and a needle beam.

The game was played with vector movement rules and no terrain.

(Unpainted) Battlestar Galactica Fleet!

Presenting my unpainted Battlestar Galactica fleet!  These are small resin miniatures from Ravenstar Studios.  For scale, the key ring to the left of the image is around the size of a US Quarter.  The ships run from 3 to 4 inches in length.

From left to right we have: Gunstar Berzerk, Battlestar Galactica, and an unknown Berzerk variant.  Ravenstar was kind enough to send me that ship free of charge - I'm the first person to get the model, and there isn't even a name for it yet!  (I'm thinking the Rapier Class Gunstar) Instead of the Berzerk's central flight pod, it has a large railgun running under the belly.  I also have 4 squadrons of Mk II Vipers (well, 1 of those 24 fighters is a Mk VII.  I guess that's the ace squadron.)  And, in the back, is of course the classic Galactica from the original show.

So, that's it, short post for now.  I'll probably make another post to show them off once things are painted and on flight stands.

Star Trek - The Tabletop Game

With the large numbers of Star Trek models we've accrued, I really wanted a tabletop miniatures game in which to utilize them.  There are plenty around, but none that really clicked with me.  I set out to make my own!  It is in the testing stages right now, but I will soon be making it public on this blog.  Early feedback is very positive, and I'm finding it fun, tactical, and fairly smooth to play.

Sci-Fi Models - Part 2!

Painted! Warlock Destroyer and Starfuries

Presenting my (mostly) painted Warlock and Starfury fighters.  Note the painted sensor boom, darker grey highlights on the gun and missile barrels, and the lighted windows painted to the sides.  On the Starfuries, the main detail I've added lately is the canopy lines.  All that's left is to paint the base and stand pegs block on the Warlock!

Painted! Omega Destroyer

I'm pretty proud of this one.  My Omega class destroyer is fully painted and detailed.  Note the black hanger and red-tipped sensor boom on the bow, the red missile doors going down the sides, and the black/red engines to the stern.  Bases are fully painted black and it's ready for duty.

THE OFFICE COLLECTION

This is the full collection of sci-fi models between me and my office-mate at work.  Most of the ships are mine.  Ships that are notably NOT mine include the massive awesome-looking hand-painted USS Defiant on the far right, the Babylon 5 station on the left, and the very well-painted Sharlin Warcruiser near the center.

Front of this table is our Babylon 5 fleets.  My Earthforce ships to the left, followed by Minbari and Interstellar Alliance ships in the middle, then a Narn G'Quan and a Centauri fleet after that to the right.

Behind that is a line of every Enterprise from Star Trek, from original series, the refit Enterprise A, all the way to E.  In addition, we've got a Klingon Bird of Prey, and a few other assorted Federation ships.  I can take zero credit for painting any of these, they're all pre-painted miniatures.

To the right, we have a few Battlestar Galactica ships.  My office-mate has a well-painted Battlestar Pegasus at his home, missing from this picture.

Finally, on the back-left, is my beautiful NSEA Protector from Galaxy Quest.  I can't take credit for painting it, but it's a big model and a real beauty!

My future modeling goals will be to paint my Excalibur model and my Galactica model.  I may buy some more ships next month, as well, and I'm open to suggestions :D

Thanks for taking a look!

Babylon 5 Models!

Just a quick post today, I've got two models I wanted to show off to the internet:  My two favorite ships from one of my favorite shows, Babylon 5.

First up: The Excalibur

 (I just got this one tonight!!) One of only two Victory Class Destroyers ever made by the Insterstellar Alliance, the Excalibur is the largest and most powerful warship ever made by the young races.  It has artificial gravity, full gravitic propulsion, vorlon beam turrets, and a massively destructive Lightning Cannon capable of destroying nearly any target in a single shot.  This model measures roughly 6 inches long and 4 inches tall, including the stand (the real ship would measure 2,012 meters in length, making this roughly 1:13,000 scale).  It took maybe 3 hours of work to assemble, and it is not painted yet.  It is made of solid pewter and is quite hefty.  You can purchase this model right HERE!  I hope to use it in a game of The Babylon Project quite soon!

Next: The Warlock Class Destroyer

The Warlock Class destroyer is the most advanced warship developed by the Earth Alliance, and the first with artificial gravity along with a hybrid gravitiy propulsion system.  Rarely ever seen on Babylon 5 or Crusade, this design is still a fan-favorite because of its sleek, menacing, yet utilitarian look.  There are rumors of shadow technology hidden in some of the computer systems...  The real ship measures about 1900 meters in length.  You can buy this model HERE!  With missiles and strong beam weapons, I've used this model in The Babylon Project already, and it's a great ship.  I have since painted it, and I'll share some pictures of my painted models soon.

The Babylon Project

The Babylon Project was our last, best hope for peace . . . .  It failed.

Warfare is a constant in the Babylon 5 universe, as much as cutthroat diplomats and neutral space stations try to avoid it.  And what greater way to simulate the epic and realistic space battles of Babylon 5 than with scale miniatures and dice!  The Babylon Project just happens to be the name of a tabletop game I've been enjoying a lot lately, one which strikes a great balance between simplicity and simulation.

Best and Worst Star Wars Games of All Time

Friends know I'm a big Star Wars fan.  As such, I've played every video game that came out, until it all started to be about the Clone Wars.  And I mean every one.  Star Wars Monopoly, Star Wars Demolition, Star Wars Jedi Power Battles, Star Wars X-Wing Alliance, Star Wars Rebellion, Star Wars Force Commander, Star Wars Galactic Battlegrounds... there were a lot of them.  Many of them were pretty bad games, although that usually didn't stop me from loving them based on the brand alone.  Head past the jump to find the very best, and very worst, of the Star Wars games.