"Nothing Will Grow Here."

"There's just a trace of hydrocarbons, and most of the nitrogen is locked into nitrates."

This 28mm scale white metal model of an Albion Rocket Corporation Astronaut is produced by “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio” and can be bought either separately or as part of their ARC Astronauts three-figure deal. The sculpt comes with a helmet-wearing head, but as I wanted to use him as a proxy for Thomas Dodge from the 1968 movie "Planet Of The Apes" I swapped this part out for a bearded Human Minion Head instead.

"A man of science with a thirst for knowledge of the unknown", the Lieutenant was primed using two coats of "Vallejo" White, shaded in Pale Grey and dry-brushed with (more) White. I then 'boxed off' several of his cosmonaut suit's numerous buttons with a little watered-down "Citadel" Abaddon Black, before applying the combinations of "Vallejo" Heavy Red with "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson", "Vallejo" Heavy Blue" with "Citadel" Asurman Blue, and "Vallejo" Heavy Grey with "Citadel" Biel-Tan Green onto them.

"Man the guns. Join the Apes."

To slightly contrast with the member of the Icarus' plain white uniform I gave Dodge's data pad a coat of "Citadel" Ironbreaker and washed it in Nuln Oil, rather than leave the electronic device "Vallejo" White as I had originally planned. Finally, Thomas' hands and face were treated to a coat of "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna and a dash of "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade.

Momentarily stepping away from painting figures, I have managed to re-base the second of two 50 Cal HMG 'Comanche' U.S. Battle Suits by "West Wind Productions" I aim to re-purpose for "Konflikt '47" by "Warlord Games". This hefty metal miniature comes from Andy Cooper's "Secrets Of The Third Reich" range, and is part of a ‘US Armoured Infantry’ starter set I first started working on over a decade ago. However, despite being noticeably smaller, I thought the model would make a good temporary substitute for an Allied Coyote Light Walker, and give me a chance to try out the single-crew vehicle's formidable firepower on the battlefield before investing in one of "Warlord Games" resin/metal kits.

"Manufactorum Imperialis" WIPs - The large crane is being painted in sub-assemblies

In addition, I've also been working on some more of my "Games Workshop" Manufactorum Imperialis scenery for "Adeptus Titanicus" in the (ambitious) hope of owning both a fully-painted Legio Mortis force and accompanying terrain by the end of next month. I don't usually paint in sub-assemblies, but the pair of huge industrial cranes which come in the boxed set simply screamed to be pigmented in at least two parts.

Frustratingly, despite having done this the actual crane arms themselves are proving to be something of a nightmare due to all the inaccessible areas created by its metal struts. As a result I've somewhat scaled down my plans for these pieces, and instead now plan to simply have the monstrous machines predominantly painted "Vallejo" Heavy Red, with its various metallic areas only being 'picked out' where I'm easily able to reach them with my brush-tip...

"The Galaxy Is In Flames."

"The Emperor's glorious vision for Humanity is in ruins..."

These two 8mm scale fuel tanks are produced by "Games Workshop" and can be found inside the Nottingham-based company's Manufactorum Imperialis scenery set for "Adeptus Titanicus". Assembled from parts taken from the four "frames of detailed components" found within the box, both of these containers were built using two separate components and accompanied by a small cluster of individual oil drums.

It's clear that all of the Manufactorum Imperialis models are designed to be free-standing. But as I've always liked to base my terrain, especially when some of it is so small, I decided to assemble a simple vignette upon a pair of "Citadel" 50mm circular bases, and permanently attached all the parts in place with a few dollops of plastic glue. Hopefully, this would allow me to use these particular miniatures as scenic storage or some such for my 15mm sci-fi gaming tabletop...

"...His armies locked in brutal civil war."

All of the models were primed using two coats of "Citadel" Abaddon Black and subsequently layered with a double-helping of Ironbreaker. I then drenched them in "Citadel" Nuln Oil and dry-brushed the ensemble with (more) Ironbreaker. Finally, in order to help 'weather them' I sporadically applied some "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade and "Mig Productions" Extreme Rust Wash in many of the numerous nooks and crannies.

In addition to finishing my "Adeptus Titanicus" terrain, I have completed two more of my twelve dedicated painting sessions for my twenty-four hour 'Paint An Entire Project" Challenge using "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" models. I've set aside any unfinished "Planet Of The Apes" character models and spent the vast majority of my time ploughing through the eight Apes armed with batons I aim to use as General Ursus' main force of Simian Minions.

"Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" WIPs - Two Apes armed with baton and one with a man-catcher

I'm not a great fan of batch painting so initially started working on just one of the gorilla soldiers, slowly working out a basic colour scheme I was happy with, and establishing what wash/dry-brush combinations would speed up the overall pigmentation process. Ordinarily, I like to paint my miniatures from the ground up and ensure each lower area is layered, shaded and highlighted before moving further up the figure.

However, with these particular sculpts that process has proved a bit more painful than usual because all the ape's straps and pouches have occasionally caused me to inadvertently 'catch' a previously painted part of the miniature with my brush-tip. As a result, for the rest of the bunch I'm simply going to try to get all of the base colours on the models as carefully as possible, and then tidy them all up at the end, rather than as I go along...

"Taylor! Don't Treat Him That Way!"

"It's humiliating!"

This 28mm scale white metal model of a Simian is produced by “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio” and can be bought either separately or as part of their Simian Minions II four-figure collection. However, I was Lucky enough to purchase mine through the company's successful 7TV:Apocalypse "Kickstarter" as I thought the sculpt would make an excellent proxy for Doctor Kira from Franklin J. Schaffner's 1968 science fiction film "Planet Of The Apes".

A "chimpanzee psychologist and veterinarian", the miniature was undercoated with a double-layer of "Vallejo" Heavy Green, washed with "Citadel" Biel-Tan Green and subsequently dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo Heavy Green. Her skirt and sleeves were then painted in "Vallejo" USA Olive Drab, shaded using some Strong Tone Quickshade by "The Army Painter", and carefully dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo" USA Olive Drab.

"Up And At 'Em."

I applied a combination of "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna and "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade to the tiny amount of fur peeking out from Kira's sleeves, and used the exact same mixture for her leather chest covering too. Finally I 'picked out' her flesh using a little "Vallejo" Heavy Brown and later gave these areas a splash of "Citadel" Reikland Fleshshade.

Alongside finishing the latest addition to my "Planet Of The Apes" project, I have also completed one of the soldiers found inside the "Secrets Of The Third Reich" blister B-SOTR05 British Commando Carbines by "West Wind Productions". This figure will prove a welcome addition to one of my British Army's two (Regular) Infantry Squads for "Konflikt '47" by "Warlord Games" and help me take a step closer to achieving my current goal of being able to field a 500 point Great Britain and the Commonweath force.

"West Wind Productions" WIPs - Two British Commandos and an American Second Lieutenant

Unfortunately, I did have one slight problem pigmenting the carbine-carrying Tommy, and that was matching up his old "Games Workshop" colour scheme using their Out Of Production (OOP) Foundation Range with the "Citadel" Base paints available today. Luckily, I still have a few spare pots of Calthan Brown and Knarloc Green lurking about, and whilst I couldn't source any Dark Flesh I soon found its modern-day alternative, Doombull Brown, to be a pretty precise alternative.

I've also dug deep into my collection of unpainted "West Wind Productions" miniatures and assembled one of the four models found inside blister US-SOTR03 US Armoured Infantry Squad Command to use as an officer for an American reinforced platoon. I already have ten US troopers painted up from my "Secrets Of The Third Reich" days, as well as a couple of battlesuits, so hope to just paint up a handful more figures in the near future in order to own a 500 points force representing the United States too.   

"Yich! What Strange Creatures!!!"

"All the ballmonsters love the microballs." 

These five 28mm scale resin models of some Microballs are produced by "Precinct Omega", and can be bought as Code BM052 from their Ballmonsters! range. Designed to be used for a "mad-cap gaming experience that mixes board-game, wargame and bar billiards for an experience unlike anything you've ever played before", the blister contains Scar, Nosey, Flathead, Toothless and Pointy.

"They probably couldn't eat more than three at once, though."

The pack also came with some clear plastic flying stands. However, as I wanted my "giant, carnivorous, helium-filled, bad-tempered beachballs" to bounce across the ground rather than simply fly through the air, I super-glued each 'head' onto a 25mm circular base instead. All of the miniatures were then primed with "Vallejo" Heavy Brown, before being drowned in Strong Tone Quickshade by "The Army Painter" and dry-brushed using (more) "Vallejo" Heavy Brown.

With the basics now finished, I slowly worked my way through all the Ballmonsters' teeth using "Vallejo" White, and their numerous spikes with a little Iraqi Sand. All of these areas were later washed using "Citadel" Agrax Earthshade. Finally, I spotted the various eyes with either a splodge or two of "Vallejo" White or Heavy Red, and suitably shaded them with a dash of "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson.

"West Wind Productions" WIPs - Three Commandos, two carrying Carbines and an NCO with a SMG

Having completed the last of the "Precinct Omega" miniatures I purchased at "Beachhead" 2020, I have managed to find a little hobby time to progress the three British Commandos by "West Wind Productions" I need to make battle-ready so as to play some 500-point games of "Konflikt '47" by "Warlord Games". Luckily one of the carbine-carrying soldiers was already partially-painted, so most of my attention has been focused upon the other two necessary figures; especially the NCO armed with an SMG who had to first be assembled from straight out of the box.

"Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" WIPs - Two Apes armed with baton and an ARC Astronaut

In addition, I have concluded the sixth of my twelve dedicated painting sessions for my twenty-four hour 'Paint An Entire Project" Challenge using "Crooked Dice Game Design Studio" models. I'm nowhere near where I had hoped to be at the halfway stage. But am confident that the second of my Albion Rocket Corporation Astronauts should soon be completed, as well as the first of my many planned Apes armed with baton.

Indeed, I've already started on a second Simian Minion in the hope of quickly devising a knack/system with which to pigment the eight-gorilla strong party. The soldiers' predominantly black leather uniform is certainly helping matters, and I've even gone so far as to utilise a Leader Simian head for one of the figures so as to mark him out as a sergeant or officer...

"Beware The Beast Man, For He Is The Devil's Pawn."

 "Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, or lust, or greed."

This 28mm scale white metal model of a Simian is produced by “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio” and can be bought either separately or as part of their Simian Minions II four-figure collection. However, I was fortunate enough to obtain mine through the company's successful 7TV:Apocalypse "Kickstarter" as I thought the 'passive chimp' would make an excellent proxy for Doctor Cornelius from Franklin J. Schaffner's 1968 science fiction film "Planet Of The Apes".

"A chimpanzee archaeologist and historian", the figure was initially primed with two coats of "Vallejo" Heavy Green, washed with "Citadel" Biel-Tan Green and subsequently dry-brushed with (more) "Vallejo Heavy Green. His sleeves were then painted in "Vallejo" USA Olive Drab, and both his fur and leather chest covering with Heavy Sienna. All three of these areas were later shaded using "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade.

"West Wind Productions" WIPs - Three Commandos, two armed with Carbines and the other with an SMG

Finally I applied a combination of "Vallejo" Heavy Brown and "Citadel" Reikland Fleshshade to Cornelius' flesh, and simply pigmented his furry head in "Citadel" Abaddon Black. Initially I did try 'picking out' the simian's fingers and facial details using a touch more "Vallejo" Heavy Brown, but quickly abandoned this idea as I thought the contrast was a bit too much.

Having recently found myself playing some "Konflikt '47" by "Warlord Games" I have perhaps unsurprisingly started work on a few more models to help expand my British and Commonwealth Army up to 500 points. Although at some point I plan to incorporate some of the Nottingham-based manufacturer's official miniatures into my force, I'm currently only using my old "Secrets Of The Third Reich" collection by "West Wind Productions", and so resultantly have simply assembled three more of their excellent British Commandos.

"Adeptus Titanicus" WIPs - The Warhound Titan legs have been layered, shaded and weathered

Two of these figures, both armed with a Carbine rifle, will simply help me better pad out a squad of regular infantry and, in the case of the red beret-wearing soldier, an Airborne Infantry Section. However, the third model will enable me to better identify my NCOs on the tabletop as he's replaced his rifle with an SMG (for an additional 3 points).

I've also not been slacking on making some visible progress on the first of two Warhound Titans I want to field for "Adeptus Titanicus" by "Games Workshop". Indeed, I've now finished the legs to the mechanical brute, and simply now need to complete its gun-laden hull before the heavily-armed monster is ready for some action during the Emperor's "brutal civil war".

"Brown Mould Grows In Damp Subterranean Areas..."

"...And it grows by absorbing heat."

This 28mm scale pewter model of a Brown Mould was produced by "Otherworld Miniatures" as part of their DM7b Slimes, Oozes and Jellies II collection. Hand-sculpted by Paul Muller, I actually purchased this model many years ago and had previously painted it a garishly bright orange before storing it away in a plastic container for safekeeping.

Having 'relocated' the "dungeon hazard" onto a much more suitable "Citadel" 50mm circular base and (re)primed the monster with "Vallejo" Heavy Brown, I enthusiastically shaded it with "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade. I then patiently dry-brushed the fungus with some (more) "Vallejo" Heavy Brown.

The vast majority of the Wehrmacht are wiped out by a massive British artillery bombardment

In addition to polishing off the last of my Dungeon Clean-Up Crew by "Otherworld Miniatures", I've also managed to get in a couple more games of "Konflikt '47" by "Warlord Games". Admittedly, the forces concerned only comprised of 200 points each, but they at least provided me with an opportunity to reacquaint myself with the rule-set and once again get to grips with gaming mechanics such as pinning, rallying and animated corpses...

The opening game certainly did not go as planned for the Wehrmacht and their experimental Totenkorps Squad. At one point it did look like the zombies were finally going to literally get their teeth stuck into some Tommy flesh, but the small seven-cadaver sized unit was simply too small to withstand the withering fire assailing their undead flesh from the Commonwealth Lines.

The British infantry hunker down as a German zombie horde fast approaches

In addition, some top work by the British Artillery Forward Observer, who incredibly comes as a free unit courtesy of Great Britain's "Artillery Support" Army Special Rule, rained merry hell down upon the rest of the German soldiers. Indeed, having only just recovered from a massive bombardment which badly pinned the majority of the Wehrmacht infantry down, almost the entire German force was then wiped off the battlefield with a ferociously precise follow-up barrage.

Fortunately, the next conflict was a much more even battle, with both sides walking away with a hard-fought draw. This time round though the Totenkorps at least managed to engage their enemy in close combat. However, the British Second Lieutenant soon put the last of the unholy squad back beneath the ground with a desperately brave shot of his pistol. In addition, the British Artillery was far less effective, even badly pinning a few of the Commonwealth's own infantry towards the end of the conflict...

"Take Your Stinking Paws Off Me..."

"...You damn dirty ape!"

This 28mm scale white metal model of an Albion Rocket Corporation Astronaut is produced by “Crooked Dice Game Design Studio” and can be bought either separately or as part of their ARC Astronauts three-figure deal. The figure actually comes unarmed with a helmet-wearing head, but as I wanted to use him as a proxy for George Taylor from the 1968 movie "Planet Of The Apes" I converted him using additional parts taken from the Lincolnshire-based manufacturer's extensive accessories range.

For starters I swapped out the model's space helmet for the bearded Travelling Man head, and cut off his empty right hand at the wrist in order to pin in place one of the four TLS Pistol hands instead. The entire ensemble was then primed with two coats of "Vallejo" White and I 'picked out' some of the cosmonaut suit's numerous buttons with a dollop or two of "Citadel" Abaddon Black.

 Statue Of Liberty WIP - The resin ornamental mantlepiece statue has been primed ready for layering

I had originally planned to leave the entire figure pure white, and perhaps simply settle for a small decal of the American flag on one of his sleeves. However, I couldn't source a tiny enough transfer for the miniature and subsequently realised that I had painted several of the suit's numerous displays when I had previously pigmented this particular sculpt a few years ago. As a result I used the combinations of "Vallejo" Heavy Red with "Citadel" Carroburg Crimson", "Vallejo" Heavy Blue" with "Citadel" Asurman Blue, and "Vallejo" Heavy Grey with "Citadel" Biel-Tan Green on the buttons.

I next applied some "Vallejo" Pale Grey to the folds and creases of Taylor's twentieth century spacesuit, and attempted to better blend these shadows in with a careful dry-brush of White. The West Point graduate's firearm was given a layer of "Citadel" Leadbelcher and drenched in "Citadel" Badab Black. Finally his hair and beard with treated to a coat of "Vallejo" Heavy Sienna and a splash of "The Army Painter" Strong Tone Quickshade.

"Hero Forge" WIPs - The post-apocalyptic survivor has been dry-brushed and had some details 'picked out'

With the first of my three planned "Planet Of The Apes"astronauts finished, I have begun working on a test piece I compiled using the "Hero Forge" Customs Miniatures website. This is definitely an expensive way of getting miniatures made, even with a "GenCon 2020" discount code, but is something I'm hoping to build upon in order to produce a line of models based upon my range of "Time's Rambler" graphic novels.

For starters though, I thought I'd get something reasonably straightforward made - a premium (black) plastic model of myself in slightly post-apocalyptic attire, armed with a big pistol and the obligatory squirrel (!?!). There are some slight striation marks visible on the back of the miniature's long leather coat. However, that has easily been resolved with a lick of paint or two, and certainly hasn't stopped me designing/ordering the first three figures for what I hope to be a sizeable range in the future...