Armed Frieghter

I finally got around to painting my Micro Machine Action fleet Falcon.  Just wanted to share some Pics of it with some 15mm from Eurika for Scale.   I Plan to use it primarily for Terrain, but have also done up a Card Just for fun.

Pics of the Infiltrator (Armed) Light Frieter.   The Perfect Gift for your annoying Neighbors.

House Rules fo Gruntz Modified Weapon Stats

Fleshing out Gruntz V 1.1

Gruntz is a good set of war-game rules, but I desire more Detailed Options for Specific weapons. I have been using Modifications to the basic weapons for a while to add greater detail to each of the Factions. I have also experimented with removing Most equipment based Perkz & am reworked the  equipment to be added to the Units Combat Load.  Additionally to adding some Perkz based on Specialization & Combat training.

Each base Weapon's Stats may be modified in a number of way. I Primarily use an expanded weapons chart. The base Weapons Types are Projectile, Light Energy,& Concentrated Energy In Addition to these Some weapons have Variable Munition (Additional Grenade & Missiles Ordinance). Each Type of weapon has a Number of Subcategories which can affect the combat effectiveness of the weapon. I have attempted to Maintain a balance by using Enhancements & Flaws (Detrimental Effects) or Limittations to most Weapons. Bellow is a list of options to create new weapons.  Later I will Post My Specific Weapons Classes.

Felid Empire

One of the first alien races I Purchased was the Felid, once I got them I faced a deli ma.  I could not find any vehicles that felt right to me & this became a pattern with my other alien forces.  I feel that all Aliens should have a Style of Equipment & Vehicles that is distinctly not Human.  In the Months that followed I saw a few Vehicles that Would work for alien races but nothing really grabbed me as usually it is 1 or 2 vehicles if you are lucky with the same Style.  Finally I found 2 Different Sizes of the AAT from Star Wars at a low Price & easily Available on E-Bay, Next I Picked up 2 Large Skiffs From Return of the Jedi for their Large Transports. 

In addition to the vehicles I decided to paint them in pattern using colors that are not typical for camouflage.  The colors are representing their visual spectrum, which is different than the human norm.  I used a mixtures of Blues with Ink washes & it turned out to be a good scheme.

PreGame Hive Mind

 This Pregame post is for The test game for my Simplified Version of Rules for a Hive Mind (Intellect). It will Include The Unit Cards & Army compositions ((TO&Es) for the forces Involve in the battle.  This Post Follows My post on a Simplified Version of Rules for a Hive Mind (Intellect) Army for Gruntz V1.1.  My Father is visiting From Panama & I wanted Simpler Rules for the Hive Mind (Intellect) as this was his second Game Using Gruntz.  These Basic Rules I Devised in about 20 to 30 minutes while setting up the Unit Cards & Figures for the game. The special rules and objectives for a Swarm Scenario are very simple.   The Federal Army Is Holding a Listening Post, With Patrols out ( three on table Squads on Perimeter patrol as well is 2 Patrol forces consisting of 2 Fire teams 1 PML team & 2 Griffon APCs Off table as reserves.  Starting In turned 2 role 1D6 (+1 per to the role for each additional Turn) for each Patrol force on the role of 4+  they arrive coming in on the road that turn.  Your opponent does not know where the patrol will come in when it arrives.  Below the Unit card for each force starting with the Federal Assault Troops followed by the forces of the Hive Mind (Intellect).    Pics of Each force follow the cards.  I will also list the number of squads (Horde) and the composition of each Squad (Horde) and  breakdown Of each of the forces involved plus the total number of troops they contain.  This post will be followed by the Battle Report for the the Swarm Scenario Using my Simplified Hive Mind (Intellect) Rules.  

Simplified Hive Mind (Intellect) Rules for Gruntz Version 1.1 Test Rules 1

I will be Presenting a Simplified Version of Rules for a Hive Mind (Intellect) Army for Gruntz V1.1.  My Father is visiting From Panama & I wanted Simpler Rules for the Hive Mind (Intellect) as this was his second Game Using Gruntz.  These are the Basic Rules I Devised. This Post will be followed by two further posts regarding I simplify Simplified Hive Mind (Intellect) Rules.  The first of these other posts will be pregame post which will present Special rules and objectives for a Swarm Scenario in Addition to the Unit Cards & Army compositions ((TO&Es) for the forces Involved.  The second Related post will be the Battle Report for the game using the Swarm Scenario.

 

Gruntz Specific Rules Hive Mind Updated

All units in a Hive Army must take 1 of the Hive Mind Perks this is Mandatory not optional. The Hive Intellect is unconcerned with losses so the entire army is Immune to Mental Checks & Suppression & Units can Never go prone. Any unit that is out of control of the Hive Mind becomes subject to Instinctive Behavior as most of the units are no more intelligent than any other predator. Loss of control by the Hive Intellect can happen in a Number of ways (when this happens the unit becomes subject to Mental Checks & are Bloodthirsty but are still immune to Suppression). First the Units of Drone Warrior are not themselves Directly linked to the Hive Mind but are linked to it by a specialist unit with Hive Mind Node that is attached to a Squad, if this unit dies the Drone Warriors no longer are controlled by the Hive Mind until another Hive Node takes control of the unit. Secondly if the Hive Mind Grand Lord (Army General) is Killed all units must test to see if the link to the hive Mind has been interrupted Mental test (Vehicles Test as a Mental Stat of 11 As Either Hive Clusters Or Hive Nodes) at a -1 for Hive Mind Lords -2 for Hive Mind Clusters & -3 for Hive Mind Nodes if failed they are Bloodthirsty (subject to Frenzy) & Instinctive behavior + In Addition All Drone Units are at a -2 to their Instinctive behavior rolls for the rest of the game with 2 being the lowest result.
I will be adding the Hive Mind Perks & Modz over the next few days. The initial Perk for all Most Squads is bellow with the first Instinctive Behavior chart which corresponds to it.

Hive Mind (Intellect) Horde Army Over View Part 1

General Overview of Hive Armies Part 1 

All units in a Hive Army must! Have 1 of the Hive Mind Attributes this is Mandatory not optional. The Hive Intellect is unconcerned with losses so the entire army is Immune to Psychology & Can Never be effected by Suppression Fire & As they have no concern for their Personal Safety they can Never go prone. Any unit that is out of control of the Hive Mind becomes subject to Instinctive Behavior as most of the units are no more intelligent than any other predator Animal on without the driving force of the Hive Mind. Loss of control by the Hive Intellect can happen in a Number of ways. when the Connection to the Hive Mind is Severed the unit becomes subject to Psychology & are Bloodthirsty. Due to the Blood lust the Unit Must Assault any Enemy That is in range they must Charge into Close Combat & while Charging they are immune to Suppression Fire. First the Units of Drone Warrior are not themselves Directly linked to the Hive Mind but are linked to it by a specialized Commander which has evolved the ability to be a Node for the Hive Mind. Hive Mind Node Must be attached to a Unit & no Drone unit can deploy without an attached Hive Mind Node. The Biggest disadvantage to the Hive Nodes & Drone Arrangement is if a unit of drones is without a Node beginning immediately when the Node dies the Drone Warriors no longer are controlled by the Hive Mind until another Hive Node takes control of the unit. Secondly if the Hive Mind Grand Lord (Army General) is Killed all units must test to see if the link to the hive Mind has been interrupted All units have a chance of loosing connection to the Hive Intellect based on their level of connection to the Hive Mind. A Hive Mind Lord & Units in his Direct area of Influence are Least Likely (Only 15 to 20% Chance of Loosing Direct Connection to the Hive Mind) to loose the connection to the Hives Controlling Intellect. Hive Mind Clusters Can Usually (Maintain Connection 60 to 65% of the Time) Maintain Their Link to the Intellect in control of the Hive Mind, but can become disconnected to the Hive Mind & Become Subject to Extreme Instinctive Behavior. For The Hive Mind Nodes the Disconnection Can Actually be Fatal (75% chance of Psychic Over Load) If the Hive Mind Nodes loose Connection (45 to 50% Chance of Loosing Connection) if failed they are Bloodthirsty (subject to Frenzy) & Instinctive behavior + In Addition All Drone Units are Now Subject to Extreme Instinctive behavior.

Federal Army Armored Planetary Assault Force (core)

 I have finished up most of the core units for My Federal Army Armored Planetary Assault Force.  It contains 2 Heavy Tanks, 2 Heavy Missile Tanks Painted but still have to build the Missile Turrets, 5 Heavy Infantry Fighting Vehicles to transport  2 x 5 Man Recon Teams 4 Riflemen & 1 SAW gunner, 3 x 4 man Assault Teams 2 Riflemen & 2 SAW gunner, 3 Fire Support Teams 4 Riflemen & a 2 Man Heavy Machine Gun, 3 Tank Hunter Teams  3 Riflemen, 1 SAW gunner, & a 2 Man Portable Missile Launcher Team & will Contain 4 Command Figures only 1 Shown.  I Still Have 1 Heavy Tank, 1 Heavy Missile Tank, 1 Heavy Infantry Fighting Vehicle for the core force to be finished & 6 Scout Walked & 4 Super Heavy Power Armor models to complete the entire force.

Hobby Update for 2013

I Currently have (10) Force that are In Progress at one stage or another, The Factions represented by them are listed bellow.  I will be reworking some of the Color Schemes or adding Additional Optional Schemes to some forces.  In addition I plan to Update Some of the TO&E's & Backgrounds once I get to each Faction.  My Goal is to rework all My Factions into 1 Cohesive Background, Forming a Consistent Core for a Complete Science Fiction Setting while leaving enough freedom to allow additional Data to be added Easily.

Control Battalion

I am using the Control Battalion from Khurasan Miniatures for My Crimson Guard force.  The Crimson Guard are Partially converted Cyborg Troops.  They are a Medium Tech Force that can use Either Lasers or Projectile Weapons.  I just received the Paints & Inks I Ordered about 2 weeks ago, when I made the order I Got all the Paints  & Inks I would need to Hopefully complete Many of the forces I have.   I had completely ran out of metallic colors so was stuck unable to finish anything.  The Paint Job on the Crimson Guard is very simple with only 3 colors of Paints & 2 Inks being used to compliment the Paint job.  I Painted up 3 x 6 Man Squads  1 Command Figure & 1 APC (a M114 from Roco with no modifications to the vehicle) as the starting force.  I Hope you like them.  

Pangalactic Legion

Unknown Alien Race (Technological Base Unknown Energy Matter Conversion/ The Physics of which are Beyond Humanities Highest Theoretical Geniuses Comprehension.)

When I saw these models I had to have them so I didn't Hesitate & ordered over 100 models for this force (3 Infantry packs & 6 Command Packs)  This is actually the first alien force that I had a clear picture of their Combined Arms Reinforced Jump Infantry Company Making them Jump Infantry Eliminated the Need for APCs.  As every Legionnaire is equipped with a Jump Pack they can Easily Keep up with the Attached Armor & other Support Units in the Army.  I already had the basic Vehicles for the Pangalatic Legion prior to getting the miniature.  Their primary vehicles are Combat Walkers.  I am using the 1/144 Die-Cast  Gunners 2 x 6 Legged Desert Scorpion Walkers &  3 x 4 Legged Grab Gunner Walkers from the Dougram series for their Tanks.  Fast Attack Mechs represented by Pieter Zentradi Pods as flankers  in addition 2 Scout Walkers  1/200 Hard Rubber Grab Gunners Walkers.  I have a lot more mechs Available for support. Bellow are Pictures of my First Test Squad for them.

Bellow are Pictures of the First the 5 Man Test Squad with their attached Support Weapon Specialists Team.   The 2 Man Weapons Team's figures are mounted separately as I am still debating the Army TO&E as Gruntz 1.1 should be released Really Soon (Most Likely Within a Week or so).  The Weapons & Equipment are Temporarily Blue but will be Bronze replacing almost all the Blue once my Vallejo Paint order Comes in, Also the Royal Purple Will be washed with a Thinned Purple Ink & Highlighted making it a little darker but smother adding the perfect Effect as their Power Armor is  Energy based.  This Uses the Pinnacle of Advancement in Personal Shield Technology Literally Converting the Energy into Matter forming Physical Power Armor with Almost No Weight which can be shut down when Not In Use.  The Energy Supply for each Suit Will Last Between 2 to 6 Hours Even in the Heaviest Combat Situation & Can Be Recharged from any of their Vehicles within a matter of Minutes or From a Conventional Source in about 1 to 2 Hours.  The First 6 Pictures are Small So they could be fit on the Main Page, but all the other Pictures are Large Click on Post to take a look.

Hive Mind (Zerg) Army

I've got all the models for the Zerg force & have added it to the force that I had Painted previously.  So now I have 108 Zerglings, 36 Hydrolisks & 18 Ultralisks + fliers 18 Mutalisks & 36 Scourges  for the models you have seen previously.  In addition to 12 Lurkers, 12 Infested Terrans, & 18 Defilers + fliers 20 Queens, 18 Guardians & 12 Devourers all from the Board Game then add in 68 Zerglings, 34 Hydrolisks & 2 Leaders Figures from the Star Craft Risk Game which I am still mounting to their  Bases & converting the models for use other than the leaders the Zerg from the Risk Game are not in the same class as the other figures in the army but using them will save me  having to get anymore of the Board Game to complete the army.  Finishig the Army took an additional 2 sets of the Fantasy Flight Star Craft the Board Game + 1 more set of the Brood War expansion for a total of 3 of the FF Game & 2 of the Expansions.  Thank goodness the Risk Game was released as this allows me to build armies for the Protoss & Terran Marines using most of the miniatures from the FF Game To augment the infantry from the Risk Game,  What I am not going to use I will be putting up for auction on e Bay if anyone is interested in getting some of the miniatures from the Board Game without having to shell out big Bucks.  Here is the link to the auction  http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290805101168  for the Terran Forces.

Non Humans Have Arrived

I have finally got some Vehicles for my Alien Races.  I have an Idea that the Vehicles of Each Race Should be distinct.  So few Manufacturers have made vehicles that break from the mold of what we think a Tank should be like & I finally picked up 12 AAT tanks from Star Wars episode one the Phantom Menace. 8 of these are actually F-Toy 1/144 scale models but there are larger to be used as a medium tanks & 4 are Die Cast Toys  that are going to be used as heavy tanks for the Felids from Khuasan miniatures.  Additionally I picked up the new Legion models from Rebel Miniatures and already have vehicles for them, they are being equipped with walkers as their primary vehicles.  The walkers are old models from Takara & Bandai that were made in the 1980s & I was lucky enough to win four auctions on eBay getting 2 Takara Dougram 1/144 Dessert Gunner Walkers in addition to 3 Takara Dougram 1/144 Grab Gunner Walkers All in Die Cast.  I got 2 Smaller Grab Gunners which I will use as Scouts these are Plastic /Rubber & 7 Zentradi Battle Pods including a Officers Pod.   I also picked up 2 more copies of the Star Craft Board Game & 1 Copy of Star Craft Risk to complete my Zerg Army & will be putting together a Protos Army as well.   This is in addition to various Droids & War Bots.  The Humans also got most of the Vehicles to complete most of their TO&Es.

I will be Posting Pics of these forces over the next few Weeks Starting with the Zerg Force tomorrow.  Then I will be posting regular progress reports on each of  these forces as well as those I have already posted.

Can't See The Forest For The Trees

 I recently decided that I needed to get some terrain that was no in an urban setting for my personal collection my gaming group out in the East bay has lots of terrain that we use when we game over there.  But all the terrain I had made or purchased lately was urban or urban war zone. So I decided to purchase some trees & make some hill pieces so My friend I am teaching to Game here in the city & I could have some more variety in our Battle Field for our game.  These Picture are of the Trees that have come in from China & the few Hills That Have Been Finished.  At this Time I have 2 Huge Hill that Measure Approximately Length12" & A Width of  About 6", I have 2 Large Hill that measure in at around 8 1/2" by 6"

 &7 1/2" by 6".   2 Medium Hills Both are  Measuring in at around 6" by 5 3/4",  & 2 small 1 around 2 3/4" by 6" & 1  4 1/2" by 6.   Thats 8 Hills of various sizes Each one being a unique model no 2 are the Same A couple Tall Couple short& the rest in between.

The real cost of the terrain are the trees that I picked up on eBay. I purchased a total of the hundred and 43 trees ranging in height six centimeters all the way up to 12 cmwith the averages please being 6.5 cm,  9 cm and 10 cm. Additionally I purchased various types of trees to give my foresta variety of species and colorsthe picture only shows the first 45 or 50 of these trees. Since I took it I've received another 30 or so trees and am waiting for the rest to arrive. I mount the trees on standard poker chips as they came across a few hundred of them a very reasonable price. Most the trees are mount to to a base as mounting them individuallyndid not look convincing.  the picture is of the three-foot by 18 inch every of my workbench covered with eight Phillips and approximately 50 trees.  Half these pictures if not more of just the trees and hills. I added some figures is in the photo shoot to give a sense of scale.

After I received more of my trees all set up my skirmish table and take some pictures of the hills and trees with infantry and possibly vehicles for scale on one of my gaming mats so you will not see the cardboard that covers my workbench.in picture.

More Goodies From e Bay

More of my loot from e Bay First of a size comparison Will be done with Khurasan Neo-Arabs or Eurika Sci Fi German Storm Troops.

These are 1/144th Models from F-Toys.  But they will work just fine with 15mm figures as Medium or Heavy Vehicles.  The Tank is going to my Khurasan Felids & the Walker I' not Quite sure ho gets it yet..  They only ran me $11.50 For the Tank & 12.50 for the Walker U.S. including shipping.

What is to Come / Hobby Report EBay

 I am Planning to do Regular Battle reports on my Blog once I get the full companies for at least 2 off my Factions Finished as well as Back Ground & Progress reports on My Forces, Also I want to do Tutorials On Some of My Modifications & Some Scratch Builds For Vehicles I Have Planned.  The First Posts in this plan have already Begun.  The First Real Project Log That was Not Army related was on My Terrain Project that I am still Working on for My Campaign http://federatin-empire15mmsci-fi.blogspot.com/2012/09/city-fighting-current-terrain-in.html.  My Army Projects Updates Actually Started with the Zerg Unfortunately The Zerg Have Been Put on the Back Burner as I am Waiting to Get More Models For the Army,  So I Posted on the Riek Arriving as I Just Started the Army then I Fully Assembled the rest of the Army & Posted On my Work to Build Forces at the Company Level.  I Will Be Posting The Imperial Army Forces Soon But it will be without there Heavy Weapons Platoons as I have to Pick up Bases for them This will also Include Some Hobby Posts as I Have To Convert 24 Half Tracks From the Zod 2 Tanks.  I Have to get back on working on My Background for the various Factions I Use as the Only Exclusive Post on Back Ground is The Overview of the Terran Colonial Empire & all other Back Ground has been Done in other Posts &Should be Compiled Into An Overview or Back Ground Post.  Additionally I need to get 2 Full Factions Painted Up so I can Start Posting Battle Reports & Once The Campaign is Started Keep a Campaign Log.   I Just Ordered A Bunch of Trees of E-Bay To Allow me to Put Games On  Without Having To Go Out to The East Bay to One of the Houses of the guys in My Gaming Group as all the Trees & Hills are Kept in One Central Location where we usually meet to play.  All I have been able to do with the couple Friends who have been learning to Game with me in the City has been Urban Terrain.  To Solve This problem I Ordered 11 Packs of Trees Ranging in Height from 6cm up to 12cm ( 1 1/2" to 4 3/4")  with a Variety of Types.  In total I Ordered 106 trees & will probably order at least another 15 or 20  to allow ,more coverage with trees for Wooded areas in my games.   One of my friends got a New Bed Last Week & he & I put it together took us ma-bee a 1/2 hour to get the whole thing done,  But Big Packages mean big Packing Material So I ended up with a lot of Styrofoam That he had no use for himself.  So Far I have put together12 or 14 Ground Breaks & Around a Dozen or so Hills.  

Here are some Picture of My E Bay  Some Down loaded as the Item,s have yet to Arrive Loot &I Will Be Posting On My  Hills & Some of the Trees I Got in yesterday Later today or tomorrow.

The Riek has arrived

I am planning a Narrative Campaign for the Invasion Of Over-Watch which has been used as a Major Military Staging Area for the Terran Colonial Empire (TCE) in their war with The Riek & others.   I decided to use the Riek as the Planetary Invasion Force as they are a good Contrast to the TCE Being a Human Force Made  up of the Elite Panzer Grenadiers Supported By Combat Robots & Cyborgs. For now I wanted to Post Pictures of the first uits I Painted for the Riek Including 1 Medium APC, 8 Panzer Grenadier Storm Trooper & War Hound Class War Bots.

This is just a Quick Upate

City Fighting Current Terrain in Progress

Here are some pictures of the current terrain Project I am working on it will be a large Area of a Small city that has been heavily shelled & bombed for day or weeks.  I am building this City to represent the city of Over-Watch which is on the edge of the Terran Colonial Empire which has been used as a major staging point for the last 80 years for multiple incursion into neighboring systems in an attempt to conquer them. Details on this campaign will be forth coming in the next few months.

First of this is a factory that is still in the first stages of being put together & still has a lot ow work to be done.  Currently I have only done the external facade of the factory when I get done it will include a fairly detailed control room & automated machinery as well as a top level vehicle storage facility, fully detailed doors from combat Wombat & Proxy models rolling doors that have been increased in both hieght & width to allow access of Mech & Vehicle unitd & 2 sets of  doors for the loading docks.



Here are most of the building I have gotten built for this Campaign  in variouse stages of progress I am planning out a Single fully intact Appartment Building with 4 floor & these are some of the pieces that will go into it.