The molds for the 15mm buildings and barricades are coming along well, and I have the first batch of production-ready casts complete. I'm still hoping for a product release sometime before the end of June, but it may be pushed back to early July since I'm closing on a new home.
In any case, I did take the time to get one of the small modular buildings painted up for a demo, along with my first squad of Rebel Minis Titan Marines. Thanks again to Rebel Mike for letting me use his minis in my semi-promotional pics!
I've received a few questions about how difficult the resin terrain will be to paint. In the past, I've had some problems with other resin models, so I did want to investigate this myself. The answer? No problems at all! The models are just textured enough that they take primer without any issues, even with the mold release unwashed. What you're seeing above is:
- Two light coats of Armory Black primer
- A quick drybrush of Citadel Foundation Adeptus Battlegrey
- Doors and roof tiles picked out in Citadel Foundation Mechrite Red
- Windows and roof hatch in Citadel Boltgun Metal
- A quick wash of Citadel Badab Black over the roof and doors.
The whole thing took 45 minutes to paint after the primer was dry, and I'm pleased with the results. I'll pick out a few more details on the control panels and get it onto a proper desert base this evening and post an update (the paper tiles in the pic came from Ebbles Miniatures).
Part II - Rebel Minis Titan Marines
I never did take the time to review these troops. Of all the 15mm sci-fi minis I've picked up over the last year, these are easily my favorites. The Titan Marines have the appearance of moderately armored, mid-tech elite troops (their nearest 40k analog would be inquisitorial stormtroopers with bolters). They have very little in the way of mold lines, very realistic "advancing" poses, highly detailed weapons, and are simple to paint to a tabletop standard. Their appearance can range anywhere from a sci-fi nazi force to a neo-samurai analog. In my own games, I will be using them as quick-strike troops for limited, precise missions. Their paint scheme is basically the same as the building:
- Base on pennies
- Undercoat with Armory Black
- Drybrush with Adeptus Battlegrey
- Weapon and facemask highlighted with Boltgun Metal
- Armor and helmet picked out in Mechrite Red
- Dip the base in some rough, gravelly sand
My first unit of eight was completed in about two hours. Since Rebel Mike hasn't released the support weapons or command models yet I decided to give one of the Marines a single silver shoulderpad.
The models are still a bit plain, and I would like to make them stand out a bit more in the future. I'm thinking some kind of sci-fi jagged camo pattern on the red armor (black and pale grey) would make for a good finish. If you want to see these figures completed by a real painter, I highly recommend Jeff Racel's galleries.
Chris
EVENING UPDATE: TWO MORE PICS
I grabbed two quick shots after basing the small building on a CD and dipping it in sand. One is another close up, and another depicts the building defended by Titan Marines. The attackers in this shot are Rebel Minis Scourge.
