House Kurita Battlemechs - 6th Ghost Regiment

Following on the heels of Genyosha here is another former creation of mine, done quite some time ago: 6th Ghost Regiment, Draconis Combine.

Now, first off, these guys no longer exist.  This was my first attempt at white and despite them being almost 100% done I stripped them down at a later date.  Quite simply I was not happy with the technique I used.  I present them here as a "what could have been". 

They were done in Reaper Master Series Ghost White, then given a gloss cote and washed in thinned out black ink.  Then I glazed up the white with a lighter white.  I could certainly do a better job now, specifically since I use Vallejo grey washes (light, regular, dark) rather than thinned down black.

Anyway, that's about it.  These guys indeed now are a "Ghost Regiment".

Draconis Combine 6th Ghost Regiment, three full lances of battlemechs

Dragon

Catapult

Zeus

Atlas

Grand Dragon

Whitworth and Clint

Panther and Quickdraw

Jenner and Hunchback

House Kurita Battlemechs - Genyosha

Of all the factions in Battletech my favorite is House Kurita.  Who cannot love big stompy robots piloted by Samurai warriors? 

Anyway, the other week I finally finished all my House Kurita Battlemechs.  It was a long process.  I originally had done some up in Ghost Regiment colors, but I found white too cumbersome and difficult to paint.  So, I want with an easy scheme: Genyosha.  32 Battlemechs, 8 armored vehicles, 6 infantry platoons and three power armor squads comprise this force.  There is certainly no chance that I would ever use all of this in a Battletech game.  Alpha Strike is a different matter though.

I started with a base coat of Tamyia Dark Grey (airbrushed).  I then airbrushed on Tamyia Neutral Grey and Light Grey, at 45 degree angles to achieve (or at least try to achieve) a color modulation effect.  I then highlighted certain areas with Vallejo White Grey, denoting experienced pilots.  Cockpits were "jewelled" with Reaper Master Series Fire Red, Phoenix Red and Fire Orange.  I did apply some "pin" washes with Vallejo Dark Grey and Grey washes.  I was very careful in their application since I am not really a fan of the all over wash type of application. 

The models were finished off with Tamyia weathering pigments.  Decals were then liberally applied.  My Genyosha decals have not yet arrived to please excuse the lack of regiment markings.  Decals are, IMO, extremely important when modelling at this scale, and especially with monotone schemes like green or grey.  They provide a the pop necessary to an otherwise featureless piece.  The vehicles were recently done and have not had this treatment yet.

Almost all the mechs then had small labels made and glued on to the base.  This helps when teaching the game to new people since the number and types of mechs are daunting.  All they need now is an opponent to blow up.

Genyosha Regiment on Parade

 

Awesome and Shogun

Atlas and Cyclops

Guillotine and Catapult

Dragon I and Marauder 4X

Hunchback, Trebuchet and Cicada

Cicada and Vulcan

Spider, Jenner and Vindicator

Firestarter and Flea

Whitworth and Jenner

Hermes II, Clint and Grasshopper

Orion and Quickdraw

Quickdraw and another Dragon I

Zeus and Grand Dragon (I know it is not a Grand Dragon model, but I like this piece anyway..so there!)

Atlas and Stalker

Banshee & Charger

Power Armor

Infantry Platoon

Scorpion Light Tanks

Behemoth and Ontos Assault Tanks

Manticore Heavy Tanks and SRM and LRM Launchers

Battletech City Battlefield - 6mm Old Crow Buildings

If I could play only game for the rest of my life it would be Battletech.  This game captures my imagination like no other.  The background makes 40K look like a short story.  It is, IMO, the ultimate sci fi setting (at least for me).

This week I finished the last few bits of my urban battlefield.  At it's core, Battletech is a boardgame.  I very much enjoy playing on the original paper map sheets.  However, I have upgraded Battletech to the 21st century, allowing for traditional wargame style play. 

The battlefield consists of a 6x4 felt hex map by Hozmat.  The hexes are 45mm in width.  This is important since I am using Heroscape terrain for hills and those hex hills are 45mm wide as well. z-scale trees form my forests (tree density determines whether it is light or heavy).  Buildings are from the 6mm Old Crow line.  Jez makes some fantastic stuff that paints up quite easily.

The water and road tiles are from Gamecraft Miniatures.  Depth 1 water is blue, Depth 2 has a darker blue center and Depth 3 is an all dark blue hex.  The buildings are also on hex tiles, painted in a lighter grey, to differentiate them from roads.  I wanted to delineate which hexes the buildings actually occupy since some of them are either too large or too small for the hex boundaries.  Everything was airbrushed with both Vallejo and Tamyia paints.  I used a base of Tamyia Medium Grey and then highlighted with Vallejo US Airforce Light Grey and then Vallejo White Grey.  This gives a color modulation effect, with the brighter colors on the tops of the buildings.  Accents were done in Reaper Master Series paint Dirty Grey.

Now that this is completely done I am relieved.  Many of these models were in storage for some time.  It is nice that they finally can see a table.

Overall battlefield



6mm Old Crow Power Plant



6mm Old Crow Residential Blocks and Tower

Old Crow Residential Block and Silo



Old Crow Residential Block and Garage

6mm Old Crow Round Tower, 3 levels high)

Lake

Downtown

6mm Old Crow Buildings