Khurasan Miniatures 15mm Feral Parasachnid Bug Horde

 

I finally got around finishing my bug horde from Khurasan, 32 of these beasts and their big brother.  The recipie is the same as the Beetle bug, so I will not repeat that here.  

The horde consists of 24 regular and 8 flying critters.  I changed their big brother slightly.  I repainted his pincers in the same yellow as the body.  The black was bothering me and I don't know why I did them black.  It took some deft airbrushing work to get it to match perfectly.  

These guys make great "Beast" and "Close Flyer" units in Alien Squad Leader.

"It's clobbering time!"

"Now, hold still..."

These guys were fun to paint.  Simple and straightforward.  They will be accompanying their Ixx masters into battle in the near future.  

Khurasan Miniatures 15mm Feral Giant Parasachnid Ogre Beetle

Nobody likes bugs.  Especially yellow alien bugs.  This brute below, the Parasachnid Ogre Beetle is no exception.  He is part of my GZG Ixx horde, painted in the same scheme as those bizarre aliens which hail from the Dark Dimension, beyond Time and Space.

This monstrosity was easy to assemble and paint.

The Beast of Altair VI.

The recipie was:

• Primed white.
• Airbrushed in Tamiya Yellow Green, followed by Tamiya Flat Yellow at 45 degree angles.  
• Airbrushed with Vallejo Model Color Lemon Yellow on the upper most areas.
• The belly was airbrushed with Citadel Fuegan Orange and Cassendora Yellow.  Citadel Washes flow perfectly through an airbrush and did a nice job of adding interesting contrast to the carpace.  
• The upper maw was painted with Citadel Contrast Gryph Hound Orange and Iyanden Yellow, followed by Warpstone Green.  
• The pincers were done in Flat Black as were the spots. I used a brush and an AK Flat Black paint pen for this.  This was very random.  
• The whole model was washed in Minwax Polyshades Peacan, then sealed with matte varnish.  The Pecan gave a nice warm tone and tied all the colors together. 
• The maw and mouth were then washed with Citadel Earthshade, Flesh and Sepia washes.  
• Tamiya pigments were used to highlight the pincers and portions of the legs.

The upper maw spews acidic bile to dissolve prey and ready them for consumption.

For scale: Laserburn Imperial Trooper, GZG Mercenary and GZG Ixx.

Tamiya yellows airbrush like a dream. If I was ever going to do an Imperial Fist army, I would do it in Tamiya yellows.  No fuss, no issues.  Just a perfect coat of yellow, first time, every time.  

I'm pleased with how he turned out.  He will make a fine addition to the Ixx menagerie.

15mm Sci Fi - Khurasan Miniatures Post Apocalyptic Puritan Power Armor

 This week brought me closer than ever in finishing off my massive Khurasan Miniatures pile that has been sitting around since Christmas.  This is a big deal for me.

My Control Battalion (see my past post) was originally designed for Alien Squad Leader Games, specifically for the Cyborg Enslaver army.  This force uses Command Squads made up of Power Armor troops, who are responsible for protecting the psionic masters who control the army.  The Control Battalion had no such troops, so I decided on a suitable model: the Khurasan Post Apocalyptic Power Armor Puritan Troopers.  These guys are big and fit the role as commanders and enforcers.

Khurasan Miniatures Post Apocalyptic Puritan Power Armor

They are painted in the same scheme as the Control Battalion: Reaper Master Series Coated Armor, airbrushed over a grey primer, followed by a polyshades wash.  To complement this I used some products that I do not normally use often: MIG Enamel Filters and Washes, specifically the Blue for Dark Grey Filter, and the Brown Blue Wash for Panzer Grey  I used both in targeted areas only, to bring out details.  I could have dispensed with the overall Tudor Polyshades wash actually and used these in its place.  Habit I guess.

Filters are an interesting product.  They are designed to tint the underlying base color which they go over.  It is a highly transparent  product, like a wash, but less pigment dense.  Mig has many such Filters all designed for specific applications.  They are expensive.  $7.00 for the Filter and $13 for the washes.

The models themselves are interesting, and have enough poses to maintain my interest.  They are not high tech designs, which fit the Control Battalion models perfectly.

When completed I did a dry brush of Vallejo Model Color Light Sea Grey and Tamiya Light Sand Weathering Pigment.  The weapons were done in Vallejo Model Air Black Steel, followed by Tamiya Light Gun Metal Weathering Pigment.  The decals were the last stage.  They are super small....very similar to watchmaking I think.

I did not add any white reflective dots on these figures.  Not sure if I will continue that practice in the future.  I may add them in the very near future to thread guys just to provide coherency beside the Control Battalion figures.  

Their new home.

With 15 of these chaps I have enough for three command squads for ASQL.  That is certainly enough for games of Tomorrow's War and Stargrunt 2, where power armor units are small size ass-kickers.

15mm Sci Fi - Khurasan Red Faction Motor Rifle Platoon

The Red Faction range of miniatures was one of the first sets of miniatures I painted for 15mm Sci Fi well over a decade ago.  Since then I have changed as a painter, and I dare say have gotten slightly better at painting these ridiculously small soldiers.  In any case, I decided these guys needed a bit of an update (every model needs a makeover now and then).

Since I prefer the Stargrunt (and to a lesser extent the Tomorrow's War universe) I use these guys as Eurasian Solar Union regular army forces (vs GZG's own ESU Regular Army models, which came out years later).  These could also make an appearance in the Traveller universe as Terran Confederation forces fighting against the Vilani 1st Imperium.  Only half of the platoon is currently present.  The remaining are back at the barracks along with their associate tank company.

ESU forces patrol the vast tundra of New Siberia.

I added some highlighting to various areas where I could and gave them a light brush with Tamiya Weathering Pigments Light Sand.  This gave them a slightly worn look and tied a lot of the features together.   Ten years ago I did not do much in the way of highlighting, so this was a huge improvement.  

Lieutenant Sergei Vlassov confers with his Political Officer Lieutenant Nadya Petrova and Senior Sergeant Ivan Potemkin.  The platoon medical Droid, Sasha is always ready to assist wounded comrades.  The platoon technical officer also doubles as a field medic.

Squads are currently organized in a Tomorrow's War fashion, with the Squad Sergeant leading two fireteams of 5 men.  Stargrunt squads have a different loadout. 

Motor rifle troops are well equipped with AK-200 Assault Rifles and optical targeting systems.  Light composite body armor protects against shrapnel and light small arms fire.  Support weapons include the RPK-80 Plasma Gun and the RPG-100.

Sergeants are always ready to provide suitable motivation when the advance stalls.

The platoon is well equipped with heavy machineguns, snipers and a small mortar battery.

The platoon is equipped with BMP-5s, a rugged if unsophisticated combat vehicle, well suited to off-world environments.  ATGM teams deal with enemy armor with efficient AT-21 laser guided missiles.  Snipers are armed with the SVG-1 Gauss Rifle, suitable for engaging personnel and light vehicles.

Light combat mechs accompany the platoon when heavy armor is not available or the terrain would prohibit their employment.

I actually did camo on the snipers back then (first time ever).  It is hard to see.   :-) 

  

I could certainly do a better job today than ten years ago.  But everyone starts somewhere and it is often helpful to look back on previous projects to see just how far you have come skill wise.

Long live the People’s Paradise!  

15mm Sci Fi - Khurasan Control Battalion

 This weekend I finally got around to painting my Control Battalion figures from Khurasan Miniatures.  These have been in my WIP pile for 10 months.  No longer.  These were a lot more trouble than I bargained for.  70+ figures are pretty good for 3 days work though.  

These figures are suitable for any future force which loves to oppress their citizens.  For Alien Squad Leader games these guys would work well in a number of armies, including as World War 2 German Occultists.   The Control Battalion will merge with my Khurasan Terror Troops (see my other post) and to form a larger force: a large regular infantry contingent backed up by several squads of elite infantry.

Khurasan Miniatures Control Battalion

The figures are good sculpts.  However, I think the molds are showing their age.  The helmets are the main selling feature of these models.  However, the details on mine were sorely lacking in some areas.  The helmet eye slit was almost non existent and the sensor dots on the helmet were almost impossible to discern.  There was considerable flash to clean up (no big deal...I am just spoiled by GZG figures) and the hands on many of the figures were barely sculpted at all.  Since these are now very old figures I will give them a pass on this.  Grade A overall.

I did not bother to paint the drones which came with the command packs.  To be honest, the sculpts were not clean at all.  GZG drones will sub in for these.  

I went with a light blue, with a suitable lighter grey white helmet.  

• Primed AK Grey
• Model airbrushed in Tamiya Light Blue.
• Helmet painted in Vallejo Model Air Light Gull Grey.
• Weapons painted in Vallejo Model Air Sea Grey
• Boots and Gloves & Visor Slits painted in Vallejo Model Air Dark Grey.
• Hard armor plates painted in Reaper Coated Armor.
• Sensors painted in Vallejo Model Color Red & Scarlet.
• Washed in Polyshades Tudor.
• Helmet highlighted in Vallejo Model Air White Grey.
• Some hard armor areas were highlighted with Coated Armor.
• To add some interest, dots in Vallejo Game Color Glacier Blue were added at various corner points where light would hit.  This causes the eye to move around the model and breaks up the areas.

I could have highlighted the fabric and other areas more.  By this point I was just too exhausted to continue.  

The visors were a pain since I had to paint the slits freehand.

The Battle Mechs are really old.  However, I think I painted them in the same scheme years ago.

Next up, Control Battalion vehicles.  Not sure if I will go with Old Crow hover vehicles (which I have in abundance) or pony up for some GZG Walkers.  

15mm Sci Fi - 9th Star Dragons Khurasan Super Heavy Grav Tank & more Tau Battlesuits

 This week was a slow week, but fruitful.  I managed to bang off four additional vehicle models for my 9th Star Dragon Mercenary force.   I used the same medium grey scheme as on the other grav vehicles posted earlier.  This small project was inspired by the Far Eastern Corporate army list for Alien Squad Leader.  It contains both piloted vehicles and robotic mecha, all of which I have in abundance.  

Khurasan Super Heavy Grav Tank

The Khurasan vehicle is enormous.  To be honest, it is more of a small spacecraft than anything else.  Like many Khurasan resin vehicles, it required sanding and cleanup.  There are also mold lines which are unfixable and impossible to hide/deal with due to their location.

I had another three 40K Tau Battlesuits kicking around.  I thought they would work well as a mecha substitute.  For armament I went with a fusion gun and burst cannon.  The burst cannon works as a rapid fire gauss cannon and or a large gatling laser.  It also allows them to be used in 28mm Sci Fi games as heavy power armor if I so wish.

I always add decals to any vehicles.  They provide a visual pop and often force the eye to move around the model.  

The fire effect is just cotton, airbrushed various colors.  Tau battlesuits have unsightly connection points on the shoulders.  I prefer to use the missile pack and shield generators to conceal these as much as possible.  Plus they look cool.  Shield Generators count as Energy Shields in Alien Squad Leader.  In other games they could be force fields, sensors or whatever.  

Jumping Into Action!

With large flat panels, the Khurasan model was a prime candidate for color modulation.

Now I have all the vehicles done for this force.  It only took me 8 months to get around to it.  

15mm Sci Fi - Terror Troops, from Khurasan Miniatures

Yesterday I finished another small project: 28 Terror Troops from Khurasan miniatures.  I got these guys on a whim, thinking they would go well as special troops for any number of sci fi armies.  Sadly, there are only two packs and the poses are somewhat limited.

The figures are smaller than I anticipated: more in line with older 1:100 scale figures from ranges like Laserburn than the larger figures that GZG is putting out these days.  There is nothing wrong with this of course.  Size is a matter of taste.  

Terror Troops, by Khurasan Miniatures

Greys and blacks normally look horrible at 1:100 scale.  They need to be highlighted drastically to look anything other than dark blobs at a distance.  I decided to go down the middle of the road: a Vallejo Dark Sea Grey, highlighted up towards a lighter blue grey.  I added dots of Vallejo Off-White at various points to simulate light striking an edge point.  This draws the eye around the figure and adds detail to an otherwise boring paint job.

I added yellow and green hose lines to represent various combat drugs being employed by the Terror Troops.  

The scheme was simple:

• Vallejo Black primer
• Vallejo Model air Dark Sea Grey
• Vallejo Model Air Sea Grey
• Vallejo Model Air Pale Blue Grey
• Vallejo Model Air Black Steel on the backpacks.  Highlighted wi Th Vallejo Steel. 
• Vallejo Model Air Gun Metal on all weapons. Highlighted so Th Vallejo Steel
• Vallejo Red, Vermillion, Bright Orange and White on the visors.   
• Washed in Polyshades Tudor (thinned)
• Re highlighted Sea Grey and Vallejo model color Blue Pale Grey and Light Grey. 

I have another bannerman that I might convert into something else.

Even the mighty Terror Troops of the Galactic Emperor are no match for Catzilla!

The limited number of poses precludes this range from becoming the mainstay of any 1:100 scale army.  They work well as special operations troops, or in small skirmish games as elite shock troops of some merciless ruler.  For larger games, like Alien Squad Leader they could serve as the core of Command Squads or as Power Armor Infantry.

15mm Sci Fi - Khurasan Miniatures Gutter Gophers & Skunkeater

I love painting monsters.  Especially strange abominations.  Khurasan's Gutter Gophers & Skunkeater fits that bill.  These guys can be found in their Post-Apocalyptic range.  

Gutter Gophers & Skunkeater, by Khurasan Miniatures

The Gutter Gophers remind me of something out of TSR's Gamma World RPG.  They are truly bizarre.  The paint scheme was super simple.

• Vallejo Ivory Primer
• Vallejo Game Air Dead Flesh basecoat
• The skin was painted with the Reaper Master Series Bright Skin Triad.  This is one of my favorite skin-tones for mutants and aliens.
• Skin was given black spots along the back and arms/legs.  All aliens look good in spots.

Gutter Gophers, by Khurasan Miniatures

The Skunkeater was something I got for fun.  Not sure what I will end up doing with him.  

• Vallejo Black Primer
• MIG-053 PROTECTIVE NC 1200 as a skin basecoat
• Fur highlighted with Reaper Master Series Highland Moss, Pale Lichen and Vallejo Model Color Grey Green.
• Teeth done in Vallejo Model Color Pale Sand & Ivory, washed with GW Fleshtone.
• Tongue finished off with Vallejo Model Color Brown Rose & Old Rose.

Skunkeater, by Khurasan Miniatures

Skunkeater, by Khurasan Miniatures

This was another set of miniatures that I really should have added more models to.  Another pack of each would not be out of the question.