From GregB: XQ Platforms for Star Wars "Armada" (5 Points)

XQ platforms for Star Wars "Armada" - models by Mel Miniatures.

This week, my brushes took some time away from the grim darkness of the far future and switched over to subjects from a long time ago in a galaxy far away. Yes, we'll be doing some Star Wars today - up first are two "XQ" series space platforms, intended for use in the Star Wars "Armada" game. These are 3D prints from Mel Miniatures on Shapeways.

Some bright landing markings for this platform - it is the smaller and sleeker of the two, so maybe it's just a research station? Or up to no good?

Better scan that thing, just to be sure...

The "Armada" core box set comes with assorted 2D markers to use for terrain, including one for a platform. Space platforms are not only fun terrain, but great plot devices and objectives for scenarios, and I much preferred to have models to represent them. Thankfully, the amazing universe of 3D sculptors and printers who clearly love Star Wars has this covered!

A little more going on with this one - including some more obvious weapons for defence.

Could be a harmless observation outpost...right? I mean, room for a squadron of starfighters, sure...

These are intended to be generic stations, useful as Rebel stations, Imperial stations, neutral or even a mercenary location out somewhere in Outer Rim! I hope they will help bring games of Star Wars "Armada" some more life! The sculpts were very nicely printed, easy to paint, and designed specifically to fit with the large bases from the game "X-Wing" (which are square). Maybe my only quibble is how hard it is to get extra bases for either "X-Wing" or "Armada".

These are fleet scale models, for space combat...I have no idea what the points are, so I'm thinking this should be good for five points, but as always, I defer to the eternal wisdom of the minions. Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more "Star Wars" today!

Honestly, I have always been more of a Trek person than a Wars person, but these look cool regardless. I have no idea how to score these, as they do look quite small, but also quite detailed. So, if you feel that painting the pair of them was the equivalent of a single 28mm model, I will accept your judgement and award 5 points. 

As you say, having these on the table should add some flavour to your games. Having your capital ships trying to board, defend or destroy them will give you more scenarios than just having two fleets crash into each other.

From PhilH: TIE Specialists (24 points)

Hello everyone!

A small Tuesday post from me with more from Fantasy Flight Games’ Star Wars: Armada after the Mercenary Theme Round. Yay, two posts in a row the same project: take that, squirrel tendency!

More Armada TIEs, the leftovers from the Imperial Squadrons I set: two each of TIE Advanced and TIE Bombers. A bunch of their screeching brethren were submitted in Challenge XIII.

Bombers in the centre, escorted by Advanced

TIE Advanced are more durable and hit harder than basic TIEs, but for Armada’s squadron metagame they come with an important ability: Escort. Enemy squadrons in range must target these over other squadrons. In short, they help get bombers or other specialists get through to their targets. They're also better at attacking enemy capitol ships.  

Same as last time, I’ve given red markings to more easily spot an ace pilot rather than vanilla squadron, if I’m using one. Their Ace squadron is none other than Darth Vader himself.! 

TIE Bombers's purpose is fairly obvious: they look to get a clear run at opposing capitol ships before ‘bombs away!’. Other than that, they’re predictably, slow and terrible at dogfighting. Their Ace is Major Rhymer, who makes all nearby squadrons more effective against capitol ships - nasty. I wouldn't be surprised if you've never heard of him, but apparently, he first appeared in 1990s Star Wars Collectible Card Game. 

My painting entertainment over recent weeks has been to binge on the first two seasons of the ‘Dice for Brains’ podcast. It’s a Star Wars RPG actual play podcast that’s been going for a good number of years, using FFG’s Force and Destiny system (and later, non-SW RPGs). Not really my usual thing at all, not really being an RPG player, but a friend recommended it highly. After a slow first episode, I found it to be excellent, really nailing the SW universe with a great cast of memorable characters and NPCs and some deft game-mastering. Recommend any fellow Star Wars fans give it a try. 

I recall that we called these 2 points each last time out, so twelve TIEs makes 24 points to my tally please, Lee. 

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A pleasure sir! What's not to like about Star Wars (down Haters, down!)? I may have to take a look at this game in more detail. O-oh...shinney complex kicking in! I really like these and the little bit of 'history' behind them make them extra special. 
Lee

From PhilH: A Swarm of TIEs (60 Points)

My entry into the 'Flight' bonus round was a collection of Star Wars Rebel fighter squadrons. My first normal Monday entry are their Imperial foes: a swarm of TIE Fighters.

Neeeeeoooow

Twenty four of the blighters, in eight squadrons of three. Not much to day about them, just lots of black panelling on grey, pretty dull to paint so I did the whole lot in one batch. The two bases with red detailing will serve as TIE squadron aces named Howlrunner and "Mauler" Mithel. 

They came out a bit dark from the method I used, particularly the cabin sections: once shaded I just picked out the details like the windscreen, rather than highlighting up the whole cab. But slightly non-canoncial colouration aside, I'm satisfied with how they look en masse.

Hiding in the swarm are two Aggressor Assault Fighters, another of the many ships from the extended SW universe. These were painted pre-challenge.

And lastly, paint still wet as I took a quick photo, six TIE Interceptors.

I leave final judgement on points for these to the esteemed gentleman on Monday Minion duties this year (hi Sid!). My guesstimate would be 2 points per fighter, for a total of 60.

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Nnnnnnneeeeeoooooowwwwww indeed, Phil !  These look terrific, and you're being far too modest!  The black paneling on the grey, with the added scarlet flashes look excellent.  A real swarm which look very much like the movies - all tumbling, turning and cascading through space like a horde of stellar locusts, hungry with intent.

They look great as models, but really come alive with a careful paintbrush and their designated basing.  The TIE Interceptors would be a particular favourite - and sure these guys would be a worthy challenge for even the most hardened rebel pilots.  Surely....?

Great work, Phil - which will most certainly garner you 60 points towards your total.

Tribute to Phil and Sylvain: HP Lovecraft and a Exloding Star Destoyer(!) (20 Points)

The task of coming up with something to present to Phil and Sylvain, our Friday Minions, was fairly simple as I've been friends with them for several years and know some of their favourite things.

Phil and I are both big fans of the pulp genre, especially anything having to do with the Cthulhu mythos. So I thought it fitting to paint for him a rendition of the Great Man himself, Howard Philips Lovecraft.

HP Lovecraft was a bit of a strange cat. From reading biographies of the fellow you get a distinct sense that he considered himself out of step with the rest of society. Much of the horror of Lovecraft's writing is based on a sense of humanity's relative insignificance and powerlessness when juxtaposed against the terrors of the cosmos. Many believe Lovecraft's own feelings of social unease, racism and misanthropy are conveyed directly in his writings. Yes, 'ole HPL may not have been an especially cheery or warm human being, but he certainly had a knack for writing some of the creepiest stuff in English literature.

This figure is from Uncle Mike's Strange Aeon's range of miniatures. It's cast in an odd resin material which makes the detail somewhat soft. Nonetheless, I really like this impressionistic rendition of Lovecraft, with his tall, gaunt frame and his characteristic lantern jaw.  I decided to give him minimal groundwork and to base him a little off-center to give him more of a sense of unbalance and loneliness. 

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For Sylvain, I've made up a critically damaged Victory-class Star Destroyer.

Sylvain is an avid participant in our current Star Wars: Armada campaign, commanding a Rebel fleet in the hotly contested Corellian system. He's tasted both victory and defeat in the campaign and I know he dreams of putting this model down on the tabletop to mark a 'kill' against his Imperial foes (much to Peter's chagrin, I might add).

This model is a 3D design that I've resized to better match the scale of Armada. It's a fairly minimalist model, with not a lot of fine detail, but I think it serves nicely for acting as a casualty/wreck for the game. (I think I may go back and paint-in some running lights on the bridge and superstructure.)

...and check out the wonderfully dorky base I made for it!

Similar to my work on the Nebulon frigate and Corellian corvette, I've used fractal models of  explosions, adding some fire, debris and armoured plate in an effort to add a bit of drama.


I hope you like the figures guys. Thanks very much for taking care of the Friday crew - you did a terrific job.

I'm going to score the Star Destroyer as a 28mm vehicle as it approximates that size, so 20 points total.

From AaronH - A variety of things to wrap up(198 points)

This is my last post. The boys are on Spring Break and we are off to sunny California, where it will not be quite as nice as it is here in Colorado, oddly.

This post is all over the place as it's made up of stuff that I've been tinkering with since the challenge started.

First up to bat is a unit of 24 28mm Celts from Warlord Games, Black Tree Designs and Wargames Factory (yuck).

This unit is on four 60mm x 60mm bases from Litko. I put the BTD guys up front and the Wargames Factory in the back and fill out the unit with Warlord. The Wargames Factory Celts are soooo bad. They are just soul crushing to paint. BTD on the other hand makes some really nice sculpts. I'm looking forward to checking out Victrix's new plastics as I'm sort of over the Warlord kits at this point.

The rear view. Lots of clunky, non-natural looking dudes visible here.

Next up is an ECW command stand. With this I have enough for a Bde so I can actually play. These guys are all Warlord Games.

These are both nice models, especially the general waiving his flash purple hat. The flag is out of the box set for the plastics. I had to add my own wire spear.

The next figure is a single EIR command model that I didn't have done in time for the last post. This one is an Aquilifer. I put him on a low profile base since I plan on having him on a larger command base and don't want it to stick out above the ground work.

This is another Warlord Games model. He's very nice, one of their better sculpts in the range I think.

The next three are more RPG models. The two swordsmen are from North Star miniatures and are part of the Frostgrave line. Very nice models. Clean, well sculpted casts but not too much detail.

The wizard is a bones model. He was supposed to be Solistarian, the elvish Wizard in our group. Sadly, Sully's player lives on the East coast and dials in to the games. He bought his own model for Sully and it ended up being GW's High Elf Arch Mage. Very much an over the top model. As I have the same model, already painted, this one will be going onto the bench.

Next up are three Star Wars Armada X-Wings from Fantasy Flight games.

These photos really didn't come out well. They are from yellow squadron. I'm not thrilled with the job I did on them, which is why they are not red squadron. I did learn some things about painting models this small which should make the rest go better. These are probably 3mm models.

Last, but certainly not least, are two GW Lord of the Rings Mordor trolls. These can also serve as ogres for D&D.

These are really great models. I'm building an army just around them, I like them so much.

These guys are all metal. You can see just how huge they are in the group shot at the top of the page. They dwarf the ECW commanders on horses.

Since I'm throwing this post together as we are packing (much to the pleasure of my wife as I'm sure you can imagine), I didn't have time for close ups. I came in below my score this year. D&D ended up taking a lot of my painting time.

As always, this was a great experience and something I feel quite privileged to be a part of. I'm also relieved it's over.


Well that is certainly an eclectic points bomb! I'm kinda gobsmacked on where to start!
The Celts are certainly colorful, and I do commiserate over the WGF stuff, you certainly do get what you pay for. They are an ok filler though and their lack of detail and awkward animation does add to the group...most especially when regulated to the back ranks. ;)
Congrats on getting a brigade of ECW, hopefully you'll get lucky in finding an opponent as it would be a shame for that punchy officer to command from a display shelf.  The Aquilifier is indeed a very fine model and his dynamic pose is matched well with your brush. The dungeon party is a very sweet morsel too, I quite like the fellow going Babe Ruth with the sword.
Your fighters for the Star Wars Armada game came out well too for the wee scale. I think they are a touch tiny for yellow to work well. Although wife-y approved, I haven't gone Armada yet as I'm still snatching x-wing and Imperial Assualt goodies before they vanish. Still I have seen the fighter squadrons and these are nicer than the stock ones.
And finally the Isengard Trolls. GW LotR are what pulled me back into fantasy. Ihave friends who swear by the Mitril miniature line, but I prefer the Perry sculpts. The line has great animation and a consistant scale and the detail blows the Mitril line away IMHO. These trolls are very well done and whether you use them to crush Gondor men-at-arms or as proxy Ogres in D&D, that is a wonderful paintjob you gave them.
Have fun on your vacation and it has been a pleasure to perform editorial duties for your posts.
I'm still wishing for a few more weeks of AHPC, but the season has to move on. At least Adepticon is next week! ;)

Star Wars Armada Z-95s and Havoc by JohnSe (7 points)

Despite painting furiously over the last week, I still have lots of figures that aren't quite ready to be posted. I did manage to finish off some more itty bitty spaceships for Star Wars Armada. While meager in points, I'm excited to get these finished ships onto the table.

The Z-95 Headhunter was created for the Star Wars RPG back in the 80's. I believe it incorporates rejected design elements for the film's X-Wings, and while it's undeniably an X-Wing knock off, I've always liked the design. The Z-95 has shown up in a number of games (tabletop, RPG and video) as either a second line Rebel ship or in the service of various planetary defense forces, pirates or other malcontents. With a wide variety of organizations flying them each sporting their own custom paint jobs, there's a wide variety of color schemes to choose from or plenty of room to make up your own. After a cursory search I picked a style that would help distinguish these Z-95s from my Red Squadron X-wings, but wouldn't look too out of place in service to the Rebel Alliance.

The Havoc, a heavier fighter bomber available to the Rebels in Armada belongs to Nym, some sort of tentacle headed alien I'd never heard of. Nym appears in some old Clone Wars era comics and video games, and in the extended Star Wars fiction has apparently stuck around until the Rebellion era.

Being unfamiliar with the ship, and unwilling to do TOO much research, I picked a bright orange and white color scheme that showed up in Nym's Wookipedia entry. It's a tasty little ship on the table, and I'm pretty happy that I can field it in a flashy paint job.

All told, it's a tiny entry of 7 ships but every bit counts towards that point goal, right?

MilesR: Great looking Paint job! and such tiny ships

From Curt: Kablooey!! Exploding 'Star Wars' Rebel Starships (30 Points)

Ever since seeing 'Rogue One' over the holiday break I've been having a wonderful renaissance delving into all things 'Star Wars'. I feel like I'm eleven all over again (if only my hair follicles would follow suit)!

This resurgent interest made me dig-up my copy of 'Star Wars: Armada' by Fantasy Flight Games. For those who are not familiar with the game, 'Armada' is a fleet-level miniatures game, where players get to control the huge starships and fighter squadrons that are so iconic in the films. Rebel Blockade Runners, Star Destroyers, Mon Calamari 'Pickle Ships', swarms of TIE fighters, you got it, they're all a part of the game. It's super fun.

Our group is just about to start a campaign using the new 'Corellian Conflict' expansion that came out a few weeks ago. The guys are busy creating their fleets and so I thought I'd add some colour to the tabletop with some bits and bobs. What we have here is a pair of critically damaged ships for set dressing. With these models, victorious admirals will have the satisfaction of seeing their crippled adversaries drift across the table instead of the original models simply being removed from play.

The Rebel frigate is hit amidships and begins to break apart.

These two ships are from the Rebel Alliance. One is the famous Rebel Blockade Runner, or CR90 Corvette, that was seen carrying Princess Leia in 'A New Hope', and the other is a Nebulon-B Escort Frigate which was first glimpsed in 'The Empire Strikes Back'.

Both of these models were downloaded from Thingiverse (thanks Danesgift!), tweaked/re-scaled, printed off on my 3D printer and mercilessly bashed-up for effect. The stands are prints as well.

Below are a couple raw prints, with all the supports still needing to be removed and sanded down. Yes, they are SUPER orange when they first come off the printer.

The explosions are 3D fractal models, designed by Aeron203. 

I re-scaled and sliced the fractal models to make varying sizes and textures of explosions. I added some blown-out debris from thin plasticard, and for the Nebulon-B I gave it a turbo laser hit (with a bit of painted steel rod) for a bit of drama.

The raw 3D models above provides you a hint of the upcoming Imperial ships which will be getting the same treatment - but that will be for another post.

Points? Hmm, I would say they are the equivalent of 15-20mm vehicles?  So, 12-24 for the pair? I leave it to you Dave!





So, the Snow Lord managed to catch my shift with scant minutes to spare. And the Comm is currently crewed by a HUGE Star Wars Fan-atic!

Yup, I"m pretty much gobsmacked!

Those ships are even more wicked than the wrecks and scenery bits that I've seen when Battlefleet Gothic was all the rage. not to mention that your brushwork is waaay better than the factory paints that come with the game. The explosions could've just been left as is, but I noticed you even have chunks of hull flying off in the explosion. That is just as cool as I'm sure the game will be with these derelicts drifting.

 Just for that, we have no remorse for adding a few discretionary points for the sheer spectacle....Sith Lords are all about the spectacle after all. ;)