Deep Cut studio speed paint marker pens.

Hello and Welcome back, 

I recently picked up some Deep Cut studio Army speed paint marker pens. These brush pens are filled with Army Painter speed paints. I expect most of your reading this will be familiar with contrast paint or speed paints so I won't explain what they are or how they work. 

In my eagerness to try these pens, I dug out the only two figures primed in white from the pile of shame. 

These two metal Strontium Dogs figures by Warlord Games were the first two figures to paint. 

To use the pens, shake them and then depress the brush tip into the end of the cap to make the paint flow. In addition to this the pens come with spare brush nibs and can unscrew the pen to refill it.

I found these Markers to be easier to use than ordinary speed Painter paints. Coverage was good but the work can need touch ups. If you miss a spot it is glaringly obvious as the white shines through. 

The figures look good, however I find it pays to give the painted figures a wash to make some of the details pop. Some touch ups and a little detail work can help, such as the eyes and SD badges. 

I find these paints to be effective and as they are in pen form will be useful if you want to paint figures to a tabletop standard while away from your usual paint station. 

I can see myself using these pens more in the future and I will be trying out the pens on grey primed figures soon to see how they come out. 

Thanks for reading, take care out there.

Starport scum pt 6 - more Fatties

Hello and welcome back, 

Time for another issue of Starport Scum. My Fatties Crew was a little thin on the ground and as Warlord Games has brought out the Block War Fatties, it seemed a good opportunity to expand the crew.

The Fattie on the left is Lardie McDoughnut. This guy is the Fatty of Fatties. Lardie is the guy (or the size at least) the other Fatties aspire to. He is another Fattie that fled the world of Megapolis (link https://mattblackgodsworld.blogspot.com/2021/12/starport-scum-3-fatties.html ) due his involvement in the failed "Fattie Coup". Lardie is so large that he needs some help moving about from a couple of goons hired in the Starport. Being the size of Fattie means he is a bullet magnet and body armour in his size is difficult to find. So he made his own improvised armour looted from the last kitchen the Fatties rumbled into.

Johnny Spambo is the Fattie on the right. Unlike other Fatties, Spambo has a second interest besides gorging. After watching an ancient Earth holoflik (re-re-re mastered) series uncountable times, Spambo believes he is a living incarnation of the main character of those movies even mimicking the accent and speech patterns of the main character. He dresses in a similar old earth military fashion and trains, as far as a Fatty can or wants to train. Spambo has read any special forces manual he can find further building his self belief that he is a one man army.

The Fatties are fun to paint and I hope there will be more Fatties released by Warlord Games in future. Part of me is thinking that building a special space ship for the Fatties would be a fun future project.

Now for another character for my growing Starport Scum collection.

Pesha Zil

Pesha fled her homeworld of Iyo looking for adventure. Currently she is hanging around spaceports looking for work as a ship's crew member. Rumours of adventure and riches to be had on Maddans world have reached Pesha. She is hoping to find a ship heading in that direction.

The Pesha figure is from the old OOP Grenadier Future Wars line. The colour choices for this figure came from what ever was going on the pallet at the time. I plan to use this figure in games of Five Parsecs from home or Stargrave (if I ever get around to playing them). One of my future plans for Maddans world will be for gangs of adventurers looking for the precious Sol Stones or the rumoured wreckage of the Maddan Expedition. So there is a chance she will turn up there. 

Thanks for looking, stay safe out there. 

Kingdom

Hello and welcome back.

Time for a inspiration recommendation. I got this 2000AD graphic novel as a Christmas present (did I say that my Wife is a keeper?). I have been a long fan of 2000AD and it has given me lots of inspiration. At the time these stories were in the comic I wasn’t a regular reader for many reasons.




The premise is 
‘Earth, the far future. Mankind has been all but destroyed, those still surviving forced into hiding by Them – insectile creatures that have taken over the world. Charged with protecting humanity are genetically engineered dog-soldiers like Gene the Hackman – savage warriors that patrol the wilderness, directed by Urgings from their Masters.
Now without a pack and having the responsibility of protecting young Leezee Sower, Gene has to survive in the kingdom of Auxtralia, where if Them don’t kill him, the ‘Wild Bunch’ just might!
Written by best-selling author Dan Abnett and featuring the stunning art of Richard Elson.”

I found the comic full of great Post Apocalyptic ideas as a setting. Overgrown ruins, giant insects (I guess from the odd human comment that they might be alien to Earth), the genetically engineered dog solders (mix of dog and human dna with certain improvements), feral and mongrel dog soldiers and the odd human. All the humans (the Masters) are hidden away in cryogenic storage until the bugs go away. Apart from the two in the story that is. The problem is the bugs haven’t gone and those cryo units are getting a bit old.

You will need lots of giant bugs - get down the toy shop! For the Dog Soldiers Orks could be used at a push. Or maybe frostgrave Gnolls with Stargrave arms. Not sure on the mongrels but no doubt some inventiveness could knock something together. If the gang at Warlord and Rebel publishing are reading this - hint hint please! 

I really enjoyed the adventures of Gene Hackman in the comic and will be adding the later issues to my collection. 

Keep an eye open for it. 

Thanks for reading and stay safe out there.

Starport Scum 4 - Some more dodgy characters

Hello and welcome back, 

Ready to take another look at the dodgy denziens lurking around the space ports at the edge of Human Space? 

The Helfather is a notorious bounty hunter from the Dvarg systems that lie beyond GELF space. He roams human space hitting targets for the right price. His power armour and thermo gun ensures he can bring the bounty home. 

Not much else is known about the Helfather. No one knows who he is or why he roams beyond the Dvarg systems working as a bounty hunter. 

The Helfather figure is from the Mantic Deadzone Forge Fathers line. 

Hol Taranga is a Fay GELF many of whom can be easily mistaken for humans. The Fay work human frontier space for their own mysterious ends. Taranga was a dancer before the GELF wars (Fay GELF are incredibly long lived, their DNA coding was set not to expire or age at the cost of being able to breed or replicate. Originally this design was because Fay where often killed by their human masters who took their entertainment too far). Taranga deliberately wears multicoloured patterned clothes. Using a holofield light stealth cloak generator when Taranga moves he seems to explode into a cloud of colour confusing his opponents. Taranga hangs around space ports looking for work including picking up some bounty hunting work.

Hol Taranga is a old 40k Eldar Harlequin figure.

Aethian Sunbane is another Fay GELF looking for work as a sharp shooter or scout for a crew. Does he also have a hidden agenda for working the edge of Human space? Aethian’s origin is lost in the mists of time before the GELF wars. 

Aethian is a old 40K Eldar figure. 

Lenny O’Beer is the Captain of the Merry Mustang currently looking for new crew members in the space ports. He is a ruthless slob of a man prone to bouts of violence so crew don’t hang around for long. There is a chance that any long serving crew may mutiny. 

O’Beer is a Gang leader from the Warlord 2000AD Judge Dredd set. I am thinking of adding the other gangers from the Judge Dredd set to make up a crew for 5 Par Secs or Stargrave. 

Mary Madison works as a ships medic on the Merry Mustang under Captain O’Beer. She is his only long standing crew member and puts up with him until she can join a better crew or she flushes him out of the airlock. Whatever comes first. 

This figure is from the Infinity line.

Believe it or not I have lots more figures to add to my Sci Fi collection.

Thanks for looking, stay safe out there. 

Mean Angel

Hello and welcome back, time to introduce Mean Angel. 

Out in the wastelands there roams an angry cyborg. A very angry cyborg. The surviving member of the psychotic Angel family, Mean Angel was a sensitive boy. His father didn’t like it so had him mutilated and fitted with a dial to make him angry in an instant. 

No one really knows what happened to his family. Some stories say a Law Man killed them all. Other stories say the Mean killed them in revenge for his mutilation and cyborgisation. 

Mean Angel is from the Warlord 2000AD Judge Dredd line. 

Thanks for looking. 

Take care out there.

Starport Scum 3 - the Fatties

Hello and welcome back.

Time for more Starport Scum. Introducing the Fatties. 

The Fatties come from the urban planet of Megapolis, a massive urban world. Unemployment is high (95%) and the countless billons that live there seek out new ways to get thrills or to give their lives meaning. 

The Fatties are semi professional competitive eaters who train by eating 24-7. As time goes by and they get bigger and  bigger. They have to buy reinforced bones, upgraded stomach capacity, improved heart pumps, nano blood cleaning gadgets and more. After a while they need support wheels to hold their bulk up. 

These three Fatties have fled Megapolis after trying to organise a coup against the Magistrates who rule the world. They now lurk at space ports at the edge looking for work or a ship to steal. They haven’t had any luck getting work. Starships aren’t really built for people of this size and no captain wants all the ship’s supplies eaten in a few minutes. 

Ton Drump. 

Ton Drump was a Megapolis Eating champion and minor celebrity. Concerned that he wasn’t getting enough calories he started the “Make Megapolis Fatter” campaign to get fatter and also planned to seize power. He started hate campaigns against other groups including the Megapolis Magistrates, assisted by Hatey his fan girl. He bribed crooked politicians and Magistrates in the hope to seize power. With a horde of Fatties they tried to storm the Megapolis central blockhouse but the Magistrates were waiting and arrested most of the fatties. Ton and his crew managed to flee (Ton was leading from the back like all good generals) the mass arrests and headed to the nearest Space port. Unable to book a flight they stole a cargo ship and fled to the edge of human space. At least the Megapolis Magistrates won’t find him there, he hopes. 

Mim Tartin

Mim Tartin was a Megapolis business man who ran a fast food company aimed at the fatty community. The food was designed to be highly calorific and addictive. When his food was accused as dangerous he started eating his product live on the holovid. Mim became horribly addicted to his food and was soon a fatty. Pretty soon, along with his new Fatty friends he ate his own business into the ground. Owning huge debts he backed Ton Drump’s revolution seeing a opportunity to make some credits. Mim fled with Ton when the revolution failed. 

Hatey Kopkins 

No one knows Hatey’s real name. She got the name Hatey because she dislikes almost everyone and doesn’t mind saying it loudly. It is rumoured her real name might be Karen. Hatey is a loyal fan of Drump. She adores him nearly as much as food. To try to get the Fatty community onside for the planned revolution she spread lies about any group that wasn’t the Fatties. When the revolution failed she followed the second love of her life to frontier worlds where she continues her diatribe of hate at anyone who doesn’t toady to Drump.

The Megapolis Magistrate’s have put hefty bounties on the three fatties heads. They shouldn’t listen to Ton’s deranged delusional ramblings and keep a eye open for bounty hunters. 

The figures are from the 2000AD Judge Dredd line by Warlord Games. I am thinking of using the Fatties as part of a rival crew in my (planned) 5 Parsecs games.

Thanks for looking. 

Take Care Out There.

The Judges

Hello and welcome back, 

A little while back picked up Warlord’s 2000AD Judge Dredd boxed set. I got the judges finished a couple of months back but the pictures didn’t turn out well. So it was back to the photo set up.

These are resin figures and are 32mm in scale. 

As promised I have included some size comparison pictures with the older Mongoose Mega City One figures.

There is a fair height difference between them. The Warlord figures are thinner too. Looking at my old mongoose figures, I think they will need a few black washes/glazes to tone them down to the colour of the Warlord figures. 

The whole justice department. I now have to get all the gangs and other Mega City One miscreants painted too.

Thanks for looking.

The Styx Brothers

Hello and welcome back. 

Look out lads, the Styx Brothers are in town!  

The Styx Brothers are Strontium Dogs bounty hunters who seem to excel at the job. They have fallen foul of fellow Strontium Dog Johnny Alpha as they play dirty and steal bounties usually after the hard work has been done. They don’t think twice about shooting another Strontie in the back to steal a bounty. This has lead to a feud between the bounty hunters. 

The Styx Brothers have a unusual mutation in that they all look and sound identical. So pinning down a wrong doing by them is near impossible. There also seems to be an inexhaustible supply of Styx Brothers. The Styx Brothers come from the township of Styx which lies about a days march North of the Iron Tower Ruins. Few people have visited the remote township but those who have report that everyone there looks identical. No women have been seen there leading to speculation that the town houses a ancient cloning device. 

The Styx Brothers are from Foundry 2000AD line (the dynamically posed one who is slightly bulkier) and Strontium Dog: The Stix Brothers by Warlord Games. 

The figures painted up quickly and would have a variety of wasteland uses as bounty hunters, law men or some warlord’s henchmen. 

Thanks for looking and stay safe out there. 

More Stronties for the wastelands.

Hello and welcome back from your wasteland wandering. 

Today we have three more bounty hunter “Strontium Dogs” and friends of Johnny Alpha for your entertainment. These guys provide backup for Johnny when Brittianna City slaps a big bounty on an entire settlement or gang. 

I am using these figures in my own setting on matt black god’s world and they have their back stories tweaked to fit (just like every other figure on this blog)

Middenface McNulty:

Often drunk and great in close combat is Middenface McNulty. The Pictish mutant bounty hunter is a loyal friend of Johnny Alpha but can be bad tempered and hot headed.

Durham Red:

This dangerous mutant looks pretty normal at first glance but closer inspection shows sharp fangs. Durham Red has a unusual Vampirism mutation. Her mutation allows Red to be stronger and faster than normal humans with the draw back that she needs to drink blood to survive. Preferably human. In combat the smell of blood can cause her to lose control and start drinking the blood of her enemies or enter a blood rage. Needless to say Red’s needs cause her to be driven out of many settlements but if she can stay focused she is a formidable foe.

Maeve the Many-Armed:

Hailing from a land across the sea west of Rubbleborg, Maeve landed one dark and stormy night. Her multiple arms proved useful in combat and she drifted inland in search of the Mutant Temple lost in the Blasted Ruins. Here she heard of the Strontium Dogs bounty hunters and signed up. 

When questioned about her homeland across the sea Maeve evades and changes the subject. 

These figures are all from the Strontium Dog: SD Agents by Warlord Games.

Thanks for looking and stay safe out there.

More folks of Mattblackgod’s world

Welcome back, long time no post. 

Apologies for the radio silence, life has been busy with real life stuff. I have been working on a mixture of figures and a couple of reworks. 

So into the figures....

Out in the wastelands there is a old military bunker. This is the home to the faction “the Guardians”. They collect old technology especially weapons to keep it safe and stop its misuse. One of their aims is to protect and relearn the secrets of the past. The other is to educate and help people survive. The Guardians end game is to one day rebuild the world whilst avoiding the mistakes of the past. Unfortunately their operations can cause friction with other factions in the wastelands.

This is Captain Sheila D’Eath. As a ranking officer in the Guardians she is allowed to wear Power Armour.

I cannot remember the figure or line this is from. She has been reworked to look like the armour has come from several sources.

Introducing Imperator Anita Bath of the New Sodom City defence force. She can often be seen leading NSC operations out in the wastelands. Her other job is to act as Immortan Trump’s bodyguard. She is glad of her power armour as Immortan Trump can be a bit handy.

This figure is a rework as she was a officer in the Red Lance force before I retired them. It is a OOP metal Viridian. 

Kapo Burns is a mutant hench man of Blubba Max of the Trashford gang. 

This figure is Cuss Weerds of the Warlord 2000AD Strontium Dogs line. His hand and gun had snapped off so I grafted a gun hand on I found in the depths of the bits box.

Coming back to Rubbleborg....

Introducing Raging Annie. Annie has serious anger issues and as a outlet she has been directed to join the Rubbleborg Milita by Mayor Bustard. It is either that or have Annie shooting the town up every ten minutes.

The figure is Raging Annie by Bad Squido Games and was a fun figure to paint.

Finally for this lot....

Introducing Clink. Clink is the Rubbleborg jailer and is fond of hooch. He likes roughing up prisoners which sometimes backfires weeks later when he runs into an abused miscreant when drunk in a Rubbleborg sleezy dive. 

Clink is part of the Minimus Squat Crew by Ramshackle Games.

The totals so far:

Figures painted:11

Figures reworked:2

Terrain finished: 1

Terrain reworked: 0

Vehicles finished: 1

The totals for this far into year are a lot lower than I hoped. But then that is life.

Thanks for looking and stay safe out there.

Trashford reinforcements

Hello and Welcome Back to my blog,

The first figures of the year have been finished. Some additions to the Trashford gang. These guys are back up for Blubba who runs Trashford. 

The Trashford guys bearing the fancy energy weapons Blubba found inside a bunker in the Blasted Ruins. The gang and residents of Trashford are largely mutated. The remains of the Blasted Ruins where Trashford is located was the centre of the Mutant Uprisings 50 years ago. It is unusual for people in the area not to have mutations or half lives. 

Skull’s appearance is often used by Blubba to intimidate Norms (non mutants). 

Brute is the Gang’s muscle, he is also a hothead and most likely to charge off into a fight before Blubba has had a chance to assess the situation.

Lo down is a foul mouthed trouble maker who loves to pick fights with anyone taller than him, which is everyone.

All these figures are from the Warlord 2000AD Strontium Dogs line. There are more figures planned for the Trashford gang. Stay tuned. 

Thanks for looking and stay safe out there.

Blubber

Hello and welcome back to my blog. 

It must be Christmas, two blog posts at one. 

The Blubber gang rule Trashford. It is a square mile of territory in the Blasted Ruins. The main centre is a ancient shopping mall which is the town. Nearby is a old stadium in which Blubber runs gladiatorial shows usually using captives vs his best warriors or savage beasts.

Blubber is a Max Bubba from 2000AD Strontium Dogs line by Warlord Games. 

The Blubber gang trades and raids across the wasteland. They have also given Brittannia a head ache by taking on their troops as they try to control the Blasted ruins. Blubber and his boys may just hang on to their grip on Trashford as long as Brittannia don’t roll out the big guns. The gang’s grip is helped by a pristine weapons cache looted from a lost military bunker in the blasted ruins.

So that takes my figure total up to 28 painted. Some 72 short. I tried to get more done but real life kept getting in the way. That’s going to be my lot for this year. I always pack the brushes away over the silly season. 

I will try to post before the big day, but just in case. Have a very merry Christmas, Yule or whatever you call it. 

That’s all folks, be careful out there and Seasons Greetings. 

Scouts, Wanderers and Bounty Hunters.

Hello and welcome back to my blog.

Time for the weekly hobby update. Yet more figures painted for my Rubbleborg setting.

Firstly there is Roland De Rat

The figure is a old GW Necromunda Ratskin.

Roland De Rat is Mayor B’sturd’s go to man when he needs a location in the wastelands scouting out. Roland always returns with reliable information. He has been a wastelanders and scout since the day he learnt to walk. Rumour says he was abandoned by his parents when he started talking and they couldn’t shut him up. Do not make the mistake of asking Roland about his Rat Skin cloak. He will launch into his tail of running into the rat in the ruins when he was a lad. Three hours later of the blow by blow account you have lost the will to live.

The Wanderer.

 The wanderer is another one of those strange crazies who roam the wastelands alone, usually on foot. But don’t be fooled, this old man and his two pet ravens. He is wise and has much ancient knowledge. He is also a savage and dangerous warrior. The Wanderer is known for his berserk rages and is joyful in combat. He has never ran from battle. But that is only one side of the Wanderer. Stories tell of him rescuing and saving lone bandits or wanderers out in the wastes. Some tales speak of him arriving at a settlement with desperately needed supplies. He never arrives if looked for or expected. The Wanderer always arrives unlooked for. When in town he is worth speaking too. If he judges you worthy he may tell of the location of loot or give advice. 

The Wanderer is a Odin the Allfather figure by Footsore Miniatures. 

To help control the population of criminals and bandits attracted to Brittannia city, the Crown ordered a bounty hunter agency to be formed in the outer city (aka the slums). The company was called the Search and Destroy agency. The agency hires “Agents” and equips them. Brittannia put a price on Mayor B’sturd’s head, when the Rubbleborg sheriff arrested the Bounty Hunter and discovered this, B’sturd sent a runner to the SD office putting a bounty on the head of the Queen and each of the Lords of Brittannia. For some reason the bounty on B’sturd has been dropped.

These are three of the most famous agents. Left to Right Wulf Sternhammer (a warrior), Gronk (a weak hearted mutant and ace medic) and the legendary Johnny Alpha. The figures are by Warlord Miniatures from their recent Strontium Dogs game release.

That is all for this week. The totals so far are.... 17 finished and another 83 to go. 

Thanks for looking and stay safe out there.

Matt Black Data #5 The bounty hunter.

Meanwhile a mutie bounty hunter walks into Wastetopia town looking for work. 

I wonder if he will find work?

The figure is a rebased Clix Johnny Alpha (2000AD Strontium Dogs). As usual with clix figures a wash and some touching up was needed.