Friday 29 April 2011

The Marriage.

As a staunch Royalist, I wish Prince William and his new Bride Kate, a long and prosperous marriage.

Not only is it something of a Royal occasion but it is also an opportunity to wave the flag and have something for everyone to talk about.

Our Royal Family is something that, as a serviceman, I hold very dear and I would hate for England to become a republic.

All that aside...

...today I have had the opportunity to put some model kits together...so it is an added bonus.

See you through the streamers, bunting and waving Union flags!

Sunday 24 April 2011

Another Pagan/Religious/Commercial Festival...

It is Easter and as I tuck into my highly commercialised chocolate egg, I can only hope that those millions of Christians all around the world are attending their places of worship on what, to them, is the most holy event of the year (some would say the miracle of the resurrection is of more significance than the birth of Christ...but without one, you wouldn't have the other) with a bit more faith than I have.

The one thing I enjoy about this time of year is the fact that I get a few days away from work and that enables me to get stuff done...and this Easter is no exception because I have completed the final troop unit of the Tunnel Fighter army:

Click the Pic!

It is the medic unit with various doctors, scanners and stretcher bearers. I could have taken the sci-fi approach to the stretcher and have it either hover about or be carried by robots but I really wanted it to be a 'back-to-basics' sort of thing...so I kept the manually carried stretcher.

Now all I have to finish are the other 10 mechs and the army will be finished...until I start to think about transports, that is!

In the meantime, I will be looking to start my Urban Army once the mechs are done...so the transports can wait.

By the way, I have just updated my Grymn Blog with a few items that may be of interest...so you may want to pop over and have a look.

Happy Easter!

See you over the crowd of eager children hunting for eggs!

Tuesday 19 April 2011

Crikey...

50,000 hits and counting!

Welcome to the newest traveller to Inso's World, Dave Adams! Hope you enjoy your stay and find at least a small amount of something to inspire you.

I have a bit of a confession...I haven't touched any hobby stuff since Salute. I think it is a bit of a case of saturation from all the new toys and tiredness.

The Grymn medics are still waiting for some work but they may take a back seat to building the last 5 mecha. Once they are all built, all of the pilots can be sculpted along with the bits and pieces on the medics.

I am trying to decide where to put my new robots (The Protolene robots from Critical Mass Games)...do they go with the Grymn? Do they go with the Necrons? Do they join the Starship Crew? Or do they become enemies for the Grymn?

I have had a chance to look through the little box of 15mm stuff and to say that I have been well and truly spoilt is an understatement... aerial drones... hover vehicles... bikes... tanks... APCs... artillery... and more besides! I am formulating plans and conversions as I type.

So much to think about...and don't get me started on the motorcycle I have sat in the garden slowly returning to mother earth...I must get her back on the road.

See you through a hay-fever sufferers eyes.

Sunday 17 April 2011

Salute 2011...in hindsight...

I returned home from Salute2011 at about 21:00hrs last night after a long day in London.

I was so keen to go to Salute that on Friday night (coupled with a continuous 'machine gun' sound that was emanating from somewhere inside my left ear all night), I didn't sleep at all so that is why Saturday was such a long day...

I will apologise now for having no photos...I really didn't have the time or enthusiasm for taking any (even though I had my camera with me).

This year I managed to get lucky and jump on all the right trains, have no travel problems and arrive at the venue for about 09:15hrs.

The Excel centre in London Docklands was exactly as it was last year, with plenty of places to buy food/drink and plenty of places to withdraw cash if you needed to. The venue for Salute had moved up a couple of halls but it was just as large as last year so there was enough space for everyone to potter about.

The queues were enormous and there seemed to be a lot more people at the show than last year. There were the usual mix of Storm-Troopers milling around and plenty of people giving out flyers and information. The Salute goody bag was pretty cool...Kaiser Rushforth had put a storage carrier in there and the Salute miniature was very nice...there was also a tiny little metal car...and the program with a bunch of flyers.

Once in the venue, I spent most of the day helping out at the Hasslefree Miniatures stand and chatting to so many people that I couldn't possibly remember everyone. So everyone who made the time to come and say hello, thank you! You were well met! Just from the volume of people traversing the store, I was kept busy finding specific miniatures and helping people to spend money (as were everyone else!).

At about 14:00hrs I went for a much needed coffee, pastrami sandwich and bottle of water before having a quick wander around the stands. This year (again!), I didn't really pay too much attention to all of the game boards but managed to remember to stop at Brandlin's FANTASTIC Twilight table (a work of art to be sure) and miss out on the Frother's Cthueldo table (which won a prize on the day...WELL DONE FU-UK!).

People of note were:

Gwartist...Thank you for your more than generous gift of a small box bulging at the seams with 15mm goodness. You sir, are a true gent and were very well met on the day. I still owe you a coffee and cake (and an ear-bending for camo-painting tips!).

Vermis...I always enjoy looking at people's sculpting and some of the gems that were emerging from the little tupperware box were a joy to behold. I look forward to seeing finished sculpts very soon...and the Halfling was unbelievably detailed for something so tiny!

Every one on the Hasslefree stand...Neil, Sarah, Mr and Mrs Gomez, Gi6ers, Sally and Kev, it was an absolute pleasure spending the day with you all.

Brandlin...The table looked outstanding and I hope that the level of interest in your laser etched products, expands exponentially. I know it was a tough day but the table was worth the trouble.

Carcharoth...as enthusiastic and friendly as ever.

All those who took the time to come and say hello...I may not have remembered names but the faces, I recalled! Thank you for coming to say hello...it is people like yourselves that make Salute such a great day for me.

So...what the hell did I come home with?

From Hasslefree Miniatures:
20 Grymn Heavy Infantry
3 Grymn Heavy Pulse Gunners
1 Grymn Comms Officer
1 Meg in Powered Armour
1 Smudge
1 packet of tiny ball-bearings (steel balls, chrome spheres...whatever you want to call them)

From Heresy Miniatures:
20 Sci-Fi Troopers

From Twilight Miniatures:
1 Trader on Enuk
4 Enuk Pack Animals

From Studio McVey:
1 Male Drone

From Critical Mass Games:
3 Protolene Ayame "Scout Variant" (little War-Walkers)
6 Protolene Ayame "Predator Variant" (little War-Walkers)

From Salute:
1 Salute2011 General on Horseback
1 Tiny metal car
1 Kaiser Rushforth Storage Box Carrier

From Dwartist:
1 treasure trove of 15mm vehicles and equipment

Today is a day of recuperation and reflection with maybe a small amount of looking at and sorting out the haul.

All I can add to this rambling post is to say that I am really looking forward to next year!

See you across the sea of people!

Friday 15 April 2011

It...is...done...

This may not look much but when you add it to the other nine infantry units and the command squad...it makes it the last of the infantry units for the army...

Click the Pic!

I have three bases with some medics on the table, ready to have their conversion finished and that, as they say, will be the end of all the troops for the army.

It has taken over a year to get this far...

...just thought I'd share :).

See you at the end!

The calm before the storm.

Today is the day before SALUTE.

I have my ticket for the show, my ticket for the train, a wallet bulging with pennies and a long suffering wife who will be dropping me off at the railway station nice and early in the morning.

This year, like last year, I will be helping out on the Hasslefree Miniatures stand which can be found by walking through the entrance hall doors, turning left and walking until you bump into the dividing wall...If you look on the map (in the Salute link) it is TA03.

As usual, I have a few places lined up for a visit during the day so here is a vague list of the main places I'll be looking to visit:

Hasslefree Miniatures (obviously): TA03: Mostly to buy Grymn...Heavy Infantry and a few Specialists.

Heresy Miniatures: TA05: To see the finished dragon and also to have a look at what is on offer...Trenchcoat Gangers and Sci-fi troopers are of main interest.

Twilight Miniatures: TB01: All excellent stuff but I generally look at this range for conversion potential...there are new 'alien' cavalry and pack animals that are of main interest...that and to chat to Mike and Allan on the stand...I am also looking forward to seeing the finished terrain board with the laser etched buildings from Brandlin.

Studio Mcvey: TG03: They have a bunch of sci-fi troops for their 'Sedition' range that I quite like the look of.

Ground Zero Games: TJ15: To look at the 15mm vehicles to see what can be turned to Grymn advantage.

Antenociti's Workshop
: TH08: There is just too much resin goodness to walk past. Some of the new vehicles are absolutely stunning and Dwartist has been doing a fantastic job of painting/converting them too.

Wayland Games: TH09: All I need to say here is...all sorts of war-gaming stuff, cheap.

Artemis Black
: TC03: Another discount shop with all sorts of different ranges...definitely worth a look.

Critical Mass Games: TA26: A manufacturer of the finest 15mm sci-fi miniatures you can buy...bar none. Crisply cast, expertly designed and a wide variety of troops and vehicles. The Arc fleet Walkers are awesome.

Otherworld Miniatures: TA08: Some lovely fantasy monsters.

Westwind Productions: TB08: Secrets of the Third Reich vehicles and miniatures.

Pulp City: TM06: Superhero miniatures and they also have Maxi-Mini on the same stand...resin doo-dads and miniatures.

Black Hat Miniatures: TK19: Superheroes, sci-fi and a new release of an old favourite: Cobalt sci-fi.

There are others that I am likely to visit but the main ones are above.

As well as visiting the traders, I will be having a look over the various gaming tables, enjoying the entertainment provided by the historical re-enactors (and the various people dressed up in costumes...always worth a laugh!), marvelling at the paint-jobs in the painting contest, chatting to the many visitors to the Hasslefree stand and hopefully getting to have a cup of coffee with a few mates (when I can find a few minutes!).

If you are going, I will be identified by my 'INSO' name-tag over at the HF stand. Come and say hello if you see me :).

I am really looking forward to my day in an alternate reality.

See you at the old smoke!

Sunday 10 April 2011

Back to normal...

It is Sunday and seeing as I am back home, it makes sense to pick up where I left off and post a Sunday update.

After six weeks away from the hobby, I had to get my fix and a good place to start was a squad of Tunnel Fighters. Fortunately, I had a squad that had already been converted and under-coated...so they were perfect for the task:

Click the Pic!

Once I painted these I realised two things...

Firstly, I had painted the yellow on the top of the comms droid completely differently to the rest of them...I guess the workshops changed paint suppliers after the first batch of droids was finished...

Secondly, I had painted this squad with purple markings...I already have a purple squad...fortunately, the purple on these is quite bold so there will be no confusion with the more pastel looking purple on the other squad...

I guess I was just glad to be painting again!

Now that the (second) purple squad is finished, I have been converting up the next squad...a close combat squad. So far, I have cleaned them all up and glued the replacement heads on. Once the Green Stuff on the bases has dried, I will be filling in all the gaps between head and body, ready for the 'hump' to be sculpted on their backs. To be honest, I had forgotten just how time consuming these are to convert but I guess the effort is worth it in the end :) .

So...the Tunnel Fighter army...how's it going and where is it going?

The army so far has:

Command squad (10)
6x Heavy Infantry squads (10 in each)
3x Close Combat squads (10 in each)
1x Drone unit
1x K9 unit
2x Clanker squad (3 in each)
6x Support Mech (various types - all Votoms kits - 5 built and base-coated, 1 finished)

What remains to be built/painted:

1x Close Combat squad (10)
1x Medic Unit (6 troops on 3 bases)
5x Support Mech (build, base-coat and paint)
5x Support Mech (finish painting)
5x Clanker squad (still boxed and in the raw)

My main goal is to finish the troops (close combat and medics) and then tick along with the other bits and pieces while I embark on the Urban Army project...

The Urban Army project started a while ago with my jump-pack troops. I quickly learned that the camouflage was a complete wotsit to paint so I plan to paint the rest of the ground troops in a more simple grey scheme . I may even add battle damage to them...it depends on how I feel. The troops themselves, will be unconverted light infantry with helmets (like these) so that I can quickly assemble units for painting without having to convert every miniature like the Tunnel Fighters...I think it will be refreshing NOT to have to convert everything...give me a bit of a rest and maybe enable me to do a bit of sculpting...who knows?

Speaking of sculpting...I saw these and got an idea...

Click the Pic!

These are some extremely interesting new Space Dwarf miniatures by Pega Minidesign and they are called Ulkans. They are, to be blunt...lovely and I would love to own a load of them...maybe I will once they get a few more in the shop. Since I saw them I have had an idea of an alien race that is short and stocky...so maybe I'll knock some up and see where the muse takes me.

That is the lot for now.

See you over a steaming cup of rosy lee!

Thursday 7 April 2011

From a little acorn...

...a great Oak-tree grows.

The same can be said about a small idea.

I have sorted through my Grymn and have managed to assemble a complete platoon, with one other needing 9 miniatures to complete it. I have ordered the 9 miniatures and have also ordered a bunch of vehicles to go with them...and here is the basis of my latest army:

The Humble (Mechanised) Infantry Platoon.

Command Section:

Platoon Commander: SMG
Platoon Colour Sgt: SMG
Platoon Sgt: SMG
Platoon Comms Officer: SMG, Comms

Slingshot IFV

Support Section:

Section Sgt: SMG
Trooper: SMG, Rocket Launcher
2xTrooper: LMG

Sligshot IFV

3x Infantry Section:

Cpl (Alpha Fire-Team): SMG
Trooper: SMG
Trooper: SMG, Rocket Launcher
Trooper: LMG

LCpl (Charlie Fire-Team): SMG
Trooper: SMG
Trooper: SMG, Rocket Launcher
Trooper: LMG

Glaive APC

Notes:

Each of the troops have a comms set-up inside his helmet for battlefield comms. The Command comms has greater range for calling in fire-support/artillery.

The Command and Support sections will be carried in their individual Slingshot IFV (each section of four troops gets its own transport vehicle) with the infantry sections having Glaive APC vehicles (one provided to carry all eight troops in the section).

I am planning on putting together a Mechanised Company which will consist of:

HQ Command section
3x Infantry Platoon
1x Support Platoon - may well be my airborne troops, in Dropships.
1x Heavy infantry Platoon
Assorted armour support.

I still have to nail down the other platoon/section organisation...but I will focus on getting each of the platoons finished before I worry too much about that.

Lots to think about there...but wait...what about the Tunnel Fighters? Well, they are being worked on as we speak. I have finished base-coating the latest squad and just need to tidy them up ready for the wash. After that squad is complete I have one further basic squad to convert and finish, followed by a couple of medic stands to complete the infantry side of the army. I then plan on assembling the last of the bigger mechs so that they can all be base-coated, ready for washing. Once they are done, I can worry about the rest of the Clanker units I have in boxes...

...speaking of Clanker units...I have been looking on E-Bay and have been astounded by the price that a box of three Bauhaus Vulkan battlesuits have fetched...£72-00 + postage!!!

That means that I have approximately £528-00 (+ postage) worth of Vulkans (if I could achieve the £72-00 per box)...

...It almost seems a shame to be chopping them up and converting them, doesn't it :D !

It is great to be back at home :D .

See you across the freshly mown lawns of an English stately manor.

Tuesday 5 April 2011

The traveller returns...

I am sitting at home, in England, with a cup of tea, as I type this post.

I have returned from Kenya today and have had an epic 30 hour journey so I am extremely tired.

I can safely say that the detachment went extremely well...even with the aircraft breaking so often, we still managed to complete the required amount of flying and accomplished an excellent level of support for our army colleagues...so all the heartache was worth it.

I have had a good soak in the tub and am making the most of good old PG Tips tea! Tomorrow, I'll be worrying about unpacking properly...tonight I am just chilling out.

I have already looked through my Grymn storage boxes and have arranged some unpainted ones into the platoons I wanted to. All it means is that I need more specialists to go with them. I have one complete platoon with a second one needing 9 miniatures to complete it...I now have the choice to order before Salute or just wait and buy them there...decisions; decisions...

...Speaking of Salute...less than two weeks to go! I can't wait :) .

See you across English fields; breathing English air under an English sky!

...It is good to be home.