Car Wars revisited

Well, it looks like Car Wars might be revived at Giga-Bites! I have not played a game of Car Wars in many, many years, but I remember how much fun it was, so I am really looking forward to this.

We'll probably start by using the original scale maps and counters. But, I am hoping we grow to 3x scale at some point, so we can use Hot Wheels cars and customize to our hearts' content.

To that end, I spent a few minutes rummaging around in the bin of Hot Wheels cars at Kroger yesterday, and came up with these two beauties:

At $1 each, you really can't go wrong!

'Til next time.

Gruntz Transports from Matchbox Trucks

Well, it's been a bit since I was able to post. Real-life family issues have kept me occupied, but hopefully things have settled down now enough for me to get some more hobby and modelling projects finished.

Last week I was able to finish up a couple more GZG Colonial Legionnaire squads for 15mm science fiction gaming, particularly Gruntz.

Painting up the squads was pretty straightforward, I used the same color scheme I used for the earlier troops. The only difference is these guys had helmets. I must say I prefer the legionnaires with the kepis, and will be getting more of those to flesh out my units.

In my eternal search for cheap gaming models, I came across a Matchbox truck that looked promising. It's their version on an International CXT, which is apparently the largest pick up truck in the world.

It looked to be about the right size, and at 98 cents it was worth taking a chance.  Once I got it home I checked it with some 15mm GZG UNSC Marines.

It looked okay, but I wanted to check the actual dimensions. I measured it and compare it with the real truck. The Matchbox is a little oversized, but well within what I'd consider reasonable tolerances.

International CXT Actual and Scale Dimensions

	Actual	1/100 Scale	Matchbox Model
Length	21.5 feet (6.6 m)	2.58 in	2.8125 in
Width	101 inches (2.6 m)	1.01 in	1.125 in
Height	9 feet (2.7 m)	1.08 in	1.1875 in.

The next day I picked up a few more, and began the conversion process. I began by disassembling the truck into its component parts. This required drilling away the rivets that hold it together, but was pretty straightforward.

I wanted to enclose the truck bed. The model comes with a covered bed, so rather than cut through the metal, I just added another surface and some side panels from styrene. Yes, technically not realistic, but otherwise it would mean a lot more cutting and filing than I wanted to deal with. It's a compromise, but one I can live with.

I made two open-bed trucks, and a third with supports that can hold a canvas canopy.

One other change I made was to cut the window out of the back of the plastic insert that represents the glass. On the left is an unmodified window insert, and the truck on the right has the rear window section removed.

The reason why I did this, is that without the rear window, I can fit two troops on penny bases in the bed of the truck.

Here you can see one of the converted and primed trucks, beside an unmodified one.

I spray painted a sand basecoat on the trucks, then added some rust, a little brownish wash, and a light drybrush. I also masked off where the wipers would clean the windscreen, and then dirtied up the glass. Also, I added a drop of glue to the wheels to lock them. Otherwise, when placing the trucks on a slope or incline, they'd roll right off!

The end result, sitting beside the regular, unmodified truck:

Here is my current fleet of three. The only thing I may still do is add a canvas cover to the truck with the cover frame.

And finally the transports with their accompanying squads:

I must say, I really enjoyed making these. First, the price was certainly about as good as it could get. $3 for the fleet. And I really do like the look of them, if I do say so myself. They are generic enough that they could almost pass for anything from a vintage truck, to a modern truck, to a near future sci-fi or post apocalyptic setting. I have one unmodified truck left, and I am not sure whether to convert it into a vehicle for a post-apocalyptic warband, or maybe a command truck for my Gruntz force. When I decide, I will certainly post it here.

'Til next time.

First Painted Figs of 2012!

Well, this weekend I decided that I would do some painting - no matter what. I am still not 100% organized in my basement work area, but I had not painted any figures yet in 2012 and it was time to remedy the situation. And since on Friday night the tornado sirens went off in my county and we had to be in the basement anyway... well, what could be better than taking my mind off the possible danger by painting up a squad of 15mm FSE Colonial Legionnaires from Ground Zero Games for Gruntz!

First I prepped the figures, cleaning them up and basing them on pennies. For the Dragoon halftrack from Old Crow, I added magnets for the turret to hold it in place, while allowing full movement.

I primed them black, then gave them a basecoat spray of "sand." I added a little flesh on the faces and hands, then I used a lighter sandy color on the body armor, and a darker brown on the boots. A quick wash, and we're done! The joys of 15mm - at least the way I paint them - is that there's no need to stress over every little detail. Just get the basic colors where you want them and you're good to go.

And here's the completed squad and transport - and ready for Miniature Monday to boot. On the halftrack I painted some stripes in brownish yellow, then drybrushed a lighter shade over the whole thing. Pretty quick and simple, but I am very pleased with the results. My first fully painted figures of 2012! (I have to admit I think I may have already surpassed my 2011 total...)

I thought I'd write a few words about the Ground Zero Games 15mm figures. Overall I really liked the legionnaires alot, enough that I am going to make them the mainstay of my 15mm force. As you can see on the images below, there is some flash that needs to be cleaned up, primarily between the legs and under the arms. The one thing I was not terribly pleased with were the faces. Especially in the case of the bare-headed squad leader, the face was a fairly shapeless blob. Fortunately, at this small scale I do not think it makes a huge difference, but I have seen other 15mm figures with crisper detail.

And for your patience in following this post to the end - a teaser of my next several projects on my workspace. I have some more GZG 15mm figures to add to my Gruntz force - this time it's FSE Legionnaires with helmets, UNSC hardsuit marines, and "sci-fi Egyptians with Jackal-head helmets" (also known as Horus Jaffa from Stargate!). Plus, I found a toy car, in a drugstore of all places, that I simply had to have - a 1955 Chevy Nomad! It is slightly oversized for 28mm, but after I get done converting it I don't think it will be that noticeable. It will become the main ride for one of my "road warden" bands for a post-apocalyptic setting I am still working on. More details to come as I move forward with that project.

'Til next time!

Gruntz! forces arrive from the UK!

I got a call at work today saying a package had arrived from the UK! I rushed home, eager to open. I knew what it was - I had sent off some of a  force of old Epic metal tanks and a titan the week before to Robin Fitton, author of the award-winning Gruntz! 15mm sci-fi rules, and he had agreed to set me up with some 15mm figures and vehicles to get started. He'd also generously provided me with a copy of the rules.

Even though knew generally what the contents would be, I had no idea of the specifics. I eagerly tore into the box, and pulled out the first squad: Jaffa from Stargate! Or at least a very close approximation.

 

Next up - some wasp-like aliens armed with guns in addition to their stingers:

There were several whole groups of humans in different armors and with different weapons. It's hard to see details, but the group on the left look like SWAT guys and have a small mech-like walker. The squad on the right look like rebels in Hoth gear from Star Wars!

There were guys in different types of power armor (or are they robots?) as well as some more alien types (left).

Now for the vehicles. There's a very cool speeder bike that is very Star Wars-ish, and some sort of hovering drone or probe.

This guy is not terribly tall, but those plasma guns on his arms look deadly!

Three tanks! Two tracked, with different weapons, and a hover tank with a big gun.

My personal favorite, a futuristic halftrack with a small turret and some missile pods. I just need to figure out where they go. I managed to track this one down (no pun intended) - it's the Dragoon Halftrack from Old Crow models. These will definitely go on my list to get some more.

And lastly, a painted squad with a small APC armed with a cannon of some sort. It's attached by magnets, so it rotates freely. These guys are all decked out for some urban combat - I am loving it!

I cannot say how pleased I am with the trade. I love surprises, and opening the box from Robin was a treat!

More importantly, after a first read of the rules, I must say they are terrific! And since they are not tied to any one line of figures, all of what you see above can be used together. The game includes rules for working up stats and point values for any unit you choose, so you are not limited to one manufacturer, or even one scale. I suspect the rules would also work for 28mm actions as well.

I am very much looking forward to painting up some of the squads and the tanks and playing my first game of Gruntz!. Of course, as soon as I do I will share the details here.

Robin, thank you! I cannot wait to get started.

'Til next time.

Force on Force!

Yikes! It's been a while since I posted. Real life and work have conspired to keep me busy and away from gaming from far too long.


Today I received from Amazon the Force on Force modern combat rules from Ambush Alley and Osprey. I heard about the rules on Neil Shuck's excellent Meeples & Miniatures podcast. He interviewed the Ambush Alley guys in episode 73.

The best part is I got them for free!* (OK, technically not free. I took our change jar to the Coinstar machine at the supermarket, and got a voucher for Amazon, which I used to buy the rules. When you use the change to get a gift card they do not charge you the normally exorbitant fee. Since I didn't have to pay "out of pocket" it feels free. The change was just sitting around taking up space anyway!) And, it came the day before my birthday!

So now to read the book, and see how the rules go together. I'll have to get some modern combat miniatures, but maybe I can use some birthday money for that. The biggest decision I'll have to make is whether to go with 28mm, which is the scale I use for all my other wargaming (with the exception of Flames of War and Dystopian Wars), or try scaling down a bit. There are some really nice figures out there in 20mm and 15mm. And they have the advantage of being cheaper and requiring less table space to play a game. The 20mm figures are 1/72 scale, which opens up a whole world of not too expensive vehicle model kits as well. Hmmm, decisions, decisons...

'Til next time.