Dec 2016 Martian News and Seasons Greetings

So here we are not much further than last year,mainly because I keep taking on more than I can chew.



What are next years plans? Well pretty much the same as this year. Finish outstanding projects and try not to start any more.

So that would be:

• The British Residency (Partly constructed kit and scratch build)
• The Martian Villa/8 sided Manor House (Party constructed scratch build)
• The Emerald Palace (Partly constructed scratch build)
• The Martian City Sewers (Base boards finished ready for kit build and painting)
• The Martian Temple complexes, above ground (below completed unless I want to extend it)
• The Martian Docks/Quay+Canal Walls (Partly constructed from a scratch build)
• The Martian multi level street section (Partly constructed from a scratch build)
• The Ruined Martian City (Partly constructed from kits and scratch built)
• "Pimp up" my cloudships and finish my outstanding bits.
• Venus Landing Field (Parts collected)
• Venus "Birdmen" village (Partly completed scratch build)
• Venus German jungle base (Partly completed scratch build,still having problems with the walkways)
• Venus Airship to finish as well.
• All outstanding armies/factions to finish painting.Roughly 200-300 minis.Infantry,Cavalry and civilians, human, Martian and a creature or two.

Oh yes get the games planned for some years now played ;) lol

Any way below is the current painting board. Some new and some brought back for changes in bases etc.

EEEEKKKK!!!! So far behind.....

Produce bins. A quick and simple use of coffee cups to give somewhere to store Mar's gain (or what ever they eat as the main crop, we don't really know from the source material) a bit of paint and sand with a dash of coloured paint. A box of cocktail sticks,brown nylon thread and three little bits of square wood. Excluding drying time a 30 minutes job. They need a jug or bucket on the "rope"and the job done.

A few "roof tops" to go towards some buildings.

A little addition to the gardens British Residence (still under construction) , only little bits and bobs due to lack of free time.

I wish you all well and may your God,Gods or Richard Dawkins go with you.

Happy New Year and many happy gaming and hobby days in 2017.

A big thank you to my better half for letting me play with toys "at your age",keeps me out of trouble darling ;)

November Update or the missing August and October blogs

Nov Blog 2016

Well to those regular visitors you will have noticed I haven’t blogged for a few months. The word and reason is work BOO!

I’ve been doing bits and bods but only the grunt work for a number of ongoing projects. I’ve even started a new one…………………………………you fool! My version of the Emerald Palace of Syrtis Major (Stafraana).

Very little is mentioned about it in the original source material apart from the palace it's self is built of  pale green Meroe limestone. From the maps old and new it sites next to/adjoining the ruined Royal Palace and its ground plan is a rectangle on NW to SE axis. I see it as a courted area around an octagon which has some Martian architectural themes.Three of it's gates have been pulled down to remove its defensive use and consists of one residence/throne room of Amraamtaba X.A stable block and bodyguards barracks.Then a kitchen,storage and servants quarters block. This is surrounded by ruins of the main palace and private dwellings never repaired after the taking of the city by the British.

My lead pile has started to grow again………………..not good as they should be on the painting board or better the gaming table.

It’s looking like I won’t get any games this X-Mass, at least not here and VSF. Any spare time needs to go into getting things finished.

So sorry for the scant offering, I had said to myself would get a blog out a month this year but alas if I’m not at home I can’t do much. Trying to paint and use green stuff at work isn't that easy. Anyway hoping for a more productive 2017 and some table top VSF games……….please oh great gaming god master of the dice!!!

Building more Martian Buildings / July 2016 Update

Yet more cork buildings for the cityscape .  I'm nearing the last part of these mini building projects.

That's not to say I won't do some more later but storage of them is starting to become an issue and there should be enough now to give a good selection of play areas and feel of cities.

What I need to do is try these into the streets and street scatter when the games start up again.

The main British Residency of the Governor(See. Part 1 of the post)  ,some more Martian flats,offices and warehouses and towers etc.

British Residency on Mars Part 1

Part1

Here is a brief building thread on my version of the British Residency on Mars.

The building is formed from Amera Plastic's ..............................

I spray the base brown then added sand.which turned out to be a hard and repeated process. First using super glue to form an edge to retain the watered PVA. How ever not all went to plan and it ended up more uneven as I'd hoped and using more pure PVA and super glue.

The chequed floor came from a dolls house supplier and also turned out to be a problem once glue came into contact with it!

The windows came from Wills railway range.

Slaters provided the stone work with the window arches from Wills.

At this point I need to point out for legal reasons and my own health that no glue was used in the living room. She reads the blog every now and then to see what I'm up to ;) lol Ha!Ha!

Love you sweetheart :)

Part 2 to come soon,I hope.

Martian Towers or Coffee can Towers.June 2016 Update

I've been playing with some rare spare time and working on some more of the Martian city towers.

The "bell tower" with the gold cross goes with the theme of converting Martian buildings to Human uses. I'm hoping these will add a more realistic feel to my city layouts and soften my straight lines of my cork buildings.

The Henson Interplanetary Mining Company & Henson Interplanetary Trading Company.

Two more maxims and a nine pounder are still in the packets but will be added to the force when painting begins.

Painting! What painting figures this year?

Managers/Foremen at the front left, "security" officers behind with a unit of eight men.On the right eight company "guards" with one officer and eight more armed employees to the right rear. All from North Star miniatures African range.

In the back ground are three Brits who just wondered onto the table to keep an eye on this "private" army. 

The trees have been placed on bases and will be added to the cultivated parts of human quarters in Martian cities. On and I've had the flag box open and been looking at marching camp/building flags.

Martian Tripod-April & May Update

Due to life,I missed my April blog and as usual I've only few finished things to show you but here are a selection of work in progress from last month and this.

City back drop.

As I'm limited to gaming space at the moment I've got round to covering up the blank white wall on one side of my table.This will work with buildings that are sitting elsewhere or have yet to be completed with a road way to be made of foam. I used the cork to try to fit in more with the buildings rather than just paint a background.Still lots to do but at least a 3 year project/idea has started.

A few bits of machinery for the Imperial Japanese and a Martian Tripod!!!??? or is it Vulcan???

They are sat on that Mesa which is yet to be finished ;) 

Some Martian lurkers which will be getting a further grey coating.

The Empire of the Sun tests a new toy

Once again very little to show you,lots on the table but all in the finishing process.Above the "Fire Turtle 16 " testing its gun against a bit of armour. Sorry for my Japanese readers for my poor Japanese.

Venus Mesa or not much for Feb

Not much to show this month. Snowed under with real world work :(

A few bits of scatter for Mars and Venus. Working on a Mesa for my 'birdmen' village if I ever get the houses right?

Happy New Year from the Martian stone yard

Happy New Year All :)

Alas I couldn't twist any arms for a game from the usual suspects due to family commitments etc but I used the rare spare time to build one of my presents from Santa.

Hirst Arts Tomb selection for an RPG Space 1889 idea I've been muling over for a while.

They can double for ruins of a city or temple on Mars.