28mm Wrecked & Rusted Cars

I wanted some more terrain to use in my post-apocalypse games using the Across the Dead Earth rules.  What better than old, rusty cars?  I found these online from the UK manufacturer Project Zeke Miniatures (http://projectzekeminiatures.com/).  They make a small range of wrecked cars, 28mm survivors and equipment.  I bought 6 of the 'Rusty Wreck' and 3 of the 'Wrecked SUV'.  I also bought 2 miniatures and some equipment that I will include in a future post.  Project Zeke shipped them to me pretty quickly and I was soon underway.  The models are nice and fit my needs perfectly.

 

I washed the cars with dishwashing soap, then sprayed the resin with Krylon black.  I wetbrushed 2-3 coats of various colors using a large brush, then touched up the black on the windshield and window areas.  To create the rust, I used 2 products that were recommended to me: Modern Masters Reactive Metallic Iron paint and Modern Masters Rust Activator.  I applied 2 coats of the iron paint with a small piece of foam, then 2 sprays of the Rust Activator.  I let it sit overnight and in the morning there was a nice coat of rust.  After some touchups where the spray had discolored the other colors, I sealed it with a spray of Testors Dullcote.

Overall I like the effect and the cars will be useful terrain pieces for my games.  They add to the atmosphere and you can never have too much cover.

After the application of black spray paint.

Colors have been added.

My fleet of cars.

A closer look at 2 of them.

Thanks for looking!
Jason

28mm Crashed Spaceship

Two years ago I spent some time looking for a 28mm crashed spaceship to use as an objective for my Doctor Who games.  The most suitable one was the Crashed Aquilia Lander by Games Workshop, which my local store ordered for me.  

The impetus to finally paint it was provided by my signing up to run a game at Storm-Con, a convention in Charleston, SC (http://www.storm-con.com/), in late June.  You can't run a game called 'Spaceship Down' without a spaceship.

It comes in 6 pieces of hard plastic; 2 of them combined to form the largest section.

I washed it to remove any mold residue then sprayed it with Krylon Matte Black.  I painted most of the wreckage with Ceramcoat Charcoal Grey, then drybrushed with a mix of Vallejo Cold Grey and P3 Black. The metal parts were painted with Vallejo Oily Steel.  The red areas got a base of Army Painter Dragon Red, a wash of Black ink, then a coat of GW Evil Sunz Scarlet.  The freshly-turned earth got a coat of Vallejo Flat Earth, then a drybrush with some White added.  A spray of Testor's Dullcote sealed it and finished it off.

Now what you really are interested in, the pictures.  First all the sections together, then a close-up of each one.  As always, you can click on the images for a larger image.

 

As made, there is no base underneath the broken sections on this piece, which exposes whatever is underneath. I glued a piece of black styrene under the base of this section to improve the look.

Thanks for looking!

Jason

Across the Dead Earth: The Brotherhood

Today's post covers another gang for Across the Dead Earth, The Brotherhood, that I created myself.  It is made up of 'Gas Mask Cultists I', a 5-miniature set from Pulp Figures.  I bought them at Cold Wars in March 2015 and painted them in the same month, which is an unusually quick turnaround for me.  I knew I wanted to paint the masks red, and their robes reminded me of some medieval monks I recently painted for SAGA, so I used a similar color scheme.

The Brotherhood has recently been appearing at pre-war sites across the former UK.  Their motivation and goals are unknown.  What monstrous secret are they hiding under their masks?

The pictures were taken outside with my iPad.  The scenery in the background is a set of large storage tanks which are perfect for AtDE games.  You can view larger pictures by clicking on them.

 

Thanks for looking!

Jason

Across the Dead Earth: The Red Claw

The third faction I painted for Across the Dead Earth is The Red Claw.  They are based on the punks commonly seen in post-apocalyptic movies such as The Road Warrior and Doomsday, forever fated to be the bad guys.  

I painted them with brighter colors for both clothing and hair and added a few patterns.  I've used a different painting style than my normal technique for all the AtDE miniatures so far.  I normally use more washes and drybrushing.  For these, I generally painted a darker color first, then a highlight on the raised areas.  I painted them in late 2014.

The names and classes (listed after each name) are from the AtDE background.  This is the last of the 3 factions released as part of the initial Kickstarter.  Miniatures for 2 more factions have been released in 2015 (The Sisters of Acquisition and the Engineers Guild) and you can read about more player-created factions on the game's Facebook page.

All the pictures were taken with my iPad in natural sunlight in my backyard, so there are some shadows but I don't think they obstruct the view.  Some of the colors look washed-out in the pictures, perhaps an effect of the sunlight.  The background in all the pictures are some stone ruin pieces I had handy.  You can click on the pictures for a closer view.

Ronnie (leader) & Fatboy (heavy):  One thing I like about these miniatures is they are not all the same height.  Fatboy is quite a big fellow and carries an RPG.  Further down, Shrimp lives up to her name and is distinctly smaller.

Shrimp (scout) & Topper (assault):

Pyro (none) & Shay-man (medic): Pyro bears a certain resemblance to a member of British band The Prodigy, who had a song in the late 1990s named "Firestarter".  He is appropriately armed with a flamethrower.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmin5WkOuPw

The full gang.  Fear The Red Claw!

What next for AtDE?  I am working on some ruined terrain and also bought miniatures for 2 more factions at Cold Wars.  There are also the next 2 factions by Dead Earth Games, so I will be quite busy for the near future.  I also plan on playing more games and running some for others once I have enough terrain finished.

Thanks for looking!
Jason

Across the Dead Earth: The State

The second faction I painted for Across the Dead Earth was The State.  They represent the remnants of the UK government that are attempting to re-assert their control and have a totalitarian bent.  I used a limited color scheme for them, blue, grey, green and khaki, to give them a more unified, semi-military look.  The names and classes (listed after each name) are from the AtDE background, though you are free to use them otherwise or to use other companies' miniatures for the game.  I used a different painting style than my usual one, partly to experiment and partly because of how they are sculpted.  I painted them in late 2014 and I think they turned out well.  

All the pictures were taken with my iPad in natural sunlight in my backyard, so there are some shadows but I don't think they obstruct the view.  The background in all the pictures are some stone ruin pieces I had handy.  You can click on the pictures for a closer view.

Captain Jester (leader):

 Yoshi (assault) & Skelch (sharpshooter) Skelch is violating uniform regulations with his red bandanna:

 SIWOC (scout) & Squint (medic):

The full squad, ready to enforce the writ of The State across Britain: 

Thanks for looking!

Jason

Across the Dead Earth: Adam's Family

I have once again been neglecting my blog.  In an attempt to catch up, I took advantage of a sunny Sunday afternoon and took pictures of 3 factions for the new post-apocalyptic skirmish game Across the Dead Earth.  All the pictures were taken with my iPad in natural sunlight in my backyard, so there are some shadows but I don't think they obstruct the view.  The background in all the pictures are some stone ruin pieces I had handy.  I used a different painting style than my normal technique, partly to experiment and partly because of how they are sculpted.  I painted them in late 2014.

Across the Dead Earth started life as a Kickstarter in 2014.  Set in the UK several generations after the last war, the rules and 28mm miniatures for the first 3 factions, or gangs, were released on time in late 2014.  Since then, miniatures for 2 more factions have been released, along with some background fiction and an expansion PDF, so they are keeping a good pace.  The rulebook includes profiles for 4 factions, 6 mercenaries and rules to create your own.  There is also a lively Facebook group for the rules.  

The first faction is Adam's Family.  They are the proverbial good guys, and include 5 miniatures.  I have also included a 6th that is officially a mercenary but fits well with them.  After each name I have listed the class of the character.  There are 7 classes in the rules, plus 1 for dogs.  You can click on the pictures for a closer view.

Adam (the leader) & Drexyl (sharpshooter):

Skylar (scout) & Reggie (assault):

Ezra (medic) & Crimson (sharpshooter): Crimson was a Kickstarter exclusive miniature and is technically not a member of the Family but rather a mercenary.

Adam's Family group shot: There appears to be a giant mutated chicken in the background.  Just one of the terrors roaming the Dead Earth!

Thanks for looking!

Jason