[6mm Science Fiction] [IHMN] A delayed New Year's Painting Update

A bit of a mixture, this time. An Italeri fountain for In Her Majesty's Name, a scratch-build dome building that could work for either 6mm or 15mm, and some more 6mm Science Fiction. Photo essay on my website.

[RRtK] Army Update

Foranimenagii Army

Since we came home from our Christmas break, I've been working on my Foranimenagii Army for my Orbis Terrarum Campaign. I finished the last unit this afternoon. From left to right, General (on round base), two units of arquebusiers, two units of crossbowmen, five units of Knights, a unit of Pikes, four units of spearmen, five units of crossbowmen.

This army actually needs a couple more units of Pike to finish it off.

And in other news, I picked the figure, below, up off eBay as a Walker for Captain Nemo's Company for In Her Majesty's Name. It's a Light Warjack from Warmachine.

[IHMN] In Which the Blogger Receives His Meridian Miniatures Kickstarter Figures

A couple of days ago, my long awaited figures from the Meridian Miniatures Kickstarter showed up in the post.

While not at the highest level of support, I chose two infantry sets and a specialist set.

I also ordered a separate set of energy rifles - these will be Model 1895 Higgs-Rothersey ARC rifles.

The specialist pack for my level of support contains two officers - I wanted the great coat clad officers and troopers as I really like the painted examples on the Meridian Miniatures Kickstarter site. You can also see the head sprues for my infantry sets.

The first head sprue has diving-helmet-like heads.

The second head sprue has these vaguely guards-like crested helmet with breather mask.

I ordered two body types for my infantry - firing line ...

... and skirmishers. I intend to mix the two body types together. I intend to end up with one squad of infantry with the diving-helmet heads - troopers for Captain Nemo - and one squad of infantry with guards-like helmets - Okhrana troopers to be commanded by either Olga Petronova or Feodor Sonavavich.

I will remove the base slottas on these figures and mount them directly on washers, my preferred basing style, as I have done with other slotta base figures.

[IHMN] The Latest Version of Doctor Cornelius' Most Excellent Company

Before our latest battle, I tweaked Doctor Cornelius' Company slightly.

The good Doctor replaced his Faraday Coat with a Brigandine and his knife with a pistol, principally because I was betting that none of the guys would field Arc weapons, and I needed to boost the Company's fire power.

 I gave Lofty the Hands Like Clubs ability, as used by the Yeti in the IHMN rulebook, as this fits his character of the massive bodyguard. In a previous encounter, he had engaged Lady Felicity, of Lord Curr's Company, in fisticuffs and, once she got over his Terrifying aspect, he discovered that he was barely able to lay a hand on her - a rather embarrassing event for a massive bodyguard.

I decided to get rid of the Minion Medic. In the last encounter he had proved ineffective. Instead, I recruited another member of the Rotten Row Drainers - Shotgun Jack - and gave him a shotgun along with the usual Drainers' Club.

The Company as fielded in the King of the Castle encounter:

	Doctor Cornelius' Most Excellent Company
	AC	Pluck	SV	FV	Speed	Talents				Equipment	Points
Doctor Edgar Octavian Cornelius	9	2+	+1	+4	+1	Leadership+2		+2 Initiative		Brigandine	51
						Erudite Wit		-1 to enemy SV/FV within 12"		Pistol +1SV 9" range, Pluck+0
						Martial Arts		+1 FV, +1 Speed
						Intuitive		+3 Armour 1st time shot at
Seamus O'Tipple	9	3+	+4	+4	+1	Leadership+1		+1 Initiative		Brigandine	52
						Gunslinger		Can split SV b'tween guns		2 x Pistols +1SV 9" range, Pluck+0
						Marksman (Pistol)		Ignores Target's cover		Knife - +1 FV/SV, Pluck +0, 6" range
Lofty	9	4+	+2	+5	+1	Tough		+1 Pluck Rolls vs SV and FV		Brigandine	52
						Terrifying		Enemy must make Pluck to attack		Hands like Clubs +1FV +0 Pluck
						Numb		Ignores 1st hit against him
Maxim Destroyevsky	9	4+	+4	+2	+0	Marksman (Rifle)		Ignores Target's Cover		Brigandine	51
						Hunter		Can select target in group		Pistol +1SV 9" range, Pluck+0
						Fanatic		Rerolls 1st failed Pluck		Hunting Rifle +4SV 36" range Pluck-2
The Rotten Row Drainers
Coleman	8	5+	+3	+3	+0					Jack	13
										Club - +1 FV, Pluck - 1
Roger	8	5+	+3	+3	+0					Jack	13
										Club - +1 FV, Pluck - 1
Shotgun Jack	8	5+	+3	+3	+0					Jack	18
										Club - +1 FV, Pluck - 1
										Shotgun +2SV, 12" range Pluck +0/-1
											250

Doctor Cornelius' Most Excellent Company suffered three casualties during the encounter - Coleman, Roger and Shotgun Jack - but they all made their Pluck rolls after the encounter and rejoined the Company. The Company also scored 13 Victory Points - enough to hire another Rotten Row Drainer, or add a couple of rifles, or grenadoes, to the company equipment mix, or perhaps save the VPs until I can recruit another character. Decisions, decisions.

[IHMN] King of the Castle

The stars aligned, John finished painting his Lord Curr's Company, and we convened for another game of In Her Majesty's Name.

We elected to play a King of the Castle scenario - one player's company  defends a central site while the other companies attempt to winkle him out.

We each had a 250 point company and we decided to trial Chris' Campaign Rules. In this case, taking out an enemy leader was worth 5 Victory Points, taking out one of his companions was worth 2 VP and holding the objective - in this case the keep of the derelict fort - was worth 20 VP. All casualties in one's own company would make a pluck roll after the battle, rejoining the company immediately if exceeding Pluck; being out of action for a battle if just making their Pluck Roll; and being deceased or otherwise unavailable if failing Pluck.   

Looking north from Poxly village towards the ruins of Poxly Manor

And so we see the fields outside of the little village of Poxly. Selous' Scouts (Chris) have learned that a copy of  Livingston's Concordium - an account of an ancient treasure Doctor Livingston discovered during his quest for the source of the Nile - was hidden in the ruined tower of Poxly Manor. Descending upon Poxly, the Scouts have been digging in and around the ancient fort but, unfortunately for them, their activities have been noted.

The tower and part of the walls of Poxly Manor are medieval, but the manor was heavily modified during the Civil War

The Thule Society (Jonathan) believes that Livingston's Concordium contains the location of occult artifacts and have determined to seize this book for the greater glory of Prussia. Approaching from the west, they take up position behind the wood to the left of the fort.

The Society of Thule approach the manor through the wood

Meanwhile, Lord Curr (John) and his Incorrigibles have been dispatched by the Ministry to prevent a valuable historical document from falling into foreign and/or unscrupulous hands. Approaching from the north-east, they deploy amongst the orchards on both sides of the Poxly Brook.

Lord Curr and some of his men in the orchard beyond the Poxly Brook

Representing the aforementioned unscrupulous hands, Doctor Cornelius and his Most Excellent Company (your humble correspondent) approach from the south-west, amidst the old maze and folly of the manor house (and beside the village water tower which seems to contain a rather flavorsome red).

Cornelius' Most Excellent Company approach the Manor through the old Maze

Selous' men took up positions within the manor ruin, attempting to cover the approaches, and soon came under a withering fire from both the woods to the west, and from the orchards.

Selous' Scouts prepare to defend Poxly Manor

As the firing grew heavier, and casualties began to mount, one of Selous' marksmen and his medic managed to break out through the south gate and take cover near Poxly Village to the south-east. Cornelius' Company, while approaching the manor from the south-west, lacked the long-range fire power to prevent Selous' withdrawal.

As the Scouts fell back, the Society of Thule burst into the ruined manor through the north gate, even as Doctor Cornelius' men were sprinting towards the south gate. When one of the Jaeger climbed the old tower, Maxim Destroyevsky brought him down with a well-aimed shot. To his alarm, the dead Jaeger lurched into life as a todh-truppen and rushed to block the south gate.

Plucky Coleman, one of the Rotten Row Drainers, attacked the todh-truppen while the not so plucky Seamus O'Tipple ran away, screaming like a little girl.

Cornelius' Company assault the south gate, defended by a todh-truppen. Seamus O'Tipple flees to the left.

Seamus was able to redeem himself by sneaking up the west side of the Manor and gunning down a Jaeger defending the north gate, and the Society's leader, Von Stroheim. As Doctor Kobalt leapt to Von Stroheim's aid, Maxim Destroyevsky nailed him with a superb long range shot.

The demise of Von Stroheim removed his force field projecktor. This meant that Selous' marksman, firing from the trees near Poxly, was able to fell the todh-truppen guarding the south gate. Sprinting across the court yard, Lofty scaled the tower where he was soon engaged with Lord Curr and another todh-truppen. The todh-truppen was swiftly dispatched and the tower remained contested between Lofty and Lord Curr as time ran out and the authorities arrived.

A tense end-of-battle, but as the objective was in contention at the end of turn 12, no one side could claim the Victory Points for it. A fun game, and Doctor Cornelius' Company performed a lot better this time. After all ganging up on Chris, we all turned on Jonathan as the Society of Thule looked set to take the game. That left John and myself to contest the tower at the end.

In Which The Blogger Ponders the Future of the Blog

It has been nearly two months since I last posted an update here.

We haven't actually played a game of In Her Majesty's Name since I completed my Selenites. Instead, we've played several games of Ronin, a new Skirmish game from Osprey set in Feudal Japan, and I've started painting up a Buntai (Ronin-speak for a company).

Also, I've discovered a set of Fantasy battle rules from Two Hour Wargames called Rally Round the King, which I really like. As I really can't see myself doing Fantasy gaming in either 25mm or 15mm, I've decided to branch out into 6mm. This is likely to be a solo project as I can't really see my group wanting to get into another period. Fortunately, Rally Round the King has solo play rules.

So, what is to become of this blog? I'm thinking of expanding my gaming coverage to cover all three systems as starting up extra blogs seems like a dispersion of resources. The Endoscope will continue, but there will be other elements in it.

In Which the Blogger Shows Off Some More Figures

I had better luck with lighting and focus when I took some pictures tonight.

Ephraim is a member of the Rotten Row Drainers - a street gang who often provide muscle for Doctor Cornelius' Most Excellent Company. He's from the Irish Brawlers set from Brigade Games.

This is the Invisible Man, being invisible, from the Parroom Victorian Science Fiction range, also available from Brigade Games. The Invisible Man is part of the Extraordinary Personages 3 set. I have shown Doctor Griffith Hugh previously, which is the Invisible Man with his clothes on.

Obidiah is another member of the Rotten Row Drainers, and another member of the Irish Brawlers set from Brigade Games. He is armed with an old hanger or falchion he seems to have picked up in his travels.

From Eureka Miniatures Pirate Range, this chap is the Turkish Pirate Captain. Originally, he was going to be the Turkish Ambassador - one of a number of international figures drawn into the orbit of Doctor Cornelius. After watching a documentary about late Victorian Stage Magicians, I have decided this character is now Swami Yami - Master of the Mystical Mind Arts of the Mysterious East. I have since found that Swami Yami actually exists - on the Internet, anyway.

I follow Scott Pyle's Four Color Figures Blog and recently he announced that he was releasing some Bug Warriors through his little figure company, Aegis Figures. I took one look at the bug warriors and thought "Selenites".

With two head types, and two body types, and eight arm/hand/weapon types, every Selenite can be unique.

I ended up painting the Selenites three different body colours, both for variety and to represent different Selenite castes or nests.

These are great figures and I'm really glad I got them.

And here's a shot to give you an idea as to how large the Selenite/Bug Warriors are in comparison to a standard 28mm figure.

Now, I just have to point them up for In Her Majesty's Name.

In Which the Blogger Plays a Second Game of 'In Her Majesty's Name" Part 2

Last Saturday night, Jonathan, Chris and I got together for a second game of In Her Majesty's Name. John, in spite of being stricken by the lurgy, managed to join us as well.

Chris fielded Selous' Scouts, while Jonathan fielded a modified Society of Thule Company. John deployed Lord Curr's Company while I used a modified version of Cornelius' Most Excellent Company - as posted in my previous post.

After some brainstorming, the following scenario for our encounter emerged:

Mr Singh waiting outside his house on Water Tower Hill.

Mister Amadeus Singh, renowned amateur astronomer, has detected something most singular in the heavens. To fund further research, he has indicated that he is willing to impart this information in return for a suitable gratuity and four Adventuring Companies are striving to gain the Professor's information.

Looking north from the canal towards Mr Singh's house.

Selous' Scouts entered the field from the south-west, docking their river boat beside the Boras Warehouse,

The Society of Thule emerge from the mists by the canal.

while the Society of Thule came out of the canal to the east of the crane.

Looking south towards the canal.

Lord Curr's Company near the north-west house.

Meanwhile, Lord Curr's Company entered the field by the north-west house, near the Park.

Cornelius' Company cross the Old Barrow.

While Cornelius' Company came on behind the old barrow to the north-east, beside the Old Abbey.

Selous' Scouts advance across the rail lines.

Selous' Scouts pushed forward across the railway line, while their machine gunner kept watch from the roof of the Boras Warehouse.

The Society of Thule advance on the Striker Building.

East of the Scouts, the Society of Thule moved up around the Striker Building.

While Curr's Company advanced into the Park beside the Linus Building.

Doctor Cornelius and his Company close in on Mr Singh.

Two of the velocepedes (random steam-powered vehicles) nearly collide outside Mr Singh's house.

Coleman and Roger, the Two Rotten Row Drainers, take up position beside the water tower.

Maxim Destroyanevsky, the Anarchist Marksman, slips into the copse beside the water tower. From there, he downs one of the Society of Thule's Jaegers beside the Striker building, only for the corpse to be re-animated as a todh-truppen.

Selous' Scouts had to scramble quickly across the open ground around the twin railway tracks.

The Scouts then had to dash up the ridge to the Linus Building, even as Lord Curr's Company managed to scramble onto the roof, ahead of them.

Eventually, Selous' Scouts managed to force their way around the western end of the Linus Building, and picked off Curr's men on the roof.

The unofficial truce between Lord Curr's Company and Doctor Cornelius' Company came to an end when Lord Curr attempted to abscond with Mr Singh.

Moving rapidly to Mr Singh's assistance, Doctor Cornelius and Lofty, his Man, confronted Curr, Two-Gun Tess and one of Curr's Minions.

Cornelius' Company were also coming under heavy fire from the Society of Thule around the Striker Building. Both Maxim Destroyanevsky and Seamus O'Tipple where swiftly brought down, even though Maxim was able to pin Von Stroeheim, himself, briefly.

The Society of Thule began to push forward, crossing the road as another velocepede rattled towards them. One of Cornelius' Rotten Row Drainers moved to engage them. Doctor Kobalt, the Society of Thule's Occult and Technical engineer, used the Eye of Odin to peer through the water tower and fire on the other Drainer with his Arc pistol.

A brief battle raged around Mr Singh's house. Lofty Terrified Two-gun Tess, causing her to flee. But he was too quick for her. As he attempted to seize her, Lord Curr and Doctor Cornelius exchanged blows. Their confrontation was quickly cut short by a burst of fire from the Society of Thule's machine gunner, firing from the railway yard. Curr, Cornelius and Mr Singh were cut down by the deadly volley.

Singh's demise pretty much ended the battle - a victory for the Society of Thule on points - with the survivors of Curr's and Cornelius' Companies slipping away into the night.

Here's another photo on the water tower - made by Chris from cardboard. A truly impressive model.

All photos taken by me on my tablet under available light.