Rats! And I said I was done Painting 15mm (ish) Figures...

    8 Splintered Light Miniatures rat slingers that I need for my solo Sellswords & Spellslingers games

The other day I sorted through my Splintered Light Miniatures anthropomorphic animals (that's a mouthful...), both painted and unpainted. I discovered that I don't have quite as many rats painted up as I thought I did. They're going to be the "Orcs & Goblins" of my solo Sellswords & Spellslingers campaign. I must have sold some to my friend Rich Brown of RRB Minis & More this past Advance the Colors. I talked him into buying my multi-based armies (5 infantry or 4 missile troops per large hexagon base). He would be using them for Grey Matter Games' Mice at Arms rules. I had painted and based these for my own big battle fantasy miniatures rules set that never got written. So, I figured, why not make some money off of them? I remember also taking along my individually based ones, so I'm pretty sure he picked up some of my mice and rats.

    There were two poses in the batch of 8 figures - here the one with a pouch for sling stones

The reason for this long-winded diatribe is one I am sure you can guess: "Rats! I needed to paint up more rats!" So, I pulled out a bag of 8 rat slingers and sorted through and picked out 10 with hand weapons that looked like good characters. I would do them in two batches -- the slingers first and hand weapons after. To be honest, I had not painted figures this small in a long time. What scale are they? Well, that's a great question! When Splintered Light first released its miniatures, they were 15mm scale. Then, they started releasing bigger and beefier figures intended more as characters than as packs for 15mm armies. Initially, they said these were 18mm/20mm. Well, I looked on their website the other day, and they're listed as 28mm. To be fair, they say quite clearly, "Please note that these stand 15mm-22mm in height and are similar in size to halflings and kobolds." Measuring one of the slingers, he stands 14mm from bottom of the feet to eyes. So, yeah. I'm painting 15mm figures...

    LONG time since I painted such small figures - these rats measured 14mm from soles to eyes

Thankfully, this blast from the past of painting 15's went well. I did not pluck my eyes out and run screaming from the room! I told myself going that I would not go as crazy as I currently do 28mm figures. Every item on the figure would not be getting a base coat and highlight. Did I hold true on that? Hmm...you be the judge. Either way, this batch of 8 rats went fairly fast. First, I cleaned them up. Splintered Light figs have very little flash and are excellent castings. I glued them down onto the Litko hexagon bases that I started using for my individual ones long ago. And...um, that was for another set of rules that never got written! Then, I primed the rats white with Gesso.

I did a Google search of various rat fur colors, and end up choosing four to five. With a big brush, I slapped on their base coat, not worrying about splashing over onto other parts of the figure. Similarly, once dry, I grabbed my flat brush and dry brushed each in the appropriate highlight color. Next, it was time to look at the figures more closely and plan things out. I decided to go with their tunics/shirts next. I used pale or dark colors for that. I also did a drybrush on each. So far, no real difference between how I was painting them and how I do 28's! Next, I did the leather belts and straps in Autumn Brown base coat and Iron Wind Metals Leather highlight. Oops, still the same recipe as my 28mm figures!

    Here is the other pose which carry shields -- they were easier to paint than I'd feared they might be!

Pouches and bags were next, with the tiniest pouch on four of the poses getting only one color. The slings were done in a base and dry brush (Maple Sugar and Wild Rice highlight). The stones visible in the sling and in the pouches were done in a medium gray, with a dot of light gray highlighting. There were basically two poses in this batch of eight. Four had shields, and I did each design differently -- once again, with a base coat and dry brush. I chose to do individual shield patterns mainly because I went back and saw I had done that on my previous rats. I tried to strike a balance between barbarian looking shield designs and simple ones 

All that was left at this point was the pink of their noses,  tail, and skin inside their ears. This was done with a Salmon base coat and a tiny highlight of Pink. I also gave them big black eyes. I was tempted to put a tiny white dot of the light reflecting, but felt that I wouldn't be able to consistently make it small enough. At this stage I was essentially done. The biggest difference between painting these and my 28mm figs, I guess, is that there simply isn't as much detail -- not so many pieces of equipment festooned all over them!

    I also put tiny leaves on the bases from a bag I'd bought -- adds a nice woodland touch, I think

I finished them out with brown and black washes, and then flocked them. I added a couple steps over my standard flocking. I put three small tan colored pebbles on each base, and then at the end, I added a few scattered leaves on each base. It seemed like an appropriate touch for woodland fantasy figures. I may yet go back and add leaves to my already-painted animals. We'll see.

So, what else is on my desk right now? I am finally just about done with my two Shipping Container buildings. They took longer than I thought they would. They are in the flocking stage now, so you will see them likely tomorrow or the day after. I have the batch of 10 rats with their fur base coated, now. I also have the clothes lines from Miniature Building Authority (still) primed and ready to go. So, as you can see, I have plenty to work on!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 100
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 39 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 14

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 53
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 30

Vietnam Battle Using Xenos Rampant!

    Joel's and my VC troops flee from superior U.S. firepower after we spring our ambush on them

Our friend Keith got the itch to try Xenos Rampant! for a Vietnam battle. I think he was inspired by two things. One, hearing that our mutual friend Jim W up in Michigan was using XR! for World War II. Another was someone on the Facebook XR! group asked for sample force lists for the Vietnam conflict. Keith created some. After going through that trouble, why of course he's going to want to play a game using them...right??

    Keith, in back holding rules, explains to the players how to do Vietnam with space rules

The scenario was during the Battle of Hue, with an American force moving along a road trying to get to Hue to help the Marines there. A North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong force was blocking their way on the road and had set up an ambush to stop them from getting there. Keith had the Americans deploy on one of the short edges of an 8'x4' table, within 6" of the road intersecting that table edge. We deployed mostly on the far side of the table, but with the ability to bring our VC in with the Xenos rule, "Special Insertion." Yes, yes, there were chuckles on Sunday night, too. And even more laughter when I failed three straight "special insertion" rolls -- needing only a 5+ on 2d6! The only limiting factor was we couldn't deploy within 6" of an enemy unit.

    Two of my NVA squads line the trees, waiting patiently - or not so patiently - for the Americans

My fellow Vietnamese officer, Joel, got the game started with a bang when he inserted in the American rear...okay, I know that doesn't sound right! However, when he used his next move to charge his brother Allen's command squad in melee. He knocked them down below half strength, but did not destroy the overall commander in chief, which would have been a heavy blow (maybe -- if I remember the rules correctly, it would merely require all the units in his force to take a Courage test). 

    One of my NVA squads (or platoons? Not sure of Keith's scale) guards the crossroads

Little did we know, the Americans had their own special insertions to do! No, not helicopters, but Special Forces led squads of tribal Montagnard fighters. Two of them showed up near our forces, and we proceeded to shoot at them, since the main U.S. forces were so far away. Our commander, Tom, who was playing his first-ever Vietnam game, had deployed in some elephant grass on a hill. He called in mortar attacks on Mike S's squads that were moving up to assault his hill. They eventually did chase him down off of the hill, which unfortunately for us, meant it took out our mortar support as Tom's survivors couldn't see any targets. 

    Tom, in an appropriately Vietnamese colored shirt keeps an eye on the three U.S. players

Once my special insertion was finally successful (Aaah...), I brought in my VC heavy weapons squad to attempt to take out Allen's mortars. Of course, once I moved into visibility of them, they blasted the snot out of my guys. That is one thing about XR! rules. Since you either Move or Shoot, you are at the mercy of the dynamic that the person who moves into range or sight surrenders first shot to the enemy. Knowing that, I think scenarios and objectives become all the more important in a rule set that uses this mechanic (and LOTS of them out there do...).

    My NVA squad lurks beyond the treeline so as not to be spotted by the Americans in the distance

My only other real success was when one of my NVA squads successfully activate to do defensive fire with their Firefight ability (yes, I know that is a counter to my above problem). I hit Mike W's U.S. squad so hard that he not only failed his Courage check, he rolled below "0" with modifiers, sending that unit routing off the table! By this time, though, all three U.S. commanders had figured out how to use their Fire Support ability and call in the heavy artillery on our units. As historically, we were getting plastered by their big guns.

    The U.S. troops, on their beer coaster "sabot bases" (Booo!) advancing up the roadway in mass

Still, we had inflicted enough casualties on them that when 9pm rolled around, the U.S. players admitted it was very unlikely they'd succeed in their objective in getting off-table on our board edge. Personally, I think the table was too big for a "march all the way across" victory condition, but hey! I will take the victory...ha, ha! My troops contributed a little to our success, taking two U.S. units down below half strength and routing another. My command was below half strength, though, and would begin receiving an addition -1 to our Courage tests from that.

    It took Mike S two squads and more than one barrage to chase Tom's NVA off the hill

All in all, we felt the rules worked fine for 20th century warfare. Our biggest issue to work out is probably more accurate lines of sight for the terrain of Vietnam. We simply used what the rules said, but I think it was too generous. Keith's Cigar Box mats looked great, and his decades-old 1/72 scale plastic figures were put to good use. We gave him a thumbs up to run Vietnam again.

    The square terrain printed on the Cigar Box mat were rice paddies in this game

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 100
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 31 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 14

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 51
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 26

Prelude to a Solo Sellswords Adventure

    My 'Sellswords & Spellslingers' solo campaign will use my Splintered Light Miniatures animals

 Wait...what is this about?

From previous posts here, you may remember my plans to run a series of semi-historical series skirmishes set in Britain during the Dark Ages, and using Ganesha Games' Sellswords & Spellslingers miniatures rules. With my Five Parsecs From Home solo campaign wrapping up, I thought why not do another one of those for myself using these rules? It'll give me more practice with them, and be a chance to use my Splintered Light Miniatures anthropomorphic figures. It has been since last January that they appeared on table as enemies in a Might & Melee game (Wiley Games rules). We also used them in our brief dalliance with Frostgrave: Ghost Archipelago back in 2018. In this case, my SLM animals will be both the heroes and the foes! 

With that, here's a little intro monologue introducing the characters: Badger Mage Jemmy Tar, Coyote Barbarian Yo-Dee, Pin Marten Ranger Woodbine, and Armadillo Fighter Abraxis. Apologies for my hack fantasy fiction writing...!

    The Splintered Band (from left) are Woodbine, Abraxis, Jemmy Tar, & Yo-dee

 On the Trail Towards Porthewn

"I am looking forward to finally arriving at Porthewn," said Jemmy Tar, as he adjusted the shoulder straps of his pack. He was the tallest of the four who were walking single file along a forest trail littered with fallen leaves, broken twigs, and lots of mud. Jemmy next straightened his light purple mage's robes, craning his neck to see if he could spot the roofs of the riverside town ahead, yet.

"Are you looking forward to sampling the town's ales, my friend?" asked Abraxis, the stout armadillo soldier, who was breathing hard as he tried to match his tall companion's longer strides. "We know how much you love your ale...!"

    Jemmy Tar, badger mage, and his little apprentice (who may appear in games, or may not...)

Jemmy snorted. "Ales are just one part of it! I want to see this new town that has been chopped out of the Great Forest. I want to talk to the mice settlers, learn what challenges they've overcome setting up along the river. I want to study their relations with the Frogfolk, who trade along the river's winding course. I want to talk to their Town Elders, hear why mice chose to settle here, in a place that only scattered forest monasteries of the Emerald Robe existed before. What new plants or herbs have they discovered?" At this point, Jemmy paused, and looked ahead to see if the cloaked pine marten, whose footsteps they were following, reacted. He received a quick glance back from the ranger, who then faced front again, deep set eyes scanning left and right.

"Are you suuure it's not the ales?" Abraxis asked. "That's the only thing I'm looking forward to after this interminable journey! Your stride is so much longer than mine," he puffed, swinging his arms vigorously, then patting his armored hide. "Plus, I'm carrying more weight than you!"

    Abraxis, the Armadillo soldier, is a sworn drinking companion of the ale-loving Jemmy Tar

Behind Jemmy, Yo-dee spoke up, in his heavily accented common tongue. "Yo-dee goes to Porthewn because Jemmy Tar does. Where Jemmy Tar goes, Yo-dee goes...!" The coyote barbarian's voice rumbled in the silence beneath the canopy of leaves.

The armadillo turned and craned his neck around Jemmy so he could make eye contact with the coyote. "Do you follow him out of friendship or service, Yo-dee?"

Yo-dee used his long, shiny sword to push aside a low-hanging branch and duck beneath it. "Yo-dee is Bloodguard. Because Jemmy Tar saved our village pups, Yo-dee follows. Our Wise Ones knew not why the young were dying. Jemmy Tar knew and provided potions. The young ones were healed. They die no more from the sickness. Yo-dee's village is grateful. If Yo-dee's life or death can serve the master, Yo-dee swears to do so."

    Woodbine, the pine marten ranger, is the band's guide through the Great Forest

Their ranger guide, Woodbine, spoke from the front of the column. "Well spoken, Yo-dee." He continued, "Jemmy, I have been meaning to ask. What was killing the young? Was it a new food source or a plant, or a vermin that infected them? I'd heard you tell the story before, but never the cause of the illness." The ranger's voice was modulated so silently that each could barely hear his words, but just enough that all could understand them.

Jemmy patted one of the herb pouches secured to his belt. "It was zuduk, an infestation. A vine that was growing on the trees close to Yo-dee's village. When the wind blew strongly, tiny petals, or pollenaides, would detach from the zuduk plant and and waft their way into the village. As you've noticed, coyotes pant to cool themselves. The zuduk is a mild poison to them. All would ingest it, but they are a hardy people. Only the very young were unable to shrug off the infection. They would wither, lose their appetite, and die."

    The Splintered Band trudges along on a path through the Great Forest

"Ah!" Woodbine nodded. "Ten autumns ago, there was no zuduk near Yo-dee's village. Now, it spreads throughout the Great Forest. No wonder their wise didn't have lore of that plant." Jemmy Tar made sounds of agreement, but did not elaborate on the cure. He knew the ranger, who was a skilled healer and understood the forest plants better than himself, would ask later.

Abraxis nodded as well, adjusting his shield on his back. "So, Yo-dee's village, in their gratitude, sent our friend here to be a bodyguard in repayment? No mean gift," he said, looking back at the tall and rangy coyote. He paused for a moment, then said, "Ah-ha!" Chuckling, he added, "If Yo-dee is oath-sworn to Jemmy Tar, then I must be tankard-sworn to him! For I have never known a better drinking companion than our friend the badger in all my days!" he laughed.

    The Great Forest has become dangerous, haunted by vicious bands of rat raiders

"Aye," Jemmy said, "but I don't have an armadillo's constitution to handle excesses of ale, my friend! Still, I agree -- we are companions of the tankard. Malty Browns, tasty Bocks, thick Porters, crisp Lagers!" Both badger and armadillo smiled, remembering many joyous evenings. "And I admit, I am thirsty..." All four laughed, for each had memories of their merriment. The band had been traveling for weeks to Porthewn, but had been boon companions for nearly a year, now. 

Woodbine's whisper carried back to the others, almost quizzical in tone, "No rats on our journey, so far..." Each made a sound in reply, but Jemmy's head continued to nod. Finally, he appeared to have gathered his thoughts, took a deep breath, and sighed.

    Jemmy Tar and his Bloodguard companion, Yo-dee the coyote barbarian

"The wars of the mice and rats have been going on for centuries -- all the way back to the Great Awakening. When the woodland creatures opened their eyes and their minds grew, remembering, acting on what they learned -- no longer on instinct. Many creatures began to walk on two legs. The mice, smaller, but wiser, focused on lore. Accumulating knowledge and passing it on to their litters. They were the first to build communities. The rats, stronger, bigger, and meaner, learned to prey on others -- seizing was easier than building, they decided. The other races were occasionally drawn in to their wars, but the fighting never ceased. A century ago, the rats were defeated and driven back to the margins of the Great Forest -- the mountains, swamps, and desolate places. However, in recent years, they've returned. They are raiders, kidnapping merchant caravans or travelers, and taking their goods. Some say they devour those they take. Others say prisoners languish in cages, and still others say that they make the captives fight each other in gladiatorial games. That would fit their cruel nature...

"I confess I have led our merry band here, because I have learned rats are closing off the trails leading to Porthewn. If travelers do not come here soon, the way may be shut. So, I wanted to see Porthewn with my own eyes, and learn if the elders know what has brought the rats back. Why has their menace been reborn? So, I apologize if I lead you into danger, my friends..."

    Yo-dee the coyote has sworn to protect the life of Jemmy Tar, the badger mage who helped his village

Behind Jemmy, Yo-dee whacked a branch with his sword, scything it cleanly from where it was overhanging the trail. "Yo-dee does not fear rats..."

Abraxis turned around again, eyeing the tall coyote. "And you shouldn't -- not with that giant rat-cleaver of yours...!" Yo-dee paused and seemed lost in thought. He stopped walking for a moment, then abruptly strode forward, again.

"Maybe Yo-dee should name his sword. I call it 'Sword', now." The teeth in his long, narrow snout gleamed as his lips pulled back, revealing sharp canines. "Rat-cleaver is a noble name, friend. Yo-dee likes."

Jemmy chuckled. "A noble name indeed, Yo-dee. And look ahead -- Woodbine sees Porthewn, now. He is pointing out it the town's rooftops..."

    The Splintered Band arrive at Porthewn -- a mice city hewn out of the Great Forest

 

What's next?

Hopefully soon, I will begin posting battle reports and pictures from my solo games of Sellswords & Spellslingers. I encourage you to check out this cooperative/solo miniatures game, if you haven't played it. The defenders are controlled by a deck of cards and the game's A.I. You can play without a GM, or with, if you prefer. Stay tuned for reports from the adventures of the Splintered Band (named in honor of Splintered Light Miniatures, whose figures I am using).

    Along the river, mice settlers have built Porthewn -- where the Spintered Band begins its adventures

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 100
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 31 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 14

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 51
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 26

Massive Horde (well 8...) 28mm Dark Age Cavalry

    8 Gripping Beast Dark Ages cavalry from the "Mounted Welsh reinforcements box"

Through the years, my "batch size" has morphed. When I first started painting 15mm Ancients, it was "all of a certain troop type" -- heavy infantry, skirmishers, etc. Then, once I realized how a never-ending run of painting flesh or leather can kill motivation, the batch size began to shrink. It settled on roughly a dozen or so at the end stages of my painting 15mm troops. The same thing has happened as I adopted 28mm for pretty much everything except my 20mm moderns. For 28's, I have settled on a batch size of about six -- sometimes one or two more if foot, or less if mounted.

    A look at the 28mm mounted figs from the side so you can see the horse coloring clearly

So, when I decided to paint up a Gripping Beast reinforcements box containing 8 Dark Age Welsh cavalry, I went back and forth whether to break it over two batches. Finally, I decided that I would try to paint it all at once. After the experience, I now remember why I'd gone with smaller batches! This group of eight miniatures seemed to take forever! I honestly believe that I have been working on them for more than two weeks. Why Dark Age cavalry, in the first place? Well, when we did our six-player Lion Rampant game the other Sunday evening, that was the one troop type I ran short on. So, it was obvious that I -- and we all use this word -- needed more! I believe that I'd won this Gripping Beast box in a tournament. The figures are relatively generic for Dark Ages, too, so it was a natural fit.

    The clothes and equipment is relatively generic so they can be used as other nations of the Dark Ages

Except the batch size was way too big! I am telling myself (but will I remember it?) to never do that again. For these figures, I first had to glue the weapons and shields to the riders. I had decided to paint the horses without the riders on them first, so it would be easier to get to all of the spots. So, when I brushed primed the horses, I left the saddle blanket area bare. I painted the horses first, using a variety of colors and styles that I admit have become somewhat routine for me. After painting my 28mm Mongol Saga army, I definitely experimented a lot with horse colors, so kind of innately know which ones should look nice. I try to make the overall effect brown, as that seems to be the most common horse color. I want some variety, too, so thus you see blacks and duns and such.

    The horse with the rider with the cross on his shield is probably my favorite of the batch

Once the horses were done and the weapons and shields glued on, it was time to epoxy the riders to the saddle blankets. Now that I have found another decent source for two part, 5-minute hobby epoxy, I have gone back to using that in preference over super glue. The hardware store epoxy I had bought, back when all the hobby and craft stores seemed to be out of stock, stinks to high heaven! It will literally smell up the house for the entire day, which doesn't make me the most popular person around here...ha, ha! I took to going out in the garage to epoxy things, using our giant green trash can as my "desk." As you can imagine, that wasn't the best solution. So, I was happy when I saw some 5-minute epoxy in Hobby Lobby a month or so ago and snatched up a package (I would have bought two if they had another in stock).

    I switched out the spears on four of the figs, giving them axes and swords instead

I did kind of make a mistake when putting the shields on the arms of the riders, though. The reinforcements box came with larger and smaller shields. I used the bigger ones because these are meant to be heavier cavalry -- not light skirmishers, necessarily. However, there was a problem. The shield sometimes got in the way of the rider sitting flush on the saddle blanket. Oops! There are four poses of horses, so I played around some mixing and matching the riders to the horse poses for the best fit. It really came down to only two riders who sit somewhat awkwardly on their mount. See if you can pick them out in the pictures! I think it is fairly obvious, but it may not be.

    A look at the cloak border patterns that I did for the 5 figures that had cloaks over their tunics

For the colors of tunics and cloaks, I went with paler and duller hues. I always assume Dark Age dyes aren't exactly colorfast, and that many items of clothing fade in color over time. So, faded yellows, blues, greens, and reds. I probably need to make a trip to the craft store and pick out more variety in my faded colors, one of these days. I am tending to use the same half dozen ones on lots of figures -- especially my Dark Ages ones. Of course, my paint rack is overflowing now, which means I will either need (there's that word again) another rack, or I need to purge colors I am not using. For example, I have WAY too many shades of blue and probably don't use 3-4 of them with any regularity. I probably have one or two more grays than I need, and I think almost never use the palest of my yellows. So, yeah, if I bring more colors online I will likely purge some I don't use.

    The one with the red cloak is the only one with chainmail and an almost Late Roman uniform

One thing that is different about painting 28mm miniatures over 15's, is pretty much every article of clothing gets a dry brush highlight in addition to its base coat. So, this means my day's painting typically begins with dry brushing yesterday's base coat and then adding a new base coat or two. So, if it is a big batch (like, say, EIGHT mounted), each step takes that much longer. These Gripping Beast riders were wearing a lot of steps, so to speak: tunic, cloak, trousers, shoes, and leather belts and sundry. I usually try to make the highlight a very light version of the base coat color. So, I have a very, very light blue, an almost straw color for yellow, and so on. I was recently reading a thread about how some painters struggle to highlight red. I typically use a salmon color. 

    Another look at the whole batch, slightly from above - I am 'so-so' about the shield patterns I did

For the inside of the shields, I use a dark brown with Camo Brown dry brush. Weapons are done in Iron Wind Metal Steel and a silver highlight (or Bronze, for metal parts that would be made of bronze). I gave them hair and mustaches in a variety of colors from black to brown to blond. Although I know it is not that common of a color, at least nowadays, I love how an auburn hair looks on a miniature -- particularly Celtic types, like the Welsh. I use a Red Brown base coat and Howard Hues Middle East Flesh for that. 

The last stages were to do the patterned trim on the cloaks and the shields. I Googled Dark Age Welsh shield patterns, but most were a little too Roman looking for me. So, I tried to go with a theme of crosses and variety. Remember -- these are not mean to strictly be Welsh, but any generic Dark Ages cavalry. I'm so-so on how the shield patterns came out. Some worked better than others. I probably should have dug out my painted up Dark Age mounted warriors and looked them over for ideas that worked first, then execute them in different colors. I was definitely suffering from "get these guys done!" fatigue, by that stage, though. 

    The trees in the background are the ones I just bought from 'A Critical Hit' at Cincycon 2025

Prior to flocking, the last thing I do is a dark brown wash on flesh tones and whites, yellows, and tans. I do a black wash on everything else. I am thinking I need to remix my black vehicle wash, though, and water it down even further. Right now, I believe it is about 50%, but I still think it makes certain colors too dark. There has been some discussion on Lead Adventure Forum (home of figures painters better than I...) about brightening miniatures back up. Too much realistic dust, dirt, and grime makes them look like dark blobs on the tabletop, and actually detracts from your painting. I don't want to go back to my 15mm days when I didn't do a wash at all, but perhaps my miniatures need some lightening up? I'd be curious to hear your opinions!

    The 3-D printed trees from above - I did end up repainting them with base coat, dry brush, & wash

So, what else is on my desktop? The next two things I paint will be terrain/scatter. I have my two buildings I converted from Reaper shipping containers. I also have three sets of clothes lines from Miniature Building Authority. They are clothes lines all primed up and ready, while the shipping container buildings have their base coat completed. Stay tuned to see how they turn out...!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 100
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 31 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 14

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 51
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 26

Five Parsecs: Quest for Lost Treasure Completed

    Crew of the Inconceivable advance through the underground bunker in 'Five Parsecs from Home'

This would be the final mission of the crew of the Inconceivable's quest for the Lost Treasure of Amazonas Galacticus. They would be breaking into the underground complex of one of the five pirates who'd stolen the fortune 20 years ago. I decided to use my boards that I had made for Space Station Zero more than a year ago. They are made from a silvery paper (purchased at a craft store) with a floor grid and bolts drawn on with black Sharpie. Inexpensive, and easy to create. The walls are a trimmed down portions of a trifold made out of foamboard, with Google images of futuristic walls downloaded from the internet, printed out, and glued to the black foamboard. I really like how it looks, especially once I placed lots of the Sci-Fi scatter I'd been painting for the last year or more on the board. The 3-D printed color shift crystals even made it onto the board as "exotic alien art" collected by the pirate!

   Our opponents would be fearless, mechanical security droids purchased by one of the space pirates

My roll for the number of enemies was very fortunate -- only four! However, that was compensated by another roll which dictated two of my crew would not be ontable at the start of the game, and would need to roll for arrival. I assumed that Alistair and the crew used deception to gain entry into the pirate's home. The "missing crew" (Zorina and Seon) would be considered upstairs, subduing the family and any other servants or workers. Meanwhile, Captain Alistair, Gunny McBride, Doc Mecrosus, and Cephvarx Hul would dash down to take on the security guards. I rolled "Hired Muscle" for the enemy, but the scenario also dictated they would be Fearless. Perfect opportunity to get out my 3-D printed Terminators I'd painted up for Xenos Rampant! I rationalized that the pirate had them shipped in when coming back from one of his annual, month-long vacations and labeled as something mundane. The droids would be armed with Military Rifles and the Specialist had a Marksman Rifle. Under ground and indoors, though, their superior range would not help them much, as the battle would be at close quarters.

    Deployment at the start of the mission, with my crew locations labeled & the droids circled in red

I set up the board and randomly rolled to see which edge the droids would begin on. I deployed them in their "Tactical" A.I., in two groups of two, with line of sight of any enemy coming towards them. I assumed they were warned and activated by some sort of alarm triggered by the family upstairs. I decided to send Cephvarx and Gunny around the left to be able to get close to the droids out of their line of fire. Alistair and Doc would move to the right and engage the droids in long range fire to distract them. The plan would be to have Cephvarx move in, melee and destroy them, supported at close range by Gunny and his high caliber pistol, or "hand cannon" in Fiver Parsecs parlance. Here's the report, as seen through the eyes of second in command, and former Galactic Marine, Gunny.

    I used my 3-D printed 'Terminators' from JS Wargamer Printing as the mechanical 'Hired Muscle'

The Battle

As the huge door to the underground complex slid to the side, the ceiling lights began flashing and an annoying klaxon began to sound. "Damn it, cap," I called to Alistair, "the alarm's been sounded. Let's hope Zorina and Seon can handle things upstairs. Same plan?" Alistair gave a quick affirmative and I saw him and Doc begin to dart to the right. I nodded to the looming Cephvarx Hul and we dashed off to the left. Hopefully, it wasn't a dead end and we could close quickly with whatever security was sure to be down here. I threw the rifle over my shoulder and pulled out my pistol -- this battle would likely be up close and deadly!

 

    Alistair and Doc would go right in the passage while Gunny and Cephvarx Hul would go left

Over the noise of the klaxon, I faintly heard the clank of mechanical footsteps on the silvery floor. "Captain -- keep a sharp eye out...sounds like security droids." 

    As the alarm sounds, 4 security droids move up to watch all passageways while remaining in cover

He acknowledged and then replied a few seconds later, "In sight, standard mechanical security droids armed with long rifles. I see one, but there's sure to be more!" The underground complex was stuffed with machinery, terminals, and even huge pieces of strange, crystal artwork -- at least that's my guess what they were. I could feel no heat coming off them and their colorful, pretty lights constantly changed colors and shades. A large piece of machinery with bright green tubing was in our path. I pointed Cephvarx to the right and I went around it to the left. 

    The crew after their first turn of advance -- the barricades are meant to represent walls

I ducked around one side of it and, "Bam! Bam! Bam!" I felt the ricochet off of my shoulder armor and the force of the round shoved me against the wall. I shook my head to clear the shock, momentarily stunned. One of the droids had been waiting for me to come around that corner -- "Stupid!" I muttered to myself. I ducked back out more carefully this time, just in time for a wonderful sight. Cephvarx darted around the wall the droid had been sheltering behind and loomed suddenly up in front of the droid. His boarding saber flashed, sparks flew, and the body fell with a clank while the headed rolled a few times before stopping, its lighted eyes going out. "Cephvarx has one down," I called to Alistair, and he acknowledged, saying he was stalking another and was going to throw one of the Frakk grenades we'd found a couple missions back. "Be careful," I called.

    Former galactic marine Gunny McBride moves along the wall around a strange piece of machinery

I ran forward, now that the way was clear, sheltering and moving along the far wall for cover. I watched as Cephvarx darted around another corner and out of sight. I heard the clanging of metal on metal and Cephvarx snarling in pain. I ducked around the corner to see both fall at the same time. The droid was in several pieces, smoke pouring from parts of its metallic structure. Cephvarx was badly wounded, though, and writhing on the ground in agony. I darted towards him, snagged one of the Stim-Paks from my belt pouch and jabbed it into his purple skin. Just as I did that, there was a deafening explosion and my ears rang with a high pitched whine, the other sounds fading out. Yeah, Cap, maybe a grenade in a confined area wasn't the greatest idea! Almost distantly, I heard the automatic weapons fire of at least two security droids firing in return, though they sounded quieter in my ringing ears than they should.

    A security droid is watching that gap and fires and hits Gunny, inflicting a stun marker

"Damn it," Alistair's voice called faintly in my headset. "The grenade damaged it, but didn't take it out! Now, I have two firing at me -- I could use a little help, Gunny!" Suddenly, I heard an even fainter noise -- a hissing of steam. I looked up. The shrapnel from the grenade must have severed a line somewhere, as a cloud of gray mist was expanding in the center of the room and beginning to grow. 

    Focused on Gunny, the droid doesn't notice Cephvarx Hul charging at him till it is too late

I thought maybe that will distract them a little. I darted past Cephvarx, whose twitching was growing less pronounced and he seemed to be getting his limbs under control. My gun was raised as I edge around the corner -- there! One of the droids with an automatic weapon raised was firing to my right, where the captain and Doc were likely to be. I sighted and squeezed off a couple shots. The security droid's head exploded in silver bits of metal and it fell to the floor with a clang, not moving. "Three droids down," I called to Alistair. "Stay in cover, I've got them outflanked!"

    First security droid is down -- Cephvarx's specialty is up-close "Brawling" (melee)

I continued to edge around the corner, sighting along my pistol. By the sound of the firing, there was only one droid left. I caught sight of him, his skull-like mechanical head swiveling from where his cohort lay motionless to where Alistair likely was hiding. "Boom, boom, boom!" I fired three shots and the droid collapsed. Their armor was no match for the high caliber, high velocity rounds of my little souvenir from my time in the Corps..! "Fourth droid down," I shouted, so the others could hear me, too. "Anyone see any others?" 

"Negative," Alistair replied over the microphone.

    At the start of Turn 3, my "delayed" crew members arrive -- here Seon follows Gunny up the left side

Doc's amplified voice rang out crisply, "I pick none up with my goggle's enhanced sensors -- on any spectrum."

"I don't see any. Well, none that are in working order," Zorina called. I turned and waved to her. I saw Seon creeping along the wall where Cephvarx had gone.

    The alien Varxian charges the next security droid, but each inflicts hits on the other, taking both out

"Nice to have you two join us. Everything okay upstairs?"

Zorina nodded and reported, "Family's all tied up, sir. House is locked down. It appears the only alarm that was sounded was down here to alert the security droids -- which you guys appear to have taken care of without our help."

    After dashing out to toss a Frakk grenade, Capt. Alistair is under fire & stunned by two droids

"We couldn't let you two have all the fun," I laughed. "Okay, everybody stay frosty. Let's investigate this place. It's huge! Number one --  make sure there's no more droids. Call out if you see anything suspicious or moving. Number two -- don't touch any of the monitors. Leave those for Doc -- he's the expert. Number three -- Doc, can you also fix that damned steam leak? Let's hope it isnt' toxic..."

   The first droid inflicted a stun on the captain, and luckily the second one missed...!

Aftermath...and the future?

Since the Inconceivable crew was successful in their mission, it means they completed the quest. Of course, in Five Parsecs from Home, the charts and events in between sessions form the skeleton of the story. It is up to the GM (or in this case, solo player) to flesh it out. So, let's do some fleshing! I assumed that with control of the secret underground bunker, Alistair and company are able to use the data they discover to pin the piracy on the five families. The details of their transactions and names of their bribed associates would be assembled into a multimedia documentary by Doc. They would then use the passcodes and authorization of the captured pirate to broadcast it on the planetary media. Once that gets out, the other four pirates will be alarmed and perhaps onto the crew. However, they will likely have bigger fish to fry than Capt. Alistair and his crew. Chuft Betsos and the long, legal arm of Amazonas Galacticus will descend on the planet like a glove and begin to dig for even more details.

    Perimeter marked by black pom-poms, a steam vent was ruptured by the grenade, obscuring view

Unfortunately, this mission doesn't suddenly make the crew rich. They were able to gather some loot from the pirate's lavish underground quarters, but there were no stacks of "treasure" on hand. Alistair was probably being a bit naive in thinking so. He would have to be content with solving the mystery. There would be no chance of making up his lost retirement money, unfortunately. Betsos had cheated him out of that. They could "take" so much from the pirate's chambers even though it had been bought with stolen money. The five pirate families had much of their wealth tied up in ownership of various corporations, companies, and off-planet investments. All was had been designed over the decades to hide their names, so they hadn't appeared suddenly rich overnight.

    Gunny does what he does best -- move up, shoot, and take out the droid marksman

After broadcasting their Doc's production and ensuring the documentary went planet-wide (and off-planet, as well), Alistair and the crew had best beat a hasty retreat from planet Dichelles. There is still a chance that their escapades on the icy planet might run them afoul of the law -- certainly here, where the pirates likely had some control of it. However, if that happened, Gunny said he would contact the lawyers for Amazonas Galacticus to put a smoke screen on their actions. Alistair grumbled that Betsos was incapable of gratitude and refused to stoop to ask his ex-employer for any help. Gunny said he would eat the crow for his old friend (and his crewmates). In the meantime, all agreed that the Inconceivable and its crew should go to the far side of the galaxy and lay low for awhile!

    The final droid, trying to watch both Alistair and whoever shot his cohort, is taken down by Gunny

So there you have it! The story arc of the crew of the Inconceivable and its search for the lost treasure of Amazonas Galacticus is concluded. I hope you enjoyed the six missions and my after action reports. I had a good time testing out the Five Parsecs from Home rules. It really does a nice job of threading a series of missions together and giving you the events to create a story. For example, when the crew traveled to Dichelles and rolled up that they had discovered an escape pod containing Seon, that added nice details the what happened to Amazonas treasure ship. Originally, I was playtesting Five Parsecs for possible use with my Sunday night gaming group. I honestly feel we're too large for the framework of the game, though, and it would work better with a small number of participants playing cooperatively or with a GM.

So, is this it? Is this the end of the tales of Captain Alistair and his crew? Perhaps. I am definitely going to take a break from my solo campaign. There were a few scary moments in this game, such as when Alistair darted into the open, threw the grenade, and rolled two 1's for damage. I used a story point for a re-roll and, lo and behold, rolled another "1"! The droid fired back, stunning Alistair. His cohort thankfully missed, though. Gunny's stunning early in the game could just as easily been a "Kill." And when Cephvarx went down to the second droid, things could have gotten ugly. With unfavorable dice rolls only Doc would have been left! 

However, in general, the fights the rules' charts and A.I. generated were a bit too easy for my liking. I rarely felt that my crew was seriously challenged, or in danger. If I do pick up this storyline again, I will ramp up the difficulty level to a more challenging one. I started with the basic one since that was what it recommended. So, for now, farewell to Captain Alistair Valentine, Security Officer Gunny McBride, Engineer Doc Mercosus, Crew woman Zorina Valthea, Security Droid SAS B61, and Crewman Seon Vogalia! It has been fun for me to generate your adventures, and hopefully to my readers, as well! 

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 100
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 15 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 14

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 51
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 26