Monday 15 June 2015

Repaints & Additions

  
Renumbered because I'm using a different conversion for Sgt Tachikoma's CASE-2X.  And yes I did repaint around all the other original decals.  Not recommended as a high fun activity.  Comparison with original paint.

I decided to repaint my first two CASE-2X suits, which can be seen here, because of negative feedback about the way the green looked.  I figured this was down to the dominant colour being lime green rather than olive green, which affected how the olive green I'd used looked.  Of course this is all highly theoretical given that you all are seeing the images on a monitor that will not necessarily reproduce the colours of the original.  Not only but also the size you can see these on your screen will also vary.  On mine they're humungous.


Still after playing around with them for a while I realized that I had to replicate the colours on the next batch, so I bit the bullet and bought a different shade of green that I liked the look of from the Army Painter range.

You can see the original paint here.

The big thing is that this camo scheme is not how the suits are described in the novel.  I describe something called ChameleonFlage, which does what it say on the tin.  This allows the suits to blend into the background, as long as they're not moving.  Moving will give their presence away.  I toyed with ways to fake this, but while I could probably do one model in something that looked pretty awesome as an interpretation of ChameleonFlage, I doubt I would have the will to replicate it across two squads of suits (ten plus models).  I say this because I've already experienced this feeling with a couple of VOTOMS that I painted, which can be seen here.

Another change to the scheme was making the whole of the lower abdomen armour orange; originally I'd split it in half, but I wanted to make replicating the scheme across the squad easier.
When shut down the CASE-2X Dogs are described as reverting to a grey/green colour, which would look pretty dull on a miniatures.  So this scheme is really all about making the models look good, while suggesting that they're in some sort of military camouflage scheme.  It works for me, and the new shade of green, called Greenskin looks tonally brighter to me, which helps make the models pop more.

Well another little packet on miniature stompy robot goodness arrived from Dream Pod 9, who are managing to rival GZG for fast service.  So more conversions to come.

 
     

8 comments:

  1. To be honest, I don't notice too much of a difference between the two paint schemes but I like them both so no issues either way. So which blister from your recent haul do you think you'll crack open first? That of course assumes that you don't have a waiting list ahead of them.

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    1. It's only the shade of green that has changed, and a minor amendment to the back panel pattern. I just had a bit of negative feedback about the green being wrong. Call me sensitive or responsive to critical feedback.

      You're right in thinking that the latest acquisitions go into the pile waiting for their turn. My plan at this point, which is subject to change of course, is to convert the rest of the Jagers I have first. That's another half-dozen models. Then I have a tank and some other construction Gears, and after that more Utopian Golems before I get around to these.

      At the moment the workbench is full of models being painted, so nothing is getting made until I finish them. I live in a very small flat with a limited area to work in, so I have to do things in batches.

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  2. That's understandable. Out of curiosity (so feel free to not answer if it is too personal), what is the end goal if any for your force? From following the blog for a while, you started out painting votoms in various scales then switched to some Heavy Gear and now to converting your own creations. Is the purpose of the collection at the end of your effort to have a nice physical display of what your fiction talks about for instance at a con booth or signing? Or to have a Heavy Gear force in the upcoming rules modelled instead to your own designs but still in game legal? Both? It seems like it has organically grown over time so I figured I'd ask since you've got a fairly impressive (at least compared to me!) hobby output.

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  3. Both, and no offense taken, I believe, is the correct answer in this situation. ;-)

    A Heavy Gear force modelled to my own designs that's also something I can point to and say, "The Combat armour suits in my books look a little bit like this." If anyone asks that is. I doubt I would take them to a con, but there again you never know. Having pictures on my blog here, and eventually on my writing blog will I think be sufficient.

    You're right about this project having grown organically. It was never my intention to get involved with playing Heavy Gear, but the rules are more to my taste than Alpha Strike, which would be the alternative. Plus, while I love BattleTech, and the giant mechs, in my heart I know they're ludicrously large. Not saying they're not fun and all, but my tastes have changed over the years. Basically VOTOMS: The Pailsen Files blew me away, and hence the attraction for VOTOMS.

    Thank you for commenting, and please feel free to ask any questions about the project, though some answers might end up being you'll have to be patient and wait.

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  4. Thanks for the answers. I don't think it could hurt if you had a permanent small display case/box with them inside modelled into a diorama especially if you've already got the minis done. Something like a battlefoam display tray with terrain and models posed with clear plastic surrounding it to prevent damage that you could store and transport in a normal box or case... just an idea. If anything, it's an eye catcher and conversation starter at events that don't center around minis as well. I do agree on the Btech comments. I just wish I could watch the Pailsen files and the original VOTOMs in better quality legally on youtube or amazon prime.

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    1. I got a good quality fan sub DVD off eBay. Might have come from Hong Kong or Malayasia. Looks legit, and nice quality.

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  5. G'wan, write your own rules, you know you want to. :-)

    (Or adapt Chain of Command of course.)

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    1. I admit I do, but it's all about time and effort, a minimum of a month of solid writing for the first play test draft, with very little financial reward. Or a list that can be used with the Heavy Gear rules, which at most would be two or three days; given it would be cut and paste from my universe plus some stats. How hard could that be? ;-)

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