Skips, Dumptsers, and Related Rubbish

The alternate title "Down in the Dumpster" was rejected a touch too trite and a bit tropey much.

Modern urban scenery in the 25/28mm scale can be quite the challenge to locate, especially when one has determined to build a flashback to Philadelphia in the 1970s.  Did plastic trash bags exist in 1973? (apparently, yes. My old dad used to use paper shopping bags by economic choice, and those old TV averts - showing the soggy bottom falling through - bring back real childhood memories.)

What about dumpsters/skips? I remember my father taking me to one, in the mid-70's that was enormous, probably about 20', but to an eight year old, it looked like the whale what swallowed Pinnochio. It was painted red, had some steps to a metal platform, with rail guards. This was not some public dispose-all, this was on a gated site, where Dad knew the security staff.

Dad had some boxes of shredded paper he wanted disposed of...I know, that sounds a bit shady, but I think he was just blessed with a surfeit of caution...shady caution.

Anyway, my dad had me stand at the base of the steps, where the "start/stop" buttons were, while he cast in the box and indicated I should press "start". As I did, I ran up the steps, to see the great. steel piston slowly extend and press the box, crush the box, into the dark depths of Pinnochio's whale.

Unfortunately, in hindsight, I'm realising that was a compactor not a dumpster, and was probably from a customised shipping container with the engine, piston and platform purpose-built and added on. I haven't been able to find one in 28mm, or indeed ANY scale.

Which leads me back to skips/dumpsters.

The larger dumpster/skip is from Studio Miniatures. The smaller came out of a model train set. I'll need to find the manufacturer's name, becuase I like it better and would like to find more...Ω

Old School 28mm Sci-Fi Terrain Round Up

 "Shh! Wait!...Can you feel that?..."   It's 28mm Sci-Fi, and it's coming back to life...

I've noticed a trend over the past few years: 15mm Sci-Fi is waning (not dying, just waning - Don't Panic©) and 28mm Sci-Fi is again gaining ground. To mix metaphors: The pendulum has swung full circle.

Disclaimer/Claimer (Sorry/Not Sorry): When I do an overview/review, I invariably ruffle some feathers - that's the nature of reviews, because they reflect individual tastes, preferences and opinions. I do not review items outside my area of interest i.e. WH40K.  I just don't like it, I don't play it, I don't review it or anything directly associated with it, and that's that. That said, Hail the Emperor, He Suffers for Us.

Neither am I beholden to any of these companies under review: I don't get review samples, I don't want review samples, and I decline review samples. The only exception is, if something is included in a regular order, as a freebie - then I review it if it takes my fancy. I remain a Free Agent.

I need to include this disclaimer because there are people who feel that some manufacturer-suppliers are entitled to special consideration, simply because these vendors make stuff these people especially like. That's alright for some, but not here. Whether I like something or not, the reader is free to agree or disagree, but that doesn't change my position - unless I've made a factual mistake, whereupon I will occasionally change positions. 

Finally, defining "Old School": Old School hearkens back to a time when:

• We played face-to-face
• Figures were rules-agnostic, made of metal, (or resin, in the case of terrain) and painted.
• The Content was neither video-game nor anime derived, nor so aesthetically inspired.

Acheson Creations
A neat line of Sci-Fi scatter terrain. Including pipelines, furnishings and small buildings. They are reasonably quick in dispatching your purchase, and I've always had good service from them.

Amara Plastic Mouldings
Amara has their Future Zone line of moulded styrene for 28mm. One of my favourite pieces is the Fortress Wall Section, which has appeared in my 15mm Stargrunt Games as well as my 28mm VSF games.

Armourcast Terraform Terrain
Produces an excellent variety of Modern/Near Future terrain, alien plants, ruins. One of my very first  Sci-Fi terrain purchases was from Armourcast. The old Lance and Laser and Mega Miniatures Salvage Crew line have found their home there.

From 2000 to 2005, after they lost the WH40K license, and associated business, they branched into "Steampunk", where they flirted with some arguably off-beat designs, like the Steam Buddha and Steam Mushroom (and the wargame application for these are...what again?), while abandoning the higher-demand items like the Grizzley Steam Walker - probably because the moulds had worn out, and they didn't want to deal with the expense of making new ones.

Ex-Armourcast Steam Walker - Sic Transit Gloria 

Armourcast also make Cinematic effects and Bases.  Now, these are undeniably cool, and I have a couple of the latter- that said, Cinematic Effects is a niche line and is somewhat over-represented on their website. As an inheritance from the previous owners, I suspect it's intended to service diorama enthusiasts, and not gamers. That said, if you need an "Attack Hamster Muzzle Effect" Armorcast is your go-to guy.

In 2007, the company changed hands, though it's sometimes difficult to judge whether Armourcast is a company moving forward, or one whose best days are behind it. Despite any perceived erosion to their previous reputation*, the new owner/operator has spun off a new concept,  to breathe life into the "same-old, discontinued" line, and so created "Ginfritter's Gnomish Workshop". There are new items being added, of a quirky, humourous nature, that you won't find elsewhere.

*In case of any doubt, I can pull up the relevant TMP threads. Again, nota bene.

Black Cat Miniatures - An assortment of furnishings, set dressing, et al. Very handy for the odd bit no one else make. Reasonably quick dispatch.

Crooked Dice Design Studio
A plethora of crates, set dressings for The Village, 1960's-style control panels, even a Secret Base where you can Hideout and destroy your favourite Star Trek franchise. 

Knights of Dice
Based in Australia, Knights of Dice offer several lines of SciFi buildings, some of which can certainly be classified as Old School style. Their Easy District has a certain Blade Runner feel, with acrylic "neon" signs for good measure. Their Invictus line is a bit more "gothic", but would fit with a game set in the Riddick universe, and their Sandport Hydra line would make a good Arrakis or Tatooine.

My caveat with Knights of Dice is, their buildings span 28mm-35mm, which can be a trifle biggish for 28mm. That said, the workmanship is excellent - with multiple layers that give the buildings depth.

Mantic Games
Despite my aversion to plastic minis, I'm less fussy regarding terrain. Mantic do a series of Sci-Fi Terrain Crate sets, and their Industrial Accessories set has proved especially useful for my purposes

.
Miniature Building Authority
MBA also has a small, newish 28mm SciFi line, of just under a dozen. It's mostly greebles and bits & bobs, but there is a nice Flux Capacitor that's fairly unique. MBA's Shanty Town line is useful for you post-spoc fans. I've had good service from MBA.

Sarissa Precision
While MDF usually falls outside my definition of "Old School SciFi", Sarissa Precision deserves an honourable mention, due to the clean, futuristic lines and Old School design. I have an entire farm from Sarissa. Some of their stuff looks like Blade Runner, some of it looks like Saturn 3. With their System 28 SciFi line, you can re-create Hadley's Hope from Aliens, and that's good enough for me.

Scotia Grendel
Has some 60+ entries in their Sci-Fi Terrain line, including those awesome pillboxes that I use for 15mm SciFi games. Also futuristic doors, cryo chambers, control panels (one of which has a three-ring binder on it - how Old School can you get?) and xeno-eggs.

TTCombat
These are another 28mm-35mm scale product. I have only one item in TT Combat's SciFi Utopia range, and that's their Geodesic Domes set. It looks very neat - as I have yet to assemble it, I'll need to wait before I can give it an honest review.

Geodesic Dome from TTCombat

Honourable Mentions

The following may very well be the best thing since sliced bread - only, aside from searching their websites fairly often, I haven't had the opportunity to purchase much, if any, of their relevant stock. 

Black Site Studio - Post Apoc, Arcology, and a Blade-Runner-esque Zaibatsu line. A lot of Out-of-Stock items...when will suppliers learn that this is almost always seen as a bad sign by browsing shoppers?

Rebel Minis - 28mm Fenceposts and UAV. Hopefully, they will expand their 28mm Sci-Fi line.

Warlord Games - I've included Warlord as the Elephant in the Room, because I haven't quite forgiven them for Doctor Who. That said, I've been very, very close to purchasing their Freedom Colony Outpost, because it's unique and very future-y. I do have some Frostgrave miniatures, via Northstar Figures, and they are very good.

Closing Thoughts

This list cannot be compleatly exhaustive, and there are some smaller startups offering "one-shot" terrain items which may, or may not, fall under the Old School Sci-Fi umbrella as I'm using here - that said, feel free to offer additional suggestions, in the comments, if there's something you think I've missed....Ω

Chinatown Gate by Knights of Dice

Limping in after buying it one year ago is the 30mm+/- Chinatown Gate, from Knights of Dice in Victoria, Australia. This purchase had coincided with a visit to the Friendship Gate in Philadelphia's Chinatown district, during an adventure to some of the less-well-kept neighbourhoods of Philly. The model doesn't seem to represent any specific structure, but incorporates designs from Melbourne, Portland and Philadelphia, and probably others. 

The model itself took about two months - yes, two months, due in part to poor paint coverage over the mdf. This, after having primed it with Krylon White Primer. Acrylic paint doesn't require one coat, or two coats, but at least three coats to provide an even finish - the mdf is thirsty.  And yet, mdf is also slow to dry. Finish the coat, then come back later. So, after an hour or so a couple times a week, over December and January, I took a break, leaving it at about 90% completion, before finishing two weeks ago.

28mm miniatures by Black Cat and Old Glory,
included for scale.

By and large, I'm happy with the result. My main complaint with the model is that the tolerances engineered into the design are too narrow, failing to adequately account for priming, painting and gluing. Instructions were not included and had to be downloaded at the KoD website - and then, they print rather small.  The ornamental fish at the peak of each side roof broke during final fitting. Both sides. Also one of the roof mounts.

Over-engineered as it is, becoming more difficult to assemble as you go, the Chinatown Gate yields a very impressive visual result. Was it worth the effort? Well, where else can you find a 32mm Chinese Gate?

Ease of Assembly: 3 

Instruction Clarity: 3

Detail: 5

Quality: 4

Overall Rating: 3.75 out of 5

There are two other Knights of Dice buildings, partially assembled and put away on my shelf.  In general, they are scaled for the 32mm+ Heroic scale - they are rather a bit too big for true 28mm. Which is a pity, because they are nice buildings. If KoD could be convinced to offer a reduced size for their standard laser-cut buildings, say to 95%, they would open themselves up to a larger market...Ω

WIP: 28mm Columbia Rumble

Most of my readers already know that I don't like to show gaming on unfinished projects - it's simply one of my little peccadilloes. The lock down, however, has me stalking about the house, muttering like the mayor from "Jaws" - "Get past Memorial Day...Maybe we can save the summer...etc..."

And so I decided to have a wee scrum, using Nordic Weasel's Gang War rules and Full Metal Anorak, setup on some terrain that will eventually look like 1970's West Columbia Boulevard, Philadelphia.

Please excuse the foamboard pavement and unfinished buildings. Also, don't mind the gaps - they will be covered with crossing lines and other road markings.

Scipio's Squad L to R: Scipio, Ravelle H., Afrodite J., Alonzo H.

The scenario was generated using Gang War, with some modifications to make it less Apocalyptic. Five orange "Points of Interest" were set up around the 4-foot square playing area. These are either worth money ($100 each), are worthless, or result in a hazard (large sink hole, crazy wino, crack head, etc.) As these can remove a figure from play, they are best collected after resolving all game combat.

Also, it's a smoggy night, and all missile ranges are limited to 9".

Scipio "Africanus" Norton and his agency squad are cruiz'en the hood, collecting debts and looking to keepin' it peaceful, when they spot a group of Tong Boyz fixing to expand their territory. The squad sets up to defend.

Red Elephant Oriental Boyz

"Get some cover!"

The Boyz are the Red Elephant Tong; in FMA terms they are Trained/Motivation 3, with some Improvised Hand Guns. They are rated for Gang War as 'Aggressive', meaning they will advance on their opponents by half their movement at least, and will use available cover. Their leader is rated Average.

The Boyz advance

Scipio and his Agency are slightly better - all are average, with MOT 3, and armed with pistols, except Ravelle (who is rated 'Trained' and armed with a shot gun).

Turns 1 and 2: were spent with the Tong Boyz advancing and Scipio's Squad taking cover (using "In Position" markers for an additional bonus).

Alonzo and Afrodite take cover by the Chevy Chevelle

The Tong Boyz gather by the Pontiac.

Turn 3: Two of the Tong Boyz peeled right to flank Afrodite and Alonzo, who have taken cover by a 1970 Chevy Chevelle (as seen in the 2K release of "Shaft"). The leader and his two Tong-mates took cover by the phone booth and yellow Pontiac. Ravelle fired his shotgun at the lead Tong and missed. The Tong returned fire at Ravelle (crouching by the cab) and managed to knock him out/seriously wound him. "This game is rigged!" he muttered as he passed out.

"Do Not Scratch the Trim!"

Turn 4 and 5: With Ravelle down, Scipio was outnumbered. The lead Tong member fired, missed and then charged. Scipio shot him down...mutha&#@%!  This while the two Tong flankers, sheltering in a burned out building, negotiated the uneven ground over the two turns.

"One Saturday Night Special, coming up!"

Turn 6 and 7: Scipio put the charging Tong down, when the leader followed in a shoot-then-charge moment. Scipio was hit, but shrugged it off ("Ain't no thing at all...") and capped the leader with a Spectacular Death.  The rest of the Tong failed their morale, except the phone booth shooter who charged. 

"Nuh-uh man. Big mistake..." BLAM!

Turn 7 (continued) Scipio took a point blank shot at the charging Tong, and missed. The TongBoy then failed morale, and ran for the cover of the phone booth. Scipio put one into his back, and the TongBoy went down. That was enough for the last two survivors, who fled down the boulevard.

The result was a clear victory for the Agency. They made an Enemy of the Red Elephant Tong Boyz (We'll Be Back!), but between picking up POIs and winning the scenario, they netted $600. Ravelle had a local "Doctor" check him out, and the wound was light, only keeping him out of the next tussle.

Scipio was thinking "It doesn't get much better that this..." when his fav'rite bar suddenly opened for business.

"The Light is On and I'm Open for Business..."

"Well, Aw right!"

Post Game Thoughts:

This scenario was originally being prepared for a 7TV 1st Ed. game, only I hadn't finished adapting those rules from their British oeuvre to an American, Blaxploitation-themed one. Full Metal Anorak is flexible enough to handle this well.  Nordic Weasel's Gang War, though set in a post-apocalyptic world, also adapts well to handle a vigilante campaign, revolving around a neighbourhood "fixer" and his cohorts.

The odds are in favour of our protagonists. Despite that, Ravelle went down in the first exchange. I made a mistake with the Tong leader, as I should have sent him down the right side with the other two Boyz - I thought about just arbitrarily moving him, but then I heard Scipio (in my mind) say "Don't you mess wi' them figures, boy." I decided to let the action unfold automatically.

There was a bit of after-action drama - one of the POIs turned out to be a hazard...

"We Had a Noise Complaint..."

A successful Save vs. Int and a Franklin disarms the situation...Ω

Not Quite Another Bughunt - 5P/FMA

With the lock-down firmly in place, it was time to have a go at a Five Parsecs from Home/Full Metal Anorak/Bughunt game.  A fireteam of four was rapidly generated: Logan, Kupperberg, Farlander, and Correia. From various backgrounds: Prison Planet, Hi-Tech World, and Trade World - each location providing some small benefit for that particular trooper.

Quick word on mechanics: I use the 5PfH/BH campaign shell to generate the troopers backgrounds, the scenario and objectives, and the campaign turn in between encounters. The actual scenario resolution is driven by Full Metal Anorak. So there are twice as many rulebooks to search through than normal. But, hey!  It's Lockdown!

For this scenario, I used part of my paper-terrain space station as the encounter board. Three green  poker chips were placed as 'Objective' markers, each of these gets a 'Contact' marker (potential hostiles). Also, six 'Tactical' markers are placed, as evenly spaced as possible, about the board.

Rolling 1d6 for mission Priority, I had a 1, which was a relief, as this was essentially a training mission for me and my squaddies. Priority 1 also means 1 additional 'contact' marker is placed on each objective...you see where this is going? Had I rolled a 6, it would be six times the "fun".

Mission Priority also provides points where you can shop for support - in this scenario, I picked a tough-as-nails Gunnery Sgt., named Sigler, armed with a boarding cutlass and auto-shotgun.

Contact markers are randomly moved several d6 in various directions. Your squad enters a random board edge. And the Hunt begins.

Turn 1 and 2: The squad headed for the first objective, and immediately encountered the opposition: crazed robots.  I decided to roll randomly, and that's what was selected.

"I thought it was supposed to be bugs..." said Logan.
"Maybe it's bugs in their programs!" joked Kuppenberg.
"Secure that pun!" growled the Gunny.

D6 with the '2' will move in the Slow Phase

Initiative in 5P is slightly different, since it's designed as a solo game. Adapted for FMA, each player figure has a Motivation Rating, from 1 - 3, 1 being best. To move in the first phase, AKA the 'Fast' Phase, a number of d6 are thrown, those that roll over their Motivation may now move, shoot and take special actions.

The aliens/bugs/robots move and take action in the second phase.

Finally, in the last or 'Slow' phase, any player models that haven't yet moved are free to do so.

It's a neat system, and it reminds me of Two Hour Wargames

"I just Burked myself..."

reaction system, but IMO it works more smoothly and is less cumbersome.

Turn 3 - 4: The robots at the first objective were quickly dispatched, due to some hot die rolls. The objective turned out to be the Evac point.  Each objective is rolled for details, usually before actual play begins. One objective was lifted, and the other, in the Med Bay, had a 'hack' result, meaning someone was going to be using their Tech skillz.

"You are BURKED, my lad!'

While the main squad was clearing the first objective, Trooper Kuppenberg went off to investigate on his own. He found a Tactical marker, made his Tech roll, and was able to remove a Contact marker that was getting close to his fellow squaddies...and then he bumped into two more robots.

Kuppenburg ran for the exit, and decided to make a Tech roll (5-6 on a D6) to lock the door. Rolled a 4. "NOOOOOooooo!"

"C'mon you Rednecks!"

As Burke, I mean Kuppenberg, dodged mechanical claws, he dropped his ACR and pulled out his standard issue Heavy Service Pistol. Shots rang out and slugs ricocheted off the robotic steel plating.

The rest of the squad, hearing the shots, ran toward the sound of the gunfire.

"And that's what we mean when we say
'Fight Like Robot'"

Running in FMA/Stargrunt II, to me, has always seemed awkward, with many players conflicted on what works best.  For my games, I've implemented "Run" as an additional action. First action, you get your regular move distance. With Run, you get to add your movement Die type. So, if your model has an 8" move, it gets that distance, then rolls a D8 when it Runs.

Results seem to be, you will occasionally fail to make the distance, but you won't be standing 2" from where you started 3 minutes ago.

Pvt. Logan has stabilised Kuppenberg,
and he's walking.

By turns 5 - 6, The rest of the squad had reached the room, from where they'd heard the shots. Kuppenberg lay crumpled on the floor, with an obviously chuffed robot standing over him.

Extending it's claws, the robot advance on the squad...

...however, walking into a three-way crossfire of aimed shots doesn't do anyone a bit of good...and the saucy 'bot was gunned down with dispatch

Main Objective in Sight

Turn 7 - 8: Pvt. Logan was able to stabilise Kuppenberg on the second attempt (luckily she didn't kill him on a '1') and since the damage taken wasn't heavy, he was able to walk and fight at a reduced level (he dropped a Quality die).  I was glad I had traded some of Logan's pre-gen points for Medic-1. She is fast becoming my favourite model.

The rest of the squad headed for the Med Bay, where the objective was to hack the computer and bring the data back to HQ for analysis.

"Who's our tech?" asked Sgt. Sigler

"That'd be Kuppenberg, Sarge" replied Pvt. Correia.

"Well sheet!" swore the Sergeant, "I guess you're our new Tech, Correia!"

"I lay awake at night and think of you, Sergeant..." muttered Correia.

"What's that, Marine?" growled Sgt. Sigler.

"I said, 'Sergeant! Yes, Sergeant!'" Correia exclaimed.

"Damn straight, you did." said Sigler. "And now that we're all in agreement, let's get into Med Bay, grab the data, and GTF off this rattle-trap.  On the DOUBLE!"


There was a single robot in Med Bay, but a Contact marker was slowly moving closer. The Sgt and Pvt Farlander charged the Bot, guns blazing, while Correia swung clear of the brawl and ran to the Med Computer.

"Jesús en una muleta!" she cursed under her breath. ¿Dónde está el maldito fabricante de capuchino en esta puta?

"Marines! EXFILTRATION!

Just behind Correia's back, Pvt. Farlander took a swipe from a claw and went down hard. Sgt. Sigler emptied his service pistol into the metal attacker and was pleasantly surprised when it began to gout smoke from it's seams and crashed over satisfactorily.

"No time for triage" Sigler said to himself, as he picked up Farlander and slung him over the shoulder.
Sigler yelled to Corriea, "Don't be gentle, Cariño! Kick the drive loose if you have to!"


Correia drew back her armoured combat boot. Wham! she kicked. Wham! Wham! WHAM! The impacts kept time to shouts in Spanish:
"Abre! Abre! ABRE! TU PERRA!"
There was a snapping sound, accompanied by the skittering of some plastic something across the floor. The drive, with a data crystal,  slid open.

Correia picked up the crystal and grinned as she showed it to Sgt. Sigler. "Just like Prom Night, Gunny!"

"A natural Romantic..." said Sigler. "Marines, EXFILTRATION TIME!"


Outside the Med Bay, Logan and Kupperberg headed cautiously into the comms room.  Logan held up Kupp's ACR, "Can you handle this?"

"Yeah" he said. "Just don't ask me to dance..."

Logan grinnned "I'm not asking you to dance. I'm asking you to fight..."

FMA allows for fighting while wounded, unlike SGII. For a light wound, the model has it's combat quality degrade by one level, so Kupperberg drops from a D8 Quality to a D6. He also cannot run.

The two marines made slowly for the EVAC point.

"Dropship Kalgon; take us away!"

Turn 9 - 10.  Just behind Logan and Kupperberg, Sgt. Sigler crossed the main corridor. Several close contacts were being held off by a Tactical marker (more on these in the notes).

They entered Comms just as two more Robots moved in.

Putting the unconscious Farlander down, Sgt Sigler swore, "Jesús en una muleta!" as he raised his shotgun. Correia raised an eyebrow.

The shotgun blast caught both bots, destroying the lead one. The other advanced on Corriea,metal claws grasping.

Actually, Gunny Sigler took the brunt of the melee, because he is one tough hombre (AC d12!) and I was playing the odds. Correia and Logan provided fire support, again, playing the odds that any stray shots wouldn't damage Sigler.  The strategy worked, even had it failed, Sigler is not a regular member of the squad, and can be replaced by an exact copy - but I would have missed him.

By turn 11(pursued by yet again two more robots) the Squad had reached the EVAC objective - not sure how they were extracted, possibly a hole in the ceiling. There was one walking wounded, one incapacitated, and two objectives achieved.  Mission: Success.

Post-Game Thoughts:

Tactical Markers - these add a neat twist. When contacted, a successful Tech roll (5-6) creates a tactical effect - it can be removing a Contact marker or creating a Blocking Zone vs. Aliens. This latter was how the Sarge got across the main corridor whilst carrying the wounded Farlander.

This scenario was pretty hard, for a priority 1 game. I was getting close to despairing, until I realised I had short-changed the main squad a second Fire Team. That's an automatic back up, and then you can requisition heavier weapons, etc. by paying some Priotity points.  Of course, the first Smart LMG the squad acquires goes to Pvt. Correia.

Creature Movement Does Eventually Get Boring - rolling movement dice for a dozen Contact markers does get a little tiresome, especially on the far side of the board, where one just knows they will never come into contact. I'm thinking about a hack.

On the other hand, there's always an off-chance that a new Contact marker will appear in your squad's way. This happened on the penultimate turn, where the EVAC point was attacked by a single robot. Logan and Kupperberg were able to bring it down with concentrated, aimed fire.  Still, made for a tense turn.

Campaign Turn: After the encounter, models use are assigned experience points, roll for reputation increase, apply for cross training, go on R&R, if up for some and recover in sick bay. In the case of Kuppenberg, since he had been stabilised with a light wound, he would require a turn in sickbay, so if the team goes out, it will be without him, and Farlander as well.

Farlander had been recovered while incapacitated, so  he had to roll on the chart  and take his chances - fortunately, he also came up "Lightly Wounded" so he'll have Kuppenberg to keep company.

Correria had enough experience points to buy a trait upgrade - she was a half-point down on her Move trait (3.5") so that was increased to 4". They're still slow, but at least they're all slow together.

Logan was able to improve her Motivation to a "2", meaning she will be taking a more active role in future encounters.

Sgt. Sigler went on to his next assignment, nannying another set of wet-arsed boots on a thankless job of keeping Mankind's Final Frontier safely expanding.

"Damn Straight!"...Ω