The December update for the Cantwara sector.

 

The December update

Time flies and with the festive season is upon us I almost missed the chance to update the world on what has been going on in the Cantwara sector.   Painting has been the order of the day since the last update.  I have managed to nearly complete my alien contingent, a few more purchases may have been made, which has put the end off a little, but I hope there will be no more crusties for a long time.  I have also been adding some security troopers to act as protection for the Turner`s Mining Syndicate.

Armed forces in the Cantwara sector

Crusties-  Ground Zero Games

The four squads of infantry and support weapons are complete.  I am imagining these aliens in a similar way to the great migration in Europe which forced the different peoples westward rather than an invading alien menace.

The Crusties are supported by a small contingent of Phalon marines.  I really like these older scuplts by GZG.  They are a little smaller than their more recent offerings but they have a real charm to them.

The platoon command is made up of the Xar, large imposing centaur aliens. 

Hammer`s Slammers-  Ground Zero Games

Turner`s Mining Syndicate security troopers.  

I decided that the TMS needed some military or paramilitary forces to protect their assets.  Again, the minatures that I chose have sat in my lead pile for many years and I am glad that they finally have some colour on them.  I cannot wait to see what service they give the syndiacte.

 Returning to the Cantwara sector an update

Well, it has been a month since I have last posted about my wargaming efforts.  I have been steadily painting away and purchasing a few more pieces.  Things are coming along nicely.  My purchases are a bit scatter shot as I don`t really have an end goal for my 15mm SCI-FI project.  One of the main things that spurs me on to make purchases is the fear of losing out on something.  It is a little bit of a weird mindset when I consider it, but I don`t think that I am the only wargamer who thinks in this way.

Vehicle from Ground Zero Games

The second of my GZGs truck is finished.  I was inspired by the livery of a local train, the Red Wing, where I live.  

Mine -  Ground Zero Games (I think)

The yellow mine is the last of these mine entrances that I had to paint.  I hope that the different colours will help them stand out well on the table.

Colonial settlement building -  Ground Zero Games

The final  colonial settlement building came together really well.  I have named the bar after a nightclub that I used to frequent as a younger man.  These little nods to the past really help me get invested into this fictional future.

Populating the Cantwara sector

To bring the Cantwara sector alive and to inspire some scenarios I though I had better start adding some non-combat figure to my collection.  

Civilians-  Ground Zero Games

The civilians come from GZG ranges and they will represent people working for Turner`s Mining Syndicate or the TMS.  The paint scheme is inspired by my secondary school sports uniform.

Robots-  Ground Zero Games & Alternative armies

The robots come from GZG & Alternative armies.  I decided to keep the paint scheme fairly simple at first, but I found that leaving them all metal didn`t work for me.  Hence the splash of colour.  

Armed forces in the Cantwara sector

I have two platoons of human forces that I have already painted.  One force of regulars and one force of irregulars that I thought needed an opposing force.  This led me to finally big into my lead mountain and pull out some aliens to paint.

Crusties-  Ground Zero Games

These aliens are, for me, one of GZG`s best ranges.  They paint up really well and stand out from the human forces as they are slightly larger.  I am looking to paint a platoon of them, so around 32.  Each section will have a different colour bandolier to make them easier to recognise on the battlefield.

 

Now for something a little different

I don`t want the Cantwara sector to focus only only 15mm SCI-FI, as I still love my Old School miniatures.  So, when the urge takes me I will paint other figures that I have.  Here is one example.

Chaos Legionnaire-  Games Workshop

This classic figure has sat, unpainted, in my lead pile since I bought it in the late 80s.  I am glad that he is finally ready to grace the tabletop.