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Post by cloudcaptain on Dec 20, 2021 7:16:10 GMT
My compatriot JohnY and I are working on a VSF on Venus game. Expeditions from Earth have found there way to Venus by a series of Earth-bound portals. We borrowed a bit from Stargate at this point. The portals allowed civilizations to spread between planets. There are Venusian cultures that resemble those from the Ancients period on Earth. John is doing up Greeks and their allies for his culture. He's giving them a reddish orange paint job akin to what you might see on an urn of the period. I am doing up Gauls and painting them with blue-ish skin as Venusian sea raiders. I am converting the ship from Pirates of Darkwater as a set piece/camp. John has converted an elephant as a cultist of Hastur, bedecked with the yellow sign and everything. We are still very much in the early stages of the project. Roger Dean inspired what we are shooting for terrain wise. Here is our test game using 1890s troops and the Fistful Full of Lead:Bigger Battle rules.
There will be dinosaurs, huge mysterious monoliths, ruins, lost technology, you name it. The Earthly powers ultimately will play a secondary role. John is also working on Lizardmen and French Foreign Legion. The portals are limited in their use and their size and frequency prevent large armies from moving back and forth. Saurians thrive on Venus. Perhaps they migrated to Earth from Venus...or the other way around? They will be frequently used as pack animals and mounts. I am tinkering with using Beja/Fuzy Wuzzies as "Stone Men". They will be grey skinned tribals with a nasty disposition. I've got a fair amount of cavemen I am going to paint up as Morlocks and use them as allies as well. I am also thinking about bashing together a greedy imagi-nation sultanate as my Earthers. The ideas abound and could fill a few pages.
There's a lot more planned out and we have some lore in place. We will post more details here as we progress.
John's Lizards:
His Greeks (Tanitians):
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Post by tradgardmastre on Dec 20, 2021 8:28:13 GMT
A most exciting project which I have really enjoyed following on John’s blog. Sounds like much more to enjoy lies ahead too. As a long standing Roger Dean fan l am interested to see you have been inspired by his work. Looking forward to the Dinosaurs, Stone men and more! Keep up the great work.
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Post by aducknamedjoe on Dec 20, 2021 19:32:53 GMT
Love it! At the risk of being overly self-promotional my short story "In the Shade of the Ishtar Trees" (amzn.to/3p4DOYc) covers this exact scenario as well; colonial nations have spread to Venus after the opening of "aether transits" (portals) between Earth and Venus and spread out along the coasts, but many of the interior jungles remain unexplored and full of dangerous beasts and other creatures.
Edit: I also have a native culture of amphibians named "Tahminians" so the resemblances are even more uncanny haha.
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Post by cloudcaptain on Dec 21, 2021 1:57:19 GMT
Awesome! Just bought a copy!
I think the portals idea is great because it can limit the wholesale invasion of a planet. It also seems more plausible than space travel. I figure our portals open at set intervals. They can only get so much material through before it closes.
I am going to try for some of Dean's organic shaped buildings. I just need to bust out the plaster cloth one weekend and grab the cheapo ornaments I have been hording to get those sphere and egg shapes.
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Post by tradgardmastre on Dec 21, 2021 7:10:17 GMT
I wonder if a portal would solve my problem of an alien invasion of 19th century Britain? Would allow me to use a aliens here on Earth…
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Post by cloudcaptain on Dec 21, 2021 16:34:52 GMT
It could create several possible outcomes. The aliens would have to move materials through the portal and assemble them on this side. They could, for example, fire canisters from Mars but those could take a long time to arrive. I like the idea that some Martian war machine scouts were already here, having been sent centuries (eons?) ago. They remained dormant underground or in the oceans. They awake and establish a "beach head". An active invasion needs factories, and that is where the canisters come in.
For 54mm, large contraptions are hard to put onto a table. If the have to assemble their gear on this side, you can explain why they only have small vessels, etc. Maybe they just have some artillery and flying skiffs? Biological horrors...well the sky is the limit for those. They could have nests here in short order.
I have not read the "War Against the Cthorrr" books as I hear there are some distasteful bits (which is saying a lot for me!). However, the invasion of a planet starting with changing their ecosystem seems both insidious and effective. Plagues reducing the Earth's population. Then a creature much like a hardier cockroach appears and spreads invasively. Then something that eats that and other small things. Before you know it there are people vanishing in the countryside. No one believes such stories though, right? Perhaps until local constables and some members of the volunteer defense force come across something in the woods...
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Post by 79thpa on Dec 21, 2021 23:53:16 GMT
I love it. I've been thinking about a time portal idea as well for a 25mm project that I am working on.
What size are the Reaper lizards?
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Post by JohnY on Dec 22, 2021 3:29:48 GMT
I love it. I've been thinking about a time portal idea as well for a 25mm project that I am working on. What size are the Reaper lizards? The Reaper lizards are two sizes. The Bones minis, which make up 10 of the figures (they're the blue ones if you follow the link) are "heroic scale" 28mm. I'd put them around 32mm-ish give or take depending on pose. The Dark Heaven figures (the two red-orange figures from the command set) are "25mm Heroic Scale". I'd put them closer to 30mm. Their height is close enough for me, but their bodies are noticeably less bulky. (I can get you exact measurements if that would help, so please let me know). Dark Heaven are metal - while the Bones figures are plastic. For what it's worth, I intend them as Pygmy lizard folk (the non-Pygmy kind are provided mostly by SCS Direct in their Fantasy Creatures II box. Here's one I painted up.). If you're going 25mm, you may also want to check out the lizard set from Wargames Atlantic. They are true 28mm. Maybe even a little shorter. Here's a comparison with a Bones figure. Cheers! - John |
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Post by tradgardmastre on Dec 22, 2021 8:04:52 GMT
Here was my thoughts extracted from your good ideas-
lots of great ideas . I do like the beach head idea. The idea of only smaller alien equipment appeals very much visually for a game. Your final paragraph makes me think that a I need to be thinking of skirmish/small group actions in 54mm rather than “big battles. I do like the idea of folk or animals going missing and this being down to aliens. This would work well either in forest or less inhabited areas like the highlands . I also like the idea of lower technology aliens arriving though the portal . They have hand to hand advantage but are at disadvantage in firing. This would be easily replicated in The Portable Wargame. An alien hunting party…
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Post by cloudcaptain on Dec 22, 2021 13:06:26 GMT
What are you going to use for figures?
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Post by tradgardmastre on Dec 22, 2021 15:16:21 GMT
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Post by cloudcaptain on Dec 22, 2021 15:46:33 GMT
I dig the Galaxy Laser Team! I scored a 6 inch version of the Lobster-man a few years back in a trade. Wish I could get more in that size. Spoke too soon! Looks like they re-released those too!
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Post by aducknamedjoe on Dec 26, 2021 6:48:36 GMT
Awesome! Just bought a copy! I think the portals idea is great because it can limit the wholesale invasion of a planet. It also seems more plausible than space travel. I figure our portals open at set intervals. They can only get so much material through before it closes. I am going to try for some of Dean's organic shaped buildings. I just need to bust out the plaster cloth one weekend and grab the cheapo ornaments I have been hording to get those sphere and egg shapes. Thank you, hope you enjoy it! And yes, portals seem to make more sense for a VSF game to me as well, though as you said, set intervals based on relative planetary locations in space (i.e. a portal works when only X million miles separate the two halves) or even set "mass limits" within a specific time-frame also serves to somewhat realistically limit interplanetary travel. |
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Post by Quantrilltoy on Dec 26, 2021 21:36:03 GMT
A most exciting project which I have really enjoyed following on John’s blog. Sounds like much more to enjoy lies ahead too. As a long standing Roger Dean fan l am interested to see you have been inspired by his work. Looking forward to the Dinosaurs, Stone men and more! Keep up the great work. I love it! The table color is intriguing - sort of acid washy. I have done the Burroughs Barsoom game before with FFL and French lancers versus American Indians converted into Red Martians, orcs as Green martians (but without the extra arms), Earth lion and ape converted into Martian ones and ancient Egyptians as synthetic men. Yes, the portal idea solve how the Earthlings manage that travel with existing technology. I shared your wonderful photos on my Facebook site, 'Fantasy and Science Fiction Conversions and Wargames in 1/32'. |
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Post by cloudcaptain on Dec 27, 2021 5:16:52 GMT
Thanks Quantril! I am a member there under a "pen name" as I detest the rest of Facebook  |
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