Starship Troopers - Arachnid Empire in 10mm

2024-10-24 10mm-SF / Starship Troopers / Showcase /

The Arachnid Empire

Enough bugs to swarm over an outpost I hope. I've only done the core forces, none of the expanded bug roster ever did much for me, except the Mantis Assassins, and I haven't found a good model for them yet. The closest is this one from Grig MinisThe 28mm Mongoose Burrower is mixed in with them and I feel like it works better at this scale than it ever did at 28. Needs a rules rewrite though.

Also pictured are my custom tunneling markers and some tunnel entrances. I wanted a dark worm cast look, drybrushed lightly with the same colors as the bases, and some drag marks and streaking leading into the tunnels. Just carved up XPS foam glued onto 1mm plastic disks I cut out of old toy packaging.

Size wise, they're pretty flexible at 100% scale. Either monstrous at 6mm, large animal sized for 10/12mm, and about man sized for 15mm. I was originally thinking of doing MI at 10mm, but have started in on some 15mm figures I have on hand instead.

Warriors

Source is Wake's Emporium.

It would have been 75 warriors but for the sacrificial test piece (colors, strength), and one major printing miscast. I printed another 30 after finishing these to get it up to a hundred, but haven't painted them yet. I didn't want to go too elaborate with them, and wanted them to blend a little into the surroundings for a natural look without disappearing. The red bit on the their backs really helps. And a full swarm is effectively impressive looking.

Hoppers

Source is Crow Industries.

Printed 30, kept 28. One of them I tried snapped a wing, one of them I tried out som irridescent effects for the wings and hated how metallic it kept looking. There's a bottle of iridescent nail polish in my bookmarks I'm considering, but the others I tried kept coming out streaky and I'm loath to ruin more of them when I can live happily with the off-white wings. Bodies are in a subdued green just to be different, and because if I ever do a jungle table I think they'd look at home there.

Tankers

Source is Wake's Emporium.

Very happy with them, A deep dark blue stands out sharply from the desert base. That orange splash in the wound breaks it up, along with some really vibrant eyes. Did 3, hopefully enough but I wouldn't be upset to do a few more.

Plasma

Source is Crow Industries.

Happy to be done with them, lets say. The glowing butt cells looks better in person, they don't look exactly like the tankers with a butt swap, and they fit on a 3" base well enough. Since I had to base them myself, they turned out quite differently in that respect, but you're mostly looking up with these. 3 should be more than enough for a 'battery, and I would be quite upset to have to do any more of them. Tedious cell layering...

Brain

Source is Crow Industries.

Only slightly less upsetting to paint than the 28mm Mongoose one. Still came out too fleshy, too pink, just not what I want, but I can live with it. One is more than enough.

Painting Notes

Bases are all MIG Red Earth basecoat, drybrushed with MIG Burnt Sand, and edged in AP Oak brown.

Warriors

AP Troll Claw / Boney Spikes base
thinned AP Light Tone / Sepia wash
drybrush Troll Claw 1:1 mixed with VMC ivory
back stripe in Crusted Sore, highlighted with 1:1 ivory mix

Hoppers

AP Scaly Hide base
AP Green Tone wash
drybrush Scaly Hide 2:1 mixed with VMC ivory
VMC Ivory for the wings

Tankers

1:1 mix of black and Pro Acryl Dark Grey Blue base
heavy drybrush with 1:2 black/PA DGB
light drybrush with PA DGB
Eyes are white with AP Shamrock Green speedpaint
blood is Vallejo Mecha Orange
antennae are simple red gradient

Plasma

1:1 mix of black and AP Alien Purple base
heavy drybrush with 1:2 AP Alien Purple
light drybrush with AP Alien Purple
Butt is AP Orc Blood for the webbing, white for the inner cells
Wash the cells with AP Tidal Wave speedpaint
Gradient the cells with 'AP sky blue'? up to almost straight white, call it 3:1
Eyes are white with AP Shamrock Green speedpaint