Studio Miniatures Zombies 11 - Wedding Zeds

As a special Christmas treat to you my next two posts are going to concentrate on reviews of the latest Studio Miniatures 28mm scale zombie sets. I know that many of you agree with me that Studio Minis make the best sculpted zombies on the market. These five figures that I'm reviewing here come from their Till Death Us Do Part set.

As the name of the set indicates, what we have here is a zombified wedding party. How tragic! At the far left is the priest or minister who was supposed to marry the happy couple. I painted him as an elderly chap with grey hair. He looks to be fairly intact although I did paint on a small bite wound to his right cheek. The blood splatters on his frock are probably from other victims.

Next in line is the bride. She has a row of scratch marks on her left lower arm, a cut to her right upper arm and a deep cut to her left lower leg. She wears a silver tiara, which keeps her veil in place. There is something very sad looking about her face, but is that really surprising? What should have been the happiest day of her life has turned into her worst nightmare.

The groom has fared far worse. His left eye has been gouged out, leaving him with a bloody eye socket. That's going to spoil his looks for the wedding photographs! Whenever I paint my Studio Miniatures figures I generally copy the colour schemes that they provide on the packaging and their website. For this figure, however, I painted his clothing much darker.

For the pageboy, I totally changed his colour scheme. I painted his trousers in the same light brown as the groom's waistcoat and his shirt in the same lemon as the bridesmaid's dress, just to unify them better. The pageboy doesn't look to be wounded at all, although his head is leaning slightly to one side. I have smeared his mouth, chin and neck with blood to indicate that he has recently fed.

Finally, we come to the young bridesmaid, and again, she doesn't appear to be wounded either. I used the same technique on her as the pageboy by smearing the area around her mouth and neck with blood from one of her victims. She also has blood covering the fingers of her left hand.

This is an unusual subject to chose for a set of zombies but as you'd expect, Studio Minis have pulled it off with aplomb. My favourite figure out of the group is the bride, but to be fair, they have all been beautifully and expertly sculpted. It is always a joy to receive a new set of Studio Minis zombies because I know they are going to be a real treat to paint. So it was with this set.

My only criticism of this set is that I'd have liked to have seen even more figures included in the set; specifically, the best man, the father of the bride, the wedding photographer and maybe more family and guests. bridesmaids and pageboys.There's enough choice there to make at least two more sets.

The Till Death Us Do Part set costs £12.99 and is now only available in white metal. It looks like Studio Minis have stopped making resin versions of their zombies. What can I say about this set other than highly recommended? Next time, I'll review the Halloween Horrors by Studio Minis.

Foundry Backstreet Militia

I was quite surprised to see that I had not done a review of these five figures when I featured them in one of my first batreps for my blog. Now that one of them has joined Team Vampifan it is time to rectify that oversight and do a full review of Foundry's Street Violence set SV054 Backstreet Militia.

 

I'll stick with the names that I gave these characters in my ATZ scenarios, some of which are based on the names provided by Foundry. At the far left of my two photos above is Corporal Perry Kroeger. He is armed with a 5.56mm Steyr AUG Assault Carbine, a pistol in a holster on his left hip and a Flash Bang Grenade. He is one of four figures out of this group to wear a pair of sunglasses. As he advances, he is keeping a lookout for any signs of danger.
To his left is Corporal Steven "Shuggy" McGraw, armed with a 5.56mm Heckler and Koch 33E Assault Rifle with scopesight. He doesn't have a back-up pistol but he does have  a Flash Bang Grenade. He is standing in an "on guard" position.
In the centre of the group is Team Vampifan's latest recruit, Lieutenant Ulysses Catweazle. His primary weapon is an ATK-Heckler and Koch XM29 Objective Individual Combat Weapon, (OICW) with an underslung grenade launcher. He is also armed with a 9mm Heckler and Koch MP5KA5 Machine Pistol and Flash Bang Grenades. Catweazle is the only one of the squad not to wear sunglasses. He is much taller than the other figures in this group and has a commanding presence about him, which is why I chose him as the team leader.
Sergeant Angela Ziskin is the first of the two females in the group. She is the team's sniper and is armed with a 7.62mm Sniper's Rifle, whose make I cannot identify. Sorry! She has no other weapons. Note that apart from Lieutenant Catweazle, they are all wearing gloves.
Finally, is Private Carrie Bryce, the rookie of the group. She has a Sniper Rifle, identical to that used by Ziskin slung over her right shoulder. Having two snipers in such a small group is very unusual. In her left hand she is wielding a 9mm Heckler and Kock MP5KA5 Machine Pistol. Note how she has reversed her cap to wear it back to front.
When I used this group in my two ATZ scenarios a few years ago I used them as a U.S. National Guard team. How you use them is entirely up to you but they make for a nice squad of military figures. If I have one minor criticism to make of them it is that I think it would be more logical for them to be armed identically with perhaps one deviation from the norm. Perhaps being a militia group they can get away with the diversity of weapons, but as I said, it's only a minor quibble. I certainly have no complaints against the quality of the sculpting or with their poses.
This set of five figures costs £10.00 on the Foundry website but if you act quickly you can get them for just £8.00 whilst the current Foundry sale lasts.

Cold War Minis Corpses

A couple of months ago I mentioned in one of my Monthly Musing editorials that I'd painted two extremely rare Cold War Miniatures' 28mm scale corpses that were sculpted for their The Dead Will Walk range but never got put into production. The two I have are of the redneck in baseball cap, holding a metal club and the priest brandishing a cross.

The photo above shows the two figures that the corpses were based on. Both of the standing figures are available from set 14 - Survivors.

This photo gives you a much clearer view of what the corpses look like. You can see that these are human corpses not zombie corpses, as the brain is intact on both figures. The red-neck has been bitten in the stomach, whilst the reverend has been chewed on in his legs. I like how even in death, he retains his hold upon his cross.
Now, I should stress that these two figures are not available for sale, so don't go looking on the CWM website for them. I mentioned the story of how I got hold of them previously, but it's worth repeating again. One of my oldest followers and close friend, Roger, aka Rogzombie, wrote to CWM on my behalf. How he knew about these ultra rare figures I do not know but knowing how much I'd like them he put in a request to Richard of CWM to ask if he could let me have a set if there were any still available. Obviously, Richard did still have a set going spare and he promptly sent them off to me. He mentioned in his covering letter that he was going to make corpse figures of his five survivors but the plan fell through as he was unhappy with the quality of his sculpts. It is a shame as I think it's a great idea, given that there are far too few corpse figures available. Despite that, these two figures did have a very limited production run and that's how I ended up with them. Once again, I'd like to offer my sincere thanks to Roger and Richard for ensuring I could add these amazing figures to my collection.

Here's a photo from my last batrep that shows both corpses in situ. Oddly enough, it was the corpse that I placed in the red hatchback that attracted the most comments. I'm managing to build up a fair-sized collection of corpse figures and it is something I will continue to add to. Even if the corpses have no effect in a game, you have to admit that they make for great "set dressing" on the gaming board.

Fighting to Survive by Rhiannon Frater

Fighting to Survive by Rhiannon Frater is the second book in her As the World Dies trilogy and it's just as good as book one, The First Days. In this action-packed sequel, the survivors of the small fortified town of Ashley Oaks decide to expand their walled compound by clearing out the town's large hotel. This is a mission fraught with danger, as they all know that the hotel is populated by numerous zombies. The four main heroes of the story, Jenni, Katie, Juan and Travis, are part of the teams assigned to clear out the hotel. What follows is an unbearably tense piece of story-telling as the clearance teams search the hotel room by room and floor by floor. Not everyone makes it through alive.
Afterwards, Katie declares her love for Travis. She had been in a lesbian relationship, but when her former wife was killed by zombies on day one of the outbreak she thought she'd never love again, especially with a man. But it turns out she was actually bisexual and in a world with so much death and horror all around her, she came to the realisation that she needed Travis as much as he needed her. Ah, sweet!
Jenni and Juan had already hooked up in book one and their relationship continues to blossom in book two. What I particularly like about this series is just how well rounded the characters are. You can see character development in all of the cast, not just the four leads. When one of the supporting cast is killed it does have an emotional impact on you because these are people you care about.
The latter half of the book is taken up with dealing with the threat from bandit raiders, who strike at some of the smaller enclaves of survivors nearby to kill the menfolk and capture the females for sexual gratification and to loot the places for essential supplies. When the bandits turn their attention to Ashley Oaks, the defenders decide to fight fire with fire.
There are a couple of sub-plots worthy of mention. The town's mayor is forced to resign on the grounds of ill health and Travis is one of the two nominations put forward for the vacant post. He doesn't want the job but many feel he is the right man to become the new mayor. A second sub-plot, which remains unresolved, involves an unknown vigilante in the town who kills anyone deemed undesirable to the town's population - drug dealers and rapists, for example, get their comeuppance at his (or is it her?) hands. No doubt we'll learn his or her identity in book three. I have my own suspicion of who the vigilante is but I'll keep it to myself for now.
I mentioned in my review of The First Days the old lady called Nerit, who used to be a sniper with the Israeli Army. She really makes her presence felt in this novel as she is promoted to the town's defence chief. Her tactics for dealing with the bandit raiders are brutal but devastatingly effective. Don't mess with this old lady!
Those of you who have read book one will surely need no urging to buy this book. If you haven't read either, I can highly recommend this series to you. The story moves along at a rapid pace. It is tense, exciting, funny, harrowing and an absolute joy to read. The book retails for $14.99 or for £9.59. I bought my copy from Amazon for £8.74. it's where I buy nearly all of my books nowadays. Book three, Siege, is due for release in April 2012. I can't wait!

Foundry Thugs and Misfits

To make up for my lack of posts this past week or so I've decided to do a review of Wargame Foundry's largest set of 28mm scale Street Violence figures - BSSV001 Thugs and Misfits. This boxed set contains no fewer than 18 figures. Let's get the show on the road and have a look at them.

 

The soldier at the far left of the two photos above is called Ander, according to the Foundry website. Foundry have very helpfully named all of these figures, and whilst I don't like some of the names they've chosen I will use them for now for the purposes of this review. Ander is armed with a 5.56mm Colt Commando Assault Rifle. He is very well equipped with plenty of pouches, a backpack, gasmask and grenades. He is clearly a military type but the question is, is he a regular soldier or National Guard or a mercenary? Also, given the title of this set of figures, could he be a deserter?
His colleague in the centre is called Rissien. He is virtually identical to Ander apart from his choice of primary weapon. Rissien has chosen a 5.56mm Steyr AUG Assault Carbine, distinguishable from the Rifle by its much shorter barrel.
The last two figures in line, form part of a vignette - a sniper and her gimp slave. The sniper is called Bellatrix, whilst the gimp at her feet is called Gat. They come as a one-piece casting. They look like they ought to belong to one of the Foundry Street Girl gangs. Bellatrix is armed with the powerful .50 calibre Barrett Model 500 Sniper's Rifle. Gat is making himself useful by holding her bipod to steady the rifle. I painted Ballatrix's panties in a camo pattern, which is barely noticable as there wasn't much material to work with! Continuing the military theme, she's managed to acquire a helmet for some head protection. Gat was painted with normal acrylics but given a gloss varnish coating to achieve that shiny leather or rubber look.

 

This next batch of figures are the smartly dressed guys. Starting at the far left is Catigern (unusual name!), a low level thug in a black suit and red tie. He carries a 9mm pistol in his right hand and I find him a rather non-descript character.
Touko, who is standing next to him, is much more interesting. To me, he appears to have been modelled on the guy who did the water torturing to Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) in the first Lethal Weapon film. He was also one of Hans Gruber's gang in the first Die Hard film, not to mention countless other films, and almost always as a bad guy. I like the fact that he has shunned a tie to wear with his suit. A man after my own heart as I hate wearing ties! He is armed with a 9mm Heckler and Koch MP5 Sub-Machine Gun.
In the centre of this group of five is Miikka, a thug with a silenced 9mm Heckler and Koch MP5SD3 Sub-Machine Gun. He is dressed casually in a polo-neck sweater and a long coat. He is leaning forward in a pose that suggests he is trying to control the recoil of his SMG as he fires it on full automatic setting.
The oriental guy to his left is called Qu and he could be a member of the Yakuza or a Triad gang. He too,  has chosen the ever-popular 9mm Heckler and Koch MP5 SMG as his weapon of choice. I'm sure the red rose in his buttonhole has some significance; I'm just not sure what!
Pattin is the name of the last figure in this group. He is firing a 5.56mm Colt Commando Assault Rifle from the shoulder. Like Qu, he is dressed in a long black coat. His red shirt (or is it a waistcoat?) makes for a nice contrast.

 

This next batch of figures look to be lower ranking thugs, although the guy at the far left, Ludwik, would make a very good survivor type. Yet again, we see the 9mm Heckler and Koch MP5 SMG in evidence. It sure is a popular weapon. The interesting thing about Ludwik is the flight bag he carries over his shoulder. It could contain alls sorts of useful items and not just weapons.
To his left is Hadad, a dude in a sheepskin coat and a cowboy hat. He is the first figure out of this group to be armed with a pump-action shotgun. He is leaning forward as if advancing. Actually, my figure was leaning too far forward but I was able to correct that when I stuck him on a slottabase.
The thug armed with the knife and meat cleaver goes by the name of Gamba. He's using an unusual combination of weapons, and he might be quite useful in melee combat. His greying hair shows that he's been around for a while.
Next to him is Drake, who could be Gamba's son or younger brother. He also carries a meat cleaver but also has a small pistol to give him some ranged firepower. The white vests and faded denim jeans helps to tie them together.

 

The last group of figures on show are all female. At the far left of the two photos above is Cammi, who looks a typical "trailer trash" girl. Rather unusual for a figure, the sculptor has made her left-handed. You don't see that very often. The pump-action shotgun she is wielding does look massive in her tiny hands and the recoil could send her flying on her ass when she fires it. But then again, maybe she's stronger than she looks.
The punk girl with the 7.62mm AK47 Assault Rifle is called Keela. After painting the flesh of her legs I gave them a Citadel Ogryn Flesh ink wash. When that was dry I drew on the fishnet pattern of her tights with a very fine nibbed Rotring technical drawing pen. Then I painted on the big holes in her tights.
I used the same technique on Isis, the lady in the centre of this group. She also has a punk vibe to her. Note her Mohican haircut. I decided to make her pump action shotgun silver-plated as a change to my usual metallic black. The metal suitcase she is carrying is worthy of note. Just what is inside it?
Taryn, who wears the blue beret, is either making a call on her mobile phone or having a draw on a cigarette. I opted for the mobile phone choice. Her 9mm Benelli M2 Sub-Machine Gun is fitted with an underslung torch. Note that she has a long knife in a sheath on her left thigh.
Finally, the last figure from this set is Louise, and she's dressed for winter in a thick padded and hooded coat. I'm not too sure what her rifle is but I'm going with a 5.56mm SIG Sauer SG540 Assault Rifle. She has a bandolier of ammo pouches slung over her left shoulder.
I am a huge fan of the Foundry Street Violence range and I was delighted to see this set released. I know that some will criticise Foundry for including so few original sculpts in this set. The majority of the figures are conversions of figures from previous sets. This does not bother me in the least but I mention it as it may influence some of you in whether they are worth buying or not.
Obviously such a large group of figures comes with a large price tag. These 18 figures would normally cost you £30. However, they are currently on sale for just £24 as part of Foundry's Christmas sale. I bought my set earlier in the year during one of Foundry's many sales. At less than £2 per week (whether bought in the sale or not) I still think they are good value for money. Although the majority of these figures will work best as Gangers, some will still work well as Survivors and Military types. With Christmas rapidly approaching I think they'd make a nice Christmas present.