Sunday 9 February 2014

Vampifan's Kill Krazy Kommandos 01

Over the next two posts I want to show you a set of 28mm scale figures that I sculpted about 20 years ago. They are all part of an extremely violent Hispanic criminal gang, who operate out of East Central Los Angeles, USA, and are known as the Kill Krazy Kommandos. The origins of this gang are unusual. The Kill Crazy Commandos first appeared in Dark Future, a not very successful Car Wars type of game designed by Games Workshop. I believe they should have produced the game's vehicles and figures in 28mm scale but instead they opted for 20mm scale. A big mistake, in my opinion. Of all the gangs that appeared in Dark Future the Kill Crazy Commandos were my favourite. I changed their name to the more alliterative Kill Krazy Kommandos. Some of the figures that I made were copies of the Citadel 20mm scale figures, whilst others were based on this rather nifty illustration from the rulebook.
Left to right are Hector Lopez, Ricardo Santana (gang leader), Chico Rivera, Linda Velasquez and Leon Hedoya. You'll see my sculpt of Linda next time.
The leader of the gang is a vicious psychopath called Ricardo Santana. His primary goals are anarchy and the eradication of the black street gangs of L.A., especially the Crips, for whom he has a deep hatred. A large group of Crips gangstas wiped out his former gang whilst Ricardo was serving time in prison. Ricardo is armed with 5.56mm Colt M16A3 Assault Rifle, a .44 IMI Desert Eagle Big Ass Pistol and a Bowie Knife. His gang fights cops, other street gangs and anyone who gets in their way. They have a reputation for shooting first and asking questions later. They rarely ever take prisoners or hostages. The gang's primary income is through the selling and distribution of illegal drugs.
Standing next to him is Leon Hedoya, his trusted second-in-command. Leon is responsible for over 20 murders, mainly of negro gangstas. He often smokes in "no smoking" areas just to provoke a reaction. He is armed with a 9mm Heckler and Koch MP5A1 Sub Machine Gun and a Knife.
Second from the right is Jesus Escobar, a typical gang member, armed with a 12 Gauge Franchi SPAS12 Pump-Action Shotgun and a Knife. Like most of the Kill Krazy Kommandos he is skilled in Tae Kwon Do street fighting.
At the far right is Chico Rivera, one of the gang's founding members and a very close friend of Ricardo Santana. He and his partner, Linda Velasquez, run a back street repair shop for the gang, well away from prying eyes. He is armed with a 12g Franchi SPAS12 Shotgun and a .50 calibre IMI Desert Eagle Big Ass Pistol.
The second batch of figures starts with Miguel Castillo, another typical gang member. He holds a 12g Franchi SPAS12 Shotgun and has a Flick Knife hidden in his leather jacket.
Next up is Hector Lopez, who works a pizza delivery man. Although he likes being out on the road, he hates being told what to do and where to go. It is only a matter of time before he gets fired. He is also armed with a 12g Franchi SPAS12 Shotgun and a Flick Knife.
Third in line is Judd Emerson, one of only a few non-Hispanic gang members. He has a job as a haulage driver. He is also a Neo-Nazi supporter with a deep hatred of all blacks. He is armed with a 5.56mm Ruger AC556 Assault Rifle and a .44 calibre IMI Desert Eagle Big Ass Pistol.
The final figure on show is Diego Callazo. He could be wounded, he could be smashed out of his skull on drugs or alcohol or he could just be taking a rest. The weapon that lies alongside him is a 66mm M72A2 Light Antitank Weapon. The Kill Krazy Kommandos have an impressive arsenal of weapons at their disposal.
I have used this gang quite a few times in various games and more than half of them have fully developed GURPS character record sheets. Ricardo is a particularly powerful NPC in GURPS, costing 500 points. To put that into perspective, most starting PCs have just 100-200 points. It wouldn't be too difficult to move this gang to Mayhem City for my ATZ campaign. I suspect they'd survive very well in a zombie apocalypse.

35 comments:

  1. Cool gang. I remember them from the DF days. I think they where inspired by the band Zodiac Mindwarp. lol.

    ReplyDelete
  2. A must see in Mayhem city! Lovely sculpts Bryan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Dave. I think there's a very good chance that they will make an appearance in Mayhem City.

      Delete
  3. You keep surprising me! This look pretty cool! How about a turf war in AAZ between 2 gangs? This could easily be one of them!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That would be so easy to do, Johnny, as I have so many gangs to chose from.

      Delete
  4. It's always a joy to see your sculpting work!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Nasty, vicious thugs, the lot of them. I'm so glad I don't live anywhere near them!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I know of Dark Future, but never played it. A nice gang... well maybe Nice is the wrong word..

    Good one mate. Excellent additions to Mayhem city.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Don't worry, Clint, I know what you mean. I never played Dark Future either. I much preferred Car Wars.

      Delete
  7. Crikey, they're brilliant. What a great team.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Bob. That's very kind of you to say so.

      Delete
  8. "When bands go Bad ", great sculps Bryan. they really catch the feel of the piccy.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Very cool! The sculpts really catch the feel and look of the picture. They make for an awesome gang! Your stuff is always top notch.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Many thanks, Nobody667. These are one of my favourite contemporary gangs.

      Delete
  10. Great looking gang! Dark Future was fine in 20mm for us American we could use hotwheels cars and convert them, that's what we did for car Wars.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I suspect that is the main reason GW decided to do this game in 20mm. Lots of conversion potential from Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars.

      Delete
    2. Yes but they failed to make conversion kits that would have exploded its popularity.

      Delete
    3. That's a very good point, Robert.

      Delete
  11. Very nice work, as always. I have to give mucho respect to your sculpting skills, I find painting them hard enough. Given their racist leanings KKK was the way to go. LOL.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Bob. Being a newcomer to my blog you might not know this but I have sculpted many figures in the past. I always tried to find a company selling whatever particular figure I needed for a scenario but back then it often came down to no one having what i wanted. So, I taught myself how to sculpt and I became quite good at it. Nowadays, there is so much more variety on offer that i haven't had to make any figures in years. I still keep my hand in by converting, though.
      Well done on spotting the connection between the Kill Krazy Kommandos and the Ku Klux Klan. They do indeed have similar goals.

      Delete
  12. Very cool Bryan. I actually played Dark Future quite a bit and really rather enjoyed it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm glad to hear that, Adam. I mainly bought my copy to pinch ideas from for other games like Car Wars and GURPS.

      Delete
  13. I'm pretty sure I saw those before! Great job once again, your sculpts certainly share a common style.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm almost certain I showed you these figures when you visited me last year, Mathyoo. Well remembered!

      Delete
  14. These look fantastic Bryan, I really must apologise for arriving at this post now. For some reason this didn't appear in my blog list.

    The figures look great. I understand why Dark future was 20mm as it mainly a game based on cars and the infantry came later. Also it was in the days where gw encouraged you to scratchbuild your own vehicles and matchbox style cars was the best source of vehicles.

    I love what you did with the sculpts and you can certainly see there Dark Future roots in the style of poses. I love them Bryan they are superb! They should get an outing in your ATZ games at some point.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Nothing to apologise for, Simon. These things happen.

      I'm sure you're right about why GW chose to do Dark Future in 20mm scale, but I can't help thinking how much better it would be if they chose 28mm scale.

      As for the Kill Krazy Kommandos appearing in my ATZ campaign, I have big plans for them. If you want to know more then check out my next post.

      Delete
    2. I do miss the dark future range they are cheaper than 28mm but bigger than 15mm.

      They would of totally been awesome in 28mm

      Delete
    3. I totally agree with you, Simon. 20mm = meh! 28mm = awesome!

      Delete