Popular Front of Judea - Splitters!

I've started up another blog to shove my non SF stuff into, starting with some pics of some of my 25mm moderns and my new grenade launcher blokes.

Here's a pic of some them advancing out of my computer.

More photos over at my other blog

Treehouse

Lurking in the background of the photos in the last post was my newly built Harook treehouse, a traditional forest style Harook dwelling that roaming flocks still construct when out invading other flocks territory.

This one has split level platforms and enough space for a squad of Harook to lounge about without getting too crowded for comfort.

The next item for the Harook to construct will be some form of protective barrier to provide some solid cover both on the platforms as well as underneath the tree at ground level.

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The tree is a medium sized Woodland Scenics tree with the addition of some textured plastic card to form the platforms. The tree is mounted on an old CD. Harook from Mad Robot Miniatures.

Flightless no more!

When Eric Strobe had his one man aerojet refused a licence on safety grounds, he was broken hearted. When he heard of the Harook recently encountered on a newly discovered planet he perked up and packed up his prototypes.

Unfortunately for Eric, the Harook took offence in their usual way, their flightlessness being somewhat of a sore point with them. Luckily for Eric's heirs and benefactors, after the fuss had died away, a few Harook actually took a look at the jet powered death trap and all the points the licensing body had judged dangerous counted as positive features to the Harook.

The Falcon class one man attack plane is unique in that the pilot rides the craft externally rather than in a cockpit much like a motorcycle. The relatively high stall speed and lack of advanced avionics means that the Harook pilot must fly fast and low in order to acquire targets. The lack of suitable hardpoints for dropped weapons means the Harook are limited to strafing runs firing the dual mounted cannon. All these negative features are considered by the Harook to make a superb aircraft.
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The plane is a slightly converted die-cast Tron one man light jet. The plane comes with a plastic figure, probably about 1:72 scale or so, but not too different is size to the Harook. I've green stuffed a quite crude chicken like head on it as I didn't feel like sacrificing one of my Harook for its head, as well as being uncertain as to how to attach it to the soft plastic figure.

I've also extended the fuselage with some more green stuff, mainly as the balance point is between the wings and therefore there was no convenient point to put a flying stand








You can get all your real Harook from Mad Robot Miniatures. The diecast jet I got from the Works (a discount bookstore in the UK) for £1.99, along with a bunch of other Tron models which may end up being grav vehicles.

Harook Feather Colours

I've painted my Harook up in a variety of colours for tailfeathers and coxcombs/head feathers to give them each a bit of individuality, and I've come up with a bit of nonsense in the way  of background to support the idea.

In the particular universe this bunch of agressive, willfully destructive bunch of chickenoids hail from, their natural feather colouring is a dirty off white, yellowish colour, a bit paler than their skin tones. At some time as they pass from juvenile to adulthood the Harook decides on a colour for their head gear and tail feathers and they dye them appropriately. The colour they pick is dependant on many factors, although the most predominant is the colours of individuals they admire or wish to emulate.

The tail feathers tend not to be same colouring as the coxcombs, the colouring of the coxcombs is chosen for logical (well as logical as a demented, murderous chicken can get) reasons while the tailfeathers are chosen for emotional reasons. However there are exceptions to this, as well as some individuals who chose not to dye either their coxcombs and/or tail feathers. There is also a growing naturalist movement who feel the need to pick fights on everyone else.

Harook are born into a society without human style family units, the eggs and hatchlings being looked after communally in each flock, so the colouring acts as a means of forming family like groupings within the flock. A Harook individual belongs to two familial like units, those matching colouration in coxcombs and/or tail feathers. As you can imagine this can lead to lots of petty violence and squabbling within the flock - this is regarded by the flock as a good thing.

Human anthropologists have likened the system to the system of chariot racing in ancient rome, with the supporters following the various coloured factions. Needless to say the Harook took offence to this and the next group of visiting human scientists were pecked to death.

There are no set colours, and a Harook could chose to pick any colour regardless of what other Harook choose, however the colours currently prevailant in Harook society are red, purple, light and dark blue, green and yellow. Harook also vary the shade of the base colour according to some insane theories mixing colour wheels and astrology.

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Harook produced by Mad Robot Miniatures.

Oh No! Now there's 30 of them!

Why did the Harook cross the road? To shoot someone on the other side.

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30 Harook from Mad Robot Miniatures, all painted up and ready to cause trouble. Gawd help us when they get some heavy weapon support.

Harook on The Town

 In celebration of there now being nine of them all fully painted, the Harook leave their wooded home and go off down the pub, much to the consternation of the locals.

 Harook parking skills are legendary. The parking bot is not amused. Squad leader Grakk is first at the bar.

The locals are not impressed as the Harook pile up their coins on the pool table.

Harook House and Fire

 I've started work on a Harook tree house by glueing some platforms onto a plastic tree armature. I'll be adding on some foliage and maybe some walls and things.

And I've made a fire marker by glueing tree foliage clumpy stuff to a fire smoke shape made from car repair metal mesh stuck on a 2 pence base. Lots of paint hides the greenness of the foliage.

And here it is modelled on top of one of my tanks, hopefully I won't need many more fire/smoke markers.

Harook In Progress

Mainly just undercoated, but three of them nearing completion, so the finished one won't feel so lonely.

Undercoated them with Tamiya Fine Surface Primer as an experiment as I found a can of it with my other paint, looks like it did a good job, fast drying too.

UNSC vs Hammer's Slammers

UNSC and Hammer's Slammers troops battle it out in the ruins of a factory.


A small unit of Hammer's Slammers infantry conceal themselves within the ruins of an old factory as a column of UNSC motorised infantry pass by.

Unfortunately for the Slammers the UNSC stop to clear the area  before continuing and a firefight ensues with the Slammers troops heavily outnumbered.

UNSC troops disembark from their APC to clear a small wood.
















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Infantry : UNSC and Hammer's Slammers from Ground Zero Games
Vehicles : Claymore Heavy APC's from Old Crow

The Battle for Biffo's Crossing

A UNSC Fireteam advances towards the culvert covered by an Anti-Material Rifle Team as a AV-12 "Mantis" VTOL Gunship makes a low level gun run.

Three enemy walkers advance from the cover of the forest as the UNSC forces rush to control the river crossing.

"Sarge, those walkers are huge. How are we supposed to stop them?"
"Walkers are easy son, just aim for the knees!"
"OK, so what are the other two going to be doing while I kneecap their mate?"
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Figures - UNSC Infantry and Mantis gunship from Ground Zero Games
Vehicles - Assorted 1/87 die casts and  Old Crow Goanna Scout and Trojan APC
Walkers - Some old Steel Warrior figures, these were originally made for 25mm power armour but they make much better 15mm walkers - they are approx 40mm tall.

Drinking on the job

The bar on the outskirts of the spaceport was a good place to set up the Vehicle Check Point.
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Figures - Oddzial Osmy's New Vistula Legion from Fighting 15's
Vehicles - 1/87 Rangerover and an Old Crow Goanna Scout
Bar - Paper Model from Germy.co.uk
Hanger Building and Roads by me.

Harook!

“Awwwwwkkkkkkk!”

With the sound of his nest-mates' battle cry ringing in his ears, Flock subLeader Garrak leapt from the smouldering battle-wagon desperately trying to keep up with the rest of the platoon as they stormed towards the enemy defensive line ahead of them.

To the left and right tracer rounds ripped by his head leaving bright violet streaks across his vision. Shaking his head to in an attempt to clear a high pitched buzz caused by the enemy missile that had disabled his vehicle, he raised his assault carbine and returned fire more at less at random as he continued the charge.

The enemy defenders had dug in on the front face of a hill, burrowing into the ground and piling the dirt in front of their holes to form a steep sloped bund twice the height of a Harook. Firing holes had been dug through the bunds and lined with wood so the defenders could fire without exposing themselves. The tops of the bunds were covered with thorny vegetation gathered from local woods mixed with razor wire.

Garrak fired out the last of his magazine straight down the firing hole and bounded to the top of the slope, leaping over the razor wire and thorns with ease. Obviously the enemy had never faced angry Harook before or they would not have relied on such a low protective fence, even juvenile Harook fresh from the nest would have had no trouble clearing the wire.

Garrak landed in the dug out position and his avian eye quickly took in the surroundings – two of the enemy falling back with smouldering armour desperately trying to reload their weapons, one other fleeing into a tunnel leading into the hill side, and one closing from the right swinging up his weapon to engage the intruder.

The Harook hopped closer to the attacker and kicked out with his foot claws in a vicious sweep from the front to the rear, catching the enemy under his chest armour and spilling an interesting looking collection of entrails across the dug out – tasty treats for later, assuming he'd survive the next few minutes.

Leaping forward, Garrak opened his beak wide, yelling a battle squark as he closed with one of the remaining enemy, the squark ending abruptly as he closed his beak over his victims head and plucked the whole thing, helmet included, from the torso of his terrified opponent.

The last standing enemy soldier was drenched in blood that burst from his squad mates body and fell back throwing down his weapon in an attempt to surrender. Garrak quickly reloaded his rifle, and leaving the coward to the rest of his nest-mates plunged into the tunnel shooting rapidly into the dark.

The darkness and close confines of the tunnel was terrifying to Garrak, but his battle fury overcame his cultural phobias and he charged screaming down the tunnel ignoring the self inflicted wounds caused by scraping along the tunnel wall. With his head down in a full charge, Garrak's overall height was reduced by half, and as he burst into a chamber most of the fire directed at him went over his head. A strong blow to his left arm spun him around as his ceramic armour deflected the one round that hit him and he tumbled to the floor at the defenders feet.

Garrak braced himself to leap to his feet and take the lives of as many of these dirt dwellers as he could before they could finish him, but before he could start to move the defenders flew apart in a ripple of explosions as one of his nest-mates following him into the tunnel fired an entire magazine from his micro-missile support cannon at waist height.

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This is the first Harook from Mad Robot Miniatures that I've painted, when I can keep my brush steady in between coughing and sneezing