Two Film Noir Types from Gorgon Studios

“Midnight, in a city that knows how to keep its secrets …”.  Fans of  the old Prairie Home Companion radio show (I’m outing myself as an old here) will remember the well-trod opening line of each Guy Noir skit.    Certainly these two hard-boiled types seem to have stepped out of an old film noir movie.

These two 28mm sculpts are marketed by Gorgon Studios as a pair of OSS agents, though in truth they’re suitable for pulp and gangster games.  I grabbed them for my on again, mostly off again Weird War Two project when I purchased their British infantry in Norway 1940 figures to serve as interwar Canadians.    I don’t have an immediate plan for them, but but found them a pleasant diversion when painting a small legion of SYW Prussians.  The man is painted in Citadel blue contrast paint, and as I’m partial to blue suits, it looked ok with a nice striped tie.  My wife Joy advised me on the colours for the lady - a white hat with red jacket seems perfect.

 “Say, Biggsy, that’s one big city."

“Sure is, doll face.  Let’s start at this little gin joint I know over in Harlem.”  

Once again, I used a printed image inside my light box, and it worked a treat.

Cheers and blessings to your brushes.  

MP+

Canadian Troops for The Rockies Ablaze Project 2 - Specialists

Good evening friends.   Finishing up my last post on the Gorgon Studios minis which will make up my interwar/ear war Canadian platoon for an ongoing pulp projects.  Again, I have lots of praise for the Gorgon sculpts, los of detail and character, and the variety of specialist figures allows for a well rounded platoon with supports to be fielded.

Here a Bren gunner and his assistant get to wok in the snow.  The rifle of the assistant is separately cast, which is a nice touch.

 

Bren gunner and No. 2 moving, both in leather jerkins, which adds some variety to the rest of the sculpts in greatcoats.

 

Snipers/sharpshooters.

Sniper and spotter set up behind a snowy log.  Let’s hope they have silver bullets for that SMLE!

Forward observer with field telephone and map.

“Hello, I’d like to order a pizza delivered to the following grid reference."

Signaller team.  The fellow on the right carrying the No. 38 manpack wireless set doesn’t seem very happy.

Perhaps they’re calling HMCA Timber Wolf for pickup, or to send down some hot rum.

Major John Maynard holds his briar pipe and ponders while Platoon Warrant O’Malley chivies the lads forward.

Major Maynad consults with the local Mounties while his native guide looks on.

Thanks for looking.   Now that I have a significant number of minis finished for this project, I think I need to start gaming with them!

Blessings to your brushes!

MP

Canadian Troops For The Rockies Ablaze

I’m ridiculously happy to have finished this project, a platoon of troops for my late 1930s Rockies Ablaze pulp project.   I bought these minis from Gorgon Studios this spring and just finished painting them and finishing the winter bases.   My project assumes that the forces of good will need to call upon the Dominion of Canada for support, so I needed troops in winter coats with an early WW2 look. These sculpts would be at home in a Norway 1940 setting, but they serve nicely for Canadian troops in the late 1930s.  They could either be Permanent Force troops from Canada’s minuscule regular army in the 1930s (perhaps from the 1st Air Service Battalion, assigned to HMCA Timber Wolf) or more likely militia troops, possibly the Calgary Highlanders called out from Currie Barracks, which is almost in the foothills of the southern Rockies.  

 First section led by a sergeant with a Thompson.  He and some of his troops are wearing grey wooden gloves, which seems sensible.  As my dad used to say about his time in the army, there are no prizes for being uncomfortable.

Second section led by a corporal (far right).  

The paints used are mostly Vallejo, with a bit of wash and some basic highlighting, Buff on Canvas for the webbing, German Cam Brown Violet on English Uniform, and Citadel flesh paints.

Third section led by a fearless subaltern, who actually seems to know where he’s going.

On patrol.

 I’ll save the rest for another post, as this is getting a bit photo heavy.   Thanks for looking and blessings to your brushes!

MP

 

Cracking On With The Rockies Ablaze Project

Back in April (gosh, where did the time go?) I mentioned here that I was adding some more figures to my Pulp interwar project set in Western Canada, which I've dubbed The Rockies Ablaze.

Specifically, I wanted some figures to represent British/Commonwealth troops in winter dress, suitable for the late 1930s.  The closest I've come are a line of figures from Gorgon Studios, which seem designed for the Norway 1940 campaign.   I found Gorgon to be easy to deal with, the figures came promptly, and only required minimal cleaning up of flash.

I have about half of them on the workbench, competing with orcs and warg riders and a few other odds and ends, and am excited enough by my spasmodic progress to want to show them off.

The figures are easy to paint and have enough detail and character that they'll fit in well with the primarily Pulp Figures casts by Bob Murch.     I'll be putting them on winter bases, and they'll join my Mounties and sundry odd pulp characters in hunting for mad trappers, werewolves, bears and zeppelin troops.  

Oh, and did I mention that there is an airship being assembled, with some kitbashing from parts of a 1/72nd scale B17 model?

Exciting times here at the Mad Padre's Painting Chapel.

Stay vigilant, chaps.

MP

Revisiting My "Rockies Ablaze" Project

Longer ago than I care to remember, when this blog was a going concern, I took some steps towards starting a Pulp/Horror project set in western Canada, involving Mounties, moose, werewolves, and nefarious Zeppelin troopers.  My name for this madness was “The Rockies Ablaze.  Well, 2016 came and went, life and death and a new life all got in the way, but I am thinking about gaming again and want to revisit this project.

I noticed from my old posts on this project that back in 2015 I was racking my head trying to find some 28mm figures that would do for late 1930s Canadian Army, as you can’t have Nazi Zeppelintruppen roaming around western Canada, that just won’t do, and the Mounties may need some backup.  I was thinking several sections of Regulars would be required if I could find suitable figures in greatcoats/winter dress, and there don’t seem to be too many of those about.

Fortunately a fellow on the TooFatLardies Yahoo group kindly answered my query and pointed me to these chaps from Gorgon Studios, which I think may be an Australian outfit, but I’m not too sure.   Anyway, they do a line of British infantry, which seems to be intended for the 1940 Norway campaign, but these figures seem like they would serve as representatives of Canada’s minuscule prewar Permanent Force.

 

 

These fellows have the box respirator that interwar and early WW2 Commonwealth troops carried, so that works well.  It would be better if they were in nice warm fur hats, but I suppose some RMC martinet type has insisted that they all wear the regulation tin hats.   I have a reinforced section of riflemen plus command, a Bren and a sniper team, and some signallers ordered, so they should provide some effective support to my Mounties.

While I wait for them to arrive, I think I shall move those Bob Murch mad trappers back onto the painting table and get them done.   And there’s a model zeppelin to assemble.

Blessings to your plans!

MP+