Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone - Lawmen 5 - 'And hey! Let's be careful out there.'

After finally graduating from the academy, officer Neo Reeves is ready to dispense justice, one electrified daystick bludgeoning at a time.

Officer Reeves is my second rookie, this time equipped with riot gear and a love of shouting 'DISPERSE!' while laying about him with that electro-baton.

Reeves was painted unassembled so I could get at that shield and helmet properly. The trick is to cover the contact points (Blutack is my buddy here) so no paint gets on them. Even primer can make a part not fit snug, and of course, you're just sticking paint to paint.

For Cyberpunk, these guys are pretty weathered. I like to think of them a bit like the put-upon cops of old Detroit in Robocop, hard-pressed and somewhat under-resourced.

That finishes my squad for now. I've enjoyed these guys, with some colours out of my comfort zone. There are eight members now, and as always, I'd love to add a few more. There are a couple more expansion boxes out there. But that's always the way, isn't it? No project is ever really finished. They'll be getting a run out in a couple of weeks with a group of good buddies.

After the brave souls of precinct 260, I'll be moving on to something a little more in line with the darkening days and the onset of Autumn. The knights are drawing in...

Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone - Lawmen 4

Another copper! Officer Smith joins the Lawmen today. Smith is a rookie, and is a Gonk class character. That is to say, something of a bullet sponge. I have some more Cyberpunk Red Combat Zone gaming coming up in September, so I want a pair of these newbs to add some extra entertainment value to the group. Cue lots of Robocop 'Does it huuuurt?' comments when my fresh-out-of-the-academy guys get riddled with gunfire.

Smith is a pretty detailed sculpt. I am NOT in love with the material he's cast in, Siocast, despite it's ability to hold detail. There were actually some quite badly miscast bits on this boy, and with Siocast being unfileable, there's only so much you can do with a razor-sharp scalpel. 

That said, I do like the sculpt itself. Smith looks like he's bitten off way more than he can chew here. That's not a scream of authority, that's terror.

As you can see, I'm playing with some new backgrounds colours, which I may or may not stick with. (Edit: Which I didn't. The black background messed with my lighting setup and poor Smith was hideously overexposed.)

So, one more cop to go, another Gonk, this time in the riot shield and baton variety. Until them, keep out of trouble citizens.

Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone - Lawmen 3

So! Lawmen for Cyberpunk Combat Zone ready to lay down the law. I've finished the final three members of the faction box, and they are ready to take to the table. Which they'll be doing in about a week.

I will be adding a couple of rookies, but for now, this is the crew. Overall, prepping these minis was a bit of a trial. Siocast responds only to super sharp scalpels. Files are no good, it just shreds the material. That said, once prepped, they were a lot of fun to paint. Especially Maximum Mike.

Maximum Mike is the faction leader. The sculpt is based on Mike Pondsmith, the man behind Cyberpunk. He makes a great looking veteran detective. 

I tried to give his jacket a vintage look, old, but comfy. I think it goes well with the dark jeans. His t-shirt echoes the colour of the officer's armour. (The armoured officer colour schemes are based on various police cars.)

In stark contrast to the casually dressed Mike, the sniper, officer J, is tooled up with all the toys. He is more lightly armoured than the others cops, but boy, does he have a lot of straps.

So many... straps...

Anyhow! Officer J had a mangled hand when I popped him out of the box, so I had to rustle up another. An Adeptus Mechanicus Skitarii, I think. I really like his featureless helmet (there are 3 options) and all them grenades. A lovely sculpt. Not too shabby in the game either.

Next up, my MVP, Sebastian the police dog. A total berserker when I tried him in the game, I gave him the German Shepherd treatment. I love dogs in gaming. I've painted guard dogs, skeleton dogs, zombie dogs, and now cyborg dogs. They are always fun. There's no prize for guessing what Cyberpunk character Sebastian gets his name from.

Sebastian and the K9 officer come as kind of a pair. They work well in the game, and I'm half thinking of adding another dog. 

Next up are a couple of rookies, gonks in the game. The are weak, but the mechanic for using them is really interesting, and something I want to try. Essentially they get a turn when everyone else is resetting their activations. After the rookies, it's a drastic change of theme to something a lot more... necrotic.

Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone - Lawmen 2

Two more Lawmen join the squad today. Sergeant Voight and Tactical Response officer Kampff join the NCPD in it's struggle against the lawless hordes of Night City. 

I'm half way to a playable faction now, though I fancy adding a few gonks (rookies) to the team once the main squad is done. Gonks give your squad some actions while you are refreshing the rest of your squads activations. 

Sergeant Voight and the Tactical officer both come from the main faction box. Nice sculpts, if very detailed. They've been painted in the same manner as the K9 officer, with slightly battered gear. 

Officer Kampff comes with a cool riot shield, but this did mean painting it separately and glueing it on later. The lugs looked a little shallow at the joins, so added some pins to the wrists for added durability. I dislike sub-assemblies, but sometimes you gotta. 

Many of the minis come with alternative heads, so I chose this nice gasmask and helmet number. It's not easy to see hiding behind that shield, but still, I know it's cool. 

Siocast isn't the easiest thing to file, cut, or pin, so I had to be extra careful when gluing the shield on. Gloves are a must to avoid greasing up the nice new paint job as you press the parts together.

See what I mean about that detail? So many pouches. That said, these are really nice minis, and though I've only played a couple of games of Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone, it's a lot of fun, with a very nice dice mechanic.

Next up, the sniper.

Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone - Lawmen 1

Good evening to you all out there on the internets. 

An upcoming gaming weekend has skewed my focus wildly. I've lain down the rusty musket and taken up the laser-sighted compact automatic. The game, Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone.The faction, Lawmen.

I do love me some Cyberpunk, but I've not done a lot of Cyberpunk gaming, so this was an opportunity to paint up a faction of future cops for the blasting of crims among the neon streets of Night City. This first test model is the K9 Handler, Officer Dekker.

These models are Siocast, which, while this material really holds detail well, it's a bit of an arse to clean up. Forget your files, it's a razor-sharp scalpel or nothing. Not really models for someone starting out in the hobby. Or even veterans of the short-tempered variety.

Once cleaned up and based, I must say, painting was a lot of fun. Despite all the detail, this copper was handy enough to paint up. I wasn't sure at all about a colour-scheme, so I borrowed a little from the card art and changed it up a bit here and there. I do like my weathering, so this guys gear has definitely seen some action. Basing was my typical urban style, some thin cork sheeting and my porridge mix, painted up as decaying concrete.

There are five more models in the starter box, so more cops soon. I've noticed there are several expansions for the Lawmen, so who knows where this will end...

Turnip28 - 5th Deathcap Line Infantry 2

Let's kick off the first post of 2025, with a gaggle of vegetable-infused infantry.

I've completed my first batch of Turnip28 fodder for my wee force. These fellows, the 5th Deathcap line, will be 12 strong when complete. As the biggest regiment in the force, I decided to tackle them first. Getting them done will be a nice mojo booster. 

Fungal Revenant

I used a few Turnip28 sets for these, alongside the fodder set. The brutes and mutations set, along with some other bits and pieces gave me a nice sandbox to build with. Which was ridiculously fun.

The fungal revenant above is the ultimate fate of every Deathcap line trooper. All the Deathcap are riddled with fungal infestation, and upon a soldier's death, the fungus proliferates. Through some bizarre symbiotic quirk, the fungus soon resurrects the corpse of the deceased. This infested shell then continues to fight with the regiment until such time as too many bits fall off. It's unsettling, but keeps the line filled. 

Private Inkcap Dover

As to painting, I was happy with my test model, so I used that scheme. The ribbons on the rifles, after a suggestion from a friend, I painted like soiled toiler paper. Poo-dirty Seals? Shit Ribbons? Diarrhetic pendants? The jury is still out.

Private Cep Hawthorne

Next up I think the regiment's captain might get some paint. He's more heavily converted and covered in dozens of parnsips. Like, dozens. Until then, what's that smell?

The socks crack me up.

Turnip28 - 5th Deathcap Line Infantry Tester

 It's been quiet on the Mumblings of late. I've been deep in the mud of Cyst, the setting for the eccentric, delightful game; Turnip28. A dystopian Napoleonic body horror wargame with vegetables. 

I've spent the last couple of months assembling a regiment of these curious folk. There's a heavy Jim Henson/Terry Gilliam vibe, which is a big draw for me. The official minis are all 3d prints, which I've combined with various other kits, Perry Napoleonics French and Agincourt sets in particular, to produce my little force of muddy malcontents. 

So, after an epic of sawing, gluing, kit-bashing and green-stuffing, the entire regiment is built and ready for the brush. Below is my first tester for a unit of fodder, private Thomas Buttoncap of the 5th Deathcap Line. 

Thomas is quite gaily attired, as you can see. A lot of the Turnip28 minis you see are doused in mud and grass, which isn't for me. I like the toy soldier aesthetic of Napoleonics, so I've chosen quite a vibrant uniform colour scheme and then weathered it down a bit. Most of the grime comes from his rusty metals. 

I'm painting the next batch of fodder at the moment, and I must say, the T28 minis are great fun to paint. Detailed, but that detail is easy to read and paint. 

More Turnip posts are inbound as the regiment progresses!

You can delve into the greasy world of Turnip 28 yourself by joining Max FitzGerald's Patreon. The rules are free and there are a lot of stls you can  download to print your own troops. you can order physical models at:

Shop: https://finura.dk/vare-kategori/models/turnip28/

UK Shop: https://www.haychdee.com/

MMF: https://www.myminifactory.com/object/3d-print-turnip28-captain-grod-405501

The new kickstarter, The Shattered Lance, starts soon. 

Get in that mud, you maggots.

Silver Bayonet - Baba Zoya

This dark Winter's eve I bring you Baba Zoya, grandmother to all the lost souls of Morozov's command.

A devoted sister to the great mother, Baba Yaga, Zoya is nonetheless a powerful witch in her own right. The souls of the dead vie to light her way to the Sabbath, such is their love of Baba Zoya, for she makes the crops ripen and the cows give milk, and her wrath can wither the flesh from the bones of the impudent and the unfaithful.

Baba Zoya travels with Morozov and tends to the souls of his retinue. Her soft whispers and potent salves can bring precious relief to the damned, and they would no more offer her disrespect than a man would curse his own family. She is as the bones of the land, and so from the highest vampire to the lowliest walking corpse, they defer to her in all things, and would shield her from harm with the last scrap of their withered flesh.

Baba Zoya is, for now, the final member of my Silver Bayonet squad. She was a bit of a tricky mini to paint, and despite her small size, required me to paint her in three pieces, her arms and cloak being painted separately. She is a Reaper Bones mini, and the detail was soft in places, requiring a little improvisation, but she came out well I think.

There are quite a few doodahs under that cloak. A bird, some manner of banjo(?), what looked like mathematical instruments, and other bits. None of which you can see now, once the cloak was glued in. I spent a great deal of time on her face, which I enjoyed immensely. She's a creepy looking gal. I can't but think of Hellboy when I see any Baba Yaga reference.

So that's that! I'm looking forward to playing some more games with a full squad. I may come back to paint a mounted undead Cossack in time, if the whim strikes me, but for now, Morozov and his creaky crew are ready to take to the haunted fields of 19th century Europe, and at the rate the expansions are coming out, far beyond.

Silver Bayonet - Serzhant Ursov's Bearform

On this most appropriate evening, I present Serzant Ursov's cadaverous were-form, the undead Russian bear. Amazing what niche rabbit holes you end of going down in this hobby.

The stinky giant is from Diehard Miniatures. He's a great sculpt, and has been lounging about morosely on my painting desk for months. He's big enough too, sitting on a 50mm base. I resolved to get him finished for Halloween, and lo, here he is.

Ursov's fur is drybrushing and thinned contrast paints, which is a very pleasant way to paint. Ratling Grime contrast makes for a great recess wash for mid-browns. Lots of red, purple and green washes on the flesh over a Rakharth Flesh basecoat, a Rakharth Flesh highlight, and the soggy bear flesh was done. The old exposed muscle was Khorne Red with purple, dark brown and red washes, highlighted with Khorne Red and a little Corax White. The usual bone recipe, some maggots and claws, and that was about it.

This fellow wraps up my my minimum required minis for my Russian Silver Bayonet squad. Huzzah! I have one more character I want to add for now though, and she'll be along presently.

Silver Bayonet - Serzhant Ursov

Good day to you all, I trust you're well? This day I have a strange fellow for you. Serzhant Ursov, undead shapechanger and hard-nosed (it's made of bone) sergeant. 

Ursov is a were-bear, and as soon as I read about this entry in the Silver Bayonet Russian list, I knew this was my guy. Technically an undead dogman from Flintloque's 666th foot box, he's just the ticket for my particularly eccentric unit. 

Trudging up the snow-laden hillside, the jerky, ungainly infantry were having a hard time of it. Though indefatigable, they were making slow progress as they stumbled and occasionally fell, vanishing into the white drifts with undignified puffs of snow.

Morozov would have been hugely entertained if it wasn't costing them so much time. They'd never make it to the forest by dawn at this rate. 

Near the base of the rise, Ursov sighed heavily as he righted a groaning private and barked orders at the flailing soldiers nearby. It was taking too long. Far too long. Desperate measures were called for. Handing his rifle and sword to his ensign, a sudden ripping sound exclaimed his drastic solution. 

Morozov's eyebrows raised slightly as he beheld the huge cadaverous bear bounding up the hillside, several zombified line infantry gripping it's flanks or simply riding on its back. A novel solution to be sure, but one that would see them make the cover of the forest eaves with time to spare. As the huge Ursa thundered past, Morozov was certain he heard one of the privates make a 'Wooo!' noise. 

Just the wind, he reassured himself.

The sculpt is surprisingly detailed, so took me EVEN LONGER than normal to paint. It does suffer from Bob Olley syndrome (and I love Olley sculpts) of wondering, is that bit a fold of cloth, or flesh, or billowing smoke. Or all three? I acquired a new love for the Contrast paint Garaghak's Sewer painting Ursov. Duly thinned with medium it makes for a fine weathering wash.

Finishing Ursov gives me, finally, a full unit. Almost. I still need the bear form for Ursov. 'Where will you get an undead bear, eh Dave?' Hah I would say to you. HAH. In this age of miniature abundance, undead bears are no challenge. It is on the painting desk as we speak. But, here is the final unit for your interwebby judgement.

Do svidaniya!

Silver Bayonet - Gunner Three

Another member of the unit rises from the cold Russian soil. Gunner three, my artillerist.

Three is another Flintloque miniature, this time from the Corpseov line artillery set. The set has quite a few crew, bit this guy, with his ramrod, (which doubles as a handy two-handed weapon) looked like the very fellow for the job.

Gunner Three had no memory of his former life, he was named for his function once raised to undeath, that of servicing the mighty cannon to which he and his companions were bound. To say he performed this function dutifully would be to give him too much credit. It was no more dutiful than a mill wheel turning. He had little awareness of the tasks he performed, and no sense of  the passage of time.

This was all to change one bitter morning as their line was raked by enemy fire. The baleful metal monster he and his fellows were slaved to took a direct hit, and as it was blasted to spinning shrapnel the grim hold it had exerted over its crew simply ceased. Along with many of the crew, it must be said.

Gunner Three was released from his fugue, his senses and thoughts boiling back up to fill his mind in a wave of renewed self-awareness. Skills long forgotten crept back into his remembrance, there to augment his now expert knowledge of artillery and explosives. Such a useful soldier was not left idle long, and soon he was sequestered to Morozov's retinue.

He never could remember his name though.

Once again, I dove into the historical internet ocean for info on the correct uniform for a Napoleonic artilleryman, and applied… elements of it to the artillerist’s ragged gear. 

For painting, I continue to work contrast into my style, especially on the skin. I’ve recently taken more to dry-brushing again, after listening to Byron from Atris Opus on The Painting Phase podcast. I really need some better dry brushes. Mine are a disgrace.

This guy brings me up to almost unit strength. One more character and they are good to go, though they have already seen action in reduced unit co-op games, which were excellent.

So, next up, the Russian were-bear!

Silver Bayonet - Rasputrid

Continuing on my Silver Bayonet buzz for the moment, I've finished another member of the squad. Morozov's second, the liche Rasputrid. I’m using him as a champion of faith in the game. 

Rasputrid is ostensibly under Morozov’s command, but in reality they are more partners serving a common cause. His knowledge of the esoteric is profound, and his great red book contains the accumulated knowledge of generations of masters of the arcane arts. He can call back undead soldiers that have suffered the most grievous damage, bone and sinew re-knitting as he extorts them to heroic feats in service to the Tzar. 

Rasputrid’s necromantic powers take the form of rousing oratory. Such is his fiery conviction that it can invigorate the dead and still the hearts of his enemies. Little wonder that Morozov places such worth in his counsel. 

For his part, Rasputrid sees great potential in the vampire, if he can reconcile his past and learn to tame his demons. 

Rasputrid is another Flintloque miniature, from the Deadloque set. (God damn I love that set.) Despite being mostly greatcoat, I’m very fond of this guy, and it was a treat to finally paint him.  

This brings the squad to six. I have two more to paint, the were-bear and the artillerist to bring the squad up to full strength. I do plan on adding a couple more though. Maybe a mounted Cossack or the Baba Yaga herself.  

Silver Bayonet - Oleg the Enduring

I've circled back around to my Silver Bayonet unit for this latest instalment. My Russians need a few more members before I can call them ready for action. So here we have a former Cossack ready to serve his undying master.

Oleg is another Flintloque sculpt from Alternative Armies. He's a charming wee fella, with his giant cuddly moustache. I looked over a few ideas for Cossack colour schemes for wee Oleg. Boy, they sure liked those vivid outfits. So, I gave him some fairly once-fancy colours, not least of all to contrast with his rather dour looking comrades. 

Oleg will probably be run as an irregular or light cavalryman in the game.

Oleg has served Morozov for some years, long before his current woeful condition befell him. Often sent of errands to far off locales to glean some scrap of information or token carried to him by other agents of the vampire, Oleg is an indefatigable horsemen, who, conveniently enough, rides an equally indefatigable horse. The long leagues he travels mean nothing to the undead Cossack, on the contrary, they still manage to generate a spark of joy and memory in his withered old soul as the wind whips through his still-magnificent moustache.

Stargrave - Loot Tokens

A small addition today. Some wee loot tokens I recently finished for Stargrave. Three physical, three data. These were used at the recent Stargrave weekend when my buddies and I pew-pewed our way across three days of sci-fi action. 

The Necromunda control panels are ideal data tokens, and I used one of Duncan's old GW videos for some tips on painting up the displays. I think it worked out pretty nicely.

The physical loot are a shrine, also from Necromunda, and two bits box builds of machinery doohickeys. Some drybrushing, washes, contrast paints, weathering, a green glaze for the physical, a red for the data, and that's them done!

Dress a Willy Sculpting Challenge

Something a little more unusual today. Back in March I came across the 'Dress a Willy' sculpting challenge on TheStillTower on instagram. Aside from the fact I was in a GorkaMorka adjacent mood, the idea of a naked, scrawny wee human toting gear taken from a dead grot made me chuckle something fierce. I contacted Pablo at TheStillTower and pleaded for a copy of wee Willy to convert and paint up. Pablo was very amiable and sent me on a copy right away.

One thing I liked when the mini arrived was that the resin support block he was attached to was sculpted as orky ruins and glyphs. Solid idea.

First off, one thing I was NOT doing was giving him any pants. It was far too hilarious leaving him flying free. Under the terms of the competition though, he had to be converted. even slightly. Here is the pile of Willie's ready to be posted. Ahem.

So, as you can see from the image at the top of the post, I added some orky shoulder pads and a shin guard. Some other folks went a lot further, such as the master convertor Axiom from Magpie and Old Lead. If you've not checked out Axiom's blog, do yourself a favour and wander on over.

For painting, I wanted wee Willy (giggle) to be a test model for an upcoming Digga mob for GorkaMorka. It's mostly natural materials, but the armour gets a little more zap with some dirty orange. I'm thinking of calling them the Sad Moons, as they want to be like the Bad Moons but can't paint yellow and have no cash.

I bet you weren't ready for that.

Sooo... in case you are a young whipper snapper, the joke is that Willy gets his gear from this guy:

Taken from the magnificent Leadplague, painted by Asslessman. Take a look at his gloriousness at the Leadplague blog. Bring snacks.

But didn't see fit to take his pants. Then again, I'm not sure I'd be brave enough to try on some grot underwear either. Some doors must stay shut.

Incidentally, TheStillTower also make absolutely sublime linocut prints, I have several in my basket. The ork sprue vinyl sticker is very fun. I wish I'd spotted this one in time:

Patriarch linocut print from TheStillTower

So what's next for Willy? I hear from Pablo a new mold is in the works and he's added more hands, another weapon, a squig and the body of a cetain looted grot. Take a look at the pics below. 

So, the story IS, our wee dead grot was playing his gameboy (gameboyz?) instead of watching out for humies and got a rock in the back of the head. 

I love it.