Dissapointed in the lack of Hype for the release ACTA:SF
- Thread starter MarkDawg
- Start date
Iron Domokun
Mongoose
Ben2, I'd be up for the "tale of space gamers" thing. Maybe I'll do a diary on the Fed Comm boards, there's space for minis photos there...
I would like to say I hope you all at Mongoose don't think this was a post meant to attack you guys. I just want the buzz to be high for this game so we might see people play it and I want it to get big like all the people that tell wild eyed tales of how much the loved SFB. I never played SFB but I played a lot of SFCII and SFC3. I love Star Trek so I wish you all the best. I hope to see this game being played in a FLGS near you soon.
For what it's worth to the buzz building, Planet Mongoose now has a comparision of two Federation ships (including photos!!!).
To slightly hijack the thread to a paintinng issue - Im a lousy painter but always looking to see if I can do beeter with simple techniques but one escapes me with white paint.
The Fed ships in the Planet Mongoose mentioned have nice obvious black lines in the panel detail. How the heck do you do that? I mean with say a tank I can do base colour, dark wash and drybrush, or for some colours simply black undercoat and then drybrush on the top....but as soon as the main colour is white the whole thing falls flat on its face with either method if I try them.
Are those panel lines a matter of excruciatingly accurate panel by panel painting or is there a trick to it? Have I tried the right method both not quite got the knack of it for white paint?
Any suggestions welcome (unless attached to a half brick or the internet equivalent)
The Fed ships in the Planet Mongoose mentioned have nice obvious black lines in the panel detail. How the heck do you do that? I mean with say a tank I can do base colour, dark wash and drybrush, or for some colours simply black undercoat and then drybrush on the top....but as soon as the main colour is white the whole thing falls flat on its face with either method if I try them.
Are those panel lines a matter of excruciatingly accurate panel by panel painting or is there a trick to it? Have I tried the right method both not quite got the knack of it for white paint?
Any suggestions welcome (unless attached to a half brick or the internet equivalent)
Lincolnlog
Mongoose
Myrm,
I have painted brick miniature builins where I want the brick pattern to show, so I primed the mini in black. The problem with that on a mini-that is going to be white, it it's very hard to get white to cover black primer. Hmmm, this is going to require some experimentation.
Jean (delayed reponse),
No problem, the more gamers we get hooked, the more opponents will be available.
Bob
I have painted brick miniature builins where I want the brick pattern to show, so I primed the mini in black. The problem with that on a mini-that is going to be white, it it's very hard to get white to cover black primer. Hmmm, this is going to require some experimentation.
Jean (delayed reponse),
No problem, the more gamers we get hooked, the more opponents will be available.
Bob
Myrm said:
Fear not - I am a lazy painter myself, and there was no way I was going to spend hours on each ship painting those in, one by one!
We have an article in the rulebook which tells you how to get decent results in minutes (literally). And if I can do it, _anyone_ can do it!
I'd noticed the same black lines and am a bit concerned with regard to a comment made in the ACTA SF thread about excessively heavy panelling lines. Especially on a small ship like a Frigate, they can make it look like a collection of plates flying in loose formation! However, I also know from photos of other ships that some people like exaggerating the panelling lines, so maybe that is what is seen with the Frigate and Battle Frigate. Personally I'll do Fed ships in light grey, go over the lines in pencil, and perhaps try picking out windows in white. (Some pictures of the TOS Enterprise seem to show a few illuminated panels which can also be done white if the rest of the ship is light grey.)
The other problem with the little Frigate comes from the Ship Registry. Burke is alright, but other names include Stonewall Jackson, General Louis-Joseph Montcalm and Duke of Marlborough - they're bigger than the ship. :lol:
The other problem with the little Frigate comes from the Ship Registry. Burke is alright, but other names include Stonewall Jackson, General Louis-Joseph Montcalm and Duke of Marlborough - they're bigger than the ship. :lol:
Adrian: I have some Ivory and Offwhite vallejo paints standing by (I originally bought them for the 2400 minis) as well as various oranges, including the flourescent orange (the only time I've every found a use for it, except possibly fires) for the forward nacelle domes the ones on the pics look too red to me.
I know what you mean about those names though - my initial thought was to shrink the font, but then you can't read them... maybe they're shortened on the actual hull? USS Montcalm or USS Marleborough maybe? I think USS Stonewall Jackson may be doable though.
I know what you mean about those names though - my initial thought was to shrink the font, but then you can't read them... maybe they're shortened on the actual hull? USS Montcalm or USS Marleborough maybe? I think USS Stonewall Jackson may be doable though.
Ooooh... Painting issues! My favorite!
Lots of replies here:
@Myrm: That's an easy one. I wouldn't use black paint on a white mini, but maybe a medium to dark grey. If you think it with distilled water (until it's about the consistency of milk) and use a long brush, you can dip the brush into the thinned paint and then gently touch it to the recessed detail and the paint will seep into the grooves and flow a good distance. I've used this method to good efect on amny miniatures over the years. It takes a bit of practice, but once you get the hang of it... somthing this size will take 3 or 4 minutes (tops) for the whole saucer.
@AdrainH: Here's a photo of one of the early prototypes ADB had me paint for them. I didn't paint the panel lines at all on this miniature and as you can see, other than the occassional shadow hitting a recessed groove at just the right angle - it doesn't look all that bad.
I think the panel lines on these miniatures are gogint o be more a matter of taste than anythgin else. If you like them, paint them... if you don't like them, don't paint them.
@BFalcon:
Nacelle dome colors... The "official" ADB color guide for their Federation miniatures shows red as the correct color for the domes. I started painting my ST2200 minis with orange domes... then switched to a light red. Now I'm painting them mitrhil silver and then coverign that with Tamiya clear red. It gives them a bit of a metallic type glow when the lights hit them!
Hull Names: At least there's a bit of room on the ST2500s. I have some ADB frigates with abbreviated hull name decals just because the whole name won't fit.
Lots of replies here:
@Myrm: That's an easy one. I wouldn't use black paint on a white mini, but maybe a medium to dark grey. If you think it with distilled water (until it's about the consistency of milk) and use a long brush, you can dip the brush into the thinned paint and then gently touch it to the recessed detail and the paint will seep into the grooves and flow a good distance. I've used this method to good efect on amny miniatures over the years. It takes a bit of practice, but once you get the hang of it... somthing this size will take 3 or 4 minutes (tops) for the whole saucer.
@AdrainH: Here's a photo of one of the early prototypes ADB had me paint for them. I didn't paint the panel lines at all on this miniature and as you can see, other than the occassional shadow hitting a recessed groove at just the right angle - it doesn't look all that bad.
I think the panel lines on these miniatures are gogint o be more a matter of taste than anythgin else. If you like them, paint them... if you don't like them, don't paint them.
@BFalcon:
Nacelle dome colors... The "official" ADB color guide for their Federation miniatures shows red as the correct color for the domes. I started painting my ST2200 minis with orange domes... then switched to a light red. Now I'm painting them mitrhil silver and then coverign that with Tamiya clear red. It gives them a bit of a metallic type glow when the lights hit them!
Hull Names: At least there's a bit of room on the ST2500s. I have some ADB frigates with abbreviated hull name decals just because the whole name won't fit.
BFalcon said:
Our painters are split on this - some do the whole name, some just the last. Either is 'correct' though.
Iain McGhee
Mongoose
They PAINTED them on ? Yaaagh !, I was hoping those were decals 
I agree that painted lines are a matter of taste; some people like extremely visible lines, I'm not one of them. But engraved lines aren't a matter of choice, and those in that photo do look a bit excessive...scoutdad said:
Pictures I've seen of the Enterprise in TOS seem to show the domes pale and bright, possibly orange. The revised version seen in the DS9 episode "Trials and Tribble-ations" shows a deeper red. I'm sticking with TOS.
I may try fluorescent yellow dry-brushed with orange. (I've done something similar on my B5 Drazi ships which doesn't look too bad.)I was going by what's in the Ship Registry. Those names are listed in full, in contrast to the Frigate Sheridan and New Strike Cruiser Garibaldi. (It's a pity there are no official Sinclair or Ivanova. :lolmsprange said:
Democratus
Mongoose
Has ACTA ever had "build your own" rules before? I'm fair certain that ACTA: B5 did not.
Iron Domokun
Mongoose
This from the starfleetgames.com boards, in the "2012 schedule" topic:
For those not familiar with the Federation Commander titles mentioned: Orion Attack is pirates and police. Distant Kingdoms is Lyrans, WYN Cluster, Lyran Democratic Republic and Hydrans. War & Peace is ISC, Vudar, and Andromedan Invaders. Tholian Attack is Tholians and Seltorians.
Edited to add Oxford comma.
For those not familiar with the Federation Commander titles mentioned: Orion Attack is pirates and police. Distant Kingdoms is Lyrans, WYN Cluster, Lyran Democratic Republic and Hydrans. War & Peace is ISC, Vudar, and Andromedan Invaders. Tholian Attack is Tholians and Seltorians.
Edited to add Oxford comma.
