Imperial Borderer reinforcements - design sketches

Borderer Pigeoneer!

Life in the border lands of helot prime is usually a mundane agricultural existence. Pigeon breeding and racing is one of the most popular pastimes in the countryside (compared to the cities where the vicious guard dog cherub drones that roost in the spires of the churches of Tzar devour all other avian life).

In the occult war the Borderer's use pigeons as a means of cheap and easy communication or reconnaissance (with the appropriate photographic equipment attached).

Alternatively pigeons are also used as living controlled bombs. Cerebral interfaces are wired into the pigeon and an explosive charge is strapped to it's chest, and the controller is able to steer and guide the pigeon into enemy positions where it is finally detonated.

  

A medic and an officer:

Techno Communion - First look

These wont be cast – test sculpts only!

The Techno Communion is the front for a sinister Artificial Intelligence network that secretly controls the galaxy and drip feeds societies technology as a means of oppression, with a view to studying sentient races in 'free simulations' (constructed or fabricated realities and belief systems, maintained through lies and deceit).

Vat grown clones are created from the DNA of whatever race the machines need to interact with, and are used as the emissaries when contact must be made with the society being observed. The clones minds are controlled by a system of artificial religion which is reinforced by a strict caste system, controlled entirely by a secret fraternity of brotherhood within each caste.

The most common castes are below.

-The Menion, or Drones, are the diminutive worker bee's with lifespans of seven years.
-The Menikon, or Technicians, are a taller and more specialised and intelligent form of Drone.
-The Petarikon, or Ratings, are the enforcers and warriors with a lifespan of five years.
-The Danerikon, or Senior Ratings, are ratings who have had their lifespans prolonged and therefore grown more able in combat and knowledgeable of the universe. It is not unknown for Ratings or Senior Ratings to go rogue through trauma and or existential crisis.
-The Synaxarion, or Machine Speakers, are the communication nodes with the higher intelligences (a vast AI hub of thousands of levels means the biological clones never communicate directly with the central AI).

Techno Communion Paterikon

First Look - Fallen Dwarf Phalanx Regiment

Here's the first of the Fallen Dwarves – wielding shields and hand axes.

Originally I envisaged the staple weapon to be a halberd but the scale these are made at means the shafts would be extremely brittle in resin: back to the drawing board on that one!

Once I figure out how to get spear shafts to work I'll do a banner bearer and command squad.

Lots more to follow these basic troops...

Crossbow Regiment

Immortal Regiment (Two handed weapons – a short double ended halberd)

Dwarf Fire unit (A syphon styled napalm weapon along the lines of the historic 'Greek Fire').

Djinn – Four armed fire demons enthralled to the Dwarf sorcerers

Feral Centaurs – Dwarves twisted by the dark lord who live in the wilds, half bull, half Dwarf.

WIP - Half orc slave dollies

The Fallen Dwarves slaves - half orcs are wretched creatures with scabby flesh and rancid hair.

I might get some sci-fi mutants out of these dollies too!

First look – Imperial Borderer Grenadiers

Here's the first of the elite troopers of the Borderer army – the Grenadiers.

To maximise posing potential the torso's have been made separate for these guys, it's not my usual approach but I'll only be doing three leg poses and three different torso's (that's still 9 possible variants, before you start positioning the heads...).

Still one or two details to add on the armour but 99% done.

Aether Pirates – The Dwarf

This guy will be heading to Anvil for production: an Airship pirate crewman.

Do note he's an alien not a human dwarf, hence the three fingers! In the MOTN universe most aliens are part human, having intermingled at some point or actually through divergent evolution: they were once human.

Test Sculpts - Redcoats, Airship Marines, Imperial Besiegers

These are test sculpts using some of my stock parts, the miniatures here will never be cast but serve as the mock up's for future sculpts.

To the left: this is an amalgam of two future ranges! Take away the head gear and you will have the Airship Marines: slightly more 'tech' but still diesel punk. Keep the heads but imagine heavier long coats with studs and more basic armour and you will have the Imperial Besiegers – specialist in slow sieges and static defensive warfare. Rough, ready, and medieval retro!

To the right: the Redcoat's are a militia conscript army who garrison the titanic alpha cities of the Empire. (The Empire by the way worship a god known as the Tzar, and are led by an Empress). The Borderer's are the Empire's 'countryside' troops, compared to the Redcoats who are born, bred and drilled in urban warfare amongst the huge crumbling cities controlled by state police.