Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Fall 2014 Update...

My father is recovering from stomach cancer.  My mom is facing back surgery this coming month.  Needless to say, I'm not going to have much time to blog.  More important things have taken up my time.  But there is light at the end of the tunnel.  My parents should be in assisted living sometime next year.  The burden on me will be much less.

Here's what I've been able to get done this past month painting wise in no particular order:

1)  15mm Old Glory Dervish Ansar.  It was an experimental painting project for a friend of mine.  He'll have more figures for me to paint.  I focused on painting them two nights a week.  I'll stick to that method as I get more figures from him to paint.

2)  30mm WH40K Stormraven,  40K Deathwing Terminators, and WHFB High Elf Light Cavalry.  Those figures got sealed this weekend when I had the downtime to spray figures.  The weather has been bright and sunny.  I brought the figures in this evening.  I put them away before I thought about updating the gaming blog....

3)  30mm Warmachine Protectorate of Menoth figures:  12 Knights Examplars, 6 Choir of Menoth, 2 Vassals of Menoth, 1 Menoth Mechanic, 1 Menoth Solo, and 1 Piper of Ord Mercenary figure.  I plan on playing some Warmachine with a friend of mine tomorrow evening.  I don't know if I'll mix it up with the new figures or just do another Battle Box game.  Those figures are in my Sabol army Motor Pool bag I inherited with the army.  I need to get a proper Battlefoam bag for it and my Mercs army (when I have the money).

4)  28mm 1870 Bavarian Jager Battalion and 28mm Bavarian mounted infantry command.  The figures need to be flocked and sealed.  I'm not going to get them done in time for Command Con 2014, Friday, November 7, 2014 here in St. Louis, MO.  But I'll try and get another infantry regiment painted by the end of the month.

Here is what I've had on my work table:

1)  Assembling a 30mm Repenter Light Menoth Warjack from the plastic model.
2)  Assembling a 30mm Bastion Incinerator squad.
3)  Repaired a 30mm Knight Examplar figure.

I have lots more figures to prime and paint.  But they'll just have to wait until I get around to finishing my current project, like a 30mm GW Bane Blade kit (NIB)....

Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Review of Doc Savage: The Infernal Buddha

Author:  Kenneth Robeson (Will Murray).
Title:  Doc Savage:  The Infernal Buddha.
Publisher:  Altus Press.
Pages:  300.
Copyright:  2012.
Price:  $24.95 (US).

Overview:
Ghost writing under the the name of Kenneth Robeson, Will Murray has written some new Doc Savage adventures for Altus Press.

The Infernal Buddha involves Doc, Monk, Ham, and the gang in the waters of the South China Sea in 1936.  Someone has discovered a crystalline material that consumes water.  The object is carved in the shape of an infernal Buddha.  People soon use it as a weapon to kill each other.

I liked the pulp feel of the story.  I felt like I was reading an old Robeson story from Doc Savage Magazine.  Murray does a good job keeping the action flowing.  Much of the action is set around Singapore and the South China Sea.  Doc becomes a pirate in order to capture the infernal Buddha.

The whole concept of another otherworldly crystalline matter that consumes water is interesting.  It was the only thing I had to accept for my willing suspension of disbelief.  I would have liked a more scientific explanation of the macgruff.  Plot wise, it works for the story.

But the characters are believable as Doc, Monk, Ham, and Renny.  I read Doc Savage stories when I was an undergraduate in college.  It's been along time since I remember the "Man of Bronze's" exploits.  The new Doc Savage stories are worth reading for a pulp-buff.  The only complaint I have are the price of the books.