Vampifan's World of the Undead

Miss Vampirella August 2015 - Leslie Culton

This month's Vampirella model, Leslie Culton, has achieved something I did not think was possible. She has taken Vampirella's skimpy costume and made it even skimpier! I have been critical of the costumes worn by some of the models I've shown in the past and Leslie's home-made costume is not strictly accurate but I just can't bring myself to criticise it. I think it is quite outstanding and I salute Leslie's courage for wearing it in public. I have a lot of photos of Leslie. Indeed I have more of her than any other Vampirella model. So to pick out just one from so many to show here was not an easy task.

American born Leslie is a bit of an unusual model. Initially, purely a sci-fi fan (Doctor Who in particular), at the age of 12 she attended her first convention and a legend was born. Apart from her fascination for the whole sci-fi/comic book scene, Leslie discovered costumes! Over the next few years Live Action Role-Playing dominated her life, and then in the late 1990's she left Georgia and started a professional career. Over the years Leslie has probably been the longest lasting Vampirella model, almost as famous at the conventions as the official artists and models.

For three days last week I was without my computer as it had to be taken away to have its hard drive re-formatted. Yes, it was a major systems crash, but all is well again. I'm still using Windows 8.1 and thanks to saving everything on my external hard drive, I didn't lose anything. Always, always, always back up anything that is remotely important too you! So, if you were wondering why my blog post didn't appear last Wednesday that's the reason why.

My biggest gaming news of the month is that I recently bought the Dungeons and Dragons Castle Ravenloft Board Game. I stopped playing Dungeons and Dragons in the late 1980's and I honestly never expected to play it again. But a number of factors made this purchase such a necessity. First up, my good friend Stephen Gilbert, has been trying to persuade me to buy this game all year. He rates it (and its expansions) very highly. It was Steve who persuaded me to buy Arkham Horror, Super Dungeon Explore and A Touch of Evil, so I very much value his opinion. The second factor is that I have come to love solo board games like the ones mentioned, plus of course, Zombicide. Castle Ravenloft is designed to be played by one to five players, so that's a big plus point. But probably the main reason for buying it is the setting. Castle Ravenloft is ruled by a very powerful vampire called Count Strahd Von Zarovich and is populated by all manner of undead monsters and villains. Given my love of all things undead it was a no-brainer that I'd want to own this game at some point. Just last week Steve tried to persuade me once more to buy Castle Ravenloft. Earlier in the year his timing was bad as I had so many other irons in the fire but this time round his timing was perfect and I placed my order with the good folks from Amazon UK. Expect a full review of the game and the figures fairly soon.

In other gaming news I played my first game of the Arkham Horror board game and despite losing badly I very much enjoyed the experience. Arkham Horror shares a lot in common with A Touch Of Evil, which stood me in good stead for playing this Cthulhu Mythos based game. It took over five hours to play and quite a while to set up. Also, the game takes up a lot of table space. Game play is similar to A Touch Of Evil but far more detailed. I played with two investigator characters and they were doing well, managing to close five of the six dimensional gates required to win the game. But before they got anywhere near the sixth gate the Great Old One awoke and devoured them both with contemptuous ease. Of course, much of my playing time was spent referring to the rulebook, so hopefully, now that I know how the game plays future games should be shorter. It is definitely a game I can recommend if you are a fan of H.P. Lovecraft's Call of the Cthulhu or if you just fancy a fully engaging board game that you can immerse yourself in for hours at a time.

Finally, there was one other purchase that I made recently that filled me with great joy and delight - a life-size cardboard cut-out of Vampirella. She stands 6 feet (182cm) tall, which makes her taller than me. I took a couple of photos of her outside on the patio of my back garden. First, by herself and then with me standing alongside her. She now has pride of place in my man cave.

Long live Vampirella!

I leave you with a bonus picture of Leslie Culton showing off her ample charms and how incredibly daring her costume is! This photo was taken at a comics convention, which just goes to show how much bottle she has to appear in public dressed like that. Leslie, I salute you. Part of me wishes I was there with her but another part (my devil half) asks, would I be able to keep my hands off her?

Vampirella and Vampifan aka Beauty and the Beast.

Leslie Culton just about bares all. Oh, my God! Sheer perfection!

One of the free stretch goals I received for backing season 3 of Zombicide was a set of two barricades. These are, at present, the only scenery items specifically designed for Zombicide. Barricades were introduced to Zombicide in the season 2 expansion set, Toxic City Mall. Barricades are represented in the game by double-sided tokens indicating their two states - "incomplete" and "complete".
To start building a barricade, a single Survivor spends 3 Actions at once. Place a barricade token, with its "incomplete" face showing, over a straight border of the Zone the Survivor stands in. An incomplete barricade has no effect on the game.
To complete a barricade, one Survivor may select an "incomplete" barricade on a border of the Zone he is standing in and spends 3 Actions at once. He then flips the token over to the "complete" side or replaces the token with one of the 3D barricades shown here.
A barricade can be completed in a single Turn if two Survivors spend 3 Actions each. The first Survivor spends 3 Actions to start it, then the second Survivor spends 3 actions to complete it. Note that all survivors who took part in the construction of the barricade earns 5 experience points. Also note that "Free" Actions can't be spent to build or finish a barricade.

Here's how barricades work in Zombicide -
1. Adjacent Zones are set apart if their common border is fully blocked by any combination of walls and barricades. Half street Zones and doors only need one complete barricade to be blocked, but a mall double door and standard street Zones need two complete barricade tokens to be blocked. A single barricade in a Zone that needs two has no effect.
2. Barricades can't be crossed but don't block line of sight. You can shoot over them and Zombies can see over barricades.
3. Complete barricades aren't considered doors for spawning. They don't isolate rooms from the rest of the building.
4. A Survivor can entirely break a barricade in the same way he could open a door. He still needs to have a door-opening weapon (Axe, Chainsaw, etc.) in hand to do so.
5. Whenever Zombies get an extra Activation (because of a card, miniatures lacking or another game effect), remove all barricade tokens from Zones where at least one Zombie of the indicated type stands. These Zombies spend their entire Activation to destroy the barricade, even if they have several Actions to spend. If a Runner gets an extra Activation that moves him into a Zone with a barricade on his first Activation, he'll use his second Activation to destroy the barricade.
6. The Zombies follow the shortest route to the noisiest Zone or visible Survivor, as if there was no barricade, though complete barricades will still stop them. They pile there until a shorter path is defined or the barricade is destroyed.

I have placed my figure of Vampifan in my two photos to give a sense of scale to the barricades. Both are identical sculpts but have been painted differently. The barricades have been constructed from a wide variety of items including barrels, corrugated metal, girders, jerry cans, metal panels, sand bags, wooden planks, wooden tables, etc. They have been topped by a pair of old mattresses. Sadly, these barricades have not been put on general sale but I have seen a few for sale on eBay. The beauty of these scenery items is that they can be used in so many games, not just Zombicide.

There are days in a gamer's life that stand out as being truly memorable. For me, such days usually involve the arrival of a big parcel. Earlier this year (in March, in fact), I received my Kickstarter parcel of Zombicide Season 3 goodies (see here ). That was truly a red letter day. A few days ago I had another very special day when this huge box to the left of here arrived. The fact that it has "Rum & Bones - KS" printed on one side was a massive give away to what lay inside. It was my Kickstarter parcel for the Rum & Bones board-game. I backed this project in December of 2014 and have been waiting patiently for it to arrive ever since. To give you some idea of how big that box is, I placed a 12" ruler alongside it. The box was huge... and heavy! I couldn't wait to open it up and see what was inside, even though I knew what to expect. It is one thing to see a product on screen but quite different to see it in the flesh.

I had cleared my dining room table to give me plenty of space to lay out everything from inside the big box and it was just as well I had, as the table was covered with boxes and packages. This photo to the right shows everything I ordered and I just about ordered everything that was available for the game. The only items I missed out on were a few of the different coloured dice sets, but I didn't feel the need for lots more dice, so that was no big deal. Standing at the top of this photo is the main boxed set flanked on either side by the two expansion sets - Mazu's Dreadful Curse and La Brise Sanguine.

Rum & Bones involves a sea battle between a group of undead pirates known as the Bone Devils and a group of human pirates known as the Wellsport Brotherhood. The base set comes with two game boards showing a large galleon for each side along with 35mm scale figures of 5 heroes, 6 bosuns and 24 deckhands per side, plus cards, counters and full-colour rulebook. The photo to the left shows two boxes containing three figures of extra heroes for each of the Bone Devils and the Wellsport Brotherhood. The hero figures are colour-coded according to their role in the game - Brute (green), Captain (white), Gunner (purple), Quartermaster (red) or Swashbuckler (yellow). These roles confer differing abilities and special rules.

To the right of here are four small boxes, each containing figures of three heroes. Two of the boxes contain Mercenary heroes. Mercenaries can be hired by any of the four factions in the game. The other two boxes contain extra heroes for La Brise Sanguine (translation - the Bloody Breeze), a group of French pirates, and for Mazu's Dreadful Curse, a group of Chinese pirates. La Brise Sanguine pirates use two mid-sized galleons instead of the larger galleons used by the two main factions. However, the pirates of Mazu's Dreadful Curse use a trio of small junks for their raids on the other factions. Full rules, crew figures, cards, counters plus the game boards of their vessels are provided in the big expansion boxes for the two new factions.

To the left of here are three more boxes of Mercenary figures. The upper two contain five figures each and the one at centre right has three figures. Note that the Helrokkers are a Mercenary group of four musicians plus their manager. They are my least favourite set of figures but I still wanted them anyway. The box at centre left contains a figure of a Sea Dragon rising from the sea and nine tentacles that belong to the deadly Kraken. These two monsters are a constant threat to all factions that can appear in the game at almost any time. At the bottom of the photo, from left to right, are a deck of cards to be used by a Mercenary faction, a set of 50 plastic gold coins to be used instead of, or as well as, the card coins that come with the basic set, and finally, a figure of Madeline Tyler, a Brute belonging to La Brise Sanguine, plus her ID card.

In the photo to the right of here are two more boxes of five Mercenary figures each. The top one is labelled Luck Goddesses and as their name suggests, they are all females. The idea of an all female pirate crew certainly appeals to me. The other Mercenary set are the Skull Kickers. They are a mixed sex group of adventurers from an action/comedy comic series produced by Image Comics. I'd never heard of them before but they look rather cool, so I ordered them. Below the two boxed sets are a figure of Nemo the Lost, a Quartermaster belonging to Mazu's Dreadful Curse, along with his ID card, a set of six black dice (to go with the eight black dice that come with the basic set), and finally, a pair of deck guns.

I'm sure you'll all agree that is quite a haul of treasure and I couldn't be happier. I can't wait to play a few games. I'd love to be able to say that I'll be painting the figures very soon but sadly they must join a rather long queue of unpainted figures. They will get painted eventually, but don't ask me when. The fact that the figures in these sets are 35mm scale may put some of you off but for me size doesn't matter as I can't envisage myself using these figures in any other game. For many, many years I have wanted to own a set of pirate figures to use in a skirmish game. Rum & Bones satisfies that desire admirably and I know that I'll get many years of enjoyment from this swashbuckling game.

When my computer died a couple of weeks ago I had a load of free time on my hands. One of the things I did whilst my computer was being repaired was take lots of photos. A few years ago, an American-based figures company, Victory Force, had a sale on in which you could buy a horde of 100 28mm scale zombie miniatures. I forget how much they were but I bought them, painted them and never got round to photographing them. Shame on me! Well, that oversight on my part has been rectified and over the next few weeks I'm going to showcase my complete Victory Force zombie horde.
I'll tell you right now that these are not the best sculpted zombies you'll see. They are rather crude when compared to the likes of Studio Minis or Zombicide's zombies. Also, no pun intended, they are rather lifeless as they lack animation and appear very static. But this doesn't bother me. These figures are meant to represent a horde. They are not meant to be personality zombies (although thanks to my paintwork, some most certainly are personalities!). As horde zombies they work very well. Put your best looking zombies from other ranges in front of them, sit back and say, "yes, now that's what I call a horde!" Let's take a look at the first twenty. In this zombie horde the males outnumber the females by three to one. I have tried to group them so each set of five share a common theme. For the most part this tactic works well.

I start with a group of five female zombies whom I have designated as the Mums. Mum 1, at the far left is of African/American descent. She was stabbed in the stomach, which she clutches with her right hand.
Mum 2 is another African//American. Her brightly coloured blouse has been stained with blood from a bite to her neck. She was also bitten in the lower right leg.
Mum 3 worked as a secretary before a zombie bit her in the left shoulder and transformed her into one of the walking dead. She was a bit of a rebel, having dyed her hair bright red and shaved her hair from around her ears.

Mum 4 is the oldest of the group as noted by her greying hair. Her left hand has been chopped off, leaving her to die of blood loss.
Mum 5, at the far right, has broken her left arm at the elbow, which is why it hangs at an odd angle. Blood smears around her mouth indicate she has been feeding recently.

My first group of male zombies are the Hoodies. Hoodie 1, at the far left, is wearing a Onesie and a green and yellow scarf. He has been shot in the centre of his chest. His right hand is covered in blood.
Hoodie 2 is also wearing a Onesie and a scarf. He has a bite on the side of his right thigh and both of his hands are smeared with blood.

Hoodies 3 and 4 wear short sleeved hoodie tops and matching tracksuit bottoms. Hoodie 3 has lost his left arm at the elbow, whilst Hoodie 4 has a massive wound to his stomach, which he clutches with one hand. Hoodie 3 is a Caucasian, whilst Hoodie 4 is an African/American.
Finally, Hoodie 5 is an African/American who wears a black hoodie over a red sweatshirt. He got shot in the centre of his chest

My next group are the Biker zombies. Biker 1 is an aged gang leader and sports a mighty impressive moustache and a shock of white hair. He was stabbed in the upper chest and a bite has been taken from the back of his head but has not penetrated the skull.
Biker 2 is a muscular African/American, who has also been stabbed in the upper chest and presumably bled to death.
Biker 3 is another aged biker. He is clearly overweight and has been clawed across his stomach, bitten in the right leg and bitten in the right arm.

Biker 4 appears to be the youngest of the group and he has died hard. His right arm has been severed just below the elbow. He has a couple of bite wounds on his left arm and a bite wound next to his groin.
Biker 5 is the only one wearing a leather jacket. He has also lost his right arm just below the elbow.

My third group of zombie males are the Negroes (I hope that is not an offensive term any more). At the far left is a blue-collar worker African/American who was bitten in the upper right arm.
Negro 2 was an office worker who suffered a small cut to his right thigh and a large bite to his left thigh. His hands are smeared with blood and blood around his mouth and neck suggests he has been feeding recently.
Negro 3 was another office worker. He died of blood loss when his right arm was torn off at the elbow.

Negro 4 wears a sweatshirt bearing a four-leafed clover to honour the Mayhem City St. Patrick's Day celebrations. He has been bitten twice in his left thigh. His hands are covered in blood as he futilely tried to stem the blood loss.
Negro 5 is dressed in smart casual clothing and has suffered a massive bite wound to his left thigh, which has bled profusely.

Here are my second batch of 20 zombies from the Victory Force Zombie Horde 1. Horde 1 consists purely of civilians. A second horde of 100 is made up of various first responders. I have them but I have not painted them yet.

This group of five female zombies are all wearing skirts or dresses so I have named them the Skirts. At the far left is Skirt 1, who has been bitten in the right arm. The wound is not noticeable from the front but is clearly visible from behind.
Skirt 2 is another bottle blonde and she has lost her left hand. I do like her patterned skirt, which I copied from a clothing catalogue.

Skirt 3 is a young African/American woman who has had her throat cut. She is leaning forward so appears to be smaller than she should be.
Skirt 4 has been bitten in the left shoulder. Note that she still has her handbag hanging from her right shoulder.
Mousey-haired Skirt 5 had her right eye gouged out. She wears a full dress instead of a skirt but still fits in well with this group.

This group of gentlemen are all wearing suits, hence I have called them the Suits. At the far left, Suit 1 was an office worker. He still wears his ID badge on his left breast. He has lost his right arm below the elbow and has been bitten in the upper left leg.
Suit 2 is formally attired in dinner-wear. He suffers no obvious wound but his left hand is smeared in blood, presumably, not his own.
Suit 3 is more casually dressed, but is still smart. He also has no obvious wounds, but blood around his mouth has dribbled down, suggesting he has recently fed on a hapless victim.

Suit 4 looks like an archetypal Northerner, and by that I mean the North of England. There is not a single mark on him and other than his blank eyes you could easily mistake him for being alive. Not all of my zombies are covered in gore!
Suit 5 is the same figure minus the flat cap and his right arm. You'll find in this horde duplicate figures that look identical at first glance but differ in some small way.

My next group of five male zombies all wear smart casual clothing so I named them the Casuals. Casual 1, at the far left of the group, has had his right arm severed at the shoulder and has been bitten in the lower right leg.
Casual 2 has been bitten in the right shoulder and the lower right leg.
Casual 3 wears a brown jacket over a white T-shirt. He has been bitten in both thighs and has been shot in the lower back.

Casual 4 is an elderly Jewish man. Note the skull cap on the back of his head denoting his faith. He has suffered a severe stomach wound and both his hands are being used to keep his guts from spilling out. Seeing as he is now a zombie I don't know why he is bothering.
Casual 5 is a young man who has been slashed across his chest and bitten in his lower right leg. Blood covers his hands and lower face.

The final group of male zombies are old enough to have retired from the workforce, so I named them the OAPs (Old Aged Pensioners). White-haired OAP 1 has had his left cheek bitten off.
OAP 2 has been shot in the heart by a low-calibre bullet as it has not exited from his back.
OAP 3 has suffered a similar fate, only he has been shot in the stomach.

Bald OAP 4 has a cut to the back of his head. The blood around his mouth came from a victim he has fed on.
OAP 5 has been shot in the stomach. He wears glasses, which have been knocked askew and now only cover one eye. That is an interesting and unusual feature.

I reach the halfway point of my review of 100 Victory Force zombies from their first zombie horde set. As usual, this batch of 20 figures features 5 female zombies and 15 male zombies organised into appropriate groups.

This group of five female zombies are all wearing pants, so I have named them the Pants. At the far left, Pants 1 is wearing a T-shirt with a picture of a Silver Persian cat, who looks remarkably similar to one of my own cats that I used to own. Coincidence? No way! She has been bitten twice in the upper right leg and her hands are smeared with blood.
Pants 2 suffers no obvious wounds but blood on her hands and around her mouth, neck and chest suggests she has been feeding.
The logo on the sweatshirt of Pants 3 reads, "Elle", which is French for "She". She has been bitten in multiple places - the right shoulder and both legs.

Pants 4 and 5 are almost identical sculpts but they do have slight alterations. Pants 4 has longer hair and has lost her right hand.
Pants 5 has short non-natural blonde hair and is mostly intact apart from a bite to her right shoulder. Both women wear sweatshirts, jogging pants and trainers and both have a "bum-bag" fitted around their waists. I believe Americans call them "fanny-packs". When I was holidaying in America, I found my "bum-bag" incredibly useful and convenient. Like these women, I wore mine at the front to make it harder for pickpockets to access.

This group of five male zombies have been grouped together because they are all wearing jumpers, so I named them the Jumpers. Starting at the far left, Jumper 1 is a young teen who has been bitten in the left thigh. He has fed recently as blood has dribbled from his mouth down his chin onto his chest.
Jumper 2 is another recently fed zombie. He has had a large chunk of flesh bitten from the side of his left thigh.

Jumper 3 has quite a beer belly on him and appears rather small. His left arm has been severed at the shoulder.
Jumper 4 is leaning forward. He has had his right arm severed at the shoulder and bled to death.
Jumper 5 was stabbed in the stomach and then bitten in the right thigh before he could find medical assistance. Tough luck!

This next group could also be called the Jumpers but for variety's sake I'm calling them the Sweatshirts. Going from left to right, Sweatshirt 1 sustained a gunshot wound to his right side and a knife cut to the left side of his neck. Either one could have killed him.
Sweatshirt 2 was bitten in the left shoulder and has scraped his knees badly enough to make them bleed.
Sweatshirt 3 is a young teenager with a vicious bite wound to his right thigh. Blood dribbles from his mouth onto his red sweatshirt.

Any similarity between Sweatshirt 4 and Wally (or Waldo if you're in America) of the "Where's Wally?" book fame is purely coincidental. Besides which, his hat is all wrong for Wally and he's not wearing his trademarked glasses. He died from a zombie bite to his right shoulder.
Sweatshirt 5 used to work as a store assistant. He still has his ID tag pinned to his chest. He has minor wounds to his right leg and his left shoulder and a deep bite wound on his left leg.

This group of zombies all sustained appalling wounds and for that reason I have named them the Wounded. Suffice to say, they were a lot of fun to paint.
Wounded 1, at the far left, had his right arm severed at the shoulder. In addition, he was shot in the heart and suffered a severe bite wound to his right thigh.
Wounded 2 lost his right arm just above the elbow. His right leg is a gory mess as a massive chunk was taken from his inner thigh, which severed his femoral artery.
Wounded 3 has had most of his internal organs removed from a massive hole in his stomach. It looks like some zombies fed well from him!

Wounded 4 would be classed as a zombie crawler. His left leg has been severed just below the knee and his left arm was severed at the shoulder.
Wounded 5 was an army veteran who lost both his legs when he was caught in the blast zone of an Improvised Explosive Device in the recent war in Afghanistan. Pensioned out of the army he ended up on the streets of Mayhem City as a beggar. The placard around his neck reads "Homeless and Hungry". (I didn't paint it on but used a fine-nibbed Rotring pen to write it on.) He had no chance of escaping the zombies when the apocalypse began. His throat was ripped out, ending his life of suffering.

Here is the fourth of my five posts reviewing the first Zombie Horde set of 100 28mm scale figures from Victory Force. As usual, I have grouped these 20 figures into four batches of five figures, starting with the females. Let's see what's on offer this time.

The one thing that these five female zombies have in common is that they are all wearing miniskirts, so I named them the Minis. At the far left of my first two photos is a young woman wearing her LBD, which, of course, stands for Little Black Dress. Her left arm was ripped off at the shoulder, resulting in massive blood loss.
Mini 2 is like a negative version of Mini 1 - white shoes instead of black, white dress instead of black and blonde hair instead of black. She was bitten in the left cheek, upper right arm and twice in the back of her left leg.

Mini 3 and Mini 4 are very similar sculpts with just a couple of changes. Both women were office workers and were dressed smartly. Mini 3, in the beige suit, suffered from a zombie bite to her right shoulder. Mini 4 has had a head swap and her right arm is extended instead of clutching her stomach. She was also bitten in the right shoulder, but also in the crease of her elbow.
Mini 5 has doubled up, as if in pain, which is unlikely as zombies don't usually feel pain. Her right hand is stuffed into a large hole in her stomach. I must admit that she is a very unusual sculpt.

This group of male zombies are a mixed bag that ended up being grouped together because I couldn't find anywhere else to place them. For identification purposes they are known as the Mixers.
Mixer 1, at far left, is striding forward in a pose more animated than most. He wears a blue and white sweatshirt. His hair is almost white, making him look very aged. He was bitten in the right shoulder, has two cuts to the right side of his head and a bite wound to the left side of his torso.
Mixer 2 has been savagely attacked on his left side. He was shot in the heart, had his left arm severed at the shoulder and was bitten in the outer side of his left thigh and in his lower left leg.

Mixer 3 had his left arm ripped off at the elbow and was bitten in both legs.
Mixer 4, along with Mixers 2 and 3, wears a T-shirt. Most of the flesh from his lower legs has been chewed off.
Mixer 5 wears a lilac-coloured shirt. What makes him stand out from the crowd is his prosthetic lower right leg, which is extremely rare to see on a miniature figure. He died of blood loss and shock when his right arm was ripped apart and severed at the elbow.

This next group are five more males wearing T-shirts. T-shirts are far and away the most common item of clothing amongst this zombie horde. Although I like how I have painted them, they just didn't make it into my elite T-shirt group, which I'll show next time.
At the far left, T-Shirt 1 is an African/American gent wearing a plain blue-grey T-shirt over a white sweatshirt. He has been shot multiple times in the chest.
T-Shirt 2 has had his stomach ripped open and most of his internal organs removed by a bunch of flesh-hungry zombies. You can see his spine appearing at the back of his gaping wound.

T-Shirt 3 wears a T-shirt with the logo "It's a Bug's Life" simply because he reminded me of George McGavin, the British entomologist and TV presenter. I painted his head to look like George. He has been bitten in both lower legs.
T-Shirt 4 is the same figure with ahead swap and a replaced bite wound in his right leg. I honestly can't remember what the logo on his T-shirt is meant to be. I just know that I copied it from a fashion catalogue.
Judging by the T-shirt worn by the zombie at far right, he must have been a fan of DC Comics' the Flash. His right arm was chopped off, he was shot in the left side of his torso and he was bitten in both lower legs.

The final group of male zombies up for review in this post are all walking, so obviously, I have called them the Walkers. Walker 1 was a surly teenager wearing his FTW T-shirt, which I'll leave to you to decide what it stands for as it has numerous definitions. He has been shot in the back.
Walker 2 wears a military uniform from WW2, so he's probably a re-enactor. A chunk of flesh has been bitten from his left cheek.

Walker 3 is a balding gent of advanced years. He has a small bite wound on the inner side of his right arm, which is barely noticeable.
Walker 4 is the same figure with a head swap and a repositioned right arm. He has been bitten in the right side of his face and on his right leg.
Walker 5, in his cream-coloured suit, was once an office worker. He has no obvious wounds but has blood around his mouth, neck and upper chest, indicating that he has been feeding on a victim.

And so I come to the last of my five reviews of the Victory Force Zombie Horde set 1 of 100 28mm scale figures. I have deliberately kept the best till last, so enjoy!

This group of ladies are known as the Posh Totty as most are dressed in evening wear. At the far left of the first two photos is Posh Totty 1, who has had her left arm chewed off at the elbow and received a shotgun blast to her left thigh.
Posh Totty 2 is the same sculpt with a few modifications. Her left arm is intact, as is her dress. She wears a light blue patterned wrap around her shoulders and a diamond tiara on her head. She has suffered a bite wound to her right shoulder.

Posh Totty 3 wears a metallic blue dress with a large gold necklace. She was bitten in the left arm, shot in the stomach and has blood pouring from her mouth.
Posh Totty 4 wears a long black dress with a gold necklace. Unluckily for her she has had both arms bitten, chewed or hacked off above the elbows.
Finally, Posh Totty 5 is less formally dressed in a patterned purple dress. She has sustained a massive bite wound to her right thigh and has been shot in the right arm.

This group of male zombies are my Sports Fans. Sports Fan 1, at far left, was painted as an elderly Caribbean gentleman. I planned on giving him a colourful tropical shirt and shorts and so primed his clothing in white. When I looked at him I suddenly realised he'd do as a tennis player instead, so he ended up very different to what I had originally planned for him. He has been shot in the chest and has had his left arm blown off by a shotgun.
Sports Fan 2 is a baseball player of African/American origin. I know very little about baseball and just chose a colour scheme that I thought suited him. If it is the colours of an actual team then that is a pure coincidence. He has been gut-shot.

Sports Fan 3 is a Brit tourist to Mayhem City. I am not in the least bit interested in any sports. I find them all incredibly boring. However, I was born in Newcastle Upon Tyne, so I wanted to paint this guy up as a Newcastle United supporter. He is balding, fat and wears his shorts at half-mast to show off his bum crack. His right hand is covering up a gunshot wound to his chest. He also has a big bruise on the back of his head, probably sustained from a fall.
Sports Fan 4 was a young thug from the slums. He wears trainers, tracksuit and a Burberry cap worn backwards, which instantly identify him as lowlife scum. He has been bitten in the right arm.
Sports Fan 5 was a member of a marching band who frequently performed at sporting events. He suffered multiple gunshot wounds to his chest, right arm and right leg after becoming a zombie - hence the lack of blood. So how did he die? Heart attack, most likely.

This next group is a mixed bag but seeing as most of them are hospital patients I decided to call them the Patients.
Patient 1 has his right arm in a sling and has bandages around his head and left eye. Some blood has seeped through both sets of bandages. Most likely he sustained his wounds from a zombie and he turned undead after he had been treated.
Patient 2 is the same figure but was caught by the zombies after he had visited the hospital. The centre part of his right arm has been bitten off, leaving him with a stump below the shoulder and a hand held in place by his sling. He also has a small bite on his left arm.
Patient 3 still wears his hospital gown and so was obviously caught in a hospital at the start of the zombie outbreak. His gown is covered in blood, which is not all his. His one wound is a bite to the right cheek of his bottom. Bummer, huh?!

Patient 4 was an aged restaurant chef who died from multiple gunshot wounds to his torso. Someone really had it in for him.
Patient 5 is certainly one of my goriest zombies. He died very messily from a huge bite to his neck, which also looks to have been snapped, his left arm was severed at the shoulder, right arm severed at the elbow, he has a gunshot wound to the centre of the chest and bite wounds to both legs. Goretastic!

And so I finally come to my last five zombies in this set and because I have kept the best till last I had to call them the Elites. Elite 1, seen at the far left, was a Star Trek fan and wears a replica uniform from Star Trek: the Next Generation. He got shot in the heart. Sadly, his badge did not protect him.
Elite 2 is my favourite figure from this range simply because of the amount of time and effort I put into painting his Jaws T-shirt. Oh, and he has some awesome wounds, which I always love painting! He has lost both his arms at the shoulder and has large bite wounds to both legs, none of which were caused by a great white shark!

Elite 3 is my second favourite zombie figure from this range because who doesn't like SpongeBob SquarePants? This is actually the same figure as the Newcastle United fan shown above, except for his missing arms, which were ripped off at the shoulders, leaving him to bleed to death. He also has a wound to the top of his head.
Elite 4 wears a sweatshirt sporting the Batman logo. He has been slashed across the throat. He was the first figure that I finished painting from this set.
Elite 5 wears a Dub Step sweatshirt, which apparently is a form of electronic dance music that originated in South London, England. No, I'm not a fan of it. I simply copied the logo from a fashion catalogue. This chubby gent was bitten in the left side of his neck.

Without doubt, the hardest part of painting these figures was coming up with colour schemes. Once I'd settled on a scheme, the actual painting was relatively straightforward. I painted them in batches of 20 figures at a time but not in the same order as I've shown in these five posts. The Victory Force Zombie Horde set 2 should be a lot easier to paint because most of them are first responders with clearly defined uniforms. There are some more civilians amongst them but most are police patrolmen, firemen, doctors, soldiers and hospital patients. I bought both sets in Victory Force's introductory sale at a very reasonable price. Both horde sets containing 100 figures are still available for sale from their web-store but cost $250.00 each, which is a lot of money for some very averagely sculpted figures.

Here's a question for you to ponder. What is the largest figure you have in your collection? Just a couple of days ago I received my largest figure. It is a 1/4 scale Sideshow Collectibles Premium Edition Statue of Vampirella. She stands 16" (41cm) tall from the soles of her feet to the top of her head or 22" (56cm) tall if measured from the bottom of her base to the top of her head. When I first saw the announcement that Sideshow Collectibles were making a new statue of Vampirella I knew I had to have her. The photo to the left was taken from the Sideshow Collectibles website and they have placed an apple alongside her to show just how tall she is. I placed my order for her over a year ago, knowing I was in for a long wait before she'd be released. I could have paid for her then but decided to spread the $400 cost for her over a period of ten months. Yes, she is incredibly expensive but I'm paying for quality and she'll be a very good investment as her value will only increase.

As you can well imagine, the figure arrived in a huge box, which I show here. The figure came in six parts - head, body and legs, right arm, a choice of two left arms and the base. The photo above shows my preferred option with Vampi's left arm holding a bat. All of the parts are held in place via slots fitted with strong magnets.

In this photo you can see the alternate left arm without the bat. Sideshow placed an apple alongside the statue to give a sense of scale. I, however, have chosen a 30mm scale miniature figure of Vampirella, which I have placed in front of her base to show just how tall this statue is. That is some height difference, huh?

Here is the rear view of the statue with Vampirella showing off her perfect backside. The amount of detail that has gone into this figure is staggering. I know it's hard to take your eyes off Vampirella but check out her base and see how much work has gone into that. It's incredible!
This is my third statue that I have bought from Sideshow Collectibles and my second Premium Format 1/4 scale figure. You can see my first Premium Format Vampirella statue here -
http://vampifansworldoftheundead.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/sideshow-collectibles-vampirella-statue.html
Although she is the same scale as this statue she is sitting down so looks smaller.
My other Sideshow Collectibles Vampirella was a Tooned-up version which you can see here -
http://vampifansworldoftheundead.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/vampifans-views-44-monthly-musings-25.html

Because this is a Premium Format Statue, the craftsmanship of the sculpting and detail of the paintwork is absolute perfection. Note that Vampirella's costume and boots are made of real leather. If I was a perfectionist I'd have to criticise her boots because they are too long. However, I think she suits thigh-length boots and they look great on her.

Here's a close-up of Vampi's friendly little bat. Once again, the detail on the bat is incredible. It looks like a real bat.

Finally, here's a close-up shot of Vampirella's head. I love the way her hair is flowing out behind her. Just look at her eyes and see how beautifully painted they are. The more I look at her the more I fall in love with her! Is this my all time favourite figure of Vampirella? A resounding yes! She is sheer perfection!

Miss Vampirella September 2015 - Maria Di Angelis

This month's Vampirella model is Maria Di Angelis, who won a competition run by Harris Comics to be their cover girl for the Vampirella series in 2001. Maria has the distinction of appearing on the cover of the Vampirella comics more times than any other model. She appeared on a total of 21 covers. Not only did Maria have the right coloured eyes and wore the costume like she had been born into it, but she rapidly became a fan favourite on the strength of her personality. She wowed everyone at comic conventions going just that little bit further to be nice to everyone. Apart from her short stint as a Vampirella model, Maria has had quite a busy career. Primarily a model, Maria is reputed to have graced more covers than any model in history, with literally thousands of romance novels' covers. Also in her résumé are many commercials (both in print and on television), including Revlon, Max Factor, Pond’s, Softsoap, Lever 2000, Levi’s, Chopard, Finesse and Cadillac to name but a few.

In my hobby news I have recently backed a new Kickstarter project, which you can see here -
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1621774283/battle-systemstm-urban-apocalypse-terrain?ref=email

This is the Battle Systems Ltd. Urban Apocalypse Terrain Set. The buildings and scenery items are made of thick card which comes pre-painted and slots together without the need for glue. This makes it modular, customisable and very easy to assemble and disassemble. Funding was achieved within 27 minutes of its launch, which just goes to show how popular this project is. The basic pledge of £78 gets you enough terrain to cover a 2' by 2' area. Just to give you some idea of what the set looks like, here are a few photos taken from their website.

How cool is this? This photo features multiple sets to cover a 4' by 4' area.

Interior detail and furniture items are provided. Upper floors and roofs are easily removable.

A ground eye view of the basic set showing SWAT Troopers on a raid.

One of the add-ons is the Fire Station set. A must-have for me. It costs just £12.

In other news, I have been playing a few games of the Castle Ravenloft board-game. Expect to see lots of photos of the painted miniatures for this game in the near future. It's a good game if you like dungeon crawls, which I do, especially when going up against the undead. It has much in common with Super Dungeon Explore but at the same time is different enough to feel unique. The rules are very simple and the game is easy to play and fast.

I also managed to play my very first game of Rum & Bones, using the figures and ships from the basic set. The Bone Devils undead faction scored a decisive victory over the Wellsport Brotherhood. What an incredibly fun game it turned out to be. I can see I'm going to get a lot of pleasure out of it. It really appealed to me in a big way.

Apparently, October is Zomtober month, in which participants are supposed to paint at least one zombie or survivor figure every week during the month. I'm not officially taking part because I like painting zombie and survivor figures every month. I'd like to wish all who participate the best of luck and I look forward to seeing your output.

It is very rare for me to post Work in Progress reports on my blog. However, I thought you'd like to see what I'm working on at the moment simply because these figures and models are far from the normal figures I usually review. Although they are all 28mm scale (yes, I know that technically speaking, 28mm is a size not a scale, but it has now become universally accepted as a scale) they are far larger than 28mm in height and length. I currently have seven items on my painting desk and here they are -

First up are two dinosaurs made by Antediluvian Miniatures. At the left is an Iguanodon and at the right is a Megalosaurus. Their bodies and heads are made of resin and their legs are made of metal. I pinned and glued the legs in place and used Milliput to smooth out the joints. I have already painted the three adventurers from this range and I plan on reviewing them very soon.

Next are two wrecked vehicles made by Black Cat Bases. At the left is a Large Wrecked Truck and at the right is a Small Wrecked Truck. I ordered these models in February of 2014. Despite numerous e-mails to BCB asking when they would be delivered I never received a reply. Then, right out of the blue, they arrived last month. I was gob-smacked. I'd given up all hope of ever getting them but better late than never, huh? I'm pleased because they are such nice scenery items.

Finally, are three large monsters from the Dungeons and Dragons board-game, Castle Ravenloft. From left to right are a Flesh Golem, Gravestorm the Dracolich and a Zombie Dragon. These figures are made of plastic and come pre-assembled but unpainted. They are the last three figures that I need to paint for this game, so you can expect to see lots of Castle Ravenloft figure reviews over the next month and beyond.
I expect to finish painting all seven within the next week. Then I'll move on to finishing painting my Berserker Zombies for Zombicide.

Earlier this year I was lucky enough to win a blog competition run by my good friend, Christopher Sheets. The prize was three Antediluvian Miniatures 28mm scale Adventurers. This was a set I was very much interested in and so was delighted to receive them.

At the far left is Professor Cushion (a pun on actor Peter Cushing's name). However, I have named him Dr. Abner Perry, which was the name of the character Peter played in the film, At the Earth's Core. Perry is a Victorian scientist, who along with his American financier, David Innes (see below) make a test run of their Iron Mole drilling machine in a Welsh mountain, but end up in a strange underground labyrinth ruled by a species of giant telepathic flying reptiles, the Mahars, and full of prehistoric monsters and cavemen. They are captured by the Mahars, who keep primitive humans as their slaves through mind control. David falls for the beautiful slave girl Princess Dia but when she is chosen as a sacrificial victim in the Mahar city, David and Perry must rally the surviving human slaves to rebel and not only save her but also win their freedom.
In the centre of the group is Raquel Scotch (another awful pun on actress Raquel Welch's name). Seeing as Antediluvian Miniatures made two of the main cast members from At the Earth's Core I was a little surprised that they didn't sculpt a figure of Princess Dia (played by Caroline Munro). Instead, we have the heroine, Loana the Fair One, a member of the prehistoric Shell Tribe of fishermen and women from the film, One Million Years B.C. From a marketing point of view Loana is a much more famous and recognisable character.

Finally, is Shug McClure (yet another horrid pun, this time on the name of actor Doug McClure). I named him after his character's name, David Innes, from the film, At the Earth's Core. These three figures came with stat cards for the game, Pulp Alley, which I do not own. Shug is a Leader and the other two are his Sidekicks.
Clearly I won't be using them in Pulp Alley (it's not on my shopping list) but I can find other uses for them. They are beautifully sculpted and their faces are recognisable as the characters they are meant to represent. The figures cost £4.00 each or you can buy all three for £10.00. Look out for my review of the dinosaurs from this range coming very soon.

I recently showed you a WIP post of my two wrecked trucks that I received last month from Black Cat Bases after ordering them way back in February 2014. Well, in addition to the resin trucks, I also received three 28mm scale scientist figures as part of my order. They got painted very quickly and here they are.

The male scientist at the far left is carrying a clipboard in his right hand and has his left hand stuffed inside his lab coat. I do like that his glasses are perched on top of his head. That's not something you see very often. I have to wear glasses for reading and figure painting and it is something I've done myself many times.
The female scientist in the centre of the group is rather amusingly described as "Young Female Scientist with Cleavage" on the BCB website. She's consulting an electronic notebook. I have not named any of my scientists yet, but this figure very much reminds me of Winifred "Fred" Burkle (as played by Amy Acker) in series 5 of the TV series, Angel. This was the final series, where Team Angel took over the Wolfram & Hart's Los Angeles law firm and Fred was appointed head of their Science Division.

The female scientist at the far right holds a book in her right hand and is pointing with her left hand. It is a simple but effective sculpt.
These three figures join my growing collection of scientists. They are all very nicely sculpted and very reasonably priced at £2.00 each or all three for £5.00. You'll find them in the Medical/Asylum & Scientists section of BCB's webstore. I'm pleased to announce that normal service has been resumed at BCB and they are accepting new orders and have sent out all of their outstanding orders.

Amy Acker as Winifred "Fred" Burkle dissects a male cadaver in the TV series Angel. Fred was without doubt, the most intelligent member of Team Angel. Whilst not a skilled fighter, she was brave, smart, clever and loved by everyone, including me.

Fred with her glasses, which she sometimes wore, showing a remarkable similarity with the young female scientist figure reviewed here.

Not so long ago I bought the Dungeons and Dragons board-game, Castle Ravenloft produced by Wizards of the Coast. It is designed for 1 - 5 players, where the players control one or more adventurers. Villains and monsters are controlled by the game mechanics. There are five adventurers to use in the game.
All five adventurers have four game stats - Armour Class (AC), Hit Points (HP), Speed and Surge Value. AC determines how hard they are to hit. If a monster rolls equal to or higher than the character's AC they will wound that character. Rolls are made on 1d20. HP determines how much damage a character can take before being knocked out. Speed denotes how many squares on the game board a character may move in a single turn (diagonal movement is allowed). Surge Value denotes how many HP a character may recover if they use a Surge Token when knocked out. Surge Tokens are shared by the party so anyone can use them but they are rare. It is recommended that a party start with just two Tokens for the whole party.
The adventurers start with 4 - 5 special Powers, chosen from a list of 10, to aid them in their quest. Allisa starts with 4, whilst the rest start with 5. All Heroes start at 1st Level and may advance to 2nd Level if they roll a natural 20 on 1d20 when attacking a monster, providing they have a minimum of 5 Experience Points to spend. Experience is gained by defeating the dungeon monsters. When a Hero reaches 2nd Level they increase their AC by 1, their HP by 2 and their Surge Value by 1HP. In addition, if they roll a natural 20 when attacking they deal +1 damage.

At the far left of my two photos is Arjhan, a Dragon-born Fighter. He is a mighty warrior, born to a clan of draconic humanoids. He has never lost a battle and has come to drive evil out of the ruins of Castle Ravenloft. His stats are AC17, HP10, Speed 5 and Surge Value 5HP, making him the most powerful of the Heroes. He has the special ability, Defender. When another Hero is on the same tile as him, he or she gains a +1 bonus to AC.
Standing next to him is Thorgrim, a Dwarf Cleric. He is a champion of the dwarven gods, sent to eradicate the evil deep inside Castle Ravenloft. His stats are AC16, HP8, Speed 5 and Surge Value 4HP. He has the special ability, Aid. At the end of his Hero Phase, if he did not attack, one other Hero on his tile regains 1HP.
In the centre of the group is Allisa, a Human Ranger. She is a master of bow and blade with keen senses and dungeon skills. She is determined to stop the evil of Castle Ravenloft. Her stats are AC15, HP8, Speed 6 and Surge Value 4HP. She has the special ability Scout. During her Exploration Phase, she can explore one unexplored edge on her tile even if she is not adjacent to it.

Fourth in line is Kat, a Human Rogue. She is stealthy and sneaky and a master of sudden strikes and quick escapes. She laughs at danger and has come to Castle Ravenloft to satisfy her curiosity and acquire treasure. Her stats are AC14, HP8, Speed 6 and Surge Value 4HP. She has the special ability Trap Expert. She gains a +5 bonus to rolls to disable traps. Traps are always disabled on a result of 10+ on 1d20.
Last in line is Immeril, an Eladrin Wizard. He is a powerful spell-caster from the magical lands of the Feywild. He seeks arcane knowledge and magical treasure from the ruins of Castle Ravenloft. His stats are AC14, HP6, Speed 6 and Surge Value 3HP, making him the weakest member of the party, statwise. He has the special ability Lore. While another Hero is on the same tile as him, he or she gains a +1 bonus to attack rolls.
The figures are made of a soft plastic and come unpainted. I added sand and gravel to their bases before I painted them. They took acrylic paint very well. My views on them are as follows -
Arjhan He is my least favourite hero. I have nothing against the sculpt of the figure - it is the concept of the character that I dislike so much. To me, a Dragon-born Fighter seems like it has been designed by a Munchkin for a Munchkin player... and I HATE Munchkin players! They are just a pain in the arse, as I know from personal experience. He even comes with the Dragon's Breath Power, which is totally Munchkin! It is for this reason that he gets left out of any party of four or less that I choose.
Thorgrim I have nothing against him, either as a sculpted figure or character concept. Although he is a Cleric he is powerful enough to make a worthy stand-in for the Dragon-born Fighter. He is a good solid Dwarf and his healing ability makes him a must-have choice.
Allisa My favourite character from this group. I love the way she has been sculpted and her pose is spot on. My only criticism of her is that she is not armed with a bow, but that is only a minor criticism.
Kat Exactly what you'd expect from a Rogue. Another great sculpt. I do have a soft spot for strong female characters. In case you're wondering what she's throwing from her right hand, it's a dart. It was a no-brainer to paint her all in black.
Immeril I had never heard of the Eladrin before. He looks very Elvish, so I presume the Eladrin are a race of Elves. He is fragile in combat but he comes with some powerful spells that can prove decisive. I have no strong feelings about him. As with the others, he is well sculpted, and I do like that fireball he's about to cast.
All in all, a good selection of Heroes, although I'd happily swap the Dragon-born Fighter for a Fighter from another race.

Having shown you the heroes of the Castle Ravenloft board-game last time it is now time to start my reviews of the game's monsters and villains. Villains are unique and powerful opponents, whilst monsters are low level and can appear in groups. I simply had to start at the top with the ruler of Castle Ravenloft - the vampire count, Strahd Von Zarovich. Also shown here is an unnamed Young Vampire.

Wizards of the Coast, who produce this game, included the figure shown at the left of my two photos to use as both a Young Vampire and Strahd Von Zarovich, a decision which did not sit well with me. Why? Of all the figures in the game, Strahd should be the most impressive. To me, their vampire is the worst-looking figure in the set. He looks like a young policeman directing traffic and nothing at all like the mighty Strahd. So I found a replacement figure to use as Strahd (see below for full details). I'm perfectly happy to use the WotC figure as Strahd's Young Vampire lackey, but no way will I use him as Strahd.
The Young Vampire is a Level 5 villain. Villains and monsters only have two stats - Armour Class (AC) and Hit Points (HP). The Young Vampire has AC16 and 8HP. Villains and monsters move and attack according to one of a number of tactics listed on their cards. Each possible maneuver for a monster or villain starts with a statement. If the statement is true follow the tactics listed. Otherwise, go on to the next statement. The final entry in the list will be the default action if nothing else is true.
To show this in more detail here are the tactics for the Young Vampire.
The Young Vampire activates at the start of each Villain Phase.
If the Young Vampire is adjacent to a Hero, it attacks that Hero with Fangs.
If the Young Vampire is within 1 tile of two or more Heroes, it attacks each hero within 1 tile of it with a hypnotic Gaze.
If the Young Vampire is on a Start tile, the active Hero takes 1 damage.
Otherwise, the Young vampire moves 1 tile in the direction of the tile's arrow.
A Fangs attack gives the Young Vampire a +8 bonus to hit on 1d20 and causes 2 damage. In addition, the Young Vampire regains 1HP and moves 1 tile in the direction of the tile's arrow.
A hypnotic Gaze attack gives the Young Vampire a +6 bonus to hit and causes 2 damage. In addition, place the Hero attacked 1 tile deeper into the dungeon.

The figure of Strahd Von Zarovich that I chose is an old Ral Partha 28mm scale figure of Strahd himself from the boxed set of Castle Ravenloft figures that were produced for the Castle Ravenloft role-playing game way back in the early 1990's. I was a big fan of that game and I collected nearly all of the figures that Ral Partha produced for it. This figure looks exactly like Strahd and so is far more appropriate for use than the uninspiring Young Vampire figure.
A man of noble birth, Strahd spent much of his life serving causes of goodness and law, most notably as a warrior and leader of armies. Years of such service took their toll upon him however, and by the time he reached middle age, Strahd came to believe he had squandered his life and his youth. With this dark mood upon him, he came to conquer the region known as Barovia, and assumed lord-ship there, taking as his residence the pre-existing castle known as Ravenloft. From this position of power and security, he called for members of his family "long unseated from their ancestral thrones" to join him, including a younger brother named Sergei.
Some time after this reunion, the Count himself fell in love with a young Barovian woman, Tatyana, though she rejected his affections in favour of the younger Sergei. Filled with despair and jealousy, and brooding a growing hatred for Sergei, Strahd sought magical means to restore his youth. In a moment of desperate frustration, he "made a pact with death - a pact of blood." On the day of Sergei and Tatyana's wedding, Strahd murdered his brother and pursued the grieving Tatyana until she flung herself from the walls of Ravenloft. Strahd himself was shot down by the arrows of the castle guard. Even so, he did not die, but went on to rule the land of Barovia as a vampire. The master of Castle Ravenloft is known as "the Devil" to the villagers of Barovia.
Strahd is one of the two most powerful villains in this game (the other being Gravestorm the Dracolich) and his stats reflect this. He is a Level 6 villain with AC19 and 12HP. In D&D terms he is classed as being an Ancient Vampire, having lived as a vampire for 400-499 years. As well as being a skilled warrior he is also a master necromancer. As you would expect from so powerful a villain, he has more tactics to choose from (five in all) than any other villain. I shan't list them all but he has two possible attacks - Bite and Magical Ball of Fire. Bite grants him a +8 bonus to hit and does 2 damage. In addition, Strahd regains 1HP. Magical Ball of Fire also grants him a +8 bonus to hit and does 2 damage if it hits or 1 damage if it misses.

This painting of Strahd by Clyde Caldwell for the Castle Ravenloft RPG clearly influenced the sculptor of the Ral Partha figure I'm using. THAT is how Strahd Von Zarovich should look like! Sadly, the figure is long out of production.

This is the first of many reviews of the monsters found in the Dungeons and Dragons board-game of Castle Ravenloft. Gargoyles and Wraiths are the two most powerful types of monster you can encounter in Castle Ravenloft. For each type of monster, you get three figures, all identically sculpted.

The Gargoyles look suitably menacing and are quite tall. Their stats are AC16 and 2HP. Killing one grants your character 3 Experience Points.

A Gargoyle's tactics are -
If the Gargoyle is within 1 tile of a Hero, it moves to the closest hero's tile and attacks each Hero on the tile with a whirlwind of Claws.
Otherwise, it does nothing.
A Claws attack has a +8 bonus to hit and causes 2 damage plus inflicts Slowed status on the victim. If the attack misses, it still causes 1 damage. Slowed reduces a hero's Speed rating to 2.

You can't tell from my paint-work that the Wraith figures were made of translucent blue plastic. I gave them a wash of Citadel Drakenhof Nightshade (dark blue) and painted the inside of the Wraiths' robes in black. The skull and hands were painted with Foundry Canvas 8B and highlighted with Foundry Canvas 8C.
Wraiths are classed as Undead and they are fearsome opponents. Their stats are AC15 and 2HP. Killing one grants your Hero 3 Experience Points.

A Wraith's tactics are -
If the Wraith is within 1 tile of a Hero, it moves adjacent to the closest Hero and attacks that Hero with a life-draining Claw.
Otherwise, the Wraith moves 1 tile toward the closest Hero.
A Claw attack gives a +6 bonus to attack and causes 3 damage if it hits or 1 damage if it misses.
Wraiths have a Special Ability - Death Shriek. When this monster is destroyed each Hero on its tile takes 1 damage.
These are the only two monsters in the game to grant a Hero 3 Experience Points for killing one. They are tough opponents - the Wraith, in particular can cause a lot of damage. Gargoyles are nasty if your Hero is within 1 tile of it. Move further away and they are no threat whatsoever.
I like how they have been sculpted and I very nearly left the the Wraith in its translucent blue colour for its robes but in the end I went with a much darker colour scheme. It's more in keeping with my own ideas of what a Wraith should look like.

In the Castle Ravenloft board-game for 4th edition Dungeons and Dragons, there are two types of skeletons your Heroes can encounter - Blazing Skeletons and normal Skeletons. You get three figures of each type.

Just like the Wraiths, which I reviewed last time, the Blazing Skeletons are made of translucent blue plastic. Once again, I was faced with the dilemma of leaving their flame effects transparent blue (to denote magical fire) and paint the actual skeleton in shades of bone, or going totally different. Well, you can see from my photos that I went totally different. The fact that the flame is literally white hot close into the skeleton added to the fact that I decided to paint the bones black, denoting a charring effect provides a stunning contrast. I'm delighted at how they have turned out.
The stats for a Blazing Skeleton are AC13 and 2HP. Killing one earns your Hero 2 Experience Points.

A Blazing Skeleton's tactics are -
If the Blazing Skeleton is within 1 tile of a Hero, it attacks each Hero on the closest Hero's tile with a Ball of Fire.
Otherwise, the Blazing Skeleton moves 1 tile toward the closest Hero.
A Ball of Fire attack gives a +7 bonus to hit and causes 2 damage if it hits or 1 damage if it misses.

The Skeletons shown above and below are most likely what most people imagine a fantasy skeleton to look like. Their swords are rusty, which was a deliberate decision of mine.
The stats for a Skeleton are AC16 (very high for a monster) and 1HP. Killing one earns a Hero 2 Experience Points.

A Skeleton's tactics are -
If the Skeleton is adjacent to a Hero, it attacks with a Scimitar.
If the Skeleton is within 1 tile of a Hero, it moves adjacent to the closest Hero and attacks that Hero with a charging Slice.
Otherwise, the Skeleton moves 1 tile towards the closest Hero.
A Scimitar attacks gives a +7 bonus to hit and causes 1 damage.
A Slice attack gives a +9 bonus to hit and causes 2 damage.
Two great sets of figures that I like a lot.

In a game like Castle Ravenloft the most common type of villain your Heroes are likely to encounter are, of course, the Undead. So far I have reviewed Vampires, Wraiths, Blazing Skeletons and Skeletons as part of the Undead in this Dungeons and Dragons board-game. Today, I turn my attention to the flesh-eating Ghouls and Zombies.

I'm almost certain these are first Ghouls I've painted in the last thirty years. I painted them in a very light grey skin tone (Foundry Austrian White 67) and gave them red eyes to help distinguish them from my zombies. They do look very similar to my zombies but are noticeably lighter in real life.
The stats for a Ghoul are AC16 (very high for a monster) and 1HP. Killing one earns a Hero 2 Experience Points.

A Ghoul's tactics are -
If the Ghoul is adjacent to a Hero, it attacks that Hero with a rending Bite.
If the Ghoul is within 1 tile of a Hero, it moves adjacent to the closest Hero and attacks with a paralysing Claw.
Otherwise, the Ghoul moves 1 tile toward the closest Hero.
A Bite attack gives a +9 bonus to hit and causes 3 damage.
A Claw attack gives a +7 bonus to hit and causes 1 damage as well as immobilising the Hero, i.e. the Hero cannot move on his next Turn.

I must admit that I am rather underwhelmed at the way the Zombies have been sculpted. They lean forward far too much and quite frankly, they pale in comparison to the way the Ghouls have been sculpted. I normally enjoy painting zombies but I admit that painting these three was a chore.
The stats for a Zombie are AC11 (the lowest of any monster in the game) and 1HP. Killing one earns a Hero 1 Experience Point.

A Zombie's tactics are -
If the Zombie is within 1 tile of a Hero, it moves adjacent to the closest Hero and attacks that Hero with a rotting Fist.
Otherwise, the Zombie moves 1 tile toward the closest Hero.
A Fist attack gives a +5 bonus to hit and causes 1 damage for each Monster on the Zombie's tile.
Whilst the Zombies are meh! in terms of sculpts and stats the Ghouls are terrific and make for fearsome opponents.

Miss Vampirella October 2015 - Panda Valentine

This month's Vampirella model is called Panda Valentine - surely not her real name. She is a cosplayer from California. She is a big fan of Marvel comics and her favourite character whom she likes to cosplay is Emma Frost of X-Men fame. That said, she has done a great job of appearing as Vampirella and I certainly consider myself one of her many fans.

Moving on to hobby news and I want to chat about one of my favourite topics - Kickstarters. I know that some people hate them but I'm the opposite - I LOVE them! I know I back quite a lot of Kickstarter projects, but there are just as many (possibly more so) that I don't back. It's just impossible to back every one that takes your fancy. My top two favourite games are Zombicide and Super Dungeon Explore. I'll happily back anything to do with them.

A big part of the joy of watching the launch of a new Kickstarter is seeing what new stretch goals (always free) and add-ons (optional buys) are being added. Like anyone else, I always appreciate getting stuff for free. Add-ons are a mixed bag. More often than not I'll want them and buy them, but the problem is they can quickly cost more than the initial pledge. As an example, for Zombicide: Black Plague, I spent $150 on my initial pledge but $250 on add-ons. Yes, I know - OUCH! Earlier this month, the Battle Systems Urban Terrain Kickstarter drew to a close. They really pushed the boat out offering lots of stretch goals but far too many add-ons. The worst thing is, I want ALL of the add-ons but can I afford them? Most probably but it will hurt my wallet!

All of which brings me onto my main news of the month. I am backing a new Kickstarter project - Super Dungeon Explore: Legends. Check it out here -
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/sodapopminiatures/super-dungeon-explore-legends/description

There are a number of initial pledge levels ranging from $45 to $200. The number of pledges for $200 outnumber the rest of them added together and is the option I chose. This pledge nets me everything, and believe me, it's a lot! Legends greatly expands the original game, offering rules for campaigns and character advancement, something I have been crying out for. Soda Pop Miniatures, who produce the game have taken a very different tactic with this Kickstarter. They are offering loads and loads of free stretch goals (always good!) but best of all, there will only be one add-on produced. This gets a big thumbs up from me and I applaud their decision to keep costs down. I hope other companies will take note. I don't yet know what the add-on will be or its cost but I'm sure I'll end up buying it.

One Kickstarter project I am not backing is Z War One: Damnation by Dice Sports, but it would be remiss of me not to mention it, seeing as it is another zombie apocalypse game. Check it out here -
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1519152481/z-war-one-damnation

I like the figures and the concept is intriguing but I can't help but compare it to Zombicide. Do I need another zombie apocalypse game? Not really. I would like it for the figures alone but I just can't afford it and so I'm passing on it.

That's all for now but I would like to end by wishing everyone a very happy Halloween! Have fun!

It's a new month but I still haven't finished reviewing the figures from the Dungeons and Dragons 4th edition board-game, Castle Ravenloft. So, here I present the Rat Swarm and Spiders.

The Rat Swarms come on 25mm diameter bases and I've painted each Swarm differently - from left to right are black rats, dark grey rats and dark brown rats. I painted their ears and tails with Foundry Flesh 5B.
The stats for a Rat Swarm are AC12 and 1HP. Killing one earns a Hero 1 Experience Point.
A Rat Swarm's tactics are -
If the Rat Swarm is within 1 tile of a Hero, it moves to the closest Hero's tile and attacks each hero with a multitude of Bites.
Otherwise, the Rat Swarm moves 1 tile toward the closest Hero.
A Bites attack gives a +7 bonus to hit and causes 1 damage.

I'm not sure why these monsters are described as Spiders instead of Giant Spiders. They are as a big as a human and that's just downright unnatural! Anyway, let's not split hairs - they're still great figures.
The stats for a Spider are AC15 and 1HP. Killing one earns a Hero 2 Experience Points.

A Spider's tactics are -
If the Spider is adjacent to a Hero, it attacks that Hero with a venomous Bite.
If the Spider is within 1 tile of a Hero, it attacks the closest Hero with an acidic Web.
Otherwise, the Spider moves 2 tiles (they're fast!) toward the closest Hero.
A Bite attack gives a +6 bonus to hit and causes 2 damage if it hits or 1 damage if it misses.
A Web attack gives a whopping big +11 bonus to hit (the highest of any Monster or Villain in the game) and causes 1 damage plus Slowed (a Hero' Speed is reduced to 2). In addition, place the Spider adjacent to the Hero.
The Rat Swarms are great sculpts. They do look very flat, which is why I photographed them from above. They are more a nuisance than a serious threat in the game. The Spiders, however, are fearsome opponents, fast moving, hard to hit and they deal out some nasty damage.

Vampifan's Views 67 - Monthly Musings 45

Zombicide Barricades

Rum and Bones - What I Got

Victory Force Zombies 02

Victory Force Zombies 03

Victory Force Zombies 04

Victory Force Zombies 05

Victory Force Zombies 06

Sideshow Collectibles 2015 Premium Format Vampirella Statue

Vampifan's Views 68 - Monthly Musings 46

Assorted Works in Progress 01

Antediluvian Miniatures Adventurers 01

Black Cat Bases Scientists 01

Castle Ravenloft Adventurers 01

Castle Ravenloft Vampires 01

Castle Ravenloft Gargoyles and Wraiths

Castle Ravenloft Skeletons

Castle Ravenloft Ghouls & Zombies

Vampifan's Views 69 - Monthly Musings 47

Castle Ravenloft Rats & Spiders