Wednesday, March 4, 2026

Into the Wasteland: Caravanners and Freelancers

 

Everyone needs to find supplies in the wasteland, and if you're away from the settlements, caravanner merchants are who you need to find.  This warband was created with figures from a mix of Vermillion Miniatures 3D prints. I'm not sure how viable they will be compared to the other warband types, but I'm hoping the two brahmin will prove useful in close combat.   

32mm Vermilion Fallout proxy miniatures for This is Not A Test: Caravanners

I also have several figures that don't really work with any of my current warbands, so I'll be using them as the Wasteland Weirdos Freelancers and Guns for Hire that can be recruited by other warbands.

First up are a few ghoul gunslingers, a mechanic for gun and relic repairs, and a doctor.

32mm Vermilion Fallout proxy miniatures for This is Not A Test: Ghoul Wasteland Weirdo Freelancers

Bringing justice to the far flung regions of the wasteland are Ranger Moore, his partner Silverheels, and their cyberdog Scout. 

32mm Vermilion Fallout proxy miniatures for This is Not A Test: Ranger Moore, his partner Silverheels, and their cyberdog Scout

A couple of surface-adapted Vault Dwellers with a Garden of Eden Creation Kit (G.E.C.K.) to help kickstart civilization.

32mm Vermilion Fallout proxy miniatures for This is Not A Test: Vault Dweller Wasteland Weirdos

Goris, the albino Deathclaw from Fallout 2. Intelligent and able to communicate, he left Vault 13 and spends his time studying human culture.

32mm Vermilion Fallout proxy miniatures for This is Not A Test:  Goris the Deathclaw

Saturday, January 3, 2026

Into the Wasteland: Aliens and the ‘Burbs


Happy 2026!  I luckily had a short break during the holidays, and was able to knock out a few more items for my Fallout/This Is Not A Test Project.  

First up are some Zetan alien survivors that have wandered down from Area 51 (a frozen Zetan was seen in the most recent episode of the Fallout TV series).  These are 3D print proxies made from Vermilion Miniatures' Space Invaders warband. I've painted mine using the Fallout 76 uniforms for reference.

Vermilion Miniatures' 32mm Space Invaders used as Fallout Zetan alien proxies

The standard aliens come with three types of separate heads, so you can mix and match figures as you desire.  The miniatures are thin, so care will be needed when handling them.

Vermilion Miniatures' 32mm Space Invaders used as Fallout Zetan alien proxies

The set also incudes two sets of power armor and an attack drone.  Stylistically they look different that what was seen in the game, but I think they look alright when using a similar paint scheme.   

Vermilion Miniatures' 32mm Space Invaders used as Fallout Zetan alien proxies

Here's a size comparison to a human figure. While the aliens are  appropriately smaller, the power armor is similar in size to human power armor.

Vermilion Miniatures' 32mm Space Invaders used as Fallout Zetan alien proxies

In addition to another warband, I also finished up a new set of buildings for the table.  These are the Derelict Suburbia and Ramshackle Cul-de-Sac MDF sets from TT Combat's City Streets line, which give you two houses and accessories per set.  For paint colors, I used 1950's housepaint advertisements as inspiration. This was then dirtied up using pewter grey drybrushing and watered down brown craft paint.

Post apocalypse 28-35mm destroyed suburban houses from TT Combat.

Post apocalypse 28-35mm destroyed suburban houses from TT Combat.

Post apocalypse 28-35mm destroyed suburban houses from TT Combat.

Post apocalypse 28-35mm destroyed suburban houses from TT Combat.

In terms of detailing levels for MDF kits, particularly the destroyed elements, I would rate these as mid tier out when compared to other manufactures. I considered adding extensive scratch built details to the kits, but in the end I got lazy and just added some grass tufts and a few minor items.

One thing I really do like about this kits is that all the houses break apart to some level. This not only makes it easier to get figures and item inside, but allows you to more widely disperse the building elements over your table.  

Post apocalypse 28-35mm destroyed suburban houses from TT Combat.

The interior of the houses are also spacious for the most part, so there is room for figures and scatter terrain. 

Size of post apocalypse 28-35mm destroyed suburban houses from TT Combat.

The kits are advertised as being appropriate for 28-35mm miniatures. I previously built the gas station and burger restaurant from this line, and they came out at approximately 1:43 scale based on the doors.  That looked oversized even for 32mm miniatures,  so I was a bit nervous here.  Luckily the door sizes are approximately 1:48 on the houses, so 32mm miniatures look fine and even 28mm aren't too bad.

Size of post apocalypse 28-35mm destroyed suburban houses from TT Combat.

 I still have three more warbands to paint along with a last bit of scatter terrain, but I think I now how enough ready to run some pilot This Is Not A Test games.