So here we go...
Since Pappa Midnight's steam coach was reduced to smoking debris, he has kept a low profile, but HM's Intelligence Office has learned that he is currently working on yet another fiendish device: an Ether Spaceship!!! After his narrow escape, he now plans to attack the British colony on Mars, reduce it to ashes and make good his escape with the Martian Gold in the vault...
HM's services do not yet know where the evil genius is building his Ether Spaceship (nor how far construction has advanced...), but has urgently recalled some space destroyers to patrol Earth. Meanwhile, a French crewed destroyer is already on the lookout for PM. We'll blow him to hell for good this time!!!!
The above picture shows the airship with retracted tail section and the one below with extended tail section. These destroyers may not look to be the fastest thing around, but as a matter of fact they are speedy devils: powered by a turbine steam engine, they navigate by means of their retractable tail. Furthermore, the tailblades can rotate around their axle making the destroyer as manoeuvrable as a Fokker DRI...
The big cylinder normally contains gasbags to make the ship float in the air, whereas the tail section can also serve as a set of sails, thus saving coal/oil for making high speed when required (in its VSF form). When travelling around the galaxy, the gasbags are empty and the cylinder serves as a cargo hold (in the SF version, this is a cargo hold, period). These destroyers can travel to Mars in less than a week! How this is done is one of the Earth Confederation's best kept secrets (I could tell you, but then I would have to kill you, which is not simple over the internet...
).
Top view:
The bridge:
3/4 front view:
3/4 back view:
I wanted the ship to be multi-purpose ( (V)SF & pulp), so the smokestack & front (GW) guns are removable (kept in place by magnets). Furthermore, two (gatling) guns can be mounted at the back of the bridge and the wheel can be easily replaced by a command console.
As for the colour scheme: I tested a few camo schemes, but this "light gray over dark gray/GW wash/light gray drybrush" combined with gunmetal and bronze resulted in the best "general" look for the periods I was aiming for.
Your comments are welcome...
Rudi
06 June 2007, 12:23:24 PM
