Moongrunt Discussion

[Tas]

Space X's Dragon system currently operates from Earth to Orbit with 7 pax payload. For my Moongrunt setting, I can imagine that some of these could be modified for lunar operations. Without the issue of escaping earth orbit, the weight saved can be utilised for additional payload (troops). Maybe two or three of these could be strapped onto a lunar cycler from Earth orbit / Lagrange points and released in Lunar orbit for independent (but limited duration) ops.

But thats all rationalising and hand-wavium - I think they just look cool; a nice balance between Cold War utility and too much SF tech, and size wise it wont overly dominate the table. So this week I 3d printed one and am pretty happy with how its come out. I will be using this as a USMC Lunar Landing Craft - Personnel

[Cacique Caribe]

Wow, very nice model!

Dan

[War Monkey]

Very nice model! I think we should get back to the moon myself.

Conspiracies have it that the moon may be hollow some suspect that it could be a large ship. This goes always back to the actual Appollo Missions. When they purposely crashed the lander into the moon and the instruments that they had on the moon registered that the moon rang like a bell somewhere around or about an hour. So, what if it is a ship? It would be worth fighting for.

If it is a ship, it is most likely large enough inside it to house an entire nation. What kind to technology could it hold?
Whoever would control it, could control the rest of the world. If you could move it? You could move it in closer to the earth increasing the magnetic pull which would cause massive tides with huge waves. Wiping out a lot of things on earth.

So, let's say for game's sake it is a ship! you could have fighting on the surface on the moon and battling in the interior as well. You could have battlelines on the surface for you game in campaign mode and have the same in the interior each advancement could led to a new tech discovery. I mean if you could reach a life control section you could control the oxygen in your sector making it easier for you troops to move about. You could overpressure rooms like mines of sorts, around your perimeter. Then enemy breaches those rooms and boom an explosive decompression.

You get the idea and you could manage to do a lot of other things.

[Macrossmartin]

Daeothar pointed me this way from my new thread about 3D parts to convert Yakult bottles into cold-war era spaceships. (No, really!)

https://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=136437.msg1734489;topicseen#new

I didn't even know about Moongrunt! This is pretty much exactly what I was contemplating for when the action in space hits the regolith.

Following with interest...

[Chief Lackey Rich]

Conspiracies have it that the moon may be hollow some suspect that it could be a large ship.

By far the best fictional inspiration for that concept is David Weber's Dahak/Empire From the Ashes books, starting with Mutineer's Moon back in 1991.  Our moon is a camouflaged alien starship, Earth is secretly host to the few survivors of its crew following a mutiny that still hasn't been fully resolved, space opera shenanigans on a scale that makes Lensmen seem restrained ensue.  Technically a trilogy, but the third book is pretty disconnected from the first two.

[Ben Cato]

If you want to game a 1969 assault on the Moon Revell make a nice Lunar Assault Dropship 

[commissarmoody]

Damn! that's pretty cool. Are those 1/100?

[Ben Cato]

Yes 1/100 from Revell.  The one right at the back left - very blurry - is a toy but exactly the same size.

[Tas]

So this is neat

https://global.toyota/en/mobility/technology/lunarcruiser/





A great option for something different for Moongrunt - I hope somebody makes an STL of this soon!

[Cacique Caribe]

If you want to game a 1969 assault on the Moon Revell make a nice Lunar Assault Dropship 

I always wanted to have a diorama with derelict version of a lander, being discovered by aliens in spacesuits. 

Dan

[War Monkey]

What figures are those in the photo with all of the lunar landers?

[Mako]

I'm curious about which range of minis are shown with the Lunar Landers too, Ben?

They look very nice.

Great minds think alike, since I've purchased a few of those US Lunar Landers too for gaming.  Seems like a logical choice, and perhaps the Chinese, Russians, and/or others have also copied and produced them also, and/or they're hoping to seize them from "the enemy" for their own uses, and/or research.  Perhaps even just  a fight for basic resources after a disaster of their own on the harsh face of the moon, like oxygen, water, and food.

They're pretty small, so can only carry a max crew of 3 - 4 men in each, I suppose.

Love that USMC Lander, Tas.

[Mako]

Those moon mobile vehicles are neat.

I'm not a fan of the commercial offerings available in 15mm scale, since they're a bit too spartan, rudimentary, and the wheels are a bit too "practical" and realistic looking for my taste. 

I'm thinking about going a bit more "Hollywood" for mine, with big, impressive, totally impractical wheels and tires, so plan to scratchbuild a vehicle for my troops' use.  I bought one of those kids' monster trucks to get the wheels, and will scratch-build a vehicle hull around that.

Not 100% sure what I'll use to do that, but am leaning towards using PVC pipe for it, along with a rounded nosecone for the front.  I suppose I need to get started on the project soon, to go with the other stuff I've made and have.

[Cacique Caribe]

Daeothar pointed me this way from my new thread about 3D parts to convert Yakult bottles into cold-war era spaceships. (No, really!)

https://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=136437.msg1734489;topicseen#new

I didn't even know about Moongrunt! This is pretty much exactly what I was contemplating for when the action in space hits the regolith.

Following with interest...

What’s a Yakult?

Dan