Cyberpunk-Cyberside Avatars with mediocre OSL pg2- Updated June 10th 2017

[Gallahad]

I've been painting up some miniatures for some cyberpunk gaming.  The miniatures are from Spectre miniatures  https://www.spectreminiatures.com/ and from Rogue Miniatures http://www.rogueminiatures.co.uk/index.php/agent-5set-miniature.html with some cyber-punk conversion work done to them.  Still need to touch up the bases, but these are pretty much done.




And an action shot or two:



The game centers around hidden identities with each player controlling both agents and decoys, so I tried to find miniatures that weren't in "action" poses and with at least semi-concealed weapons, etc.  Tried to paint at least some of them in flashier cyberpunk type colors with a nod to color palettes from the GITS animated series.  Only need 10 miniatures total for the game, but I'm painting up a few more just to add some variety to the available teams.

[Cherno]

They look good! Interesting game concept too.

[Gallahad]

Thank you! 

I am really unsure what to do with the bases, I left them a black asphalt type color since the board I play on is all black with asphalt texturing, but I feel like they are boring bases.  Any suggestions would be welcome.  Also, I'm not sure why, but if you click the images over to the hosting site they are clearer and you can zoom in.

Regarding the game, it is homebrew, and I definitely tried to replicate the sort of disorienting "who is what?" feeling I got reading Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep

[Ultravanillasmurf]

Interesting concept and a nice range of figures.

I went for paving stones effect (a disc of Slater's 7mm scale paving).

[Gallahad]

Thank you Ultravanillasmurf!  I think that paving stones would definitely give more visual interest, but unfortunately, they wouldn't fit well with the board that I do my urban gaming on.  I may try to add some pieces of trash/paper/cans/ etc. to the bases, but I'm not sure.

Here are 4 more characters I finished (you can also spot a couple pieces of new graffiti on the buildings in the background)






And a few group shots (I tried to get better pictures this time)


The guy in the middle here and my "Wesley Snipes" look alike are some of my favorites, even if this level of zoom makes the highlighting seem a bit harsh.


All of them together. 


And another close-up

[Ultravanillasmurf]

Nice.

You do need another figure like the guy in the mask ("two by two, hands of blue....").

[commissarmoody]

This turned out pretty well. I might have to nick the idea for some near future gaming.

[Daeothar]

Those colors work really well on these mnis; I get a true eighties feel from them. Which is of course essential for a 'true' cyberpunk experience...

Then again; a bit of Firefly never hurts either...

[The_Baron]

What a difference a paint job can make. Never thought of these for cyberpunk but they look great!

[Gallahad]

@Ultravanillasmurf -Thanks! I agree about somebody else in the blue gloves, gives him a real deadly feeling.

@commissarmoody- Thank you, nick away, but share the results!  I always need more cyberpunk.    

@Daeothar-Thank you! I'm glad the color choice came through. 80's is pretty intertwined with the cyber-punk aesthetic.

@The_Baron-Thank you!  Spectre miniatures had some other civilian types that with the right paint job and some small conversions could look great, like the banker.

[Gallahad]

Ok-here is a pic heavy battle report that is basically a play by play:

Initial Setup of Real-side, after deployment most of the action took place in this little piazza:



Cyber-side boards with Dust Tactics minis standing in for security camera avatars:


Standard bot deployment on cyber-side to take control of security cameras:


Some movement and positioning on real-side.  I move up the sheik, and Mr. Gray performs a scan on Green Hair and trenchcoat guy you can barely see through the window.  Green Hair is my agent, I know that either Mr. Purple or Mr. Gray is one of her agents.  I don't know which card she drew for the scan at this point, so I have no idea if she knows that Green Hair is my agent.


My opponent lays down a wall (red) on cyberside and sends a bot (red) to take over one of the security cameras on my side, so I move in for what ended up being a killer attack.  I move into contact, lay a wall and push her avatar (white) through my wall (blue) along with causing her to warp.  During the warp she loses control of her wall.  All told, she ends up with 3 neural damage tokens, which end up saving my hide several times later on in the game.




I move another one of my decoys closer to Green Hair, because my mission is to detonate a microsim (like nanobots) swarm realside and then implant false memories on as many civilians/decoys as possible in cyberside.  The microsim swarm detonation starts the 5 turn countdown until the Police arrive.


Avatars to represent the decoys infected by the microsim swarm show up on cyber-side. I managed to get five within the 10 inch range.


Now that he knows who my agent is Mr. Gray wastes no time, attempting to beat down Green Hair in hth to soften him up so Mr. Gray can install a virus on him (my opponents secret mission is to install viruses on my agents).  Despite having negative modifiers from neural damage, Mr. Gray gives Green Hair a Glancing Blow.



I set up for the kill on cyberside (to implant false memories on decoy's I have to throw their avatars through walls)


Green Hair limps away from the blood spattered Mr. Gray who is smiling his creepy smile, creating an opening for my second agent to take a shot at Mr. Gray.

Unfortunately, he whiffs the shot, which will turn into something of a theme.

Both of my agents are now out in the open, but I still only know that Mr. Gray is my opponent's agent, number two is one of the two other miniatures not pictured.

Mr. Gray catches up to Green Hair, and attempts to install a virus, but a combination of a bad roll and negative modifiers from neural damage meant that Green Hair won the roll, decrypting her communications network and forcing her to reveal who her second agent is.
 
On cyberside I keep throwing decoy avatars through walls while my opponent works to push them off the edge of the board (moving them beyond my reach).


My 2nd Agent rushes up to try to stop Mr. Gray and fires at him from point blank range and...misses:


The unstoppable Mr. Gray finally succeeds in ramming a needle full of nanobots deep into the neck of the dazed Green Hair.  Green Hair now has a virus, and will likely have to be mind-wiped.


All the decoys get scattered by my opponent's avatar in white:


On cyberside I keep throwing  hapless decoy avatars through walls ala-Tron, and my opponent pushes one to safety off the board.  On realside my second agent in a fit of rage at seeing his partner take a needle in the neck, fires off two quick shots, the first missed, but at last something  hits!  Due to my voluntary accuracy modifier, I only inflict a glancing blow on Mr. Gray, which is ideal so I don't get docked points for killing somebody on camera.

 

Mr. Gray staggers away and my second agent fires a shot at my opponent's 2nd agent, and...misses


My second agent then decides it is time to hang up the badge for good. (The game ends as the police arrive)

I ended up with 60 VP for implanting 4 decoys with false memories, and my opponent ended up with 38 having only infected one of agents with a virus and taking a big hit for failing a virus install attempt.

I am on the hunt for any good suggestions for what miniatures or tokens I could use to represent security cameras and player avatars on cyber-side.  I think that with neon enough paint jobs the sedition wars minis will do for cyberside avatars, but I'm at a loss for cameras...

Any suggestions or comments are welcome. 

[The_Baron]

This is all very cool, particularly as I'm listening to Neuromancer on Audible at the moment (first time, can't believe I've never read it before).

I am certain somewhere on this board I have seen people using translucent heroclix heroes as avatars in cyberspace - perhaps this would be a good way to go?

Not sure about the cameras... how about tiny tea lights on their side, with some blinkers on them to cast a triangular beam of light?

[Ockman]

Wow, amazing AAR! What a read!

As for avatars and security cameras, I have a couple of ideas.

1. Avatars could be the same miniature as the character with a "ghostly" paintjob (ie. painted in one colour, drybrushed a couple of times with gradually lighter paint)
2. Translucent Heroclix minis, as The_Baron suggested
3. Laser-cut silhouettes made out of coloured Perspex/acrylic sheets.

I don't know why, but for security cameras, I like the idea of some kind of mechanical spider. Perhaps this miniature from GZG https://shop.groundzerogames.co.uk/v15-84a.html

[S_P]

Great game report- gives me plenty of ideas.

[Gallahad]

Thank you for the kind comments, I'm glad you enjoyed the report!

I also really appreciate the suggestions, they are all very good.  I think those spider tanks from ground zero games look like they would be absolutely perfect for the bots.

I really like the idea of using the clear perspex silhouettes for the cameras. I'll have to do some googling.

Thanks! More to come!