15mm Great Swamp Lizard

We are very pleased to release our latest 15mm fantasy model -- the Great Swamp Lizard.  This towering beast can eat his way straight through entire enemy armies ... or can even attempt to gobble up the romantic interest of huge island-bound apes (but that's a risky proposition, even for him).  It's a salute to the old-style portrayal of a great carnivorous dinosaur -- to many people, this is still the preferred portrayal of T. rex. 

The kit is a mixture of resin and pewter, and parts are provided so that he can have his mouth open or closed.  (I prefer the mouth closed myself and even considered having him sculpted scratching his head.)  It's meant to be really huge in 15mm, so it's large enough to be quite a threat in 28mm scale as well. 


It's available now, in our popular Salamen fantasy range: 
http://khurasanminiatures.tripod.com/15mmfantasy.html 

Qajar Persians (19th century)

We are very pleased to release "15mm" Qajar Persians for the 19th century.  (They're really more 18mm, as is typical of Napoleonics in the market.)  Sometimes thought of as the "forgotten Napoleonics," the Qajars were regularly at war with two major players in the Napoleonic Wars, the Russians and the Ottomans, and in the first decade of the nineteenth century supplemented their masses of irregulars with a core of Western-trained regular troops.   

However, beyond their tangential involvement in the Napoleonic Wars, the Qajars are first and foremost useful for the endless simmering conflicts in the "back of beyond" in the mid-nineteenth century, as the uniform did not change until at least the 1860s.  The infantry in tall sheepskin hats illustrated fending off British cavalry in the Anglo-Persian War of 1856-7 are identical in appearance to the models released today. 

We are first releasing the infantry and artillery of the Qajar "new army."  Available here: 
http://khurasanminiatures.tripod.com/qajar-persians.html 

The new codes are: 

Qajar regular infantry march attack 

Qajar regular infantry skirmishing/shooting 

Qajar regular infantry command 

Qajar artillerists

For guns, use any British or French cannon models, perhaps with the occasional Russian gun mixed in.   

The Qajar regular regiments wore uniforms but there was no set uniform colour for the entire army, and so for instance in the famous painting of the Battle of Sultanabad (in which the Persian regulars defeated a Russian force) the Persian infantry regiments are shown in a variety of different colours, although wearing uniform within the regiment.  (Our paintups show some of the uniform colours from the Sultanabad painting.)   

The tall hat was sometimes this tall, sometimes a bit shorter, so we left them long on the theory that it's easier to trim them down based on individual preference than it is to build them up! 

Sculpted by Mike Broadbent, painted by Knight Brush Studios.

More former Testudo ECW/TYW codes added....

We have just added many new codes to the former Testudo English Civil War/Thirty Years War range in "15mm" (more like 18mm) -- pikemen in no armour, pikemen in breastplate and tassets, Croat light cavalry, and two codes without photos yet -- cuirassiers in 3/4 plate with pistols, and cuirassiers in 3/4 plate with lances.  (We'll add photos of the cuirassiers asap.)

They are available here:

http://khurasanminiatures.tripod.com/ecw-tyw.html

New Zantin Scutari troops released

We are very pleased to release our latest codes of the very popular "Zantin Reconquest" 15mm sci-fi range -- squad heavy weapons and platoon assets for the Imperial troops, the Zantin Scutari. 

The Platoon assets set has a rapid fire heavy plasma gunner team, a RAM mortar team, and a sniper. 

The squad heavy weapons set has four troopers with portable missile launchers and four with grenade launchers. 

Both sets are available now, at the link below. 
http://khurasanminiatures.tripod.com/zantin.html

Khurasan releases BTR-60PB

We are very pleased to release our latest 15mm scale modern combat vehicle, the Soviet BTR-60PB

The BTR-60 was the first BTR in the now-familiar 'eight wheeled, enclosed, with small turret' layout. The PB variant was introduced in 1966, and has served in many wars right up to the present day.  It is suitable as transport for our 1970s Soviet Motor Rifles, for our Yom Kippur War range, and for our modern North Koreans.

The kit is mixed resin and pewter, and is available now at any of these store pages:

http://khurasanminiatures.tripod.com/modern-russian.html
http://khurasanminiatures.tripod.com/yom-kippur-war.html
http://khurasanminiatures.tripod.com/northkorean.html

Federal Army VITROs

Vitros are human clone soldiers who are organised into platoons and then attached to Federal divisions at the company level as needed before or during battle.  They are folded into the company’s command structure, usually one platoon being added to bolster the company.   

Vitros are bred in large processing facilities, genetically modified so that they reach adulthood in two years.  This rapid growth comes at a price -- they begin to age beyond optimal combat service at about age 18 and usually reach mortality at about age 22.  (Vitro age is measured starting with separation from the development chamber.) As they do not have parents they bond instead with their instructors, who teach them combat methods and some basic interpersonal skills so that they can cooperate with their in utero fellow soldiers. 

Vitros have been bred by the Federation as soldiers for over three centuries but the programme was only put into full effect during the First Pelagic War, due to the dire need for soldiers at the time.  Since then the moral implications have been trumped by continuing combat demands, but there is still an active anti-Vitro political movement, particularly at the Federal Core, the outlying systems being more in favour of the military cloning programme.   

  
Vitros are the best infantry in the Federal Army – they have enhanced senses and are physically superior to in uteros, and are trained for combat virtually from the day they separate.  They are provided with distinctive armour and weapons to take advantage of their exceptional performance (and to clearly indicate that they are Vitros), the most unusual feature being the multi-lens combat helmet which gives the Vitro warrior a somewhat strange, alien appearance.  They are raised to obey and often do, but they are human, and as such have their grievances.  Vitros keenly feel their shortened lifespans, and the disdain many in uteros have for them as products rather than people.  There are also persistent rumours that Vitro Programme scientists have developed a serum to counteract the accelerated Vitro aging process but do not provide this to Vitros because it decreases combat capabilities.  As a result of these factors, and other issues besides, there have been sporadic Vitro uprisings.   This is the reason Vitros are no longer organized into formations larger than infantry platoons – the heavier weapons remain under control of in utero units. 

Vitros are genetically human but their hair follicles do not grow hair unless artificially stimulated and both genders are sterile although they can be sexually active.  Both males and females serve in Vitro platoons in about equal numbers.  Occasionally, an especially aggrieved Vitro will escape the facility and go renegade, and these Vitros are especially dangerous – they will sometimes join bands of alien mercenaries, but just as often will attempt to pass as an in utero to infiltrate the Vitro Programme to seek out the rumoured life enhancement serum. 

Two infantry squads of Vitros are now available at our webstore – they were sculpted by PF. 

Dwartist previews the Nova Respublik Grifon Advanced APC

Just a quick note that dwartist is building and painting the tracked and grav versions of the newest Nova Respublik APC, the Grifon, on The Miniatures Page.  This is a next-generation vehicle and a major threat to the Federation and others who might stand in the way of Socialism in One Galaxy.

He's already performed his magic on the Nova Res next-generation tank, the Drakon.

So now follow his progress here:

http://theminiaturespage.com/boards/msg.mv?id=335138

I'm sorry I've neglected the blog, but with the phenomenal number of orders coming in and with a lot of new product to preview and shepherd toward release, time has become a precious commodity -- and Khurasan Miniatures is a part-time business for me!  But I will do my best to update the blog more frequently.  Thanks.