Thursday, April 30, 2015

Dropzone Commander: Hobby Update and First Few Games



This past weekend we had a full day of garage gaming featuring Dropzone Commander. I am a bit late to the DZC party but I now have a fully painted up UCM force that I can run up to 1500 point lists. The game takes me back to my wargaming roots as the 10 mm scale models remind me of my days of playing Battletech. One of the best features of DZC are the urban terrain sets that are used with the scenarios.

Last year I won a United Colonies of Mankind (UCM) starter box from a raffle at Foodhammer. I really liked the asthetic that reminded me of the Colonial marines from the movie "Aliens". Most of the fluff in the books is from the UCM point of view as the humans are reclaiming planets held by the alien forces of the "Scourge".  I have played a total of four games so far. Like any new miniature game it will take me awhile to get the hang of the movement and threat ranges. I really do the like the fact that there are alternating battlegroups to keep you engaged in the game.


There are different classifcations for the size of the game. Fortunately Hawk Wargames has a really good (free!) list builder java-script program that helps sort out your options. Coming from 40k primarily, the list building options for DZC seem really restrictive. You cannot bring half filled transports and a lot of units that are listed as "support" require you to take a primary unit in the respective combat group.


I have played against all the different factions now (Scourge, Shaltari, Post Human Republic, and Resistance) and have gotten a feel for how they play. UCM does not appear to have as many tricks as the other factions but no major weaknessess to exploit either. That being said, UCM feels a bit slow and units that I brought without transports were really restricted on far they could get around the table.

After Saturday's games I finished up the remaining unpainted models I had and now have a fully painted army after two weeks. Painting the 10 mm scale models was a nice change of pace and I was able to get a lot done each night. I actually followed the Hawk Wargame YouTube painting guide with a simple airbrushed basecoat, dry brush, wash, and final touchup/detailing. I used a few 40k transfers to give a finishing touch as well as help keep track of which group belonged to their respective transport.
Kodiak Command Vehicle
Ferrum Drone Base
Phoenix Command Gunship
Albatross Heavy Dropship

Legionnaires with Bear APCs and Condor Dropship w/ Missile Pod
Sabre Tanks with Condor Dropship w/ Missile Pod
Rapier AA Tanks with Condor Dropship w/ Missile Pod
Praetorian Squads with Raven-A Dropships
Wolverine Scout Buggies and  Longbow Howitzers with Raven-B Dropships
Gladius Heavy Tanks with Condor Dropship w/ Missile Pod
Seraphim Strike Fighter
I stuck pretty close to the studio stock green for my UCM for all the vehicles. Painting 10mm scale infantry definitely was challenging. I defnitely like the models and the game is another one in mix for our club.

Look for my UCM in action on our YouTube channel below. Thanks for reading!


2 comments:

  1. Love it! Awesome paint, great composition. Love the glass paint as well. Awesome job.

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  2. Your army looks pretty AMAZING for just 2 weeks! Well done! Takes me forever to paint one model.

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