April 2001 Edition VII

W elcome to the seventh edition of the Solaris Sentinel newsletter. I must apologize
right up front because I have been swamped with RL issues (baseball and
scholarships being #1) and have not been able to put as much time into this issue as I
would have liked. Hopefully I will have enough to keep you interested so you’ll keep
coming back. I have several adds in this edition from people who have contacted me
about buying minis and selling their’s to me or anyone else. They have been fair in the
dealings and are looking to sell off their stock of old minis. Also, the text version of the
House Kurtia Sourcebook is now available at http://www.wbu-bt.com/WBUniverse.htm
Thanks to Warner Doles for that one! So read through this edition and enjoy!

-Ross Koga
Editor

Interview with SalCrump©

(Editor’s notes: Sal Crump lives in Belgium; to reflect this, I have only edited his
interview slightly to give the reader the fell that English isn’t his primary language.)

How long have you been painting miniatures? Thunderbolt

I’v been painting from the age of 12 (fantasy figs

trolls etc starwars) i’m 28 now

What got you started painting BattleTech

Miniatures?

-i started painting very young my prime facination

was star-wars the game movie’s and figures .. a lot of
novels came out at that time and i stumbled on a
stacpole novel i din’t see before Battletech… blood
of Kerensky
from that day on Battletech was my favorite and the
“used universe it all happend in

What’s your most favorite paintjob you have done on a ‘Mech?

Hmmm … hard to tel it depends on the fig DCMS are my Fav shemes but i don’t have a
fav mech i painted
But if i had to choose it would be the Atlas –Ghost sheme and dioscouri T-Bolt …hmm
and maybe the Ba’s and proto’s i’m painting now … i’m a sucker for the small one’s J

What’s your favorite painting technique and why?

Brushing and shading with oils or gouache .. those 2 paints come on real smooth and
have a greasy feel not the hard touch of acryl
But painting in oils and other solvent rich paints takes ages … but stil my favorite

Any pointers you could give on your favorite

technique?

Wel .. we (some friends on irc.jurai.org) started a

channel to help people wiht their painting bigest
problem i have noticed is a low level of
confidence in there ability’s … you can do
anithing you want if you try hard enough
Look for inspiration and art at the work of us “so
called master painters” but don’t try to recreate
wat we do
1st. it needs to be fun to paint try to imagine
yourself into the fig your painting and put a litle of
yourself in it
2nd. like the work you did and don’t compare it to
others

How do you regard some of the other “master” painters out on the net, such as Dave
Fanjoy or J. Frazier (or any one else)?

Wel i see it as real Art each is difrent and has his or her own vision wich they reflect
painting a figure
Ron(Archers) is a trade mark i think we all look to him for inspiration and vision ,his
work is one of a kind
Dave Fanjoy’s daring postures and Fraziers exploits on ebay are a legend
Many others create wonderful peaces Like the Low Country Mechwariors , the hall of
khans .,Piggy, The sword of chaos wonderful modifications , Brian Plunkett and his
awesome decals, Kevin Unash and the people of the Minifactory
i would like to thank some people who realy got me started in this … Belgium is the
perephery concerning Battletech , Scott ,Lee(T-bolt) , Kevin (Ordy) Brian (Pirannha)
Thx for your Help with materials and suport in me starting wiht battletech and thx to
Jeannette who helped me in my dangerstripe decal crises

Any interesting stories you might want to relate?

Wel … here it goo’s

I… Lick my brushes.
I know its funny but it helps keap the tip of the brush
sharp …
And when i work i can make a real mess… i have this
desk where my puter is on I paint ,chat, surf on the
same desk and i drink a lot of cofee more then once it
happens that i clean my brush in my cofee and only
find out when i take a sip J

Thanks! Black Knight

Review: Mechwarriors Guide to the

Clans
I know I’m not the only Clanner who was disappointed in the amount of Clan stuff in
MW 3rd Edition. Oh, yeah, we get basics, but there wasn’t much in the way of
individuality and variation. The Mechwarrior’s Guide to the Clans remedies that.

139 pages of goodness, or close, in a nutshell. I would like to start with the artwork.

It’s really damned good. I haven’t seen nice artwork in a sourcebook for a long time.
Unlike some, that sometimes make you go “Is that…?”, this one you can recognize what
things are. Great shading etc., too, and some spiffy Protomech artwork.

Speaking of Protomechs, they’ve finally gotten a mention other than TRO 3060 and some
fluff in the Warden Clans Field Manual. There’s a Protomech life path, Protomech
weight assignment table, and even Protomech skills list. Pretty nice stuff.

Every single Clan has its own faction thingy, instead of the general one in MW 3rd. There
are special traits and skills each faction gets, making your choice in Clan matter. Liked
the fact that the Wolves (in general) get some “smart” traits, too :-)

Things slow down when you get to ‘Mech assignment tables, though. On the most part,
the Front-line tables are much better than the FM ones, save for the Coyote one, which,
oddly, lacks any Savage Coyotes. Go figure. Second-line tables, in my opinion are below
average. A total lack of unseen IICs is the reason, save for one, one, in all of the tables.
To add insult to injury, it’s a Phoenix Hawk IIC…

There’s no justice in this world.

Never fear, loads of extra life paths are here. There are Eighteen to be exact. From
Advanced Elemental Sibko to Nova Cat and Draconis Combine joint training exercises,
there’s nothing “missing” here. Players can actually have a little of choice in what his
character does during his life paths, instead of basically rolling out section by section in
MW3rd.

There are sample characters included to aid any newbies in getting used to the system.

Those who already have The Clans: Warriors of Kerensky, will be annoyed that a large
portion of the book is dedicated to Clan society and history, most of which is word for
word from TC: WoK. Though I realize this would be essential (hell, it is a sourcebokk) I
still got somewhat ticked by it. At least it’s good fluff.

A full campaign is included, with an interesting map of Katyusha City (the center of the
universe, next to Terra, to the Clans) included. The campaign is good, but if you’ve got
an experienced GM, don’t bother.

Mechwarrior’s Guide to the Clans gets an 8 out of 10 in my book.

-Deak

Scenario: Marauder ’s at the Gates

Star Commander Tim checked his sensors again. The field was covered by enemy
‘Mechs. The dead of night hide the enemy well, although Tim’s thermal imagery
systems picked up the incoming heat blimps with ease. Targeting was another matter.
The darkness, even with the visual aids, made it harder to hit the incoming ‘Mechs. His
ad-hoc trinary was sitting at the mouth of a long canyon system, waiting for the enemy
formation to hit them. The Galaxy Commander had left this second-line trinary here to
slow up the invading Inner Sphere unit, Barber’s Marauder IIs. The unit was moving at a
relatively slow speed, but the sensors told the story of the unit: an extremely heavy force
that was packing a lot of firepower. The only radio contact had stated that the Marauders
were here to kick the Jade Falcons off the planet. Things had gotten ugly when the
Falcon ‘Mechs had contested the landing, sending the Galaxy Commander retreating with
his tail between his legs. He had ordered Tim to stall out the pursuing forces, saying that
it was his duty to the Clan. Tim believed that if he could live through this, he would
challenge the Galaxy Commander to a Trial of Grievance over the whole ordeal. But first
he had to survive.

Maps:
Deep Canyon #1 and #2, BattleTech map (from boxed set, 4th edition), Heavy Woods (#1
and #2), Large Mountain #1 and #2, and River/Delta Drainage Basin #1 and #2. Set up
the Deep Canyon maps running long-ways, with the BattleTech map as the end piece,
making a three-map section running long-ways. On the middle map (one of the Deep
Canyons) place the Heavy Forrest maps on both sides. On the first Canyon map, place
the large mountains so that the slopes run down to the Canyons. On both sides of the
BattleTech map, place the River Basin ‘Maps.
(to make the game more customizable, you can change the configs of the Marauder
‘Mechs, due to the fact that they only have Marauder II’s and Marauders in various
variants)

Attackers:
Elements from Barber’s Marauder II’s:
Command Lance:
Marauder II – Captain Phillipe “Philly D” Devereux (2/3)
Marauder II – Linzi Smith (3/3)
Marauder* – John Scott (3/4)
Marauder* – Jamie Smith (3/4)

Support Lance
Marauder* – Mark Dryclump (3/3)
Marauder* – Jill Steele (2/3)
Marauder* – Marcus Reynolds (4/5)
Marauder II – Ed Stevenson (2/4)

Assault Lance
Marauder II- John Patrick (2/3)
Marauder II- Mike Jordan (2/3)
Marauder II- Jacob Scotts (2/3)
Marauder* – Lynly Howser (2/4)

Defenders

Command Star
Warhammer IIc* – Star Commander Tim (2/3)
Phoenix Hawk IIc* – Mechwarrior Laura (3/4)
Summoner Prime – Mechwarrior Scott Hazen (2/4)
Glass Spider- Mechwarrior Luke (3/4)
STN-3L Sentinel – Mechwarrior Tom (4/5)

Pursuit Star
Conjurer (Hellhound)- Mechwarrior Richard (2/3)
STN-3L Sentinel – Mechwarrior Bobby (3/4)
Incubus (Vixen) – Mechwarrior Kindy (2/3)
Locust IIc – Mechwarrior Jenny (3/4)
Locust IIc – Mechwarrior Lucy (4/2)

Support Star
Phoenix Hawk IIc* – Mechwarrior Lenard (3/4)
Bane – Mechwarrior Tommy (2/2)
Marauder IIc – Mechwarrior Scott (1/2)
Glass Spider – Mechwarrior Long (3/4)
Glass spider –Mechwarrior Short (3/4)
Special Rules:
If the Jade Falcons are able to hold off the Marauders for 20 turns without running away
from the Marauders, they are victorious. If the Marauders can destroy ¾ or all of the
Jade Falcons, they are victorious.

Every Jade Falcons ‘Mech destroyed = 10 points to Marauders

Every Marauder ‘Mech destroyed= 10 points Jade Falcons

Also, the special Night rules apply. A +2 modifier is in effect. Units marked with a * in
the unit composition area have spotlights mounted on them.

Special Outcome rules:

A dice should be rolled on the 20th turn. On a result of 1-3, the Marauders may begin to
advance past the Jade Falcons and exit off the map on the Falcons side, gaining points
(10) for each ‘Mech that safely makes it off. On a result of 4-6, an assault star of Jade
Falcon Front line troops shows up, which consists of the following:

Executioner A – Mechwarrior Timothy (2/3)

Turkina B – Mechwarrior Stewart (2/3)
Warhawk Prime – Mechwarrior Alex (2/3)
Hellbringer B* – Mechwarrior Glen (3/4)
Mad Dog Prime – Mechwarrior Jason (3/4)

They enter on one of the River Basin maps on the Jade Falcon edge. Hope this scenario
gives you and your friends something to do. To see a few more Marauder variants, check
out the combined ‘Mechs of the Month!!

-Ross Koga

‘Mech(s) of the Month

For the ‘Mech of the Month, I’ll go ahead an list all of the known Marauder variants out
of TRO:3025 and TRO:3050, including the two Marauder 2 variants. You can use these
with the above scenario to define the types of Marauder’s Barber’s Marauder 2s are
using.

MAD-3R Marauder (level 1) (all level 1 ‘Mechs are 4/6/0, unless otherwise noted)
PPC RA H 9
PPC LA CT 35/10
Medium Laser RA R/LT 17/8
Medium Laser LA R/LA 22
AC/5 RT R/LL 18
Ammo (AC) 20 LT
16 heat sinks
MAD-3D Marauder (level 1)
PPC RA H 9
PPC LA CT 35/10
Medium Laser RA R/LT 17/8
Medium Laser LA R/LA 22
Large Laser RT R/LL 18
20 heat sinks

MAD-3M Marauder (level 1)

Large Laser RA H 9
Large Laser LA CT 35/10
Medium Laser RA R/LT 17/8
Medium Laser LA R/LA 22
AC/5 RT R/LL 18
Ammo (AC) 20 LT
20 heat sinks

MAD-3L Marauder (level 1)

PPC RA H 9
Large Laser LA CT 35/10
Medium Laser RA R/LT 17/8
Medium Laser LA R/LA 22
AC/5 RT R/LL 18
Ammo (AC) 20 LT
18 heat sinks

MAD-4A Marauder II (level 1) (100 tons)

(3/5/3)
PPC RA H 9
PPC LA CT 45/16
Medium Laser RA R/LT 31/11
Medium Laser LA R/LA 34
Large Laser RT R/LL 41
29 heat sinks

MAD-5D Marauder (level 2) (XL engine,

4/6/4)
ER PPC RA H 9
ER PPC LA CT 35/10
Medium laser RA R/LT 24/8
Medium laser LA R/LA 23
Marauder
Large Pulse L RT R/LL 30
SSRM-2 LT JJ’s in the Leg
Ammo (SSRM) 50 LT
CASE LT
16 Double Heat Sinks

MAD-5M Marauder (level 2)(XL engine, 4/6/4)

Large Pulse L RA H 9
Large Pulse L LA CT 35/10
Medium Pulse RA R/LT 17/8
Medium Pulse LA R/LA 22
LB-10X RT R/LL 18
Ammo (LB) 10 LT JJ’s in the legs
CASE LT
16 Double Heat Sinks

MAD-5S Marauder (level 2) (XL engine,

4/6/0)
ER PPC RA H 9
ER PPC LA CT 35/10
Medium laser RA R/LT 17/8
Medium laser LA R/LA 22
Gauss Rifle RT R/LL 18
Ammo (GR) 8 LT
CASE RT
16 Double Heat Sinks

MAD-5A Marauder II (level 2) (XL engine,

3/5/3)
ER PPC RA 9
ER PPC LA 45/16 Marauder II
Medium laser RA 31/11
Medium laser LA 34
LB-10X RT 41
Ammo (LB) 30 LT
CASE RT
29 Heat Sinks

MAD-7D Marauder (level 2 CUSTOM) (XL engine, 4/6/0[8])

ER PPC RA 9
ER PPC LA 34/12
Medium laser RA 24/8
Medium laser LA 24
Rotary AC/5 LT 32
Ammo (RAC) 40 LT TSM
CASE LT
19 Double Heat Sinks
Ahh… the Marauders! Probably the greatest known Unseen ‘Mech of all of FASA’s
arsenal, the fearsome Marauder is the fabled ‘Mech of lore and old timers. In this
massive ‘Mech of the Month edition, I have given you all of the FASA variants I could
dig up, plus a custom one I did up on Heavy Metal Pro. I have never used a Marauder
(have never had a mini until a few months ago), but I plan to remedy that in a few weeks!
I have done this so you can pick variants for the scenario that uses Barber’s Marauder 2’s
for the primary unit. I like the Davion variant myself, although the Marauder 2 kinda
seems useless to me in the weapons package. The Davion variant’s weapons package
seems to work well, plus the design gets more armor with it’s upgrade. Could do without
the XL engine, but such is life. The jump jets are also a nice edition. The new Mairk
version’s large pulse lasers, jump jets, and LB-10X make it a good bet, although it keeps
the amount of armor of the original. Hope this helps aid your game play and informs
those that don’t know about the Marauder find out a little bit more about this classic bad
boy.

Ross Koga

Multi-Piece Molds for Resin-Casting

This article is going to go further in-depth into another aspect of resin casting, the making
and use of multi-piece molds. Most often, a two-piece mold will handle all of the details
on a three-dimensional master, and in 4 years of doing resin-casting all I’ve ever needed
was a two-piece mold. Essentially one half is poured to pick up all the details on one side
of a master item, and then after it cures, the other side is poured.

Two-piece molds are more complicated than a one-piece one, as you have to ensure the
halves don’t join together while curing. You also have to make certain that the two halves
line up properly every time, or you end up with a useless cast. Otherwise, the process is
the same as for pouring a one-piece mold.

Step 1: Prepare and fashion a mold the same way as for a single-piece mold, but you’ll
be suspending the master about half an inch up from the glass plate. The very first thing
to do is to brush thinned and mixed RTV onto one side of the master, so that you know
all the details are filled in without any air pockets. Once that is cured, mount the master
into your mold up from the base, with the RTV-covered side down, and pour your next
layer of RTV into the molding.

You want to bring the level up to about halfway on the master, dividing it in half.
Another item for while piecing the Lego blocks together for the mold, is to place blocks
into the area where the RTV will be poured. These will serve as locating blocks for when
the second level is poured.

Step 2: Once your first pour has cured, remove the blocks into the pour area and replace
so that they are level with the rest. Remove the pins that mount the master into place, and
coat all exposed RTV with a very thin layer of Vaseline, including your locating gaps.
 his is an important point, as any exposed RTV will bond with the new layer that is
poured. You need to be able to separate the halves completely, so the Vaseline keeps the

Step 3: Mix and pour your second layer of RTV, enough to cover the rest of the master

and the first layer, then let is sit and cure. I recommend that the second pour be left for 48
hours, so that both halves are able to fully cure.

Now it’s time to separate and prepare your mold for use. Disassemble the Lego
blocks around the mold, and clean up the outer surfaces. Separate the two halves

Vaseline from the surfaces, and put the two halves back together.

C
Acto knife, trim a pour-hole from what will be the top down to the cast-hole. Also trim in
several air-vent holes from the master to the upper surface, to allow air to escape as the

Step 5: Place the two halves back together, assure that all the holes and air-lines line up,

directions, and pour into the mold until the mold is filled, and some resin has come out of
the air holes. Squeeze the mold gently while pouring, to help draw the liquid resin down

Allow the resin to cure as normal, then separate the mold halves (carefully) and remove

Points and Tips: Air bubbles are your main enemy, when pouring resin parts. Surface

down into them and making awful-looking pockets on the copy. This is especially bad on
anything that is fairly thin, or has lots of surface detail.

he best way to combat this is to brush very fine talcum powder into the mold, filling in
all the tiny details. When resin is poured into the mold, capillary action will draw the

the mix.

T
substance won’t react chemically with the resin. A somewhat more expensive option, but
one that really does work like a charm, is to fill the mold details with casting micro-

drawback to the micro-balloons is if you spill it… the stuff is pernicious, and will get
anywhere and everywhere.
Moisture is your enemy when you’re doing any resin casting. If the air is humid, the heat
produced by the curing reaction of the resin will cause all kinds of air pockets along the
mold surfaces. Best bet here is to avoid doing any casting if the ambient humidity is
above 25% or so. Some experimentation will tell you exactly when to hold off.

Don’t throw away old molds, or ones that haven’t taken details properly; you can reuse
the RTV and save some cash. Take the old mold and chop it up into tiny bits, or else
grind it up in a (clean!) pencil sharpener or cheese grater, and keep that in a zip-lock bag.
When you’re ready to pour a new mold, do your set-up as normal, then sprinkle in the
ground-up mold material you’ve saved, to just over the master item, then pour in
sufficient new RTV to finish filling the mold and fill the details on the master, and let it
all set. The chemical reaction that causes the RTV to turn into a solid rubber piece, also
will bond to the old RTV and make it all a new mold. This cuts your use of new RTV
mix to less than half of what a totally new mold would take.

Remember that the cast copy will continue to exude oils for a couple of weeks after
casting. I always allow a piece to set for two weeks before use, and then wash the piece in
isopropyl alcohol to remove all the oils. That way you know your piece won’t leak oil to
mess up any paint that’s applied to it.

Different formulations of resin set faster than others; always go by the manufacturer’s
directions for all mixing and use. Once you have the feel for how each formula works,
then you’ll have no problems.

Keeping some simple points in mind makes for a whole new dimension in model-making
and hobbies in general. Resin casting is one of the most effective skills that a hobbyist
can have, and cuts some huge corners for time and labor-saving. Best of all, you can
create an item and cast hordes of copies of that item, all essentially the same.

But the best tip I can give anyone trying out resin casting, is to go at it slow, take some
notes if you need to, but overall have fun with the hobby!

Ogre
(Send questions to The Ogre @ Warped01@hotmail.com)

New Plastic Timber Wolf

about painting, and ended up taking over and
finishing the thing. I started the first two steps

brushing with Gunship Grey. I took over and

added the flames and such, but realized I should

BEFORE I did the flames. That’s the look that

FM: Crusader Clans gives on the Hell’s Horses

results, and it has taken a few people by

surprise when I mention the fact that it’s

going to paint up the plastic Dire Wolf I gave

him like this too (with me doing the flames,

W ell, thanks again for picking up your copy of the Solaris Sentinel. Hopefully next
month I’ll start sooner and have more. I can tell you that next month there will be
Lowcountry ‘Mechwarriors and the one time leader of the
Pardoe,
author of numerous books in the BattleTech Universe. So next month will be huge as far

Ross Koga
(Send comments, questions, threats, and intimidations to Ross at
)