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Post by FalconKPD on Feb 8, 2018 21:53:36 GMT
Hey guys, as a huge fan of the original novel as well as the spin-off "Last Days of Thunder Child" by Colin Powell, I decided to write up my own take on HMS Thunder Child's historical background as well as a rule set that will allow her to appear on the table to fight the Martian aggressors! Check out the link to the Google Doc below! EDIT: This probably belongs more in the BEF's ruleset. If need be, admins, feel free to delete this.  docs.google.com/document/d/1okaoIj73yU4qztc5PIb_cKt53rerb2gJIiy2KzgWVl0/edit?usp=sharing |
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Post by boxholder on Feb 9, 2018 0:55:43 GMT
This looks like a kitbash of a Revell model of the USS Olympia (Adm Dewey's flaghip at Manila Bay). It has been re-released by Encore Models and there is also a Lindbergh model. It may even be a simple change of paint job. Nice job on it, either way. Revell 
Lindbergh 
Encore 
FWIW: For Manila Bay, the Great White Fleet paint job was overpainted with overall sea blue-gray for combat operations. |
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Post by FalconKPD on Feb 9, 2018 8:23:29 GMT
This looks like a kitbash of a Revell model of the USS Olympia (Adm Dewey's flaghip at Manila Bay). It has been re-released by Encore Models and there is also a Lindbergh model. It may even be a simple change of paint job. Nice job on it, either way. Revell
Lindbergh
Encore
FWIW: For Manila Bay, the Great White Fleet paint job was overpainted with overall sea blue-gray for combat operations. You've got it! A simple addition of more British style masts and a cut at the waterline makes her great for the table. Sure, she's quite a bit small, but it works for me. |
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Post by boxholder on Feb 9, 2018 13:29:37 GMT
Yes indeed. Waterlining the model can be used on any era ship and it really changes the look for display. Usually, you never see the underside, the propellors and all. I have done it on sailing ships and WW-2 battleships
And it is pretty simple with a "hot knife" cut at the waterline. Then do some sanding to even up the cut and level it.
Regarding size: IIRC the Wells book referred to Thunderchild as a torpedo craft. So it would be smaller than a battlecruiser. Anyhow, no reasonable size naval vessel (=larger than a patrol boat) could be represented at 15mm scale on the table. BUT, size does not matter much because the game use is indicative of where the unit is located, not a precise scale representation.
If you like the looks, USE IT!!
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Post by hardlec on Feb 10, 2018 16:33:06 GMT
The Thunderchild was a torpedo ram. no such actual craft existed, which was fine because HG Wells originally intended readers could not "Google it" to check.
Such ships were designed to attack enemy warships that got too close. the Thunderchild had a bow mounted torpedo tube and a reinforced bow for ramming, as well as a smallish gun. Such ships charged into the fray hoping to sink the enemy with torpedoes or, as a last resort, ram them. It was intended to represent the best of British military technology and the overall futility of human resistance.
C'est la viv.
I would agree that any good looking model belongs on the table.
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Post by FalconKPD on Feb 12, 2018 6:18:36 GMT
The Thunderchild was a torpedo ram. no such actual craft existed, which was fine because HG Wells originally intended readers could not "Google it" to check. Such ships were designed to attack enemy warships that got too close. the Thunderchild had a bow mounted torpedo tube and a reinforced bow for ramming, as well as a smallish gun. Such ships charged into the fray hoping to sink the enemy with torpedoes or, as a last resort, ram them. It was intended to represent the best of British military technology and the overall futility of human resistance. C'est la viv. I would agree that any good looking model belongs on the table. Actually, a few Torpedo Rams existed as experimental ships, including the HMS Polyphemus I mentioned in the historical background. The US also built one called the "USS Intrepid" en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Intrepid_(1874)They never were designed to carry shell firing weaponry, but in my write up, I went into it with the idea that she would be built as a definitive ram by the Royal Navy to take everything learned from the Polyphemus and apply it in a larger, more effective ship. Think of her as a smaller HMS Devastation with an emphasis on ramming and torpedoes as a more primary attack method, with cannons to bolster her firepower rather than vice versa. |
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Post by hardlec on Feb 12, 2018 9:18:28 GMT
The Polyphemus did exist, it was very different from what HG Wells described.
Polyphemus would have difficulty as a riverine craft because she had a 20 foot draught.
For AQMF purposes, Scott's gunboat is perfect. It is a pain to build.
The point is what it looks like on the table.
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Post by FalconKPD on Feb 12, 2018 21:20:45 GMT
The problem with the Thunder Child though is that she had very little description other than being a shell firing torpedo ram. To be fair, anything goes here. I just wanted to stat out my interpretation on her.
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Post by David N.Tanner 07011959 on Feb 13, 2018 1:55:03 GMT
Very nice. I like your design and the history.
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Post by FalconKPD on Feb 13, 2018 17:00:45 GMT
Very nice. I like your design and the history. Thanks! I appreciate it. |
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Post by madmorgan on Feb 14, 2018 17:12:34 GMT
My two cents is all positive - frankly, see my Ships listings for a wide range of ships and boats for AQ as well as ranges on table for various scales (1/600, 1/1200, 1/2400 etc).
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Post by madmorgan on Feb 14, 2018 17:14:44 GMT
My two cents is all positive - frankly, see my Ships listings for a wide range of ships and boats for AQ as well as ranges on table for various scales (1/600, 1/1200, 1/2400 etc). Beautiful work on your part. Got me to thinking of monitor type ships mounting Thunderchild 24" Bombard! See page 144 in rulebook...
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Post by hardlec on Feb 19, 2018 13:21:20 GMT
Riverine craft with huge bombards and mortars were common in the ACW.
In AQMF they might carry multiple rocket launcher.
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Post by madmorgan on Mar 19, 2018 9:38:49 GMT
I've done a 'modern' AQMF boat - based on the Zvezda 1/350 Soviet Armored Boat from their 'Art of Tactics' game. The Navy felt cheated that they didn't get control the Land Ironclads units, so created some very unique river ships. The ship mounts a 12", a 7", and a multiple rocket launcher. See stats under my 'Ships' posting.
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Post by phgamer on Mar 26, 2020 13:48:48 GMT
The invention of the torpedo ram came about because of a battle in the Med where a battleship was successfully rammed and sank. So the naval thinkers turned their thoughts to optimizing for that purpose. By the time the prototypes were completed, cooler heads prevailed and their foolishness revealed. So another mission was designed for the Polymhemus to justify its existence, to break the chains that would protect naval ports.
The 1870's to 1010's was a very interesting time period for naval development. New technologies were being advanced at a breakneck pace, and some ships were launched so obsolete, that they were sent immediately to the breakers. Kind of like now. The Littoral Combat Ship is a good example of that now.
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