Category Archives: Conversions

Forced March Update: Galacteers!

Forced March is drawing to a close, and I’ve finally finished a unit of miniatures! These are Galacteers, from Hydra Miniatures, and I’ve had them for about fifteen years. In fact, my first posts on this site were some War Rocket ships, Galacteers and Imperials, and I’ve previously painted some Galacteer characters (you can see them at the end). These guys are just the rank-and-file scrubs, complete with a heavy weapon.

Started out by priming them white, figuring I’d paint all the other colors around the white uniforms and just highlight up. Easy, right? Well, yeah. Maybe once upon a time. But these took much longer to paint because I kept fucking up and getting paint on the white parts, so, by the time I got to the white, I had a lot to fix. Damn these eyes!

Still, not too shabby when they’re all painted up, and completing them after all this time means I have no more Hydra miniatures outstanding in the pile of shame. This gives me a feeling of accomplishment I haven’t felt since finishing off my Pulp Figures years ago.

Here’s an image of the squad with all the Hydra characters in the front row. Done!

But of course, I am not the only one taking part in Forced March! Below find the other participants and their awesome submissions. As usual, if I forgot someone or something, let me know and I will certainly correct it. Like any “real life” forced march, I expect some stragglers over the next few days (I might even be one of them!). Be sure to drop by these blogs/accounts and lend your support!

  • Simon, from Fantorical, completed a unit of Uruk-Hai crossbowmen (crossboworcs?), some Alien Legionnaires and is working on some Beastmen, both of these from Crooked Dice (a company I wish I could patronize more)
  • Dave, from Wargames Terrain Workshop has been busy indeed, with a squad of Star Wars Imperial Scout Troopers, some old-school metal Space Marine Scouts, a squadron of Space Marine Speeders, and some Star Wars Imperial Stormtroopers! Add in some Wookies and a few more Space Marines and a unit of Raptors, and you’ve got a typical month of painting for Dave. The man is a machine!
  • Roger, from Rantings From Under the Wargames Table, painted a unit of Forge Fathers (Mantic Squats), and then did a unit of Plague Zombies! Awesome, Roger!
  • Azazel, from Azazel’s Bitz Box, paints so much stuff all the time that I’m not even sure he painted anything for Forced March! If so, I can’t find it, so LMK if I’m wrong, Azazel!
  • Tom, from Good Ground, painted a squad of Iron Warriors Space Marines!

And the Instagram crowd:

  • James, @spoontasticminis has been painting Emperor’s Children Space Marines all month, which more than qualify for Forced March.
  • Sabrina, @Uthwulfsminis is working on a squad of Space Marine Beakies that she has dubbed the “Pumpkin Spice” marines. Whether that’s an official chapter name or blasphemous heresy is for the Emperor to decide.
  • A newcomer this year, @horridperson, is a hobbyist close to my heart, as they have been working on tons of Star Trek miniatures lately! And even though they said they forgot about Forced March, they painted enough miniatures to make a unit: the Commune, a TOS-era reimagining of the Borg. Very cool! (I need to play some Star Trek miniatures games again).
  • @groddsnods did what he does best, converted and painted some Heroclix into a unit of Steve Ditko’s Madmen! This could have easily been an entry for Forgotten Heroes, too…but I’m sure we’ll see more awesome stuff in June!

And that’s another challenge sorted. I was hoping to get at least one more unit done, but that doesn’t seem likely. They might show up a few days into April, though, so check back soon! Monster May(hem) will be here before you know it!

Forced March: First Update

Nothing from me yet, although work continues apace on that long-delayed project from December. I have primed, based and readied two small units for eventual painting this month. Meanwhile, have a look at some of the other participants, because stuff is already rolling in! Drop by their sites and lend some support and encouragement!

These are all the participants thus far, along with any Forced March submissions I am aware of. If I missed anything (or anyone), let me know!

Meanwhile, over on Instagram:

  • James, @spoontasticminis
  • possibly Sabrina, @Uthwulfsminis
  • A newcomer this year, whose name I do not know, but who has thus far not lived up to their namesake, @horridperson
  • And a latecomer to the challenge (it’s never too late), @groddsnods, who I just bet will be joining us for Forgotten Heroes in June, too!

Whatever these folks do, whether for Forced March or not, is worth a look. You won’t find a more supportive and inspiring group of hobbyists out there. Check them out.

Forgotten Heroes 2025: The Escapist

For my last submission to Forgotten Heroes this year, I present: The Escapist!

The Escapist first appeared in The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Klay, Michael Chabon’s fantastic novel published in 2000. He’s the fictional character created by a couple of Jewish cousins working in the comics industry back in the 1930’s, the Golden Age of Comics. If that sounds familiar, it’s because Kavalier and Klay are an homage to the creators of Superman, Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel, only Siegel and Shuster weren’t cousins and Siegel (to my knowledge) wasn’t gay.

If you haven’t read this book, I can’t recommend it highly enough. It’s a novel about persecution, fear, Jewish identity, family, love, perseverance and heroes, both real and created. But you don’t have to take my word for it. Chabon won a Pulitzer Prize for it in 2001. Three years later, Dark Horse Comics published a series of comics, Michael Chabon Presents: The Amazing Adventures of The Escapist, which featured stories about the character written and drawn by different comic creators. I don’t have any, but I wish I did.

But what about The Escapist himself? Because it’s early and I have to go to work, I’ll cut and paste Wikipedia for the benefit of all.

The character’s modus operandi is part of a recurring theme of escapism in the novel, representing the imaginative and positive effects of escapism in superhero comics as well as Kavalier and Clay’s attempts to escape from the troubles of their past. Joe Kavalier has fled to America from Nazi-occupied Prague in Europe, leaving the rest of his family behind. Unable to help them, he starts fleeing from himself and everyone trying to get close to him. Sam Clay also wants to escape from himself – both his polio-stricken body and repressed homosexuality.

The Escapist’s true identity is Tom Mayflower. He is the crippled nephew of escape artist Max Mayflower (who performs under the stage name of Misterioso). When Max is fatally shot while performing onstage, he reveals that he isn’t his real uncle, having rescued him from a cruel orphanage as a baby. He gives Tom a golden key and a costume, explaining that he was recruited long ago by a mysterious organization called the League of the Golden Key to fight tyranny and free the oppressed. With his dying breath, Max commissions Tom to carry on his work. As long as Tom is wearing the costume and the key, he finds that he is no longer lame of leg and can perform amazing feats of escapology. Tom uses his powers to fight crime under the guise of the Escapist, especially against the evil forces of the mysterious criminal network, the Iron Chain.

To make The Escapist, I used this Animal Man Heroclix as a base miniature. He’s pretty much perfect.

From there, it was an easy paint job, as The Escapist’s costume is a black/grey skintight leotard and a TMNT-style bandanna domino. Not hard.

Although I was happy with the result, he looked somewhat blah, so I added the chains. It’s an actual necklace (worthless, of course) that I clipped and superglued into a pile at his feet. One quick metallic drybrush later, and voila! The Escapist has escaped!

That’s it for Forgotten Heroes 2025. Thanks as always to Jeremy for hosting it. I’ll be making the rounds to everyone’s blog to see their contributions and heap well-deserved praise upon them!

Forgotten Heroes 2025: Chemistro

I’ve always been a huge fan of the Heroes for Hire (especially Power Man), so I have a near-complete run of Luke Cage, Power Man and Power Man and Iron Fist. Power Man and Iron Fist have (or at least had) very few recurring villains, but Chemistro was an exception. No less than three guys have called themselves Chemistro. Luke Cage fought the first two on his own before partnering up with Iron Fist for the third.

The first Chemistro, Curtis Carr, was a chemist who invented an “alchemy gun”, with which he could turn stuff into other stuff. His bosses claimed it as company property, so he stole it back and used it to get revenge. He blew his own foot off with it in the process, and Power Man sent him to the slammer.

While in there, he was cellmates with a guy named Archibald Morton, who forced Carr to reveal the secret of the alchemy gun. Morton tried to build one himself, but since he’s a dummy and not a scientist, it exploded in his hand. This gave him the powers of the alchemy gun without the gun. He also ran afoul of Luke Cage and lost.

The third Chemistro is Curtis’s younger brother Calvin, who stole a new gun and tried his hand at being a criminal until Power Man and Iron Fist shut him down with the help of Curtis, who didn’t want his younger brother doing crimes. As far as Chemistro’s history goes, that’s as much as I know, but he’s apparently still around. Check Wikipedia for updates if so inclined.

To make Chemistro, I used this Thunderball Heroclix as a base model. I mean, you can’t do better than this. He’s not even carrying his wrecking ball, so I don’t have to remove it.

I slapped on a retro raygun bit I had in the bitz box, and voila! One repaint and rebase later, and here’s Chemistro!

I’m hoping to get my last one done over the weekend for posting on the 30th. There’s a little more work involved with that one, but the costume is easy to paint. Fingers crossed!

Forgotten Heroes 2025: The Ghost Who Walks

For my first submission to Forgotten Heroes 2025, I present The Man Who Cannot Die, The Phantom!

One of the first costumed superheroes, the Phantom debuted in 1936 and is still in syndication in newspaper strips today. He was the first hero to wear a skintight suit, and the first to have eyes with no visible pupils. There was a movie that came out in 1996 starring Billy Zane that I know I’ve seen but can’t remember anything about, and a Scifi channel miniseries that I know I haven’t seen.

The Phantom is actually a title, not a name: twenty-one generations of the Walker family have worn the suit. Since it’s passed down from generation to generation, the myth developed that the Phantom is immortal. From Wikipedia:

The Phantom was 21st in a line of crime-fighters which began in 1536, when the father of British sailor Christopher Walker was killed during a pirate attack. Swearing an oath on the skull of his father’s murderer to fight evil, Christopher began a legacy of the Phantom which would pass from father to son. Nicknames for the Phantom include “The Ghost Who Walks”, “Guardian of the Eastern Dark” and “The Man Who Cannot Die”.[6]

Unlike many other superheroes, the Phantom has no superpowers; he relies on his strength, intelligence, skill at arms (he carries two holstered handguns, a revolver and a 1911 .45 autopistol, one on each hip, and is an expert marksman with both), and the myth of his immortality to take action against the forces of evil. The 21st Phantom is married to Diana Palmer; they met while he studied in the United States and they have two children, Kit and Heloise. He has a trained wolf named Devil and a horse named Hero, and like the 20 previous Phantoms he lives in the ancient Skull Cave.

To make the Phantom, I used this Daredevil Heroclix. I cut off the billy clubs and up-gunned him by giving him twin machine pistols. The bottom parts of the clubs now look like ammo clips.

Pretty much all that was left to do was repaint him, although I removed a good part of his billy holster and filed down his horns first. (I didn’t care enough to give him a second holster, though). Looks like I missed a spot on his left toe. I’ll fix it, but I’m not taking the pictures again.

There’s quite a bit of variation in his costume colors. A quick Google search shows his signature purple suit varies between royal purple to pastel lavender, and the stripes on his briefs have been blue, red or yellow. I stuck with the blue.

The Phantom was created by Lee Falk, who died in 1999. Fun story: In 1993, I was 21 years old and working in a comic shop. I had occasion to spend a fair bit of time with a woman 17 years my senior who worked for a major advertising firm in New York. Once, while we were not doing what we usually did when we saw each other, she mentioned that I should meet her friend Lee sometime, since I was into comics. She described him as a lovely old guy. She met him while doing marketing work for King Features Syndicate, who owned, among other things, The Phantom. Yes, she meant that Lee, and no, I never met him.

Anyway, imagine my surprise when, researching this hero, I discovered that there has been a recent video game released featuring the character that looks awesome but has been described as an “experience in frustration” and a “barely functional mess”. Yikes.

One down, one more to go (possibly two)!

Monster May(hem) 2025 Begins!

Short and sweet, folks (more time to paint your monsters!) Monster May(hem) starts TODAY!

Here is the blogroll of participants thus far, meaning those who have let me know they want to take part. From the blogosphere:

No big surprises there. These are my peeps, after all, although I’m thrilled that Monster May(hem) has lured Matt out of the wilds of Vermont to join us again after a year’s absence!

From Instagram:

Returning champions and friends, all!

Anyone else who wants to take part need only let me know in the comments below, or drop me an an email at angrypiper@angrypiper.com, or PM me on Instagram @angrypiper. I will add your name and website/IG account (if applicable) to the blogroll forthwith! If you don’t have either of those and still want to take part, no problem! I’ll host your images here on this very site.

Like last year I plan on making every effort to be in The Paint Pit channel of my Discord server this month while I work on my monsters. That’s usually between the hours of 5:30-7:30 PM (EST) on weekdays here in the States, and anytime I can get to myself on the weekends. Can’t promise I’ll be there every day, but if I’m not, feel free to hang out and meet some of the other participants, if so inclined. Don’t have an invitation to my Discord server and want one? Read this first, and then contact me.

Without further ado, Gentlemen (and Lady), PAINT YOUR MONSTERS!!!!

Forgotten Heroes 2024: Bee-Man!!!!

This book is a boon for Forgotten Heroes enthusiasts. The heroes contained herein are indeed forgotten, and usually for good reason. This book gave me the impetus to construct Rainbow Boy a couple of years ago, and it delivered again this year.

May I present: Bee-Man! Never heard of Bee-Man? Me neither! That’s because he lasted a total of 2 issues, printed before my time, in 1966. That’s it. He’s probably in the public domain, because I can’t imagine anyone giving a shit about Bee-Man.

Barry E. Eames (clever, right?) sabotages a rocket ship that is landing after being out in space, collecting cosmic samples, Eames hopes to make a quick buck by selling whatever’s inside. What’s inside turns out to be angry space bees, who drag him back into space after stinging him a lot.

Bee- Man returns to Earth, intent on resuming his criminal ways, now armed with the advanced technology of the space bees. He has a huge, beehive-shaped “secret lair”, from which he hatches his criminal plans to steal gold, radium and honey. Really. But in the second issue, Bee-Man allies himself with the FBI, to fight against the space bees’ plans to enslave humanity.

There was no third issue.

To make Bee-Man, I used these two Heroclix miniatures, a Para-Demon and the Wasp. I removed the Para-Demon’s jetpack and axe, and replaced the jetpack with the Wasp’s wings. I sculpted his bee-helmet, but there was no way I was gonna do his antennae. Too small, and beyond my skill.

Then, it was just a matter of repainting him to look like Bee-Man. And that’s what I did.

Looks not bad, right?

I managed to get this one in in the late hours of Forgotten Heroes this year. Looking forward to the Season of Scenery!

Forgotten Heroes 2024: Grendel

Grendel, created by Matt Wagner, is a complicated character with a rich comic history. Rumor has it they recently filmed most of a Netflix series only to pull the plug last minute (which is a dick move).

There have been many people to assume the mantle of Grendel, starting with billionaire author-turned-bored-guy-turned-assassin-turned-criminal-kingpin Hunter Rose. Rose is unquestionably not a hero. He’s more of a sociopath who does things for no apparent reason–like take over the criminal underworld or adopt a child–simply because he can. He’s able to use much more of his mental capacity than most normal humans, and he’s an extremely skilled combatant and acrobat whose favored weapon is a two-tined fork of his own design.

To make the Hunter Rose version of Grendel, I was at a bit of a loss, as Rose is pretty lightly-built, and most superheroes are jacked. Since I knew I couldn’t very well sculpt one from scratch, I chose this version of Daredevil, mainly for the pose but also because I thought I could work with it best. I rebased him first, then covered the DD on the chest and his lips with some Vallejo White Stone landscape paste, filed down the horns, clipped off the billy-club holster, and completely repositioned his arm. I tried to make his clothes look more loose-fitting with some green stuff. I made the fork from plasticard (once again, my old health insurance card) and the handle of a Mantic dwarf warhammer. Then I painted him up.

Here he is. Like I said, he’s a lot beefier than Hunter Rose, but he’s unmistakably Grendel.

You can still see the DD on the chest if you look hard enough, but otherwise, I’m ok with him.

I added the head-ties too. Forgot about that.

I have one more submission for Forgotten Heroes planned, but no idea whether I will get to it in time or not. I’m definitely doing it, though; even if it has to come in early July. With six days to go, I should be ok.

Forgotten Heroes 2024: Judomaster

My first Forgotten Heroes submission this year is none other than:

I was going through my comics the other day and was surprised to find this, as I don’t remember buying it. I’m a sucker for kung-fu comics, so I guess I’m not surprised after all. This is the only Judomaster comic I own and I’ve never heard of the character, so that’s “Forgotten Heroes” enough for me.

I looked up his story: Judomaster was a sergeant in WWII in the Pacific theatre. At some point, he saved a girl. The father of the girl he saved taught him judo as thanks. That’s it.

The character was originally a Charlton comics character, and most of those ended up owned by DC comics. DC never did very much with Judomaster before killing him off in the Infinite Crisis storyline by having Bane break his back. Judomaster is no Batman, so he died.

You figure he’d be tougher, since he’s apparently REALLY good at judo:

They don’t give costumes like that to just anyone, after all.

To make Judomaster I used Iron Fist as a base miniature. Can’t really do better than this.

Rebased and repainted, he looks like this.

I somehow overlooked the fact that Judomaster wears a black belt (of course he does), and I didn’t want to sculpt one after I painted him, so I just painted the belt on.

I hope to do at least one more miniature this year, possibly two. I do so love this challenge!

Forgotten Heroes Redux: The Hypno-Hustler

Last year, one of my submissions for Forgotten Heroes was the Disco Superfly himself, The Hypno-Hustler. He’s been sitting in my display case since last June, and every time I looked at him, I wasn’t happy. Although I think I did a pretty decent job of converting a Booster Gold miniature into the Hustler, two things in particular bothered me: his base and his bass.

I sculpted his bass guitar from green stuff, and like most things I sculpt, it looks mediocre at best. I searched for a suitable guitar bit first, but the best one I could find came from a British company called Zealot miniatures, and it didn’t make sense to buy it just to pay twice as much shipping it to me. Now, though, through my shadowy network of global operatives, I’ve been able to procure one at last! (OK, it was through the kindness of Dave Stone, a shadowy, international man of mystery if ever there was one.)

With that out of the way, I set about fixing the Hustler. The other thing that bothered me was his base. I wasn’t going to put the Hustler on regular ground, so I attempted to make it look like a spotlight on stage. It didn’t really do the trick. So, I added another base and repainted it a simple white, so he looks like he’s on a 1970’s disco round.

Because this base obviously looks like shit, I will remove the Hustler and use spray paint instead to cover up the brush strokes. Then I will re-mount him. I didn’t have time to do this before the end of the month, but rest assured, it will happen. And that’s about it. By giving him a new bass and a new base, I think he’s now done for real, and a fitting end to Forgotten Heroes this year.