Black Friday Free Worldwide Shipping until 1st December

Check out the IAF015 Hab Dome!

The Ion Age has begun its Black Friday Weekend offers and promotions. From now, over the weekend, until the early morning of 1st December 2016 GMT we are offering FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING on all orders anywhere (no limit per customer) on orders over 10.00GBP product value. This applies to all of our ranges, all of our books, miniatures and anything else we sell. Just add items to your cart and proceed to checkout and the website will automatically do the rest. Go HERE and explore. Its time to expand your forces for the winter campaign season! If you wish to combine up orders from our other websites (we operate Alternative Armies, 15mm.co.uk and The Ion Age) then you can do so. Email us on info@theionage.com with a list of what you would like and we will send you a paypal invoice saving you the shipping! 

While we are not as large as our sister brands, we are the new infant, we are full of pluck! 

We have a lot to offer fans of 15mm science fiction and 28mm science fiction wargaming. Patrol Angis our first 15mm skirmish level rules system has a book and a game pack (which each come with a unique Knight Errant miniature). We have the Prydian Army that contains Retained Knights, Muster Infantry, Planetary Militia, Portable Weapon Platforms as well as Battlesuits, Bikes, Adder Combat Lifters, Mullo AFV's, Skylark Flyer, Corbal Deployable Hardpoint and the mighty Taranis Main Battle Tanks. We have the Shia Khan Empire an alien range with Legionaries, Malig space goblins, hulking Warlord ogres and Nox shock troops plus the Malig Infernus Tank. 

We have a large range of 15mm scale terrain all based on the Hab Dome (currently half price!) to create entire complexes. 

We have the brand new 15mm Ion Age Universe characters range by Dave Foley. We have Accessories and Bases including Troop Element Trays. 

We have the Pebeo Paint Range and Poster Prints plus the Collected Formally Free monthly miniature collections Year One and Year Two. 

Hundreds of science fiction miniatures and vehicles and terrain to choose from. Lastly remember that we operate a customer loyalty programme which means you get Reward Points on every order (which you can use this time or next time etc for discounts or free items) on top of other offers. Every package also gets automatically the monthly free miniature currently IMP27 Florian Pumpkin Spore (worth 0.60GBP) added. Just go to our website HERE and then browse using the top menu to choose your range to view.

Thanks for Reading, 

GBS

IAF103 Taranis Repulsar Tanks Comparison and Scale Photos

The Early Supporter Offers will be coming after we take part in the big Black Friday and St Andrews Day four day weekend event at the end of November and we have put up three previous articles all about the IAF103 Taranis Repulsar Tanks and the coming ESO's which will go live on 2nd December 2015.  

You can read those on our blog with an outline of the offers, parts and assembled, information burst and repulsar drones free by looking back over the last week.   This article presents to you a series of scale photographs showing Taranis alongside other items from our 15mm range that are in your wargame collection including its other types of propulsion.  Each photograph has a caption that tells you more.

The Repulsar, Tracked, Lifter and Wheeled types of Taranis MBT's!

Top Down view of sizing of the four types.

IAF103A Taranis MBT with cratered Hab Dome and two Sternode Battlesuits

IAF103B Taranis MBT facing off against the Khanate!

Smashed Adder Combat Car and Desteria Knights

Top down view showing sizes of large infantry next to Taranis

IAF103C Taranis MBT rounds up Yordan Retained Knights

IAF103D Tarais MBT with Planetary Militia at Outpost

Sizing compared to Infantry, Mullo, Colobreta and Command Dome

IAF103E Taranis APC being used by Planetary Militia at the river edge

Sure I can fix it!  Drones protect a damaged Taranis APC

Its a pretty lethal and damn pretty looking big vehicle!  Bob Naismith has done a fantastic job on bringing my idea of what a futuristic science fiction space opera Human anti-gravity tank would look like into a resin reality.  Go to the Early Supporter Page on 2nd December or 15mm Prydian Vehicles page after the event.

Thanks for Reading.

GBS

IAF082 Taranis Repulsar Drones will be free in Taranis ESO's!

We previously released IAF081 Taranis Running Drones and you can see these HERE.  In December we will be releasing a follow up pack of drones designed by Bob Naismith and these are to be IAF082 Taranis Repulsar (Anti Gravity) Drones.  These will be released as pack but first they will feature in the December ESO's on the IAF103 Taranis Repulsar Tanks as a FREE PACK of five (worth 5.00GBP) with every tank pre-ordered. Superb value and excellent with ant-gravity tanks.  After that they will be released as a normal code as a pack of five, choice of singles or buy three packs and save 10% as part of The Ion Age 15mm range.  This article gives you the first proper look at the drones all painted up and finished and ain't they just lovely!

“It was chief engineer and fabrication guild master Ulus McTear who first came up with the notion of drones for use with the various types of Taranis main battle tank hulls in Precinct service.  Protecting the crews of the vehicles was the guild masters first and foremost aim since the time taken to train on such a large and complex hull made replacing members of the crew a painful experience.  However the factor of cost was also paramount in his mind.  With more than eighty tons of titanium alloy in every Taranis as well as many other expensive systems such as its GroatVey MkX HeavyIon Reasc Fusion Reactor its loss had to be avoided if possible.  Originally in late 4200's IC the use of sentient mind droids was field tested and worked well but with the horror of the Gurtan Activation in 4302IC these were shut down and destroyed.  The casings and systems of the droids were converted across to slaved robotic drones controlled by the crew of the Taranis.  While this marginally slowed the reactions of the drones and limited them to a close protection of the tank this was seen as no bad thing by McTear who lost a cousin to the machines on Gurtan.  There are two primary types of motive systems for the Taranis drones and these are allocated by the propulsion types of the tanks themselves with runner legged drones being assigned to tracked and wheeled hulls while repulsar drones are paired with hover and repulsar Taranis tanks.  The role of the drones is protection and in limited ways attack and repair of their assigned vehicle.  Five standard types of drone are in use as of 4303IC.  These are the light missile drone which uses 30mm Anda guided rockets to keep light vehicles and incoming munitions away from its tank.  The laser strike drone which has twin rotation mounted wide beam Valerin 2Mw lasers to assault enemy infantry and intercept incoming projectiles.  A particle dispersal drone is fitted with fine filament explosive caps and smoke generators to provide interference with visual spectrum, electro-magnetic and plasma projectiles to a limited degree.  A single direction comms suite gives the transmission jammer drone the ability to disrupt enemy signals and conduct sonic attacks.  Lastly there is the field repair drone and this most specialised machine has the task of attempting small repairs to its Taranis when opportunity presents itself.  These repairs are of course not on the same scale as those as a portable castle and its fleet of drones can effect but it can make all the difference when it matters.  Interestingly the field repair drones came about after failed experiments with drones mounting tiny Hurwent Generators as every student of energy fields knows a stable haze cannot be generated with low power and with constant movement within an atmosphere. Taranis Drones are a valuable part of a Knight Commander's mobile armour arsenal and Precinct main battle tanks seldom enter the fray without them.”

Academy Auto-Trainer Series 52, New Glastonbury, 4335IC

There are five different drones all supplied in two white metal parts with a repulsar lower body and a different upper body which sits naturally into a bowl mount at the waist allowing upper body posing.  Each drone has a different function in the protection and repair of a Taranis tank. From left to right these are as follows: 

1. Missile Pod Drone

2. Laser Strike Drone

3. Particle Dispersal Drone

4. Transmission Jammer Drone

5.  Field Repair Drone

Above is a scale photo showing a Retained Knight from IAF008 Retained Post Charlie.  A typical Human miniature it is 17mm tall and shows the Missile Pod Drone and Particle Dispersal Drone on either side.  The Drones assembled stand between typically 15mm tall and 22mm tall for the tallest. This scales them perfectly in 15mm and also makes them waist height for a 28mm miniature too. Scale variable.

So.  The Early Supporter Offers will give you a pack of five worth 5.00GBP free with every IAF103 Taranis Tank you pre-order purchase.  After all every main battle tank needs a little love!

Thanks for Reading.

GBS

Free Shipping Worldwide and Offers this Black Friday Weekend!

This message is being put out across all of our brands, blogs, websites and email listings. Alternative Armies, 15mm.co.uk and The Ion Age will be making a brilliant Black Friday Weekend set of offers at the end of this week. From Friday 27th through to the end of St Andrews Day Monday 30th November 2015 we will be offering free worldwide shipping on all orders on all websites (and by email if you want to combine up your order across our brands) on every order over 10.00GBP product value. The cart will automatically give you free domestic, international, courier shipping depending on your location and order size and all you need to do is put items in the cart of proceed to checkout. 

On top of this we have special offers on the websites for the weekend which differ for each website. For example Hab Domes are half price and a free miniature and reward points for The Ion Age. 15mm.co.uk has brand new Loud Ninja Games releases and offers on them plus bundle deals on vehicles and fantasy. Alternative Armies is giving discounts on all Albion Orc cavalry units and characters and also the whole OH High Fantasy range will be released with multitude bundles and more! 

On Friday 27th visit www.alternative-armies.com or www.15mm.co.uk or www.theionage.com or email us on sales@alternative-armies.com with your proposed combined order and we will send you a paypal invoice by reply. Offers will end when we switch to December on the 1st of next month at some point GMT in the morning of the 1st December. 

So what is happening before the big deal weekend? 

Here at The Ion Age we are delighted to be working with our sister brands and we will have a couple of blog posts about the Early Supporters Offers next month for you to look at and to read before Friday. Check back on the blog to see them. 

Thanks for Reading, 

GBS

Information Burst: Taranis Model 32 Repulsar Main Battle Tank

With the completion of one of the most titanic in scale armourers works ever seen in the Prydian Precinct the complex plans for the lethal weapon of war that would become the Taranis Main Battle Tank were set into motion.  The Targa Works would go on to produce such vehicles as the Adder Combat Car and Lifter series and the medium weight Mullo Armoured Fighting Vehicle but these were side and later projects compared to Taranis.  Named after an ancient old earth deity a god of war from the isles of mist and rain the Taranis was created to be the mailed fist that would allow the regiments of the Barons and the Throne to continue to expand into space and systems lost during the thousand year old Aldan Crucible detonation.  In 4294IC documents retrieved by Starvaulters during an investigation of the ruins of Newbury IV were decoded and artificed.  It had taken a decade since their retrieval to decode the records which dated from the time of the great Resource Wars of twenty first century earth.  The designs they contained were for a war machine that was the ultimate evolution of a century of tank warfare.  Dutifully recorded they were sent out with the Ark Ships into the void.  A monster of death this tank was doom incarnate and once updated with the technology Prydia now possessed they were further modified to be able to function in environments far more varied than one planet could have offered.  Taranis would be a weapon capable of winning any war against men or the feared Khanate.

Academy Auto-Trainer Series 52, New Glastonbury, 4335IC

The Taranis hull is a marvel of the teaming of technology and long achieved skill in warfare and the MkIII refined hull used for the Model 32 is the ultimate evolution of the hull.  The MkIII standard hull for Model 32's weighs in at standard count gravity 1.0 at around 58 tons of titanium alloy armour and internal systems along with an increased rate of reaction GroatVey MkXV HeavyIon Reasc Fusion Reactor that provides the additional motive power that repulsar drive trains require.  Using the principle of ion particle beam collision to ignite fuel pellets the MkXV reactor provides some 4200 horse power or about 4350Kw of usable electrical energy to the power train.  Assembled differently to the Model 40 Tracked, the Model 6 Wheeled, the Model 9 Lifter Taranis propulsion models the Model 32 Repulsar is specially designed for the MkIII hull only.  This is done primarily at the Targa Works on New Glastonbury in a closely guarded massive facility.  The Taranis Repulsar variants feature a highly advanced drive system commonly referred to as 'Repulsar Plating' which features on Taranis but also on the Bantam and Brama types of repulsar platforms among other anti-gravity vehicles in the Prydian Precinct.  While the mechanics of repulsar technology is restricted from Auto-Trainer series access in simple terms it functions based on the old earth texts of Podkletnov and Candleson using super dense aluminium sourced from asteroids former of planetary or stellar cores (including the ultra deep mine on Lillandia II) which is then rotated at astounding speed inside a cylinder shaped engine.  The density of this core material gives a greater effect. Using super conductors and stabilisers all powered electrically by a Reasc Fusion Reactor a gravity scute (shield) is formed under the vehicle which negates virtually all of the vehicles weight making it weightless.  A turbine jet engine mounted fore of each cylinder provides forward motion or breaking plus rotation with the assistance of turbines under the vehicle.    Repulsar vehicles do not truly fly but they can adjust their height relative to the ground by up to several thousand feet.  Model 32 Taranis feature cut outs that prevent rising more than ten or so feet in the air to protect the vulnerable underside of the tank.  The Model 32 can reach speeds of nearly fifty five miles per hour on most worlds.   Taranis carry a crew of four trained operators who are drawn from the Fortress and Fleet arms of the Prydian Army.  Retained Knights and Muster serve as crew but seldom mix and it is almost unknown to have Starvaulters in the seats of control.  Using the Bragan Memetic Neural Linkage system the crew are mentally attached to the vehicle and control its system.  This is a dry linkage as all wet implants were banned after the Gurtan Activation.  There is a driver centrally located, a communications and drone controller who handles the screen of drones the tank has and its comms gear.  The third crew member is the knight who operates the primary weapon systems and secondary linked weapons.  Lastly the artificer who oversees the condition of the vehicle and all minor in combat functions often sharing the work of the secondary weapons and drones.

Academy Auto-Trainer Series 52, New Glastonbury, 4335IC

The Taranis Model 32 Repulsar has five primary types and well as several secondary types and a few specialised adaptive local variants.  The role of the types is battlefield dependant and all crews are trained to operate effectively the primary types and most of the secondary ones too.  Here follows the distinctions of the primary types of the Model 32 through changed assembly of the upper hull superstructure.  Taranis Model 32 Type A the is standard main battle tank which features a turret mounting a Bodkin AP 130mm Cannon which is the normal projectile main armament of the Taranis series this cannon has an effective range of seven miles and features several choices of munitions including the Phelot Ex22 AP for anti-vehicle use and the TX12 Imploder for infantry clearance as well as the Habkut Variacluster which is a middle class multi-target round.  The Model A mounts a secondary weapon the Angis Mk9 22mm Automatic Rifle which can be manually operated from the crew turret hatches or controlled from within in the tank.  Some fifty percent of Model 32's across the Precinct are Type A.  Type B is the command variant of the Model 32 and is allocated at a rate of one to three or one to four of that of the Type A.  With improved comms suite and space for an additional operator if required the Type B has a modified turret with better optics and range finders as well as a Moth 88 Rotary Cannon centrally mounted.  Type B also has the Bodkin AP 130mm main gun and the Angis Mk9 too.  For use on worlds with challenging terrain or low gravity where recoil is problematic the Type C of the Model 32 is deployed and this also features for extra-atmospheric use on asteroids and other space bases.  With a turret crewed by a specially trained gunner the main gun of the Type C is the terrifying super heavy Fretan SBP9 Sequence Particle Beamer with the space removed from the main hull of the gunner being taken up with a small secondary GroatVey MkV HeavyIon Reasc Fusion Reactor slaved purely to the SBP9 and its massive energy requirements for sustained rates of fire.  About five percent of all Model 32's are Type C and also Type D as well.  The Type D is intended for close in warfare in urban and also warfare within starships if required and is the siege warfare type sporting a re-enforced turret with twin Ron MegaMax II 95mm Hi-Ex Launchers.  The Ron weapon system has reduced range compared to the reach of the Bodkin 130mm but its destructive potential matches the hellish maelstrom of the SBP9.  Hurwent shields and rubbacrete are not a match for the Ron which can reduce structures to rubble and also blast apart the heaviest titanium alloy hulls.  Finally of the primary types is the Type E Model 32 Taranis Armoured Personnel Carrier.  The Type E features a rear hatch and additional hull armour at the expense of a turret and two of the four crew normally in the tank.  Instead a well furnished internal bay has space for a dozen or more fully equipped Retained Knights or near a platoon of Muster or other non-armoured infantry.  The APC type has a top mounted Angis Mk9 22mm Automatic Rifle giving fire support to disembarking troops and is the favoured transport of most in free fire zones.

Academy Auto-Trainer Series 52, New Glastonbury, 4335IC

Auto-Trainer series 52 previous input explained the five primary types of the Model 32 Taranis Main Battle Tank and this now continues into the secondary types and local specialised adaptive local variants.  This is not an exhaustive list as local variants are many and the Leagues have made many alterations to the based on their particular needs.  The Type F is gaining popularity and since 4326IC has been fabricated in great numbers for regiments on the front lines.   It is a missile support type mounting a choice or three blocks or six blocks of Anda 115mm Missiles with automatic reload from hull storage and rotation from a modified core hull mounting.  There are multiple choices in missiles with high explosive or penetrators being the most common.  Also gaining in popularity is the Type G which is an energy based weapons platform for Taranis just as the Type C is but where as the Type C has the often problematic super heavy Fretan SBP9 Sequence Particle Beamer the Type G has a turret mounted Valerin 50Mw Laser Cannon which while not as lethal as the Fretan it does not have the manifold and shroud replacement requirements that the SBP9 causes in the fray.  Responding to the increase in ultra large armoured foes on the field of battle the Type H does away with its Turret and has an adapted hull with a centrally mounted 'Eage' 85Mw Valerin Laser Cannon one of the most lethal energy weapons carried by a ground vehicle in the Precinct.  Much rarer are the Type I, Type J and Type K Taranis which are in turn a mobile Hurwent Shield Generating station, a quad mounted anti-aircraft vehicle and an armoured battlefield recovery vehicle.  Special mention should be made of the rather odd Type L which features a modified hull upon which are four small turrets one in each corner are placed carrying weapons such as the Valerin 15Mw, the Moth 88 Rotary and the Anda 60mm missile pod.  Its use is in low intensity warfare as a heavily armoured vehicle which engages primarily light opponents.   There are many local specialised variants beyond the official 'Types' recognised by the Targa Works on New Glastonbury in fact too many to even attempt to list but there are a few Model 32's which have been fitted with a double set of repulsar engines plus an enlarged hull for an additional fusion reactor to power them.  This specialised variant mounts magnetic accelerator weapons of the Fretan series which feed from the extra electricity available and is capable of generating a very localised Hurwent shield when stationary.  It has no official designation but it is referred to the 'Franca' and it is extremely fast and lethal.  

Academy Auto-Trainer Series 52, New Glastonbury, 4335IC

Wednesday 2nd December 2015 sees the start of the pre-orders, the Early Supporter Offers on the Taranis Repulsar Tanks.  Five variants, each of them created by industry legend Bob Naismith, cast in resin and white metal.  Each with a discount off the 20.00GBP release price, each with a free pack of Repulsar Drones worth 5.00GBP automatically include.  Every order shipped on the same day worldwide when the offer ends.  Every order gets the free monthly miniature worth 0.60GBP which will be IMP27 and of course when you are an Ion Age customer you have an account and earn Reward Points which can then be used on future orders, discounts and promotions!  We really are one of the best brands to deal with for 15mm science fiction wargaming so you tell us across the globe. Go to the Early Supporter Page HERE during the offer period to get your tanks.

This is the game world article on the Taranis Model 32 Repulsar Main Battle Tank otherwise known as IAF103 in our code structure and this time we will be talking about the place of Taranis in the armies of the Prydian Precinct and we will be doing this using extracts from the future published sequel to Patrol Angis the book Callsign Taranis.  We hope you enjoyed the read.

Thanks for Reading,

GBS

IAF103 Taranis Repulsar Main Battle Tank variants and parts

Welcome to the variants and parts article for the IAF103 Taranis Repular Main Battle Tank.  While another article will tell you about the mighty Taranis in the universe of The Ion Age this time around we are all about the physical 15mm scale models themselves.  All of the pieces with scale and then all of the pieces together that show what you get with each variant when you receive an anti-gravity Taranis kit.  A super cool vehicle designed by Bob Naismith coming out in December 2015 preceded by an Early Supporter Offer on 2nd December.

There are five different variants (A,B,C,D and E) of IAF103 Taranis Replulsar Main Battle Tank so please read on for each of them:

IAF103A Taranis Repulsar MBT Cannon Turret

This is the core type of anti-gravity Taranis the main battle tank with projectile turret.  It is composed of seven resin and white metal pieces which are the upper hull, the lower hull, right and left propulsion fins sections, projectile cannon turret as well as the main gun and the sponson gun in white metal.  You can see them here with a scale of 1cm squares under laying the pieces.  It is easy to assemble and we supply the kit with the finely detailed anti-gravity left and right fins on supporting resin blocks which can be removed with a hobby blade. This vehicle is designed to be used for wargaming and thus it is durable.  Assembled this vehicle is just over 110mm long and 55mm wide.

IAF103B Taranis Repulsar MBT Command Turret

This is the platoon command type of anti-gravity Taranis with projectile turret with additional rotary weapon and comms suite.  It is composed of seven resin and white metal pieces which are the upper hull, the lower hull, right and left propulsion fins sections, projectile cannon turret as well as the main gun and the sponson gun in white metal.  You can see them here with a scale of 1cm squares under laying the pieces.  It is easy to assemble and we supply the kit with the finely detailed anti-gravity left and right fins on supporting resin blocks which can be removed with a hobby blade. This vehicle is designed to be used for wargaming and thus it is durable.  Assembled this vehicle is just over 110mm long and 55mm wide.

IAF103C Taranis Repulsar MBT Energy Turret

This is a Taranis main battle tank with an energy weapon turret featuring a small cabin for a crewman.  It is composed of five resin pieces which are the upper hull, the lower hull, right and left propulsion fins sections and the energy weapon turret.  You can see them here with a scale of 1cm squares under laying the pieces.  It is easy to assemble and we supply the kit with the finely detailed anti-gravity left and right fins on supporting resin blocks which can be removed with a hobby blade. This vehicle is designed to be used for wargaming and thus it is durable.  Assembled this vehicle is just over 110mm long and 55mm wide.

IAF100D Taranis Repulsar MBT Siege Turret

This is a Taranis main battle tank with a double weapon turret for close in destruction. It is composed of six resin and white metal pieces which are the upper hull, the lower hull, right and left propulsion fins sections, white metal sponson gun and the double cannon weapon turret.  You can see them here with a scale of 1cm squares under laying the pieces.  It is easy to assemble and we supply the kit with the finely detailed anti-gravity left and right fins on supporting resin blocks which can be removed with a hobby blade. This vehicle is designed to be used for wargaming and thus it is durable.  Assembled this vehicle is just over 110mm long and 55mm wide.

IAF100E Taranis Repulsar APC

This is a Taranis tank with a re-purposed function as a super heavy Armoured Personnel Carrier capable of carrying a squad or more into battle. It is composed of five resin pieces which are the upper APC hull, the lower hull, right and left propulsion fins sections and the white metal sponson gun.  You can see them here with a scale of 1cm squares under laying the pieces.  It is easy to assemble and we supply the kit with the finely detailed anti-gravity left and right fins on supporting resin blocks which can be removed with a hobby blade. This vehicle is designed to be used for wargaming and thus it is durable.  Assembled this vehicle is just over 110mm long and 55mm wide.

Here are pictures of all the IAF103 parts as single items with under laying scale in 1cm squares for you to look at.  

There are three other articles on the Taranis Repulsar Tanks and the Repulsar Drones which follow on from this one.  We split them up to make them more manageable as this is a big release with a lot of information and pictures.

Thanks for Reading.

GBS

Early Supporter Offers from December 2nd for Taranis Repulsar Tanks and Drones!

Ain't she just the most lovely thing you ever did see!

Wednesday 2nd December 2015 will see the start of the pre-orders otherwise known as the the Early Supporter Offers (ESO's) on the final of the four modes of propulsion Taranis Main Battle Tanks in 15mm scale; the Repulsar (Anti-Gravity) variants.  Designed by industry legend Bob Naismith there will be five variants of the IAF103 Taranis Replusar MBT as there have been with the tracked, wheeled and lifter (hover) Taranis that are already released.  

Alongside the most space opera of the Taranis Tanks and also sculpted by Bob Naismith will be the IAF082 Taranis Repulsar Drones five different anti-gravity robots.  The Early Supporter Offers will run for nine days with all orders containing one or more Taranis Repulsar Tanks being shipped out worldwide on Thursday 11th December 2015 in time for Christmas.

Taranis Repulsar Tank with Energy Turret next to Repulsar Drones

Full details will be given at the time but the Early Supporter Offers will be upon the following codes:

IAF103A Taranis Repulsar MBT Cannon Turret

IAF103B Taranis Repulsar MBT Command Turret

IAF103C Taranis Repulsar MBT Energy Turret

IAF103D Taranis Repulsar MBT Siege Turret

IAF103E Taranis Repulsar APC

IAF082 Taranis Repulsar Drones (5)

The offers will be the same as before with 5% off a single Taranis or 10% off three of the same Taranis or a super 15% off a set of five one of each Taranis.  Every Taranis pre-ordered will come with a FREE pack of five different Repulsar Drones so that is one pack with one tank, three packs with three tanks and five packs with five tanks.  On top of this you will get the IMP28 Missiletoe Claus free monthly miniature worth 0.60GBP in your order automatically and you will get Reward Points on your account for your orders which can be used for future discounts and free items too. The release price of all variants of IAF103 (each of them made of several parts and over 100mm long) will be 20.00GBP and the release price of the pack of five IAF082 drones will be 5.00GBP so you can save greatly by picking up an deal or two for yourself.  Designed, Manufactured and Shipped all from the UK.  These offers will be on our Early Supporter Page.   

Scale Comparison of Taranis with IAF080 Adder SuperBlue....

There will be articles to follow in the coming week which will give you more information. These will be one per day on these subjects:

IAF103 Taranis Repulsar Main Battle Tank variants and parts.

Information Burst : The Taranis Model 32 Repulsar Main Battle Tank IAF103.

IAF082 Taranis Repulsar Drones will be free in Taranis ESO's!

IAF103 Taranis Repulsar Tanks Comparison and Scale Photos.

The full set of Taranis Repulsar Drones - five types.

I want to thank everyone from across the world who took us up on Taranis Tracked Tanks, Taranis Wheeled Tanks, Taranis Lifter Tanks and Taranis Running Drones all HERE.  This December will see the last of the four propulsion types released and the completion of the whole initial range of twenty different Taranis into The Ion Age before we move on into the New Year.

Thanks for Reading.

GBS

Last of the Brightening Star's Taranis Tanks

With what we know now the loss of the Brightening Star should not have happened but then we were only beginning once more to face an enemy that our long dead forefathers had through banished forever.  The Fleet did not arrive in Camarthen space for many months after the loss of the Belkus Labyrinth.  It took time to gather the knights and their musters while thinking always of the threat posed by the Marcher Barons.  But we did not stand idle.  Perhaps we should have though.  Lectus Bowar led his retinue of a hundred Starvaulters and fifty thousand troops of Prydia on a rapid strike again the then fledgling Khanate presence.  The Brightening Star was one of forty Cassillis class Portable Castles that landed in the vicinity of the by then ruins of Pelcan city.   She was not the only one lost but she was prime in the failure of the containment campaign and her fate sealed that of Bowars small force.

The few survivors of Bower's task force that were still conducting hit and run operations when the Fleet arrived in system tell of the Brightening Star being taken by surprise by elements of the Styx Legion.   Several Tesserans of Canthus pattern monocycles powered straight up the Star's foremost sallying ramp and into her belly soon after landing.  Most were obliterated by Angis fire but one must have reached the fore Hurwent generator and detonated against it.  Cowardly but it worked.  The Brightening Star became her very name for an instant as the generator went critical.  Only those outside scouting survived the blast.  Bowar vanished along with his flagship and it set the campaign back badly.  

Those Retained and their vehicles that had already disembarked under fire from the Brightening Star were of the 407th Regiment of Prydia.  A regiment whose main distinction at that time, it has subsequently out of necessity been reformed from ashes, was its insistence upon its Alwite armour pattern colours being replicated upon all of its vehicles too.  This was and still is very rare for the Prydian Army as vehicle commanders adhere to a different interpretation of the Code Gallant and thus do not use the white and red as troops on foot do.  All of the Adders, Mullos, Skylarks and of course Taranis of the 407th were a brilliant white with red paldron detailing.  According to a survivor of the 407th the last heavy asset that the regiment had after the loss of the Brightening Star to Khanate action was a single Taranis Model 9 Lifter Type A  mounting a Bodkin AP 130mm Cannon.  The tank had suffered damage to its GroatVey MkX HeavyIon Reasc Fusion Reactor meaning its mobility was nearly zero and it made a heroic last stand fifteen miles from the blast crater left by the Brightening Star alongside two lances of knights and the last members of a trader crew who had fled Pelcan City when the Khanate appeared.  The survivor claims that this last stand against a full twenty Tesserans with armoured support from the Styx Legion lasted only minutes but the last to fall was the single brilliant white Taranis tank that used its last Phelot Ex22 AP round to destroy a Pugnus tank mounting a Banshee class Atomic Destabiliser as its armour slagged away from the enemies fire.  

With the massive ecological and geographical change and destruction that Camarthen Prime has undergone it is impossible now to find any trace of this last stand or indeed the craters left by the Cassillis portable castles of the task force.  But we choose to believe it occurred.  We will emulate the bravery of Lectus Bower and of the 407th Regiment.

Knight General Obermann.  Fleet Command.  4331IC

Following up on last week's article all about Sam Croes own Barony of Castella and his Taranis Tracked APC I was asked if I we had another version of Taranis that we could share.  I knew that we did and the result is this short article all about the last white Taranis Lifter of the doomed Brightening Star.  While we are still some way off seeing the campaign for Camarthen Prime and the war against the Shia Khan Empire we have been hinting at it since near the inception of this new Ion Age.  The tale above was written during the design process Bob Naismith undertook to create the Lifter (Hover) variants of the Taranis Tanks that we have.  You can learn about the IAF102 models HERE on our blog.

The Taranis Model 9 Type A does look radically different painted in brilliant white with red details.  Not an easy colour scheme to do by any means but I wanted to try it out to see what the heroic last stand from the story extract would look like.  I have to say that it looks superb but its not the colour scheme I have chosen for my own Condot force that I am slowly building up (I am very taken with the Quarrel Company, the mercenary Condots led by the infamous Diodine Sparrow) and while the white and red suits infantry brilliantly for our space opera setting its not the natural shade for the mighty Taranis.  At least not to me.

You can see around the doomed Taranis in the pictures a Hab Dome with attached Anda Missile Pod mount turret as well as a few Retained Knights (taken from code IAF008) who are racing to set up their Anvil 888 Launchers before more alien legionaries arrive.  Those who are eagle eyed will also spot the two legionary casualties...something for 2016 there.

Back when I created the story that you have read above the trader crew were there but we had no miniatures for them but when it came to taking these pictures now I was lucky enough to be able to use the brand new IAF104 Precinct Adventurers miniatures released this month sculpted by Dave Foley.  You can learn more about them HERE.  The scene was set up with no reference to Patrol Angis or the draft of rules for its vehicle and structure expansion Callsign Taranis which is being worked on now but it looks superb I think.  Like a snap shot of a moment just before the bullets and beams begin to fly.

I hope you have enjoyed my little tale about the last brilliant white Taranis and its fate.

Thanks for Reading,

GBS

15mm Ion Age Universe Characters by Dave Foley range begins with two packs released!

“Allow me to create a society around the Prydian Precinct.  One that exists with the threat of the Prydian Civil War within and the Shia Khan Empire without.  The people, the law, the machines and the creatures that populate the planets, the star ports, outposts and even the seedy bars where Retained Knights would fear to tread.”

Our last releases this month see The Ion Age begins the 15mm Ion Age Universe Characters range with the first two packs of five poses released.  Sculpted by Dave Foley and now on their own page of the website. If you are new to this idea please read THIS ARTICLE on our blog. We will be adding a new pack every month and it is my own and Mr Foley's intention to create a 15mm scale figure range that will allow you to get the 'people' of your wargaming on your table regardless of your setting.  Its not all about the armies now is it. Go HERE or read on!

IAF104 Precinct Adventurers

The first pack of 15mm characters in the Ion Age Universe range at The Ion Age.  Precinct Adventurers are the kind of fellows you need in a scrap or to carry out some dangerous work in a place where the law is a little loose.  Sculpted by Dave Foley this pack contains five different 15mm scale white metal miniatures in the following poses.  Male adventurer kneeling with a data slab and connected viewer, a hansom male adventurer advancing aiming a Minstrel Taser pistol, male adventurer in long coat signalling a halt holding a Tumbler SMG, male adventurer  wearing parts of Aketon armour and at guard pose with a Moth Rifle.  Lastly a male adventurer in out moded Alwite armour bandaged head and Minstrel Taser.  These miniatures are great for any science fiction or suitable genre of wargaming in 15mm scale when you want something other than warfare or soldiers on your table.  As always this code can be bought as a pack or as single miniatures or select the three packs and save 10% options  from the drop down menu on the page.  Go HERE.  Price 2.50GBP per pack.

IAF105 Precinct Police

The second pack of 15mm characters in the Ion Age Universe range.  Precinct Police are the local law enforcement on the worlds and colonies of the civilised Prydian Precinct who try to maintain order without the use of deadly force if possinble.  A first line of law and order.  Sculpted by Dave Foley this pack contains five different 15mm scale white metal miniatures in the following poses.  All are wearing light armour plates, a helmet and a wet weather cape.  Male officer holding a control box for directing city services or droids, carrying portable signs and signal equipment, male officer with public address horn, officer with stun baton raised to strike and lastly running with stun baton. These miniatures are great for any science fiction or suitable genre of wargaming in 15mm scale when you want something other than warfare or soldiers on your table.  As always this code can be bought as a pack or as single miniatures or select the three packs and save 10% options  from the drop down menu on the page.  Go HERE.  Price 2.50GBP per pack.

Information Burst!

The two new packs in a new range by Dave Foley (welcome Dave!) are our last releases for November 2015.  Coming after ten new Taranis main battle tanks you would think that we would have nothing more to say but oh no!  Sam Croes was kind enough to allow me to photograph his Castella Marcher Barony knights and Taranis APC and this is on our blog with excellent pictures and a Castellan crest too.  Go HERE.  The month will end with The Ion Age taking part in the awesome Black Friday Weekend that also takes the Friday to the Monday alongside our sister brands Alternative Armies and 15mm.co.uk.  Next week we can tell you the offer but it is an excellent one and something we do not normally do so well worth thinking about for your late month orders.

This month our free miniature in every order is IMP27 Florian Pumpkin Spore. For the whole of November this spooky 15mm miniature is automatically put into every order at the rate of one per order regardless of order value.  It can also be bought in any amount on the monthly IMP page of the website for this month only too before being withdrawn on the first of next month.  The Florians are an enemy of all life on a planet that is not of their origin.  Vast seed pods from the void of space take root on a world before the Florian Incursion begins.  Growing at an exponential rate and re-making existing plants and animals into their own image the Florians spread like a carpet across a planet and take it for their own.  At the limits of the Prydian Precinct they are as alien as life comes!  The miniature is one piece in white metal and stands approx 10mm tall. A great character and start to the Florians.  Of course you earn reward points on all orders too through your account learn more about that HERE.  We realise that some of you may wish to purchase the currently free miniature to get multiples of it without placing a lot of orders so you can do just that.  Visit this page on the website for the miniature at a fair price for a special miniature.  There is a growing page on the Ion Age website where the current and all former IMP series free miniatures are shown so that you can see what came before.  Enjoy and go HERE.

Thanks for Reading.

GBS

Castellan Taranis APC from the collection of Sam Croes

“My fellow nobles I put it to you that among our allies there are few kinder than Baroness Maud who gave her knights and their blood to throw back the Canlastrians.  We owe her a debt and this we can pay by the supply of that most mighty of war machines.  Castella needs Taranis Tanks and we will make sure they have them!”

Princess Cyon, New Glastonbury Tor to the Adden Council, 4330IC 

Sam Croes is the lead designer of The Ion Age and he is a very talented artist and figure painter as well as sculptor and to that end we wanted to share with you an item for his collection that he was kind enough to let me photograph. This is Sam Croes own IAF100E Taranis Tracked APC painted up in the colours of his own Marcher Baron force; Castella.  

Castella is a small one star system Barony allied loosely to Prydia and an enemy of both Canlaster and Yordan.  There is one inhabitable planet in the system ruled over by the great aged Baroness Maud who takes to the field in a suit of highly customised Desteria powered armour.  Castellan knights are well trained and have seen action in many campaigns and recently a fabricators right was given to Castella to make its own battlesuits and indeed even smaller vehicles on Prydian patterns.  An agreement was struck with New Glastonbury for the delivery of several thousand Taranis main battle tanks mainly of the tracked variants.   You will see more of Castella in the future as it is the force that Sam intends to make his own in our own wargaming.

You can see that Castella favours a black and red uniform that is rather distinctive when compared to the other Prydian Army and Leagues colour schemes.  In the pictures the APC is detailed with these colours and a small number of Castellan Retained Knights too.  Its a fairly easy colour scheme to make use of.  As a treat here is the pauldron motto and seal of Castella as an image so that you can get a good look at it.

If you are interested in the miniatures shown here they are:

IAF100E Taranis Tracked Armoured Personnel Carrier HERE.

IAF001 Retained Post Alpha HERE.

Thanks for Reading.

GBS