Category Archives: Battletech

Fabricator’s Lair 3D Prints: Grimdark Industrial Promethium Reprocessing Factory

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Fabricator's Lair 3D Prints: Grimdark Industrial Promethium Reprocessing Factory

Another 3D print today – more from good old Fabricator’s Lair! This one is a bit of a centrepiece, as you’ll see once we get to tthe scale shots. It can be found both in the Epic Scale Industrial Buildings set, or in the larger Epic Sector: Industry campaign bundle – which is the one I’d recommend.

Fabricator's Lair 3D Prints: Grimdark Industrial Promethium Reprocessing Factory

It’s a pretty substantial piece – and while you could print two or even four of them to go back to back (to back to back to back!) and it’d definitely look good, I think it also works just as well standalone, or backing into a different piece, or set in a table corner. The paint was much the same as the other Grimdark Industrial models I’ve painted so far – with a couple of Mechanicum Decals added in for good measure. – Including the use of paint markers for all of that god damned steel edging and grillwork!

Fabricator's Lair 3D Prints: Grimdark Industrial Promethium Reprocessing Factory

Yes, I very much need to get some Titans built and painted (or even some Knights!) – but here you can at least see the substantial size of this thing when compared to a regular LI tank, a Superheavy and even a Battletech Mech.

Fabricator's Lair 3D Prints: Grimdark Industrial Promethium Reprocessing Factory

For that matter, I think it also works pretty well as a piece of 40k or MCP, etc scenery for 32-40mm tables. Once again – just read the windows as vents.

This is another for Dave Stone’s Season of Scenery ’25 – Extended Edition. Only three more bits of terrain left to show for the challenge – and then my September round-up!

Thunderhead Studio Hextech 3D Prints: Battletech Hills

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Thunderhead Studio Hextech 3D Prints: Battletech Hills

More desert-ish themed 3D printed terrain today. We are revisiting the Hextech Free Sample Pack (Battletech Compatable) More specifically, the sample hill pieces. As I often do with these things, I printed each of the sample pieces twice, one regular and one mirrored – except for the one I accidently printed three times! Unless I missed one? or two? There are six sample pieces listed in the download.

Thunderhead Studio Hextech 3D Prints: Battletech Hills

Once printed, these sat for literally months while I procrastinated on how to paint them before using Season of Scenery as the motivation to get them done and out of the way. These sculpts are samples from four different ranges of hills sold by Hextech – in the end I just went for a uniform desert look to get them done. If I ever really, truly NEED more battletech hills, but painted for a temperate theme then I can always go through the process of printing and painting a new set(!)

Thunderhead Studio Hextech 3D Prints: Battletech Hills

The painting process was pretty simple – cover in Vallejo (or was it AK?) Sandy Desert paste, then paint in slightly-thinned Sepia Vallejo Model Wash Dip. Let that disgusting stuff dry. Drybrush the hell out of them with a sand colour, then drybrush the tops of the mesas in a lighter sand. Once dry, I went outside and played with adding pigments to them in various ratios, then sprayed them in a Matte that ended up much more satin to seal it all in and tone the pigments in. I still think they turned out pretty decently.

Here’s a quick light box shot, so you can see the final colours a little better.

Thunderhead Studio Hextech 3D Prints: Battletech Hills

As you can see, they work well enough for a “desert mesa” look, despite the hex pattern – and it also seems I’ve gotten enough stuff done in September for a simple desert table suitable for battletech and no-building Imperialis. Let’s check that.

Thunderhead Studio Hextech 3D Prints: Battletech Hills

They work fine as smaller elements for a “skirmish” sized 40k/Combat Patrol game – though you would also want some larger LOS blocking elements as well.

Thunderhead Studio Hextech 3D Prints: Battletech Hills

The little collection does appear to work ok for something like Marvel Crisis Protocol, especially if they were spread out a little more as MCP game tables often appear to be. A battle in the Wasteland we saw in Deadpool vs Wolverine perhaps?

So yeah, these Hextech STLs are pretty good, I think. I may have to pick up some of the paid packs in future – especially if I enjoy Alpha Strike enough to dive into “Proper” Battletech using hex maps and height levels. And yes – this is another 11 pieces of terrain towards Dave Stone’s Season of Scenery ’25 – Extended Edition.