| |
The Model of Bloodrunner |
I have been a life long fan of science fiction and I also enjoy building period ship models, so how could I resist the combination of my two favorite subjects in one scenario. I had already built a model of a ship from Space:1889, H.M.S. Wasp, a British aerial gunboat built for the defense of their colony at Syrtis Major. I wanted to build a Martian cloudship as a companion model, but which one? The game materials offer a variety of ships, merchantman and warships, large and small. I chose a small dispatch vessel called the Bloodrunner. It was small, about 50 feet long, which would make a conveniently sized model in 1/96 scale, the scale in which I had built the Wasp.
There were no plans for the Bloodrunner, only a stylized deck plan used for game play and a few dimensions such as length and tonnage. The game references did contain a number of illustrations of Martian cloudships though, which provided the general appearance, rig and style of construction of this exotic type of vessel. Using this information, I created a plan for the Bloodrunner. She has the characteristic dumbbell shape of the cloudship, large bow and stern sections connected by a long narrow midship section.
The model was awarded First Place in the Scratch-built Science Fiction and Fantasy Vehicles class at the 1991 IPMS Nationals in St. Louis.
Space:1889 is Frank Chadwick's registered trademark for his game of Victorian Era space-faring. He has granted permission for the use of the background of Space:1889 for the stories presented here. All text, illustrations, photographs and design are © 2000-2013 Dan Thompson, except where otherwise noted.
Back to the homepage.