Pirate Fleet

The last major faction in the Space Dreadnought 3000 Universes. Unlike the other factions, their ships are organic. Additionally, they do not  have the full complement of ship classes like the other factions.

Pirate Baseship

These ships were given a dark purple metallic basecoat followed by light purple highlights. The large orbs of the ships were painted black followed by several layers of gold for a smoooth, even finish. the engines were painted boltgun metal followed by a silver drybrush. White was used for engine glow.

Fighters were painted in the same fashion as the capital ships. I used the SD3000 line to experiment a little with metallic paints. Overall, I am happy with the results. The reflection from the metallic paints does tend to brighten the ships somewhat, however, they still kept very good details. The ships themselves were well cast and I received great service from Kallistra for these ships.

Altaran Fleet

There is not much background information on the Altaran fleet. What is know is they are an aggressive race that reproduces rapidly and are rather militant. Their crew numbers are apparently higher than other races, which are advantageous for boarding actions.

Altaran Baseship

For this fleet, I used a red metallic basecoat, followed by a metallic pink drybrush. Guns were painted with steel followed by a chrome drybrush. The hull was high-lited with steel and bronze. Fighter bays were painted black. I used white to represent engine glow.

Fighters were painted in the same fashion. The red metallic paint gives a nice aggressive feel to the fleet.

Quellaris Federation Fleet

The Quellaris Federation was formed from exiles and political refugees from the Earth Empire (which became a fascist state after the Vargans almost wiped them out) and other races who were trying to flee the chaos of the competition for Guardianship. Their fleets are a hodgepodge of technologies from various races and supposedly have a strong economic base.

Quellaris Baseship

For this fleet, I decided to use a gold basecoat and accent with steel. Again gunports were painted black and drybrushed with chrome. Chrome and steel were used to provide some contrast to the hull. For the larger recessed areas, a black was was applied and then carefully repainted with steel. Engines were painted boltgun metal and white was used for engine glow. This better seen here:

Painting the fighters was relatively straightforward.

Kaylon Fleet

The Kaylons originate from another galaxy and are the Guardians in one of the sectors. The are here in the Milky Way galaxy to compete for another Guardianship here. They are supposedly more advanced than the other factions, however, they are constrained by numbers as reinforcements have to come from the home galaxy and can take a while.

Kaylon Baseship

For this fleet, I decided to use blue metallic paints with gold accents. The ship was painted dark metallic blue and then drybrushed with light metallic blue. Guns and port engines were painted in gold. details on the hull (i.e. the bubbles) were painted light blue to add a little contrast. No engine glow was needed in this ship.

Kaylon Fighters

I like the dark metallic coloration of this fleet. It gives a rather imposing feeling to the fleet.

Vargan Fleet

The Vargans were the race that almost wiped out humanity in the Space Dreadnought 3000 setting. If it weren't for the Talliscan brokering a peace between the two races, humanity would be extinct. Even though they may seem like "bad guys" in their Universe, it is not totally black and white.

Vargan Baseship

Ships are nicely detailed and had little flash. I wanted to experiment with metallic paints with this faction. I started with a dark metallic green basecoat. this was followed with a light metallic green drybrush. Details were painted with steel followed by a chrome drybrush. Gunports and fighter launch tubes were painted black. Engines were painted with boltgun metal and white was used for engine glow. I particularly like the fighters as they are asymmetric:

They were painted in the same manner as the capital ships. Another nice fleet.

Talliscan Fleet

Here are the Talliscan from Kallistra's Space Dreadnought 3000 range. They were the supposed inheritors of Guardianship of Sector 7 until it was decreed that they had to fight for it, like everyone else.

Talliscan Baseship

Aesthetically, they look a little like klingons with the boom and large back. Painting them was relatively straightforward with a bronze basecoat followed by a copper drybrush. Guns were painted with steel, followed by a chrome drybrush. Gun orfices were painted black and the engines were painted with Boltgun Metal and the engine glow was painted white.

Talliscan Destroyer

The ships had some nice detail and were fun to paint.

Earth Empire Fleet

I always found the ships from the Space Dreadnought 3000 line rather interesting. I managed to order a fleet of all of the main factions in that range. The setting is the galaxy is divided into 16 sectors, each sector is administered by a Guardian power. Travel is via jump points (called Star Centres). Guardianship for the 7th sector (where Earth is located) is up for grabs.

Earth Empire Fighter Baseship

The background for the Earth Empire is rather interesting. They had just fought a devastating war with the Vargans and if it wasn't for the Guardians of sector 7, Humans would be extinct. Earth became extremely xenophobic as a result. Because of their relatively small population, their ships are highly automated. Above is the Fighter Baseship (carrier) for the Earth Empire. The ships were painted with Steel followed by a black wash. Steel was then reapplied in the overly dark areas. A light drybrush of aluminum and some of the details in the superstructure were emphasized with chrome. the main guns were painted with Boltgun metal with chrome highlights. Fighter bays were  painted black and engine exhaust was painted white.

Earth Empire Superdreadnought

In this game, ships are essentially eggshells with sledgehammers. Cruisers, Battle Cruisers, Dreadnoughts, and Super Dreadnoughts are the main fleet combatants. Patrol ships and Destroyers make the smaller, more expendable components of the fleet.

Earth Empire Patrol Ships

The fighters come 14/pk. They are mounted 6 ships on a ring with a 7th in the center. I took the ships off the ring and mounted them on earring posts.

Earth Empire Fighters

I had fun painting these ships. The have a clear design aesthetic and an interesting background. Additional pictures can be found on the gallery page.

ESU Fleet

Here is the entire ESU fleet in one shot. I believe the red and yellow color scheme is rather striking for this fleet. Definitely more eye catching than the other human factions in the FT universe.

ESU Konstantin Attack Carrier

One of the largest ships in ESU service and one of the largest CVA until the FSE Jeanne D'Arc. A big, heavy model that was fun to put together and paint.

ESU Komarov Superdreadnought

An older hull, but packs a punch. It reflects the older design heritage of the ESU

ESU Tsiolkovsky Light Carrier

Compared to the other ships in this design family, this is my least favorite. The wing area appears a little to big compared to the rest of the ship, giving it a somewhat chunky appearance.

ESU Rostov Battledreadnought

Probably my favorite ship of the ESU fleet.

ESU Petrograd Battleship

The ESU new design battleship. The common components makes for easier construction and you can obviously tell the ships belong to the same faction.

ESU Manchuria Battlecruiser

One of the newer designs of the ESU navy. It shares components with the Battleship, BDN and CVL classes. Of all the ESU ships, these series of designs are my favorite.

ESU Yoroshilev Heavy Cruiser

Now we are getting into the heavier ships. The larger size makes it easier to paint the ESU emblem on the ship. This is one of the newest designs of the ESU navy and shares components with the older Tibet CL.

ESU Gorshkov Heavy Cruiser

An older design which is unusual in that it is armed with submunitions packs. It makes this ship more difficult to resupply, however, gives it a harder punch in combat.

ESU Bejing/B Escort Cruiser

An older design that specializes in escort duties. Not really designed for a slugfest.

ESU Tibet Light Cruiser

The standard CL design of the ESU navy. It is obvious that this design is based on the Warsaw destroyer, however, it has better armaments and armor/shields. A workhorse design.

ESU Volga Super Destroyer

The Volga Super Destroyer is basically an upgraded Warsaw. It functions in a similar role as a Warsaw. It is a little lighter in armor but packs a slightly better punch.

ESU Warsaw Destroyer

Probably the most numerous destroyer in the ESU navy. Basically a workhorse ship. The ship is painted in a the standard red with yellow accents I have for the ESU navy. The ESU star is just a red star in this case (given its yellow background).

ESU Novgorod Frigate

This is one of the frailer ships in the ESU Navy. An unremarkable design, it is primarily used in convoy duties. This is the first ship that allows for the painting of the ESU insignia (a red star outlined in yellow).