Of flora and fauna

Mars isn't dead, it's dying and there is still plenty of life on the red planet whether it be plants or animals.

As Mars slowly withers away, direct water sources are becoming scarce; underground water tables being the main source for the numerous plant types that grow here. The various flora of Mars have adapted quickly to the changing environment and are steadily becoming similar to some desert species on Earth. The most common being the Ba'baak tree.

These trees store huge amounts of water in their bloated trunks and have one massive root covered in small tendrils that can extend down more than 50 feet in a bid to reach water. The bark is hard but a determined seeker of water can penetrate it without too much difficulty. Because of the rapid changes in the amount of water available the bark of the Ba'baak can split enabling easy access to the somewhat juicy flesh of the interior.

This flesh has a slight bitter taste to it but has nutritional benefits that can outweigh the flavour. The pulp can also be fermented and is brewed by the Sky Martians into an intoxicating liqueur. The bark itself can be stripped into long husks and made into a crude rope which Sky and City Martians use for the more heavy duty tasks.

The model itself was made from Supersculpy over a former of blue foam. Indents were made to represent the bark and a wire tree frame work was added to the top. One thing to note about blue foam is that it shrank quite considerably when the Sculpy was cooked in the oven (to harden it) and unfortunately the shell of Sculpy cracked, but you don't really notice. I'll use a different former that's heat resistant next time.

It was painted with Foundry American Tan, given a wash of some sort of GW brown ink and then drybrushed with a pale grey. Some winter tufts were added round the bottom to give a bit more detail. Finished and wip photos are below.

Thank you

Armour colours of the different clans

There are numerous clans of Sky Martians on Mars and each tends to have its own distinct armour colour therefore making it relatively a simple affair to distinguish between them in the event of multiple clan feuds.

The differing colours are achieved viv two main methods; either from ground minerals or from distilled insect shells. The armour itself is made from hardened leather but it is much stronger than the hardest leather on earth. Each piece of armour, be it torso or vambraces etc, can take up to a year to make thus making the armour a prized possession.

The colour is applied in one of the many layers of laquer that are painted on towards the end of the whole process. The insect shell method is the more time consuming and therefore the most sought after but this is unfortunately becoming a disappearing art; the secret being lost over time.

The mineral version is the more common but the colours are not as vibrant. Some clan leaders and their elite warriors are starting to mix colours in the armour to make themselves stand out more but most are staying with tradition with only one colour for the entire clan.

Various families within the clan tend to distinguish themselves by the colour of the loincloth or any other cloth that they might wear. Some families have simple patterns woven into the cloth, mainly straight bands of a complementary colour.

Below we have four examples of Sky Martian armour colour. The first is most common as it is the most simple to achieve but there are several different hues of the white so no two clans look the same.

A new seris of posts coming up

Apologies for the lack of updates but this going to change in the next week and then there will be regular updates on all things Red Planet :-)

Thank you