SHM54-SHM57 Vergan Free Traders

SHM54-SHM55 Rear View

These are due to release this week but I wanted to give a little post about them here before that as I have to say that I just love the alien species of Vergan created by Eli Arndt for the SHM line on 15mm.co.uk.  Eli has created and is creating a number of alien species and these are one of my favourites.  Why do I like them so much?

Well its partly style and its partly ethos.  You can use them in any game system and they are of Human height with greater bulk so they match in with ease.  Their style is pure space opera of the kind that Star Wars promotes where alien races are welcomed and not automatically targeted as ‘Xenos’ to be exterminated just for the sin of existing like in some other settings.  They remind me of aliens produced in 25mm scale in the 1980’s back when larger scales were as open to experimentation as the smaller 15mm scale is now.  Its a shame that the seeming  increased ‘need for polish for its own sake’ in the wargaming industry, sometimes without any visible increase in quality or value for money, has meant that only 15mm scale now see’s such bold and different designs in the 21st century.  Ethos wise its just that.  Fun and good value combined with not taking themselves too seriously.  Perfect for me and for 15mm.co.uk.

Why call them ‘Free Traders’ and not ‘Soldiers’?  Eli said to me when he sent me the designs that he thought of the Vergans as merchants not mercenaries.  After a bit of thought I came to agree with him.  Some of the other races in SHM like the Prang are blatantly militaristic but the Vergans seem to carry weapons mainly for self defence.  Part of a starship crew or in a spaceport these blob shaped and many tentacled fellows might just heft an energy rifle only when the traitorous Human they are dealing with tries to double cross them.  The aliens are not always the bad guys…humm…I can feel a USEME scenario brewing now.

The Vergans join the first of their kind (SHM20) as single miniatures but also as a value pack.  I do hope that Eli makes more of them in the future (perhaps a Vergan child or female) but he is a busy guy with LNG and other projects so time will tell.

GBS