Pre-what a huh now?  Shhhh.  I will explain all

I have had a spraygun for a couple of years now (you can find some previous posts here), and I have finally upgraded to a proper airbrush/ compressor set up.  Some details on the setup at the end of this post, if you’re interested, but I thought I would stick up a couple of photos of a model I have been working on recently.

The model on the left is the Brass Coffin, a resin model costing £9 from Ramshackle Games.  It is in the 28-32mm scale, and so fits perfectly with steampunk games like Malifaux (Malifaux doesn’t have any vehicle rules as such, but it can always just sit there as some cool terrain).

I won’t be painting mine as weathered as this, as I want to try a technique called pre-shading with my airbrush.  Basically, this involves using an airbrush to set down dark lines and dark areas on the vehicle that then show through a later base coat, provided the base coat is applied thinly enough.  You can see a very good demonstration of this technique here (Youtube link).

You can take the basic pre-shading technique a step further and add some pre-highlighting.  This involves using the airbrush to lay down white highlights which, again, will show through the later base colour layer.  Obviously, with black shading and white highlights the model needs to be primed in grey.

Brass Coffin

The first model I bought from Ramshackle Games was not impressive – behold the Killdozer.  I am not a novice with resin models, but I could not find any way to fit this model together in any way that would resemble the picture.  I contacted the manufacturer to see if I was missing any pieces, but I was not.  He explained that this model was one of the very first ones he made, and the quality had gone up a lot since then.  Not a great deal of comfort for me, but I ended up with some bitz for my Orks, so – well.

Is the Brass Coffin really an improvement?  Yes – massively so.  It is not perfect, and there are areas where the mold is clearly struggling to replicate detail (esp on recessed areas), but this is a sizeable model which comes as one massive chunk of resin and four separate wheels.  It needs some clean up, but while I could not recommend the Killdozer to anyone, I could recommend the Brass Coffin.  Not without reservation, but provided you don’t mind getting out the files and hobby knife this is a kit you will like.

Probably best to pin the rear wheels, btw.

Pre-Shading/ Highlighting

This was my first outing with the airbrush, and I think it went pretty well.  I added some Vallejo Retarder Medium to the paint to prevent the paint drying on the tip, and that seemed to work well, meaning that I was able to keep spraying over an extended time without needing to strip the airbrush down or run any cleaner through it.  Here’s the pics:

Airbrush Setup

For those who are interested, I picked up the AS186 Compressor from Ebay, which comes with two airbrushes (both double action, internal mix, and one is side-feed while the other is siphon feed).

Here is a pic of the airbrush in an airbrush cleaner/ holder I bought from Ebay as well, and then a pic of the compressor itself.

I am very pleased with the compressor.  It is very simple to operate (an on/off button and a regulator to select the air-pressure), small and quiet.  I have young kids and this can run at midnight in the house without bothering them.  It has an airtank, meaning that the motor only runs until the airtank is at full pressure (50psi) and then turns off.  You then have completely silent airbrushing with a steady, moisture-free air feed.  It has auto-on and auto-off, moisture trap, standard airhose fittings, safety valve, sump valve and a UK plug fitted.  For the price, it is a steal.  Given that it comes with two excellent airbrushes – best deal of the year, as far as I am concerned.

One thing I need to get is some good, bulk cleaning solution.  Cleaning could be a pain in the neck without it.  I did buy the airbrush cleaning pot/ holder you see in the pic above, as well as Vallejo Airbrush Thinner and some cleaning brushes.  I am really looking forward to really getting to grips with this kit over the next few weeks, but a good start so far, I think

Not a technique I have seen used before, and one that is very easy on the paint budget.

The model on the left was painted with a combination of Vallejo and Citadel Foundation paints, including Citadel washes, having been through a process of serial dilution making the paint to water ratio 1:1m. The model on the right was painted with the same basic paints, but this time further diluted to make the paint to water ratio 1:100m. I think we can all agree that the vibrancy and depth of colour in the second figure more than proves the worth of this painting technique.

Deadline was Monday and I emailed the story off on Wednesday at 1am.  I count that as being ahead of schedule, since editors always lie about their deadlines (only kidding, Dan, Nathan ).

This last story was a real challenge, as I had to write it in the middle of the busiest period at work in ages, which has included working several evenings, as well as being very busy at home.  Mrs Sholto came up with the idea of getting up an hour early so I could get some words done, and that worked well.  It is something I will use in the future, as nothing takes the pressure off like knowing that come what may, you at least got a few hundred words done before breakfast.

In total I have done five stories for Wyrd’s next book, and at 8,000 words per (approx) that is 40,000 words of Malifaux goodness coming your way.  Read every single one of them, dammit!  That’s an order!  Actually, for one of the stories, you probably are going to want to read it twice.  Do I get paid double for stories like that?  No.  It’s totally unfair!

40,000 words is just under half a novel.  I don’t know what that means, or if it is relevant in any way, but there it is.

The fun news is that several of the characters I dreamt up in my stories have been turned into new models for the game.  Three in total will, I believe, make it into the next book.  It is going to be a special kind of wonderful to see a model of something I invented all painted up on a gaming table

Finally, as a special reward for reading this far, I will give you another ace movie recommendation.  Easy A.  Watch it.  It is not a chick-flick, it just happens to be about a girl.  It also happens to be witty, bright and full of great characters and actors.  If you liked John Hughes movies, you’ll love it.

…might just be the best movie I have seen from the whole of last year, or even in the last few years.  I can’t remember the last time a film left me feeling actual excitement (no, not like that!).  The creativity and energy is infectious, but it is creativity to a purpose, and in service of a story worth telling.  It all adds up to a bit of a masterpiece.

I will now make other people watch this film, in order to improve their lives   Starting with you.

It’s been a busy few weeks, and my Man Cave has been missing me.

I got some paint on some models, but other things have risen in priority and I haven’t done any painting or modelling for a while.  Instead, I have been writing – oh, have I been writing!  I’ve sold another story to Wyrd, am in the process of writing another, and am pitching them on various other stories I have rattling around in my brainbox (I need to get some Battlefoam in there to stop the ideas getting scratched).  So, plenty of creative activity, lots of productive busy-ness but nothing I can stick up here and show you guys.   Hence the picture of the kitten.

Very pleased with the story I wrote last week – a 7000 word short story set in the Malifaux world.  Started it on Monday and finished it on Friday, which is pretty good going.  It was one of those stories that just writes itself, where once I had the basic plot outline (character is faced with something from their past that comes back to – literally – haunt them, and they go back and finish the job, getting some closure), I just raided my ideas bitzbox (every writer should have one!) and threw all sorts of stuff into the brew.

Seamus has a cameo, and I tried to capture the comic-book grotesquerie of his character while also letting his actual serial-killer nature show through.  He should make us laugh, but nervously, like waking up to find a tiger juggling in your bedroom in the middle of the night.

I knew it was trending to the Pratchett when I named the reanimated eyeball Mrs Choke, but anything that treads a line between black humour and horror in a fantasy setting is going to feel a little Pratchett anyway.  Ya hear that, Pratchett – I’m gunnin’ for yer crown!

What else have I been reanimating?  My PS3 for one.  Mini Sholto #1 attempted to load the bluray slot with two dvds instead of the more customary one, and the drive died a grindy, stuttering death.  £90 repair bill, the internet told me.  Oh, poo, I thought.  Then corrupted data started showing up on the hard drive – about 28Gb of it – so I did a format and reset and, wouldn’t you know, the bluray drive started working perfectly!  I won’t ask why, because the universe has a way of looking askance at you when you question serendipity, as if to say, “well, now you mention it, that probably shouldn’t have happened.  I’ll see what I can do…” and then jumps up and down on your serendipity while laughing like a toddler on crack.  Or sugar, as it’s known in this house.

The back-from-the-dead PS3 afforded me and Mrs Sholto the opportunity to watch a dvd for a change.  “I Love You Man” was amiable fun and then I watched “Shutter Island”.  I avoided all reviews and discussions of this film, because I knew there was a twist in it.  I don’t know if it’s because as a writer I need to deconstruct plots in order to see how they work and how to put them back together in a different way, or whether the twist was just very poorly done, but it was obvious from just about the opening scene.  Ah, well.  The atmosphere of the piece was excellent (Dante Ferretti is a superb production designer) and it occurred to me that if you didn’t know what was actually going on, the whole sturm-und-drang might seem a little overbaked.  When you know what’s going on, all the visual and audible exclamation marks make! Much! More! Sense!

The emotional core of the film is the heartbreaking scene towards the end, and that one really got me.  It was difficult to watch, although not at all gratuitous.

Anyway, back on track.  I’ve got a game of Dark Age lined up for next week, and another game with my 1750 Farsight list coming up ahead of the Rapid Fire! tournament on the 23^rd October.  Playing against Jamie’s Space Wolves which he has been playing for a while now.  They are different (and better than) the Space Wolf list I drew against with my Shadowsun army, and I am expecting a decent work-out.  Pics if I can find a working camera!

My first try with the unofficial Kroot Codex

Going to be playing a couple of games tonight at 750 points, and after thinking about trying massed Fire Warrior Tau and some Deathwing (only 14 models on the table, but Belial probably thinks that feel crowded), I remembered the unofficial Kroot Mercenaries Codex (pdf link) that came out last year.

I made a few comments(*) when the codex was in late Beta and, since it was all quite a long time ago, I cannot remember if any of them have been included or not!  I am pretty sure the default Greater Knarloc came with Rending Power Weapon attacks, whereas now you get Rending for the old cost and have to pay a +15pt upgrade for the Power Weapon part.  I think I had something to do with that – yes, I helped nerf the Kroot codex

(Is Kroot power-gamer an oxymoron?  Discuss)

The codex writers fixed one of the biggest problems Kroot in the Tau codex have (which means Imperial Armour 3 Kroot as well), and that is a lack of frag grenades.  Doing any kind of assaulting with Kroot sucks if you are going at Init 1 due to charging into terrain, when Kroot are supposed to be not only masters of hunting and stealth, but are damned mercenaries – just buy a grenade if you need one, dude!

Kroot squads don’t get special or heavy weapons, but every squad now comes with a Shaper as standard, and he can take a load of close combat or special weapon options.  They also have access to Fleet, which is not really essential on these guys as they are not a primary close combat unit, a fact reinforced in the codex by the fact that they lose access to Kroot Hounds.

Most of the other squads are variations on the basic Carnivore squad, with some adding poisoned weapons, others adding sniper rifles, others wings and so on.  Stalker Kindred get a 2+ cover save in forests and woods, and that’s without going to ground!  Still doesn’t keep them in mortal dread of flamers, though

The Vulture Squad would previously have been very hard to model (wings, you see) but with the new Tyranid Gargoyle models should be very easy to make.

The Kroot Hound pack can really stack up the points, but the prospect of Infiltrating, Scouting and Fleeting Hounds with a Shaper and IC attached (both with power weapons and all toting frags) is too good to pass up.  Okay, I am using “good” in a way a Space Marine player would laugh at, but it’s relative.  First Turn charges are made of w!n, dontcha know?

The larger Kroot (Knarloc Riders and Greater Knarlocs) have been given much needed rending upgrades, so should be able to do some damage before being Sweeping Advanced off the table.

Overall, practically every unit can Infiltrate, and with upgrades or an IC attached many can Scout and Fleet.  The Kroot Mercs can be in your lines very quickly and should be able to get a few charges off, but without support arriving soon, they will suffer in the way Kroot have always suffered – T3 and a 6+ save leaves them very vulnerable to any kind of counter-attack or just being shot up in the open.  Their big hitters are also very vulnerable, and care needs to be taken to ensure that they do not go into assaults alone.

Kroot anti-infantry shooting is still pretty decent with their S4 guns.

Weaknesses:  Shapers can become damn expensive, and are the only source of special weapons in the game.  They are a good platform for plasma, given their three wounds, but without any squads able to take multiple special weapons Kroot have to look elsewhere for their vehicle-smushing units.  A single BS3 melta per squad won’t cut it, so against mech, Kroot are more boned than any army out there.  The Kroot gun is a laughable autocannon replacement, costing 35 points for something that loses all its range when it moves, and only has one shot out to 36″ even if it stays still.  Friends don’t let friends play mech against Kroot mercs.

Just to drive the point home (heh!), Kroot mercs don’t get vehicles or transports.  Hey, Tyranids!  Look at these guys!  They don’t even get “let’s pretend they’re not transports” Tervigons!  Kroot mercs – all they want out of life is enough money to buy a sweet ride.  Preferably with a pool in the back – need somewhere to practice making new evolutionary adaptations, if you know what I mean.  Hey, is that a hyperactive nymune organ in your pocket or…I’ll stop now.

All this means that Kroot mercs are best taken as actual mercenaries in another army, preferably one that has no problems killing mech.  Like Tau, but they are on the forbidden list, on account of the fact that the Tau Empire totally won the respect of the Kroot homeworlds, who then proceeded to send them a tiny sampling of their most generic, run of the mill troops.  I think the Tau Empire will soon realise that what they call “Kroot Auxiliaries” are what the Kroot refer to as “Scouting Your Next Supper”.

Anyway, by long and winding road this brings to me tonight’s game, where I plan on playing 750 points of pure Kroot Mercs.  I know, and I’m expecting Dreadnoughts and other vehicles to turn up, but what the hell!  Gotta give this codex some love.

Kroot Mercenaries – 750

Signature Evolutionary Adaptation: Fast Reflexes (+1 Initiative)

HQ

Master Shaper (40)

Power weapon (+15), Frag (1), Meltabombs (5), Surefoot Charm (10), Hyperactive Nymune Organ (5), Fast Reflexes (0)

76pts

TROOPS

Carnivore Kindred

1 Shaper and 9 Kroot

Shaper: Krak (2), Meltagun (10)

Fast Reflexes (1)

122pts

Carnivore Kindred

1 Shaper and 9 Kroot

Fast Reflexes (1)

110pts

FAST ATTACK

Knarloc Rider Herd (110)

1 Rider Shaper and 2 Knarloc Riders

Frag Grenades (3)

Shaper: Flamer (5), Meltabombs (5)

123 pts

Kroot Hound Pack (130)

1 Shaper, 9 Kroot and 5 Kroot Hounds

+5 Hounds (30)

Shaper: Eviscerator (25), Blood of The Stalker (20)

Hyperactive Nymune Organ (20)

Fast Reflexes (10)

235pts

HEAVY SUPPORT

Great Knarloc Pack (60)

1 Great Knarloc

+1 Great Knarloc (60)

2 x Kroot Bolt Throwers (50)

Hyperactive Nymune Organ (0)

170pts

2 Booby Traps (30)

30pts

Total: 754pts

Four points over – need to lose a Hound, I guess.

The list is based on what I have, and what I want to play.  I have a load of Krootox, but couldn’t fit them in.  You can see the army all lined up in the photo at the top of the post.  I am in the process of painting the Greater Knarlocs and Knarloc Riders, but none of the other Kroot were painted by me.

Batrep on Monday.

(* Found ‘em)

Left and right; two of the Coryphée and centre, a Mannequin. All are from the new Colette du Bois Showgirls crew.

I got my copy of Book 2 a week or so ago but, due to one thing and another, it has taken me until now to read it all.

(Full disclosure: this is not really a review.  Since I contributed some material to the book, I don’t think that would be appropriate)

What is it?  It is an expansion book for Malifaux (and if you want to know more about Malifaux, see here).

So, new rules and stuff?  Well, yes, but not many.  By far the bulk of this book is given over to new models for the five main factions.  The only new rules are the new Encounter rules, which greatly increases the variety of missions available, and the new Henchman rules, which lets you use certain models as quasi-Masters.

So this isn’t Malifaux v.2.0?  What about the Errata?  The core rules remain unchanged, so you will need the original Malifaux rulebook to play the game.

Are you really going to go with a hoary old Q&A format for this overview?  Well, yeah, I thought I would.  You object?

A little.  I don’t want to be typecast, you know?  Huh? You’re a narrative fiction.  Shut up and keep asking the pretend questions.  You don’t want me to resort to using bullet points, do you?

Jeez – anything but that! Alright, alright.  Can I do the answers next time, though?  I’ll think about it.  Now, quick – ask another pretend question.

Well you still haven’t answered my last one. What about the Errata?  Right.  Because the core rules remain unchanged, the Errata (and the Extra Errata) are not included.  Eric Johns has said he wants to flush all the gremlins out the system before updating the rules in print.

If it’s only new models, how big is this thing?  This thing is big – 256 pages vs 215 pages in Book 1.  And while the new models take up a great deal of real estate, there are two other elements which fill out the book;  the Encounter rules and the background.

Ooh!  Background.  Tell me more.  Malifaux is a character-driven miniatures game, with a focus on the “character-driven”, so the characters from the first book return (with some notable exceptions – the Victorias and Leviticus don’t feature at all, and a few others get just a walk-on) and all the new characters are introduced. There is clearly an overarching story at play here, and there are a few twists and turns – especially at the end, which ramps up the tension to something of a real cliffhanger.  There are a lot of threads to keep a hold of and, as Wyrd introduce more and more new characters in future books, giving them all some page-time is going to become increasingly challenging, but I am sure they know what they’re doing

No spoilers, but what can you tell me?  Well, Hamelin, who was a Mercenary Minion in the last book, has an unfortunate encounter with something much older than he is and acquires new and dreadful powers.  As his plague spreads throughout Malifaux, other Masters hunt for clues to the mysterious symbol of the serpent wrapped around an eye.  Meanwhile, the Guild Governor is seeking to clean up a mess in his own house, with some terrible consequences for all involved.  It all culminates in a crashing climax at the end of Book 2, which looks set to change things for a lot of the Masters as we look towards Book 3.

You know!  You know and you’re not telling!  Actually, I don’t.  I have no idea what the overall story nestling in the fiendish brains of Nathan Caroland and Dave Bowen actually is (although I have plans to get Mortimer to steal their brains so I can find out), so this is just speculation on my part.  Or … is it?

Yes.  Yes, it is.  Damn it!  I forgot you were just an imaginary construct.  I can’t outwit you.  Or … can I?

No.  Damn.  Ask another question, then.

The new characters.  Who’s your favourite?  Oh – nice one! Well, the Guild get C. Hoffman, who is a cross between Isembard Kingdom Brunel and Doc Ock.  I play Guild, but I love steampunk constructs, so he is right up my alley.  I played his crew a few times during the Beta test of Book 2, and I really enjoyed his style.  The Resurrectionists get Kirai Ankoku, along with a host of Nipponese spiritual and/ or J-Horror themed nasties and a handy pronunciation guide for those of us who have no idea how to say, “Kirai”.  Which includes you, by the way.  However you are pronouncing that word in your head right now, you’re doing it wrong, but don’t worry – when reading Harry Potter I pronounced Hermione “Her – mee – own” for the first three books

Really?  Yes.

You’re dumb.  I know.  Moving on-

No, I mean, really dumb.  Moving on, the Neverborn get the Dreamer and Lord Chompy Bits.

Who the Lord what now?  Yeah, you read that right!  It’s the Dreamer’s name for him, and LCB is not the sort of person who cares much what people call him.  He is more interested in frightening the bejessus out of them and then ripping them limb from limb.  Everyone except his leetle fren’ the Dreamer, a wee kid with some freaky powers.  Brilliantly, all the Dreamer crew has on the table at the start of any game is a model of a little boy wearing a white nightshirt :)  After that, bad things happen…  The Mercenaries get the new, vermin-charged version of “check out my funky evil powers” Hamelin as well as the leader of the Freikorps, a mercenary sub-faction.

Sub-faction?  Well, they are actually called “Special Forces”-

That’s a lot cooler than “sub-faction”.  Call yourself a writer!  Hey, you wanna do this bit?

Yes.

…

Well, you can’t. So there.  All the factions have Special Forces, each of which has a theme.  Some of these are scary-clown weird, like the Doll Special Forces, and some are just odd, like the Guild one which lets you basically put a force of civil servants on the table.  Deadly civil servants, including lawyers :)  Regular faction crews can take up to two of these Special Forces models, but if you include one of the new Henchmen in your crew, then you can take a lot more.  A case in point are the new Gremlins Special Forces, the Kin, led by Ophelia Lacroix.  If you like Perdita Ortega, you are going to love these mean, green, rootin’ – tootin’ machines.  Plus,  Pork Barrage.

Pork Barrage?  Yup – best new name for an ability in the game.

Cool.  You forgot the Arcanists.  No, I didn’t.  I was structuring this so I could answer your original question, but do it under cover of an overview of all the new Masters and their crews.  See, planning.  The Arcanists get my and what seems to be a lot of people’s vote for favourite new Master and crew in the game – Colette Du Bois and her Showgirls.

I can tell so much just from the name.  Graceful yet sassy.  Bold as brass and as sultry as midnight on the Mississipi.  Yup.  That, too.  Plus, you get mannequins and dancer automata with blades that spring out from their arms.

Squee!  All of the above, but with freakin’ blades that spring out their freakin’ arms?  Gimme!  This seems to be the considered opinion of most of the Mali-fans on the web, although the other Masters (especially the enormous LCB and the beautifully sorrowful Kirai crew) are getting plenty of love.  The new models look fab.

Mali-fans?  Yeah, doesn’t really work, does it?  Thought I would give it a try.

Anything else you want to tell us?  The artwork is stunning, as usual.  Every new model has artwork to go with it, although in most cases there are no miniatures for them yet.  The new boxed sets are Kirai, Colette and Ophelia Lacroix.  From Book 1, players finally get a box set for Leviticus.

All the new Masters feature heavily in the storyline, so you get plenty of information on them, but to return to something I mentioned earlier, I think what will be most appreciated from Rising Powers are the new Encounter rules.

Seriously?  Yup.  People forget sometimes that while the game mechanics are essential to ensure depth and enjoyment, the actual missions get overlooked in a surprising number of existing games.

You mean, games where you line up your models on your side, and he lines up his, and then it’s first to kill ‘em all wins?  Exactly.  Games Workshop.  Silverfish hand catch.  Only one of these is a non-sequitor.  Anyhoo – the new Encounter rules massively increase the Scenarios and Schemes available.  Just to take one example,  you can try to frame your opponent’s Master for murder.

How?  Have him kill one of your nominated models.  Cool, huh?  Of course, your opponent doesn’t know you’re trying to do this for sure, since you don’t announce it, but he will know it’s a possibility…

I like it.  So, time to wrap it up, bud.  Take us on home.  Book 2 is just what Malifaux needed.  The game got off to a great start at Gencon 2009, and has been growing since but, like any miniatures game in an increasingly crowded and competitive marketplace, keeping that momentum going is critically important if the game is to last.  Plenty of others have fallen by the wayside, but Wyrd seem to have a very clear roadmap and the ability to scale their operation, and Book 3 is already well underway.  There is a risk that with all the cool and powerful new models in Book 2 that some of the models (or even crews) from Book 1 will find themselves underpowered and out of favour, and while only time will tell if that is the case, from my experiences during the Beta I don’t think this will happen.  I can’t wait to get my hands on the Colette box set

I got up early to watch the conclusion to Lost.  Not sure why, since I haven’t followed the whole show, but I wanted to see how they wrapped it all up.  As luck would have it, both The Prisoner and Ashes To Ashes finished last weekend as well.

SPOILERS follow.

Major ones.

(Here’s some more words in case previews of this post contain more than they should, and you get served some spoilers without asking for them. Blah, blah, blah.)

That should do it.  On with the show.

(For previous posts on this model, see here and here)

Review

The model arrived a few days after I had placed the order, in a small cardboard box.  Inside the model was packed in bubble wrap, along with the certificate of authenticity (of interest to serious collectors, I assume).

The model itself comes in two parts (main body and right arm), along with a round-edged (Warmachine-style) 30mm black plastic base.  You cannot see her right arm in this picture, but it comes separately.  Gluing it on is easy and, as the model is resin and not metal, will not need pinning, although there is ample surface area to do so if you wish.

As mentioned, the model is made of resin, in this case a light grey resin approximately the same colour as Forgeworld and, if anything, slightly softer and springier.

Now, I have seen a fair few resin models over the last few years, and this model outstrips them all in sheer quality of the casting.  With every resin model I have ever had, there has been mould lines to smooth, flash to trim, gates to remove with a razor saw, bubbles to fill with greenstuff/ hard wax or miscast bits of detail that need cleaning up.  On this model, apart from the gate at the bottom of her cloak  - nothing.  None of the above.  I went over it with a magnifying glass (literally) and found nothing that needed fixing.  I have no idea how McVey Studios cast their miniatures, or how much clean-up work they do to them before sending them out, but how I wish other manufacturers could copy this.

Now, onto the problem.

The model’s right hand is holding a cigarette.  Cigarettes are, of course, terribly bad and may even be one of the signs of the apocalypse, but this lady has style, so we’ll forgive her heralding the doom of all mankind.  The cigarette is also a long, thin piece of soft resin and so I took great pains to keep it intact.  Well, I was in the middle of painting her cloak and I set the model down.  Without touching it in any way, the cigarette simply fell off.

I half-expected this, but I had thought it would come about through simple clumsiness on my part (hey, how do you think I wound up with three kids? Ba-da-bing! Thank you, I’m here all week).  I ordered up some 0.5mm diameter brass rod online and, using a 0.5mm drill bit, drilled out a hole into the remainder of the cigarette (the part in her palm).  Here is the result:-

With the brass rod glued in there, I no longer need to worry about the darned thing snapping off again.  If you were buying this model to go in your display cabinet, you might get away with keeping the resin cigarette intact, but if you are planning to use this model for gaming, there is no way it would survive past the first Turn.

As you can see above, I cut off the slotta tab on the model’s feet and pinned her to a metal base insert from Wyrd Miniatures.  This one is the flame base.  I also added Sonnia Criid’s Runed Blade to her back, as this will be my stand-in for Sonnia Criid in games of Malifaux.  She will also do double-duty as an Inquisitor in Throne Agent!

Appearance

You can tell pretty much all you need to about the model’s appearance from the pictures, and once you have it in your hand it does not disappoint.  Generally speaking, metal models are more detailed than plastic, and resin ones are more detailed than metal, and this holds true here, with some fantastic small details, all perfectly sculpted and cast.  The cloak is just crying out for subtle shading, and maybe some freehand work around the hem.  So far, this has been a joy to paint, and I am looking forward to finishing the job.

Summary

The best resin model I have ever seen, but work out what you’re going to do about that cigarette before you start.

Type: Miniature model.

Manufacturer: Varies.  There are plentiful sources of production, although quality can differ and the good ones are always hard to find.  Avoid manufacturers with obvious quality control issues. Check import restrictions if engaging a non-domestic manufacturer. Commissioning production can take some time and effort, and you may require to enter into a long-term partnership with the manufacturer, with a sizeable management and maintenance element post-delivery.

Cost: Varies. Nominally free, but comes with very large hidden costs and, notably, opportunity costs.  Please consult an independent financial adviser before ordering from your chosen manufacturer.

Packaging: Irritable and prone to throwing things at you.  Unusually, the packaging itself requires packaging, often in non-standard Royal Mail wrapping that can cost an alarming amount of money, although is readily available from the High Street and online shoe shops.  Additional wrappings will be required, as the package tends to expand laterally over the delivery period.

Delivery:  Serious issues were encountered over establishing a reliable delivery timescale, which puts the period in question well outwith the normal Paypal recovery times, so be warned. Nine months is not unusual, although this is commission work, so allowances must be made.  Workload of most manufacturers is, however, usually limited to a single item at a time, so questions must be asked about efficiency of production.  Nonetheless, delivery is usually made within a few days of the projected date, sometimes at home, although often elsewhere – check with your supplier, although be prepared for last minute changes.  Tracking is not usually offered, and oddly the manufacturer will often attempt to track you and keep a very close eye on your movements as delivery approaches.

Delivery itself is not something you need to be present for, as medical staff will usually sign for the item.  However, as this is a review I diligently attended all three deliveries and can confirm that there is little to be gained from personal presence: it is akin to waiting around at home all day for a parcel to arrive, but in this case the courier turns up late and angry and proceeds to scream at you incoherently before thrusting the item at you and collapsing from exhaustion.  Best avoided, and perhaps you could spend your time more fruitfully engaged in other hobby pursuits.

Quality of sculpt:  Varies, although the returns process is bafflingly non-existent.  Most manufacturers produce work that is fundamentally the same, although differences in size and weight are most commonly noted.  There are two main types of sculpt; male and female, and it is disappointing to note that despite most manufacturer’s statements pre-delivery there is no guarantee which of the two the finished item will be.  This is generally acceptable for your first acquisition, but for future commissions the randomness of the process may mean you fail to acquire a complete set of both types.  No workaround is known at this time, and the process invariably favours the manufacturers with repeat commissions.

Cleaning of mould lines: very few, as the casting process is highly accurate. One long, tubular piece of flashing is present, but medical staff will often remove this for you. Warning – do not attempt to remove this yourself with a  hobby knife. Not only may you alarm the medical staff and/ or the manufacturer, but you may make a mistake and accidentally re-gender your item. Leave this step to the professionals.

Removal of release compound: Considerable amounts of this are present in every case, and will need to be removed from the item.  I was keen to see what Dettol or Simple Green would do, but was unable to find a suitable opportunity. Again, the medical staff appear to have an established procedure for this and it may be best to leave it to them.

Later on, I was alarmed to see additional release compound leaking from the item, but was assured this was a natural side effect of the casting process and that although it would continue to leak from time to time, this did not constitute a warranty claim. Not long after, dark, solid, resinous matter with an unpleasant odour leaked out, but again it seems this is just something you will have to put up with. Every single day.

Painting/ priming: the item comes pre-painted in a satin finish to display quality, although colour can vary from model to model. I was pleased to note that particular attention had been given to the eyes, and I found I spent a long time appreciating the quality of the paintwork there. I was displeased at the lack of hair on the model, although my attempts to fix this with static grass were unsuccessful.  Quite how resistant the item is to bumps and knocks is an unknown, as no attempt to apply varnish has been made. The item does not come with a base.  This is something the manufacturer could easily fix given the nine month sculpting period, but admittedly it makes the item much easier to cuddle.

Customisation: prospects are few. There is a limited palette to choose from, and you will be limited to either blue or pink.  White and beige are also options, but the manufacturer will already have entered the management and maintenance cycle of the contract and will be taking most of these decisions for you. Decoration of the item in suitable (blue or pink) wrappings offers scope for extending your hobby skills.  Use of decals is not recommended.  The item will initially produce its own greenstuff, but this should on no account be used for modelling purposes.

Rules: I have checked both the manufacturer’s website and elsewhere on the internet and have been unable to find any rules for these models, a fact which the models themselves seem all too aware of at times.  I suggest house rules until such time as an FAQ is released.

I hope this review has been of some use in helping you decide whether or not to commission any of these delightful little minis.