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Post by cheminhaler on Jan 15, 2016 8:03:35 GMT -5
With the skitarii kit be very, very gentle when you're unclipping; it's really easy to break the USB ports they have coming out of their robes if you're careless. I broke 2-3 of mine.
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Post by RedsandRoyals on Jan 15, 2016 17:43:34 GMT -5
After spending far too much time to unsuccessfully save those, I decided I don't care that much.
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Post by emptyhat on Jan 15, 2016 18:03:55 GMT -5
Did you pick out a colour scheme yet?
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Post by Trooper One-Nine-Seven-Four on Jan 15, 2016 18:11:48 GMT -5
Pink robes, gray fleshy bits, and purple metallics.
Do it.
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Post by RedsandRoyals on Jan 15, 2016 18:32:14 GMT -5
Grey.
Possibly to be changed to "Spray Can Black" at a later date.
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Post by emptyhat on Jan 15, 2016 19:51:52 GMT -5
Grey. Possibly to be changed to "Spray Can Black" at a later date. Once again I am saddened by the lack of a dislike button on these boards.
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Post by RedsandRoyals on Jan 15, 2016 20:59:53 GMT -5
Trust me, they're better off if I don't try to paint them. See the title of the thread. So, 20 rangers and an Onanger done. Time for kit impressions. Rangers/VanguardI was surprised at how... slight the models were. Closer to Dark Eldar than Guardsmen, really. That may be a slightly unfair grading given the age of the guardsmen kits (the catachan command squad is arguably more in line with the Mechanicus infantry than the basic troop boxes with biceps bigger than heads), and the inherit bulkiness of flak armor. It's admitedly a minor thing, but I'd like the minis to have a bit more physical presence, seeing as they're basically Terminators. I'd also like a bit more bits and bobs peeking out from under the robes or on the chest and legs. The Vanguard heads do a decent job of spicing things up, but I feel like there could be, you know, more to emphasize the machine aspect. These are minor issues though. Overall the kit aesthetic is great. The weapons in particular look really, really nice. The Ranger rifles are fantastic, and the carbines look like something out of Fallout. I dig it. The special weapons are very nice too, with the caliver and the arc rifle having a hefty, 1950s sci fi look. You'll also be spoiled for choice with heads, which are are generally well done. Torsos have to be matched to specific legs (thanks to the robes), but this is countered by the fact that most arm sets can be used with most body sets. That, combined with the dynamic nature of most of the poses, sidesteps the "Twin Mini" syndrome you sometimes get with some infantry minis, where they all start to look the same thanks to similar poses (see Cadian swarm platoons for this effect). My primary criticisms are the squad leader arms, which are all more or less in the same pose, some of the choices about what parts of the minis are connected to the sprue (although that, I can see, may be more determined by avoiding air bubbles than convenience), and a slightly disappointing lack of additional bling bits to sprinkle over your minis. Stuff like purity seals and Mechanicum tokens, etc. Kit Rating: 7/10. Solid, good look, not especially thrilling to build after the first squad. A good kit. Onanger DunecrawlerI really, really like how this kit looks. It's a great sci-fi walker design, and doesn't suffer from the horrendous derp that afflict certain Imperial vehicles. It's full of nice little flourishes (the footpads on the walker legs, etc). It's just cool to look at. But! As I built it, every third or fourth step made me think "You know, they could have moulded this as one piece". It suffers heavily from the same problems as most "proper" model kits, where it's got a bunch of little pieces to glue on. Some of these are probably too delicate to risk trying to mould onto the hull bits, but others, really, serve no purpose than to serve as assembly busywork (The Rhino is the opposite end of the spectrum from this, with very few pieces overall). The attachment of the legs to the central piece is also a touch... convoluted, especially for those of us who don't want to spend gobs of money on special model assembly tools. After realizing I'd need some mechandendrites of my own to hold all the legs in place while I glued the center bit, I decided just to glue the legs in place and say to hell with the somewhat unnecessary ability to move the legs. The weapon and hull assemblies are easy enough, aside from adding some the ladder rungs and turret railings. I also want to mention that Ork players will have an absolute blast converting these things into Kans or Deff Dreads or whatever you want. If you yourself don't play orks, pass the extra, unused weapon options off to one at your local store. It's a crime not to use them, and they're just so... perfect for looted weapons. Kit Rating: 8/10. I love the look. Just love it. The silly leg assemblies and the unnecessarily complex assembly of smaller bits are the main dragdowns. Tech-Priest DominusPlastic kit with zero poseability and few weapon options. Well detailed and good overall look, but boring to build and everyone will have the same one essentially. Kit Rating 2/10. It gets 2 for the aesthetic at least. Other ThoughtsJust a musing on the Mechanicus in general. When I was building the Rangers, I felt like the designers were pulled in too many directions for inspiration. The rangers and their rifles, as well as the sniper rifles, feel like they drew from scribbles in the margins of Da Vinci's notebooks. Clockpunk, more or less. I like the idea, but I'm not sure it entirely fits. The vanguard, on the other hand, are straight out of Fallout, or the Flash Gordon sci-fi it draws from. Again, I really dig it, because they nail it hard with the Onanger and the weapons for the Vanguard. But the two styles don't really fit together well, creating a sense of aesthetic split between the Flash Gordon models (dunecrawlers, vanguard, infiltraitors/ruststalkers, and the kastelan bots), and the Da Vinci minis (Ironstriders and Rangers). This split isn't helped by the nod to steampunk in both sets, and the light dusting of Roman influence they hastily applied to bring it into line with some of the terminology for their units (I would have bought the hell out of the infantry minis if they looked more like they were wearing Lorica Segmentata style armor without robes, by the way, but my raging nerdboner for early and mid Imperial Roman armor styles is neither here nor there). The *real* problem is that, while they do both looks very well, neither are the traditional aesthetic for Mechanicus. They've usually tried to skew toward a brutal, ominous look, which they've largely managed to capture in a third set of models (The tech priest Dominus and the Kataphrons. They tried with the electro-priests but they're just the worst). So, you end up with a range of minis trying to wear three hats. It looks good in all of them individually, but it's trying to wear all three at once, and it just make things seem a bit off.
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Post by treadiculous on Jan 16, 2016 8:02:51 GMT -5
splay can black, then dry brush silver, paint the robes red and give the robes a wash of darker red.
it'll look good and won't require any finesse. it will also be quick to paint them this way. (It's essentially what I do with my black and red army).
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Post by emptyhat on Jan 16, 2016 9:37:53 GMT -5
The title says to help you paint them badly. Peer pressure seems like a good first step. I have been wanting to break up an Orengar. Use the legs for a dredd (I want to make one with 4 drill arms at some point so maybe this is the kit for that.) Would the leftover guns be good for Flash Gitz?
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Post by RedsandRoyals on Jan 16, 2016 10:08:49 GMT -5
Might be a touch big for flash gitz, probably better for Meks or Lootas.
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Post by ElegaicRequiem on Jan 16, 2016 11:01:22 GMT -5
Orrengar? I bet it's Bracktacular.
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Post by Trooper One-Nine-Seven-Four on Jan 16, 2016 18:22:01 GMT -5
No, no, no... It's Om-nom-ner.
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Post by cheminhaler on Jan 17, 2016 9:58:06 GMT -5
The intelligent pintle mounted heavy stubber would be OK for Ork infanty, everything else is vehicle sized.
Gutted. The SM start collecting box was sold out so I had to order it and go back to collect it next week. As a consolation prize I went to Burger King and bought new underpants and trainers from Sports Direct. The undies are just so I'm not breaking Ministry of Pants regulations.
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Post by ElegaicRequiem on Jan 17, 2016 10:16:22 GMT -5
Well played, Chem. Well played.
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Post by cheminhaler on Jan 17, 2016 13:04:03 GMT -5
Thanks. Trooper will be pleased to know that there are 2 storm troopers in lively colours walking around outside the Toy Store on Oxford Street. They sell the outfits and I saw a storm trooper helmet in Union Jack colours as well, passing by on the bus. It's been a while since I've been down Oxford St. , I usually cut through TCR instead.
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Post by Trooper One-Nine-Seven-Four on Jan 17, 2016 14:37:00 GMT -5
Thanks. Trooper will be pleased to know that there are 2 storm troopers in lively colours walking around outside the Toy Store on Oxford Street. They sell the outfits and I saw a storm trooper helmet in Union Jack colours as well, passing by on the bus. It's been a while since I've been down Oxford St. , I usually cut through TCR instead. Their chest plates need to go over their ab plates, instead of vice versa...
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Post by RedsandRoyals on Jan 17, 2016 17:02:27 GMT -5
@chem: Reading your post I was briefly worried that you bought the underpants at Burger King.
All infantry built, probably do another Onanger tonight.
Edit: And I just saw the Dominous is $36 when purchased singly. What the actual heck? I almost threw mine away because the mini is so pointlessly dull to build and I have three.
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Post by emptyhat on Jan 17, 2016 17:49:02 GMT -5
You don't like BKings bacon undies? They cover your buns, hun.
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Post by cheminhaler on Jan 18, 2016 6:47:01 GMT -5
Sell them on Bay of E.
I wanted to bitz buy the relevant guns from the dominus and make my own but I'll probably have to use the stock model now. Blehh!
Anyway I have an old RT era techpriest with a poweraxe and was figuring of putting it on a 40mm base, connected to a servitor with repair arms from the Onager kit and the guns, connected by wires to the TP.
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Post by emptyhat on Jan 18, 2016 14:45:00 GMT -5
The plastic clam pack pricing is demented these days. I guess they are priced for painters?
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Post by cheminhaler on Jan 18, 2016 16:16:37 GMT -5
I think the justification was that someone only really needed to buy one, whereas you'll be buying lots of basic troops for your army, you'll only ever need one commander. It just depends on whether you like the model enough to shell out on it. I got the finecast terminator chaplain and the new clamp-pack terminator librarian, mainly because I like the details on the models. When I was playing with my Chem-inhaler special equipment guard I rarely shelled out on my commander, reasoning that it's better for a Company Command squad not to stick out or draw attention to itself. To that end I never took a company standard but back then I did take the Master Vox, which was essential back in 4th to give all your army units with vox-casters global leadership 9. Nobody really noticed but my master vox was very much larger than the other voxes in the army, as I spent a bit of time converting it out of the bigger vox pieces that came with the old vehicles. But the company command squad actually never died, even if a lot of the rest of the army did, so my theory worked. Edit - these days with Orders it's impossible not to give up your CCS location.. The SM commander set style kit would be preferable to clam-packs, as they offer more versatility and a lot of spare bits. That the only downside to the new clamp-packs - they're very limited on the extra guns etc. Their chest plates need to go over their ab plates, instead of vice versa... So you want me to actually approach these nutters and tell them that? I might get interrogated by the Toy Store chief Sith King Emperor Lord Dude/ Dudesse for interfering with Imperial commercial interests.
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Post by emptyhat on Jan 18, 2016 16:47:51 GMT -5
Their chest plates need to go over their ab plates, instead of vice versa... So you want me to actually approach these nutters and tell them that? I might get interrogated by the Toy Store chief Sith King Emperor Lord Dude/ Dudesse for interfering with Imperial commercial interests. If they didn't drag you off for walking down the street in hot bacon undies then they're not going to drag you off. They might cower or run but even a Sith has more sense then that. Man walks down the street in smoking, smoky underwear and a pair of trainers, you know he isn't afraid of anything.
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Post by RedsandRoyals on Jan 18, 2016 17:41:43 GMT -5
Normally it's easy to sidestep the clam packs for what you want to build, but the Mechanicus range is actually surprisingly limited for that option. Thanks to the lack of funky detail accessory bits (Disco ball mechandendrite!), making a normal Skitarri ranger distinguishable as a techpriest will be difficult, especially if you don't have bits from other ranges to draw on. That may have more to do with the coggos feeling a bit like only half the planned range was released, though.
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Post by emptyhat on Jan 18, 2016 18:00:34 GMT -5
Maybe some green stuff and a tentacle maker?
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Post by Trooper One-Nine-Seven-Four on Jan 18, 2016 22:38:00 GMT -5
In the extra guns etc. Their chest plates need to go over their ab plates, instead of vice versa... So you want me to actually approach these nutters and tell them that? I might get interrogated by the Toy Store chief Sith King Emperor Lord Dude/ Dudesse for interfering with Imperial commercial interests. Yes. You must. Your Emperor commands it.
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