All gamers know that pain… New edition of their game… New armybook… New rules…
It happens from time to time. You know, companies do try to let some fresh air into their games. Or drain your wallet. Or both.
Anyway, here’s what happens when a new army is looming on the horizon (literally this time)
Many thanks to Malekith for letting me use his pictures. Please check his blog out, it’s cool.
You can do many different things during night… one of them is to take pics and write reviews. I didn’t really feel like sleeping, so I decided to spend night on something productive – writing a review of Spellcrow miniatures.
I’d like to present two models released by Spellcrow, a company behind the Umbra Turris game. I had bought them last year at the Mad Days event and recently found them in my boxes. I thought it’s a good to review them.
Both minis were packed in folic packaging inside blisters. No bases were provided, as these miniatures were brand new releases at the time. Fortunately, I was able to pick square resin bases at their stand. Miniatures sold through their online store do have bases of course!
The first model I chose is a Helloween Mage – pumpkin-head released for Helloween 2011. It’s a one-piece cast, but it doesn’t mean a poor quality, quite the opposite! The is not quite fresh, as we have many pumpkins on the market. Nevertheless, I wanted to have this one from the very first moment I saw it. It’s a second pumpkin-head in my collection, many more still waiting for a purchase…
And here’s a nice painted version of this miniature, done by C’Tan.
The sculpt is precise and detailed. There’s a lot of interesting details and textures, thus should comprise a very fun model for painting and should “paint by itself”, as painters use to say. Textures on the pumpkin, wood and details deserve the highest notes. I’m sure I’m not going to regret time spent on painting it and final effect will the best reward for my efforts.
There are some drawbacks of course, as always. Cast is not bad, but there are some mould lines and excessive flesh. The metal piece connecting the wand with tag is the biggest part to be removed. These are not complicated things to do. Also, a piece of foam could be added to blisters to provide additional protection for miniatures (not that I expect any damages to light metal miniatures packed tightly in folic wrapping).
The packaging does not contain any specific information apart from the name of the game. This might have changed in the meantime. If not, I believe it would be reasonable to add at least name of the model and few more pieces of information, to make it look more professional. Just a minor issue, really.
Final score: 9/10.
The second model is this Mrokin with a staff. Fun sculpt with quality not worse than described above. One-piece cast again. There were also a few mould lines and other elements to be removed, nothing exceeding the standard preparation and assembly things you do with all miniatures.
Face, and equipment deserves a special attention. Fantastic! Small brush and steady hand will make the most out of this sculpt; other manufacturers in that scale might be ashamed! Finer and better details can be found on resin casts only.
I have to admit that Spellcrow models’ quality and amount of details are amazing! The model is very small yet the sculptor did a superb job.
This model will get the same score: 9/10.
In my opinion Spellcrow did everything one could do with metal and produced miniatures of high quality. This is supported by an outstanding sculptor’s performance. As you can see – impossible is nothing. 🙂
I can sincerely recommend both miniatures and will surely get more from them in the future. Prices are also good – EUR 11.98 ($15.97) for the Helloween Mage and EUR 5.99 ($7.99) for Mrokin.
— Slawol
My has been a month full of new releases in so many domains that it was really hard to choose. When we did our first article for the releases of March-April, there were already lots of minis but this month, it’s even more. Don’t get me wrong, this is great; it just makes it hard to pick some good samples from those domains to try to cover most of the manufacturers. Anyway, enough of “moaning”, let’s see what Sea.man and I have selected for you guys. Hope you’ll enjoy it 🙂
Sea.man: Antenociti’s Workshop did those great looking vehicles and must see how well detailed they are.
Hellspawn: Those vehicles looks nice yeah, they look good and would nicely suit any futuristic army. I stayed simple on my choice for a Sci-Fi release and went for a well known manufacturer, ie Forge World. This month, the version they released of the Terminator is really great imo, I really like those mini Contemptors. 🙂
Sea.man: Check this great and majestic pirate from Tale of War, he is cool, well sculpted and has lots of character. I really that such sculpts really will make this company more popular. We all like pirates don’t we?
Sea.man: Bushido is well known for their Far East style miniatures. This ninja looks really cool and very dynamic, or Hellspawn do you recommend something different?
Hellspawn: Well, not everyone loves pirates or ninjas hehehe, and my choice this month goes for the re-release of the Forsaker from Kingdom Death. And I must admit that I was weak cause I ordered this guy from Cool Mini or Not already 😛
Sea.man: Puppet Wars are quite known for going with the flow of Games Workshop releases. Good for us, we have more to choose from. 😀
Sea.man: Willy Miniatures did some great looking mummies for any fantasy football game. Those mummies look scary and surely will spread terror on the pitch.
Hellspawn: Those are cool indeed, but look at what our friend Scibor from Scibor Monstrous Miniatures made:
This dwarf would make a really nice general for a dwarf army, wouldn’t he?
Sea.man: Hasslefree Miniatures did those cool bits, not only they make sculpting easier, but can also be great bits to put on diorama.
Hellspawn: Those are nice, even to use when you want to convert your army. As for the sculpting part, I really like what Masquerade Miniatures made this month. Check this out:
They released previously some similar stuff to sculpt wires etc. but now, they keep going with fur. You’re gonna say, “Fur is easy to sculpt” but even if it’s easy, this tool will save you some precious time.
Sea.man: Yet another month we are getting an interesting bust, this time it is a commissar from Castle Miniatures. You might say that it is a Games Workshop rip-off, but I prefer to call it just an inspiration.
Sea.man: And it’s another month that Knight Models keeps releasing something great. As much as I like bigger scale models, this time I couldn’t find any that I would like to have as much as this Iron Man bust:
Hellspawn: if you read our article from last month you already know that I’m not the bust type of guy, but I must admit that this version of Iron Man is nice.
Hellspawn: There are so many releases in the scale of 54mm and above that it was hard to choose. But this month my vote goes for this Praetorian Guard from Scale 75
Not only he’s nice, but Scale 75 is providing extras to go with that let you personalize it and it’s a nice move I think because you can either make him a Praetorian Guard or a Gladiator. Really cool uh?
Hellspawn: Some time ago BaneBeasts/BaneLegion used to surprise us with lots of awesome releases and incredible paintjobs.This month, though, one of the minis they released is just ugly. Check this out:
The pose is ugly, and her boobs are sooo oversized that they look like missiles, and what is she leaning on? Invisible wall? This mini is IMO a complete waste of resin.
Though with boobs like that, maybe Maelstrom wanted to have her competing in our next category, the boobs of the month? Too bad she ended in the previous one. 😀
Sea.man: Another release from Tale of War, this time it is Ana the Rodrigo and her dog for me it means that company is the biggest winner for this month, with second nomination in this compilation.
Hellspawn: Well, I’m sorry to tell you but regarding the boobies contest, she’s gonna lose cause the guys from Studio McVey released a lady with serious assets.
Sea.man: Great white shark from Yedraho Models looks very interesting. You don’t always have to paint something for an army, and this one could be very relaxing to paint.
Hellspawn: In the interesting thing to come topic, there is soooo much to say this month that I don’t even know where to start. First of all, I think that we can’t pass on the awesome miniatures that Hawk Wargames will be releasing next month for their game: Dropzone Commander. Those minis will be available next month but they’re already available as preorders.
The other awesome thing is something from Tabletop-Art. At the RPC Germany festival they showed what they’ll be releasing for conversions of Games Workshop vehicles and I must admit, I’m a big fan. Can’t wait to see those in shops. 🙂
Our selection for this month is now complete.
Don’t forget that this is a hand selection of what we (Sea.man and I) think are the best ones, but of course, there are plenty of others and we’ll be happy to discuss those with you on our forum in the manufacturers thread. It has lots of topic from most of the manufacturers. Feel free to pop in and say hi and have a chat with us in there.
— Hellspawn & Sea.man
Every month there are many new releases from different companies. Those releases go from simple conversion kit (heads, shoulders, legs) to minis of various sizes without forgetting accessories. We decided to have a look on what has been released over March and April, and what you see here is a selection of our favorites.
You’ll find here a compilation of what we think are the most interesting releases of these months. I would like to present you some of those most interesting in my opinion. There is always place for the discussion, so feel free to post your favourites from recent releases.
If you know new company, then tell us about it too, we’re always looking for some news ranges.
We’d like to thank all Chest of Colors members that post information about new miniatures. This article has been written I wrote this article based on their findings posted at the forum.
Of course this list is very personal and shows just two points of view, but we are more than open to talk with you!
Sea.man: this barbarian from Heresy has really something that makes me wanna buy it. For sure you might say that it is just another well sculpted barbarian, but just look at his facial expression…
Hellspawn: Come on!!! This is just another barbarian, nothing new here, pile of muscles, oversized axe like he needs to compensate for something, and an angry face like he hasn’t pooped. Nothing I’d like to paint. Though, if you want to stay in the barbarian style, have a look at this wip of a female barbarian from the Hasslefree Miniatures range which is really nice and different from what we can usually see.
Still looking for the male or did I managed to turn you on with the female?
Sea.man: for me Kingdom Death produces two types of miniatures, first are those controversial ones which I don’t understand and second that I like to call normal ones. But for sure this company knows how to release nicely detailed miniatures.
Hellspawn: Ah, I knew you were more a female type of guy 😀 and you’re right, it’s nice to have a change in the weirdness of the previous releases, though, this bunch of minis isn’t what I prefer. But to stay away from the weirdness and come back on something more usual, Reaper Miniatures released this month a nice bunch of minis with this one that caught my attention. She’s perhaps not one of their best minis, but in this batch I liked her.
Isn’t she lovely with her helmet?
Sea.man: Knight Models turns out to be one of the leading large scale companies, the licences to use well known heroes helps a lot, but I think that we have to agree one thing – they really do those characters justice with such great sculpts.
Hellspawn: Yeah, Knight Models is one of the companies that I’m always enjoying the releases of their large scales, they do provide really nice quality products and they use their licences wisely, of course, they did released some lame ones. Do you remember the release of Darth Vader that was made some times ago?
He’s totally silly while they could have done great job, on him (of course, this is just my personal pow on it) but it’s true that lately, the releases are just more and more interesting and I’ll for sure try to grab some of the DC releases if I can find some of my favourite super heroes sculpted.
You spoke previously about the Kingdom Death releases and I said that they weren’t really my taste, but I have to admit that this one is really good, she’s nicely sculpted far from the weirdness Kingdom Death usually provides us, she’s sexy, and she has something that attracts me (and no, I’m not talking about the titties here or the thong), she definitely has some character.
Don’t you think I’m right?
Sea.man: this Hussar bust from Young Miniatures is very close to my heart, because it represents the famous cavalry from Poland. The character of the majestic knight looks very well executed and this panther skin…
Hellspawn: I’m not super excited about busts, I always think they look silly or something is missing, so won’t comment on this one and will just say that the paint job is really nice, as Sea.man said, panther skin is very well executed just like the feathers.
Sea.man: this sexy lady with big gun, who hunts lions in Africa in steampunk era comes from Castle Miniatures. I think it is a new company, but if they produce more large scale models like this one, then they will become very popular.
Hellspawn: You call that sexy? Sigh, she’s far from sexy, her boobs looks like eggs, she’s not really smiling, and what the hell is this gun? It’s weird, mix of a sniper gun with a melta gun canon…What is she hunting? Giant bugs? Cause she’s definitely not hunting lions in Africa with such a gun and, dressed like that, she’d better be a nice shooter then cause otherwise, she’ll end up in the bug’s belly. 😀 Now, this is what I would call sexy:
I’ve always been enjoying those Pin-up minis from Andrea Miniatures. They look like coming from the 50’s but the paint job is just insane and make them soo real that I would love to see more of those. Don’t you?
Sea.man: this Otherworld liche makes a really nice addition to vampire army or war band.
Hellspawn: OH MY GOD! This mini is soooo gonna end in my Vampire Count army, this is for me A MUST HAVE for any Vampires Count or Tomb Kings player.
Sea.man: those marines (or just call them seamen :D) from Titan Forge look absolutelly fantastic, they are full of character and the ogre with the mermaid is just great! The price (€35 for three) isn’t bad either.
Hellspawn: they’re really nice yes; Titan Forge released lately a nice pack of minis that would suits nicely any Ogre or Vampire Counts armies. Though, Titan Forge aren’t the only ones who did nice alternatives this month, Raging Heroes thought about Dark Elves (and later Dark Eldar) and also the Ork (fantasy and sci-fi ones) players with their releases. They’re launching the “Blood Vestals” and a nice Big Boss
Sea.man: MaxMini surely knows how to keep up with Games Workshop‘s releases with their bits you can fully customise your Necron army.
Hellspawn: indeed, those heads will surely fits any Games Workshop armies, though, I would have seen those more on a Chaos Space Marines themed on the Thousand Sons than on Necrons but hey, this is just my taste.
Talking about customization, look at what CoolMiniOrNot thought about:
They previously released the Instant Mold (which you’ll find a review I made here but this month, they released a combo box of Instant Mold and what they called Instant Putty. So basically now, you can:
a) mold your own parts,
and
b) directly “sculpt it”
Don’t you think this is gonna be really helpful? Players are gonna be able to do more personalization for cheaper than before, it’s great!
Of course, considering this article is about new releases and this section about accessories, we couldn’t make an article about monthly releases without talking about the new range of Games Workshop paints and the accessories that goes with:
Though, having nice tools to convert and big range of paints isn’t helpful if you don’t have something to order everything. So here comes Back2Base-ix with their nice bunch of shelves:
Sea.man: Wyrd has made this War Pig Rooster especially for Easter, not sure if this is a limited miniature or even will it have its rules for Malifaux, but it is quite funny
Hellspawn: It’s a funny one indeed, not that much to say about it, besides that it’s a pink “bunny” on a skinned chicken ^^.Talking about chicken, those, usually runs heedlessly, but I think that the term “headless” can easily go to this:
I think that Privateer Press should definitely stop going for sooo huge shoulders because this is plain ridiculous. This guy here looks like more Sleepy Hollow than anything else. They should definitely look to rework on their bases because Privateer Press has a serious problem here.
Talking about the bases, let’s get back to the ground, well, if we can talk about ground here cause Dark Age released a bunch of bases on the theme of ice explosion.
Hellspawn: They do look more like water with waves than ice to me, but hey, they’re not the worst releases this month, cause look at the next section.
Sea.man: Quite ok, but check those bases from Tabletop-art. Not only those look great, but the idea to sell them as a deal is sweet.
Sea.man: some might say that this one is cool, but for me this Lord of Pestilence from Avatars of War is big NO. There are too many things going there, seems overloaded to me.
Hellspawn: What the hell is that? Chtulhu-headed fat dorf? Anyone has a bag because nausea is coming… 😕
Well, I don’t thank you for this choice, Sea.man. It’s something, that I would have gladly pass on, hehe, though if you managed to make me throw up with your “worst release” choice, look at those two from Zenith Miniatures and Reaper:
Don’t you think those are ugly as well?
We couldn’t end this compilation with such horrible things, this was just impossible, cause knowing that our readers could have nightmares just thinking about those “things” (cause we can’t even call them minis) was not something we wanted so here are a few of what we think are the most amazing official paintjobs of the month.
First one is from a new company called Infamy Miniatures and I thought that even if the mini isn’t awesome, the paintjob on the bottle is just insane. Look at it:
The second that catches our attention is from another new company called Origen Art. This mermaid is superb, no wonder seamen usually fell in love with their charms: 😀
So here is the end of this compilation of some of the releases of this month that catches our attention. This isn’t of course the whole bunch of the releases that arrived this month, only a part of it, but what do you guys think? Was it good? Do you agree with us?
On the Chest of Colors forum we have a section called Manufacturers, where forum members and even a few miniatures producers post information about latest releases. Feel free to join and leave feedback. Also, if you know some new company, or even better – you make your own miniatures – don’t hesitate and post information about new miniatures, conversions parts or companies. The more hobbysts see those miniatures, the bigger chance it will find its fans. Somehow we have to spend our hard earned money, don’t we?
— Sea.man & Hellspawn
Some people say that we prefer things that we are familiar with – movies that we’ve seen in the past, songs that we’ve already heard – hence the popularity of sequels and covers.
Now, you could say this episode is a cover. Well, it’s not.
Cover of the video clip? No, not strictly…
Cover of the intro to the video clip? Yeah, that could be true.
Love In An Elevator On The Rocks
This lovely Arwen Miss Tyler was painted by Chameleon, who was kind enough to give me permission to use the picture.
