The more I see, the more I like! It has been a very quiet summer for me as I continue waiting on my massive order from Prodos Games. Initially kickstarter contributors were given an end of June/August time frame for delivery, but due to a number of third party issues - Rule books and cards printing, there is now no confirmed time frame-which is worrying. And this presents one of the glaring issues I have with Kickstarter Projects as a whole, as mentioned before I have passed on such big projects like Sedition Wars and Kingdom Death, simply because of the delivery times involved and the fact that money is taken before setbacks can even manifest (a lot can happen to a company in 1 year good and bad), but the one saving grace of Prodo's Kickstarter, is the great communication they have shown during and after their Kickstarter. Even with the delays, products do exist and have been shown on a regular basis, and more importantly for me I continue to grow more interested in the product with every update.
Prodos Games have been more than generous with information, a strange thing for people who may be more used to the clandestine GW method of promoting product, and this even boils down to personal communication; I have emailed Prodos a number of times with random queries and received responses within a couple of hours, always with a positive attitude. These people love the product they are involved in and are focusing on the number the all important customer service without the arrogant undertones of GW fanaticism. Anyways onward to the pictures! Today I will be showing the Mishima renders for the Meka (walker), Hatamoto (Elite Heavy Infantry) and casts of the Ronin Samurai.
The Meka looks very impressive and can be taken in units of up to 3 in large games. What impresses is that they managed to avoid a lot of the Mishima goofiness that was associated with the last game. OK in defence of Target Games, it was the 90's and standards were not as high as today, but there was a real struggle to bring the concept of Samurai and Sci-fi together without looking goofy and crap. In my opinion, Prodos have nailed it, showing tribute to the rich cultural background and the all important scientific advancement associated with this corporation. From a modelling pov, the model should be very easy to magnetise in the event alternative weapon packs become available.
This unit looks so good compared to the original Hatamoto, the helmet redesign and addition of the Kabuto masks work incredibly well for an elite unit. There are definite shades of the Silver Samurai comic character, in the design process which is no bad thing. My only criticism would be, is there a all helmeted option? I would love my unit (and I have ordered 10!) to be fully helmeted. Although this is only the render, as you will see from the Ronin, the final products are pretty much spot on.
Simply stunning, is all I can say about this unit. These are casts of the Ronin Samurai unit, of which 10 are included in the Starter box, lovely poses, lovely details and as a basic troop choice, what more could you ask for as a modeler/painter. As a contrast to the clinical Bauhaus miniatures, I am actually looking forward to working on these before what was meant to be my main army!
If Prodos can whip the third party manufacturers into shape, backers should could see orders arriving at the end of September. They have already gone out and said that split shipments would be financially detrimental, and if this is the case I hope they stick to their guns, as I would hate to see such a promising company fold due to the greed of individuals throwing tantrums. Despite coming into this, eyes set on Bauhaus, I am very glad that I took the risk on Mishima (which had no renders at the time only concept), sadly for me it is now the case that Mishima will be the main over Bauhaus once it all arrives - on the plus side it will mean less figures to complete. On another note, I have been working on what will be the new hobby den, hence the lack of updates. This will be a full room dedicated to wargaming and will probably be the area I start doing batrep videos once it is all complete. In addition to a dedicate work station and display cupboards, the intention is to have a permanently setup 6x4 gaming table! Once the majority of clearing has been done and the new gaming furniture comes in I will start sharing photos, so stay tuned.
Thanks for reading,
DiStudios
The 14th Legion
I was an early pledger on that kickstarter, but dropped out when they started posting pictures of the vehicles and monsters that I really could not love. The infantry though look spanking. I may have to cough up for some now.
ReplyDeleteCheers for taking time to comment Euan!
DeleteI understand what you mean about the vehicles, a lot of people on the dakkadakka thread have been critical about the vehicles in terms of detail or general design. Although Prodos were very proactive and did make significant changes to the Bauhaus Vulkan based on pledger feedback, I don't think they managed to do the same with the other vehicles in their range.
I would give the miniature range another look, even if just for the infantry, there is so much more to filter through since the Kickstarter finished and I have to say bar a few notable units (Juggernauts - rubbish), they are all very impressive.