Dropzone Commander

[me_in_japan]

great googly gosh! Now that, people, is how to sell a minatures game in one picture. Looks pretty much exactly like Command And Conquer: Tiberium Wars just after the Scrin attack. (this is wot scrin look like...

apologies - cant find a shot of scrin flyers in a ruined city, but it pretty much looks like that pic ToD just posted

Anyway, lovely scenery - ruined cities a-go-go! I'm getting the scenery building urge already. I cannot bring myself to start a new game, but if I could, itd be this one. Very impressed.

[Dungeon Lord]

Yep, I have to say the design for the alien species is better than most I have seen out there. Well done indeed. Again though, I am just getting into Warmachine, so until I sell off my Chaos Marines I won't be getting into another game. But to echo MIJ, this looks like a good one to start if I was planning to try something new.

[The Other Dave]

And just 'cause it's wack, here's a video of someone abusing a model to show how durable the resin they're using is:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=440215979331015

Apparently the game creator shows off by chucking models onto the table.

(Still probably not going to buy into the game, but I just can't stop looking at the website...)

[Primarch]

What do people think of the factions available? I think they all look pretty good, but I am torn between Shaltari and UCM.

Not that I am thinking of buying any..... certainly not with the 20% discount Maelstrom are offering until monday.....

[Dungeon Lord]

Well in order of coolness, I would say:

• UCM
  PHR
  Shaltari
  The Scourge

[The Other Dave]

PHR would probably be my first choice - I'm weak against bipedal war machines, plus I like the smooth design aesthetic, and I like their dropships best of all the factions. The only problem I can see is that the resin seems to have a slight graininess that shows through best in the large smooth spaces on the PHR vehicles.

UCM looks very solid, but I'm not sold on the turret design on their MBTs. Love the scout buggies, though.

Shaltari are a bit too Eldar / Protoss-ish for me, and (oddly) I can't get past the fact that *tri*pedal walkers would probably have trouble moving around IRL. Don't get me wrong, their stuff is very well-designed, it's just been done.

Scourge I like mostly for their Mass Effect Reaper-esque flier unit, the Desolator. The tanks are all right, and the tiny 4-legged Prowler things are adorable, but their dropships are kinda silly - well, they look less silly when full, but I'd want to base the tanks so I couldn't slot 'em in. Nice infantry, too.

...'til Monday, eh?

[Dungeon Lord]

Yep, Monday. I was tempted to get some more Warmachine or maybe Puppet Wars... I just love the idea and minis for Puppet Wars. Especially the variety of colour schemes to paint.

[Primarch]

Yep, Monday. I was tempted to get some more Warmachine or maybe Puppet Wars... I just love the idea and minis for Puppet Wars. Especially the variety of colour schemes to paint.

Puppet Wars? Ah, Malifaux-lite gotcha. There is a company out there called Puppets War or something that does 40k bits like guns and orc planes. Very confusing.

So no-one seems taken with the Shaltari then? Hmmmm

[The Other Dave]

Well, heck. Hmmm, indeed.

Unfortunately, I'll need another month or so before I can make the purchase, so I'll miss the Maelstrom discount - my next-year job situation is in a bit of flux. I'll probably order a rulebook as soon as it's released, though.

20,000 yen for full army including carrying cases is a pretty reasonable one-time purchase, though, right? (The Large armies look to have pretty much everything you'd need to get started, and the guy says in the FAQ that - depending on the faction, since they're model-count balanced and not points-value balanced - it's just about right for typical-sized games.)

Edit to add, for MiJ and others oohing and aahing over the picture. One clever thing the guy did was commission an excellent photographer to do some very awesome promotional shots:

PHR_Dropships.jpg

The_Shaltari_Invade.jpg

bears_over_waterfall.jpg

It doesn't hurt that the painting and sculpting are top-notch, but awesome terrain and good lighting make a lot of difference too.

[Dungeon Lord]

I quite like the Shaltari except for the troopers. They might be ok because they are so small. That was the main thing. I guess the fact that they look a little leafy or butterfly like may also put some people off. Compared to the other armies, they just don't have the same pull as the bipedals and rotor bladed ships of the PHR.