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I think that the rules themselves are pretty unimportant, there are plenty out there competing with WFB, one more will not make much differance, but a successful Mantic has the potential work out well for all gamers with even a passing interest in WFB.

Now I don't suppose for a minute GW are unaware of what Mantic are doing but if Mantic start to draw significant market share of fantasy miniature sale from GW may well act.

In the short term I could see GW increase the number of models in each regiment box. This would lessen any current advantage that Mantic have at no great increase in cost, being as IMHO GW minis are better but Mantic allow bigger, quicker army building.

On the down side GW may see the acceptance of large boxes of reasonable quality minis with fewer options/more limited poses being accepted by the market and cut their cloth accordingly when planning future releases.

All of this is of course speculation and changes nothing with the single most important aspect of GW/Mantic fantasy mini's and that is why neither of them can make a really good plastic bloomin' DWARVES!!

notprop wrote:
All of this is of course speculation and changes nothing with the single most important aspect of GW/Mantic fantasy mini's and that is why neither of them can make a really good plastic bloomin' DWARF!!

But I like the lotr Dwarves!

even if they are single piece and small

kenshin620 wrote:

notprop wrote:
All of this is of course speculation and changes nothing with the single most important aspect of GW/Mantic fantasy mini's and that is why neither of them can make a really good plastic bloomin' DWARF!!

But I like the lotr Dwarves!

even if they are single piece and small

True, but aren't they metal?

WOTR is what you get when you dump all the legacy rules from WFB.

I really don't think GW's gonna do anything even if Mantic's rules far surpass Warhammer's, which sadly, I doubt. Privateer's made some big opening moves already, expanding by updating to Mk II formats, generating more $$ from gamers who need to switch to the next edition, which if anything should have resonated with GW. Not only that, but the fact that GW has the essential monopoly over the wargaming industry as a whole means that whatever happens I doubt it'll affect them in any significant manner.

notprop wrote:

kenshin620 wrote:

notprop wrote:
All of this is of course speculation and changes nothing with the single most important aspect of GW/Mantic fantasy mini's and that is why neither of them can make a really good plastic bloomin' DWARF!!

But I like the lotr Dwarves!

even if they are single piece and small

True, but aren't they metal?

These ones aint

I think that the rules being free will still help them a lot as I don't intend to shell out 90$+ dollars for another rulebook.

poipo32 wrote:I think that the rules being free will still help them a lot as I don't intend to shell out 90$+ dollars for another rulebook.

Seconded. What with the $75 Rulebook and $90 Starter Set, I was probably going to just settle for getting the mini-rulebook off ebay and suck it up for another version of "how can we increase the model count of the game"-hammer.

The Mantic announcement couldn't have come at a better time. Vaya con dios , Warhammer.

Anyone want to post pictures of painted Mantic miniatures in this thread to sweeten the bait?

Here are some of the scouts I painted:



And here is a WIP spearman:



Mantic plastics aren't multi-part, they're generally two piece models with limited posability. The detail isn't as crisp as GWs, but for rank and file troopers, they're really pretty cool. I find them to be a good bargain and fun to paint. By all accounts the undead are better models than the elves.

Le Grognard wrote:

poipo32 wrote:I think that the rules being free will still help them a lot as I don't intend to shell out 90$+ dollars for another rulebook.

Seconded. What with the $75 Rulebook and $90 Starter Set, I was probably going to just settle for getting the mini-rulebook off ebay and suck it up for another version of "how can we increase the model count of the game"-hammer.

The Mantic announcement couldn't have come at a better time. Vaya con dios , Warhammer.

GW Starter is $99, a dollar shy of $100. They are still afraid to list it in triple digits.

I am waiting for a friend to make a big order of starters and snagging a rulebook cheap.
No way I'm, spending that much just for rules.

I just don't see the fuss about Mantic's models. Sure, they are cheaper, but they just look wrong to me. Elves are too skinny, Ghouls look...well, like angry monks, and the Dwarfs are pretty terrible.

Think I'll stick with Fantasy for the time being. Perhaps Mantic will tickle my fancy at some point the in future.

I'm not going to defend Mantic's models blindly, but elves are supposed to be lithe. I think the bigger problem is that the poses make them seem less graceful than they should be.

If nothing else, Mantic is showing one reason GW's plastics cost more: it's not just profiteering, they really do have better products.

I'm with you, Polonius, who needs tons of options for rank and file troopers that get thrown into large blocks where you can't see detail from 3 feet away, anyway? GW characters, mantic rank and file; though the new mantic dwarf characters are nice.

I especially see VC and TK players using mantic for undead rank and file.

I think that Mantic have some nice figures but most armies sell on the independant characters. Even within the Citadel ranges I dont like how the characters are mismatched with some units for example the latest Skaven releases are very stylised and they dont sit well with some of the older figures. I'd be concerned about the quality of a ruleset that is free as the recources to develop it may be limited, especially if they are trying to undercut competitors.

As for competition within miniatures ranges. I'd much rather see new companies like Privateer Press who have moved away from the Tolkien derived fantasy standards. Thats why I liked seeing the Skaven as one of the big box races for WHFB, it takes the game away from being generic fantasy into a distict mythos. What I would like to see from Mantic is a new distinct army or armies that says they are different and doing their own thing or a better quality product than Citadel.

What is so bad about the Mantic Dwarfs?

I like them. They look like they would walk, not waddle like GW dwarves.
And I think the look they chose makes them usable for Chaos Dwarfs as well as regular.

As for developing an original race, I am sure that will come. But you need to establish your model line first.
Remember, White Dwarf used to do articles for D&D before they created their own stuff.

The Elves arent Elves

They are ALIENS!

What exactly do you count those as? Great imaginative use of bitz though.

I play tomb kings and Use mantic mini's. Go mantic, i support thee.

Well, there's a mix I'd never really expected. They actually look pretty cool, though.

skrulnik wrote:

GW Starter is $99, a dollar shy of $100. They are still afraid to list it in triple digits.

I am waiting for a friend to make a big order of starters and snagging a rulebook cheap.
No way I'm, spending that much just for rules.

Maybe where you live, it is well over the 100 mark here where I am, and our dollar is near parity with yours. They have no qualms at listing rediculous prices.

Sarrazon wrote:Well, there's a mix I'd never really expected. They actually look pretty cool, though.

Yea. I never saw it coming until someone shouted "Hey! I know now what the ugly greatcoat heads are for!"

And now we have Thin Body, Big Head Aliens with shields running around!

poipo32 wrote:When you made him derp you went overboard, putting too much caricatures on 1 character blows it away. The concept was good.

Haaah! Cheers. I didn't even know there was a word for that.

Anyone going to the Mantic open day (where they'll be demoing the rules)

Can this week be over yet? News from the lads via thier Facebook page:

"This week here at Mantic is going to be exciting, it is Game Week! We will be taking an look at our up and coming rules set, which we are going to release for beta testing this weekend! So make sure you are signed up to our newsletter to be able to download your copy."

Their website is the mot awkward and crappiest I have seen for ages BUT their models do have some promise. Although, for the life of me, I can't find where the open day is. Nowhere that I can see in their dead end infested website can I find the location. I am guessing 9 Oct at their Nottingham HQ but it doesn't say!

Their marketing is totaly different but then again compare GW from when tehy first started to now is probably completely different too!

If they do a 40K version, which I am sure they will think about then things might hot up.

I am just wondering if there is a link between GW and Mantic? Their offices are not that far away from each other! Hmmm......

Ronnie Renton, the owner of Mantic, used to work for GW and was their Global Marketing Director, until he was "let go" in 2007.

http://uk.linkedin.com/pub/ronnie-renton/5/5a4/29a

There's nothing he doesn't know about GW's sales operation....

With due respect to GW they seem to have lost out then.
Ronnie and his team have some good ideas about packaging their products.

The website is a tad confusing as mentioned. But at least they don't have that annoying tendency to keep the fans in the dark nonsense that GW now employ regarding releases. Long may it continue.

Chibi Bodge-Battle wrote:With due respect to GW they seem to have lost out then.
Ronnie and his team have some good ideas about packaging their products.

The website is a tad confusing as mentioned. But at least they don't have that annoying tendency to keep the fans in the dark nonsense that GW now employ regarding releases. Long may it continue.

I thought was was solved? They cannot release info until they are ready and in the right order to get marketing right. Just because you're not told when you want....

Nice find Osbad. I hope he does well with it, I really do. It would be nice to see others in the marketplace.

Is anyone carrying Mantic Product Stateside ?

N.M. I checked TheWarstore and they are carrying it.

The Army deals look very attractive.

You really are being silly proboscis picking monkey..

Firstly: Solved where?
I don't see every post on Dakka for goodness sake.

Secondly: As has been stated over and over again, many other companies provide information about forthcoming releases. It is standard practice in all forms of consumable goods. Model companies produce annual release schedules. They have a great deal more viable competitors than GW
The apparent paranoia and secrecy only seems acceptable to GW and its sychophanboyz.

Mantic have been doing just the opposite.
The dwarves range have had pictures and videos out for ages. Interesting when GW's former head of marketing can manage good PR and marketing when the former can't.
Again, GW's loss when someone of that calbre leaves the marketing department. They obviously haven't got a replacement yet




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Not sure Adam, but they were at GenCon so assume they will be.