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Many of you probably have already heard of us, but some may not and since we have changed our Policy of communication since April 29th this year we are now interacting directly with the Community. Furthermore we have decided to start an Official news thread to rally everything new but also monitor and answer any questions you may have outside our Facebook page. :-)
Our website can be visited here ->http://www.shieldwolfminiatures.com/ but we also post stuff on our FB page -> https://www.facebook.com/pages/Shieldwolf-Miniatures/415230871893106
So, wouldn't know where to start from, there are so many things done and so many still left to do!
Shieldwolf Miniatures is a company based in Markopoulo, Greece, a suburb of the Hellenic capital Athens. It has been founded and owned by Dott. Angelos Margaritis, a veteran supporter of Fantasy in general but also a hobbyist and wargamer. A renowned professional in his own sector, he established a line of policies and procedures to ensure the growth of a serious and competitive company. Below we will place in the spotlight a lot of things that will explain why we here at Shieldwolf Miniatures believe we are on the right path on creating an exciting and innovative table-top wargame with perfectly casted miniatures and concepts never created before.
We will always and very much appreciate your comments and indications, since our listening to what people say improves our status. And yes, we listen, we have done so from the very beggining, regardless of not having interfered for so long. As we said, this has now permanently changed since we find it more helpfull having direct contact rather than simply monitoring the comments :-)
Achievements: To our knowledge we are one out of only 3 companies worldwide to have produced plastic modular fantasy figures in bulky/"heroic" 28mm scale. We are the first (and till present day remain the only) company to have started producing a Barbarian army (with characters,monsters,core units etc) and also have sculpted and placed in the production line an arabic army, again in 28mm bulky/"heroic" scale. We have inserted below some spoiler pics for those who haven't seen the ones we allowed "leaking".
Northern Alliance (Barbarian) Army:
Spoiler:
Araves (Arabic) Army:
Spoiler:
We are also one out of two companies worldwide (to our knowledge) working on a cinematic on their tabletop wargame. It has taken longer since we have decided to add more scenes and about another 60" of length. It may sound little, but it is not. It means even more funding and effort, many months of additional work. This may not interest some of you but we at Shieldwolf Miniatures love art and this is one more way of showing it. This is the small teaser we released many months ago.
Spoiler:
Superb packaging: We have planned our packaging methods in order to avoid anything happening to the precious miniatures we produce. From the postal boxes till blisters+foam, and whenever considered necessary we ensured the addition of foam pellets. Our well organised facilities and manpower help us achieve that.
Spoiler:
Our packaging quality is also something we researched very carefully. We finally found and imported very high-quality boxes, which can be later on used instead of thrown away and thus be enviromentally friendly.
Spoiler:
Flawless shipping service: We are proud to announce that since the very beggining of our foundation we have kept faithful to our original targets. Keeping shipping costs low, offering free shipping options and taking advantage of both our position (which helps us gain valuable shipping time, since we are but 8km away from the International airport of Eleftherios Venizelos) and Greek Postal Service, which has proven wrong some unfair prejudice that may have existed before and maintains it's great reputation. In addition to that, everyone who has dealt with us will testify of our superb organization in Customer Service, even after putting it to the test (having everything packed and ready for the release of the plastic Orcs was a great challenge which we believe was passed with flying colors!).
We have everyday visits to the local Post Office from Monday to Friday. It has taken 24 hours to ship orders completed with PayPal and 48 (rarely it has taken up to 72) hours since we have to wait for Credit Card payments to clear.
Flawless casting: We have literally shipped thousands of minis all over the world. We have never had a single complaint for neither our materials nor castings.
Leading quality materials: Both our resin and plastic used in Shieldwolf Miniatures products has been long and carefully researched and although limits profit margins are probably the best in the market. Our Policy dictates that augmented sales are going to counter that and make the Company viable. So that's what we mean to keep on using.
Distribution: Besides our direct customer service, we have ensured additional distribution in both Europe and America, we are still working on securing an Australian distributor since we mean to accomodate better our Australian and New Zealand customer base. We have no worries that it is a matter of time till that too happens.
International embrace: We have made sure to allow 4 different languages on our website (Greek, English, German and Italian) since we mean to reach out to as many people as possible. We want to welcome them to the options tabletop miniature wargaming and Fantasy in general can offer. We mean to drive people into this hobby.
Innovation: This should be divided in two parts:
Part (a) has to do with the concept of our miniatures. We are not afraid to take a different path and walk away from what we have been used to. Some people like that, some don't. We believe in innovation however and are confident it will do us justice in the years to come.
Spoiler:
Part (b) has to do with our game "Shieldwolf: War is coming" (TM). The game has a built that has never been introduced in any other tabletop miniature wargame. It's greatest feature in our opinion is that it allows both a simple feature for fast and casual play but also a hard-core version with (much) more elaborate rules. We have playtested this for over 2 years now, and we have to admit it will take a lot still to cover all corners since we always come up with new problems of balance issues but also new innovative rules/ideas we simply have to put in the game. All this has to be supported with artwork, map designs, fluff, specifications and lots lots more! It is not only a matter of funding this, it's about the thousand of hours we still need to spend working on it. A beta-version is still far away so in the meanwhile we keep our heads low and keep on working. We mean to release a superb game, and even if this becomes very stressful at times, we keep our faith through our passion.
Probably leaving out a lot of stuff in this first post on this thread, but we believe this is a good round-up of who Shieldwolf Miniatures is and what you can expect from us in the future.
Thank you!
The Shieldwolf Team.
This message was edited 236 times. Last update was at 2024/12/05 18:47:49
I can vouch for the quality of Shieldwolfs polystyrene (hard plastic) Orcs,
really nice sculpts, really great quality minis
(as I got an early release set of them it also included some resin bonus bits which were also very nice, so they know what they're doing with resin too)
2014/07/12 15:49:49
Subject: Re:Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
The poor man really has a stake in the country. The rich man hasn't; he can go away to New Guinea in a yacht. The poor have sometimes objected to being governed badly; the rich have always objected to being governed at all
We love our superheroes because they refuse to give up on us. We can analyze them out of existence, kill them, ban them, mock them, and still they return, patiently reminding us of who we are and what we wish we could be.
"the play's the thing wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king,
2014/07/12 15:54:12
Subject: Re:Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
I'm looking forward to seeing more of your stuff. Most of what Mantic does never seems up to par with the GW stuff, and the one plastic kit you've done was impressive enough for me to hope to see more kits of similar quality from you.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/07/12 19:22:38
2014/07/12 17:15:03
Subject: Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
Ketara We are currently working on our next releases. We have postponed our September schedule in favor of something bigger.
privateer4hire They are currently available via a distributor in L.A., California. The information of our distributors can be found on our website. As for the comment, appreciate it :-)
The plastic orcs are a great kit, but they do have one problem I noticed right away: not all of the pairs of feet fit into the lipped bases. Are non-lipped bases a possibility for the future?
So glad to hear of US distribution, I went immediately to buy a box, but they were already sold out! While that means I will have to wait a bit to buy it, I consider it good news for a company that has repeatedly impressed me with their dedication.
2014/07/13 05:15:57
Subject: Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
I own the Roc with giant stone, trying to convert it atm as a chained Great Eagle prisoner to use as a unit filler for my skaven (inside my slave unit), I hadn't noticed however this had a 50mm base however and can't make it fit on a 40mm base! :-(
Awesome cast and very eager to see what else is coming!
2014/07/13 07:21:07
Subject: Re:Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
BobtheInquisitor Initially we liked the non-lipped bases too. If someone tries out however the lipped bases version, he will find out that the possibilities offered to him that non-lipped bases can simply not offer. For instance, our Dracantropii Infantry, immagine how you can fill their bases with swamp water-effect and make them march on that. Or for our barbaric Northern Alliance where snow effects can be so much more realistic. You'll never get that effect with non-lipped bases (especially the water effect, except if you use plasticard on each and everyone of them and carefully remove it, but that is something very few people would ever do, personally I know of no one).
Changing the norma and intoducing new things may not be easy to accept but we are willing to try :-)
@Gallahad I'm sure they'll notice and re-stock what's missing ;-)
The only thing we can do is maintain available stock at all times allowing us to pack and ship every newly placed order if not within 24hours, then 48 max (I'm afraid only our distributors themselves can confirm that) :-)
I've also received miniatures from Shieldwolf. Casting is ace: minimal cleanup with mold lines (I almost didn't find any in the Barbarian Hero!) and had no problems with assembly. After getting some rather unfortunaste resin casts with other major companies, this is a great breath of fresh air. Had fun painting the miniatures as well.
2014/07/13 14:16:10
Subject: Re:Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
@Gallahad I'm sure they'll notice and re-stock what's missing ;-)
The only thing we can do is maintain available stock at all times allowing us to pack and ship every newly placed order if not within 24hours, then 48 max (I'm afraid only our distributors themselves can confirm that) :-)
No worries, they said they would be getting a re-stock within a couple of days. I'm looking forward to getting my hands on some of those mountain orcs. I believe I will be painting/using at least some of mine as demons.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/07/13 14:18:54
2014/07/21 20:32:30
Subject: Re:Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
The month of July is almost over, we hope everyone is enjoying this Summer and even more the August days to come. In the heated Greek summer, work over at Shieldwolf HQ is continuously pumping. We are following our main plan and awaiting to see the results. We do however have also a plan B set in motion that will tilt things quite a bit again unexpected. :-)
We will be posting a very detailed "report" in the second week of September when it will have been decided which route to take. In the meanwhile we are working with our manufacturer on our 2nd plastic kit, we have no interest at this point for any other type of plastic. Shieldwolf:War is coming will undoubtly need also other sculpts to be produced in resin from a variety of factions and races, always with the same vision, passion and innovation. Resin is again always done in house to ensure both the quality and availability.
We have not stoppped commissioning nor preparing since our very arrival, but these things take time and the more Shieldwolf grows the more weight it will have to push forward faster. We are sculpting, painting and casting un-revealed models as we speak. We could show off some artwork but we prefer not to, after all artwork and final product -as both customers and manufacturers know only too well- are two very different things. :-)
Finally, this small post features a first overlook/progress at our current races:
Undead: We have commissioned for the future release of a couple of heroes to enrich the Undead.
Kingdom of Talliareum (Humans): We have already sculpted and painted some, we are currently planning something...nasty.
Kingdom of Hell: We are working on their regiment and 2 more heroes.
Northern Alliance: Being the only company worldwide producing a barbarian army at this scale, we are currently working on more.
Dracantropii Kingdoms: New bases available. Further update coming September.
Orcs: Having 4 factions for this race, we have for now more than enough releases for our 1st faction (Mountain Orcs) and are currently working on the 2nd, sculpting as we speak.
Araves: A surprise is being prepared for the Lords of the Sand Lands.
Other future factions and races. (Please note some are main races -meaning one of the 12 planned- and some that are supplementary. We are only mentioning 6 out of 13 currently planned).
Dwarfs: We can't immagine our fantasy world without these interesting fellas, but there are simply too many manufacturers producing dwarfs atm. Although we have some artwork, Shieldwolf has no plans for the bearded race for the next 2 years.
Elves: We have them in the pipeline, we have shown off some artwork and sculpts in the past but nothing to be produced in the very near future. 2015 is more probable.
Tragomaxoi: A race of goat warriors, some lovely artwork and a beautiful finished sculpt for now. They are on hold.
Goblins: Plastic regiment planned and some heroes already sculpted with plenty of beautiful artwork, first minis should hit our store shortly.
The Rebels: Human faction. We have commissioned artwork but no sculpts have been created yet.
Ah! You bit me to it corgan, I just saw it too on their facebook page! Wow, that's a very interesting twist, goblins and (in this case) gobln wolf riders pop from all over these days! These are both super badass, I love them!
I had hoped for goblins for years (and maybe make them skaven slaves) and now they just seem to be showing up from all over the place, lol!
2014/08/03 20:54:33
Subject: Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
Actually you both beat us to it! :-)
We like doing the work behind the curtains (as we say in Greece) and then enjoy the fruits provided. These pictures were released by us on the da-warpath forum since we were dared to prove our claims, something that will however probably never happen again since we have never given a reason for people to doubt us nor do we feel held accountable for that. Since we had revealed these we posted them also in other forums and our FB page, leaving this for best and last (a bit late!). The sculpts from this artwork are both currently being professionaly painted abroad and we wish you like them as much as we do.
We'd also like to inform you (since I don't find it mentioned above) that elven sculpts (is that how you spell it? we mean sculpts of elves) will be shown from us for the first time, their book is not even 20% finished at this point and it's a beautiful race we will take our time creating. This does not mean that progress is not being made however and we are very sure you'll like what you'll see completed so far. First up is the Elven Oak Order, elf fans will have a say on this no doubt :-)
Edit: We will not be revealing any more at this point, all decisions and further updates will be posted next month. We sincerely appreciate the interest very much.
Thank you.
The Shieldwolf Team.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2014/08/03 20:55:48
Is that second picture of an Ogre or an Orc? Looks good either way, but I'm definitely after some good looking Ogres. GW's current models are a bit blobby, and Mantic's are knock-kneed, pigeon-toed and over-detailed with far too many tiny buckles and straps - good for a display model but a bit horrible for army building.
Really looking forward to someone bringing out some cool old-school Ogres, similar to the Citadel classics.
Azazelx wrote: Dunno. I'm at work right now, so it's just reading and posting during my lunchbreak. I don't do PM or email from here...
I have a similar set-up, where I have a nigh-inaccessible computer that I use whenever I need to send email, Facebook messages or Dakka PMs. I suppose I'll have to add "discerning ogres from orcs" to the list. Perhaps the hush-hush is all about Shieldwolf's proprietary new monster--the orgro! It's the only possible answer.
The art looks a little Minion Minis, though, so they better step up production and co-opt the competition. In the 28mm fantasy not-GW market, it's eat or be eaten. They better go for the throat, like an orgro.
Huh? It's a secret to everybody?
Why not just tell us in the thread?
If it was a secret we wouldn't have written "pm'ed" on our thread ;-)
The reason we wrote that here was because we wanted to show we are tuning in our thread, listening to what you have to say and interact with you, however there are reasons we haven't revealed anything more, that will be done on September as promised.
Azazelx wrote: Dunno. I'm at work right now, so it's just reading and posting during my lunchbreak. I don't do PM or email from here...
I have a similar set-up, where I have a nigh-inaccessible computer that I use whenever I need to send email, Facebook messages or Dakka PMs. I suppose I'll have to add "discerning ogres from orcs" to the list. Perhaps the hush-hush is all about Shieldwolf's proprietary new monster--the orgro! It's the only possible answer.
You will find soon enough, we may even (re)quote you on this post :-)
The art looks a little Minion Minis, though, so they better step up production and co-opt the competition. In the 28mm fantasy not-GW market, it's eat or be eaten. They better go for the throat, like an orgro.
I can assure you production is anything but low (you'll see for yourself), there will be no August vacation for Shieldwolf this year. As for the art I really don't think that's the case, Minion has a different look that doesn't match our vision on goblins, we don't plan to change all concepts-as-today-known, just the ones we don't like that much :-)
There is a very detailed and elaborate work behind everything we release, and everything coming has to be better than everything previously made. I think you'll agree with me on that. Goblins are a race we MUST have in our game and a lot of work has been put into them for a long time now, their book is also one of my favorites as this is a very cunning and unique race. Had to do some digging up from some very very old files we had... found it! (there was also another one with more heads, can't find it atm)
This is how we had started realising our goblins for Shieldwolf. You may even call it "Goblin body prototype" :-)
(the description and logo was just added by me)
A last word for the "go for the throat" comment, we would be mad to have something against Minion and instead we'd like to state that we wish them great success since Laarson is just now taking his first steps to create a company and that's great! Fos us augmented competition will only make us become even better. :-)
For what it is worth, I have a strong preference for the goblin head farthest to the right. I think it is unique but recognizable as a goblin. I really dislike the goblin head in the middle, it has been done to death, and does not look threatening.
I really like your attitude and work ethic Shieldwolf. I am looking forward to your new releases.
2014/08/05 19:02:34
Subject: Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
Gallahad wrote: For what it is worth, I have a strong preference for the goblin head farthest to the right. I think it is unique but recognizable as a goblin. I really dislike the goblin head in the middle, it has been done to death, and does not look threatening.
I really like your attitude and work ethic Shieldwolf. I am looking forward to your new releases.
I second this
"Threatening"!! Thanks for mentioning Gallahad! This is the crucial word! Exactly how a goblin should look unlike all the funny, cartoonish versions that everyone creates.
2014/08/06 08:11:03
Subject: Shieldwolf Miniatures - Official news and rumors thread
Huh? It's a secret to everybody?
Why not just tell us in the thread?
If it was a secret we wouldn't have written "pm'ed" on our thread ;-)
The reason we wrote that here was because we wanted to show we are tuning in our thread, listening to what you have to say and interact with you, however there are reasons we haven't revealed anything more, that will be done on September as promised.
I'm glad to see how involved you are with us. But I also really want to point out how unintentionally funny your two sentences are next to each other.
Azazelx wrote: Dunno. I'm at work right now, so it's just reading and posting during my lunchbreak. I don't do PM or email from here...
I have a similar set-up, where I have a nigh-inaccessible computer that I use whenever I need to send email, Facebook messages or Dakka PMs. I suppose I'll have to add "discerning ogres from orcs" to the list. Perhaps the hush-hush is all about Shieldwolf's proprietary new monster--the orgro! It's the only possible answer.
You will find soon enough, we may even (re)quote you on this post :-)
I would love that! I'm looking forward to finding out.
The art looks a little Minion Minis, though, so they better step up production and co-opt the competition. In the 28mm fantasy not-GW market, it's eat or be eaten. They better go for the throat, like an orgro.
I can assure you production is anything but low (you'll see for yourself), there will be no August vacation for Shieldwolf this year.
I was not being entirely serious. Please don't give up your vacation. Not the vacation.
(Vacation is the new monster you're planning to release, right? I know that vacations are mythical creatures in my country, anyway.)
As for the art I really don't think that's the case, Minion has a different look that doesn't match our vision on goblins, we don't plan to change all concepts-as-today-known, just the ones we don't like that much :-)
How do you know? Minion hasn't posted any Goblin art yet, although their diminutive spear-wielding aliens sure do look angry and sneaky.
There is a very detailed and elaborate work behind everything we release, and everything coming has to be better than everything previously made. I think you'll agree with me on that. Goblins are a race we MUST have in our game and a lot of work has been put into them for a long time now, their book is also one of my favorites as this is a very cunning and unique race. Had to do some digging up from some very very old files we had... found it! (there was also another one with more heads, can't find it atm)
This is how we had started realising our goblins for Shieldwolf. You may even call it "Goblin body prototype" :-)
(the description and logo was just added by me)
snip
The goblins look pretty jacked. The head on the right is my favorite. Please don't make them look goofy.
A last word for the "go for the throat" comment, we would be mad to have something against Minion and instead we'd like to state that we wish them great success since Laarson is just now taking his first steps to create a company and that's great! Fos us augmented competition will only make us become even better. :-)
Thank you.
The Shieldwolf Team.
It was indeed intended as a joke. I'm no vicious orgro here. I plan to support Minion by pledging for HIPS goblins from their campaign (zombies are forbidden). I will also buy your next plastic kit based on how much I liked the mountain orcs. I wish you both good luck.
On the website and FB page you write that humans are your next release, and that the neck issues could easily be fixed but the junctions with the arms were problematic and didn't allow you to release a regiment for humans. When can we expect that?
If you are having goblins painted now, when can we expect them to be released? Are they after the humans?
And the Valley Orcs that are your next Orc release, do we have a scheduled release date for those?