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2013/10/30 17:07:46
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
I did ask about whether we could set an autoreply with a "thanks for your email, we will get back to you in X days" - I can't remember what the final answer was, but I will chase this up again. Thanks for reminding me!
2013/10/30 17:28:43
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
lagoon83 wrote: I've had a look at the metal Zees, and I can't see the scale difference people are talking about. If you compare two of them that are in more or less the same pose, they're within less than a millimetre of each other. HOWEVER, I'm not saying anyone's wrong - if you have got your hands on some metal Zees that you're not happy with (or anything else that you're not happy with), we will happily either exchange them or give you a refund if you send them back.
Hi, thanks for posting. You do realize that any potential refund is offset by the prohibitive cost of international shipping, right? Of course you do; Mantic was well aware of that when they shipped the mixed-material packages without so much as notifying backers beforehand. As to scale differences, I recommend you look a few pages back in this thread; you'll see a metal Zee that is obviously different in size to its restic counterpart and a page or so before that is a picture of a special character who is at least an entire scale size larger than his restic version.
All Mantic need have done to avoid this was to ship the affected teams/models entirely in one material or the other.
Ultimately, this didn't have an impact on me as I didn't back Dreadball. I did back KoW and am interested in the answer to Bob the Inquisitor's question about the "Man at Arms" issue. What steps has Mantic taken to avoid this with Dreadzone as it appears that the Finance Manager left China before the miniatures were finished. Was another employee left there to ensure quality of the product this time?
I know that you and others may not see it this way but crowdfunding is a form of temporary incorporation. Backers don't truly have any ownership in your company or much recourse if you do something dirty like, I don't know, send us poor quality merchandise, merchandise that is radically different from what was previously presented/advertised, merchandise of a different material than promised, etc. What we can do is talk. Communicate. Question and yes even badger until we get answers. It wouldn't be this way if we were dealt with above board but since Mantic seems dead-set on treating us as faceless wallets, we have no recourse until you, as a company, remember that with faces come voices and in this industry word of mouth means a great deal.
I know, I know, we'll get a gloriously huge update sometime "soon" just like we were to get a big update "next week" when the Finance Manager came back from China with a box and some scenery....two weeks ago. Then everybody ran off to Germany or parts unknown which apparently had no internet service to post the big update. That's the problem here. So far Mantic's been big on ideas and short on follow-through and I, and I'm sure everyone else here, would love that to change. For crying out loud, you know you've screwed up when Scarlet Squig who has been one of Mantic's biggest supporters and defenders on this site starts throwing in with the nay-sayers.
Six mistakes mankind keeps making century after century: Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others; Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected; Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it; Refusing to set aside trivial preferences; Neglecting development and refinement of the mind; Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do
2013/10/30 17:38:54
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
Zweischneid wrote: This "Dakka is the center of the known universe, companies should suck up to us"-attitude is getting rather annoying.
Not to mention that this is "News & Rumours". It should be the job of .. ya know .. the mods of this site, to keep this thread to News & Rumours, and to guide customer complaints and quality discussions to an appropriate thread in the Mantic Games section of this board, or better yet the Mantic Forums.
Unfortunately, at the time of writing there hasn't been much in the way of updates on the Mantic forums, either. And the question of the Enforcer plastics was raised on the KS update itself but was never answered. Another example is the lack of concept art for the Biker/Sniper (hopefully one of the four models mentioned in Mantic's recent FB update.)
I think that's why people are now getting a little testy.
Hopefully, Mantic will learn from these problems and avoid similar issues in the future growing into a stronger company as a result.
Thanks for responding Not sure whether you saw my previous posts, but I said that a) if anyone wants to send anything back we'll sort them out with something to offset the cost of shipping, and b) the Men at Arms issue has been addressed - this will be explained in full in the update, which Ronnie himself is currently refining. Should be up in a few minutes. We're being really careful to be clear with it, which is why I'm not going to discuss it on here until it's up.
Sorry I didn't see the pictures on the thread - I got as far back as the vitriol aimed at me and I started posting replies! I'll go and have a look now, but as I said, anyone who's not happy with the scale of miniatures is entitled to a refund. Of course, I understand that the problem is that there was a lack of communication; we do appreciate this, and we're trying to rectify it by being more communicative. Please don't make the assumption that we see our customers as "faceless wallets" - nothing could be further from the truth, as hopefully our willingness to listen to our fans and make changes where appropriate demonstrates.
Anyway, thanks again for your response, and I hope the update we're doing goes some way to answering some questions.
2013/10/30 17:44:51
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
James, I've tracked down the posts regarding metal and restic mixed teams and pics for you, so you don't have to dig.
DaveC was one of the first to post about it. Note that he says he's happy despite getting teams that are mixed between the two materials, but responds when someone asks which MVPs were out of scale with a comparison shot (emphasis mine on coloring this part of the text):
Spoiler:
DaveC wrote: Got my Dreadball wave 3 stuff today, I got a mixed set of metals and restic (I could tell by the weight of the box before I even opened it) but the metals only cover half the season 3 teams you get the other half in restic, the metal casting looks a bit rushed in places but overall it's fine the Terratons are seriously heavy in metal!
Overall I'm happy with my Dreadball pledge. The new restic is a big improvement and hopefully Deadzone comes in this new formula far less mold lines and those that there are, are easier to clean. That said a lot of the booster stuff is in the older formula restic and has some bad mold lines it's clear they where made awhile ago but not in time for wave 2.
The 3 backer MVPs are pretty poor they are out of scale being to big and the sculpts are quite crude I'm not surprised they didn't show pictures of the finished sculpts in the survey I wouldn't have spent the money on them if I'd seen the sculpts prior to getting them.
Blaine looks great and looks like he's Mantics new KS mascot (whether he fits or not )
I got the acrylic pitch upgrade for ultimate there's a lot of parts. it's difficult to figure out how it all goes together I had to look at the rubber mat to figure it out. The acrylic pitch is great for 2 player games but there's far to many parts for mutliplayer if you knock the board it will break up all over the place. I'll probably stick to the rubber mat for games and I might glue the ultimate acrylic extensions together to make it more stable.
Roll on Deadzone next month and now I can finally finish my Forgefathers team.
Finally big thanks to Stewart I was missing some Void Siren arms from wave 2 he remembered to include them - actually he sent a full pack of 8 extra Void Sirens. Mantic's customer service is great.
There's a size difference from wave 1 to the backer MVPs.
Next is Orlandothetechnicoloured, who posted the size comparison shot between metal and restic Zees, of which he also received a mix. He also tried to crop the image to make them more comparable:
Spoiler:
OrlandotheTechnicoloured wrote: Right I've taken some shots of metal vs restic (actually a bit tricky as you want comparable sculpts), but here goes
Zees
as you can see the restic is actually a 'cleaner' cast than the metal (the zees suffer a lot worse in metal than anything else) but is smaller, although this is exaggerated by a the 'on tiptoe' pose of the metal
cropped at the kilt shows the true scale of the shrinkage, it's there but probably not a major issue and these being the smallest figures will be the worst
Teratons
very little visual difference on the bigger teratons (where the metal cast is much better quality too)
I think it's important to clarify that there is no 'Mixed Material' going on (eg metal arms, restic body), if a figure is metal it's all metal, if a figure is restic it's all restic
there are however teams that will have a mix of metal and restic figures
assembly on the metals will vary some is going to be easy as decent peg & sockets are present, some not so much
Once again there is signs of some minis being twisted off the sprues (but not all this time, some are cut properly, so an improvement but not far enough yet)
Dozer the teraton is clearly comparable to the other big guys which is cool,
sadly the nameless big guy is smaller than the rest which is a shame (he is bigger than the other nameless, but not a patch on the other big guys)
It's a real shame the season 2 upgrades were to available to ship for everybody (the big question is did they go missing in transit, or did the factory run out of time and short ship)
Finally is scarletsquig's analysis of the problem with receiving teams that are mixed betwen metal and restic for the normal sculpts:
The thing is.. you can't just take the restic green and cast it in metal.
You need to completely resculpt it before casting it in metal.
Why? Well, scale is important.
Restic miniatures are deliberately sculpted at around 110% of the intended final size of the mini to compensate for the shrinkage that occurs when restic cools.
So, if you just run the restic greens in a metal mould you'll end up with half your team noticeably larger than the other half.
And the economics debate doesn't really apply to kickstarter-funded product. If there's a $20k stretch goal to tool some minis in plastic, you tool them in plastic, regardless of what the takeup on them on the survey is.
And if they're late, they're late - that's life and KS backers especially are quite used to things going a month or three overdue at this point with wargaming projects, they're generally OK with it as long as it is accompanied by a reassuring "we either delay this or ship you crap, and we're not shipping you crap". update message.
Also, another valid reason for not wanting metal is more difficult assembly.
The nameless tentacles would have been perfect for hot water reposing in restic too. Oh, and dreadball as a game can be a bit rough on the minis with lots of standing up and laying down minis, not so great for keeping metal minis paint unchipped.
Bit of a swing and a miss from whoever was manning the bean counter at Mantic, really.
In my opinion, these issues are obvious and should have been dealt with before shipping. The decision had to have been made by Mantic quite far ahead to not have them made in restic, and instead made in-house in metal, and yet no notice of this was given at all.
Note that those who posted about this have actually been good supporters of Mantic. Hopefully, this helps and you can pass on this information. These issues had to have been known at Mantic previously... but perhaps seeing how it is affecting your customer base will get more action to be taken in the future (although we've heard that that will be the case before several times now).
Finally, regarding Mantic learning from past mistakes- scarletsquig noted that the poor plastic goblins are STILL not pictured on the website! The Men At Arms were never photographed before shipment. Both times, Mantic said they had learned from the mistake of both not showing pictures, and the issues with plastic casting. But now with Dreadball, shipping models that have issues without showing pictures first has continued!!! And still no pictures of the goblin sprue on the website...
This has resulted in people starting to assume that if something isn't pictured, there's a problem, and is why people are saying they must see pictures of Deadzone production models before Mars Attacks ends. This is not a reputation that you want to have... so, please pass this along if possible.
This message was edited 6 times. Last update was at 2013/10/30 18:37:05
2013/10/30 18:06:25
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
In short they aren't yet happy with the plastic so will be sending restic enforcers now and hopefully plastic later.
They are looking to ship at the beginning of December.
*Ninja'd!*
I've skimmed the update and I a pleased with the resolution. Particularly that Mantic have recognised that folks like myself want quality from them.
However, I think they really need to keep their game up from now on. I accept they are being generous every time there is a problem but even so if there are too many problems...
Oh, Natazha (whatever her name is) looks good. A lot better than the cruddy DB Asterians, for which I breathe a huge sigh of relief.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/10/30 18:10:40
Ok, let me say i loved to find a Mantic representant answering questions at dakka, and quite liked the explanations he give us: more or less he is saying "we dont know if there will be delays, but we are chosing to make dalys if that means quality".
Anxious for the next update...
If my post show some BAD spelling issues, please forgive-me, english is not my natural language, and i never received formal education on it...
My take on Demiurgs (enjoy the reading):
http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/537654.page Please, if you think im wrong, correct me (i will try to take it constructively).
2013/10/30 18:10:20
Subject: Re:Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
It’s Ronnie here! I know everyone has been waiting for some information of where we're up to with Deadzone - so here we are with a monster update!
As you would expect the biggest Kickstarter we have ever done has thrown us a whole new set of challenges, but so far we look to be wrestling all of them down to the ground, putting our Peacekeeper armoured foot on their throats and firing some slugs into their heads!
First up, my apologies to those of you whose questions we’ve missed over the past few weeks. We were holding out for the results of some of our tooling and shipping info before I could give definitive answers. That info has now arrived, boats are loaded with 5 containers of plastics and boxes - and we can now give a clear update on where we are, and what will be happening.
So, let’s start with what we can’t do!
A while after the Kickstarter ended we looked at converting the resin plastic Enforcers into hard plastic, yet at the moment we can’t do that to a quality I am happy with. We have been working non-stop at making hard plastic organics at a standard that can compete (and beat) the best out there. Over the summer I tooled a hard plastic set and, whilst it was a step forward in quality, it was not up to where I want it to be. We have since then been working with a new technique – and we are very optimistic, but we have been optimistic before and we fell just short!
During the Kickstarter we said the zombies were going to be on sprues, in hard plastic. We have been using them as the test case and the early progress looks really encouraging. If we’re not happy with the results, we’ve got some time to get them fixed – and we will remake the tool – so we can look at alternative methods before sending them out in wave two. That said, we’re quietly confident.
Work-in-progress Zombie
If the method works well on the zombies I will ensure everyone gets all of the Enforcers they ordered in their second shipment, along with the Forge Fathers and the Asterians in hard plastic. If it is not up to the quality we expect, I will keep all those kits in resin plastic as was originally planned in the Kickstarter, and we will put the Peacekeepers into Resin Plastic as well. If anyone has added extras because they were hard plastic we will of course offer the option of exchanging those for other items or a refund. I don't expect any of that will be the case, but I just want to cover all the bases.
So what does that mean? Well it means I wasn’t ready to commit the finest troops in the entire Corporation to an unproven tooling method, and possibly have quality issues.
In Update 103 the plan was to take the basic troops for the Enforcers - Rifles, Assault Blades and Heavy Weapons – from the Enforcer Faction Starter and tool them as a multi-part hard plastic kit instead of resin plastic. This new kit would have still made the same models, but would have used the different plastic. As we are still waiting on the results of the zombie tooling, we are now past the point where we can get this tooled in time for the initial launch.
However, we don’t want to have to delay the launch for not having the basic Enforcer troops, so to replace the four models that would have come in the original promise (the three figures with heavy rifles and one of the figures with an assault blade) I am going to add a free pack of 5 resin-plastic Enforcers to every Kickstarter Enforcer Faction Starter (including the Faction Starter included with the pledge levels) allowing you to get on with playing the game immediately without having to wait for the new sprued plastic figures to arrive.
These figures include components for heavy rifles, an assault blade and a burst laser heavy weapon. They are totally free and in addition to whatever you have ordered. The hard plastic Enforcer sprues will be sent along with your second delivery when they are ready and a standard you can all be proud of.
A small minority of people who have selected individual figures may be affected by these changes and we will drop an email to anyone who is, and see what they want to do. This also applies to anyone who has paid for shipping on their second shipment – as you’ll now be getting one regardless due to the extra Enforcers, so we will be in touch to discuss how it affects you – you might be able to add for more minis instead!
So – if the bad news is more free figures, the good news must be really great!
Let’s cover that now…
The Marauders
We have added a Marauder Pyro to every Kickstarter faction starter free of charge.
This balanced the game better (and gave away another cool models) and gave a more rounded force for the Marauders. In relation to this, the faction starter lost the duplicate arms for the Ripper Suits. This was both to make room on the tool and because it added little during final testing. It turned out that the Marauders got some pretty hefty pieces of extra kit anyway – you won’t be disappointed when you see the finished Hulk and Goblin Guntrack!
Limited Edition Alternate Survivor
We are making a metal limited edition of the Survivor model in a new pose available as an exclusive pre-release model for the launch through our trade partners. He will not be available to buy separately – except of course to Kickstarter backers ☺ If you want him then he can be added in the second survey which will be with you around March-April next year, along with anything else that gets added to the range.
Shipping Update
The vast majority of the models are now on their way to us, and they’re looking fantastic. We were not happy with some of the first batch, so we reworked the mould and ran it again. We’ve seen the results and we're very happy with them. We haven’t had a chance to get any photos just yet, but we are flying in some of the production pieces and will get images out as soon as we receive them. In the meantime you can check out our recent DreadBall releases for an idea of the quality you’ll be getting – it’s the same material that we’re using for the Deadzone figures.
DreadBall Big Mech
DreadBall Alpha Simian
Now, no matter how many models we have, everyone always wants more, so how about a couple of new factions?
Head on over to the Mars Attacks Kickstarter a little later, where you’ll find that we’ve now unlocked a set of faction decks to use the Martian and Human forces in Deadzone. Want to play Enforcers against Martians? Now you can! We have set it up so if you just want the Deadzone bits you can pledge for those with the models without having to buy the game (but why would you!).
If you are into DreadBall you could pick up a team too! Exciting - and a bit random! So if you feel like popping on over and supporting us we'd be real appreciative.
But what about the Scenery?
And now onto more things to make you happy – scenery! It’s not been an easy journey, but as you’ll see from the video below, this scenery works better than I’d ever dreamed it would. The building tiles look amazing and we have had a few pre-production copies in the office to paint up. In final testing they have clipped together wonderfully. We’ve pushed really hard to get a push-fit connector system. This involved reworking all of the scenery tools, and completely remaking the connector mould three times! However, we’re now there, we believe this scenery is going to be a massive part of our sci-fi range, and many people’s gaming tables for years to come. Thank you for helping make it possible!
We now have the final tiles for the scenery - but instead of us writing about it, just watch
Once we have enough scenery sprues we’ll get our resident hobby guru Dave to put some together so you can see some examples of the incredible kits you’ll be able to build.
Back in the office and away from the tooling, we’ve been having plenty of fun with the rest of Deadzone. Jake has been pulling together a tight set of rules for multi-mat and multiplayer games ready for next year’s compendium (in between his work on Mars Attacks), and the sculptors are working on the last few bits for the second shipment! It’s all things Forge Fathers this week – the Brokkrs are all done and ready to be sent over from the sculptor – we’ll sort some pics when they get here – and everyone’s favourite, the Iron Ancestor, is getting an upgrade…
From the painting table...
Our talented painters has been slaving away too – look what he’s been up to…
Blaine
Helfather
Nastanza
Doctor Simmonds
Wrath
Recon Unit
The Survivor
And finally...
We are now pulling out all the stops and aiming to start shipping Deadzone in the first days of December. For any of you that are UK based (or further afield if you are being brave) you could come to the Open Day and collect your pledge personally and be one of the first to have it. Your backer ticket gives you free entry to the Open Day, so make a day of it and get a Deadzone demo too! Also anyone who paid for Courier shipping will be the first pledges to be despatched, and then we will quickly roll through the rest of the orders.
There’s plenty more information to come in the next few weeks, so please keep an eye on your inboxes. As always, drop your comments and questions below and let us know what you think!
Thanks for supporting us, best wishes,
Ronnie
PS - And if all that wasn't exciting enough, digital PDFs of the Deadzone Rulebook will be with you next week.
Nice use of the KS system for an official update!
Good thing Mantic don't listen to Bloggers!
2013/10/30 18:12:24
Subject: Re:Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
Well update 117 really dissolved any worries I had(most of which were induced by this thread haha). Looks like plastic kits will be delayed until they can be done right
DC:80+s---GM--B--I--Pw40k09-D+A++/eWD-R+T(M)DM+
2013/10/30 18:16:13
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
And that is the correct decision, rather than intentionally shipping plastic that was not done right...
I imagine it'll get buried due to the long update posted, so I'll quote over the compiled Dreadball issues post I made above in a day or two if it doesn't get addressed.
This is the bummer of having a combined thread for multiple campaigns... one still finishing with issues gets drowned out by the hope and promise of the new, yet to be completed one
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/10/30 18:19:39
2013/10/30 18:16:30
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
Alpharius wrote: But that's a lot of 'resin-plastic' where 'hard-plastic' was going to be.
...for now, and in addition to the hard plastic that is to follow, unless something disastrous happens. Based on what I've seen I'm confident that we'll get it right this time.
2013/10/30 18:20:01
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
Wales: Where the Men are Men and the sheep are Scared.
New Update
Spoiler:
Hi there,
It’s Ronnie here! I know everyone has been waiting for some information of where we're up to with Deadzone - so here we are with a monster update!
As you would expect the biggest Kickstarter we have ever done has thrown us a whole new set of challenges, but so far we look to be wrestling all of them down to the ground, putting our Peacekeeper armoured foot on their throats and firing some slugs into their heads!
First up, my apologies to those of you whose questions we’ve missed over the past few weeks. We were holding out for the results of some of our tooling and shipping info before I could give definitive answers. That info has now arrived, boats are loaded with 5 containers of plastics and boxes - and we can now give a clear update on where we are, and what will be happening.
So, let’s start with what we can’t do!
A while after the Kickstarter ended we looked at converting the resin plastic Enforcers into hard plastic, yet at the moment we can’t do that to a quality I am happy with. We have been working non-stop at making hard plastic organics at a standard that can compete (and beat) the best out there. Over the summer I tooled a hard plastic set and, whilst it was a step forward in quality, it was not up to where I want it to be. We have since then been working with a new technique – and we are very optimistic, but we have been optimistic before and we fell just short!
During the Kickstarter we said the zombies were going to be on sprues, in hard plastic. We have been using them as the test case and the early progress looks really encouraging. If we’re not happy with the results, we’ve got some time to get them fixed – and we will remake the tool – so we can look at alternative methods before sending them out in wave two. That said, we’re quietly confident.
Work-in-progress Zombie
If the method works well on the zombies I will ensure everyone gets all of the Enforcers they ordered in their second shipment, along with the Forge Fathers and the Asterians in hard plastic. If it is not up to the quality we expect, I will keep all those kits in resin plastic as was originally planned in the Kickstarter, and we will put the Peacekeepers into Resin Plastic as well. If anyone has added extras because they were hard plastic we will of course offer the option of exchanging those for other items or a refund. I don't expect any of that will be the case, but I just want to cover all the bases.
So what does that mean? Well it means I wasn’t ready to commit the finest troops in the entire Corporation to an unproven tooling method, and possibly have quality issues.
In Update 103 the plan was to take the basic troops for the Enforcers - Rifles, Assault Blades and Heavy Weapons – from the Enforcer Faction Starter and tool them as a multi-part hard plastic kit instead of resin plastic. This new kit would have still made the same models, but would have used the different plastic. As we are still waiting on the results of the zombie tooling, we are now past the point where we can get this tooled in time for the initial launch.
However, we don’t want to have to delay the launch for not having the basic Enforcer troops, so to replace the four models that would have come in the original promise (the three figures with heavy rifles and one of the figures with an assault blade) I am going to add a free pack of 5 resin-plastic Enforcers to every Kickstarter Enforcer Faction Starter (including the Faction Starter included with the pledge levels) allowing you to get on with playing the game immediately without having to wait for the new sprued plastic figures to arrive.
These figures include components for heavy rifles, an assault blade and a burst laser heavy weapon. They are totally free and in addition to whatever you have ordered. The hard plastic Enforcer sprues will be sent along with your second delivery when they are ready and a standard you can all be proud of.
A small minority of people who have selected individual figures may be affected by these changes and we will drop an email to anyone who is, and see what they want to do. This also applies to anyone who has paid for shipping on their second shipment – as you’ll now be getting one regardless due to the extra Enforcers, so we will be in touch to discuss how it affects you – you might be able to add for more minis instead!
So – if the bad news is more free figures, the good news must be really great!
Let’s cover that now…
The Marauders
We have added a Marauder Pyro to every Kickstarter faction starter free of charge.
This balanced the game better (and gave away another cool models) and gave a more rounded force for the Marauders. In relation to this, the faction starter lost the duplicate arms for the Ripper Suits. This was both to make room on the tool and because it added little during final testing. It turned out that the Marauders got some pretty hefty pieces of extra kit anyway – you won’t be disappointed when you see the finished Hulk and Goblin Guntrack!
Limited Edition Alternate Survivor
We are making a metal limited edition of the Survivor model in a new pose available as an exclusive pre-release model for the launch through our trade partners. He will not be available to buy separately – except of course to Kickstarter backers Smiling face (black and white) If you want him then he can be added in the second survey which will be with you around March-April next year, along with anything else that gets added to the range.
Shipping Update
The vast majority of the models are now on their way to us, and they’re looking fantastic. We were not happy with some of the first batch, so we reworked the mould and ran it again. We’ve seen the results and we're very happy with them. We haven’t had a chance to get any photos just yet, but we are flying in some of the production pieces and will get images out as soon as we receive them. In the meantime you can check out our recent DreadBall releases for an idea of the quality you’ll be getting – it’s the same material that we’re using for the Deadzone figures.
DreadBall Big Mech
DreadBall Alpha Simian
Now, no matter how many models we have, everyone always wants more, so how about a couple of new factions?
Head on over to the Mars Attacks Kickstarter a little later, where you’ll find that we’ve now unlocked a set of faction decks to use the Martian and Human forces in Deadzone. Want to play Enforcers against Martians? Now you can! We have set it up so if you just want the Deadzone bits you can pledge for those with the models without having to buy the game (but why would you!).
If you are into DreadBall you could pick up a team too! Exciting - and a bit random! So if you feel like popping on over and supporting us we'd be real appreciative.
But what about the Scenery?
And now onto more things to make you happy – scenery! It’s not been an easy journey, but as you’ll see from the video below, this scenery works better than I’d ever dreamed it would. The building tiles look amazing and we have had a few pre-production copies in the office to paint up. In final testing they have clipped together wonderfully. We’ve pushed really hard to get a push-fit connector system. This involved reworking all of the scenery tools, and completely remaking the connector mould three times! However, we’re now there, we believe this scenery is going to be a massive part of our sci-fi range, and many people’s gaming tables for years to come. Thank you for helping make it possible!
We now have the final tiles for the scenery - but instead of us writing about it, just watch this...
http://youtu.be/ytM0cNS2TwI Once we have enough scenery sprues we’ll get our resident hobby guru Dave to put some together so you can see some examples of the incredible kits you’ll be able to build.
Back in the office and away from the tooling, we’ve been having plenty of fun with the rest of Deadzone. Jake has been pulling together a tight set of rules for multi-mat and multiplayer games ready for next year’s compendium (in between his work on Mars Attacks), and the sculptors are working on the last few bits for the second shipment! It’s all things Forge Fathers this week – the Brokkrs are all done and ready to be sent over from the sculptor – we’ll sort some pics when they get here – and everyone’s favourite, the Iron Ancestor, is getting an upgrade…
From the painting table...
Our talented painters has been slaving away too – look what he’s been up to…
Blaine
Helfather
Nastanza
Doctor Simmonds
Wrath
Recon Unit
The Survivor
And finally...
We are now pulling out all the stops and aiming to start shipping Deadzone in the first days of December. For any of you that are UK based (or further afield if you are being brave) you could come to the Open Day and collect your pledge personally and be one of the first to have it. Your backer ticket gives you free entry to the Open Day, so make a day of it and get a Deadzone demo too! Also anyone who paid for Courier shipping will be the first pledges to be despatched, and then we will quickly roll through the rest of the orders.
There’s plenty more information to come in the next few weeks, so please keep an eye on your inboxes. As always, drop your comments and questions below and let us know what you think!
Thanks for supporting us, best wishes,
Ronnie
PS - And if all that wasn't exciting enough, digital PDFs of the Deadzone Rulebook will be with you next week.
Nevermind, someone got there first.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/10/30 18:22:42
2013/10/30 18:21:54
Subject: Re:Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
*If* the Plastic Enforcers had looked good, then all Enforcers would have been plastic everywhere. (which makes the implied free upgrade to plastic due to KS backing TRUE) Because 2 rounds of them are 'not good' they will be a 'restic only' for the first round KS fulfillment and when the plastic process is perfected, restic will be retired for Plastic. BTW, here free models.
They seem to imply that people who may want to wait for plastics can negotiate that with them which may be good for people looking to 'troopbuild'.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/10/30 18:24:29
My Models: Ork Army: Waaagh 'Az-ard - Chibi Dungeon RPG Models! - My Workblog! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
RULE OF COOL: When converting models, there is only one rule: "The better your model looks, the less people will complain about it."
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MODELING FOR ADVANTAGE TEST: rigeld2: "Easy test - are you willing to play the model as a stock one? No? MFA."
2013/10/30 18:25:32
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
So the Wave 1 Enforcers are going to be the Warpath ones, not the new ones? And the 'new' sculpts will be coming later, material yet to be determined?
Slightly annoyed as I already have some Enforcers and was looking to get a little variety, but hey, I guess I can wait for next year to get them, and hey, free minis.
“Good people are quick to help others in need, without hesitation or requiring proof the need is genuine. The wicked will believe they are fighting for good, but when others are in need they’ll be reluctant to help, withholding compassion until they see proof of that need. And yet Evil is quick to condemn, vilify and attack. For Evil, proof isn’t needed to bring harm, only hatred and a belief in the cause.”
0051/10/30 18:33:10
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
I also like the 'Hey you can buy a special variant pose of X!!!' but then don't bother to show it.
New sculpt would be available in the feb/march survey, way I read it so they have some time to show that model yet.
I would, however, very much like some actual production model shots. James, please please get on that. empty a baggie onto the table and take a few pics of the contents if that's all you have time for, please
2013/10/30 18:37:25
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
Riquende wrote: So the Wave 1 Enforcers are going to be the Warpath ones, not the new ones? And the 'new' sculpts will be coming later, material yet to be determined?
Slightly annoyed as I already have some Enforcers and was looking to get a little variety, but hey, I guess I can wait for next year to get them, and hey, free minis.
Im a little bit disappointed that their not the newer style enforcer armour, but it makes sense not to tool a sprue twice for different materials.
hopefully tho il be blown away by a awesome quality plastic sprue next year.
Stupid thing is I didnt think the backer ticket could be used for this openday so I went ahead an bought two (1 for a mate im trying to drag into the hobby)
more updates like this mantic please.
http://thelaughterofthedamned.blogspot.co.uk/
2013/10/30 18:38:48
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
Riquende wrote: So the Wave 1 Enforcers are going to be the Warpath ones, not the new ones? And the 'new' sculpts will be coming later, material yet to be determined?
Slightly annoyed as I already have some Enforcers and was looking to get a little variety, but hey, I guess I can wait for next year to get them, and hey, free minis.
Im a little bit disappointed that their not the newer style enforcer armour, but it makes sense not to tool a sprue twice for different materials.
hopefully tho il be blown away by a awesome quality plastic sprue next year.
Stupid thing is I didnt think the backer ticket could be used for this openday so I went ahead an bought two (1 for a mate im trying to drag into the hobby)
more updates like this mantic please.
Contact them maybe they will refund one of them.
2013/10/30 18:48:37
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
Riquende wrote: So the Wave 1 Enforcers are going to be the Warpath ones, not the new ones? And the 'new' sculpts will be coming later, material yet to be determined?
Slightly annoyed as I already have some Enforcers and was looking to get a little variety, but hey, I guess I can wait for next year to get them, and hey, free minis.
Im a little bit disappointed that their not the newer style enforcer armour, but it makes sense not to tool a sprue twice for different materials.
hopefully tho il be blown away by a awesome quality plastic sprue next year.
Stupid thing is I didnt think the backer ticket could be used for this openday so I went ahead an bought two (1 for a mate im trying to drag into the hobby)
more updates like this mantic please.
Contact them maybe they will refund one of them.
have to see, it was only a £5 so there maybe another event next year. Plus im sure I heard we got £10 swag bags for turning up. I may take a false mustache and re enter for more stuff
http://thelaughterofthedamned.blogspot.co.uk/
2013/10/30 18:49:29
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
The vast majority of the models are now on their way to us, and they’re looking fantastic. We were not happy with some of the first batch, so we reworked the mould and ran it again. We’ve seen the results and we're very happy with them. We haven’t had a chance to get any photos just yet, but we are flying in some of the production pieces and will get images out as soon as we receive them. In the meantime you can check out our recent DreadBall releases for an idea of the quality you’ll be getting – it’s the same material that we’re using for the Deadzone figures.
2013/10/30 18:49:32
Subject: Mantic Games - Sci-fi News & Rumors: New Deadzone pics p51
As soon as we've got the production miniatures in-house, we'll post a picture of them. As far as I'm aware they're not here yet. Unless I'm wrong! Which I might well be. I'll check it in the morning, most people have gone home now.
Not sure whether you saw my previous posts, but I said that a) if anyone wants to send anything back we'll sort them out with something to offset the cost of shipping, and b) the Men at Arms issue has been addressed - this will be explained in full in the update, which Ronnie himself is currently refining. Should be up in a few minutes. We're being really careful to be clear with it, which is why I'm not going to discuss it on here until it's up.
