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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 17:49:16
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Longtime Dakkanaut
United States of England
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Hi guys.
I was talking to some friends yesterday, and almost simultaneously we decided that we will likely quit WH40K and GW miniature collecting simply because the quality of the products are so poor.
You know, its the 21st century, and with the tech availible today, you'd think that GW could just be more creative in their posing, detail, and scaling then they manage at the moment.
When I look at the quality of other games companies, and even some of the independant lines out there, they really make GW stuff look like it was thrown together by a 2 year old using play-dough.....but the rant goes on....the rule books....OMG!
I compared the current WH40K rulebook, and the current codexes with the Infinity rulebook, and IMHO it was pitifull from GW side. The greatly acclaimed 'eavy metal team must have had their middle fingers cut off, or some other major hand disfigurement, cause the "quaity" of miniature painting in those books is just rubbish......considering what percentage of the market is owned by Infinity and GW, you'd expect the situation to be reversed.
If I look at Forgeworld, I can't belive these guys work for the same company....if GW as an organisation can churn out Forgeworld quality, why is the "mainstream" stuff so bad?
So, what does the gaming community feel about this? Are you guys still buying GW miniatures because you genuienly feel they are the best out there? or do you buy it cause you've invested too much to tuen back now? Is it just nostalgia?
I'm really interested in what others have to say on this. I don't think GW will change anytime in the future, and because of that I will not be buying anymore GW products....least of all the 5th edition coming out soon. I reckon I've invested a few £ short of £1500 on stuff so far, and my intention is to paint it as best as I can and sell it on ebay......
...for me, the honey moon is OVER!
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Man down, Man down.... |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 17:59:03
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Oberleutnant
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Do you have a model in question as an example, or is this just a general bitch list?
I've looked at Infinity's stuff on the web. I have a hard time believing that they are categorically a step above. Some stuff is good, some is great, some is seriously foul.
Every company has that. Infinity has the added problem of price per model and the fact that in the last 3 states I have lived in, no one plays it.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 18:01:11
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Cultist of Nurgle with Open Sores
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I recently switched to RAFM and Reaper minis. For demons, these companies have far superior miniatures. Unfortunately, some of the demons I needed have been out of print for some time and have had to find them through other channels.
I'm still playing the game, but switching models. Only some armies will be able to use stuff from other companies. Fantasy has miniatures all over the place and for just about every list. Reaper has an excellent Ogre that would be great for an Ogre Kingdoms leader.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 18:07:01
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Hurr! Ogryn Bone 'Ead!
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Personally I've never understood the tired line of "Look at all the other companies out there, GW is RUBBISH compared to their rules/minis/painting".
Maybe I just have never seen these amazing alternative companies and miniature ranges that everyone raves about, but every war gaming miniature maker I've ever seen pales in comparison to GW for the most part.
Or maybe it's just different strokes for different folks, and the people out there raving about other companies just think Rackham, Reaper, Privateer Press etc are all genuinely better than GW whereas I just think they're mostly crap...
GW Minis aren't ALWAYS the best quality, but they seem to be more consistent in their quality. I find other companies will have a handful of minis I absolutely love and the rest I wouldn't deign to line the bottom of my bitz box with.
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Iorek on Zombie Dong wrote:I know you'll all keep thinking about it. Admit it. Some of you may even make it your avatar
Yup. |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 18:28:03
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Deadshot Weapon Moderati
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Delephont wrote:Hi guys.
The greatly acclaimed 'eavy metal team must have had their middle fingers cut off, or some other major hand disfigurement, cause the "quaity" of miniature painting in those books is just rubbish......
They have to paint massive amounts of miniatures. They don't get the luxury of spending 12-16 hours on a single mini. Go look at cmon to see why they're so "greatly acclaimed". I believe WD also features their personal collections in there these days.
As for sculpting, again, their range is huge. They can't all be great, no-ones forcing you to buy the less-than-good minis. Buy the ones you like, as I do. I know if I had a choice between only GW and only Infinity I'd go for GW every time.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 18:50:15
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Longtime Dakkanaut
NoVA
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I almost thought it was a joke post.
I get the complaints about rules.
I get the complaints about the WD.
I get the complaints about the prices.
I get the complaints about online retailers.
I get the complaints about support.
GW is still the premiere maker of little toy soldiers. Other companies make some nice sculpts, and GW occasionally lets a clunker through. But all in all, they have the greatest number of quality minis, with the added bonus of plastics (easier to convert/repurpose). It's not even a race in that arena.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 19:09:00
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Growlin' Guntrukk Driver with Killacannon
No. VA USA
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Delephont wrote:Hi guys
I was talking to some friends yesterday, and almost simultaneously we decided that we will likely quit WH40K and GW miniature collecting simply because the quality of the products are so poor.
I was hoping for some examples to express what you are considering as poor quality
Delephont wrote:You know, its the 21st century, and with the tech availible today, you'd think that GW could just be more creative in their posing, detail, and scaling then they manage at the moment.
Again, some examples of your complaint would give us a small platform to at least be able to adequately debate you.
Delephont wrote:When I look at the quality of other games companies, and even some of the independant lines out there, they really make GW stuff look like it was thrown together by a 2 year old using play-dough.....but the rant goes on....the rule books....OMG!..
Again examples. I can't even think of any GW sculpts that look like a 2 year old using play dough. Or else those 2 year olds are damn good sculpters and they have managed some things with play dough that are outstanding ..
Delephont wrote:I compared the current WH40K rulebook, and the current codexes with the Infinity rulebook, and IMHO it was pitifull from GW side. The greatly acclaimed 'eavy metal team must have had their middle fingers cut off, or some other major hand disfigurement, cause the "quaity" of miniature painting in those books is just rubbish......considering what percentage of the market is owned by Infinity and GW, you'd expect the situation to be reversed.
What were you comparing? Pictures? Shouldn't you be using a book that showcases the GW models in a similar way that INfinity showcases their models in their books? A rulebook and a codex are more about "tabletop" quality etc. I think your comparison is apples to oranges and hardly worth debate.
Delephont wrote:If I look at Forgeworld, I can't belive these guys work for the same company....if GW as an organisation can churn out Forgeworld quality, why is the "mainstream" stuff so bad?
Again, I am not sure what you are talking about. Forgeworld does niche level modeling and as such they don't mainstream their models in the same quantity as GW does and as such, they are able to get more detail etc with their work. So, while GW churns out thousands and thousands of plastic frames, Forgeworld is churning out hundreds of resin models from a rubberized form. again, apples and oranges.
Delephont wrote:So, what does the gaming community feel about this? Are you guys still buying GW miniatures because you genuienly feel they are the best out there? or do you buy it cause you've invested too much to tuen back now? Is it just nostalgia?
I buy what I feel is the best for me. I have not found a company that makes space marines better than GW does. I have also not found any better ogres, or anything for the armies I collect. I have found single models from other companies that I might like a weapon from or something about the model, but in the long run, I cannot see buying any armies from anyone else.
Delephont wrote:...for me, the honey moon is OVER!
If you are one of those that thinks a marriage is peaches and roses after the honey moon is over, then I am afraid that the real world is really going to slap you in the face one of these days. the marriage is only as good as you make it. If you wake up the day after the honeymoon and start finding fault with your spouse, then unfortunately for you, the marriage will be rocky and if you don't get your nose caved in, then you will be lucky.
Does GW have the best single models out there? I would say a great many of GW models are of that quality. But there are other companies that do some single models better. Does GW do the best models out there? Depending on the army, I would say yes.
that's my take. You are welcome to it or not.
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A woman will argue with a mirror..... |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 19:19:14
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Omnipotent Lord of Change
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two_heads_talking wrote: Delephont wrote:When I look at the quality of other games companies, and even some of the independant lines out there, they really make GW stuff look like it was thrown together by a 2 year old using play-dough.....but the rant goes on....the rule books....OMG!.. Again examples. I can't even think of any GW sculpts that look like a 2 year old using play dough. Or else those 2 year olds are damn good sculpters and they have managed some things with play dough that are outstanding ..
Chaos ogres immediately come to mind as actually poorly sculpted. Capt Cortez is an example of poor posing, but not bad technical sculpting otherwise. There are many aesthetic choices made that I personally disagree with - demonette clothes + flat left boob, overly-accesorizing some models (skulltaker, for example) - but that's understandable and a matter of my taste vs the sculptor's (or more likely what GW thinks the public will want to or can be convinced to buy). Personally, I think GW does a fantastic job, compared against Reaper - who crank out loads of good ideas and have a couple solid sculptors, if you like Werner Klocke's (sp?) one woman over and over (and I do!) - or other sci fi games in its bracket (VOR, Void, Warzone back when and even now), though of course Infinity and Rackham stomp them in other places. I'd say PP is on fairly even footing, or even slightly behind still, with GW for number of good sculpts & concepts vs bad. And in the end, GW's plastic kits tear the pants off any 28mm wargames multi-part plastics I can think of - Salvage
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This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2008/06/04 19:20:32
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 19:24:47
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Fixture of Dakka
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Uhm.. Two Heads Talking, "the honey moon is over" is an idiom, not to be taken literally as involving marrige per se. It just means the excitement has worn off, and reality is setting in.
I sort of agree that GW's style isn't always the best.
I wish they were more consistant with their scale. I don't mind bigger heads, hands and weapons that true scale since it allows for more character etc., but I don't like the fact that 7-9 foot tall Space Marines in power armor are roughly the same size as every guardsman in a t-shirt. For that matter, I wish there were guardswomen.
I also don't like how hard it is to get certain options on figures, or even aquire the option. Want a combi-weapon? It is tricky.
I further don't like their lack of variety in characters. There are what, 10-15 generic Marine leaders, but only a few non-powerarmored people.
Stil, for what they are, GW's figures are often very very good. I own a lot of Rackham, and really like the look, but they are fragile. I have broken more ankles on my 30 rackham guys than any other line I own. However, the only reason I own those Drunes at all is because GW doesn't make marauders that are not steroid freaks.
It's just one of those things. GW makes a LOT of figures and most are really good. Some are very bad, or at least really showing that they are almost 2 decades old. At the same time, some companies have good lines, but they are very small, and fairly hit or miss too. Just a question of mixing and maxing.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 19:36:48
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Longtime Dakkanaut
United States of England
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Well, I did ask for opinions.
Theres certainly some valid points. I think the theme recuring here is the fact that I didn't give examples of what I consider to be poor...so fair point.
Space Marines.....generally poor posing, and completely wrong scale according to GWs own fluff.
Imperial Guards....again, generally poor posing and why absolutely foul human proportions. DKoK perfect poses, and very well human proportions...as a direct comparrison.
Sisters of Battle.....can GW actually sculpt a female? I mean, I can understand your average GW employee having never seen a woman in the flesh, but with the amount of porn on the net, theres no excuse....
Tyranids...awesome, but how far wrong can you go with an alien race.
Dark Eldar.....do I really need to elaborate?
Eldar....generally very good....but if you have no desire to field an Eldar army, you're stuffed.
So, these are my points....I fully expect people to pull apart my statements, and thats really ok...as long as you remember that you're free to enjoy what you enjoy. I don't wish to take away anybody elses enjoyment of GW products....afterall variety is the spice of life and all that.....I was just wondering if anyone else felt the same....if not, then fine, ignore my rant.
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Man down, Man down.... |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 19:46:30
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Longtime Dakkanaut
NoVA
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Delephont wrote:Space Marines.....generally poor posing, and completely wrong scale according to GWs own fluff.
Scale is subjective. They are 1 inch tall figures, so I make allowances for scale. As for posing, sure, sometimes. But considering the sheer amount of plastic available for Marines, I can literally make ANY pose you can dream of. Easily solved.
Delephont wrote:Imperial Guards....again, generally poor posing and why absolutely foul human proportions. DKoK perfect poses, and very well human proportions...as a direct comparrison.
Which IG figs? There are several. The Cadians are quite good, especially the Kasrkin by Diaz. I agree the DKoK are better. But the IG is all about the tanks.
Delephont wrote:Sisters of Battle.....can GW actually sculpt a female? I mean, I can understand your average GW employee having never seen a woman in the flesh, but with the amount of porn on the net, theres no excuse....
Well, here's a major problem. Thinking that using porn is a great idea to understand the female form  Are you serious? The only women that actually look like pornstars are pornstars. The Jes Goodwin Sisters are great models. The bazillion Reaper models that actually do look like pornstars... that's a sculpting issue.
Delephont wrote:So, these are my points....I fully expect people to pull apart my statements, and thats really ok...as long as you remember that you're free to enjoy what you enjoy. I don't wish to take away anybody elses enjoyment of GW products....afterall variety is the spice of life and all that.....I was just wondering if anyone else felt the same....if not, then fine, ignore my rant.
No worries.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 19:57:09
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Longtime Dakkanaut
United States of England
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Just to clarify, the Porn thing was a joke....I wouldn't want such a statement to detract from the topic.
Anyway....generally speaking a female porn star, is a female, a human female, and real.....that would qualify her as a good sculpting basis for a....real human female.
If you're refering to fake breast etc....not all porn stars invest in mammory enhancement.
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Man down, Man down.... |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 20:42:34
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Flashy Flashgitz
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Delephont wrote:
Space Marines.....generally poor posing, and completely wrong scale according to GWs own fluff.
Imperial Guards....again, generally poor posing.
I don't understand this at all, to be honest. Both of the most popular kits - the Cadian box set, and the Space Marine plastic set (and its many derivations) are multi-part plastic miniatures. If the posing is poor, you're posing them wrong.
Delephont wrote:Sisters of Battle.....can GW actually sculpt a female? I mean, I can understand your average GW employee having never seen a woman in the flesh, but with the amount of porn on the net, theres no excuse....
I can't help feeling you're using an unfair stereotype to mask a poor argument. The SOB aren't normally proportioned women in regular clothes. For one, they're wearing Power Armour, which is naturally going to do strange things to their proportions. Secondly, if you're expecting "porn star" physiques (and I'm loathe to use the term because it is demonstratively naive to think the average woman is that kind of shape), you have to bear in mind these are warrior women. They're not meant to be pretty. They're meant to kill stuff in the name of the Emperor.
Delephont wrote:
Tyranids...awesome, but how far wrong can you go with an alien race.
Again, unfairly dismissive. You're basically saying "yeah, these are pretty good, but so what? It's easy." Though you may think the Tyranids are derivative, they still contain a great amount of innovative design work and a number of original concepts. You can go very wrong with an alien race.
Delephont wrote:
Dark Eldar.....do I really need to elaborate?
The Dark Eldar are by popular consensus in dire need of resculpts, I'll grant you.
Delephont wrote:
Eldar....generally very good....but if you have no desire to field an Eldar army, you're stuffed.
Once more, unfairly dismissive. You're putting a negative spin on these miniatures being good. What, it's bad that these have been sculpted well because it limits our freedom to choose an army? Is that as bad as them being sculpted badly?
Delephont wrote:
I don't wish to take away anybody elses enjoyment of GW products....afterall variety is the spice of life and all that.....I was just wondering if anyone else felt the same....if not, then fine, ignore my rant.
It shan't take away my enjoyment, dear boy. And you too are welcome to ignore my counter-rant.
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"Hello? You'll have to speak up, I'm wearing a towel." |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 21:42:33
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Longtime Dakkanaut
United States of England
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Vandez wrote:
I don't understand this at all, to be honest. Both of the most popular kits - the Cadian box set, and the Space Marine plastic set (and its many derivations) are multi-part plastic miniatures. If the posing is poor, you're posing them wrong.
Or this highlights your lack of imagination.....the plastci kits as they come out of the box are multipart, but they still have restrictions...an example is the leg sprue on the Space Marines...always spread in the hero stance.
Vandez wrote:I can't help feeling you're using an unfair stereotype to mask a poor argument. The SOB aren't normally proportioned women in regular clothes. For one, they're wearing Power Armour, which is naturally going to do strange things to their proportions. Secondly, if you're expecting "porn star" physiques (and I'm loathe to use the term because it is demonstratively naive to think the average woman is that kind of shape), you have to bear in mind these are warrior women. They're not meant to be pretty. They're meant to kill stuff in the name of the Emperor.
Hold on...did you read my comment...directly above your post?!? Why the fixation on porn-stars. The funny thing about your post, is that you accuse me of stereotyping....your whole statement is a stereotype of "pornstars"....here's a news flash: Pornstars are human beings, with normal features.....perhaps you've never seen a real woman to compare...but take it from a married man, theres no difference between a pornstar and a "normal" woman.....do you realise that pornography is a career path and not a genetic basis for a "type" of woman....get your head out of your ass, do some research and stop acting as if you've just climbed out of a Mormon church cellar.
Vandez wrote:Once more, unfairly dismissive. You're putting a negative spin on these miniatures being good. What, it's bad that these have been sculpted well because it limits our freedom to choose an army? Is that as bad as them being sculpted badly?
I'm not being unfairly dismissive...anymore than someone walking into a GW store and deciding...yeah I want to field a Space Marine army and not Eldar army....full stop. I'm acknowledging the fact that these are good sculpts even though I don't necessarily want to buy and field them....so how is that me being "unfairly dismissive"?!?
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This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2008/06/04 21:45:36
Man down, Man down.... |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 21:55:37
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Servoarm Flailing Magos
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GW's mini quality is usually pretty good, at least from a technical stand point. I'm a bit burned out on the aesthetics of GW's lines, but that's my problem.
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Working on someting you'll either love or hate. Hopefully to be revealed by November.
Play the games that make you happy. |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 21:57:46
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Flashy Flashgitz
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Woo, this is going down an angrier route than I expected it to.
Delephont wrote:
Or this highlights your lack of imagination.....the plastci kits as they come out of the box are multipart, but they still have restrictions...an example is the leg sprue on the Space Marines...always spread in the hero stance.
But surely any kit anywhere is going to have restrictions? There are other legs available. I know there are plastic kneeling ones, for starters. And I'd like to think producing a squad of individual looking models from similar legs shows the opposite of a lack of imagination, thanks.
Hold on...did you read my comment...directly above your post?!? Why the fixation on porn-stars. The funny thing about your post, is that you accuse me of stereotyping....your whole statement is a stereotype of "pornstars"....heres a news flash: Pornstars are human beings, with normal features.....perhaps you've never seen a real woman to compare...but take it from a married man, theres no difference between a pornstar of a "normal" woman.....do you realise that pornography is a career path and not a genetic basis for a "type" of woman....get your head out of your ass, do some research and stop acting as if you've just climbed out of a Mormon church cellar.
I did, indeed, read your post. I'm not trying to fixate on the aforementioned actresses, but they were used as an example in your post so I ran with it. In fact, this is in general a really insulting paragraph and I'm struggling to pull something positive from it. Surely we can agree that there will be marked differences in the body type of a woman who has a career based on having an attractive physique/figure rather than one who relies on physical fitness and ability?
Once more, unfairly dismissive. You're putting a negative spin on these miniatures being good. What, it's bad that these have been sculpted well because it limits our freedom to choose an army? Is that as bad as them being sculpted badly?
I'm not being unfairly dismissive...anymore than someone walking into a GW store and deciding...yeah I want to field a Space Marine army and not Eldar army....full stop. I'm acknowledging the fact that these are good sculpts even though I don't necessarily want to buy and field them....so how is that me being "unfairly dismissive"?!?
It just seems to me that the basis of your argument, on the whole, is that GW miniatures are sub-par. Then you seemingly go back on this by stating that the Eldar and Tyranid ranges are not sub-par, but apparently, yes, dismiss these positive additions to the range as being some sort of easy, no-brainer design work, at least on the part of the Tyranids.
I don't think I'm explaining myself properly. A day at work has melted my brain somewhat.
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"Hello? You'll have to speak up, I'm wearing a towel." |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 22:19:41
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Longtime Dakkanaut
United States of England
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Ok, everything I have said about the miniatures is my opinion....you know, my whole statement is NOT about trying to convince people that GW is rusbbish and their product is rubbish....we have to be clear on this point, because every post has had an underlying aggressiveness against my statement.
If people don't agree with me, thats fine...but don't try to convince me that my opinion is flawed or wrong....its my money and my opinion.
I created this thread to see if anyone else is in the same boat as me, or if people were motivated to buy GW products , why that was......
@ Vandez directly
Why do you keep differentiating female forms based on the jobs they do? The female form comes in all shapes and sizes....the porn industry hires women from all backgrounds and body shapes, why? because the audience they perfom for is vast and varied.
...the reason why I singled out pornography as a means for sculpting cues...is because its one of the few mediums freely availible where someone can see (a wide variety) of naked female forms....not because they set some kind of precident for how females should look.
Having said that, if I had selected Olympic athelete as a precident, would that be more fair? How many everyday women (or men) can attain that level of physique?
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Man down, Man down.... |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/04 22:30:09
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Flashy Flashgitz
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You make a fair point. I think perhaps we should drop the pornstars as an example.
Yes, women come in all shapes and sizes. To be honest, I've forgotten what point I was trying to make. What was your problem with the Sisters sculpts, again?
You're right about there being an underlying negativity or disapproval to the replies. I realise I'm being overly defensive on behalf of a company that really doesn't require my support, so in response to your restated objective to the thread:
I, on the whole, think GW's miniatures are very good. In the years I've been playing their metal minis have been consistantly high quality (with a few glaring errors - Cortez, the 4th Ed Possessed marines et al) and their plastic work has come on in leaps and bounds. I think there is a lot of potential in their plastic kits. The relative scale is not perfect, but the exaggerated and melodramatic miniatures are perfectly evocative of a similarly exaggerated and melodramatic universe.
If we were looking at GW's miniature range circa 1998, I think I'd be more inclined to agree with you.
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"Hello? You'll have to speak up, I'm wearing a towel." |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/05 03:03:29
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Oberleutnant
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Personally, I think for metals, SOB are quite good, especially taken in the context of when they were sculpted. They have held up remarkably well.
GW has always had a tough time with "evil" elves. Both chocolate and vanilla "DE" seem to have been designed with the idea the points make something inherently evil.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/05 03:50:13
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Agile Revenant Titan
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As we're all entitled to our opinions, I won't say your crazy or wrong. However, I'd just like to point out the new Space Marine pics that have been posted in the News and Rumors section. I've not played with a Space Marine army since 1st edition, but some of these models may just bring me back to the dark side.
Wow, is really all I can say about them.
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No earth shattering, thought provoking quote. I'm just someone who was introduced to 40K in the late 80's and it's become a lifelong hobby. |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/05 07:39:17
Subject: Re:GW miniature quality.
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The Dread Evil Lord Varlak
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It’s the mini game circle of life. Come into the hobby through GW and think everything GW does is wonderful. Become disgruntled but ultimately still a fan of GW. Become a GW hater, decide random company x does everything in a completely superior way to GW. From here there are three options:
(a) burn out on the hobby and get on with having a life,
(b) burn out on the new game and decide some other random company is completely superior, inevitably burning out on that one and repeating the cycle,
(c) or burn out on the new game, gain some perspective about what this hobby is really about and learn to approach each game on it’s own merits. Gain the ability to see each game in a somewhat objective manner, noting the strengths and weaknesses of each.
It appears to me the OP is a (b), but while it may take a few game lines to get there, he will inevitably move to an (a) or a (c). Such is the circle of life.
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“We may observe that the government in a civilized country is much more expensive than in a barbarous one; and when we say that one government is more expensive than another, it is the same as if we said that that one country is farther advanced in improvement than another. To say that the government is expensive and the people not oppressed is to say that the people are rich.”
Adam Smith, who must have been some kind of leftie or something. |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/05 18:02:15
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Longtime Dakkanaut
United States of England
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@ sebster
Fair point.
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Man down, Man down.... |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/05 19:00:13
Subject: Re:GW miniature quality.
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Buttons Should Be Brass, Not Gold!
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Just wanted to steer this a bit back on topic - I think that GW miniatures are really a mixed bag these days.
I don't have much issue with GW's metal range. I find the proportions and posing of many of the recent sculpts from GW and Privateer approaching the realm of absurdity and ugliness. Price really isn't an issue as most manufacturers products are around the same price. What I do have issues with however is:
Models have lots of flash - not just the annoying spindly kind, but also huge tabs attached. This was supposed to be fixed when they moved production to the Atlanta Fab, but that never happened. No other manufacturer has this kind of ridiculous problems with flash covered models. Privateer's models have some - Reapers models are usually very clean, needing minimal prep-work (and they are the cheapest of the bunch!). Other manufacturer's products - Anima Tactics and Confrontation models are typically fairly clean as well. (I guess this is where GW chimes in with the rising cost of metal and all that!)
Availability of metal bitz, once one of GW's largest selling points have become largely unavailable.
Common issues with GW plastics
Quality control is spotty. GW seems to have vastly incosistent plastic mixes in their plastic kits. They have a "dark grey" plastic which is fairly hard and retains detail very well. They also seem to run batches of figures run in a "light grey" almost "white" plastic which is very soft, and holds detail about as well as a bucket with a hole in it holds water. This soft plastic is a recurring issue and can be found in kits as recent as Chaos Terminators and most vehicle kits - (my general inexperience with the Fantasy range does not alow me to comment if this is the case in Fantasy as well).
Detail is plentiful on infantry kits - but (recently) the details are very shallow. While the details on the early kits were fairly crisp, later kits have very soft details with a lot of rounded edges. Examples from within the same ranges can be seen: Compare: Space Marines Tactical Squad vs. Scouts - Khorne Berserkers vs. Chaos Marines. The new daemons have been reported to have very shallow body detail. I just bought a squad of the new Vampire Counts Ghouls, and can report that the details on the body and head are fairly shallow requiring careful painting. Mine was moulded in the dark grey plastic, but if it was produced in the above mentioned "light grey" plastic, most of this shallow detail would not be discernable.
Detail is negligible on vehicle kits! While it is understood that vehicles lack "fine" detail that might break off during play - simple details like panel lines, vehicle engine detail, exhaust vents etc. are largely missing on many kits.
Recent Fantasy kits (and some 40k plastics) have been of the "assemble only one way" variety. While this helps rank up the unit, and the pieces fit together very well - this makes them almost useless for converting. This is especially annoying on items such as heads and arms.
GW plastic figures were supposed to alow for more economical construction of large armies. Instead, they are approaching the cost of metal figures in price. (This is more pronounced in many Non-US markets). Strangely, this phenomena only affects WH and WH40k models in the GW stable, as Lord of the Rings plastic infantry are just as detailed, but are very reasonable in price (i.e. a magnitude cheaper than metal).
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/05 22:39:56
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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[MOD]
Anti-piracy Officer
Somewhere in south-central England.
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Hey Keezus, are you a TF2 engineer with a wrench?
Back on topic, my GW figures are all either early SMs (beakies including plastics) or Tau or a mixed bag of RPG figures from the mid 1980s onwards.
Prices for GW plastics are as you say approaching the cost of metal figures from other companies. For example the Tau Fire Warrior box has 12 infantry and costs £18.
Perry Miniatures metals are £1 each. They are not the most expensive metal figures but they are not the cheapest either.
The new Perry Miniatures plastic ACW infantry box set has 36 figures and costs £12. That makes the Tau about 5 times more expensive. Both kits have similar sorts of options of poses, heads and so on.
Makes you think, doesn't it.
Tau Vehicles have decent detail for models made for gaming, and generally fit together well. You could well complain about the price compared to Tamiya kits.
There are a lot of older GW figures that are quite caricatured and cartoony. I'm not sure if that was a design decision or the result of having a particular sculptor. It was a style I didn't like however that was a personal preference.
In my considered opinion the quality of figures is good, though they are expensive. The quality of vehicles is acceptable and again they are expensive.
Basically you can get much cheaper figures and models in historical ranges.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/06 14:36:48
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Buttons Should Be Brass, Not Gold!
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Kilkrazy wrote:Hey Keezus, are you a TF2 engineer with a wrench?
I agree with most of your post in that I too am willing (and do) pay for quality - and for the most part, GW does put out a quality product.
However, I find their quality control to be highly suspect. Other than the plastic mix issue, I forgot to mention that GW has problems where plastic kits are shipped with significantly warped components which a lot of work to properly assemble (if it can be assembled at all. One Landspeeder I owned became terrain because the hull was so warped that no amount of straightening could fix it.) - Panel warpage is a common problem in most imperial tanks, landspeeders, monoliths and falcon hulls. If I buy an old Revel kit for $15, I don't have much issue with some fit problems, or warpage, but when I shell out $70 for a monolith that won't fit together properly due to panel warpage, I get a little irrate. I think that the majority of the panel warpage issues could be solved by going with a harder plastic. The old gothic ruin sprues used a hard impact-resistant plastic - so I don't see why GW kits don't use the dark terrain plastic for kits prone to warpage.
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This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2008/06/06 14:40:14
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/06 15:43:39
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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[MOD]
Anti-piracy Officer
Somewhere in south-central England.
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Apparently GW change their plastic occasionally -- there is another thread talking about the trees. (Surreal?) The plasticity of plastic depends on the amount of plasticiser mixed into it. A mix with more plasticiser will more easily warp due to incorrect temperature storage and other causes.
I personally have never had a warped kit from GW, however I have only built a couple of dozen of their kits so I may have been lucky.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/06 20:26:40
Subject: Re:GW miniature quality.
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Hunter with Harpoon Laucher
Castle Clarkenstein
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In my opinion, a lot of it has to revolve around actually getting to use the figures in a game. Personally, I like GW figures. But the biggest decision is how many people in my area are playing a game.
Buy infinity models, and have no one to play with
OR
Buy GW models and have dozens of people to play with.
Hmmmmm...think I'll stick with Warhammer.
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....and lo!.....The Age of Sigmar came to an end when Saint Veetock and his hamster legions smote the false Sigmar and destroyed the bubbleverse and lead the true believers back to the Old World.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/06 20:55:32
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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[MOD]
Anti-piracy Officer
Somewhere in south-central England.
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That's the attitude generated by GW. A veteran gamer like me would buy the Infinity figures because they like them, and if no-one plays Infinity either start it up or play a different SF game using the same figures.
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/06 22:00:28
Subject: Re:GW miniature quality.
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Slippery Scout Biker
Gaming club. ALWAYS.
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Sisters of Battle.....can GW actually sculpt a female? I mean, I can understand your average GW employee having never seen a woman in the flesh, but with the amount of porn on the net, theres no excuse....
I always find it funny that it's men who have such a problem with SoBs. I'm a woman gamer and neither me nor any of my friends think the models are badly sculpted or out of proportion.
~ TS
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Morals — all correct moral laws — derive from the instinct to survive. Moral behavior is survival behavior above the individual level.
~Robert Heinlein |
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![[Post New]](/s/i/i.gif) 2008/06/06 22:43:19
Subject: GW miniature quality.
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Longtime Dakkanaut
United States of England
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@ TommyStriker
Its not funny, its an opinion. I don't think the Cadian males are sculpted well either.
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Man down, Man down.... |
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