Shill small studios that make miniatures.Bonus points in covering what you like and dislike about them and what could improve them based on parts you dislike about them.
>>98515490 (me the OP)I'll start with Anvil Industry.>prosI think their big pros are the modularity of their regiments models. They make 40k proxy bits and also for many other different genres. Pic related is classified as "modern" if I recall correctly, but is STALKER influenced. Then their STL offerings have a multi-shell function (probably not what it is actually called in 3D industry) that means that certain details can be deleted off an STL if undesired.They aren't perfect as they tried to make their own wargame called Afterlife and it flopped. >consWhat I dislike is that they don't take this modularity to medieval fantasy or sci-fi fantasy themed models in their regiments range. They have made proxies for Warhammer 40k but sadly don't seem to make many arms for two handed weapons. It is very limited and the modularity of their regiments range but for melee doesn't seem there yet.They also have some good skills at making vehicles too but don't seem too focused on it.Hopefully they'll change that in the future.
I hate Resin, it's shite to work with and never worth the effort. So I rarely come across a miniature line that appeals to me.
>>98515490I rather like Ramshackle games. They've got a bunch of highly stylized models that are seemingly made for the joy of them, hits the right amount of fantastical violence and cool from when I was getting to miniature wargames. Lots of options, the minigamgs game is not great but fun beer and pretzels. They made bullet shaped space ork robots with their kid, they help anyone who wants to sell sculpts so there's a lot of neat stuff you wouldn't otherwise see. >cons I think they're a one man show so orders can get a bit jumbled, communications are not great, but they were chill about filling in missed parts of orders. They keep adding other sculptors which is cool but also makes looking through their catalogue a bit of a hassle.
>>98517002Are these Ork admech?
Another cool smaller company is Diehard. They do mostly metal, sort of chunky older feeling models for scifi and fantasy stuff. I have a few squads. Really like these guys. Downside is the guy reuses a lot of poses with slight variation of features so there's like 5 version of the guy dramatically pointing the gun. I don't really mind, just limits the number of models I'm going to buy, as a lot of the appeal of boutique stuff like this to me is the individuality. >>98517173They've got a bunch of earlier RT inspired horrific looking mech guys in robes. I fluffed mine as calling themselves 'Divergents" or something similar, a bit inspired by the muties on Angelus, a bit like if canticle for lebowitz went lord of the flies. Overall I think the company is aiming at stuff from a less faction distinctly categorized era.
>>98517262>canticle for lebowitzNow I want a mini where it's these metal creatures pushing a giant lightbulb with metallic spider legs that shines a light so harsh it scorches flesh and boils eyeballs.
>>98517286Seems like a straightforward enough conversion although you'd have to be careful not to break the lightbulb, there's a bunch of different sizes and they're cheap. The S8 fits in my headCould use various sorts of riot police armoured bits as light shielding on the lighthouse pushers.
>>98515490Love PicoArmor. Basically the only guy in NA doing 3mm cold war planes, which are the perfect size for 1" flight bases so they can fit on an rpg battlemat and not bang wings. They were perfect for my prototype Area 88 game.>>98516041I had no problems with my PicoArmor planes, but they were mostly small single-piece
>>98515490I always take an opportunity to shill Twilight when I can.
>>98515490I like Kromlech.>prosLots of ork stuff and even dabbling in other 40k factions and keeps things closer to what they're meant to proxy as but not enough that GW can stop them. They're probably a good example of how far anybody can go before getting chapterhouse'd.>consI vaguely recalled that they sold STLs at one point but I think they stopped. No idea why if they ever did.Resin just isn't as good hard plastic or 3D printed resin, but with small studios this is just natural order of things. But their resin is workable. GW to me holds the record for worst resin with finecast.
>>98515490I assume it's a small company, but I just bought some limbo division models. I like the designs conceptually, I may renege on this thought should they arrive and feel like shit
>>98524122>Limbo Division>hot anime 3D girl modelsVery good taste anon. I wonder if Kingdom Death Monster is the pioneer of 3D anime girl pin up resin models but for miniature wargamers. I believe Japan did it first but probably not marketed for wargamers at all.I like Kingdom Death Monster's aesthetic. I hope it becomes bigger. But I don't feel comfortable paying that much for the game because I need STL scans or recasts in case I drop and break a model somehow.Hopefully Poots recognizes this and releases just the rules to buy if he hasn't already. I like the monster designs though.>I assume it's a small companyI think a lot of big companies try to seem small for the indie audience and little companies try to seem bigger with professional website layouts to hopefully get sponsorships.
>>98519931Very creative models.
Anybody got a line on alien ranges? Looking for a sangheili/Brute, Krogan, Cabal style big militaristic aliens
>>98524315I also have a rather large amount of KDM, I do wonder why companies avoid the stuff. Probably to avoid seeming juvenile, but that's me guessing in bad faith. It's not like everyone adores Frazetta art.I think Killenium Butcher is a wonderful model, and I'm pretty happy with Lionel who I picked up recently even if I'll never use his rules.
>>98524367most companies want to be family friendly or at the very least not 18+. tons of plastic to sling to kidsi play a lot of kdm, and really enjoy it. but i can say im not a fan of the really coomer minis. the tasteful ones are ok in my book, more of that pooty
>>98516041Just say>I'm a talentless hobbylet who loves the taste of James Workshop's fartsand save everyone the bother of engaging with you as if you were a thinking ensoulled being.
>>98518697wow I didn't even think about using a real lightbulb. Hell, I could even power it too!
Mammoth MiniaturesCheckpoint Miniatures
>>98531385>checkpoint miniatures Their wasteland cultists have guns that look like rogue trader/early oldhammer weapon designs.Are they by the same sculptor or is it like the wargames foundry ex-citadel thing? I do like the designs.>alsoIs this the “cp models” miniature website that got meme’d on for having an unfortunate name?
>>98531385>>98517262How many of these metal model making studios will cease to exist if price of metal becomes unbearably high?I mean they can probably switch to resin but it isn’t the same.Hopefully a cheaper and good alloy is discovered to allow for metal model pricing to go down.
How do these studios avoid getting raped by GW?
>>98534195you can make alunimum casts with a 3D printer. I think half a grocery bag of cans will get you a mini
>>98532626>the nameYeah, they finally changed it.>sculptorsThey have a mix of ex-GW and other people working there. "Whiff Waff" is the pseudonym of Adam Gayford, who's gone a bunch of jobber work for various dead companies and a couple hundred minis for Checkpoint under both names.
>>98516041Fully agree. Plastic and metal are so much better to work with.
>>98534203GW got ass raped the last time they try to pull rank.After all GW shit are copied from somewhere else and they have nothing that is really original.
>>98534195Probably not that big of a deal, they're closing down firstly because the guys running them are 70 years old.
>>98515490Tortugabay
>>98515496I like anvil, so many nice bits
>>98519931It's a really great take on Star Wars' gungans but it's UK based so unobtainium here in Yurop.
>>98525156>Muh GW Bogeyman!!Retard
>>98534195"White metal", which I think is a tin/lead alloy was an option for a while. I got some cheaper recasts of old confrontation models in it from Cadwallon.I suspect their new stuff is all resin, but haven't ordered any, they're a lot less interesting sculpts to me.
>>98544771There are a lot of different kinds of white metal, back in the mid-80s Ral Partha figured out how to make it halfway decent without lead, but there are cheaper formulations which aren't quite as nice to work with. And depending on how legal it is where they are or how easily they think they can skirt reporting/regulations, a little bit of lead can be put back in without making the end product too toxic. It might even make it easier to deal with mold lines and the like since lead alloys are basically perfect aside from the whole "will poison you if you put it in your mouth" thing.
>>98545204I will make sure I don't premoisten them in my mouth for too long before priming. Can't wait for special operations in the grain basket to calm down so I can try a few different neo soviets, one of them has 2 grades of alloy which are probably all kinds of toxic but the price difference is enough I'm curious to do a side by side.
>>98545204Ground Zero Games is a very solid company for metal 15mm stuff, but I was surprised to see their package actually has a warning to wash your hands after working with their minis. Not a big deal for me but you don't see that often.
>>98546345I think that’s just for legal reasons as companies have to assume everyone is a retard who is itching for a lawsuit payday so they have to put lots of warnings to avoid lawsuits.Just a guess that it spreading to miniatures.The medicine companies figured this one out in their commercials.
>>98523437I think part of them getting away with it is being from Poland. GW probably zoned in on Chapterhouse first because they are a UK based studio so GW could have an easier time getting lawyers because the company is UK based so they had more experience and knowhow to get the best UK based lawyers. That is just a guess. They still thankfully lost.GW probably would have gone on a "court crusade" if they won the ChapterHouse lawsuit. Thank goodness they didn't and their hypothetical plan got nipped in the bud.
>>98541542Is that company getting onto releasing more STLs of full models? I know they put out bits via their patreon but I think they are keeping their stuff mostly to resin models.Makes me want to learn 3D scanning tech as slavstuff could mean they get a rocket and then I won't get my truescale Warhammer 40k space marines anymore due to having no STL backups.
