Horus Heresy Mechanicum Battle Group & Plastification

[Doobles57]

My box arrived a day early so cracked it open this morning. Thought I'd start easy with the Tech Thralls. I really like the sculpts, BUT over a dozen parts for a 3 point model you'll potentially be running 20-40 or more of? Just feels a bit overdesigned.

[01RTB01]

 

My box arrived a day early so cracked it open this morning. Thought I'd start easy with the Tech Thralls. I really like the sculpts, BUT over a dozen parts for a 3 point model you'll potentially be running 20-40 or more of? Just feels a bit overdesigned.

Mine was dispatched yesterday. Over 12 parts per model is bonkers, I was thankful that the clanrats in skaventide were 2 part minis. I can't imagine there's that much variation with the tech thralls for them to have that many parts?

[Doobles57]

 

Mine was dispatched yesterday. Over 12 parts per model is bonkers, I was thankful that the clanrats in skaventide were 2 part minis. I can't imagine there's that much variation with the tech thralls for them to have that many parts?

Nope. And other than a choice of limp left arm and face plate, they're essentially monopose. Getting through them is going to be a slog.

[Orion]

 

Mine was dispatched yesterday. Over 12 parts per model is bonkers, I was thankful that the clanrats in skaventide were 2 part minis. I can't imagine there's that much variation with the tech thralls for them to have that many parts?

There'd still be a logical conclusion to them having that many parts.

Likely just complex shapes. 

[Mandragola]

 

There'd still be a logical conclusion to them having that many parts.

Likely just complex shapes. 

That'll be the reason, but it's an odd reason. They re-designed tech thralls and could have made them less complex. This is a choice and it's hard to justify, in my opinion. The skaven are an interesting example of another way this can be done, producing models that are just as detailed, more dynamic (fair enough, these are zombies) and two pieces instead of 12.

 

It's also notable that thralls have more parts than Mk3 or 6 Legionaries. They've gone to great lengths to make vehicles and dreadnoughts perfectly match the resin versions but not the infantry. Actually I like the balance between detail and speed of building they've found with the infantry. I don't know why they didn't follow that approach with thralls.

[No Foes Remain]

It's the same with the Solar Auxilia riflemen, legs are two piece (two are three-piece), chest is two, arms are a pair, head, two shoulder pads and the air recycler. I get they want the details but as Mandrogola said, the Legion bodies are far more compact.

[Zoatibix]

Twelve is bonkers! I was assuming six or seven. 

[Doobles57]

 

It's the same with the Solar Auxilia riflemen, legs are two piece (two are three-piece), chest is two, arms are a pair, head, two shoulder pads and the air recycler. I get they want the details but as Mandrogola said, the Legion bodies are far more compact.

I didn't mind the SA infantry as much. All the torsos are the same so any arms can go on any body and any body on any legs. There's a lot of parts but you can production line 20 of them fairly easily. 

 

In contrast, the Thralls are all monopose, so they kind of have to built one at a time. Which makes them more of a chore.

[Corswain]

Thralls being a bit fiddly seems to be the prevailing opinion. Also seen some criticism of the castellax but I enjoy actually building models so not too worried.

Mine are set to arrive Monday but, sadly, don't think I will have a chance to do anything with them for two weeks.

[Orion]

 

That'll be the reason, but it's an odd reason. They re-designed tech thralls and could have made them less complex. This is a choice and it's hard to justify, in my opinion. The skaven are an interesting example of another way this can be done, producing models that are just as detailed, more dynamic (fair enough, these are zombies) and two pieces instead of 12.

 

It's also notable that thralls have more parts than Mk3 or 6 Legionaries. They've gone to great lengths to make vehicles and dreadnoughts perfectly match the resin versions but not the infantry. Actually I like the balance between detail and speed of building they've found with the infantry. I don't know why they didn't follow that approach with thralls.

 

I'll always prefer detail over simplicity.

Big fan of nerding out over complex resin minis that I get a nervous twitch when people want models simplified.

Especially when it looks like a pretty good translation here.

[WrathOfTheLion]

 

 

I'll always prefer detail over simplicity.

Big fan of nerding out over complex resin minis that I get a nervous twitch when people want models simplified.

Especially when it looks like a pretty good translation here.

They've done a pretty good translation for all the kits, to the best that the new medium allows for you.

[Orion]

 

They've done a pretty good translation for all the kits, to the best that the new medium allows for you.

Yeah, Heresy has been pretty good with it.

The only one I think they really stumbled on was the Veletaris. 

And a few little things like not being able to pose the Deredeo. (but I'm not sure the easy way around that.)

[Doobles57]

 

 

I'll always prefer detail over simplicity.

Big fan of nerding out over complex resin minis that I get a nervous twitch when people want models simplified.

Especially when it looks like a pretty good translation here.

Fully agree that detail is a good thing (although if you're painting 40+ of something I'd like detail that's easy to paint via washes, drybrush etc). And more parts can translate to easier conversions. Or at least it used to. Now we have things like this where the 5 different parts contribute to the models belt. I get the mechanical reasons for sprues to be cut like this, but it can make for some tedious builds on things which you're expecting to need 20-40 or more of and are worth 3 points each.

[Doghouse]

Just got mine and have to agree with a lot of people in this thread. I think the thing with GW sculptors is that they are trying to be too clever with their sculpts and not taking into account just how many you have to assemble.

 

While I prefer the old system for multipart models I think the idea is that if a new starter actually manages to summon the patience to get through the models they have a fairly cinematic monopose for them. As opposed to the old system where you had far greater freedom to build as you wanted but modelers may misalign parts or place them in un-natural or unintended ways creating something that was not what the designers had envisioned. Basically the end result is what you see on all the marketing and box lids with a far lower skill entry point.

 

It's more of looking through the lens of art and marketing rather than actual practicality.

 

Having said that it does offer lots of interesting parts for conversions and they are fairly nice models but I have doubts about whether I want to make Mechanicum allies now. Might convert them into mind slave militia or something.

[Trokair]

On a slightly different track, looking at the instruction for the Train it looks like it will go together really neatly.

[Corswain]

Got mine today and they are some of the most complicated models I have ever built. I said I enjoy building earlier and I stand by it but I can definitely see why it's putting some people off - Gave it an hour and a half and I haven't even finished my first Castellax.

[Marshal Rohr]

 

Got mine today and they are some of the most complicated models I have ever built. I said I enjoy building earlier and I stand by it but I can definitely see why it's putting some people off - Gave it an hour and a half and I haven't even finished my first Castellax.

Me sowing: resins not that bad, going to plastic won’t be any worse

 

Me reaping: if I have to assemble on more articulated leg I’m going to walk into traffic 

[Fire Golem]

Having looked at the sprues in my box, I definitely don’t think I’ll be getting any more Thralls past the ones in here. 12+ pieces for a 3 pt model is pretty wild. 

[01RTB01]

My box arrives today ripe for looting. I have to say, you've ramped up my anticipation to zero lol. Thank folks lol.

[Scribe]

 

Me sowing: resins not that bad, going to plastic won’t be any worse

 

Me reaping: if I have to assemble on more articulated leg I’m going to walk into traffic 

 

The number of modern kits I've started, and said "no, no more" to, is very high.

 

I despise the jigsaw puzzle. 

[Magos Takatus]

I'm typing here because I built three thralls and now I need a break. Thrall number three was a disaster. The legs and torso just didn't seem to want to go together in any sensible manner and though I eventually got the model into one piece it must have taken me about 15 minutes just to get three pieces to play nice. I had to stick them to the base just to get the parts to hold together and even then the feet aren't quite flat.  I'm not some clumsy newbie, I've been doing this since the early nineties. God forbid this is somebody's first kit to put together.

It doesn't help that each one is assembled slightly differently (one is a whole torso and legs apart from two separated legs from below the knees, another is two legs joined together than fitted to the rest of the body), it means it's harder to settle into a rhythm like older models with more predictable component layouts. 

 

They do look lovely when put together, so there is that. 

[Zoatibix]

They don’t look that much more detailed than my GSC Neophyte or Hybrid models, so it’s puzzling that these are in so many parts. 

[Marshal Rohr]

 

I'm typing here because I built three thralls and now I need a break. Thrall number three was a disaster. The legs and torso just didn't seem to want to go together in any sensible manner and though I eventually got the model into one piece it must have taken me about 15 minutes just to get three pieces to play nice. I had to stick them to the base just to get the parts to hold together and even then the feet aren't quite flat.  I'm not some clumsy newbie, I've been doing this since the early nineties. God forbid this is somebody's first kit to put together.

It doesn't help that each one is assembled slightly differently (one is a whole torso and legs apart from two separated legs from below the knees, another is two legs joined together than fitted to the rest of the body), it means it's harder to settle into a rhythm like older models with more predictable component layouts. 

 

They do look lovely when put together, so there is that. 

I cut all the of the same pose of each sprue. So instead of building models A B C D E I build A A A A A. It cut down on errors with the Solar aux significantly. Build the bodies and then shuffle the arms “down” so A-A A-B A-C A-D A-E etc 

[WrathOfTheLion]

 

 

The number of modern kits I've started, and said "no, no more" to, is very high.

 

I despise the jigsaw puzzle. 

The Heresy ones aren't quite a jigsaw in the way the modern mainline studio kits are, but like with a solar auxilia troop, there's a resin aesthetic they're attempting to replicate. Especially with infantry, there is a very stark difference in what can be represented in the medium. So basically, there's more pieces, but there's not quite the same reasoning for getting there as most modern kits, as they're essentially trying to 1:1 match a previously resin cast kit with a plastic kit (hence why the sicaran, etc. have lots of pieces).

 

As the person who designed the SA mentioned, a literal 1:1 would've had that at ~40 parts per infantry, so even simplifying aesthetics down leaves it at like 10+ parts. We can extrapolate that somewhat to the mechanicum kits. Sculpts that were simply two or three pieces in a FW resin mold can be very complicated to replicate in plastic.

Edited August 19 by WrathOfTheLion

[Magos Takatus]

The part that frustrated me is that most GW plastic kits have a very obvious "feeling" when the part is in place, the two pieces just click together and it makes dry fitting easy. Some of the leg-to-leg and leg-to-body connections on these borgymen seem to completely fail in this regard and you have to skip to the next step and insert a piece in at the waist hoping it will support the pieces that were supposed to be glued in the previous stage.  It makes me yearn for the days of an obvious peg to plug one part into another.