How I got into tabletop wargaming and how you can, too (Polygon)

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Want to get away from the screen and paint some minis? Here’s how.

[Slug]

Fun read.  I like miniature war gaming, but I don't like the time and money investment.  I'm a war-gaming leech.  I'm the guy that goes to cons just to play other folks' war-games that they lovingly sunk all their free hours and cash into acquiring, building, and setting up. 

 

Plus I hate painting minis.  Even though my minis turn out nice, I find the process tedious and it makes my neck hurt.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

9 hours ago, Slug said:

Plus I hate painting minis.  Even though my minis turn out nice, I find the process tedious and it makes my neck hurt.

I once asked an FFG rep if they'd ever consider selling a pre-painted Legion set and he said that they briefly thought about it and dropped the idea because they would have to charge the customer at least twice the amount of the unpainted set.  I suggested that perhaps they could offer it as "custom order" option rather than as a standard offering and he said that it was something he'd take back to management as a suggestion.

[Kal-El814]

31 minutes ago, SFLUFAN said:

I once asked an FFG rep if they'd ever consider selling a pre-painted Legion set and he said that they briefly thought about it and dropped the idea because they would have to charge the customer at least twice the amount of the unpainted set.  I suggested that perhaps they could offer it as "custom order" option rather than as a standard offering and he said that it was something he'd take back to management as a suggestion.

It's kinda weird. I think their X-Wing and Armada prepainted minis are really sharp, overall. There's a periodic dud and quibbles about perfect screen accuracy but in general I think they're a good cost /m quality ratio at MSRP.

 

Then you look at their Arkham Horror prepainted line and it's... let's just say not great?

 

 

I know that's a much older series than current X-Wing (if nothing else, FFG's sculpts have gotten MUCH better in the last 5 years) and they haven't painted new minis in this line for a while. And that guy alone costs $6.99 which is really cheap compared to what you'd likely pay for a commissioned mini. But uh... I'd expect that most people wouldn't buy a full squad of anything that came out like that, so... again, it's kinda weird.

[Jason]

1 hour ago, Kal-El814 said:

It's kinda weird. I think their X-Wing and Armada prepainted minis are really sharp, overall. There's a periodic dud and quibbles about perfect screen accuracy but in general I think they're a good cost /m quality ratio at MSRP.

 

Then you look at their Arkham Horror prepainted line and it's... let's just say not great?

 

 

I know that's a much older series than current X-Wing (if nothing else, FFG's sculpts have gotten MUCH better in the last 5 years) and they haven't painted new minis in this line for a while. And that guy alone costs $6.99 which is really cheap compared to what you'd likely pay for a commissioned mini. But uh... I'd expect that most people wouldn't buy a full squad of anything that came out like that, so... again, it's kinda weird.

 

Could you post a picture of what a better-painted example of that would look like? It's hard to assess not knowing what it should look like.

[DemonEyesJason]

2 hours ago, SFLUFAN said:

I once asked an FFG rep if they'd ever consider selling a pre-painted Legion set and he said that they briefly thought about it and dropped the idea because they would have to charge the customer at least twice the amount of the unpainted set.  I suggested that perhaps they could offer it as "custom order" option rather than as a standard offering and he said that it was something he'd take back to management as a suggestion.

Important thing to point out is depending on your store, you may have a guy there that loves painting and does commissions and does it not for an large amount of money.  I know some people paint for the fun of it and will paint people's stuff for the stuff you provide them so long as nothing comes out of their pocket.  They just want stuff to paint without having to spend money.  Otherwise, I'm sure commission painters rates vary.

 

Problem is from what I've seen from prepainted stuff, the quality always lacks and the cost to get it done right probably would cost the customer almost double.

[Kal-El814]

2 hours ago, Jason said:

Could you post a picture of what a better-painted example of that would look like? It's hard to assess not knowing what it should look like.

I can't find a decent pic of that one done up by someone that did a better job. I'll see if I can find an example of what I mean. In general though, there's just not a lot of shading or highlight work on the figure, especially the red and purple bits. It's absolutely not bad but it's in a weird spot where most of it is just base coated.

[Alpha1Cowboy]

I am so damn close(maybe another month or two) to getting this home remodel done..and then I'll have the entire basement to myself to set up for board and wargaming and painting.