What a day, what a glorious day

Okay, maybe not so glorious since I don't have much to show and tell, but I to get the Mad Max out of my system. Besides, it's an eye-catching title, innit?

Couple of items of note:

• Holy crap what a difference a brush can make
• Micron pens are my new best friend
• Airbrushes are a new experience

Brushes

I've been using synthetic hobby brushes you get with most paint sets and/or as part of a brand. Shite I say. They've been frustrating me no end. I went by Michaels the other day and picked up a pack of camel hair brushes and they are freaking amazing. Smooth as silk when painting, and the coverage difference is obvious. The paint actually flows, rather than just kind of transiting from brush to target. Much more control.

Micron Pens

You know those panel lines on the VT? How about the curves of the pods? Want a nice black line for both, giving more of an anime look to the model? These things are amazing. I'll try to get a pic of the before and after up by this weekend. Seriously though, amazing product. So happy right now.

Airbrush

I picked up a cheap (relatively) airbrush kit from Amazon. About $100 for the mini compressor and brush. I've managed to clog the thing and then confuse myself trying to reassemble it after taking it apart to clean it. I foresee a steep learning curve, but one that hopefully will culminate in better looking minis and faster.

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Aaaand that's it. Sorry folks - I work 9 hours a day M-Th with an hour total commute, so I don't get much time to paint / model. What time I do have I have to juggle with my other hobbies such as MMOs and marksmanship. On the other hand, with the change in experience the brushes have given me, my painting funk is working itself off so I feel confident I'll be giving the models more of a priority.

Locked and Mostly Loaded

The eagle has landed ... sort of.

This is my second week in my new location and I'm still unpacking. The good news is that all my paints and models are readily available. The bad news is that until I get the house squared away I won't really have a place to set up shop.

What I'll probably do is break out a handful of models over the weekend and do some basic work on them - base coat and what have you. Maybe put a few together (still have an entire other box of RRT waiting to be built, not to mention the extras from the KS).

So, that's the gist of it. I hope to be back up to regular updates by the end of the month. One thing I can guarantee is that it'll be back up before Wave 2 ships :P

Thanks for sticking around, and I'll see you in a couple of weeks (hopefully).

The Long Night

Hey folks! You may have noticed that the blog has been quiet for the past few months, and I figured I'd explain what's going on.

First, a disclaimer: this is a temporary situation that will likely be resolved by June. So no fears, Thundering Asteroids isn't going anywhere!

So, here's the deal - I'm a student at Virginia Tech working on a BS in Computer Science, and I graduate in May. As can be imagined, my life has been extremely hectic for the past several months as classes picked up and preparations started being made for moving.

Speaking of moving, I'll be moving to the Johnson City, TN area at the end of May to start a new position June 1st. This means that my models and supplies will probably be MIA until early June (hence the disclaimer date).

My goal is to get settled, get a feel for my daily schedule, and then picking back up on painting. I still have an entire core box to get through and all the extra sprues from the Kickstarter, so there's plenty to cover. One focus of my apartment search is going to be space for a workshop and dedicated game table, so there'll be material from those aspects as well - expect to see terrain being put together and the table taking shape.

If there's anything specific you'd like to see covered in the blog, please let me know. I have big plans myself, but I'm always open to ideas that I may not have thought about.

Tools of the Trade

Today I'm going to take a break from the models and talk about the tools I use. I'll try to point out which ones I think are essential, which ones aren't, and a rough cost estimate based on what I picked up.

Robotech RPG Tactics, more than any other game I've messed with to date, needs a good set of tools to get a good result.

The Workspace

First, naturally, is a well lit area to work with. This is true when working on any models, but with the 6mm scale and tiny pieces it becomes even more paramount that you have a clear view of what you're doing.

Clippers

Side cutters, clippers, shears, call 'em what you want - you need them. Trying to get a close and clean cut from the sprue using a hobby knife is next to impossible with RRT. Worse, trying to do so is quite likely to cause the smaller pieces to snap from the pressure. I'm currently using GW's product ( ~ $35 USD), but you can find adequate shears at Home Depot or other hardware store for much less.

Files

Files are usually a recommended tool, but not necessary for most people getting started with table top games. Typically the mold lines, which are what the files tend to be used for, can be handled relatively effectively with a hobby knife. Not so with RRT. Because of the tight sprues, even using shears won't get a clean cut even close to half the time. I won't say they are absolutely necessary, as someone very skilled with shears and hobby knives can probably handle the sprue nubs with just those tools, but I would place files in the "very, very strongly recommended" category.

I do not remember how much these cost me but I believe it was between $20 USD and $35 USD.

Dremel

I happen to have a Dremel. It is not by any means necessary for model work, but it certainly makes some things easier. In some areas it can replace files, but I still suggest picking those up for more finely controlled work. The model pictured is the Dremel 3000 which Walmart stocks for about $60 USD.

The one thing I use it for above all else is drilling holes for pinning and magnets. Theoretically the same work could be done with a pin vice (which is really a drill, go figure), but the magnet work would be harder due to the varying diameters. If you're going to magnetize, I do think a Dremel or other form of power drill is a necessity. The drill bits are about $9 at Walmart, but you can check Dremel's product page for locations near you (click the Buy Now button).

Dremel drill bits

Magnets! 1/4", 1/8", and 1/16" (6.4mm, 3.2mm, 1.6mm) diameter

Magification

Another non-essential. However, RRT is a game with tiny, tiny pieces to put on models (see Oh, Recon Pod for more on that). I find having a magnifying glass of some sort to be a great investment. I picked up a head mounter set of magnifying lenses at Michaels (local craft store), for about $30 USD. They provide 2x and 3x magnification (3x uses a flip down extra set of lenses), which is more than enough for putting the models together and for painting.

I also picked up a lamp that included a magnifying glass for when I really need the light on a piece I'm working on. In general the lamp is just a lamp and provides that good lighting mentioned earlier, but on occasion I use the lens. The lamp cost me about $40.

Putty

If you've put together any of the Veritech models, with possible exception for the fighter mode, you appreciate the pain of getting arms to line up for the two-handed GU-11 pose. I use cheap poster hanging putty from Walmart to hold pieces in place while I'm checking fits and positioning. The pack I got was less than $3 USD and well worth the investment in my opinion.

The Battle Is Won, The War Remains

I claim victory over the base box! It took a few days because classes started and I've only had a couple of hours a night to work on finishing the pods and getting the VTs finished up.

So, without further ado, the madness:

VF-1J Squad Leader, in an almost-3-point-landing dynamic pose

VF-1A : Ready Right!

VF-1A : Ready Center!

VF-1A : Ready Left!

Area Denial Squadron

UEDF Forces - not the best picture

Zentraedi Armada ... ish.

Raawr!

I'm gonna get you!

Marathon man.

Overall Thoughts

First off, yes, the pieces are tiny. Part of that is poor engineering on the part of the model designers, but part of it is also the scale - 6mm is much smaller than the 28mm heroic most people are familiar with. The fact that the primary models are about as large as tradition 28mm minis is besides the point - there's going to be some extremely fiddly bits.

Seams - they do exist (see the multi-piece gripes later), but they're not as bad as was feared. They will take a little work to address, but much of it will be handled with a good gap filling glue.

Tight sprues - the sprues are extremely tight, to the point that some pieces cannot be removed with side cutters unless you pare away the surrounding sprue.

I've discussed my issues with the VTs before, so I'm only going to recap, not rehash. The number one issue is bisectional pieces. There's no need for the legs or arms of the VTs to be multiple pieces. Beyond that issue is really just a matter of design - a lot of the pieces don't really "lock" together as the minis of more seasoned miniature games do, which can make getting things lined up right a problem. Having the swoosh flight stands for the fighters connect to the GU-11 pods and only providing a groove is asking for problems. The swooshes for the Guardian modes make the Guardians too crowded - it looks bad and would be a pain to try and paint.

The destroids (Tomahawk and Defender, at the moment) suffer much the same issue with multi-piece parts that the VTs do. However, I do feel they go together better over all. Not as many options as the VTs so they're much more plug-n-chug. They do, however, suffer from weak hip joints and I had to pin one of the Tomahawks legs.

The battle pods (Regults) go together amazingly well - I have no issue with them at all.

The officer pods (Gluags) have the multi-piece parts issue on the arm cannons. I can see the front plate being separate, but I don't see the need for the arms themselves to be split as they are - maybe make the forearms one piece and the shoulder/bicep assembly another? Beyond that, however, I found the Gluag to have weak hip joints that my or may not require pinning.

The recon pod (Quel-Regult) was the biggest pain next to the VTs, and possibly more of a pain since once you know what you're doing with the VTs they're not too terrible. The issue is that the pod has a plethora of tiny, tiny pieces. Seriously, I sighed at one point and sent the pieces flying across the table - they are that tiny and light. It's very common for the pieces to snap when removing them from the sprue. It also required manually trimming one particular piece by a substantial amount.

The recovery pod was pretty straight forward. Just need to watch out for mold lines on the larger pieces. Then again, I don't foresee the recovery pod being used that much in game.

Final Thoughts

I have to admit this was one of the more challenging builds I've done. It's somewhat painful, but in the end I like the result, so I think its worth it. That said, holy crap all that plastic really reduces to just a relative handful of models.

What's Next

Well, painting, obviously. That's the task I'll be starting this weekend. After that, there's the additional material for the core box that was added by the kickstarter - artillery pods, phalanxes, and spartans. Then I get to do it all over again because I'm a masochist and picked up a showdown!

Oh, Recon Pod ...

Got this fella put together tonight and, I gotta say, I see where people are complaining. There's a lot of fiddly bits on this model, and they are really, really tiny.

First up, the prep shot. You can see the really egregious items to the right between the back plate and the right leg. If you look closely, you'll see a tiny speck at the top of that mass of tiny specks - that's an antenna that goes on the face. It snapped clean with only minor pressure to the surrounding sprue - I hadn't even attempted to cut that piece out yet! A little glue and a magnifying glass went a long way to correcting the issue, but it's ridiculous that it's necessary. Apparently it's a common issue. Recon Pod is now my 2nd most hated model, trailing close behind the Veritech battloid.

Prep shot

Some sub-assembly done.

To make matters worse, the antenna assembly on the upper right of the model's face (upper left in the photo) has to be manually trimmed in order to fit properly in its slot. Sorry, "trim" might as well be a euphemism - I hacked that SOB down to about half its original size.

The painful assemblies done.

Ta-da!

After this guy I started assembly-lining six more pods, but ran out of time as classes start in the morning. My goal is to get all nine remaining pods finished by Friday so I can spend the weekend painting.

Say hello to my little friends

Gluag and Friends

First up, I cheated a bit. The three Regults were put together off-screen, around the time I first started putting the VTs together. I needed a palate cleanser after that wonderful journey ...

Anyway, the Armada so far is 1 Glaug, 1 Recovery pod, and 3 Regults. I only really documented the Gluag, and that was just the set up and final product.

Prep was fairly straight forward, although the fact that the Gluag and Recon pod share a sprue and said sprue is pretty well intermixed made it a little interesting. Nothing a quick parts check on the build instructions couldn't fix, though.

The parts, mostly separated, ready to go.

And the final product:

All your protoculture

My thoughts on the Gluag

The Gluag was a fairly straight forward build, at least partially due to its size. That said, the larger parts means that mold lines are much more noticeable - definitely glad I picked up a file set.

The two major issues I had with the model were 1) the thrusters on the back are connected to the sprue in such a way that is more or less impossible to detach them without obliterating detail and 2) thin joints. Both the legs and the arms have a relatively small surface area for bonding, which makes me concerned about them staying on the model. Well, if they pop off, I'll pin them. Until then, screw it.

The Recovery Pod

The Recovery pod is just about the most simplistic design in the box. Not a lot of pieces, and the pieces are large with only a couple of exceptions. Again, though, the larger model and pieces means the mold lines were much more prominent - most of my prep time with this guy was filing.

Are belong

Harpo, Groucho, and Chico

Ah, the Marx brothers. These three pods were put together in an effort to prevent me from putting the single VT (all three modes) I was working on through the wall. Great palate cleanser.I have no real issues with the Regults and they go together like a dream.

To us!

Add caption

That's it for the weekend. I feel accomplished, and yet not so much. Two days and I only got 21 models put together (23.5 if you count the almost finished fifth VT that I screwed up). Oh well. It's a learning experience with these little guys since I'm used to 28mm, and this is my first time trying to blog my progress. So, as with anything, they'll both speed up with practice.