Salute 2014: Scenery Companies

I know, I know. I have a scenery problem. So, whose stuff did I see this Salute around?

First up are some new pieces by Antenocitis Workshop, which aren't for sale just yet. This one is interesting, because Antenocitis Workshop are currently dropping some of their "Governance of Technology" range. They seem to be moving towards designing things for other people, like Mantic and Infinity. They are going for the laser cut MDF, but adding to that with resin accessories to add extra detailing. That's a really smart move, because the risk of the MDF is that it can be obviously large, flat areas, and the greebles add to the look.

This is a piece that was on Oshiro Model Terrain's stall. This is actually a mix of scratch built and Games Workshop pieces. I loved the overly tall and thin look to it. Most of Oshiro's non commission stuff is either Japanese or Victorian right now, so would be a good choice for Malifaux stuff.

This was a board from 4Ground, who do pre-painted, easy assemble MDF stuff. Previously, I wasn't too interested in their WWII stuff, but they're starting to stray into areas that I find interesting. The magic words "pre-painted" also help!

I only got a quick shot of these at the time, because my darling wife threatened me quite a lot when she saw me getting distracted by MDF terrain. That then meant I needed to do a teensy bit of detective work, looking at whose stalls were between the photos on either side of this one! So, it turns out that the stall belonged to Minibits, who are actually a retailer. The MDF is by a company called Wargame Model Mods. I have seen these before (I suspect Tabletop Fix of being responsible for that). The stuff is a bit hit and miss - some I really love, other bits I couldn't care less for. But that's all down to taste, I suppose.

This board was intended as a display board for Bandua's Infinity terrain. You may remember I've already picked up a few of their shipping containers, and I may be back later depending on how the assembly of them goes.

The sign is not a mistake. Wargames Tournaments were selling all that scenery for £50. That is a lot of terrain for your money. So much, in fact, that Sim bought it. Yup. She of the "dragging me away from laser cut terrain only twenty minutes earlier" bought it on the spot when I was holding back on getting it because I was wanting to see what other stalls had before I committed.

I foresee some skirmish games in our future - quite possibly Necromunda...

Sarissa Precision were showing off some railway arches that they are going to be releasing soon. I remain a massive fan of Sarissa, but I still have such a backlog of their stuff, I didn't pick up any more this year!

More Sarissa buildings...

So, who did I abjectly fail to get photos of on the scenery front? Fenris Games do miniatures as well, but it's their scenery that interests me. Their "Arkham Avenue" range is just amazing, and I really want a Griffin House at some point. I also have all the time in the world for Tablescape, whose pre-painted stuff is the saviour of most of my current model pictures.

Sa-lewt 2013: Return Of the Shopping

As promised, here is a post listing my purchases from this year's Salute, in a similar vein to last year's post.

I feel I should confess my "get things finished from last year's Salute" failed abysmally, and I didn't even finish the Mayan. Still, I intend to get him done eventually...

My blogging has come a long way since this time last year, so this time, you get pictures!

So, it being Salute, there was a free figure...

This year, it is Jason, as in "Jason and the Argonauts". It's a nice plastic cast with an alternative hand (holding a hydra head or a shield), and maybe this one will actually get painted in time for the competition next year.

I had pre-ordered Imperial Armour Volume One: Second Edition, so I could look at all the pretty pictures of the tanks.

I intend to do a bit of a review / ideas post when I've done more than scan read it. It is a weighty, pretty tome that I am spending a lot of time gazing at adoringly.

I also picked up some etched brass for some friends who are involved in a 40K LARP and who wanted some more symbols to convert their Nerf guns with.

Despite my incredibly slow painting speed, I am getting more confident, so I decided it was time for me to invest in my first Studio McVey piece. After a bit of umming and ahhing, Mike warned me that Ruby was starting to run low, so I decided to buy her. My darling wife had been trying to persuade me to get Zeeona, as I have a tendency to darker colours in my painting and I should do something out my comfort zone. I'm feeling reasonably out of my comfort zone with a cowgirl riding a dinosaur, but I do take her point about brighter colours - I should find something along those lines to try out...

It isn't as impressive as the finished model...

I hadn't been planning to get many more minatures, but I may have kind of slipped a little bit when chatting with the chap responsible for Arcworlde - who runs Warploque Miniatures. He is still at University, but is planning his first Kickstarter.

I picked up a little swamp critter of some kind and an elf war chief. They were good value for money, excellent and different sculpts, and I'm really interested to see how his rules beta testing goes.

Then, we hit the 'big' purchases... My main objective this weekend was to improve the stock and quality of my available terrain.

Given that I already have a painting backlog that stretches back years, I was heavily drawn to Tablescape. They do good quality, reasonably priced terrain that most importantly for me comes pre-painted. Money spent, and no additions to the backlog!

This stuff is ridiculously good value. The industrial stuff, shipping containers, crates and barricades all came to less than £100. Here's a top down shot so you can see how much of a footprint this stuff has.

The chap who makes this has also thought it through - all the terrain is done to either be at chest height for a 28mm figure, or much taller than them, to cut down on the potential for arguments. Well done, robust and affordable. I can't sing their praises enough.

Finally, with time ticking down, we headed over to Sarissa Precision to spend my remaining money. With a little bit of chatting, I picked up five buildings in total (and Sim saw one she had to have, also pictured).

I also put some money in the tin for Goblin Aid - which is something very close to my heart for a variety of reasons. I look forward to the goblins being finalised and made available, as I will be putting some serious money down when they are all done.

Anyway, this is enough of me wallowing in materialism! I'll leave you with a different angle of the awesome Tablescape scenery.