Kore Thinking, which scored Kickstarter successes with its first 3D vehicle miniature ‘The Kore Aeronautics LARC; a VTOL for 32mm Sci-Fi Wargaming’, has headed back to the crowdfunding site with a new project to bring high-quality Miniatures to the Gaming table. Using innovative Marketing, superb 3d sculpting and 21st Century tech! Kore Automotive has Launched its second Kickstarter aiming squarely at the Wargame market with a range of Cars are modelled in 32mm scale and fit beautifully with a range of Tabletop and Wargames miniatures.

Tabletop Cars - 32mm -- Kicktraq MiniKore Projects aim is to provide the funding for the production of SUV, Saloon Car, 4×4 Pickup, Classic Taxi, Muscle car,  through a Kickstarter campaign that has currently  (at time of writing) attracted £2,156 pledged of £500 goal with 8 days to go.  Blasting past what Kore was initially, looking for £500 to enable them to begin production of the first of our Kickstarter Vehicles the Family Saloon car!

3d Master Print of SaloonThe difference with this Kickstarter is that Kore has some of the 3D printed Masters for the initial designs which means that initial production is already along its path and Kore can make alterations. A spokesperson for Kore was quoted as saying that, ‘The Masters are already with us, and we are delighted with the quality – the following photos don’t show the wheels or wing mirrors, as we only have 1 set of Masters to use and don’t want to go gluing them in until after we have lifted Moulds from them.

Saloon Car 3d RenderOne has to say from the initial look the cars do not seem to pack much detail, however, what they do show that the product is exactly what you would expect and that is a 32mm scale vehicle and with enough detail to make it useable. One rather suspects that with the inundation of overworked 3d models out there one gets used to thinking in those terms rather than appreciating that this is exactly what the model should look like and that it is in a scale that works for gamers on the table.

So the Pledges and what you get.

Well, the Kickstarter has funded four designs funded, it so one should look at the pledges and what Kore are offering.

Pledge levels
We are keeping this Kickstarter as simple as possible! (This is a smart move as it keeps the project simple and allows those not familiar with Kickstarter an easy understanding, (However that is another bugbear and argument.Ed))
There are 3 Pledge levels;
1st Gear Pledge Level1st Gear Pledge Level
For the 1st Gear Pledge Level you can select any 1 Vehicle of your choice from all that we fund!
2nd Gear Pledge Level2nd Gear Pledge Level
For the 2nd Gear Pledge Level you can select any 2 Vehicles of your choice from all that we fund!
Top Gear Pledge LevelTop Gear Pledge Level

The pledge options also allow Pledges of expanding – you can pledge for as many Vehicles as you like, at any quantity and variation you like.  Simply add +£10 per design you want after the first 3.
I.e. you’d like 2 x Saloons and 2 x SUV’s, simply take the £30 Pledge and add +£10.  Do you want 6 x Luxury 4×4’s? Select the £30 pledge and add +£30, and so forth.

3D Printing

As you can see from the picture of the SUV and the pipework that goes into its creation, 3D printing is not something that is easy to set up and get into mass production, the models require extra work cleaning up after printing with the post-production, cutting, grinding, sanding and smoothing out before anyone can even think of creating masters from resin or other production means. Yet the company has taken this into account and are keeping this project manageable.

Thoughts and Scale Creep

While there are many Sci-Fi models to go with the 28-32mm figures, they have a tendency to be expensive and the selection is limited, and yet, however, dinky or toy cars are made in a variety of scales and as many a gamer has seen can be bought cheaply. The problem is that a 28mm/32mm figure is not a correct model scale of a person, however, many modern figures have an odd proportion, with an extra bulk and larger head size. A 1:60 scale is correct or near enough for a 28mm miniature, yet as discussed it looks odd. 1:43, after all, looks right but is not quite correct, and even though the height scale might be correct on the table, they look odd.

The biggest issue with most models with regards tabletop gaming is that with scale creep and variance in model sizes vehicles usually do not fit properly or look disproportionate, however from the scale picture to the left you can see that these really do fit in regards most models and for anyone running skirmish level modern warfare or post-apocalyptic games at 28-32mm then these vehicles are going to fit very nicely.

So what can we see with this particular Kickstarter, well while one will admit this is not Nottingham, though just a little outside and was asked as one of the Games Club Members is backing and mentioned that it would be worth taking a look. Well, I can see a lot of people taking a serious look at the project as the prices and options are very tempting. The range of vehicles is also reasonable and cover the widest range of options for such a small number of options. The taxi is very cool and could fit into many games Inc. Pulp action and Sci-fi, while the Pick-up truck can easily be found in games of ‘The Walking Dead’ or modern skirmish games like Middle Eastern wars, or Post-apocalyptic games. The muscle cars could work nicely for a more street racing style of game or just lined up as scenery along a road.

This is a Kickstarter that is both practical and useful, of use rather than a vanity project.

 

While Nottingham may be the Spiritual Home of tabletop gaming in the UK, Alex J Huntley is it seems to help to cement this image by helping put Nottingham on the map again internationally in both gaming and with his model making business by teaming up with Nottingham Trent University to develop and run an exciting model-making Courses. The course aims to teach you the skills to make dynamic figures that will stretch your creativity.

Image result for nottingham trent university

Model Sculpting Course

Saturdays 10 am – 4 pm, two weeks
Indicative maximum class size: 14
Nottingham has an excellent reputation in the war game and fantasy model making industries, and at NTU we are pleased to announce a repeat of this unique two-day course for enthusiasts who wish to immerse themselves in this world.
Course Code; CSCFMM
Course Dates; 28th October 2017 – 4th November 2017
Course Fee; £180.00
Course Description;  Led by Alex Huntley of Warploque Miniatures, one of the UK’s most exciting model-making companies, the course will teach you the skills to make dynamic figures that will stretch your creativity.
Over the two days, you will focus on superheroes, bizarre animals or any other creature of your imagination. The course is completely practical, so you’ll be engaging with a hands-on project from the start.
This course is open to anyone aged 16 and above.
On this course you will:
•build a simple armature
•sketch in plasticine
•sculpt in fast-drying materials
•turn a 2D design into a 3D piece of art.
What will you gain?
By the end of the two days you will have a model to take home to continue painting, and the knowledge of how to create more. The course will also introduce you to the techniques used to produce miniatures for resin and metal casting reproduction.
This course is ideal if you are interested in the war game and model making industries.
You might already have a concept you want to develop and are looking for advice and new skills, or you might want to create models purely for pleasure and your own games.

Email: creativeshortcourses@ntu.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0)115 848 2813

Warploque Miniatures website

This is or looks to be an interesting and exciting project and shows how tabletop games companies can be both generous with their knowledge and engage with the hobby on many levels. For those who don’t know, Alex Huntley is the owner, writer and sculptor of the highly successful  ArcWorlde, a 32mm fantasy wargaming miniatures for gamers, painters and collectors, which launched on Kickstarter in 2013. Their original goal of £5,000 was completely blasted alt textthrough and by the end of the campaign they had managed to raise a truly massive £57,019 in pledges,  A second run at Kickstarter Battle for Troll Bridge hitting £10,663, then finally the third instalment Trouble in the North raised a whopping £21,108. Helping to expand the World of ArcWorlde into new territories.

Originally a model maker as a child Alex Huntley started to show off his works via blogs and internet forums developing a loyal following. This was then proven with the number of people who both took up interest in his original Kickstarter and also actively spent time sharing details with everyone they knew, helping to blast past the pre planned Kickstarter pledges and see sudden changes in how he was running the campaign. yourself to keep going.

Of cause there is a multitude of model making and gaming companies out there and many would wonder about the necessity of further saturating the market with another, as we have seen several just recently collapse, like Spartan Games and and Tor, however that is not what this is really about and more about helping others develop skills to create something that at the very least help to create bespoke minis and models that appeal to the maker and at best see something that is edgy and less about mass market and more about what makes you want to buy because you really appreciate the miniature, something which captures the imagination.

So who will be going to such a course and why, well anyone who has ever gamed and thought I can do better, anyone who has looked at a miniature and felt I wish they made X model or just those who want to understand how to improve existing skills and develop or new comers who are eager to start their own dreams of being a miniature designer.

So what will you be looking at with the course, well at its core people will be introduced to the skills required for creating their own three-dimensional characters and bringing their ideas to life. through the process of making Image result for alex huntley miniature sculptingsketches and taking ideas from peoples heads and develop the model through the process of creating a wire armature out of wire, and then building up modelling putties to the finished component. Learning about the creative process, through practice and the experience of both the teacher and others.
Well if you are a budding miniature game designer and want to learn how to sculpt, an existing converter who wants to develop skills or new to the hobby and fancy developing then this is something that will appeal to a lot of readers.

#Warmongers #tabletopgamingnews #WhispersfromtheLeadBelt

Mini Gangs a new range and Venture from Ramshackle Games

About: Mini Gangs is a tabletop strategy game for ages 7 and up.

As
part of our premis we are constantly on th look out for new and
interesting developments in and around Nottinghamshire, and so we turn
our eyes to Ramshackle Games and there new game currently in
Development.

A new game is very much in development by
Ramshackle Games, and working under the title of Mini Games, a fun and
friendly tabletop miniature game that allows for quick style play games.
While the rules are still a little way off we are getting our first
quick look
at some of the models ranges for it.

 

Quote “I made this page as I want to have a page for Minigangs. As Im still
developing it I thought it might be fun to show some of the work from
“behind the scenes”. As I mentioned in my previous post Im writing rules
and sculpting figures. I took some images of the progress so far. To
make the models I use a wire armature and sculpt over the top with
ProCreate. I usually start with the feet and work up. As you can see,
some of the models are up to the neck, while some are still below the
waist! The white parts are plasticard. I will post up some images of the
plastic parts I make for the models too.”

 

Well another day another model! Some suggestions for names would be
great. This guy is the second of 4 in the Keychain Mohawks gang.

Lady Ironstrike. Her shield is a separate part, attached by a tab onto
the base stand. These images I’m posting up of these models are how they
will be going to the casters. Several have extra or alternate parts

Well another day another model! Some suggestions for names would be
great. This guy is the second of 4 in the Keychain Mohawks gang.

well as we can see their is a lot of interesting ideas and variety with each gang having both a theme and dynamic pose. Yet the feel of a Steampunk vibe does run through the entire range.
Looking forward to seeing more.