While the summertime meant mama-time over dungeon-time, things are finally falling into place for fall. And this blog has been too-long neglected, especially considering the amount of raw data that I've been accumulating even as I've been failing to post.
In the coming days and weeks, I'll be posting many of the papercraft gaming models I've been finding, admiring, buying, printing, cutting, folding, gluing, and even occassionally using ;)
I'll also be reviewing a few of the many excellent resources (digitally and in print) I've discovered for gamers and game-masters, beginners, kids, and old grumps. :P
But for tonight, where it's still Monday somewhere, I'll be talking about an impulse buy that has turned into an impulse collection... with perhaps no end in sight.
For Mini Mondays, let me present:
duh duh DAH!
HeroClix
[now let me take a few minutes to clean up and post some pictures, please :) ]
Well, he was also a gateway mini, and after the disappointments I've suffered with the hit-and-miss quality of WizKids' Pathfinder Minis releases, I found the prospect of HeroClix _very_ appealing.
Buying from the bargain bin allows me to see what I'm getting and therefore get what I like, pay little for it, and keep or convert as needed.
I plan on rebasing them gradually, touching up a few spots where the brush went awry or the colours need adjusting for my needs, and only altering a couple more drastically. Mini-painting is another entirely new experience for me, so I'll go slow, do as little as possible, and only experiment on the cheapest, most disposable ones until I'm feeling more confident.
Over the course of a month or two, I bought 34 bargain-bin HeroClix for $22.75, or $0.67/mini on average; 7 for $0.25 each, 11 for $0.50 each, 2 for $0.75 each, 14 for $1.00 each. Roughly a third need no conversion, another third only light modification, and the remainder some, none (saving 2-3 recognizable superheroes for my boys later on), or completely (cut up for parts).
Pros: No Surprises, Cheaper, Generally better paint jobs than I've found with the Pathfinder Minis.
Cons: Need for re-basing for best results, Not Pathfinder-specific,
Break-even points: slightly larger scale than most RPG minis.
Sorry, I'll have to add more more details and photos later. Looking over my stash, and my records, this got more involved than I'd planned.
Today's big news was supposed to be that I'd found HeroClix Marvel Classics and DC Classics 3-packs at my favourite local "dollar" store for $2.50 apiece. Savings of 75%, my sons will get to play with recognizable superheroes (or it'll be up to me to run a superhero campaign sooner rather than later), and one or two will have life outside comic-book settings. Commissioner Gordon looks like he'd be great as an aging pulp detective ;D
