Exclusive Preview: 6mm Super Heavies from Plasmablast

I'm lucky enough to be able to bring you another super 6mm exclusive preview now, this time of the as yet unseen Super Heavy tanks to accompany the developing Sci-Fi range over at Plasmablast Games.

The ever-gracious Marios Damoulianos over in Greece was kind enough to send me some pre-release samples of the new Super Heavy Tanks that will complement the available Progenitor and Orbital Combine vehicles, so I thought I'd share them with you all prior to their planned debut in approximately a months time.

As you can see above, in the company of their respective Heavy and Medium counterparts, these new vehicles are definitely impressive; truly 'super', and climbing towards the Ogre range of things, I think!

That is not to say, however, that they are crude or ugly in any way however, indeed, as you will be able to see in the photos in this post, the detail, interest and quality of these minis is second to none.

We can see below the two side by side, and the dimensions are immediately apparent, easily filling a 50x50mm square:

First up, let's take a look at each from the ground up, as it were, here the Orbital Combine version, perhaps a hover or GEV unit:

Each vehicle comes with separate weapons and utility turrets, in the case of this one, a main and subsidiary turret, along with two nifty missile launchers:

Its counterpart, a more conventional tracked type:

Its weapons fit, again a main and subsidiary, with in addition two rather cool gatling and missile combo types:

Let's see the Progenitor Super Heavy complete with the weapons in situ; a front view to give you an idea of the definition that you might expect from the production models when available - obviously these are advance copies, so according to Marios, might still be a little rough around the edges. (although I can't see where!)

I think the turrets and weapon-fits as such, whilst following on faithfully from some of the innovative designs already apparent from Plasmablast, might not be to everyones' taste, but being cast separately, could of course be mixed and matched as required:

In any event, whatever your preference, the proportions and balance of the individual turrets are spot-on, and they slide easily and sit comfortably into the pre-drilled mounting holes. As usual with Marios' work, there is no flash or venting remnants to dispose of, and whilst mould lines are apparent, I don't think they are particularly obtrusive.

Attention to detail is the key here, with every surface having had some thought applied to it; I believe Plasmablast have gone down the route of using 3D computer software for their initial designs, and this pays dividends in the overall appearance:

The Orbital Combine version has similar qualities, even down to the individual missile launch tube covers in the two smallest turrets. (Remember, all photos are 'clickable' for a close-up view.)

The only issue that did cause me some concern was the fact that when the main and subsidiary turrets are mounted together, the overhang from the main weapon systems on both vehicles means that when they are pointing forward, they rest directly on top of the fore-turret.

This serves to sadly obscure the smaller turret entirely, both losing a view of the excellent sculpting, and to some extent making the vehicle as a whole look slightly less realistic. (If you can use such a word in the case of such wonderful monsters!)

Of course this issue could be solved by some clever posing of the individual turrets when making them up; or even perhaps putting a small shim below the main turret to lift it up a little - but this would necessarily spoil the nice conformal fit that Marios has produced.

That one issue aside, these are great pieces of kit, and if you are disposed towards some serious firepower having a place on your table-top, then these will definitely fit the bill.

Finally, let's take a look at each model up against its smaller team members once more:

I've go to give Plasmablast top marks for continuity of vision in the depiction of these two factions, and think that it is great to see them making an effort to develop and widen their ranges - we all have our favourites from the established companies out there, but these additions can only serve to re-inforce that one weakness of almost all Wargamers -the need to add to the Lead Mountain!

I for one will be very happy to see these available in a month or so's time, and look forward to keeping an eye open for more from the company in future - If you are of similar mind, feel free to bombard Marios with demands for more of the same!

http://www.plasmablastgames.com/index.html

Small-Scale Sci-Fi: Plasmablast Games Review

I thought I'd do a quick run-through review of some recent acquisitions here at SteelonSand Towers, which in typical fashion crept in under the wire, and added metal to a project that was officially on hold....so much for good intentions!

The temptations in question were a couple of types from the new kid on the block in the 6mm Sci-Fi market, namely PlasmaBlast Games, run by Marios in Greece.

http://www.plasmablastgames.com/index.html

Now as ever, I need little excuse to feed the 'metal' habit, and to be honest, I didn't have a clear role or niche in mind when ordering these particular minis, although having got my hands on them, quite a few interesting possibilities have opened up.

As you can see above, I chose the Nizzlebat Light Grav Tank and Jagon Medium Grav Tank from the Orbital Combine, as well as the Barracuda Medium Tank and Spiderblade Light Assault Tank from the Progenitors.

Ordering was efficient and easy via the Plasmablast Website, and the choice of turrets available for the various vehicles meant you could tailor the order to suit your particular requirements; I went for the Infantry support version of both Barracuda and Spiderblade.

The order arrived within eight days direct from Greece, and was well packed in a strong cardboard box, the minis themselves being in the usual plastic ziploc baggies.

What was immediately noticeable was the quality of the casting of these models, with absolutely no flash being present, and the whole very clean and in proportion. Mold lines are visible, but are not obtrusive.

They are a little on the pricey side in comparison to similar from GZG or Brigade, but given the quality and the fresh and interesting design concepts on show, they are well worth the expenditure.

Plasmablast have some excellent photos of their product up on their website, including detailed images of all the various variants, so I won't duplicate their efforts here, merely show what I purchased in their 'naked', unpainted states, which should give any potential buyer a closer idea of what they will actually receive.

In turn then , the Nizzlebat and the Jagon:

Some beautiful, techie-looking lumps, bumps and protrusions, and a really unique looking design, make these a sure thing for depicting something suitably Alien and menacing. The Jagon turret, as with all the models, fits in nice and snugly, and is an intrinsic part of the model, rather than being just an afterthought, with a whacking great gun to boot!

(Remember, all shots on this page are clickable for an enlarged, Macro view)

From above, you can see the comparative sizes, the larger mini being around 24mm in hull length:

From behind, the superlative detailing is also apparent:

Moving on to the other two, the Spiderblade is on the left (Which is described on the website as a 'stripped down' version of the other), whilst the Barracuda is resplendent on the right with full-length steel skirts protecting and enclosing the running gear:

This is more apparent in the following photo, where you can see a side view; again the design concepts at work mean that you could choose a particular vehicle type for a particular role on your table top, an approach well explored by in particular, Brigade, and also effectively engineered here:

The rear view again gives you an idea of the size, here in the 25mm or so range:

Moving on then, I thought I'd throw in some comparison shots, and below we see the Barracuda up against the Wildebeest HQ APC, SF300-607b, from the SAC faction, a hefty counterpart if there ever was one:

I think it more than holds its own in the role of a medium to heavy tank, an appearance which is underlined when it is placed beside the German Thrall Hover Truck, SF300-310, also from Brigade:

I've been a little underwhelmed by the rather old-school Warsaw Pact feel of some of the MBTs from the recent Brigade Neo-Soviet releases, and have been considering these new contenders to make up part of just such a force, so here is the Barracuda up against the Kunitsa APC, SF300-1203:

Hmmm, certainly more on the medium side of things, I think, but a good, solid looking counterpart all round.

Of course, my initial approach to small-scale Sci-Fi was based around the use of Irregular's 2mm range, and in particular the cross-over potential of various scales of mini, but I must admit that the quality of this exciting new range has me wondering whether I ought to deploy some purely 6mm units too......is that a version of 'scale creep', I wonder.....

So finally, then, the Nizzlebat in the company of that old favourite, the 2mm IKSF28 two legged walker:

Not too badly out of scale, and again opens up the possibilities of some mixing and matching as the mood takes me - certainly I would heartily recommend investing in this new range of models, particularly as Marios expands it, and I for one, will probably continue to be tempted whilst I drift aimlessly toward yet another new project!