Last time I talked about what we can expect to see in the new Paradiso book. Most of the rules are now available for download at Corvus Belli and the book is out in the wild. I made the mistake of pre-ordering my copy from Maelstrom Games who are now in the process of implo-collapsing (get in touch with your bank or PayPal if you have any outstanding orders and want to get your money back) so I haven't received mine yet. I hear it's pretty neat and I can't wait to get into the nitty-gritty of the scenarios!
Today I want to talk about all the new miniatures though! There's been lots of cool stuff released so I won't go into detail about each and every one of the, but rather look at each batch as a whole.
August
In August the new Spec-Ops models were revealed, one for each faction. They come with two different head options and three loose weapons (Woo! Conversions, here I come!) each. They are all fairly non-flashy from a model perspective but try to embody the typical characteristics of their respective factions.
The Aleph Chandra Spec-Op.
The Ariadna Intel Spec-Op.
The Combined Army (Morat) Treitak Spec-Ops.
The Haqqislam Husam Spec-Ops.
The Nomad Vortex Spec-Ops.
The Pan-O Indigo Spec-Ops.
The Yu Jing Gui Feng Spec-Ops.
All in all a pretty cool looking bunch of guys! My favourite is probably the Gui Feng because of the slick mix of light and heavy armour (back spines!) and his suave "Chinese James Bond" look. The Ariadna and Haqqislam ones are really great looking as well. I definitely have a soft spot for the contemporary-ish look of those two factions. The ALEPH and Combined Army ones both look fine although none of them really jump out at me (the Treitak does look brutal though). I was a bit disappointed with both the Pan-O Indigo and the Nomad Vortex Spec-Ops. The Indigo because it simply looks a bit too much like a regular Fusilier and the Vortex because of the boring about-to-sit-down-on-the-loo pose and the teeny-tiny combirifle. I'm all for down-scaling the guns but in this case it looks a bit off.
I'm eager to get my Gui Feng so I can prep it and get ready for some campaign play! Which means I need some specialists and baggage remotes as well of course. ;-)
September
This month we saw the releas of the Tohaa starter as well as a couple of models from the new book.
The Tohaa starter box.
The mercernary/Haqqislam Kaplan Tactical Services.
The Shasvaasti Corax Spec-Ops.
The Tohaa Diplomatic Delegate.
The Nomad Wildcat.
So yeah... the Tohaa. Like I mentioned my first thougth was that they looked like the Drell from Mass Effect (not a bad thing, just an observation). I've been looking at them and I quite like the models we've seen so far, but I don't think the idea of the Tohaa in the Infinity universe has sunken in completely with me yet. I need to see them on the table and hear how they perform before they really start feeling just like "one of the factions". They do look cool though and the sleek yet cluttered look quite appeal to me.
The Kaplan has a very distinct look and I like the design of him, however I can't help but think something more exciting could have been done with his pose. The hunch pose is a bit boring and spoils some of the neat armour details. The Shasvaasti Spec-Ops is a bit over-burdened with weapons and I'm not sure I like the "female Shasvaasti" we've been saying lately. Not a bad model though. The Tohaa Diplomatic Delegate was discussed at lenght on the Infinity forums, but has been revealed to be basically an objective marker for several of the scenarios.
For some reason I keep thinking Spider-Man when I see the Wildcat. It's something about the pose that feels superhero-y to me. It fits the model very well though and it looks all kinds of kick-ass! He's no slouch in-game either with a solid stat line and not too expensive.
October
Wow... what a month! Two boxed releases, Uxia and a weird but awesome looking new alien bio-robot? Yes please! Ok, I can't resist making some more detailed comments about these releases.
I read a lot of comments from people who didn't like this model for various reasons (wrong dynamics, braid too big, ugly face etc) but I think Uxia looks absolutely awesome! To me it seems like she's just sliding into cover after having gunned down a couple of Pan-O mooks. I might very well get her just for the cool model alone. :)
Likely the stats will change so I will refrain from commenting on them.
The Pan-O Crusader Brethren on the other hand received a lot of praise and while it's certainly not a bad model it's a bit too generic and a bit too busy looking for my tastes. The design jetpack (or whatever) is cool looking though so that gets thumbs up from me. Don't know the stats for him yet, but it looks like a fairly heavily armoured jump trooper to me.
More Tohaa! The Gao-Rael looks to be a lighter Symbiont armoured wearing trooper (like the Sakiel) but to me the snazzy coat implies some kind of cammo element to it as well (CB likes trenchcoated cammo dudes!). Not a bad looking model at all, although the pose look a little weird from certain angles. The Tohaa sniper rifle is interesting looking and the armour feels less cluttered than the other Tohaa we've seen so far.
While I squeeled most abou thte Wu Ming, this Ikadron Batroid and Imetron was what first drew my eye. It's basically the new baggage remote for the Combined Army, but look how cool it is! Some weird alien thing stalking the jungle on stilts, with a backpack full of casualties and toting two flamethrowers! The Imetron is pretty good as well and remind me of the Elder Things. Another model to get simply for the models sake!
The Steel Phalanx is the first sectorial for ALEPH and is based around Achilles and his Greek posse. I've always been of two minds regarding ALEPH; I love some of their models while others simply don't do it for me. However with this new sectorial I might just get myself a second army. There's something about these bulkier ALEPH guys that I really like. In some way they remind me of really hi-tech versions of Haqqislam troops. Then there's the Myrmidon which I think looks great (although a little model pose-y) and Eudoros who is a little blocky but coole nonetheless. Will need to have a look at the rules, but I'm sorely tempted!
Yay! More heavy infantry for Yu Jing!! While a box of (linkable) Shangji is at the top of my HI wish list, the Wu Ming come close enough for me to jump up and down and grin. While the Haramaki are spectacular looking minis they are very specific in the way they look: hi-tech samurai. The Wu Ming are a bit more generic looking but in this case I think it's a good thing. We get a box here full of fire power! An HMG, a light rocket launcher, a light grenade launcher and one E/mitter. Imagine the link team you could make up with these guys. Scary! To me the sculpts look a little bit sleeker than their original shotgun carrying college, but they look similar enough not to raise eyebrows on the field of battle I think. Really want these guys!
Scarface & Cordelia.
Gogo Marlene.
Scarface and Cordelia was/is (?) released as part of a deal when you bought an Infinity themed bag from Battlefoam. She will get a wider release later on but right now that's the only way of getting her I think. Now, Scarface is probably my favourite TAG so far. It looks pretty much like I hoped the O-Yoroi Kidobutai would look. I like that you can see the pilots arms and teh general proportions of the TAG look spot on. I would perhaps have chosen a different pose and I would definitely not have gone with the big machete in one hand, but that is easily modified. Cordelia looks pretty cool as well and gives me a kind of Deunan Knute vibe.
Gogo Marlene looks like something pulled straight from a ninetiees anime and is accompanied by a little bunny remote that I assume serves as her recording droid. It's an ok looking model, but I like the rules for including a journalist in your games (just as in Judge Dredd!) so will definitely paint her when I get my hands on her.
Now... I think I've covered all the releases. Phew! That's a whole bunch of good looking miniatures! Now I'm off to take a bath and consider my gaming budget...
This stuff is just so amazing I'm resigning myself to one day getting into Infinity, if just for the models.
ReplyDelete@Spacejacker - Hehe! It's just a matter of time right? I say get a model and see how it feels to paint.
ReplyDeleteThere's a new (Australian!) Infinity podcast that does a good job of both introducing the game to new players and discussing more advanced options for the advanced players. Worth a look if you're curious: http://forwardobserverpodcast.blogspot.se/
Great roundup post. I was kind of lukewarm to the Treitak, but after seeing the Shasvaasti, my spec-ops choice was instantly made. Still trying to get our 'starter/intro' games in, but having a lot of fun with it. Can't wait 'til we're ramped up to get Paradiso in the mix.
ReplyDelete@Mik - Yeah, the Corax sure pops a bit more than the Treitak. The starter phase is probably the most important, so don't rush it. Hehe!
ReplyDeleteAfter having taken a bit of a break from painting Infinity minis I feel the the urge is starting to come back. I've got the day off tomorrow so lets see what can be done. :)
I was feeling rather ambivalent towards Infinity; I can't afford a new game, I barely play enough of the ones I've got, I'm not sure I like the models... until they show of that Scarface model! I want!
ReplyDeleteSo, hypothetically, if I where to look into Infinity, how many models would I need for a sensible sized game?
Hey Steve!
ReplyDeleteAs far as I'm concerned the phrase "I'm not sure I like the models" and "Infinity" simply don't go together. ;-)
But yeah, Scarface is pretty cool! Also I think I made a mistake, Cordelia isn't the pilot but rather the pilot's little sister.
Anyway, when starting with Infinity the starter boxes are actually the best place to begin. They all come with a good mix of models that can easily form the foundation for expanding your army (ie none of the models will become obsolete once you get more). Also, it's fairly rare to see Infinity "armies" with more than 10 models so you don't need many to play.
So yeah... look around in the miniature gallery section of the Infinity homepage and figure out which faction you like best, then simply get that faction's starter. If you want to spice it up a bit you could get a blister or two as well but that's certainly not needed.
For your first couple of games you'll likely just use three or four models to get a grip on the rules and as you expand to 150 points (the usual "beginners level") you'll probably field six or seven models. It's really a great game and everyone should try it at least once! :)