Sunday 29 April 2012

Buildings.

I am always on the lookout for affordable buildings and have been quite impressed with the recent  trend for mdf 'flat-pack' buildings such as those by 4Ground, Battle Flag, Sarissa Precision and Warbases etc.

Warbases Stable.

Sarissa Precision Citiblock Warehouse.

4Ground Rorkes Drift.

The higher end of the market, using resin and the like, companies such as CJ's ModelsTotal Battle MinaituresArchitects of War and Grand Manner make amazing models but are just a little too expensive for me. Check out the awesome Dark Ages village below!

Grand Manner Dark Age Village.

Architects of War Jungle Village.

Somewhere in between you can find pmc. games - they have no online store other than ebay so the stock tends to be a little random and there is always the risk of being outbid. Having said that, most items come around again pretty quickly. The buildings are resin, sometimes based on hardboard and best of all they are pre-painted, flocked and textured!

pmc.games Walled Farmhouse.

I picked up the above 'Walled Farmhouse' the other day for about £20.00. The main entrance doors are removable, as are the three cottages and each roof also comes off. This particular building could fit into a variety of genres - I have seen them used in everthing from medieval fantasy to VBCW and WWII.
pmc.games Medieval Village set.

There is a nice selection and you can even pick up a good medieval village mix like the above for £65.00. Of particular interest at the moment, with the Dark Ages (SAGA etc) being flavour of the moment, are their range of thatched cottages, church and roundhouse. At the time of writing they are selling a selection with three varied cottages and the church for £29.99. They also have a growing range of VBCW buildings and some WWII bunkers.

pmc.games large WWII Bunker.

There is now also a new-ish company by the name of Fantascene who make a small range of reasonably priced fantasy / historical buildings that you can even get painted for you! More on them in a previous post.

Fantascene Gothic Mausoleum.

Total System Scenic also do a few bits and pieces for constructing your own buildings.

Total System Scenic 'Low House'.

This post wouldn't be complete without a quick plug for another source for cheap buildings - Dark House Games. They provide a UK source for the 'Plasticville' models. I have already mentioned them before but they are a good source for cheaper plastic modern 'Americana' style buildings.

A selection of Dark House Games 'Plasticville' buildings.

There are of course many other companies who provide building and terrain (Hovels and Monolith spring to mind) but I thought I would compile a few of the more recent ones such as those above.

Monolith Great Hall.

Warlord Games have just released a nice looking 'Ruined Hamlet' so heres hoping they continue with this range.

Warlord / Bolt Action Ruined Hamlet.

Lastly, Gripping Beast do a nice range of Dark Age longhouses and outbuildings, again reasonably priced.

Gripping Beast longhouse.


Sunday 22 April 2012

Fantascene - Pretty Girls Make Graves?

Looking for some terrain pieces on the web I recently came across a new firm called Fantascene and liked a few bits so I thought I would buy a test piece. They are a UK based family firm and have a very nice home grown feel to their products.

It a different gravey.

I settled on the 'Scabby Graves' from the Gothic / Graveyard selection. I must say I am very impressed. On many of the models you have the opportunity to get them painted for a few quid extra, so being the lazy git I am, I decided to try this out.

Insert amusing / offensive comment here...

As you can see, the result was pretty damn good! Delivery was quick and the items were well packed. Best of all they can go straight onto the table and would fit several different genres - all for £7.00+p&p. Great value.

Ruined Temple (pic from Fantascene).

The range is fairly good already and hopefully will expand and so far includes (among other things) an excellent looking 'Jungle Pyramid', a 'Spooky Church', a barrow mound, a selection of sandbag emplacements, a wall set, plinths and monuments and a Gothic mausoleum.

Jungle Pyramid (pic from Fantascene).

I highly recommend these guys - check them out http://www.fantascene.net/cart/index.php

Thursday 19 April 2012

On the Streets of Inconsequence.

My mate Rob A has started his own blog to track the progress of his long term Wild West project.

Check it out at:- On the Streets of Inconsequence


Rob has been running Wild West stuff for some time but the project faded into the background for a while. With a new found enthusiasm for the project (and some nudging from us for him to set up his own blog) he decided the time was right!