Sunday, August 14, 2011

And now for something completely different...

It's been 11 months since I last did anything with this blog. Most of those months I have been in a huge painting and gaming slump.


Just recently I was inspired to pull out my copy of War Rocket by Hydra Miniatures. I had ordered these rules when they were first published last year, but never got around to reading them. I liked the look of the War Rocket miniatures from the start and now all four fleets are fully available. I decided to buy two fleets. I bought a starter fleet for the Valkeeri, (think amazon women from space), and The Imperials, which are akin to the forces of Ming the Merciless from Flash Gordon.


My order was dispatched the same day I placed it,( Wow!) and arrived just two days later. I was so impressed when I examined the ships I decided to write this review.


Firstly the ships are crisply detailed with very little flash. The Valkeeri ships are all one piece castings , while the Imperials, with the exception of the class 1 ships require assembly. The smallest ships are cast in metal, while the larger ships are in resin. The larger class 3 and class 4 Imperial ship kits are part metal part resin. What really impresses me about the multipart ships is how thery are designed. The casting is done so the parts assemble with ease and will bond to form very solid joints. If you ever tried to glue old style Star Fleet Battles Gorn ship engines to their hulls you will understand what a nightmare some kits can be. Hydra Miniatures gets an A+ for their planning before casting up these beauties.


Below are some photos of the ships before cleaning, and in the case of the Imperials before assembly to try and show off how the designer broke the models up for casting.

The four classes of Valkeeri ships. The squares are 1 inch.


Here is an Imperial class 1


An Imperial Class 2 showing one as if assembled and one in two components.



An Imperial class 3




and finally an Imperial class 4



I'll post some more photos of the Imperials after I assemble them, but I think I'll start working on painting the Valkeeri first.

I cant recommend these miniatures enough. Great work Hydra Miniatures!