A New Year, A Fresh Start on the hobby, and Relic Knights 2.0

Dynamic models from Relic Knights 1.0

Wow! It's been a while!  Lots has changed since the last time: I graduated, I moved, I got a job, I got married, and more recently I bought a house.  And when you spend all your time remodeling said house, not a whole lot of time is left for hobbies! But all of that is winding down now, and my new goal is to get my mountain of miniatures painted before a kid comes along.  And nothing gets the mojo going like following a Kickstarter: Relic Knights 2nd Edition =D.

Of course, given that I spent a small fortune on the first kickstarter collecting every faction, one cannot justify to the missus adding to the pile of unpainted and unplayed miniatures.  So I said, F-this, I'm going to assemble them all and paint 'em!  I'll show them all that I didn't waste my money! Also, I convinced a friend to go in on the 2nd Edition kickstarter and I'm a contributing a portion to get some of the sweet, sweet, KS exclusives.  The new models look like they really improved their design/manufacturing process, with better detail and consistent style.  However, with the move to resin (from plastic), looks like the price is going up as well though ($100 for a 2-player starter???).   Anyway, getting some figures assembled/painted will let us run through a few demo games with the new rules.

side view to show the dynamic-ism!

I assembled some of my favorite models from the 1st KS: Cordelia Clean and Amelia, Herald of the Void.  The pictures don't do it justice, but these are some really dynamic models, very 3D.   They aren't perfect: Cordelia's face isn't defined deeply and Amelia had some very small pieces, one which the peg wasn't correct. But the models are still very cool.

Pro-tip: some of the connection points weren't very deep, but super glue can hold it together well without pinning. The trick is to use FRESH super glue.  In my experience, once you open a bottle of super glue, you start a ticking clock where the glue gets exposed to moisture/air as you use it, starts to set/cross-link/cure, slowing drying time, and makes weaker bonds.  You see a similar issue in silicon caulking adhesives.  If I haven't used my super-glue in a while, I usually buy a new bottle.  This will reduce your frustrations with assembling multi-part, complex models.  I never really hear other people talk about the glue going bad.  Maybe more active hobbyists use up the glue before it bad.

Another trick is to use Baking Soda as an accelerator and gap filler.  If you don't have a tight fit and you end up blobbing on the glue (which you're not supposed to do because it actually makes for a weaker bond), you can dump baking soda powder on the joint/glue blob which instantly sets the glue and kinda makes it a gap filler.  Then you can brush/compress air blast/rinse the excess powder off (easily dissolves in water).