Tuesday 15 September 2015

Unboxing Malifaux - Wong's 'Explosive Solutions' Starter Box

How About a Magic Trick?

WONG
Undoubtedly one of the most eccentric residents on the Bayou, Wong’s ornate blue robes and pointy hat are a sight rarely forgotten. With drooping moustaches held in place by the miracle of spirit gum, Wong is a religious subscriber to the school of theatrics and will indulge in all manner of indecipherable behavior to reinforce his aura of Eastern mysticism.

However, one would be foolish to assume that Wong is mere smoke and mirrors. The Iron Fan of Tsu Li is a formidable weapon in its own right, and the ornate valise he carries with him houses a trinity of spectral entities as powerful as they are malevolent. This Three Demon Bag is the real source of Wong’s power and, considering Wong’s animosity for the Ten Thunders clan, it is perhaps a blessing for them that he has not yet learned the extent of its potency.

With theatrical firework displays, devastating lightning jumps and occasionally turning bystanders into piglets, there’s rarely a dull moment around Wong – a spectacle that has become all the more magnificent now under the influence of his Lovely Assistant.

Wong's shows are an occasion for all in the Bayou, whether they have gathered to be entertained or are simply forced to flee the raging inferno.

He surrounds himself with acolytes as idiosyncratic as he is, such as his explosive Lightning Bugs, which makes being in the Gremlin’s company about as volatile as a chain-smoker in a fireworks factory.

The 'Explosive Solutions' box contains enough parts for six miniatures...namely Wong, his Lovely Assistant Totem (3SS), Mancha Roja (10SS) and three Lightning Bugs (5SS each). It also contains stat cards for each one and six upgrade cards four of which are for Wong, one for Mancha Roja and one that's for Mancha Roja or McTavish (McTavish isn't part of the starter box though)

This makes the Soulsstone value of the box...
Wong (0), Lovely Assistant (3), Mancha Roja (10), Lightning Bugs (5, 5, 5) Total (28) or (32) with a maximum Soulstone cache and (40) with maximum 'out of the box' upgrades.

Sprues
The box has one sprue in it as well as the aforementioned cards. Here's pictures of both sides of them...

Stat Cards
Wyrd Games didn't like my publishing pictures of both sides of the stat cards so you'll have to make do with this...

Lets have a look at each of these models in turn. Should there be any assembly issues with any of the models then they will be listed in the appropriate section and you can view larger versions of the smaller pictures or instruction pictures by clicking on them.

Instructions

Some General Notes on Assembly.
Many of these models contain quite small parts so depending on how dexterous you are you might consider getting yourself some tweezers. Dry-fitting is also always a good idea in case a part needs a tiny bit of extra filing or filling as some of the fits are quite tight. Where the parts on the sprue are quite thin (chains, weapon shafts, cables and the like) then it might be better to remove parts with a sharp scalpel rather than cutters.

All these models are based on Wyrd Games 30mm 'Bayou Base' base inserts with the exception of Mancha Roja who I scratch-built a base for as I ran out of 40mm Bayou Base ones...

Wong
The Sprue
The model in the starter set is identical to the one available as an individual model which is a bit disappointing as an alternate sculpt would have been nice.

Assembled
The only issue with this model is that the connection points at the wrists are quite small and the parts that attach to them (particularly the bag) are relatively heavy so you'll need to hold them in place while the glue sets...without gluing your fingers to them of course...

Comparison
Here's a comparison picture between the plastic model in the starter set and the plastic model previously available.

Lovely Assistant
The Sprue

Assembled
The baton is thin so be careful when removing it from the sprue. The model is only four pieces so should present no issues.

Mancha Roja
The Sprue

Assembled
Mancha Roja consists of large easy to handle parts and even the gremlin is fairly substantial. Though you can assemble the gremlin (his feet are part of the main models arms) first if you wish but then when you slot the completed gremlin sub-assy and Mancha's arms into Mancha's body the one gremlins leg does get in the way a bit.

Lightning Bugs

The Sprue

Lightning Bug 1 - Assembled
Yes...the gremlin is attached to that base piece via that thin piece of 'magic' so be very careful when removing it from the sprue. Part of that piece is the Gremlin's hand so you have a relatively heavy piece (the assembled Gremlin) attached to a thin piece of plastic via a tiny wrist joint. How you hold both parts in place while the glue sets without gluing your fingers to it is down to you..good luck with that...

Lightning Bug 2 - Assembled
This is the easiest one of the three to assemble but bear in mind that the arm holding the 'magic' will fit into the sleeve at a variety of angles so dry-fitting is recommended in order to get the magic in the correct upright position.

Lightning Bug 3 - Assembled
The thinnest part of the magic piece has the gremlins hands as part of it and these attach to separate sleeves which in turn attach to the gremlins body so dry-fitting is a good idea if you want the hands to line up with them. The feet are also separate but have clear location points though the weight of the model will be on one of those feet so make sure it's well attached.

Thoughts and comments are (as usual) most welcome.

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