These scuplts are just jackpot. My first army in Infinity was CJC, and the poor sods suffered for it painting-wise! I remember being obsessed with running the Mobile Brigada paintrain due to the funky new sculpts. Anyway, fastforward to now and this box set seems tailor made to drag players like me back aboard... I foresee a glut of new CJC players over the coming year.
I really like my tiny Wildcats and my 4 Intruders. So yeah, I'm only the target audience because I buy all the Nomad things. Which is the point: honestly as soon as the EVAder Spitfire was in there I was probably onboard. So the fact I, and people like me, go "Wow the Intruder HMG is out of place. I have a painted model I've loved using for years." is beside the point. We're still buying it. And this way CB can ALSO sell us an Intruder SMR. My point is that this shows that CB puts commercial decisions ahead of what's better for their players: now, that's not unreasonable but it's a thing.
I think it's probably more making boxes that are good starter sets for new players. Which is also a commercial decision to be fair.
And this is the reason I'm gonna skip the Operation box. Sombra and EVAder are the only models I lack (well, and Wolfgang of course, but that's kinda naother kettle of fish). Hard to justify buying the entire box just for these two, and then trying to sell off all the other stuff. So, I'll either get the Sombra & EVAder on the second-hand market, or wait for their other loadouts to drop, and convert out of these. That is, assuming I find these exact loadout needed. Certainly wouldn't be my first rodeo, you know. Wolfgang... he's a preorder exclusive, so he's bound to command a significant price on the second-hand market. He's also bound to receive a general release version in a few months. Plus, I don't really like the sculpt, as far as we were shown the render. So, since I am going to buy Dire Foes box anyway (Jazz & Billie!), I'll end up with Cadin Firststrike. And he is, in my eyes, going to make for a decent enough stand-in for Wolfgang - at least until I see the general release Wolfgang, and make a decision on him.
My point is that a HMG Intruder or a SMR Intruder are roughly as good as each other to a new player. To a player who already owns a HMG Intruder a SMR Intruder is better. To CB selling a second HMG Intruder to someone who already owns one and then later also selling an SMR Intruder is better.
I wonder how easy it would be to remove that HMG on the intruder, got a left over spitfire/RF from one of my zondnautica.
Ooh yeah. That's an idea. The positives of keeping Old Spitfires. "That's not a Spitfire, this is a Spitfire!"
The inclusion of the Intruder HMG in the Box will definitely see the retirement of the Intruder HMG Blister (reducing SKU count). And the new Intruder MSR (from B:IS) is a very good proxy for that SMR profile imho. As I have an already painted (old) Intruder HMG from the blister, I hope it will be easy to convert the new Intruder HMG.
I would really like this becoming a thing. I just wanted to say I share your old Spitfire enthusiasm. Got one from spec-ops box that first should have turned spec-ops into Spitfire Prowler (which is sexiest model ever), but I got lazy and got the actual one, then it should have went to a Moderator, but I got lazy again (but didn't buy anything this time) and now I'm contemplating turning MultiRifle Riot Grrl into Spitfire one. That Spec-Ops blister is real gold: miniature could be used for anything from line trooper to Daktari/Clockmaker and Zero/Prowler, old Spitfire and MSR for conversions, and nice heads for head swaps (I put the bald head on MK12 Sin-Eater and it looks good, those old Sin-Eaters have really small heads and that bugged me cose other than that I really like them).
I find it quite annoying that they made most of the box worthless to existing players (albeit highly desirable for new ones), then slipped-in two models we need. I cannot justify the expense of all this just for two minis. I wish they had kept the Evader and Sombra out and instead put in a Mobile Brigada /w MULTI Rifle (which old players already have and new ones cannot get any more) and, say, a Bandit /w Combi Rifle (which I do not have, but my two existing Bandits mean I do not need either). Make the box 100% stuff only new players want and they do not end up pissing-off their existing player base.
It's so weird to hear players dumping on this boxset simply because they have old versions of the models. Tbh the Corregidor half of this might be the best looking starter box CB have ever made. I think it's fair to wonder why these models were preferred over other troops that sorely need new sculpts, but not so fair to complain that, for example, the Intruder HMG has just received one of the best sci fi sculpts in table top gaming, period.
It’s also worth remembering that this specific product is designed to bring in new players first and foremost, so brand new versions of staple troops was always how us was going to be.
Well, at some point you start asking yourself stuff like "Do I really need to more Alguacils in my pile of Alguacils?" "Do I really need 6th Hellcat, besides already having Hellcat BSG?" "Is it worth investing in another Intruder HMG if I'm not planning to visit to Poland?" They look better, crispier than old ones, yes. But it's just impossible to justify spending 120-150 eur just for that. (and bother reselling stuff you don't need). And also, old sculpts have a certain charm to them, like lollypop moderator or fem. alguacile sniper.
The box is fine for new players. But a company also has to offer something to their regular customers. Only two new miniatures in a box which I already have to find someone for the other faction is not enough effort. At least they could include loadouts which are missing (Intruder MMR) instead of a loadout which would be easily available as a blister if they hadn't discontinued it without compulsion. If it is reasonable to ask me to proxy the Intruder MMR, it is also reasonable to ask a new player to proxy him as HMG.
I am also a little sad about all the resculpts, that I do not realy need (I still wonder about the female Intruder sniper), but to be honest, the new HMG look better. I always thought the HMG Intruder has a boring pose compared to his two cool brothers. Do I want to paint another one? No, not realy. The BSG Hellcat is a nice improvement to an already nice mini, I think she will made it on my painting table ... after I finished EVA, Sombra and Jazz. The Alguas, are okay but I will sell them (I am not that crazy to paint them for Star Co or QK). The Beyond Box will offer two more Cats: Tom and Wild, (01:35 on the video) so I wonder what will be No. 3 - thumps pressed for Vostok.
The other thing is that new players now still then realize pretty quick they need a Moran, and well... Sure that might get fixed in the next few months but to sell new players on the faction right now it's not a great look. This is why they need to update all the still too many hand sculpted models sooner rather than later. It's been what 6-7 years since Icestorm?
Yea, this boxset is probably my least favorite a far a poses go. Really disappointed at the tactical rocks, pistols, and nonsense. The Intruder is the best pose in the bunch along with the Alguaciles.
