Sandtrap minis!

Just posted my WIP painting thread, here:
https://forum.corvusbelli.com/threads/my-sandtrap.43224/
There's a picture that compares the Senku with the current Keisotsu.

Let me know if there are other comparisons you'd like.

 

Hmm, are the old (gen.2) Keisotsu from the N2 era? I have a feeling they are.

Models form that era were especially tiny.

 

Those are the later uprising Keisotsu, not the earlier N2 ones (I have both lots, and will soon have the sandtrap ones).

 

Added a comparison shot with the Obsidian Head minis (Trisha N33, Rouhani, HVT). The Senku really are chonky, it's not just environment suits.

 

Or JSA is recruiting their soldiers among sumo school dropouts now ;)

 

I guess that after gaining independence from China, I mean, from Yu-Jing, their diet has improved.
Also, JSA is not using child soldiers anymore and their line troopers now get proper training (BS11 for the Senku).

 

Kestrel side declared done; I've added a shot were they're mixed with the Minescorp units from TAG Raid; they match up really well, I think, I'm a bit sad that there doesn't seem to be a Triphammer (or any S7 TAG to proxy it as) in Kestrel. It would have been a cool Minescorp themed force.

 

The Kyoshou hacker from reinforcement is also a big guy next to his MI coworkers.

One of your Minescorp worker looks suspisious to me xD (but the paint makes him blend perfectly).

 

Yeah, my Yue miners have an infiltrator too.
https://photos.app.goo.gl/iGpfCgNYscPceisJ7
I accidentally swapped them while painting, derp. I think I looked at the heads and thought, hey, all those with helmets must be PanO and those with bare heads are YJ... I should have looked at the pose, all the PanO are resting while all the YJ are running or poised to start running. I suppose there is a difference in work ethics?

 

PanO are less zealous but at least they wear their PPE :D

 

I got Sandtrap minis in hand today. So few good things, base infantry is not tiny like in some previous 2 player boxes and most of the minis have nice amount of detail without too much tiny details 90% of people will not see or paint ( looking at you Haqq half of previous pack ). Female JSA cheerleader has same size backpack as males which is almost never the case ( +10 points for this ), Yamabushi very very nice, some PanO guys are 10/10 for me.
Bad things, complete inconsistency with sizes, guy who okays designs should be fired like 4 years ago if possible. JSA line guys are larger than HI, especially old releases ( like Domaru ), HI still has armor that has a thickness of a TikTok thirst trap gym girl leggings and have waists about same thickness as their bicep ( FFS put a mannequin inside that armour before you allow that crap design to be made into physical mini ), reused old casts like Domaru katana sheath for new minis ( and those weren't good even when first released half a decade ago ), Fusilier girl has smaller backpack than males ( -1000 points ), got a miscast mini where half her head is miscast and I am not sure how this passed QC ( also no codes in the either of 2 boxes, so I hope images are enough to get a replacement ), JSA dice with old symbol ( because why bother, it is not like this is our 2 player box that will be sold for the next 2 years ), new JSA sectorial has no design distinction compared to old JSA ( like with PanO or Nomads, you can tell which unit belong to which sectorial because of distinct design and/or color scheme, you don't have that here ) they are just copy/paste old models with masks and few pouches added here and there. Meh.

 

For me, the new JSA (Shindenbutai) range is so different from the old range that I don't think I will field them together, even where the list allows it - it's a bit like the difference between Firstborn space marines and the newer Primaris. I like both, I just don't think they go together well. Like icecream and chili sauce...

I'm painting Shindenbutai with a very different colour scheme compared to my old JSA, to me they are like an entirely new faction. Here are some pics of the painted Shindenbutai and Yamabushi too:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/rRCVEkQzuM6Ss8Ge8

I agree that the Senku are about 5% too large; even allowing for the floofy jackets, the proportions and poses make them look like absolute bodybuilders next to the other four troopers.

The Yamabushi is such a cool model, an oldtimer just sitting on the fence waiting for the young'uns to finish fighting, ready to bonk them if they get out of hand.

 

@StephanDahl models look the same as old JSA design wise, like I said they even reuse part of old models for new ones. Hatamoto and Jizamurai are basically Domaru with different head and the same size. Hatamoto groin armour is his shoulder pad for Christ sake, that is how creatively bankrupt they were when designing new JSA, they couldn't bother make new groin armour and design lead was like "yea put some shoulder armour on his dick ". Only basic troops are larger than old models.
So no, don't tell me there is some great distinction because there isn't. I assembled and painted over 1000 Infinity models, on this topic I doubt anyone knows better than me.

 

Personally I like that we got "continuity" and similarities when it comes to "samurai-powered-armours" across the same Faction.
Regarding the Hatamoto's groin armour... well, I guess that now we know where does the Nanoscreen comes from: he literally has balls of steel :p

 

Units from a faction look like units from that faction... that is a novel complain I will give that...

 

You know what I meant, but just to make things clearer - PanO side of Sandtrap looks like PanO, but it also looks like a sectorial with its own design. Same with something like MO, you can clearly see from a distance that unit belongs to Military Orders. And this is true for basically all sectorials in the game.
JSA part of Santrap doesn't have that, they look exactly the same as old JSA they don't have distinct look or feel. Whoever is in charge of design thinks Japanese culture is only ninjas and samurai, when they could've made new sectorial focused on ranged weapons or some other niche. Instead we get more of the same old in every sense. And in true CB fashion, when you want new things to be stronger than old - give them mimetism.