Even if they are, they are still not worth the exorbitant price for them. Something that might never show up on table. Lately I have been taking two Shenji and NO turrets.
Maybe this could be for another (broader) topic, but what would you, people, prefer to see in this kind of box in general? - More like a support box with one Shenji, one Crane medic and two Yaozao? - Two Shenji, one Yaozao and a turret? Or the question could be: considering the price inflation (suffered by both CB on raw material, energie cost... and us customers), would you be OK to remove most (if not all) forms of "miniature tokens" (like Turrets, Crazy Koalas, Tinbots...) from those boxes? In this case, could CB make various generic packs of them (depending of the sustainability of such packs)? Or let partners do it? I understand the reasoning being "I can print dozen of them for almost nothing" but CB also have to take account of new comers in the hobby and provide a "full experience" with as much content as possible.
For me it would have made sense to do a haris of Shenji, Hsien multi-marksman, and Jinwei. All troops I would actually use and don't have. It's a open build and play box. SHÉNJI Thunderbolt(AP), Light Shotgun, D-Charges(PS=5) / Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-3). (0 | 19) JÌNWÈI Adhesive Launcher Rifle, Heavy Riotstopper / Heavy Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-3). (0 | 18) HSIEN (Lieutenant [+1 Order]) MULTI Marksman Rifle, Nanopulser(+1B) ( | TinBot: Firewall [-6]) / Pistol, DA CC Weapon(PS=6). (+1 | 51) Some others I think would be good. BÀO TROOP (BS Attack [+1B]) Thunderbolt, Flash Pulse / Pistol, CC Weapon. (0 | 23) BÀO TROOP MULTI Sniper Rifle, Flash Pulse / Pistol, CC Weapon. (1.5 | 27) PHEASANT IMPERIAL AGENT (Doctor) Combi Rifle, E/Mitter ( | MediKit) / Breaker Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-6). (0 | 27) KOGA NINJA (Hacker, Camouflage, Forward Deployment [+8"], Killer Hacking Device [UPGRADE: Carbonite]) E/M Carbine(+1B), Pulzar ( | Deployable Repeater) / Pistol, E/M CC Weapon(PS=6). (0 | 30) QIÁNFĒNG (Surprise Attack [-3], Hidden Deployment, Infiltration) Boarding Shotgun, Heavy Flamethrower, D-Charges / Silenced Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-6). (0 | 28) QIÁNFĒNG (Hacker, Parachutist, Killer Hacking Device [UPGRADE: Firewall (-3)]) Submachine Gun, E/Marat, D-Charges ( ) / Silenced Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-6). (0 | 24) LONGWANG PILOT (CC Attack [+3]) Adhesive Launcher Rifle ( | GizmoKit) / Assault Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-6). (0 | 10) CELESTIAL GUARD (Hacker, Hacking Device) Submachine Gun, Light Riotstopper ( ) / Pistol, CC Weapon. (0.5 | 14) CELESTIAL GUARD Combi Rifle, Smoke Grenade Launcher / Pistol, CC Weapon. (0.5 | 13) JÌNWÈI (Triangulated Fire) E/Mitter, Heavy Riotstopper / Heavy Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-3). (0 | 23) I think they could do a box of Turrets, deployable cover, HVT, and a few other things like this. Just a generic HVT that looks like it could go with any faction would be good. This is a box that EVERY single faction could use! Are there any say O-12 players that are going to buy Tehe Shenji box for the turrets? They actually have a E/Mitter and ADHL turrets available but I can't imagine them buying it because it comes with a YJ Engineer and bot. But they will buy a generic box. And so would a Nomad player, Ariadna player, etc.
I will echo this. For each one of you who does not care for "tokens" there is at probably one who does care and wants an official model and not a 3d print for various reasons. I believe it is a good discussion to be had, it will at least be a starting point to gauge what people think and feel about the subject.
Only the initial production has Siocast backpacks, the rest to my knowledge has metal cast backpacks, maybe related to the demand Warcrow has, I am unaware if the siocast backpacks have been reintroduced the latter months.
I much prefer a sculpt to a token, however I don't want that at a huge expense. Especially one that makes you buy something you don't want. Again, I think they should do a set of just turrets and deployable cover. Tournament sets would be cool too. QAZ creatures, HVTs, and whatever else. This is something that can be re-freshed year to year and always something new for everyone.
I was wondering how many packs (boxes or blisters) currently on CB store have a 3D token. I'm considering to be a 3D token : MadTraps (MT), CrazyKoalas (CK), FastPandas (FP), WildParrots (WP), TinBots (TB), Turrets (T). Tiangou Orbital Activity Squad: 2 MT Yojimbo, Mercenary Sword: 2 CK Hulang Shocktroopers: 2 CK Sputniks: 2 CK Moran, Maasai Hunters: 4 CK Kibervolk Patrol: 2 CK JSA O-Yoroi Kidobutai TAG Pack: 2 CK Tunguska Interventors: 2 FP Hecklers: 1 FP Vargar Maximum Security Team: 1 WP Starmada Expansion Pack: 1 WP Janissaries: 1 TB Hector: 1 TB Overdron Batroids: 2 TB Riot Grrls: 1 TB Orc Troops: 1 TB Shang Ji Invincibles: 1 TB Jujak Regiment: 1 TB Betatroopers, Remote Activity: 1 TB Morat Fireteam Pack: 1 TB Corregidor Fireteam Pack: 1 TB Zuyong Invincibles: 1 TB Atalanta, Agêma's NCO & Spotbot: 1 TB Imperial Service Expansion Pack Beta: 2 T I may have missed references. Note that : - FastPandas share the same design, excepted for the Kibervolk box - WildParrots share the same design - MadTraps are only in a Yu Jing pack - FastPandas are only in Nomads packs - TinBots don't share the same design between factions, and they can have pose and logo variations in the same faction - Turrets have a different design for each weapon type
Makes it not better. Yes please. Two Shenji, now Yaozao (no need for old stuff here and you play them in fireteams) one Combi, one Thunder and two Turrets would be okay. A support box ISS style Combi-Shen and Combi Doc Crane whithout old Yaozaos (you play them in fireteams anyway) with two turrets? I am okay with them but not for the price of a miniature. Please contact me, if you plan to do so ;-) THIS! Put some useful stuff in ITS packs or make another ITS pack pre-turnament for the players!
Indeed. On the fun side, they don´t care about S5 here, because JSA Pack with 2 Doma and the char is 30,- also. But the essential line uses only repacks of already released miniatures and is ment to be on a more friendly price line. Looking to the prices of new minis - 43,- for the newest DF pack the Taskmaster is a halfway cheap buy ... Personaly, I have the other two already though.
I now remember they did say the Essentials boxes were going to be as cheap a they could make them so that it was easier to get into the game. I thought they were just talking about those big sets.
Most 3D Tokens seems to cost less than half the price of a LI miniature (with the variation of prices between miniatures during the time, some of them can even be considered "free"). I'm comparing in Euro, I don't know about the $ prices. Turrets seems to be on the chunky side for tokens, and unlike Crazy Koalas or Yaozao (not a token but the size is similar to a CK), they are new moulds not amortised yet, so the cost may be closer to 2/3 of a LI miniature. So the amount of "material" seems, theoretically, to be here for the price, compared to other products. But the psychological barrier comes from the amount of "real" miniatures (one). I'm not justifying the price (the psychological barrier is working on me), but I try to understand it as I'm sure CB try to find a balance for everyone. For them, as they have a business to run, bills to pay, employees with families to feed, and for customers who have a limited amount of funds to spend in a non essential hobby (funds CB is dependant of to run the business, pay the bills etc.). In fact, the Drummers box is in the same spot at the difference Drumbots are miniatures and not tokens (psychological barrier etc.).
They will find out fast if something is not selling. I want the Shenji but not going to buy it for that price. I think I'm fairly typical of veteran players who can just proxy. New players might not just because of the cost. To be honest I will tell them to proxy with the doc/eng set unless they really want turrets.
Reinforcements box launch 2.0 Besides, there is a ton of turret options out there, and this would be legal to proxy since the turrets are not troopers, but tokens. So I can see less used models proxying the Shenji, and the turrets being from other brands or 3D printed (there is already a file to 3D print some deployable covers in both versions in Thingiverse, for example).
Well, for one - I think in this topic most participants have voiced their discontent with cost vs. box content in this specific set. If CB a. read the topic and b. care for the opinons, they now do know. Whether they'll do anything about it, remains to be seen. As for the "tokens" having models - CB remains inconsistent. I can give a pass a TinBot being tossed into a box of Heavy Infantry (tohugh I was and still am kinda disapponted the Janissaries were 3 models and a TinBot, and Mobile Brigade did not include a TinBot at all. Still don't...). I had all the Janissary loadouts I needed before that box turned up, so while I could justify adding another Rifle or Shotgun Janissary to my collection toalso have a TinBot, it didn't stretch to buying a box of 3 plus a TinBot. I got myself a 3d printed thing, painted it to match my Janissaries, and called it a day. Same with my Mobile Brigada. A Nomad TinBot showed up later, I think with some other Nomad box, but again - I wouldn't have bought that box if the TinBot was the only thing I could use. Turrets? I have kitbashed myself an F13 gun turret when it became a feature in some ITS scenarios a few seasons ago. I'll probably make a different one to be my deployable Gun Turret. If CB were to sell deployables as separate, probably generic packs of token-models (Deployable Repeaters, Mines in a few varieties, Deployable Covers, Deployable Turrets, Drop Bears and so on. Maybe Foxholes for Sapper too), even made of siocast or other non-metal, even with dubious quality, I would consider buying that. Preferably just those I haven't made myself models of yet (hey, I was doing scratchbuildt tokens over 10 years ago, tutorials are sill on Datasphere's site), but if CB made it a single SKU box-of-things, that'd be acceptable to me as well. Alternatively - since 3d printing is waaay more commonly accessible than it was 10 years ago - they could release these as free-to-download .stl files. Not a perfect solution, but most communities have access to someone who could do the printing for them, I guess.
I never thought I'd see Infinity being more expensive than Marvel Crisis Protocol (which has bigger minis and has to pay for the IP), but here we are. If I compare to Shatterpoint, which has bigger minis and IP tariff too, it's just a landslide
I never to a exact calcultion. IRC the older 3 HI + 1 TB boxes were not cheaper then their full 4 HI equivalents. If you count Shenji for 20,- which is expensive (or 15 and 5 for the old helperbot - for ref. RE Offizer O-12 is 14,95), then the turrets are 10,50 which is - newest pricings for reference - indeed cheaper than a single mini.
Seeing the price of the new ISS set on the shelf of my FLGS was a shock. $179CAD is nuts. I'm actually somewhat glad that the new design direction for ISS has completely killed my interest in what used to be my favourite faction, because it means I don't have to put up with that box's enormous markup.
I'm not sure when this Fiddler came out, might've been 2024 (maybe @burlesford knows). Guess she'd be a decent Shenji proxy. Same for me, the last time I played them was almost exactly 3 years ago
