- This topic has 80 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 3 weeks, 1 day ago by
.
-
Moderns Release: January 2021: Boxer GNGP “Genie” (144th)
This month, we have the Boxer Geniegruep GNGP “Genie” variant (as used by the Dutch army among others), in 144th.
Direct price: £4.50
The Shop3D price: £4.57 (Resin)/£10.19 (Nylon) Link
Shapeways price: $10.77 (£7.91) Link___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Photo of Prusa i3 Mk3S version. (Taken in Dad’s mancave as he’s setting up for cover photos for Manoeuvre Group, so a bit better than usual. While it’s up, I’ll be trying to take some photos of the scifi ground forces that haven’t been done yet, too*)
As with the ambulances, the modifications included more than just the rear module, so the hull is a single piece (plus turret), rather than a hull-and-module.
(In fact, while making the boxer modules removable seemed like a good idea at the start, it has in the long run proven to be a largely irrelevant exercise, since I don’t think anyone ever actually uses the capability; heck I don’t on the similarly-designed Turma and Neuron scifi APCs myself. Wargamers tend to just have one model for one purpose it seems. It was an experiment, but I don’t think it’s one I’ll attempt to implement again (and indeed, I’ll probably remove the capability from the Neurons when I finally release them.)
Hopefully, next month’s release (and March’s) will come with some nice resin print photos.
From April onwards, with the Aotrs ground force re-release completed, the scifi will be taking a break while I get the rest of the moderns up at TheShop3D.
*Also, I couldn’t have taken them normally anyway – the lightbulb in the dining room we only replace a month or so ago bust and the replacement is a FRACk-awful “warm” one that taints everything like a skein or urine and OF COURSE it is apparently impossible to find a cool/daylight bulb of any kind of brightness. So I cannot EVEN have the luxury of frickin’ light to see by now.
Aotrs Shipyards (Late) February 2021 Release: Yamaha Grizzly 450 Quad Bike
(Okay, so I have delayed this as long as I can, but TheShop3D doesn’t seem to have been able to fix whatever technical issue went wrong yesterday (it was supposed to up in the shop yesterday, but something obviously went wrong and I haven’t heard back from them since this morning when they said they were looking into it), so as and when that gets fixed, I’ll edit in the TheShop3D links.)
This month, belatedly, and not quite according to plan, we have for you the Yamaha Grizzly 450 Quad Bike, as used by the British Army (at 144th).
These are a sprue of with four, and four more with the trailer with bridging ladder. (Given the size, trying make the trailers removable was simply not a physical possibility!)
Direct price: Available on request*
The Shop3D price: £4.8 (Resin)/£8.99 (Nylon) (Link to be added)
Shapeways price: $12.02 (£8.50) Link*Due to the change of line-up, I haven’t had chance to experiment printing in more than one at once, so the nominal price is £2.50 for the quad and £2.65 for the quad plus trailer; if anyone is interested, let me know through the usual channels and I can try running more off, but in the interests of not delaying things any further, I wanted to get this stuff out.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Photos of the TheShop3D resin.
Also, if you don’t follow us on Facebook, here is a link to some photos of some of the other resin prints from TheShop3D that I got with these.
March’s release (due this month, hopefully soon…) should be the Fennek AD platoon, assuming there aren’t any other problems.
After that, April is very nominally the Boxer HEL prototype.
Aotrs Shipyards March 2021 Release: Fennek AD and Teams
Once again, later than I hoped. TheShop3D are still having technical issues, so once again, I will have to be making the scifi release tomorrow without the links, which will have to be added later, as and when and if. That will, unfortunately, have to be the drill for the foreseeable future, as I obviously can’t keep delaying the releases like this.
So, this month, we have the Fennek AD – one with L81 mortar and one with Spike ATGW. Direct sales, they are available as individual models, but from the webshops, they come in a sprue of four, with two regular Fenneks, plus the Fennek AD with mortar and with Spike ATGW, as used by the Dutch army. With these, there is also an accompanying three-man infantry squad, armed with the FN Minimi and the L81 Mortar and Spike dismounted accordingly. (As infantry has to be webshop, since FDM is very poor at doing them.) All at 144th, as per usual.
LGS Fennek AD Platoon
Direct price: £3.10 (mortar), £3.10 (Spike)
The Shop3D price: £9.94 (Resin)/£23.12 (Nylon) for sprue of four plus teams Link
Shapeways price: $12.02 (£8.50) Link for sprue of four plus teams Link___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Photo is of the resin versions (standard, standard and Spike), except for the Mortar, which is Prusa. (And yes, I can assure you, the Prusa hull IS the same size as the others (I double checked myself!), it just looks bigger in that photo, because of the colour and angle!)
I still have not heard back from TheShop3D on what went wrong with my print of this, and unfortunately, the render is still not up yet, but the correct model is up in the shop – I was able to check before it went live – so it SHOULD, he says hopefully, be correct now.
As tangential to the moderns players, but worthy of note anyway, I have also updated the older Aotrs models with the new version 2 locking turret versions (which means they are all sprued up now). This was a somewhat mixed experiment, and shows why I haven’t rushed to try and do it with everything yet; while in some cases, it meant the price did go down as expected, Shapeway’s deliberately arcane and black-box pricing algorithm meant that some models actually went up (albiet only around 20p on the VPN). Annoying, to say the least. I’m doing my best to provide cheaper (and/or better) alternatives, either via my direct sales or through TheShop3D, but… *shrug*
The Boxer HEL is likely to be going into the backlog queue for a bit – next month, instead, I’ll be releasing the Merkava IV, since after being the single most difficult model (including the IMR-2) I’ve ever had to deal with, it’s going out as soon as possible. It took me two solid weeks (plus) just to do the turret!
(Needless to say, the GT have gotten their own version, because after all that effort, I wasn’t not going to do a scifi version!)
Aotrs Shipyards April 2021 Release: Merkava IV
So this month, actually close to on time, we have for you the single most difficuly model I have ever had to do – the Merkava IV, at 144th as usual.
It might not look it, compared to, say, the IMR-2, but that turret geometry is a NIGHTMARE to do. I initially started the Merkava IV on a commission in 2016, who lost interest halfway through. I had done the hull and was wrestling with the turret, so I shelved it. Coming back to finish it off, with five year’s more experience… It still took as long again as doing an entire regular tank to finish the turret.
But here it is, at last.
(Needless to say, after all that, I wasn’t not going to do a sci-fi’d up version, so expect the Galactic Terrorist Grand Marauder to show it’s gatlintg-covered face at some point down the line…)
Merkava IV
Direct price: £4.80
The Shop3D price: ??? (Resin)/???? (Nylon) Link to be added
Shapeways price: $14.56 (£10.62) Link___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Next month is up in the air. Some of this depends on the TheShop3D status. How are we doing on that front?
Ask me again on Monday.
I pride myself on being as up-front as I can be with you, so here’s where we are. I completed uploading about 240 models – all of the moderns ranges, plus the Aotrs (all scales) and the Xyriat fleet last Friday. Yesterday, I sent them a quick note asking if they had any clue on the timescale when it was up and it appears that they thought they were still waiting for me. (So I’ve been kicking my heels for a week, waiting for a response for that and another job, but my parents went away for a few days, so I had a small break myself.) They then got back to me that afternoon and asked me to change the logo (which I did), but then they said they’d already used the first one (that I thought was better myself, but a CAD’s jockey not a graphic designer). (They had sent me a link to a free logo site, but I was decidedly unimpressed with it and as you guys have likely twigged by this point I won’t half-arse a job.)
Everything was then up – the notification came in just as I was having tea yesterday. So it wasn’t until an hour later (in the evening at this point), I noticed that all the prices, that I spent literally hours carefully putting in, the prices I’ve been quoting to you for the past year – had been changed. They are going to talk to me on the phone on Monday, but the general gist of it is, they seem to have an automated system that did that. This is due to them wanting to effectively subcontract out stuff to other sellers. Now when I spoke to them and signed the license (and at no point was a necessary price increase mentioned), I was given the impression that it was to retail (and I treated it as more or less a little bit of an ego trip but did not expect any serious amount of sales, since unlike the 28mm roeplaying figures that form the rest of their designers, the wargames market has always been online). But now I’m not sure whether they meant other print subcontractors or both. In any case, the… Significant change as it stands not an acceptable sacrifice to my core customers (i.e. online), especially as it would place my models more expensive than at Shapeways.
So we will see what they say on Monday. I’d say hopefully we could reach a compromise, but I’m planning for the worse case scenario; and even if we do, it means I will have to go through ALL the prices AGAIN. (I might well just straight drop supporting their nylon if the prices has to go even a little higher, since it was already only about on a par with Shapeways.)
The long and short, then, is that the aforementioned ranges are up and available at TheShop3D site, but the prices are much higher than I am comfortable with. Whether this can be fixed is unknown.
Aotrs Shipyards May 2021 Release: KTM 500 Exc Bikes
This month, slightly late, we have for you something a little different – two sets of bikes and riders! (All in 1:144th as usual.) This came as a commission, as the commissioner wanted them in resin, I said that (with their agreement) that I might as well make them this month’s release.
One set of riders are irregulars slash insurgents, and one set of Special Ops riders.The bike in question is the KTM 500 Exc, as used by the Lithuanian Special forces.
So we two sets of a dozen riders. The Spec Ops riders have two poses, one on the bike and a second with pillion rider with M4s.
The insurgent riders have five poses – one with rider, one with pillion rider with AK-47, one with pillion rider with AK-47 firing, one with RPK and one with RPG-7.
As this was a commission, I don’t have any photos, so we’ll have to make do with the renders for the time being.
As with the infantry, these will only be available from the webshops.
(While they ARE printable on the Prusa, it’s right on the border of possible due to the small size and all the fine detail is lost. Plus the reel we’re using is not the best (but we were limited as to what we could get last year), which didn’t help.)
KTM Insurgents
The Shop3D price: £3.12 (Resin)/£5.35 (Nylon) Link
Shapeways price: $9.77 (£7.01) LinkSpec Ops
The Shop3D price: £2.99 (Resin)/£5.99 (Nylon) Link
Shapeways price: $9.58 (£6.87) Link___________________________________________________________________________________________________
So, the pricing issue at TheShop3D was resolved (as those of you who see my Facebook page may already know). The long and the short of it is the equitable compromise that from them direct will use the old, lower prices, but the prices for their retail partners (of which one has already been pointed out to me!) will be at the higher prices, which I felt was fair enough!
I’ve been continuing to update the rest of the sci-fi ranges, and while I did so, I have had a rationalise on Shapeways. I have gone through and updated all the moderns to the new version 2 locking turrets, and standardised, basically, my product lines so that they are the same at Shapeways as my direct and TheShop3D versions, simple to keep the maintenance payload sensible. In the cases of some very early models, which had never even been sprued, this means they now don’t come in a group, but individually. This is simply because ten years ago, Shapeway’s pricing scheme was totally different and it was actually more cost effective then and isn’t now.
I also standardised my mark-up, since Shapeway’s price shenanigans had completely screwed it up on some of the older models.
As per usual, the black box that is Shapeway’s pricing algorithm is unpredictable, with between the change to sprues and correcting of the mark-up, the prices of some vehicles changed anything from +/+ 20p. To my annoyance, it leaned more towards the increase end, but sometimes for no apparent reason, some models were a lot cheaper. (Anything that wasn’t previously sprued and usually having unnecessarily expense-creating gaps to boot went down significantly, of course.)
I suspect some of that increase is part of the global change to standardise my mark up to 12% where it had been 10% on the older models – so, for the sake of some of that, that price increase is a little bit on me, sorry.
(Though as usual, I point a finger to TheShop3D’s resin and note, cheaper and better…)
Hopefully, the sci-fi re-release should follow very shortly, and I’m a goodly way into the prep-work for the next batch. (Though until next week or so when I can get some better reel, the Prusa-reprinting aspect has had to be halted.)
Next month will be the ZSU-23-4 Shilka. I managed to get three variants done (-4V, -4V1 and -4M), of which I will probably release one (saving the other two for backlog, which is getting a bit thin at the moment). If anyone out there has a preference, speak now, otherwise I’ll start with the oldest (the -4V). After that I have some nebulous plans for July, but we’ll see how we got. (I have nominally slated myself to do the S-tank, Gepard and Challenger 2 this year, simply because they were tanks I had in 6mm as a child and they seemed as good as any to add to my list!)
If you didn’t see it on Facebook, I recently did an interview with PrecinctOmega on his podcast about my experiences in 3D printing. Please go and have a listen, if you feel so inclined, here.
Aotrs Shipyards June 2021 Release: ZSU-23-4V Shilka
On time again (finally!) this month, we have for you the ZSU-3-4V Shilka in 144th!
ZSU-23-4V Shilka
Direct price: £3.60
The Shop3D price: £6.50 (Resin)/£13.50 (Nylon) Link
Shapeways price: $9.00 (£6.35) Link___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Photo of Prusa version.Next week, sci-fi re-release will be on track. Only a small one this time, since I spent quite a bit of time this month hacking away at Manoeuvre Group Issue 2 (including completely re-designing their stat blocks from scratch). That is getting very very close to release. Basically, it’s now down to updating some of the force organisation data (which is of course taken from real-world force organisations), and that has been delayed since the half of their team that does that is dealing with family in hospital. But it is perilously close!
Next month for moderns, the plan is for the S-tank (i.e. the Stridsvagn 103C).
Aotrs Shipyards July 2021 Release: Stridsvagn 103C
This month, we have for you the Stridsvagn 103C, better known as the S-tank, in 144th.
(Brought to you as going ongoing miniseries as “tanks Bleakbane had at 6mm as toys when he was a child” range…!)
Stridsvagn 103C
Direct price: £3.90
The Shop3D price: £5.10 (Resin)/£10.90 (Nylon) Link
Shapeways price: $8.89 (£6.43) Link___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Photo of Prusa version.I am working on starting to update the catalogue to incorporate links to the webshops, starting with TheShop3d. As I’ve been doing that, we’ve discovered some pricing issues with some of the models due to the teething issues in getting stuff set up (which we have adjusted our processes for to make things easier all round), so I won’t put it out until we’ve at least gotten the first half sorted.
As I always pride myself on being upfront and honest with you guys, I have to report that I have had an issue TheShop3D in the past week, primarily with their print team failing to communicate problems to either myself or our customer. I have made my dissatisfaction very clear to them on this issue and I have been assured that measures are being taken to prevent a repeat. I have over the last year invested a lot of time and effort into TheShop3D, and have extended every patience, especially in the trying times we are currently in, because I believe that they do have the potential to finally provide a credible alternative to Shapeways; but as I have stated, my customers come first so I will be keeping a sharp eye on things. I should also stress, however, that I have had problems with Shapeways over the years that were just as bad, if not worse, and ones that I have had to just suck it up with, since there was no other option.
MG issue 2 has been set back, since it appears that half the design team was not happy with the stat blocks I did, so they are re-designing them again.
In brighter news, the next release up was going to be the Gepard… But on researching, I discovered that it was, in fact, a modification to the Leopard 1 hull, so on the basis that I would have had to do that first anyway, I have instead done the Leopard 1A4. This potentially opens up other Leopard 1 variants down the line, in addition to the Gepard.
Aotrs Shipyards August 2021 Release: Leopard 1A4
This time we have for you the Leopard 1A4 in 144th. (Slightly delayed, since the moderns and sci-fi releases got flipped this month.)
This was necessary as the run-up for next month’s release, the Gepard.
Leopard 1A4
Direct price: £3.75
The Shop3D price: £4.19 (Resin)/£10.19 (Nylon) Link
Shapeways price: $10.70 (£7.60) Link___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Photo of Prusa version.Next month, then, will be the Gepard; after that is currently up in the air, but I have one and one possible commission in the works, so it might be one of those.
Finally, for anyone that didn’t see the Facebook post a PSA: Sorting Shapeways sections in a sensible fashion.
Shapeways has never fixed their webshop’s sorting feature. You can sort the entire catalogue by newest/name etc. instead of the arbitrarily random default order, but if you select a shop section and try to sort it, takes you out of the section and applies the sort to the whole catalogue. (Shapeways seems actively uninterested in fixing the problem.)
Raising the issue on their forums AGAIN, I as usual had no official response, but yesterday, poster woody64 told me that it can be done, by changing the url address.
If you replace the end of the shop section url “&s=0”
e.g.https://www.shapeways.com/shops/aotrs_shipyards?section=Manoeuvre+Group+Models+(Modern+144)&s=0
with “&sort=name”, it will actually do what it supposed to do.
and “&sort=newest” it will sort by newest.
I appreciate it is a massive pain to have to do it manually, but it means at least I can include links like those above (for instance, when I do a new starfleet release or something), but at least I can tell you all about the option. As to whether Shapeways will actually ever fix it so it works properly, your guess is as good as mine, but I’m willing to lay odds TheShop3D will have shop sections that will work before they ever do…
Aotrs Shipyards September 2021 Release: Gepard 1A2
This month, as aforementioned, we have the Gepard 1A2 in 144th for you.
Gepard 1A2
Direct price: £5.05
The Shop3D price: £6.13 (Resin)/£13.92 (Nylon) Link
Shapeways price: $16.10 (£11.71) Link___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Photo of Prusa version.As is typical of more recent mast/radar releases, there are two turrets; one up and active and one down and transit.
Next month is likely to be the M113GA1 and M113GA2, done on commission from Maneouvre Group. After that, we’ll see.
I will be updating the PDF catalogue again next week when I do the sci-fi release, so look for a fresh link then. Hopefully by that point, TheShop3D and I will have caught and ironed out all the pricing glitches caused in the initial uploads, and all the links (to TheShop3D) are in, along with Shapeways links for stuff released to re-released. (Once the rest of the sci-fi releases are out, I’ll finally look at going back through and adding the rest of the links to Shapeways, but for the moment, I want to make an effort to get the rest of the sci-fi stuff re-released – or released, in the cases of the about three ground forces.)
I have put another order in at TheShop3D, hopefully to come before Other Partizan in a month, so by next moderns release (or even before), there might be some more pictures of resin prints for you to drool over.
Aotrs Shipyards October 2021 Release: M113A1G and M113A2G (ETF)
So this time, we have both the moderns and the sci-fi on the same day! First of all, if you haven’t been following the Facebook posts, TheShop3D has rebranded itself since the last post to Only-Games, and have been rolling out their new website. The delay was because they had been implementing their new system that will allow the creators (i.e. me) to uploaded directly (like at Shapeways), which will streamline the process significantly, since I won’t have to submit it to them. This is better for everyone all around.
I should note that because of the legacy stuff, there will be a few glitches as we iron things out, so bear with us! (I’m the largest shop on there in terms of items, and me being likely the most pedantic creator, the Shipyards is most likely going to the be most faff to fix!) One such issue is that the material button is no longer present, since the store treats things differently. (I recommend using the links from the Shipyards PDF catalogue to order the older stuff fort the next couple of weeks, while we clear things up). As the resin in their main line anyway, all the new releases will be in resin only form this point forwards, and we will likely be taking the nylon out as we fix stuff. If there is a demand for nylon, I can always look at putting it back in later – but as that option is available from Shapeways as VPN, I don’t see that being very likely.
I’ll be going back through everything and adding tags to all the models as well. Only-Games doesn’t want to add a semi-infinite number of user-created tags (not unreasonably), so I’ll be conservatively tagging the models basically by scale and genre. The current default sort method, Featured, is actually A-to-Z filter (for my collection, others have might have it configured differently), so hopefully between that and the model codes, you should be able to find stuff. Of course, the PDF catalogue remains another method, though it looks like I might have to re-do some of the links as we replace stuff. Check the Shipyards Facebook page (see OP) for updates on that!
For those of you on here that don’t follow the Facebook posts, here’s a couple of pictures of some Only-Games resin prints (in their spiffy bubble packs) I ordered just in time to take to show off at Other Partizan a couple of weeks ago.
Almost like I’m a proper company now or summat, innit!
So onto the actual release the German M113s, the M113A1G and M113A2G (ETF) (as commissioned by my partners at Manoeuvre Group).
M113A1G
Direct price: £3.00
The Shop3D price: £2.80 (Resin) Link
Shapeways price: $6.22 (£4.68) LinkM113A2G (ETF)
Direct price: £3.00
The Shop3D price: £2.80 (Resin) Link
Shapeways price: $6.35 (£4.78) Link___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Photos of Prusa versions.November’s and December’s releases are queued up for moderns, and the latter might also take us into January, depending on how things go. I’ll leave those as a surprise!
Aotrs Shipyards November 2021 Release and Only-Games Update: QF-25 Pounder
So, a slightly EARLY moderns release, for various reasons (not least being I can have a semi-holiday next week).
Before we get to the release, a general Aotrs Shipyards update. As I alluded to last time, Only-Games has basically come out of beta and that has brought with it the usual issues. (For those of you that don’t follow the Facebook page (though you should!) I basically had to re-do ALL the prices of all my models.)
But as of today, the materials select button is also back on the Only-Games webshop, and thus now my catalogue and all the models now have all the correct prices and links! (If you do find any errors or wrong links in the catalogue, please do let me know; my email is at the back!)
Also – most of the models formerly NATO have been moved to the US. As we’re starting to get national variants (see last month’s German M113s, I decided it would be better to be consistent. Putting stuff under NATO seemed like a good idea at the time ten years ago, but not now!
So, a light at the end of the tunnel? Yes, but its 2021, so it’s an oncoming train…
As I always say, I pride myself on being up-front with you guys.
The Shipyards is the only wargames collection on Only-Games right now; everyone else is RPG guys, and I’m told that not many of them have ever actually done the manufacturing side, so they have slightly different needs and expectations to the Shipyards, as after all, that’s a slightly different market. So the structure of the how the prices are set by us is more aimed towards that side. The way it works now is that Only Games take a proportion of the designated RRP (i.e. the price we as designers set), but that proportion is not accounted for in the manufacturing cost – which is, of course, what I based my mark-up on. And that I spent two days last week very carefully manually re-setting over 372 models… The net result of this is that, as they stand, the prices I have now don’t account for that proportion.
Now, Only-Games is fervently committed to doing right by everyone. One thing they are offering as an alternative is that is you have a subscription with them, they use that instead of the proportion of the price towards their own costs. Which means the sale price can thus be lower – i.e. at the current price level. Now, the thing is, while the subscription is very reasonable, it’s unfortunately still more than I can afford at the moment (i.e., it is more than the sales I make per month).
After a long conversation with the head honcho Alex (by co-incidence…), we have agreed that for the moment, the prices will stay as there are. (He was no happier at the prospect of having to put my prices up sharply than I was, bless his cotton socks.) I will be provided with some discount codes, to see if we can drum up some more sales, that I will be freely handing out at the next couple of conventions – Recon on 4th December and Hammerhead, 5th of March. After Hammerhead has had time to settle in (so end of March/April), we’ll take stock again. At that point, I’ll also hopefully finally have caught up so that Only-Games will have everything up on it as well.
If sales have improved to the point the subscription becomes a viable option, then the prices will remain where they are. Otherwise, they will have to go up, just so I’m making, well, any money on stuff I sell down the line. The raised prices would still be cheaper (and a better product) than Shapeways, so there’s that, at least. And as/when/if sales improve to the point the subscription becomes an option, I can re-evaluate again. It’s unfortunate, but, at the end of the day, it’s just a fact that stuff costs what it costs to make. But I wanted to give everyone plenty of advance notice, and explain the reasons why.
You may consider this a good excuse to splurge on the Shipyards now while it’s still cheaper – and hey, if everyone does it enough, it’ll stay cheaper!
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
So, now that’s all said, let’s actually get down to the release itself, so you do have some more encouragement to part with your pennies. This month, I have for you the QF-25 Pounder (Cold War era), at 144th. In addition to the gun itself, there is a version being towed by the Bedford RL artillery truck, and the Bedford truck on its own, for when the gun is deployed.
No photos of the models, I’m afraid – like with infantry, the QF is right on the border of what the Prusa will manage (due to a combination of factors, not least in getting the supports off), and I couldn’t get a satisfactory print off. Thus these, like infantry, will be exclusive to the webshops.
QF-25 Pounder
The 25-pounder is modelled with four of the six (maximum) crew. The remaining crew would be ammunitions guys, and as such can be assumed to be with the ammunitions truck.
(I did not model that, as I figured even saddos like my partners at Manoeuvre Group would struggle to want to use ammo trucks in a wargame, but I remain open to the idea if there is interest.)
Only-Games price: £1.34 (Resin) Link
Shapeways price: $5.60 (£4.04) LinkQF 25-Pounder (towed by Bedford RL)
Only-Games price: £4.10 (Resin) Link
Shapeways price: $9.26 (£6.71) LinkBedford RL Artillery Truck
Only-Games price: £3.84 (Resin) LinkShapeways price: $8.01 (£5.81) Link
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
Special note, the 25-pounder is courtesy of a visit I made to Fort Nelson in summer; the pictures I took of the 25-pounders they had there are the primary sources used for the model. I still used a for other walkaround, because even as you get better, you always find there’s at least one shot you need to didn’t take, but my own photos, for the first time, did a lot of the work!)I have queued up the releases for the next couple of months – the Ferret Mark 1 and Mark 2. I’m still working on getting the last bits of the back-catalogue revised and re-released; nominally after that I’m looking at the Challenger, but we’ll see how things pan out from here.
Aotrs Shipyards December 2021 Release: Ferret Mk 1 Armoured Car
So after basically TWO WEEKS of hassle and faffing about caused by a hard drive failure, things are sort of back on track, enough to attempt the release, at least.
No data lost, because of back-ups and it was an-about-to-collapse warning, but a full re-install is always my greatest nightmare, because it takes days to re-install everything (literally, just to get to operational status took several days, email as always being the largest massive pain). And then you come to everything and it’s not set right and your work-flow is completely fragged. (And on top, I had to buy a new version of TurboCAD, since v21’s renderer didn’t work with any Nvidia graphics driver past version 399.7; while I was able to keep re-installing it on the old system, the fresh install flat-out refused, saying it was not compatible (obvious bovine excrement, considering I’d been using it for literal years at that point). Fortunately, the new version had fixed the issues that made us return the last upgrade and stick with v21. But it was still more expense.
(And even doing THIS was not without problems – due to the change of system or something else entirely, when I came to do the post – which I have always previously done on TheWargamesWebsite and then copy/pasted to everything else – all the formatting buttons had disappeared (including the one to switch between text and visual), so I don’t even know the formatting tags will work until I click submit (I think it’s been changed to BBcode from… something else?, AND I’m having to attempt to manually type in all the formatting. Edit: there HAS been some site issues on top, but clearing my cache at least allowed me to see the formattign buttons, which still apparently format in html code. The view as text button is still AWOL, but it sounds like that’s WordPress’s fault. 2021 just will not let up.)
So, despite all, I WILL release this month’s vehicle, the Ferret Mk1 Armoured Car, in 144th
Ferret Mk 1 Armoured Car
Direct price: £2.80
The Shop3D price: £1.32 (Resin) Link
Shapeways price: $5.60 (£4.21) Link______________________________________________________________________
Photo of Prusa version.So, assuming no other problems (which is foolish, I know), the sci-fi release will come out next week as planned (though that will potentially be an EVEN LONGER job without the buttons… *sigh* – y’know, I thought to myself as I started this release “this is taking less time than I thought…”
January will see the release of the Ferret Mk 2; I had been getting very close to being ahead of the game, but of course the HDD failure put paid to that. I am HOPING to actually get to work on the Challenger at some point, but first I’ve got to finish off the stuff I SHOULD have done two weeks ago, the last bits of prep for this month’s sci-fi release and to finish the go-over of Soviet Remnant (nee sci-soviets)…
Aotrs Shipyards January 2022 Release: Ferret Mk 2 Armoured Car
So, 2021 continued to wreak havoc right up until the end. The new version of TurboCAD managed to be a unilateral downgrade, having all of the flaws of the old version, but adding new problems (and a less-than-helpful customer service); which means that doing the exact same thing I have been doing for the past decade is now taking longer and more tedium than it did before, for again, no actual gain. Which means 2021 has overall managed to make me have to run harder to stay standing still.
Jury’s out on 2022 at the moment.
This month, then, as planned, I have for you the Ferret Mk 2 Armoured car.
Ferret Mk 2 Armoured Car
Direct price: £2.80
The Shop3D price: £1.36 (Resin) Link
Shapeways price: $5.60 (£4.15) Link______________________________________________________________________
Photo of Prusa version.Next month, something a little different. As part of ensuring the Soviet Remnant and the Zirakthargûm Divinity re-releases actually had some infantry, I ended up doing some Spandrel Teams for the former and then it was daft not to make the modifications for moderns as well. They went in as part of the set of resin prints I’ve had done, so you’ll be able to see then next month. After that, still in the air. I may well release one of the Centurions from the backlog (so they’re not sitting there forever) as I have a few stored in there now or I might finally get to the Challenger, we’ll see.
I have also FINALLY come to the end of the re-release work (though it won’t all be out until March), but at least I won’t have that effort hanging over me for the rest of the year. Downside, we still have the almost-certain necessity of the price increase coming in May, I’m afraid (and all the work re-pricing all 530-odd models…)
To conclude a brighter note, however, here are some more resin pictures, taken with the new camera I had at Christmas.
The QF 25 Pounder:
The Bedford RL (towing):
Now, as you can see from this picture, the gun is a bit off the floor, but I wanted to take this one today, so I can show a before and after. After taking this picture, I dipped in a cup of hot water for literally a few seconds and popped it on a flat surface, and as you’ll see soon, it straight back down beautifully.
There’s a bit more resin, but its sci-fi and for the upcoming releases, so stay tuned for the sci-fi release next week!
Here we are with the post-dip photo of the Bedford RL. I took a picture on the table, since on the terrain, it wasn’t very clear!
Aotrs Shipyards February 2022 Release: Konkurs (AT-5 Spandrel) Teams
As mentioned last time, this month is a facet of having to finally do infantry for the Soviet Remnant (see next week’s scifi release/re-release and meant having to do the sci-fi version of the Spandrel… So it would have been daft not to make the very minor adjustments not to do the actual thing.
So then, this month I have for you the two-man AT-5 Spandrel (akak Konkurs 9M113) teams; a sprue of ten, enough for a battalion.
Konkurs 9M113 (AT-5 Spandrel) Teams
The Shop3D price: £3.36 (Resin) Link
Shapeways price: $12.20 (£9.09) Link_________________________________________________________________
Photo of resin version.Next month the current plan is for the Challenger 1, after which I will likely release one of the backlog Centurions as also noted last time.
We will at Hammerhead on 5th of March where again we will be handing out 15% discount flyers. Just as a reminder, the prices will be going up come April, so anyone that gets one make sure to use it sooner rather than later!
Aotrs Shipyards March 2022 Release: Challenger 1 Mk 3
So, as forecast last month, this time I for you the Challenger Mk 3, in deployment armour and without the extra armour. (In 144th as usual.)
(Challenger 1 Mk 1/2 in the backlog).
Challenger 1 Mk 3
Direct price: £4.30
The Shop3D price: £6.53 Link
Shapeways price: $13.73 (£10.24) LinkChallenger 1 Mk 3 (no armour)
Direct price: £4.15
The Shop3D price: £6.21 Link
Shapeways price: $13.28 (£9.09) Link_______________________________________________________________
Photos of Prusa versions.
Next month, I will be dipping into the backlog, a) so that the vehicles in there don’t stay in there forever, so I will be releasing the Sho’t Meteor and Sho’t Kal Alef and b), because I will also have the re-pricing to do (566 models…)
May will most likely be the Challenger 2, though which permutation is up for debate at this point.
Aotrs Shipyards April 2022 Release: Sho’t Meteor and Sho’t Kal Alef
So, having gotten all the re-pricing out of the way, got month, I’m digging into the backlog. So this month, I have two variations of the Centurion Mk5 – the Sho’t Meteor and Sho’t Kal Alef, as used by the Israeli Defence force.
(These were originally a commission (which is why I did so many Mk 5 Centurion versions), and they’ve been languishing in the backlog for potential emergencies. But there’s enough stuff there now that there’s a reserve, so it’s high time they came out!)
Sho’t Meteor
Direct price: £3.80
The Shop3D price: £5.42 Link
Shapeways price: £8.76 Link
Sho’t Kal Alef
Direct price: £3.90
The Shop3D price: £5.44 Link
Shapeways price: £8.84 Link
_______________________________________________________________
Photos of Replicator 2 versions. (and on the old new camera…!)
Next month will be Challenger 2 (exact level of armour to be decided!) We will also be at Partizan on 22nd of May next month.
What new scifi stuff I might have by Partizan is still an open question at this point, however.
Among the reasons is I will be taking another stab at helping Manoeuvre Group Issue along over the next week or two as well, so we might really, really, actually be finally close to the release!
Which in case it has not been noted before, Issue 2 not a new product, but an overhaul – very few actual rules changes, mostly additions – and a whole lot better (and more consistent) writing, mostly due to yours truly, so it should be a considerably easier to read!) Current owners will be notified that they can download the new version thanks to Wargame Vault’s notification system, so hopefully everyone will get the message!
(I, in the end, with some Help From The Internet, sort of won the record sheet debate, however, which means that, as I’d done all the record sheets, I can just copy/paste them back as I do my next editing pass. That will be longer than I thought, though, since unfortunately, they didn’t use the version I’d done the most recent tweaks to, so I’m having to go through paragraph by paragraph comparing versions to make sure the updates I added go in…)
Bonus: This also puts the scifi expansion back on the map properly, since once Issue 2 is out, I can finish off the outstanding bits in the current beta version. (Which as before, is currently available here.)
Aotrs Shipyards May 2022 Release: Challenger 2 (Gun Tank and DL2A)
As previously stated, this month I have the first of the Challenger 2 releases. To start with, it is the base version without addition armour (the “gun tank”) and the version used in Telic -1 with Dorchester Level 2A armour.
Challenger 2 “Gun tank”
Direct price: £4.40
The Shop3D price: £6.68 Link
Shapeways price: £10.72 Link
Challenger 2 DL2A
Direct price: £4.40
The Shop3D price: £7.40 Link
Shapeways price: £11.29 Link
_______________________________________________________________
Photos of Replicator 2 versions.
Next month is likely to be a couple more of these (at the opposite end of the spectrum). I am tentatively considering the Warrior after that, but we’ll see.
We (that is Aotrs Shipyards and Manoeuvre Group) will be at Partizan on the 22nd of May. Manoeuvre Group Issue 2 is done bar the shouting, which in this case is just re-doing the new cover image, since the authors weren’t happy with the first pass. (This would already be done, but Dad is literally just walking in the door as I type this after being on holiday for a week!) They are determined, however, to get Issue 2 out for Partizan, so watch this space!
(I will be doing starships, rather than scifi MG, simply because it’s been all I could manage to scrape enough creativity to design some new starships, and Accelerate and Attack doesn’t require test set-ups as time was rolling on.)
The (free) Sci-Fi MG expansion will be out at some point down the line, when I resume picking away at overhauling the rest of the stat blocks; will take a fair bit of time, considering it tooks a few days to just do the ones for the Aotrs, so no current time frame.
Aotrs Shipyards June 2022 Release: Challenger 2 (DL2E and DL2F)
This time, I have two more Challenger 2s, this time from the opposite end of the armour spectrum, the DL2E (the “desertised” version) and the DL2F Theatre Entry Standard “Megatron.”
I did have to admit defeat – the “birdcage” antenna is a separate part which needs to be glued in. Having it in situ was impractical for printing both in terms of actual printing (especially for FDM) and would have shoved the volume (and price) up for both printhouses for no gain.
Challenger 2 DL2E
Direct price: £4.90
The Shop3D price: £8.51 Link
Shapeways price: £12.83 Link
Challenger 2 DL2F (TES Megatron)
Direct price: £4.90
The Shop3D price: £8.58 Link
Shapeways price: £12.92 Link
_______________________________________________________________
Photos, as always, of Prusa versions.
(The other Challenger 2s (DLC B through D) are for the moment, planned to stay in the backlog.)
A reminder, in case you missed the previous announcement, Manoeuvre Group Issue 2 is finally out! Those of you who already had it should have gotten an email notification – for everyone else, you can find it here on Wargames Vault, now much better edited and written!
A less pleasing reminder is one that I have to re-iterate: I can no longer guarantee that Shapeways will deign to print all my models in VPN. Thus far, three of the starships, all ones that have been printed previously, they have refused to print. This is less likely to affect the moderns models in general, but I have to re-iterate the warning nonetheless; we are only ever one more change of parameters away from that possibility. As always, I can only point at myself or Only-Games as the superior alternative (even after the price rise, the latter is still two-thirds the price and on mid-sized orders, that will quickly cover any increased postage for those with an otherwise-more-local Shapeways outlet).
Next month is tentatively the Warrior.
It has, however, been something of a nightmare month, with major house renovation to the hall, stairs and landing (plus Partizan right in the middle) and my ability to do any useful CAD work has been limited during and after due to stress (exacerbated by having to make format written complaints to two large companies plus Shapeways shenanigans, the latter of which might have cost some customer goodwill to boot if they don’t ever see my messages) plus an essentially uprooted sleeping schedule (and my sleep has been poor since basically lockdown). Thus, I have still not managed a normal working week yet without losing time to having to just sleep during the day. (I almost managed it last week, but ended up losing three hours on Saturday even then.)
So all future plans are up in the air at the moment. No sci-fi releases are planned for the immediate future (likely will be the Royal Elven Kingdoms fleet or ground force when it does come, but no time frame on that at the moment). I have made some progress on the Warrior, and am tentatively planning to try working on the MG sci-fi stat re-formatting maybe next week and I’m trying to devote a little time for finishing the Shipyards lore thread on SpaceBattles as well. We will, then, have to see what happens in July and onwards. But this is, ultimately, why I have a backlog queue for the moderns, so there is always something to put out, at least.
Aotrs Shipyards July 2022 Release: Warrior
This time, I have for you the Warrior IFV, in three variants, the base Warrior, the up-armoured version as used in Operation Granby (i.e. Gulf War 1) and said version with the rare mounted MILAN.
Warrior
Direct price: £3.70
The Shop3D price: £3.78 Link
Shapeways price: £7.06 Link
Warrior (Operation Granby)
Direct price: £3.90
The Shop3D price: £4.22 Link
Shapeways price: £7.54 Link
Warrior (Operation Granby with MILAN)
Direct price: £3.90
The Shop3D price: £4.38 Link
Shapeways price: £7.66 Link
_______________________________________________________________
Photos, as always, of Prusa versions.
Next month is most likely going to be more Warrior versions (I have done two variants of the command vehicle, plus two later up-armoured versions, though the former pair are for the moment going into the backlog.)
After that, I’m nominally looking at maybe the LAV/Piranha/LAC-25 – the turret essentially gives another Warrior version and possibly the UK FOX armoured car, but we shall, as always see.
Aotrs Shipyards August 2022 Release: Warrior (Redux)
This month, as noted last time, I have two more Warriors: the WRAP2 and TES(H) up-armoured versions.
MG144-UK12E FV510 Warrior WRAP2
Direct price: £4.10
The Shop3D price: £4.96 Link
Shapeways price: £8.71 Link
MG144-UK12F FV510 Warrior TES (H)
Direct price: £4.10
The Shop3D price: £4.87 Link
Shapeways price: £8.65 Link
_______________________________________________________________Photos, as always, of Prusa versions.
Next month will be the Wiesel 2 Ocelot – a change, since I wanted to put something new on the table for Other Partizan in September, and a new Tarrainian Federation missile carrier came to mind… But that necessitated doing a suitable modern vehicle from which to base it on first!
Work on MG scifi expansion is still ongoing, but we are still hopeful it will be ready before Other Partizan.
Aotrs Shipyards September 2022 Release: Wiesel 2
This month, I have the Wiesel 2 Ocelot – both the launch vehicle and the radar unit! (The command version is in the backlog, too.)
Wiesel 2 Ocelot
Direct price: £2.90
The Only-Games price: £1.56 Link
Shapeways price: £8.65 Link
Wiesel 2 Radar
Direct price: £2.85
The Only-Games price: £1.61 Link
Shapeways price: £8.65 Link
Now, unlike with some of the other similar models, I have only done the versions in the raised positions. This was simply because the Wiesel 2 is sufficiently small and (sufficiently complex in the way in which it folds up in the Ocelot’s case) that it wouldn’t just be a case of doing a turret, but would have to be a completely separate model. If there is interest in those version, they could be done, but it seemed counter-productive (effectively doubling the cost of the model) unless someone specifically asked for it. The Ocelot’s turret is also too small to be locking, and it was only with a bit of consideration I was able to make it as a separate part at all!
_______________________________________________________________
Photos, as always, of Prusa versions.
Now, if you are not following the Shipyards Facebook page (and if not, you should!), we did try an experiment in changing the 0.4mm nozzle to the 0.25mm nozzle. (Fortunately AFTER we had completed all the critical printing for Other Partizan.) This is the difference, using the forthcoming Tarrainian Federation Wiesel 12TD (0.25 on the right). It is better – like wise mechanical saurian scholar once noted, Not More Better Enough. It is not double the print-time better, and not better-than-Only-Games-resin better. It is not something we will be doing, though, since aside from the only marginal improvement, Dad broke the printer changing the nozzle back (to the point we are having to have a new hot heat entirely). So it’s not one we intend to repeat.
Next week, I will be releasing the Wiesel 12TD as the sci-fi release; work n Sci-Fi Manoeuvre Group is still ongoing, but I rema8in tentatively hopeful it will be ready for the aforementioned Other Partizan.
Next month is going to be the M270 MLRS. A change to my plans, because I clicked on a link to look at HIMARs, and thought, “I could do them quite easily, and I already have the M270 don’t I? No, wait, that’s just the Aotrs Devil Storm, ah, which I can just work from…!” But on checking, not only was the Devil Storm not the same size (but it was never supposed to be), but was the drawing I’d used actually accurate (not that it mattered for the Devil Storm) when I came to look at the M270… So I ended up basically re-doing the whole thing from scratch anyway. So the M142 HIMAR will likely be slated for October.
Finally, if you haven’t see the previous thread, Only-Games are having their first site-wide sale. The sale will last until 15:00 BST of the 29th of September, and is 15% off everything on site (except for subscriptions).
This includes the entire 500-model plus Shipyards ranges, including the 174 Manoeuvre Group Moderns range, including today’s releases!
Discount code to use: OGSALE15
Aotrs Shipyards October 2022 Release: M270 MRLS
This month, I have the M270 MRLS, as usual, at 144th. This was prompt by the upcoming release next month of the HIMARS. They share the same weapons pod (the HIMARS just uses one instead of two), so I needed to do the one before t’other.
M270 MLRS
Direct price: £4.80
The Only-Games price: £5.42 Link
Shapeways price: £11.06 Link
_______________________________________________________________
Photos, as always, of Prusa versions.
I have made no attempt to put the machine gun on, since literally not a single photo I found ever showed it being used, and it would actually have been difficult to put the hole in, because it’s so close to the front of the vehicle.
This time (with both this model and the HIMARs next month), I have not elected to do both upright and transit mode turrets, just the former. If there is interest, I can look at doing a model with the transit mode as a supplementary model. (Not doing it keeps the cost down, of course!)
As mentioned, next month will be the M142 HIMARS (some of you who follow the Facebook page may have seen it in amongst the photos of Other Partizan.)
Speaking of conventions, we will be at Fiasco at the end of October. This will probably be the last one this year as we won’t be making it to Recon in December.
If you go to the Shipyards Facebook page there is an extended shooting example for Sci-Fi Manoeuvre Group. Despite the flavouring, it nevertheless is largely how regular MG works (though regular would have slightly less weapon dice and no shields) so is illustrative of the sort of thing it does. Please go and have a look! (I’d link the post directly, but Facebook doesn’t let you do useful things like that anymore.)
What’s coming up in December is still in the air – I am in the middle of writing the lore (and on to an expansion of the ships for) the XGA starship range at the moment, so I likely won’t even know until probably next week. The Piranha remains top candidate at the moment, however.
Aotrs Shipyards November 2022 Release: M145 HIMARS
An early release this month – the M142 HIMARS, at 144th!
M142 HIMARS
Direct price: £4.80
The Only-Games price: £4.81 Link
Shapeways price: £8.25 Link
_______________________________________________________________
Photos, as always, of Prusa versions.
Next month will nominally be the Mark 10 and/or 11 Chieftain.
I also have to report that, having gotten MG Sci-Fi out, I had started to work on Manoeuvre Group’s army lists to bring them up to the new Issue 2 standard; but the authors have decided they don’t want me to do that. In their words, they said that anyone who was buying their army lists would understand tanks and therefore would not need a format revision (i.e. to new stat blocks, nor of a cold-read comprehension proofing), because what they have is already understandable to that audience. I don’t know whether they plan to do anything to the older lists and they are proofing the upcoming ones themselves, but that’s as much as I know.
I am… extremely disappointed in this decision (I feel that the current format of the lists (especially the older ones) would substantially benefit from an overhaul as much as MG itself did); but it is now out of my hands.
(In this cynical age, I should probably note that this is not a money thing on either part, since I was not being paid to do it or anything, nor would I have gotten anything out of it except a more comprehensible line of products to point my own customers towards as a set of rules.)
So I’m afraid that if anyone wants to see Issue 2 standard MG army lists (new or revised), your only option is to give the authors some feedback as customers to that end, since in no uncertain terms is no further input from me going to carry any weight. Sorry.
Aotrs Shipyards December 2022 Release: Chieftain Mk 10
Closing out the year as we began it, with a UK vehicle which I have created partly due to walkarounds I was able to take in person (this time from Armourgeddon): the Chieftain Mk 10, as always, at 144th.
Chieftain Mk 10
Direct price: £4.10
The Only-Games price: £5.78 Link
Shapeways price: £9.38 Link
_______________________________________________________________
Photos, as always, of Prusa versions.
I have elected to hold the Mk 11 Chieftain for January (or possibly February) for a couple of reasons.
One, since I worked on the big lore project on the Extra-Galactic Aliens, I have been working on additional starships for them to bring them – finally – up from a full fleet. Since the motivation to do starships has not been with me for a long time (and it is, ultimately, why Aotrs Shipyards exists), I don’t want to interrupt myself; and between my two-week Novemeber haitus and December being a short work month, I would be cutting it fine working on something else for time anyway.
Secondly, as the XGA01 lend themselves ideally to resin, I will be getting a print load of resin from Only-Games, and while I’m at it, I will be getting a Mk 11 Chieftain done in resin. So it made sense to put that release off until that gets sent and sorted, once I’ve finished to my satisfaction the XGA01 vessels (which is at least two more and potentially more fighters if fancy takes me). Even if the reasonably liekly event I finish before the end of the month, obviously Christmas rush, so it might not even be until late January that the order gets here. Thus that might have to delay January’s release, which it might be a later one than usual, depending on how things pan out.
I am also going to clear out the old catalogue version from my drive account, so here’s a link to the latest version of the catalogue.
(This can normally be found under the Products section of the Facebook page .)Aotrs Shipyards January 2023 Release: Stalwart (“Stolly”)
I delayed as much as was feasible, but the resin prints haven’t arrived yet, so this month instead, I have for you two versions of the Stalwart amphibious truck, the standard FV622 and the FV623 with the limber (crane).
A third variant (the Mk 1) is squirreled away in the backlog queue.
The Stolly is again in large part curtesy of my visit to Armourgeddon last year, where I took walkaround photos. (I also was able to do for the Saracen, which is on the list.)
FV622 Stalwart
Direct price: £3.45
The Only-Games price: £2.85 Link
Shapeways price: £5.13 Link
(I have not done a covered version, working on the assmuption that a better job could be done of the tarp with paper soaked with superglue, but if there is interest, I could look into doing one.)
FV623 Stalwart (Limber)
Direct price: £3.45
The Only-Games price: £2.95 Link
Shapeways price: £5.15 Link
_______________________________________________________________
Photos, as always, of Prusa versions.
It has been a somewhat frustrating start to the year. I started out with a list of things I wanted to do and work towards this year, and thus far, every single one of them, work or otherwise, has been stalled out at some point by things out of my control.
So far this year:
• Had to replace the (2D/paper) printer, stalling out the couple of things I was doing at the time.
• Had to replace the handbrake on the big car (the one we use to go to conventions and stuff) (more Dad’s issue than mine, but…)
• Waiting on the resin prints to start painting to do everything in one batch (had to start); now I have had to start painting the FDM portions, I am concerned I might run out of base silver to do it all anyway when the rest arrives (so another delay…)
• Coming to do this release, I discovered that Simplify3D had imported the wrong file and I and printed the base Stolly twice instead of the Mark 1 (so I then had to do it again and redo all of the supports)
• Apparently being the first person to use it, discovered the revised product upload system brought online that day at Only-Games wasn’t accepting .stl files (it was a trivial fix done within the hour of my reporting it – and in the evening too), but it was just my luck it would be ME that ran into it, isn’t it?)
• Making the release post and finding that the second image link was inexplicable garbled for no readily apparent reason and having to be done again, oh my frag can you see what I’m dealing with
• Booking the family holiday on the 3rd of January (because we’d previously been told “not before January” at the campsite we have used for 40 years to be told “oh, we booked up before Christmas.” (Last year, they even contacted US.) So we have had to change tack entirely for the family holiday and only me, Mum and Dad will be going earlier in the year. (Because I haven’t eve missed a year there, not going to start now since we even managed in 2020…)
• My attempts to convert my BattleTech record sheets from the outdated HeavyMetalPro to MegaMekLab required some level of coding, and it was me that discovered that one of the packages in their guide had stopped shipping with a critical add-on
• Having got the new 2D printer working and carrying on with what I was doing, found the maps in the PDF I was printing were completely unusable due to an appalling job on the scanning and I had to go looking to find some usable versions.
• Stalled out on a GAME I was playing because of potential bug issues (had I not, things would have gotten screwed up)
• At one point, even watching a Blu-ray was stalled because all of a sudden, the sound wasn’t working. (It only took twiddling the cables, but seeing as I haven’t moved it or the telly and it’s been used regularly, there was no apparent reason for it to have come loose).
So, nothing serious and all very much in the “first world problems” areas, but it’s been continuous and my progress on things has been slow.
I have been working on both the lore and a revised version of the Yrgynela ground force (quadrupedal, non-humanoid alien transforming robot ladies, previously unreleased but seen at Hammerhead a few years ago) in the background and (at least some of) those new hopefully release versions will be on the table hopefully for Hammerhead in March. (The revised “infantry” walker-ladies will require resin prints, so that might not happen before then.)
MG have asked for me to do the OT-64 Czech APC, which will be next on the list for moderns, though I told them at the moment, it might be a toss-up for Hammerhead.
Also on the cards for this year are the Bradley, the Fox, the Saracen and the keeps-getting-pushed-back Piranha/LLAV for moderns, the new batch of XGA starships (resin arrival pending…), likely for Partizan, hopefully some more vehicles and starships to bring the Royal Elven Kingdoms ground for and starship up to strength, and the lore for the Acrodinians, Saiyvalyss Alliance and Grand Terran Sovereign Republic.
February will (hopefully) see the release of the Mark 11 Chieftain, once the resin finally comes. (It was, to be fair, a big order and I put it in right before Christmas.)
Aotrs Shipyards February 2023 Release: Chieftain Mk 11
This time, I have the slightly-delayed Chieftain Mk 11, held so that I can bring you the pictures of the resin version!
In addition, if you didn’t see the previous Facebook post on it, I have created a very crude video to demonstrate how easy it is to fix any thin parts which have distorted with a cup of hot water here.
Chieftain Mk 11
Direct price: £4.15
The Only-Games price: £5.83 Link
Shapeways price: £9.19 Link
For good measure, here is also a picture of the (revised) FV432/30, also in resin:
(Links (as FV432 Rarden) for the sake of argument.)
Direct price: £3.20
The Only-Games price: £3.03 Link
Shapeways price: £5.08 Link
There isn’t a standalone Scifi release this month, but in lieu of the XGA01 releases later in the year, here’s a teaser showing the current three releases (Spore Freighter, Battlecruiser and Destroyer) in (unpainted) resin.
The rest of the fleet will be coming in the next few months.
_______________________________________________________________
Photos of Only-Games resin.
Next month is going to be the OT-64 (one of two variants anyway), provided I can work out why TurboCAD and/or simplify were throwing a screaming wobbly about getting it printed… (Because 2023 is 2023.)
We will be at Hammerhead on the 4th of March, showing off the Strayvians (since it’s been a while) and the new Yrgynela (I’m really hoping to have the resin prints soon, as it’s going to be cutting it fine), which will be up to release standards and this time around will actually get released! There’s only three models, but they transform (in one case, like, properly!) I was hoping to do some more, but the revision took so much effort that it isn’t happening at this juncture.
I’m also very pleased (and relieved!) that we are confirmed to have two tables for Partizan in May, which means that is around the tie the XGA01 fleet will be out (otherwise, it might have had to be delayed to September – of July if Barrage does happen this year).
In the meantime, for a sneak-peak, the extensive write-up on the Yrgynela is here, as always!
Aotrs Shipyards March 2023 Release: OT-64A SKOT
This month, I have for you the OT-64A as used by the Czech army (or the SKOT-2A by the Polish army).
OT-64A SKOT
Direct price: £3.75
The Only-Games price: £3.77 Link
Shapeways price: £6.25 Link
_______________________________________________________________
Photos of Prusa version (painted, for once, since Dad cribbed it right away because Hammerhead was coming up!)
The OT-64 (the early, turretless version) is in the backlog – where I remind you, it can be brought out if there is immediate interest.
Next month will be the OT-65/D-442 FUG. (See the Aotrs Shipyards Facebook page for a sneak peek in the Hammerhead report post! ) Still not sure what comes after that, but there are still a few things on the list to do, including potentially the turreted version of the aforementioned.
On the sci-fi side, next week will see the release of the Yrgynela as seen at Hammerhead (see aforementioned report), and following that, the start of the releases for the remaining XGA01 starfleet over the course of April and May (in time for their debut on-table at Partizan in May).
Beyond that, there are a few things in the pipeline, including some merchant/militia/pirate vessels converted from scratch built.
Aotrs Shipyards April 2023 Release: OT-65 (D442 FUG)
This months’ moderns release, as previously stated, is the OT-65 aka the D-442 FUG as used by the Czech and Polish armies respectively.
OT-65 (D442 FUG)
Direct price: £3.00
The Only-Games price: £3.77 Link
Shapeways price: £4.85 Link
______________________________________________________________
Photos of Prusa version (painted, again, for the same reason as last time!)
For May, I am on track for the Bradley – a noticeable gap in the line-up. It’s going more slowly, because Virgin Media are making things difficult, between the router dying and their news-worthy-fracking-up on Tuesday, I’ve lost most of a week’s work, either due to no internet or having to write the formal complaint letter (about their appalling “emergency phone” service that does not, in fact, work in an emergency…)
(I had half-planned to do an April Fool’s release, in doing a model for a 1980s Freightliner FL86 truck and do a whole thing about “what do you mean, it’s just a cold war truck. Yes, I can paint it red if I want to, what of it?” but that was stymied by a) no kind of useable blueprint images b) no kind of usable walkarounds. Though the internet outages would have made it impossible to do even if I could do it.)
There will likely be a couple of variants for the Bradley (one or two as usual for the backlog, but we’ll see). After that, not sure, maybe FINALLY the Piranha/LAV, but we shall see.
In the meantime, I’ve also been working on some merchant shipping for the starships, which will be out in a couple of months, as next week, the XGA starfleet will be unleashed, in time for Partizan in May!
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
