I watched Paul Heaver play, and his miniatures seemed to be of much better quality than the ones offered in regular stores.

Where can I find good quality miniatures?

thanks,

-theundead

They're probably just pro-repaints... which are really expensive (but considering the margins artists make on their time, I'm fine with it).

He shows them extra love by giving them more time on the table!

As far as I know, Paul is using stock X-Wing miniatures and has never had them painted or done anything else to them.

There is no such thing as a 'fine cast' version of X-Wing miniatures. Just the ones that FFG produces.

I watched Paul Heaver play, and his miniatures seemed to be of much better quality than the ones offered in regular stores.

Where can I find good quality miniatures?

thanks,

-theundead

I sincerely doubt there's a special champions only store that the rest of us aren't allowed to shop at. If his miniatures are different, it just means they've had their paint jobs redone, or touched up.

What professional painter wouldn't want Heaver or Hothie or someone like that to show off their work?

Did someone just liken finecast with high quality?

I'll have to look at the vidya to see, pro paints are always good.

They're probably just pro-repaints... which are really expensive (but considering the margins artists make on their time, I'm fine with it).

I figured he was being a smart alec!

Repaints by the players are getting to be pretty common! Hiring a pro to repaint them is just like hiring a miniature painter. Find somebody that does a good job and go for it!

There are some people that do insane re-paints. Some of them could have been used by Industrial Light & Magic back in the day.

Yeah... I just sit and drool...

Looking at all of the awesome work I think I want to find someone to paint my Imperial Assault.

I think FFG changed their casting process sometime after wave 1. You can see it if you compare the rebel Y-wing with the new S&V version, it's the same model, but the newer one has much crisper details. So recent reprints of the older ship might be better quality.

I think FFG changed their casting process sometime after wave 1. You can see it if you compare the rebel Y-wing with the new S&V version, it's the same model, but the newer one has much crisper details. So recent reprints of the older ship might be better quality.

I think it's less to do with the casting, and more to do with the paint. Some of the original Y-wings were drowned in paint and wash compared to the cleaner reprint versions. If you strip the models they're probably the same. Making new moulds would be unnecessary expense.

No, it's not the paint. Like I said, just look at the small details on the two Y-wings (if you own a first run print of the rebel version), the edges on the newer S&V one are much sharper.

Also according to a friend that was a project manager for KayBee Toys, they have to make new molds, as they wear out and distort over time & use. Of course this could be another reason for the differences I'm seeing in my models.

Yes, FFGs product improved. early xwings dont look as good as the newer ones, same with the Y-wings as mentioned above. there is a significant difference in detail and clarity between the xwing from my first core set and the xwing from my last one.

Fair enough, I'll take your word for it then. I'm not sure which manufacturing process they are using (relative to miniatures games like Warhammer and their plastic vs. metal vs. resin techniques), I would expect anything using steel moulds to last a long time but rubber or similar moulds used for casting certainly have a very limited lifespan before needing to be replaced.

Lego has a whole team of people that clean and maintain the molds. Employing a team of folk of cheaper than replacing molds. Having said that, they do need replacing after a while.

I sincerely doubt there's a special champions only store that the rest of us aren't allowed to shop at.

That's just what they want us to think.

I smell conspiracy.

Paul Heaver is an alien Reptilian, in the pay of the illuminati, and 4th in line to the throne.

Explains everything.

Yes, FFGs product improved. early xwings dont look as good as the newer ones, same with the Y-wings as mentioned above. there is a significant difference in detail and clarity between the xwing from my first core set and the xwing from my last one.

I still love them though.

Edit: Damnyouautocorrect!!!

thanks, guys, but still, I think he was using some sort of laser, or light beam for the range ruler? and plastic maneuver templates?

where did he get that kind of stuff?

Some of it you have to win, but you can get your own at places like www.appliedperspective.com

The lasers you can get at hardware stores, they're just laser levels.

Paul can shoot lasers out of his fingers and eyes at will.

His ships appear to be different because his aura glows visibly.

He can also move asteroids with his mind.

where did he get that kind of stuff?

Most of Pauls were acrylic stuff he won at tournaments. Top prizes often include acrylic templates and rulers. But as was pointed out above you can buy them. If you look at the sticky List of Useful Links on the top of this page you'll find links to places that sell them.

And he has magical powers in his hands and his feet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWk_2VTuKBg

1:13

thanks, guys, but still, I think he was using some sort of laser, or light beam for the range ruler? and plastic maneuver templates?

where did he get that kind of stuff?

This really isn't special stuff unique to Worlds champions. You can buy acrylic templates and tokens and stuff from lots of places, or win them in other tournaments (and not always just for top place, I think the acrylic Focus tokens were top 4 at Store Championships this year, weren't they?).

And likewise, the laser wasn't some special FFG thing (though honestly, they should maybe look into it, that'd be awesome). Lots of folks just use a $15 laser level, and that's that.

Also, I think it's worth pointing out that there's a reason for all the acrylic stuff and lasers. It's not just "showing off" with fancy toys, or anything. Cardboard stuff wears out, if you use it enough, if you store and un-store it, if you wave a range ruler around long enough, playing hard enough, it's gonna lose integrity. Guys like Paul? They're the sort that'll wear stuff out. Some of us have more than one set of templates (lots of folks buy two core boxes, for instance), but...even so, they can wear out over time.

And a laser pointer is a great way to accurately check a front arc. Cardboard is WIDE, even if you turn it sideways and try to make it two-dimensional, in order to check an arc. This is a game of millimeters, and trying to hold a range ruler (or whatever) sideways to check an arc, you can knock stuff over, you can hold it unsteady, it can give you an inaccurate reading. A laser level? It's not gonna knock anything around the table, it's gonna give a straight line, and it's gonna be pretty clear about stuff.

So there's a really practical reason for the acrylic templates and tokens, and even for the lasers. It's not just someone being flashy with fancy stuff, there's a real reason to make this game run as smoothly as possible, a real reason to measure as accurately and quickly as possible, especially in high-end tourneys.