Ah the do it yourself defence,wrapped up in needless, rude personal attacks.

1) I shouldn't have to do anything to something I bought.

2) You won't get very far in life with an attitude like that.

except that these large ships come in clear packaging that you can see their paint jobs before you buy them, and some vary to certain degrees. so you pick the best one

and I won't get very far? you're the one with entitlement issues. I'm just being realistic with a factory made and factory painted set of miniatures. i don't expect the world on a platter and neither should you

Ah the do it yourself defence,wrapped up in needless, rude personal attacks.

1) I shouldn't have to do anything to something I bought.

2) You won't get very far in life with an attitude like that.

except that these large ships come in clear packaging that you can see their paint jobs before you buy them, and some vary to certain degrees. so you pick the best one

and I won't get very far? you're the one with entitlement issues. I'm just being realistic with a factory made and factory painted set of miniatures. i don't expect the world on a platter and neither should you

You're incredibly bloody rude and I don't want to interact with someone who is so poor at communicating and finds it so hard to put themselves in someone else's shoes.

Got my Gladiator today:

Is this what everyone else is seeing?

I just received my Armada order in the mail today. Core + VSD + AFmk2 + 2xCR90s + Neb-B + Fighters.

The paint quality of the core CR90 and one of the blister CR90s is relatively poor when compared to my X-wing minis. Without taking them out of the boxes I immediately noticed how BRIGHT they were.

Also, with the Neb-Bs, the engine block looks to be bright white. Is that normal?

I can post pictures later when I get home.

Yes it is sadly. I noticed a few in the store that were better than others, but most of the wave has that problem. Fortunately it really is a pretty easy fix with doing a wash yourself, and makes them look a lot better at least for the corvette. The detail on that small model is rather insane, but you can't see it normally.

I'm surprised how nasty people are getting replying to people's complaints. We're not acting entitled. There is something that is wrong with the paint jobs on pretty much all the wave 1 ships. The Victory is the only one so far that seems right, and it is excellent. Probably the best model FFG have put out yet; which is why the almost uniformly bad or off paintjobs on the rest of the ships stand out. We haven't committed some grave sin in pointing this out. This shouldn't be a problem in the first place.

This matters to people, even if it doesn't to you individually, and it will affect adopters. One reason people like buying FFG products is because they come prepainted, so you don't have to mess around with them. And yes this is affecting my personal purchasing decisions, I'm not getting a gladiator or another AF until they look the way they should.

At this point I just hope Wave 2 doesn't have the same problems, and the eventual reprints of wave 1 fix them. People are not going to put down $50 for an Imperial SD that looks wrong. This game is going to have enough problems getting off the ground, it doesn't need sub-par models on top of it.

Ah the do it yourself defence,wrapped up in needless, rude personal attacks.

1) I shouldn't have to do anything to something I bought.

2) You won't get very far in life with an attitude like that.

except that these large ships come in clear packaging that you can see their paint jobs before you buy them, and some vary to certain degrees. so you pick the best one

and I won't get very far? you're the one with entitlement issues. I'm just being realistic with a factory made and factory painted set of miniatures. i don't expect the world on a platter and neither should you

Not sure how I manage that on my online game store order...

That's just making excuses for sub-par variants in what appears to be an inconsistent paint quality for the wave.

I don't know... I noticed both the Assault Frigate and Gladiator had a very dull paint job as opposed to the Victory, or even the CR90 and Neb-B. I'm not sure it's a drop in quality or more of a design choice though.

Now I've got no complaint about the models themselves. It's just not the greatest paint job.

Part of what it looks like is a lack of fine detail on those ships. I took a good long look at my new Assault Frigate and Gladiator and compared them to the Star Destroyer that came with the core set. The 2 new ships lack the level of detail that the Star Destroyer has. The Star Destroyer has a lot more small areas and ornamental lines so it comes off looking very complicated and detailed.

The Gladiator has far more "flat" surface area visually, and the Assault Frigate has a ton of flat surface area. Combine that with a somewhat "meh" job at cleaning the ships after they got dipped in that ink wash they're using and you get ships that look much duller than the ones that came in the core set. Kinda unfortunate. The Assault Frigate is a bit of a disappointment there. It's obvious on mine that they gave parts of the ship an ink wash before construction. I've got one fin with a perfect wash that brings out all the detail, but the rest of the ship is dull with the wash staining most of the big flat areas and turning them dull.

While the Gladiator maybe just needs a little highlight work, all that flat space on the Assault Frigate needs a little something. It could use some more work with a good wash to bring out the lines and then some simple highlighting to bring out the flat areas. I played around with

Got my Gladiator today:

Is this what everyone else is seeing?

Yeah, that's exactly what I see on mine. They quality of their washes and the cleanup afterwards has dropped hard on the Gladiator and the Frigate, compared to how it looks in the Core Set.

Hopefully pointing this out will improve that stage in the process a bit for future releases.

Got my Gladiator today:

Is this what everyone else is seeing?

Yeah, that's exactly what I see on mine. They quality of their washes and the cleanup afterwards has dropped hard on the Gladiator and the Frigate, compared to how it looks in the Core Set.

Hopefully pointing this out will improve that stage in the process a bit for future releases.

I pulled my gladiator apart (pics in the modeling sub-thread) and it looks like these models are just dunked in wash, then glued together. I think their formula is wrong for the wash, or the underlying base paint is too rough to let the wash flow into the seams? I'm also actually wondering if the wash is preventing the glue from sticking to the model plastic as my Gladiator practically fell apart. I wonder if this is the same case for the VSD, I've not tried to pull it apart.

My two Gladiator's are darker in color but don't have the type of wash issues that picture is depicting. That is something I would contact FFG about.

Wow that's sad about wave 1. I was hoping they would get the paint quality under control so wave 2 looks nice :/ I'm one of the lucky ones that has a VSD with a darker bridge while the rest of the ship is brighter....I'm wondering if I should just repaint my VSD and Gladiator to match (not a fan of the chosen shades of grey anyway). The Whale Frigate looks like it needs a little changing too. Maybe a slightly brighter tan and grey coloration with better wash...I dunno. I'm fine with painting but people shouldn't have to go out of their way to get them to look decent. It reminds me of NECA's problems where their sculpts are fantastic sometimes but they almost ruin them with sloppy paint.

I pulled my gladiator apart (pics in the modeling sub-thread) and it looks like these models are just dunked in wash, then glued together. I think their formula is wrong for the wash, or the underlying base paint is too rough to let the wash flow into the seams? I'm also actually wondering if the wash is preventing the glue from sticking to the model plastic as my Gladiator practically fell apart. I wonder if this is the same case for the VSD, I've not tried to pull it apart.

The "key hole" connection point on the expansion VSD came free so easily the first time I was removing it from its stand, as if it was barely attached to begin with. I have been extremely careful since. I have a Gladiator and Assault Frigate that each have a creaky way about them that I will also be very careful with - especially after your Gladiator experience. They also feel like they could come apart with minimal effort.

I am not a painter, so the paint jobs don't bother me. I absolutely understand where many of you are coming from though. How fragile they feel is my main concern. X-wing certainly has fragile bits - the X-wing or B-wing cannons, the tiny Falcon quad turrets, most any TIE wing connection points - but I've stored and transported them in Plano cases for as long as I've been playing without a single incident. I will finally be investing in a foam storage solution for Armada because some of these ships do not have a "sturdy" feel that I would be confident in.

For now, I'll just be glad that there are no more Victory style antennas coming in wave two!

Combine that with a somewhat "meh" job at cleaning the ships after they got dipped in that ink wash they're using

This got me thinking. Because the color differential between the different parts matches, it's just several shades darker. I ran into this problem when I washed my corvettes, but when it was still wet I could wipe the raised sections to make them look better.

Painting people: would it be possible to wipe off part of the wash while still leaving the underlying paint? I was thinking a very diluted wash of isopropyl alcohol applied lightly. Any other ideas?

It'd be easier to find the matching colour and give the model a drybrush with it.

my nebs look awful too

Combine that with a somewhat "meh" job at cleaning the ships after they got dipped in that ink wash they're using

This got me thinking. Because the color differential between the different parts matches, it's just several shades darker. I ran into this problem when I washed my corvettes, but when it was still wet I could wipe the raised sections to make them look better.

Painting people: would it be possible to wipe off part of the wash while still leaving the underlying paint? I was thinking a very diluted wash of isopropyl alcohol applied lightly. Any other ideas?

Best way to do it is use oil wash. Thin oil paint in mineral spirits. Let dry (at least over night, oils take longer) Then come back with q-tips. Wet them in mineral spirits and you can wipe the wash right off. Works way better than acrylic based washes. Just having to use mineral spirits is a little pita, but worth it for the additional control. I never get bubble rings, drip marks, etc that I used to get all they time with normal washes.

Combine that with a somewhat "meh" job at cleaning the ships after they got dipped in that ink wash they're using

This got me thinking. Because the color differential between the different parts matches, it's just several shades darker. I ran into this problem when I washed my corvettes, but when it was still wet I could wipe the raised sections to make them look better.

Painting people: would it be possible to wipe off part of the wash while still leaving the underlying paint? I was thinking a very diluted wash of isopropyl alcohol applied lightly. Any other ideas?

Best way to do it is use oil wash. Thin oil paint in mineral spirits. Let dry (at least over night, oils take longer) Then come back with q-tips. Wet them in mineral spirits and you can wipe the wash right off. Works way better than acrylic based washes. Just having to use mineral spirits is a little pita, but worth it for the additional control. I never get bubble rings, drip marks, etc that I used to get all they time with normal washes.

i feel you should also let those that are unfamiliar with using Alkyd based washes/paints that in the case of Mineral spirits, if you use too much of it it will likely result in stripping off the underlying paint, or worse melting the plastic if you're not careful

i don't recommend it unless you know what you're doing or you can work quickly

Well, here's what I'd do.

1 - Spray the models with a black undercoat.

2 - Spray in Star Destroyer Grey. Pick out any detail colours you want.

3 - Spray in ACRYLIC gloss varnish.

4 - Apply ENAMEL panel line wash. Do this by dipping a brush 'loaded' with the wash into the crevices and recesses, and allowing capillary action to drag the wash along.

5 - Let dry.

6 - Erase excess panel line wash with a Q Tip dampened (NOT WET) with ENAMEL thinners.

7 - Weather to taste.

8 - Apply MATTE varnish of your choice to seal it and take away the gloss.

9 - Admire your handy work.

These are two my CR90s side-by-side. The one on the right is my core set CR90, and on the left is one of my expansions. I have an additional expansion that looks very similar to the core (on the right). As you can see, the paint quality is vastly different

The difference is quite litterally that one is washed and the other has not been. That is honestly the level of difference tgat little detail creates.

as above

I have the exact same difference between my core neb and corv & their wave 1 counter parts, but they started out exactly the same until a wash was applied. Now I don't know why ffg didn't apply the wash for us, but that's all those particular ships are missing.

I see indications of wash on all my models, it's just super light. Not sure if that was intended or if the wash just doesn't have the right mixture, I'm not sure. I am, however, expecting FFG to have fixed this by wave 2. I shouldn't have to alter my expectations from what I've come to know and love with current X-Wing models.

Hi all,

Just my .02 on this issue... I agree with InvisibleCalm.

So far I have only purchased the core set, and while the VSD looks good, my CR90 and Nebulon-B look terrible and I plan to repaint them.

I respect both sides of the argument here, but I have to side with the folks who are disappointed in the overall quality and consistency. First off, I want to say that my ire is focused on the paint job, not the sculpts themselves, which are excellent. I'm a long-time miniatures gamer, and I have no aversion to painting my own miniatures. I play 40k, FoW, etc. One of the big appeals of X-Wing (at least to me) was that the paint jobs are so good, I'd be hard-pressed to do much better myself. Because I play so many other games, it was a relief that the minis were painted to such a high quality, which meant I could focus my time on other projects. I've sunk a lot of money into X-Wing, but I'm not so sure I would have done that if I had to repaint everything. For example, I love Star Trek too, but the Attack Wing minis are crap (both sculpts AND paint jobs) so I never invested in that game.

As for the argument that Armada is still good value for money compared to other games, that would be a valid argument except for X-Wing precedent. X-Wing miniatures are if anything cheaper than Armada, and also painted to a higher standard. Perhaps FFG did themselves a disservice by setting the bar so high? Yes, Armada is still a bargain compared to GW's products, but don't forget that GW, Battlefront, etc. sell far smaller volumes and appeal to much narrower audiences, so there are significant economies of scale in FFG's favor. After all, you can't find 40k models at Barnes & Noble...

I think there are two main camps of mini gamers. Those who care mostly about the gameplay and only about miniatures insofar as they are "gamer quality," and those who care about gameplay AND the "aesthetic" appearance of the physical miniatures. By offering a lower quality product, FFG risks losing some of their customer base (albeit the "scale model anal-retentive crowd" like me are probably a tiny minority). However, I'm still hoping that this is a quality control issue, and we will see improvements in future waves and reprints.