Goatboy’s Warhammer Hobby: WHY Are There So Many Dang Parts!
I don’t know about you – but these new Warhammer kits have way too many parts. What is up with the recent GW kits?
It’s not like all the parts are extra options to build your models. Like extra arms, heads, weird bits, and other fun stuff. Nope, these are overly complicated pieces that somehow mash up to create a 40K grim dark horse friend and the rider of the apocalypse.
Lately, I have been helping friends out build some models for their collections. Sometimes I get lucky and have something I will end up getting later to paint and play with, while other times, it is some kind of chore of a kit that vexes me. Lately, I have noticed a lot of Warhammer kits have started to veer into the territory of – what mad person cut this kit apart?
They looked so good in the pictures!
So Many Parts!
Why does a horse need to be 6 separate parts with one of them being the dang animal’s ears? Why can’t the ears be molded onto the head instead of being this tiny kit that can easily get lost in the fuzzy sea that is my carpeted hobby room floor. Oh and why do all these models start to have separate feet to try and line up correctly on sculpted rock base?
Is this GW just trying to drive me crazy due to the amount of glue/cement fumes? Are they trying to hide secret messages in the weird bits and pieces? Why does this dude need separate fingers on a bit that will never need to move around? Is this all about undercuts?
The Good Ole Days
The reason why I am even talking about this is the other day I was building some of the new Fleshhounds. It was like a dream come true with each dog being 4 pieces. That’s it and the pieces have to fit a certain way too. I could cut off all the pieces from the spruce, clean up all the mold lines, and just go to town building these dang dogs. I built 2 boxes in less than an hour while answering emails.
Why can’t most models be like this? I don’t mind high customization, with legs and other moving parts but for the love of Khorne why do we need a Contemptor dreadnought to have all those chest pieces that create a line in the middle? Why does each shoulder pad have 5+ pieces for something that can easily just be one piece as it has no movement?
Three full sprues – five models.
Are the Teensy Bits Worth It?
Those Astra Militarum Roughriders, for instance. Each guy has a separate foot for each side for the rider. I don’t understand the need other than they wanted to have a unique-looking stirrup shape. Plus, each rider had a set of pouches that rolled over the chest that could have been easily molded into the chest. Just these small things that don’t really add to the modeling experience other than layering on some sprinkles of frustration.
On top of all of these, the way a sprue gets laid out is just nuts. I know there was a desire to fit it all in, but many some logic to allow you to follow the path to finishing a model would be great. Gone are the days of breaking your whole sprue down and just combining whatever chest, backpack, and legs you want. Each piece is set up for each other piece like some unholy union of darkness and despair.
I Miss the Easy Fit Kits
I really loved the old easy-fit models we had from the simple marine releases. That simple Redemptor was awesome and just getting it together allows you to go hog wild cutting and fitting other parts. The basic shell just worked, and I miss those sorts of things.
What do you think about the new models? They look awesome but, boy, it can be a chore to build things. I don’t know about you – but my hobby time is limited with family and other life stuff so taking 2-3 hours to get a simple unit together is pretty disheartening when you need to then paint it too. I can’t do well with grey models and having it painted is one of the ways I find enjoyment in battle.
15 parts – gets the job done…
Plus sometimes just figuring out how all these things fit together is a nightmare. Still – it did make me look at Plastic Cement/glue versus super glue which has been a nice change of pace. I don’t have to worry about my fingers getting wrecked and spending a night ripping the glue off of my poor digits.
So what do you think? Do we need to continue to stay complicated, or should we get some easy-to-build kits coming back to 40K?
