Unpainted Minis from Wizkids

[SamuraiJack]

Just says 2021:

 

HILLSIDE, NJ, (Feb. 24, 2021) – WizKids, the premier manufacturer of premium pre-painted miniatures and tabletop games, today announced expansions to its vast product lines for both the highly popular role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons and strategy card game Magic: The Gathering. The new products are slated to hit shelves worldwide beginning in 2021.  

Fans and players of the popular franchises can now grow their arsenal of game accessories and lifestyle products to show their affinity for their beloved brands with the arrival of new and in–demand product lines. Debut product categories include action figures, prop replicas, apparel, and even game accessories such as maps, battle mats, bags, carrying cases, and more! 

“As players and fans of these two popular games, we are thrilled to be creating dynamic products that will enhance the play experience for enthusiasts of these long-admired franchises,” said Justin Ziran, president at WizKids.  

WizKids will also offer branded, high-quality paints and paint supplies as a companion to its widely successful Nolzur’s Marvelous Miniatures line – designed for all levels of painting experience. Additionally, WizKids is adding high quality, unpainted, sprue miniatures for intermediate and veteran miniature painters. 

“We are excited to expand our strategic partnership with WizKids to encompass both D&D and Magic. By increasing the variety of products available in key categories, we will further enhance our fans’ experience around the gaming table and offer new collectibles and lifestyle products that allow them to show off their fandom with friends and family,” said Ann Earp, director of licensing at Wizards of the Coast. “The product quality of WizKids and their ability to tap into what fans are really looking for has grown our business exponentially for D&D, and we look forward to them bringing that same success with Magic: The Gathering products and accessories.” 

Expanded categories include:  

• D&D sprue miniatures: premium, unpainted High Impact Polystyrene (HIPS), unassembled, unprimed, miniatures on sprue 
• D&D action figures  
• D&D paint line 
• D&D and Magic: The Gathering artifacts & prop replicas  
• D&D accessories: battle mats, maps, bags & carrying cases 

These new product categories will join the previously announced papercraft and 2D miniatures lines. 

[haldir]

Hmmm, I knew about anther D&D branded paint line (what 3 now?) & some of the other stuff, but I didn't know about the sprue minis.

 

I guess Wizkids wants to take all the hobby cash now!! 

[SotF]

On 3/8/2021 at 6:08 PM, haldir said:

 

When & what are these going to be?

 

Tbh, I really don't mind the sculpts for the Unpainted lines. They are cheap, they are recognizable to their artwork & they work for the game table without any fiddling with.

 

The sprue ones are something that would work with some of the monster races...or something akin to the Frostgrave sprues for various player classes.

 

For figures, it might be interesting to have various known characters and, perhaps, something akin to the old line that was linked to the old cartoon, save more of the actual cartoon characters.

 

There is also the new movie that's in the works...

[JoeGKushner]

Did anyone place some orders for the larger figures that are getting repacked with the price increase? 

 

Bnomish Bazzar  breaks down which figures are going to hit the price increase point. I ordered a few I probably wouldn't have as I didn't need them at the time but better safe than sorry. 

Edited March 20, 2021 by JoeGKushner

[haldir]

3 hours ago, JoeGKushner said:

Did anyone place some orders for the larger figures that are getting repacked with the price increase? 

 

(Link to gnomishbazaar . com) breaks down which figures are going to hit the price increase point. I ordered a few I probably wouldn't have as I didn't need them at the time but better safe than sorry. 

 

Pretty sure most of those have gotten their price increases wave (something like a 12.5 wave or 13.5, either way it's a #.5 wave). I can totally see why they did it as 4.99 is a hell of a bargin for some of those figures but yah just the way they did it was kinda ehhhh ok. I thought it was kinda funny that my FLGS had some of the older pricing, right along side the newer pricing.. Hmmmmmm which one do I get???

 

Now, what I don't understand from them is either the next wave (this or next month) or the wave after this is pretty much re-releasing the same sex-race-class minis but in different sculpts.......ummmmm ok then. Lets not explore more combos that haven't been touched like non-martial class dragonborn or goliaths or hey look a Tabaxi wizard or warlock, no we still get half-orc barbarians...sigh. I do like some of the newer re-sculpts & I'll probably get a few but I'd rather have something new. At least we are getting some things in this wave that are needed.

 

btw, I never knew gnomishbazaar had their webstore. I may have to go through that then their ebay page. 

 

(Also, those are pretty much outside commerce links so you'll have to take the link off as those are not allowed here)

[Lidless Eye]

On 3/19/2021 at 2:31 PM, haldir said:

 

Pretty sure most of those have gotten their price increases wave (something like a 12.5 wave or 13.5, either way it's a #.5 wave). I can totally see why they did it as 4.99 is a hell of a bargin for some of those figures but yah just the way they did it was kinda ehhhh ok. I thought it was kinda funny that my FLGS had some of the older pricing, right along side the newer pricing.. Hmmmmmm which one do I get???

 

Now, what I don't understand from them is either the next wave (this or next month) or the wave after this is pretty much re-releasing the same sex-race-class minis but in different sculpts.......ummmmm ok then. Lets not explore more combos that haven't been touched like non-martial class dragonborn or goliaths or hey look a Tabaxi wizard or warlock, no we still get half-orc barbarians...sigh. I do like some of the newer re-sculpts & I'll probably get a few but I'd rather have something new. At least we are getting some things in this wave that are needed.

 

btw, I never knew gnomishbazaar had their webstore. I may have to go through that then their ebay page. 

 

(Also, those are pretty much outside commerce links so you'll have to take the link off as those are not allowed here)

 

Seriously.  My problem with the Pathfinder line was it was way too many generic PCs and Iconics that have been done to death, now Nolzur's is leaning the same way.  Several of the Dragonborn in plate armor are even reposes of the earlier releases...who were reposes of the pre-paints.

[Halberkill]

On 3/8/2021 at 6:08 PM, haldir said:

 

When & what are these going to be?

 

Tbh, I really don't mind the sculpts for the Unpainted lines. They are cheap, they are recognizable to their artwork & they work for the game table without any fiddling with.

 

 

They have already one polystyrene figure out there, the Acererak included with the undead paint set was a multi-part figure on a sprue. 

 

Though think more of current GW sprue design as opposed to Frostgrave. These minis will most likely be posed and probably not very customizable, at least not in the same way Frostgrave minis are.

 

Halber

[lexomatic]

3 crawling claws per pack is too few.

 

[The Steve]

wow, this thread aged badly. and now we have retailers that no longer carry reaper :(.

I spoke with 2 different shop owners. seems the consensus was:
* Bones had issues early on that left a bad taste in people's mouths and they are excited about bones black but largely do not know about BONEUSA which IMO is a game changer.
* wizkids has the ACTUAL model for the thing people want.
Personal speculation:
d&d/hasbro/wtc is such a behemoth they get favoritism among distributors.

 

[Chaoswolf]

On 3/31/2021 at 6:26 PM, The Steve said:

and now we have retailers that no longer carry reaper

Which is kind of a shame. Reaper's figures are better, IMO.

That's not fanboy speak, I honestly believe they are better. I have seen examples of some of the Nolzur's stuff that barely have faces. Mold lines are pretty terrible in some cases, and I have even seen a figure whose arm just kinda tapered off into nothing. There was a flat thing on the end that was supposed to be a hand, but there was zero detail there.

Now, to be fair, they also have some pretty great figures in that line, too (the beholder that I STILL can't get ahold of is one example). 

I guess the easiest way to put it is that I have no reservations ordering a Reaper Bones figure online, whereas I'd want to see a Nolzur's figure in hand before I decided if I wanted it or not.

 

[Nunae]

I prefer Reaper for unit building (so my Kobolds, Orcs, Goblins, ...) and I like that a lot of the Reaper figures have a lot of character/fun to them. Wizkids is great for the more obscure creatures and if you just want something that really fits the official art. 

Before painting, a lot of my miniature-uninitiated friends and my boyfriend are way more drawn to the Wizkids stuff though, as Bones look soft or undetailed to them. Personally I didn't have much trouble with flat faces or mitten-hands more recently, but it was really bad on some of the earlier releases. 

And, tbf, earlier Bones can be droopy and bendy and have bad moldlines as well. Overall I still prefer the Bones style though.

I can understand that the D&D/Pathfinder Logo paired with miniatures that are quite readable in the box might be attractive to some retailers. 

Very excited for the HIPS though, I really want to know what they'll come up with. I've read a speculation that it might be based on adventure modules (so a big box with everything for LMoP oder something) and that'd be genius. Or maybe they finally increase the variety of their Orcs/Goblins/etc. 

[SamuraiJack]

My FLGS sacrificed Reaper metals for the Reaper Bones and Wizkids lines.. they just dont have enough space for everything..  I'm more inclined to get a Wizkids mini that specifically meets an item in my game versus a sort of close Reaper model.. or if it's an iconic D&D monster like the Beholder...  

[Lidless Eye]

Honestly to me even the early Bones, minus some disasters that never made it to retail, were consistently better than the WizKids offerings.  Not that WizKids hasn't improved, but I also prefer Reaper as a company too.

[Great Khan Artist]

Poop. I was hoping that there would be some Egyptian M:TG gods in that lineup. Oh well, I can always use another giant snake.  As for Tiamat? I' prefer Ma'al Drakar.

Edited April 7, 2021 by Great Khan Artist

[The Steve]

On 4/4/2021 at 5:02 PM, Chaoswolf said:

Which is kind of a shame. Reaper's figures are better, IMO.

That's not fanboy speak, I honestly believe they are better. I have seen examples of some of the Nolzur's stuff that barely have faces. Mold lines are pretty terrible in some cases, and I have even seen a figure whose arm just kinda tapered off into nothing. There was a flat thing on the end that was supposed to be a hand, but there was zero detail there.

Now, to be fair, they also have some pretty great figures in that line, too (the beholder that I STILL can't get ahold of is one example). 

I guess the easiest way to put it is that I have no reservations ordering a Reaper Bones figure online, whereas I'd want to see a Nolzur's figure in hand before I decided if I wanted it or not.

 

what you gonna do tho? I don't know how to change the retailers. and I *highly* suspect wtc is leveraging key MTG releases to make distrubutors prioritize their other product ranges pushing out other companies.