Take 2: What The?! Miniatures to Sell First Custom Figs

Back on February 13th I wrote an article titled “What The?! Miniatures to Sell First Custom Figs.” In that article I rated two models produced by the makers of Battleground Weird War 2, Brian and Amy Cottrell, the Fliegerfaust as part of their foray into making miniatures. I reviewed the models giving them a warm 4.5 stars out of 5. I didn’t give 5 stars because I had a few concerns.

Since then the March ’08 issue of the CWF Game Cast Newsletter was published leading Amy to leave some comments on that article. I am so glad that she took the time to make a response on the issue. Her responses have clarified all of my concerns, which now allows me to give 5 stars for the models. Before I share my concerns and explain why I’ve bumped the rating up 1/2 a star I want to thank Amy for her comments. I also need to say that the Fliegerfaust models were renamed Luftfaust. I will explain that below.

What I don’t like is the shoulder-fired pose. I love having a shoulder-fired one but I think the rocket launcher needs to be aimed higher in the air. It looks like it is posed to take out a tank but a plane. Fliegerfaust are anti-air weapons. Therefore they need to be aimed at the sky where aircraft are. You don’t see planes bombing or strafing while on the ground. They do that from the air.

Amy informed me that the name was changed to Luftfaust because the models are carrying weapons to take out land and air. She said the version of the weapon mounted on aircraft is called Fliegerfaust. When they came across that information they promptly changed the name. That clarification has virtually nullified my comments in the above excerpt. As I said the models “looks like it is posed to take out a tank.” Clearly the pose now is more befitting the name. I still maintain that an anti-air weapon, or any weapon for land and air, should be positioned in the air. But, there’s nothing stopping a gamer from positioning the weapon that way.

I had another concern that dealt with scale. This too has been rectified in comments from Amy. I originally said:

My concern with this change in scale is that most games I’ve seen are 28mm and they enjoy a lot of success. I’ve read that a lot of WW2 and Weird War figs from other companies are in 28mm scale or something close to that. By switching to 34mm scale I’m afraid that long time gamers won’t buy the new figs because they won’t fit into their existing collection. I’m also concerned that other companies will be alienated because gamers will either need to use other companies’ stuff or product from What The?! Miniatures.

Amy has since alerted me that all their 28mm scale models will be sculpted in 34mm scale. Consequently, all their 34mm scale models will also be sculpted in 28mm scale. I am going to venture onto a limb and say that enough feedback reached them to make this change. I don’t recall ever seeing this mentioned on their forum before I wrote the article. However, I am glad they are casting in both sizes. The reasons to cast in 34mm are completely valid and do make solid business sense. But, it also makes solid business sense to cast in 28mm scale.

We intend to sell the 28mm minis as a permanent item in our catalog. We also intend to shadow any popular 34mm sellers in 28mm so the 25mm-28mm won’t get left out on the popular stuff.

All 28mm minis will be $3.50 and the 34mm will be 4.50.

We have several projects percolating right now so we should have some interesting stuff to offer later in the year.

A lot of great information was made available in Amy’s comments. One of the most important I’ve shared in the above excerpt. All 28mm minis will be permanently fixed in the What The?! Miniatures catalog. Plus, 28mm scale will cost $3.50 per model while 34mm will cost $4.50 per model plus s&h. These are great prices that allow the casual gamer to try them out and the veteran to stockpile without emptying the bank.

Lastly, to reward you for reading this entire article I have a few treasures to share. Firstly you can find the official Battleground Weird War II rules for the Luftfaust by going to the official Battleground Weird War II Rules page. Lastly, I have pics of the painted figures to share. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have.

You can clearly see the progress from green sculpt to finished metal model to painted figure. Be sure to click the thumbnails for a closer look.