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October 2nd, 2010
Review - Mantic Games Dwarf IronClad Regiment  Today I'm here to take a look at Mantic Games Dwarves IronClad Regiment boxed set. This is a 20x model set, as all Regiment boxes come with 20x models from Mantic Games.
In the box you'll find 4x sprues, and 3x of these are the same, with the 4th sprue being the command sprue with a few different options unique only to it. You also get the Mantic Point sticker, a poster with Mantic Games Dwarf propaganda and two sprues with 20x 20mm square bases on them, plus the standard two sheets of thin black foam in the box. Each sprue can make 5x models. Three of the models are made up of a lower torso with the backside of the upper back molded on, and a separate front upper torso with the head attached, and a left arm in position to accept a shield. The other two models are similar in design, except both arms are separate, but the separate left arms are by design meant to hold a shield, or to cup a pole of a long hammer, or the horn. The command sprue has two head choices to make a nice command model, and a few extra bits not found on the other three normal sprues, like a flag pole, and horn. Some of the other extras include a dead dwarf model, a beer stein, a decapitated orc head, and a bulldog model on the regular sprues. Once again, there's not a lot of customizable options, however you can select from two different head choices for two of the models per normal sprue. You can also choose which hammer they're armed with, and which one gets the single ax provided.     Like the IronWatch Mantic dwarf models we reviewed previously, there's not a lot of customizing options available in this set either. However it's a trade-off, because these models clean up and assemble in no time flat by design. All of the parts fit together quite nice, and there are mold lines, but cleanup requires minimal effort, because there's no more clean up required than what you'd expect from most any other sprue of quality made plastic models from GW.
The models themselves are also quite nice. The look and feel is more animated or comic-book-like, than gritty and grizzled like WFB or the LotR dwarf models. These are stockier and more square-jawed overall. I like them, but they wouldn't look uniform next to most any other dwarf models out there. They have a look completely of their own.     Conclusion
At around, or less than $1 per model, it's hard to knock this set. These are the core dwarf models to build a dwarf army around from Mantic Games, and you could easily spend $20 and get a lot less for your money elsewhere. My only real gripes would be, that like the IronWatch models, these too don't leave much room underneath the models for base decor, plus how the arms and shields stick out, it's really hard to get the models to butt up flush against each other at the base-level in a clean uniform formation. While I think for the money this is a great set, there's also the fact that the separate heads and a few of the bodies are identical to those you can find in the IronWatch set. So they're doing a lot of recycling of the parts in the Dwarf line. On one hand it makes integration easy, and keeps the cost down, but on the other hand there's less unique sculpt options available. Overall I like them, and I think once assembled and painted up they look great. It also doesn't hurt that they're inexpensive, so building an army for Warhammer Fantasy Battles 8th Ed, Song of Blades and Heroes or even Mantic's own upcoming Kings of War game won't break the bank. They're also insanely fun to paint up, as the details are crisp and defined, and unlike most dwarf models out there, these ones actually have legs! |
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