Relic Knights - Radiant: Candy & Cola

I finished up Relic Knight Candy a few weeks ago, so now Radiant Candy and her fox-tailed friend Cola are both complete.

I tried to paint everything up fairly quickly and used the dipping method, but afterwards I had to repaint Candy's flesh as the dipping media had pooled and left some unsightly blotches.  For the bases, I decided on German Grey to help contrast against the pastels of Candy's Relic.  I also experimented with using glitter glue, to help give the base even more sparkle and shine.  The sparkles don't show well in photographs, but in real-life they give off a nice shimmer in the light.

Relic Knights - Radiant: Cola

I tried to finish up Radiant Relic Knight Candy and her cypher Cola a few nights ago.  Cola is now completely done, but I needed to make a few fixes to Candy from the pooling effects of the dipping media.

Cola was painted in a few basic colors, highlighted, then dipped using Mixwax Polyshade.  I used some glitter glue on the base to give the model some sparkle and shine (being a Radiant model).  The glitter glue effect seems to work well on the tabletop, but doesn't translate well to photography.

Relic Knights - Black Diamond Cadre

Now that my Black Diamond cadre is complete, I'm pretty happy overall with the overall look -- especially based on the limited amount of time I spent painting them compared to other projects, (about a third of the time that it took to paint the smaller Cerci Speed Circuit cadre).

Leopold Magnus and Diamond Corps
Darkspace Iron Chef
Diamondback and M8-Blitz Auto-Tank
Sophia Drake and Black Dragons
One Shot

The time savings was mostly due the grey color scheme of Black Diamond which allowed me to prime and quickly highlight most of the models, with minimal need for fine detail, or the strong contrast in colors that I usually go for.  It also provides some incentive to choose similar approaches for other projects.  For example, I've considering different Space Marine chapters, and the Space Sharks ("Carcharodons Astra") have a simple gray color scheme that would work well with the same approach.

Relic Knights - Cerci Speed Circuit Cadre

My Cerci Speed Circuit cadre is now complete and they provided a good break from the typical sci-fi models that I paint (from a well-known "grimdark" setting).  One thing I love about Relic Knights is the brightness of the models and their dynamic poses.  The miniatures turned out bright and colorful despite the dipping media, and most models still provided a good contrast in color.  I do wish I would have spent a little more time cleaning up mold-lines, as the dipping method really makes mold-lines stand out.  However, they look good on the tabletop, which is the level of detail I was going for.

Princess Malya, Mr. Tomn, and Pit Crew
Marie-Claude and Esmee
Betty, Lug, and Pacer

Relic Knights - Black Diamond: Leopold Magnus and Diamond Corps

Before I painted my Relic Knights models I decided I would complete them quickly with my "20/80" rule - 20% of my best effort to try and get 80% of the effect.  That meant I spent limited time cleaning up all the mold lines, used colored primers for each model's base color, and performed only simple base-coating as detail.  I then dipped each model using Minwax Polyshade.  Magnus was treated a little different in that he was first primed white, then stained with purple stain, then dipped with the same medium.  In all, once they were base-primed, I spent just two evenings painting and dipping my entire Black Diamond cadre.

Relic Knights - Black Diamond: Darkspace Iron Chef

Darkspace Iron Chef was painted up along with my other Black Diamond miniatures.  For all of the bases I used plasticard that simulated metal grating, along with some metal plating pieces from some plastic sprues from Ebay for added decoration.  I tried to paint most colors with extreme contrast to balance out the black and grey covering most of the miniature.

 

Relic Knights - Black Diamond: Diamondback and M8-Blitz Auto-Tank

For Diamondback, I used zenithal highlighting to achieve the glowing effect, again doing this in the priming step.  I hit the model with Crystal Blue Army Painter primer from the angle of its axe.  His axe was painted light blue and white after painting over the dipping media, which provided the splattered texture that appears on the axe - the paint beaded-up due to the water-proof dipping surface.  The M8-Blitz Auto-Tank was painted simply as well, but I'm considering adding decals to it down the road.

Relic Knights - Black Diamond: Sophia Drake and Black Dragons

Sophia Drake and Black Dragons were painted using zenithal highlighting during the priming step.  I first primed the models using black primer, then hit them with grey primer just on the top of the models.  I did a quick hit of light grey primer directly over top before adding color and painting the guns.  Then, I used the same dipping method that I used on the rest of the miniatures in my Black Diamond force.

Relic Knights - Black Diamond: One Shot

I recently started working on my Black Diamond forces for Relic Knights after becoming re-engaged during the latest Kickstarter campaign for Relic Knights 2nd Edition.  I painted most of the models simply and used the dipping method to add some depth.  Although One Shot's relic has limited contrast and is rather stark, I think it makes One Shot herself really stand out, based on her colorful outfit and dynamic pose.

Relic Knights - Cerci Speed Circuit: Princess Malya, Mr. Tomn, and Pit Crew

I recently completed a few Cerci Speed Circuit miniatures for Relic Knights.  I once again used the dipping method, using just a few base colors and a simple color scheme.  I finished Princess Malya, Mr. Tomn, and Pit Crew, completing the models I wanted to paint from my faction starter for Cerci Speed Circuit.  Now that my Cerci models are complete, I plan on posting some complete cadre pictures soon.

 

Relic Knights 2nd Edition Kickstarter - Upcoming Free Stretch Goals

So far the Relic Knights 2nd Edition Kickstarter is off to a good start.



As we enter the mid-way point of the campaign, the unlocking of stretch goals is starting to slow down. However, based on the spoiler sheet that was released earlier in the Kickstarter, we know that there are a number of planned Free stretch goals still to be announced.

I'm looking forward to the new stretch goals as we enter the weekend, and into the second week of the Kickstarter!

Soda Pop Miniatures: Relic Knights 2nd Edition Kickstarter

Soda Pop Miniatures started their Relic Knights 2nd Edition Kickstarter on Monday.  I have collected a number of the Relic Knights miniatures, but did not participate in the first Kickstarter by CoolMiniOrNot. As a result, this is basically a automatic pledge for me:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/sodapopminiatures/relic-knights-2nd-edition/description

I listened to the Q&A that was posted on the rule changes, and it sounds like many rule changes were made to make the game more straight-forward and fix some broken mechanics.  One exciting piece of news is that backers who participate in the Beta by submitting at last three game reports will receive their name in the credits.  I may try to play a few games in response to this offer.

I'm excited to see what models are unlocked over the course of the campaign, and seeing all the new versions of current models are getting me anxious to finish painting my cadres before they get upgraded!

Relic Knights - Cerci Speed Circuit vs. Shattered Sword

Last weekend we pulled out my Cerci Speed Circuit and my daughter's Shattered Sword faction.  With the upcoming Kickstarter campaign for Relic Knights: 2nd Edition starting on Monday, I thought it would be great to try a 35 point encounter of Relic Knights with two painted factions.  Below is the battle report:

Setup:

Cerci Speed Circuit (34 Points):

• Marie-Claude and Esmee (13 Points)
• Betty (10 Points)
• Lug (11 Points)

Shattered Sword (34 Points):

• Jeanne Romee and Gallant (14 Points)
• Isabeau Durand (14 Points)
• Purifiers [3] (6 Points)

35 Point Encounters are played to 8 Victory Points, and the flips for the objectives were the exact same for each side (potentially from a lack of shuffling with two brand-new, never-used Esper Decks):

Primary Condition (Objective) - worth 5 Victory Points:

• Entropy - Tear It Down - destroy opponent's primary objective token, or both of opponent's secondary objective tokens.

Secondary Condition (Objective) - worth 3 Victory Points:

• Entropy - Carnage - destroy three enemy units.

The 2x2 felt gaming mat was setup with stone castle terrain I purchased from a seller named crowin16 on Ebay, completed with custom-made Cthulhu and Valkyrie statues that I created.  I added some purple Gale Force Nine crystals, a few large trees, and a pond.  Each team placed its objective markers and units.

Relic Knights is unique in that there are no predefined deployment areas - units just need to be placed no closer than 9" from enemy units and enemy objective markers.

Early Game:

Each team went for the opponent's primary objective from the start.  Cerci relied on the combined damage of Lug, Betty, and Marie-Claude to damage the objective, while Shattered Sword used Jeanne's Guidon power to boost the damage that Isabeau did each turn.  The Purifiers worked to defend their objective, but were ultimately destroyed by a volley of fire from Betty, giving Cerci the first points of the game.

Cerci Speed Circuit - 1 Point

Shattered Sword - 0 Points

Mid-Game:

Cerci focused on destroying the primary objective, but Jeanne Romee kept compelling Betty and Lug away from the objective with Hearts & Minds, keeping them out of line of site and range of the objective.  Cerci destroyed the Shattered Sword primary objective (gaining 5 points), but missed out on gaining 2 points for "Lap Time" - its faction condition, because they exhausted their Esper Deck just one turn before.  One turn later, Isabeau's focused attacks destroyed the Cerci primary objective (for 5 points).

Cerci Speed Circuit - 6 Points

Shattered Sword - 5 Points

 

Late-Game:

Isabeau ran to engage Betty, hoping to gain 3 points to win the game (1 for destroying a unit, and another 2 for accomplishing the "Justice" faction condition for Shattered Sword, which provides points for destroying a unit that defeats the first friendly unit).  Jeanne compelled enemy units away from Isabeau to allow her to focus her attacks against Betty.  Lug was defeated, taking redirected damage for Betty through her "Faithful" power, and giving Shattered Sword 1 additional point.

Cerci Speed Circuit - 6 Points

Shattered Sword - 6 Points

End-Game:

Isabeau's Mercy Strike, along with its Lifeleach press, allowed her to withstand attacks from both Betty and Marie-Claude while winnowing down Betty's health.  Jeanne supported Isabaeu, using her Guidon power to boost Isabeau's damage, and compelled Marie-Claude away from the fight.  As an Esper Master, Esmee used his Esper Cleaning ability to remove the Guidon marker, returning Isabeau's damage to normal.

But it was too late.  Lug was no longer around to act as a bodyguard to Betty.  Eventually, the damage output caught up to Cerci, and when Betty was defeated, Shattered Sword was victorious.

Cerci Speed Circuit - 6 Points

Shattered Sword - 9 Points (Win)

Conclusion:

In all, it was a close game - down to just a turn's worth of difference in the outcome.  Cerci missed "Lap Time" by one turn, and they would have won the game early had they gained the extra 2 points from completing their primary condition.

Overall it was difficult for Shattered Sword to match the damage output of Ceri, with Marie-Claude, Betty, and Lug.  However, although Jeanne Romee can't attack directly, her support abilities - the ability to enhance damage and move opponents - had a big impact on the game.

I found Relic Knights to be a fun distraction from my normal miniature games.  The models are fun to paint, and the gameplay is unique, dynamic, and cinematic.  A small cadre game was exciting and fun to play.

I'm looking forward to the Kickstarter to see what it will offer....