+ How to build Tsan Ra +
+ Building tips and review of this Isorian Senatax kit for Warlord Games' Beyond the Gates of Antares +
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| + Primed and ready for paint... + |
'The Tsan Ra are a race of aliens that are also part of the Isorian Senatex. The Isorians’ advanced hybrid human-alien technology is partly derived from the bio-silicate interface spores of the Tsan Ra’s ancestors, the warlike Tsan Kiri.'
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+ Aliens! Proper aliens! While I do like the idea that the Beyond the Gates of Antares universe has a focus on future human evolution (induced or otherwise), part of the appeal of fantasy and sci-fi games is the variety of creatures and civilisations you find – a bit of galactic exploration from the safety of your tabletop. It also helps when the models are appealingly weird, like these awesome Tsan Ra models. +
+ A potential downside of building aliens, of course, is that it's hard to find references if you're unsure where things go. It's not like looking at a human figure, where you can quickly tell if their legs are on backwards. Being a fairly experienced modeller, I tend to just crack on with things, but when I received these metal figures, it triggered a wonderful sense of nostalgia – reminded me of rifling through racks of models with my brother in our local shop, Spot On Models – so while I was thoroughly enjoying myself, I thought I'd try and be helpful and document the build. +
+ Here's my experience of building this Tsan Ra Command Squad. I hope it proves helpful – or at least helps you to avoid any pitfalls when building your own.
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+ Containment breach: What's in the box? +
+ The box. Nothing much to say here; except that the pictures on the box are all the help you're going to get on construction – though there are useful front and back pictures on Warlord Games' website here [+noosphericexloadlink embedded+]; isn’t the modern IMTel wonderful? +
+ Speaking of bases, they're a flat design that’s unfamiliar to me – strikes me as nice for hiding the bases; good for immersion. For those interested in swapping things out, they're 40mm across – so the same width as a Games Workshop base at the bottom of the bevel. That's of note in case you're planning (like me) to swap them out. Already cramped on a 40mm base, there'll be a little more overhang for these figures on a GW base. +
+ Included in the pic above is a 25mm Warlord base and (what I've now realised is) a 28mm GW base, so not the best point of comparison! +
+ First steps +
+ Few things in modelling are more annoying than realising halfway through a build that you're missing a piece, so it's worth checking through, particularly if it's an unfamiliar kit or subject. If you are missing a bit, then get in contact with Warlord via their website. +
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| + This is what should be in your blister + |
+ I gave the bits a once-over to check for no miscasts – though given their unfamiliar alien anatomy, I'm not convinced I would have spotted anything less than glaring! All seemed clear; nice crisp detail. I was particularly impressed with the mould lines – or lack thereof. The metal’s a slightly different mix to that which I’m used to; it seems slightly more prone to breaking than bending (perhaps the quality that allows it to hold detail so well), so I recommend caution in reposing. +
+ The weapon arms and heads (both on separate sprues at the top right of the image) seem to be interchangeable, so I set those to one side and worked out which arms/legs went with which body. +
+ The figures are nicely designed to minimise the traditional problems of multi-part metal models (looking a bit flat, fragility, small contact points for joins etc.) while still retaining dramatic, three-dimensional poses. As much is built into one plane as possible – though the result is that the additional rear legs of this one are built into a pair, creating a cross-structure at the waist. The third part of this model is a big front foreleg (arm?). This has a peg that ensures it fits in one intended position. +
+ The same is true here; and whether through accident or – as I like to think – design, here's it's the other outside foreleg (arm?) that's separate: that makes it impossible to confuse the bits. The rear cross-section of legs (for want of a better term; for who knew we'd need terminology for alien anatomy?) surprised me. From appearances, I assumed the more outstretched legs would fit with this body, but as it turns out, all four legs are bunched up in a leaping pose – check against the picture on the box. +
+ I've left the front forelegs section off this picture, but both form a single piece. It's the small rear pair of legs (top right of image) that confused me here – but they're aligned correctly in the image; the 'knees' hinge backwards for these ones. Don't be tempted to try to fit them in the other way around – the fit is loose, and it seems like you can cram 'em in there at first. +
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+ Construction and pinning +
+ Parts chosen and dry-fitted, I got stuck in to building. I mentioned a bit of nostalgia earlier, and 12-year-old me would have gone straight in with the glue. I’d caution, however, that multipart metals are notorious for fragility; so I elected to pin. +
+ If you’ve not pinned a model before, it’s pretty simple. You drill a little hole in one part (I use a small hand-held drill called a ‘pin vice’), superglue a short length of metal rod (I use a paperclip) into the hole, then drill a hole in the opposite part. Trim the rod to length, dry fit to ensure it fits, then superglue the rod and slot it in. +
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| + Here you can see both the pin and the hole in the corresponding part + |
+ The pin adds strength to the join, helping to keep your model together – and if the worst happens and it does break, you’ll have a good ‘key’ to help you align the repair. +
+ Tips on pinning +
- Make the pin as long as you can without coming out of the other side of the component. The longer the pin, the deeper the anchor, and the stronger the resulting join.
- Don’t feel you have to start in the centre of a piece. It’s natural to mimic a natural joint (on a limb, for example) but this isn’t necessary – having the pin at an angle will often work better to hold against gravity, and prevent the joint from rotating.
- Make use of existing sculpted pegs or fitting aids on the component to complement the pin's securing strength – pins set asymmetrically to another securing point will help ensure things stay stable.
+ You can pin as much or as little as you feel necessary. The kits will doubtless hold together with decent superglue, but pins will give you peace of mind for gaming pieces. With these Tsin Ra, I felt a couple of the sculpted pegs were nice and tight and secure, and so left them unpinned; while there was a bit of ‘swim’ in others, which I pinned. +
+ Once assembled, I used superglue to attach the figures to the bases. The dynamic poses of these models makes it slightly difficult to work out which feet are on the ground, and which are leaving it. The picture above is for the Leader/Commander figure; showing that the front foreleg and rear first right leg are the ones that need glue. +
+ My advice is to dry fit and make sure you’ve got a good, flat, secure area of contact between figure and base. The flat surface of the Warlord Games base is probably an advantage here - but the gel superglue I’m using should ensure no problems with this GW base. +
+ Terribly dull to hold a figure while glue dries, so I recommend having a few spare bases nearby to support figures – just make sure they're in the right position before you let go. +
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+ Gap filling with Greenstuff +
+ Like any new material, Greenstuff modelling putty can be slightly daunting first time – so I’ve broken things down a bit (forgive me if I’m teaching you to suck eggs – feel free to skip ahead). Fortunately, filling gaps is one of the easiest things to do with Greenstuff, so this is a good starter if you do fancy giving it a go. +
+ To start, cut the amount of Greenstuff you'll need off. It's best to err on the side of caution here, as it's inconvenient to run out halfway through and have to mix another batch. The Tsan Ra is there for scale, so you can see how much you’ll need for these three Tsan Ra. +
+ Greenstuff is a two-part putty; when you combine them, it begins a chemical reaction which makes it cure into a hard material. If, like me, you’ve got a strip where the two parts are beside each other, it’s good practice to cut away the central bit, as this will have cured already. You can purchase greenstuff in separate tubes, which will allow you to avoid this. +
+ To mix, I find it best to lay the two strips next to each other, then twist them into a spiral, as above. Fold the resulting sausage in half, and repeat. +
+ Keep twisting and folding until you have a uniform green mix. When it looks like the above, it will be useable for roughly half an hour, depending on the proportions of blue to yellow you use. The more blue, the faster and harder it will cure; the more yellow, the softer and stickier the mix. +
+ Note the little pot of Vaseline lip balm nearby – this stops the Greenstuff sticking to your sculpting tools. +
+ Next we identify the gap we want to fill. Above you'll see a gap on either side of the legs section where it attaches to the pelvis. +
+ Greenstuff is sticky when first mixed, and gradually becomes less sticky and harder to work until it finally cures. The whole process takes around 24–48 hours, but in practical terms it becomes largely unworkable after an hour or so. The real skill, I've found, is working out the sweet spot of working time. Too early, and it's a pain to work with; too late and it's both hard to shape and won't hold. For gap filling, I leave it for ten minutes or so after mixing.
+ Cut a small amount of mixed Greenstuff off and place it loosely on top of the gap. You can use your fingers for this, but I find it easier to use the end of a sculpting tool. I use a metal carver for wax or clay – these are widely and cheaply available from hobby shops or online. +
+ This angle shows more clearly the depth of the gap – and the fact that it stretches round the legs; hence why I've used this size of dollop. In general for gap-filling, it's more tricky to remove excess than to add more. I therefore find it best to apply less Greenstuff initially, and add more if you need it. You can always poke more in to firm up the fill. +
+ Continue until you've filled all the gaps across the figure, then move on. Depending on how confident you are, you can take the opportunity before the greenstuff cures to sculpt on a little extra detail, which will help to blend in and further disguise the joins between parts. +
+ The unit all built. It's common to have a little extra Greenstuff left over (better than running out!). I use it to add a couple of rocks or odd bits of rubble to bases for a bit of interest. +
+ Regarding the bases, the rightmost figure shows what I mean by the slight overhang on a bevelled 40mm base. Because these are gaming figures, and because I've had quite enough metal models getting bashed during transport, I decided to move them onto 50mm bases, as with the model on the left at the front of the squad. You can see that she(?) fits more comfortably on the additional space, and it will also help protect her from getting battered. +
+ Basing using texture gel +
+ I often add some texture to bases at this point, as it means that the basing texture gets primed at the same. I tend to use artists' texture medium. There are lots of different kinds, but they're generally a goopy gel in tubs or tubes. You apply it, shape it, and over a day or two it will gradually harden. Think about it like PVA glue, but with the additional benefit that you can control the shapes. +
+ Depending on the type you get, it will hold the initial shape more or less cleanly; but for our purposes, the main advantage is that it will hold bits like sand, small gravel and other bits. +
+ This fine pumice gel apparently contains a texture (small grains of pumice), but it's so fine as to be essentially smooth. You can get pre-textured pots, which I favour, as that saves a stage. However, this sort is also useful if you have some lying around from your other painting work. +
+ Applying it is as simple as scooping it out on your sculpting tool and scraping it off on the base. You can then push it around and into shape with the sculpting tool. Here, I'm aiming simply to add a little texture and interest to an otherwise flat surface. +
+ Run a tissue or clean finger around the edge of the base to ensure there's no texture paste there, then dip it into a pot of modelling sand. You can sprinkle sand on instead if you prefer; and this is also the stage when you can stick some larger pieces of gravel, or model bits for wreckage in. +
+ Lift the figure back out, run your thumb around the edge once more to clean off any errant sand particles, and then leave to dry. +
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+ Thoughts on the Tsin Ra Command Squad +
+ Overall A great kit that I found a lot of fun to build. The models have a lovely heft to them, and the design is fantastically alien without abandoning all sense of being a (fairly) believable creature. +
+ Production Nice and high quality overall. I'm not particularly into packaging, but if that's important to you, then I'd note the box and packaging is sturdy enough to protect things, and neatly packed so you're not going to get too much rattling around. Once built, the figures won't fit back into the box, so you'll need some other way to transport them – probably wise anyway for metal figures. +
+ In terms of the figures themselves, the casting is immaculate. No slippage, barely any mouldlines... I sat poised with a file and craft knife, but beyond trimming a few bits of flash at ejection points, there simply wasn't anything to do. +
+ It's been a long time since I've worked with metal, and either casting practices have improved or these were unusually clean. Very impressive. Further, the ejection points have been sensible placed, so most of the cuts you have to make (for example on the weapon arms and heads) will be either completely hidden once assembled, or tucked away on the underside. Very neatly planned. +
+ Material They're metal, which is likely going to be divisive. If, like me, metal figures like this evoke pleasant memories, you'll probably find this a plus. If, on the other hand, you remember metal chipping and bits dropping off your models, then likely a negative! A related point on the material is that nostalgic indulgence tends to wane – so building multiple kits is likely to get a bit wearing... Ask me again when I've built my Tsan Ra infantry. +
+ I'd also note that the metal is stronger but more brittle than I'm used to; perhaps slightly more tin in the mix? The small tentacle things on the commander (x-sling?) in particular are very fine, and one has already snapped. I'd be inclined either to simply leave them off or to replace them with guitar string or similar in future. The positive of this is that the details are rendered very cleanly and crisply. +
+ Design Given the material, I'm really impressed with the dynamism of the sculpts and the posing; there's a real sense of these creatures barrelling forwards, and the way the squad are cradling their guns while the leader gestures gives a great sense of intelligent combat rather than being mindless beasts. +
+ The design is also beautifully carried over from the human infantry, so there's a definite sense that these two species are on the same team and utilising variants of the same equipment adapted to their particular biology. It's a very novel touch; one I can't really think of from many other ranges. +
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| + Isorians: Tsan Ra Command operating beside a Panhuman Phase Squad + |
+ The variance in size will make the force as a whole look suitably unusual on the gaming table, and I think this will help to further differentiate the Isorian Senatex from their opponents in the Concord Combined Command. +
+ I've already started laying down some paint on the primed figures, and hope to show them off in a future inload. +
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+ Appendnotes: Beyond the Gates of Antares and the Isorians +
+ Beyond the Gates of Antares seems to be in design limbo at the moment. There were rumours in 2018 of a new edition, which I'm assuming either proved false or met the unfortunate and impossible to predict effects of the Pandemic – but I'm hopeful that we'll see something soon. After a number of years of no releases, there are at last some green shoots – see below. If there is a new edition on its way, I'm sure the designers are all but screaming to let us know! +
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| + New Isorian Phase Troopers. Image courtesy of Tim Bancroft on the IMTel Facebook page. +[+noospherecloadlink embedded+] |
+ So why get into the game now? Well, having been mildly interested in the aesthetic and concept of the game since it was first Kickstarted. I've dipped in and out of keeping up with the game, but was the reveal of new Isorian sculpts at the Warlord Games Open Day that pushed me over the edge. I like the new ones (pictured above). I like them a lot! However, I also really like the originals (pictured below), and thought this was likely a case of 'now or never'. +
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| + Current Isorian Phase Trooper squad + |
+ An idle closing thought: I'm not sure what it is about the Beyond the Gates of Antares models in general, but they're so much nicer in hand than they appear in pictures online. There's something wonderfully tactile and sculptural about them that's lost in flat pictures, which seems a shame. The Tsan Ra in particular initially struck me as fun, but not must-rush-out-and-buy-cool. Having bought them during the sale and having built them, I think they're fab! +
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2 comments:
They do look great. I have some of those kits lingering in my storage unit. Waiting for when I move to a new place. Looking forward to seeing them painted up.
The Tsan Ra may well be my favourite ‘alien’ sculpts out there at the moment- I’ve been tempted before but I can’t justify adding more to the Pile for now! Great to see you working on some, and I really appreciate the step by steps here too.
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