The
RoadWar to
So you’ve bought your models and opened your box. What next? This
assembly guide will help you quickly get your models ready for painting.
T
here is little in life quite so sets that’ll scratch your hobby itch. But
exciting as cracking open a what to do if you’ve never assembled
fresh box of model soldiers. so much as a model aeroplane? Never
At Mantic, we love that feeling above fear, putting together your new models
all else, and we’ve tried our darnedest is as easy as it is fun.
to come up with a bunch of exciting
First off, you should do your modelling
on a stable surface, a table is ideal. Don’t
do it on the floor, because you’ll probably
lose some bits or the dog might eat them.
Mantic boxes
All our models come in sturdy,
resealable plastic boxes with a
foam lining. Once your models are
assembled you can keep them within,
safe in the knowledge that they’ll not
break and that you won’t have to shell
out on an expensive figure case.
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Hob
Tip by
Secondly, use something to protect What you’ll need
!
the table. Damaged woodwork enrages
mums and wives like nothing else! A Mantic clippers Blu-Tac
sheet of thick card will do to safeguard Mantic glue Craft knife
your dining furniture (and, by extension, Mantic models Cutting mat
you), but a cutting mat purchased from a Box Opposable thumbs
hobby or model shop is much better.
Knife safety
Cutting mats cost very little, they’re non- Knives are sharp, fingers delicate.
slip, durable and most have centimetre Use a fresh blade as blunt ones can
grids marked out on them, which are slip. Cut away from yourself. If you’re
handy when you’re cutting card to a young warrior, ask an adult to help.
make battlefield scenery. You can see
ours in the pictures below. (And if you
buy a big one, you’ll also have space to This article is about assembly, and once
accommodate a piping hot cup of tea). you’ve stuck your models together you
can game with them, but they look so
The other tools you need can be bought much better painted. And guess what,
in similar stores or directly from us here next issue we’ll talk about how to do
at Mantic. precisely that using Mantic paints.
Clipping
1 Choose the components you want
to use for your model. Remove them
from the frame with your clippers.
2 In the image above we’ve clipped
out all the bits we need for a
single miniature. It’s a good idea
You can use a knife for this, and for to prepare pieces for three or four
delicate components this is sometimes models in one go. That way, you can
preferable, but clippers are quicker. work on them all at once, allowing
Here, to stop the components from time for the glue to set before you
getting lost, we’re clipping over a box. add further elements.
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Trimming Scraping
3 The clipper might leave a little nub
of plastic where the piece has been
separated from the frame. Use your
4 Raised areas of plastic from the
manufacturing process can be visible
on your miniature. To remove, hold
knife to cut these off. Be careful! your knife at 90 degrees to the
piece, and gently scrape the raised
line away. We’re using a box again,
this time to catch plastic shavings.
It saves on the vacuuming later.
Posing Gluing
5 Posing models well is almost as
important as painting them. Try
different components together, you
6 Use a small amount of glue.
Apply it to both surfaces. Leave
for a few seconds before pressing
can even strike a pose in the mirror the parts firmly into each other.
yourself to see how the body moves To get the poses right, some
and copy it with your figures! Some modellers do a ‘dry run’, holding
games systems require ranked units the pieces together without glue,
of models. If yours does, don’t go or temporarily attaching them with
crazy with extravagant posing. Blu-Tack to see how they look.
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Basing Extras
7 Mantic models come with an
attached round base and a separate
square one. Depending on how
8 All Mantic frames carry cool
additional components – corpses,
discarded weapons, pets and the
you intend to use your miniatures, like. These can used as markers or to
you can glue the square base on or bulk out your regiments, like this Elf
leave it off. This Skeleton Warrior casualty diorama. It’s mounted on
has been left unglued, giving you two square bases covered over with
the best of both worlds. The base a thin sheet of plastic card.
will remain attached on its own, but
we’ve popped a blob of Blu-Tack on
for added staying power.
A finished regiment, ready for a lick of paint. We’ll look at painting in detail in the next Journal.
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