WizKids has announced a new line of kid-friendly pre-painted minis called Wardlings. This is the line that was previously announced as Thistleguard. They are planned for launch in early 2018
Figures come two to a pack, non-blind, each one with a child adventure and his/her companion animal or creature.
You can check out the figures here: http://www.miniscollector.com/wardlings/wardlings-wave-1
Wizkids' announcement can be found here: https://wizkids.com/2017/08/31/wizkids-announces-wardlings-new-pre-paint...
What do you think?
I dislike this new name. Thistleguard wasn't exceptional, but it was more evocative.
I will be spending money for the animal companions, but the kids don't much thrill me ("Boy Cleric" especially, though "Girl Rogue" has some virtue).
I'm concerned that the lack of several classes for each sex may keep this line from taking off, potentially killing it before they've rolled out the rest. I'd like to know if they have plans for anything beyond kids & their pets.
Well, there's my two cents, and, as usual, I'm being pessimistic & grumpy. ;)
The name doesn't bother me, but I liked Thistleguard a lot better. I hope that the names are only placeholders, and that they come with a little personality and backstory. Maybe even basic gaming stats for 5e/Pathfinder. The sculpts are nice, and make nice use of transparent plastic. Since they come with their own animal companions/familiars, I think they'll have a fairly wide appeal. I hope it succeeds and leads to a kick-ass Wave 2.
I was looking at the Wardlings page and couldn't tell which pet goes with which figure. They come in packs of two, right?
Wave 2 has been announced! Check out the figures here: http://www.miniscollector.com/wardlings/wardlings-wave-2
I still need to figure out a better way of grouping the figures without using set numbers or creating entire sets in the back end for each 2-figure pack. But the packages are:
Girl Cleric & Winged Cat
Boy Ranger & Wolf
Girl Druid & Stone Creature
Boy Wizard & Imp
Girl Fighter & Hunting Falcon
Boy Rogue & Monkey
You could use the "Related Figures" feature to connect the kids to their pets.
I'm quite liking some of Wave 2. Falcon, Wolf, Monkey, & Boy Wizard are especially appealing.
(Naturally, I'm intrigued by only one figure in most of the pairings!)
The thing about "Related figures" is that it's really only intended for matching figures that have the same sculpt. I could create a "packaged with" field, but that limits me to one package per figure, which will be limiting when it comes time to add X-Wing figs. I could also break each package down into a subset, the way that invisible figures and incentive sets are handled now, but that makes the page a little busy. Currently, that last one is my best option, but I'm still looking into alternatives.
Certainly, the creator-end is entirely your bailiwick .
Yet, from the user-facing side, "Related Figures" still seems apt, for such tight pairings which always apply, with the very strict "character associations" between them (unlike larger non-blind packages). I can see any person checking out a figure for possible purchase, finding it very handy to be shown the other figure they're necessarily going to be buying as well (assuming they don't find one of those rare secondary sellers who unpackage/break-up such tiny micro-sets).
But, just my two cents on aesthetics, of course.
It's a good thought. I'm just thinking ahead to some other stuff I have in the works, and trying to find an approach that's future-proof.
I like the winged cat a lot. Definitly going to pick that one up.
Wave One has been spotted on Miniature Market, so I've updated the set as Currently Available!
These have already hit my local game store and I got a good look at them. I'm sadly disappointed in them. While they may be minis of kids, the actual size of them is quite large and not to any sort of scale with any of the other Wizkid minis. I expected them to be the size of the Deep Cuts Unpainted Miniatures: Children release. They are far larger, the same height as any other prepainted, only with child body proportions and visually cartoonish and brightly colored.
I think if Wizkids shrunk them a little and released them as part of the Deepcuts line, they would be a hot seller for those wishing to play a child character without the look and size of a Fisher-Price toy.
Thankfully, I'm only interested in the Companions (although Boy Wizard in Wave 2 looked slightly useful, before hearing of the size issue).
I was able to pick up a few blister packs at Gary Con over the weekend. The figures are a little large, but that part doesn't bother me too much. The paint jobs are pretty nice overall, and the companions make for a nice addition to the line.
My only real complaint is that the figures are not attached to their bases the way they're shown in the 3D renders. They have a built-in sculpted base that's a little larger than the characters' footprints, and a thin, round, hard-plastic base that's packed separately. I imagine it was done as a cost-saving measure, but it seems like an odd choice. I'll try to post some pictures later tonight.
With the comments on the size of the children, I'm surprised that the Companions I've gotten (Badger & Lynx) are fairly tiny. I expected the critters to be of a bit more "heroic" scale.
I've set up the Wardlings gallery pages to group the figures according to their packs. There's still improvement to be made, but it's a step up from where it was.