Hi everyone!
This is the second part of the Raging Heroes review, where we will have a look at the remaining freebies of the Toughest Girls in the Galaxy Kickstarter 2.
You can find the previous review here: Raging Heroes: TGG2 Freebies part I
Today I will have a look at Rithali-in, Sister Ardanna, Zailith, Onyx, Vanvyssah, Lady Melith, Mascots Vladimir, Tobias & Violet, and Sinzirith.
Rithali-in, Expiatrix – Sisters of Mercy
While the name reminds me of a common medicin for ADHD, this is actually quite an interesting miniature. She is sort of a dominatrix, and to me she reminds me a bit of the Mord Sith in a well known fantasy novel series. I think it is an intruiging sculpt.
Unfortunately, this is the worst cast miniature among the freebies. It is clear to see that there is a lot of flash, but that is not a problem and is easily removed by passing over it with a toothbrush. The cast is just quite gritty and the areas are not smooth. There are many airbubbles, but they do not cover imporant areas. What is, however, the biggest problem is a huge mold line running along her head and shoulders. That will take some immense cleaning and for me it will most likely mean that I will not paint this mini. But she is awesome, so perhaps I will change my mind.
Sister Ardanna, Pillar of the faith, Sisters of Mercy
This is a very interesting sculpt, and I think it will be more visible on painted versions of this mini. This lady is actually posing her right foot on top of a gargoyle (or beast?). I like the ornament on her back a lot. Even though this was initially not one of my favourite concepts, she is growing on me.
This mini definitely comes with the most parts, and I can imagine that it will be hard to paint her fully assembled. Again there is quite some flash on the mini, but this does not obscure important details. The resin is again very gritty, perhaps the most of all the freebies. This will require some milliput washes befoer painting, otherwise the irregularities will show. The details are quite crisp, there are few air bubbles and some mold lines, but both are an areas that are easily cleaned. Her face is really pretty 🙂 (the small air bubble is easily filled)
Zailith, Blood vestal Secultrix – Dark Elves
Even though I was mainly interested in this Kickstarter because of the Dark elves, this is not one of my favourite sculpts. To me, the pose is a little awkward and there is so much hair (painting hair is not a hobby of mine – oh wait…). I do really like the snakes in her head dress.
The quality of the cast is good. The main problem lies with air bubbles, though I suppose they can be filles easily with a liquid green stuff. The details are very sharp, you can even see the belly button piercing on the sculpt! I haven’t found any mold lines and the flash is super minimal.
Onyx, Master assassin – Dark elves
No this is not a stone-chained pokemon, but a very dynamically sculpted mini it is. Her outfit is the typical assassin clothes, lots of buckles and straps. And again, huge hair. This should be a fun mini to paint.
Sculpt quality is very good, similar to Sephea (see previous review). Clean details and nice surfaces. But, there is a big downside. There is a huge moldline running over her entire body and left leg. It will be difficult to clean, I suppose. Other than that, it is a nice sculpt, little flash and no air bubbles.
Vanvyssah, Lust elves general – Lust elves
One of my favourite sculpts! Her arms do not seem very functional, but the whole mini screams dark elf to me. Sculpt-wise, I think the rim on her cape is a pity, makes it more difficult to make a nice freehand.
The quality of the cast is super. It’s definitely among the best of the bunch. No air bubbles, mold lines or flash. Also, the air vents are easily cleared and do not cover important areas. Great!
Lady Melith, Lust elves courtesan – Lust elves
Ooh yes! I was really excited when I saw the concept art for this. The sculpt is great as well, but with all the folds and details I am a little apprehensive of painting her. But she looks amazing! Personally I would have preferred a normal face under the mask, instead of this creepy whatever-thing-it-is. But, in a way it makes her look like a mix between an insect and a human which is also quite awesome.
The sculpt looks very good overall. Details are good on most parts, but are a little washed out on other parts. One minor mold line on the dress needs some clean-up, and there is a large number of air bubbles on the underside of her dress that need attention. But, still quite a good cast.
Mascots: Vladimir, Tobias & Violet
I’m not sure what to do with these minis, although they look nice it’s not something I would likely paint. Still the casts look really good, little bits of flash but really nothing to complain about.
Sinzirith, Blood Vestal high priestess – dark elves
Finally, we end with the miniature I was most excited about when I saw the concept art. I was thrilled to hear she was a freebie. This miniature is completely the style I love!
I am so happy that the quality of the cast matches the quality of the sculpt. It is really great and among the better ones in the bunch. The details are incredible, the face is lovely and the areas are smooth. No mold lines and only some air bubbles at the underside, no problem! It’s a pity that the left arm is attached to the cape and not the sprue, makes it harder to remove and it is unnecessary. But I won’t complain, this mini is awesome! I cannot wait to paint her 🙂
Overall opinion on the freebies
Pfeww so many miniatures!
Let’s start by saying that it is incredible that all these miniatures actually come for free to anyone that pledged for more than $175 at the Kickstarter. That’s a lot of minis for nothing! All these miniatures will later also become available to purchase on the Raging Heroes website.
I think there is definitely something for everyone in this bunch, unless you don’t like painting females. In that case, the whole kickstarter is probably not for you. I love painting females and these ladies will definitely be a joy to paint for me. In terms of cast quality, none of these minis is alike. Some casts are not so good, like Rithali-in and Onyx, others are very good and then there are some excellent casts like Celenia and Vanvyssah. I have no idea what causes this difference, but the variation in material (colour) is noticable and so is the amount of mold release used on some models.
In general these miniatures are just great! Even at a retail price of about $16 to $22 they are worth it in my opinion!
In the last installment of these reviews I will have a look at the heroine models that I purchased from the Kickstarter and I will share some thoughts about the kickstarter fulfillment so far.
2 comments
Thank you for another excellent review. Some of these are gorgeous. Sinzirith came especially well, although the mold line on Onyx almost looks like a miscast. It would be beyond my ability to repair.
Can’t wait to see how the Seraphim comes out. I’m a little scared about putting that one together, but she would be glorious painted.
Thanks Brian! Well. honestly, I don’t know if I’ll be able to fix Onyx either. Or should I say, I am not sure if I can bother myself with cleaning her ;). I am curious about Seraphim as well, but unfortunately she is not one of the heroines I bought :(.