Review of Customisable Ship Models II

Blurb from the publisher: 'The Esmeralda and the Jetwash are built on the latest Firefly chassis, the top-of-the-line Series IV. Each of these ships boasts a superior drive core, increased cargo space and a secure fuel-exchange system.

A deep-space hauler, the SS Walden is a slow ship with plenty of room for cargo. Its counterpart, the nimble Interceptor, is designed with one purpose: hunting bounties. Its extra speed and fuel efficiency come at the cost of reduced cargo and crew space.

On board the Victoria-class Corvette, the single-minded Operative prowls all of known space, tirelessly pursuing fugitives and wanted criminals.

This box contains an assortment of models from various Firefly: The Game expansions. They have been re-mastered and produced in high-detail resin so that you can enjoy customizing your ships and giving them unique paint schemes.'

What you get: Your EUR 35, GBP 30 or USD 40 will buy you the Customisable Ship Models II expansion for Firefly: The Game. The box contains five ships in resin: two Firefly MKIV, one Alliance Corvette, one Interceptor and one S.S. Walden. The ships are included in plastic separately in Firefly: The Game - Pirates & Bounty Hunters (SS Walden and Interceptor), Jetwash, Esmeralda and the Kalidasa expansion (the Alliance Corvette). There are no rules or other material in the box. On the company’s website the product gets registered as a ‘promotional product’ and not as an expansion.

The strong points: These ships are beautiful. Plastic is great when it comes to gameplay, when it comes to quality, sturdiness and detail however resin delivers any time of the year. The ships are bigger by a few mm in relation to their plastic brothers and substantially crisper. I wouldn’t have trouble believing anybody who claimed that these are precise replicas of real-life spaceships. Straight lines and surfaces are bright and perfectly defined, while the curves look as if they were laser-cut. All ships come in gray; you can paint them any way you like. The product states that the ships come unassembled, yet this is inaccurate. What it means is that the contents might need some cutting and filing before the priming and the painting. No assembly is required, the ships are as assembled as the plastic ships of the Firefly: The Game range. All you need to do is fix them upon their plastic stand.

This product will be extremely attractive to collectors who want customisable ships and substantially better miniature quality. F:tG is not exactly a heavy usage game; painted resin miniatures will work just fine. More importantly however, wargamers that want to showcase their skills or who wish to deploy high quality ships from the Firefly ‘Verse in other games (StarWarsX-WingcoughStarTrekAttackWingcoughcough) can now do so with style. Did I mention that these miniatures are of a much higher quality than the ones of either of the aforementioned products?

The weak points: Gale Force Nine is honest enough to register this product as promotional material and not as an expansion. If you only intend to play F:tG, you do not need it at all. It contains no rules, no options, no nothing. What it adds to the game is something unquantifiable: style. With a price of EUR 7 per miniature (!), and a total price of an average boardgame, it clearly addresses itself to hardcore fans, to collectors, to miniatures enthusiasts; to all those that love Firefly and will devote time and money to make this resin shine. If you are a casual gamer and you wish to replace a broken ship from the basic game, think again; this is simply not cost-effective.

An obvious reminder for those not waiting to use Firefly miniatures in other games and universes: there are no rules accompanying these minis. As with any homebrew, in addition to the painting you will have to write rules and sort out the whole thing on your own.

Conclusion:Customisable Ship Models II is pure luxury in the Firefly ‘Verse. Seeing how people appreciate luxury differently, the choice on whether to invest or not rests solely up to you.

For more info on Gale Force Nine and Firefly, visit the websites http://www.fireflythegame.com and www.gf9.com.

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