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Miniatures Adventure => Future Wars => Topic started by: bandit86 on 14 March 2017, 08:14:06 AM

Title: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: bandit86 on 14 March 2017, 08:14:06 AM
Very Please with the 1st figures I got (not perfect but still really nice)
(http://i64.tinypic.com/34fml2d.jpg)
http://bandit86.blogspot.com/2017/03/hero-forge-review.html

has anyone else used this?

https://www.heroforge.com/
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: dinohunterpoa on 14 March 2017, 08:43:10 AM

The idea is great, but the finished product is years behind the current industry standard IMHO! ::) 
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: bandit86 on 14 March 2017, 08:51:38 AM
@dinohunrtpoa
Are there other companies that do this better that you know of? this was the only one I knew of
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Inso on 14 March 2017, 10:25:32 AM
@dinohunrtpoa
Are there other companies that do this better that you know of? this was the only one I knew of

You could always use the heroforge character generator, get a screen shot of your character and then get a regular sculptor to sculpt it for you... I'm not sure about costs...
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: rumacara on 14 March 2017, 01:29:50 PM
I´ve been trying some figures from Hero Forge figures but so far 29,99 dollars each figure in plastic its still expensive.
Nevertheless a good idea and chance to get that personalised figure if you have the Money.
Let us hope the idea as success and someone starts the same but cheaper. :)
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: salcor on 14 March 2017, 01:51:00 PM
I backed the Kickstarter and received one of the original clear miniatures.  I still need to paint it up, but overall it is a very clean model. The price does seem a little steep, but where can you custom build your figure today.  I am hoping for a few more sci-fi items like different rifles and perhaps a hover cycle mount.

Salcor
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Sangennaru on 14 March 2017, 01:55:28 PM
Let us hope the idea as success and someone starts the same but cheaper. :)

The problem, imho, is that in those 30$ there's a good 20$ of printing and handling. If i'm not mistaken they use shapeways, which isn't extremely cheap especially when you don't hollow your models.
I don't remember if you can purchase the STL rather than printing through SW. That would allow people to use other local printing services.

That said, most of the printing services out there aren't better than this. You might be used to the pulp alley prints, or high-end printed masters, but the machines and expertise involved make those options even more expensive.
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: dinohunterpoa on 14 March 2017, 02:50:50 PM
@dinohunrtpoa
Are there other companies that do this better that you know of? this was the only one I knew of

I was meant to be that those HeroForge sculpts are much inferior in terms of crispness of detail and overall quality of the sculpt to pretty much everything that is in the 28mm sci-fi miniature market right now.  ;)

They are a sad example of insanely over-priced, anatomically-challenged and bad finished piece of junk IMHO!  lol
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Sangennaru on 14 March 2017, 03:17:58 PM
They are a sad example of insanely over-priced, anatomically-challenged and bad finished piece of junk IMHO!  lol

You're forgetting parametrically-designed, though! :)

Jokes apart, i don't like the output result neither, but i really must tip my hat to the technology they developed. The customization is not a simple "switch the head type", but it involves countless values of a parametrically defined model. That's something seriously impressive to do.
Of course, that means that if you REALLY have a specific model in mind it could be worth printing it. And, for 30$, you can have your unique D&D character. :)
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: axiom on 14 March 2017, 07:11:23 PM
The designed characters look pretty good, but are really let down by the printing quality. It's a great idea that just needs a decent print to make it worth the cost.

Edit: I reserve the right to change my mind when I see painted figures ;)
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Dentatus on 15 March 2017, 02:38:06 AM
Jumping in here. My Hero Forge fig:

(https://stalker7.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/hf1.jpg?w=574)

(https://stalker7.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/hf5.jpg?w=474)

I'm a tabletop standard painter and I found the printing lines disappeared under a coat of primer and color. Not at all as crisp as a lot of figs out there but certainly playable. Expensive but worth it IMO for that unique character fig for your campaign or crew. 
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: dinohunterpoa on 15 March 2017, 02:45:35 AM
Jumping in here. My Hero Forge fig:

(https://stalker7.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/hf1.jpg?w=574)

(https://stalker7.files.wordpress.com/2016/10/hf5.jpg?w=474)

I'm a tabletop standard painter and I found the printing lines disappeared under a coat of primer and color. Not at all as crisp as a lot of figs out there but certainly playable. Expensive but worth it IMO for that unique character fig for your campaign or crew. 

See in the pictures the difference of the point where the right arm attaches to the shoulder? WTF they throw in the market a lame sculpt like that?!  ;D
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Sangennaru on 15 March 2017, 09:34:33 AM
See in the pictures the difference of the point where the right arm attaches to the shoulder? WTF they throw in the market a lame sculpt like that?!  ;D

You might want to reconsider that: the model is not patched together from various body components, but instead it's a "naked" mannequin to which the details are added. Personally I find the overall result disturbing as well, but i'm sure that the problem is in the positioning of the shoulder pad, not on the basic anathomy.

That said, with all those options i'm sure it's possible to have some weird outcomes. Not entirely their fault though. :D

Cheers
Jack
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: dinohunterpoa on 15 March 2017, 01:07:12 PM
You might want to reconsider that: the model is not patched together from various body components, but instead it's a "naked" mannequin to which the details are added. Personally I find the overall result disturbing as well, but i'm sure that the problem is in the positioning of the shoulder pad, not on the basic anathomy.

The problem is anatomy - or therefore a lack of understanding of it. Measure the arm of the minis in comparison with their torso and you'll come with an ape-like posturing. Awful!

That said, with all those options i'm sure it's possible to have some weird outcomes. Not entirely their fault though. :D

Totally their fault. They sculp the minis after all, don't them?  lol

Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Sangennaru on 15 March 2017, 01:31:43 PM
The problem is anatomy - or therefore a lack of understanding of it. Measure the arm of the minis in comparison with their torso and you'll come with an ape-like posturing. Awful!

Oh, i get what you mean. Proportions are deformed to a comic-style level, i guess. I doubt it was unintentional, although it's understandable why you don't like it. ^^

Totally their fault. They sculp the minis after all, don't them?  lol

That's the point. Yes and no. They offer a parametric model, with several options for proportions, size and gear. It's up to you to choose a set that pleases your taste. ^^
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Dentatus on 16 March 2017, 01:16:28 AM
I suspect I'm the one responsible for making that shoulder/arm look awkward. The picture angle is bad, and when I was customizing the fig, I changed the shoulder pads from the default ones. That most likely made the error more pronounced.

Best thing to do is go play around on the HF site and see for yourself. The process is far from perfected but I think it's going to factor into the hobby's future in a big way. 
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: eMills on 16 March 2017, 08:50:10 AM
The problem is anatomy - or therefore a lack of understanding of it. Measure the arm of the minis in comparison with their torso and you'll come with an ape-like posturing. Awful!

Totally their fault. They sculp the minis after all, don't them?  lol
The pose and the shoulder pad are throwing you off. The torso is angled slightly down and the new shoulder pad is obscuring the shoulder itself so you can't see the true point of attachment.

Anatomy on all the HeroForge stuff shown here is decent. Not top of the line but decent. On par with or better than a great deal of the stuff on the market right now. Printing does let the stuff down a bit.

~Eric

Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Sangennaru on 16 March 2017, 09:30:03 AM
I suspect I'm the one responsible for making that shoulder/arm look awkward. The picture angle is bad, and when I was customizing the fig, I changed the shoulder pads from the default ones. That most likely made the error more pronounced.

Best thing to do is go play around on the HF site and see for yourself. The process is far from perfected but I think it's going to factor into the hobby's future in a big way. 

Agree on everything, BUT leave the HF monogram for hasslefree! :D :D :D
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: dinohunterpoa on 16 March 2017, 12:06:53 PM
The pose and the shoulder pad are throwing you off. The torso is angled slightly down and the new shoulder pad is obscuring the shoulder itself so you can't see the true point of attachment.

Anatomy on all the HeroForge stuff shown here is decent. Not top of the line but decent. On par with or better than a great deal of the stuff on the market right now. Printing does let the stuff down a bit.

~Eric



No. Their anatomy sucks.  ::)

Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: DS615 on 16 March 2017, 02:17:48 PM
No. Their anatomy sucks.  ::)
Well, yeah, anatomy on any wargame figure is pretty awful.
These look just as good as anything Foundry puts out, and people are goofy for those for some reason.
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: eMills on 16 March 2017, 05:34:39 PM
No. Their anatomy sucks.  ::)
So, if you repeat it enough times, it must be true, I guess?

But then again, these weren't sculpted in the 80's or by someone stuck there, so you were never gonna like them anyway.

~Eric
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: dinohunterpoa on 16 March 2017, 07:46:56 PM
So, if you repeat it enough times, it must be true, I guess?

But then again, these weren't sculpted in the 80's or by someone stuck there, so you were never gonna like them anyway.

~Eric

 lol lol lol lol lol
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: eMills on 16 March 2017, 08:12:22 PM
lol lol lol lol lol
Typical response from someone in an indefensible position. Can't seem to tell me why the suck. Just that they suck.

Ok. No surprise really.

~Eric
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Belgian on 16 March 2017, 09:00:29 PM
Saw some heroforge miniatures at last nights DnD session and was impressed by the quality of the printing. Really nice, hadn't expected that - think they costed 30 dollars but for roleplaying you only need your own character. Think they ordered from heroforge but the miniatures were shipped from the Netherlands. The poses looked good but that's up to you how you design your miniature using their software. Conclusion, I was impressed by the look and quality of them and they were sturdy too. But won't use them as there are already enough dwarf figher miniatures around.
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: bandit86 on 18 March 2017, 08:38:37 AM
I have started my painting, and I know that some of you hated theses figures but I am very happy with them so far. Clean up was quick with very little to do (except for the broken arm) but even that fixed easily. Once I pick my color pallet (think Brunswickers in space) the paint seemed to go very well, filling in some of the more dramatic print lines and those that did not, worked out nicely giving some texture to the clothing and armor that did not seem out of place. So far so good, picture will be up soon.
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Michka on 18 March 2017, 02:07:02 PM
Please post the photots of your painted minis. I'd love to see them.
Title: Re: hero forge figures
Post by: Dentatus on 18 March 2017, 02:07:25 PM
Sounds good, Bandit86. Looking forward to seeing them painted up.

Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: bandit86 on 20 March 2017, 05:57:48 AM
I think they came out nice and will most likely get some more.  I would recommend these to someone who would like a one off Character for a Dungeon crawl adventure type game, not for an army group.
(http://i64.tinypic.com/s4nlnd.jpg)
(http://i68.tinypic.com/qot5if.jpg)
(http://i65.tinypic.com/34higzs.jpg)

More at
http://bandit86.blogspot.com/
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: rumacara on 20 March 2017, 11:15:39 AM
Well done. :-* :-*
Indeed they came up nicely.
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: Sangennaru on 20 March 2017, 11:46:46 AM
Good paintjob! The printing lines are still remotely visible and the sharpness of details is quite approximative, but i can see why someone is willing to pay 30$, if this allows to have your own super-customized piece. :)
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: Dentatus on 20 March 2017, 12:17:35 PM
Those work. Well done.
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: Michka on 21 March 2017, 02:25:35 PM
Those look pretty good. For these figures the print lines almost look like texture on the clothing. The great paint job helps too.
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: precinctomega on 24 March 2017, 04:19:20 PM
Well I've just had an enormous amount of fun wasting and hour playing on their site to design characters suitable for Zero Dark with a nice near future, cyberpunk, hard SF, milpunk look to them.  At $29.99 plus postage I probably won't order them, but I'll certainly use them to help guide my sketch concepts for the company that has expressed an interest in making minis for the game.  And if it all falls out how I'd like, I might then order one or two from Heroforge to say "thanks" for making such a fun, interesting and clever tool.

R.
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: Calimero on 05 June 2019, 01:31:41 PM

I received two figures from Hero Forge yesterday and started painting them right away… I’m not sure it was a good idea since I didn’t wash or even prime the figures first… let’s say I was a bit too enthusiastic… lol

The figures looked very nice, some of the details that didn’t show on the computer render were actually on the figures. I used a rather slow computer to “make” the figures so that might explain why some details were lacking “on screen”.

I chose the plastic option, the “basic” one, and it’s a good material. It reminds me of the hard plastic wargames figures are made from nowadays.
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: CookAndrewB on 05 June 2019, 09:40:45 PM
Oh, man, I've spent a LONG time goofing around on Hero Forge. Their cost for STL files and prints are what ultimately keep me from pulling the trigger, but having seen some of the figures I can say it isn't the quality that keeps me from becoming a customer. Those prints look about as good, if not slightly better, than most prints I've seen someone do at home. For a site/service that keeps adding new poses, outfits, etc, I think there is value in what they are moving towards, even if the execution is not equal to a... *insert your favorite sculpt/brand/whatever*. But, for those of us who might not be great at cutting, pinning, repositioning, and otherwise modifying a miniature I think this is a pretty cool tech answer. At least it is the leading edge of something that will likely become more commonplace in the industry down the line.

If they ever cut those costs in half, or sell me STF files for $4-5, I might be willing to jump in now and again. Until then, I'm happy to build dozens of figures for the hell of it  :D
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: Calimero on 06 June 2019, 01:07:43 PM

It was hinted, somewhere on a Wargames forum or blog, I don’t remember which one, that the price will eventually go down if enough orders are made. I don’t know at which point it will cease to be profitable for them however… I wonder how low they could sell their minis and still "make a living" out of it.

For now, I think the quality is there… lower price should be the next step.
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: Cait Sidhe on 06 June 2019, 05:00:58 PM
If they ever cut those costs in half, or sell me STF files for $4-5, I might be willing to jump in now and again. Until then, I'm happy to build dozens of figures for the hell of it  :D

Well it seems they do offer a download function now for $9.99. I like messing around with the tool, not sure if I would bother getting one though, maybe if I had my own printer.
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: CookAndrewB on 06 June 2019, 08:59:02 PM
Well it seems they do offer a download function now for $9.99. I like messing around with the tool, not sure if I would bother getting one though, maybe if I had my own printer.

$9 feels like a lot for me to make my own mini. Granted, I could churn out hundreds of copies, but I think the reality is that most people wouldn't. That defeats the purpose of a custom mini if you make twenty copies of it. It feels to me that they would be smarter to lower that price point and encourage more home printers to buy lots of poses/figures in STL files.
Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: rwwin on 07 June 2019, 02:27:32 PM
I'd been the same place of playing with the site for a long time but never pulling the trigger.  A couple of things tipped the balance a couple of weeks ago for me.  First, I picked up a resin printer this spring, second, Hero Forge had a sale last month with STL's going for $8.  I broke down and ordered a few.  This is the first test figure I did as a ganger for Fallout.  This was done at a mid level quality setting (0.05mm layer height) so you can still see some print lines here and there like his scalp.  Otherwise though I was really pleased with the results.  I'm still working on the rest.  I'm still learning how to dial in the print settings to get the best results.

As to price, I hear what Andrew's saying, but having gone back to the site and played around every few months or so, the amount of features and options they've added have really improved what you can create.  I think part of what your paying is the basic keep the lights on and the servers running, but part of it too is to pay the staff time to keep the site improvements going.

Rather than drop the price on STL's, what I wish they'd do is something like a subscription service where you pay a monthly fee.  I already do something similar with some designers I follow on Patreon and would be willing to sign up for something like that.

(https://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb70/rwwingate/Hero%20Forge%20Wastlander%20-%20Render_zpsxs87ukw4.jpg)


(https://i205.photobucket.com/albums/bb70/rwwingate/Heroforge%20Wastelander%20-%20Printed_zpspfhcfcnp.jpg)

Title: Re: hero forge figures (Painted 3/20/17)
Post by: Calimero on 10 June 2019, 01:15:08 PM

That’s a nice looking figures…

I don’t own a printer so I have to order « ready made » figures. At 19.99$ each, they are a bit pricy still.