Go West Terrain Studio's

[commissarmoody]

Go West Terrain Studio kick starter.

A local Vegas terrain company. Designed by my Buddy Todd West, these are some pretty cool buildings, I have seen them in the flash and they look great.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/941796898/cat-6-multi-plex-28mm-miniature-tabletop-terrain?ref=watched_project_launched

They also all come pre-painted and make great infinity or another shiny bleeding edge future terrain boards. If you like feel free to share this link with others who might be interested.

[aliensurfer]

monorail looks nice, overall the stuff looks pretty good. can't say I like the amount of little circles everywhere on the first couple of buildings - it looks like someone has left a technical drawing / blueprint all over them.

[matakishi]

A big train set would get me pledging. The buildings do nothing for me but the detailing- planters, signs, roads etc. are excellent. Unlike Scott I like the circles they remind me of many happy days playing Phantasy Star Online on my Dreamcast.
I'd throw a lot of money at this given the option to choose my items from the available catalogue at a discount for bulk.
I hope your friend is successful.

[Major_Gilbear]

I feel like matakishi.

Some really good stuff and very neat accessories (like the Monorail and the acrylic consoles), but also a lot of stuff I'm frankly bored of (namely: stacking-box terrain). Even then, stuff like this train already exist, so anything looking for KS needs to demonstrate something "new".

Cost is an issue too; $150 for a couple of modest buildings and a walkway for somebody in the UK is simply a non-starter. 

[Big Martin Back]

I like the monorail as well. Not sure it's something I want right this very minute, however.

Hope the KS goes well.

[Connectamabob]

Personally I'm not really sold on laser cut details that're just flat engraved lines. Laser cut "blanks" are great, but the I keep wondering how much those engraved line details drive up the price, and how that compares to DIY decorating.

I mean, right off the top of my head I know I can take one wall blank, decorate it with actual relief detail using card (styrene or paper), greeblies, etc, make a simple mold using $5 worth of silicone bathtub caulk, and use that to reproduce that same relief detail on all the other wall bits with epoxy resin glue. One weekend and 10-15 bucks later, and I've got a bunch of modular walls/buildings that look better than just engraved lines, and the style is whatever I want it to be instead of having to settle for whatever's being sold.

It's not something I've had to do yet (though I probably should), but I've used the same techniques elsewhere and I know it would be easy. It's hard for me to shell out that much when I know I could probably do much better for less money and (what would be for me at least) little effort.

I dunno. Maybe it's just me.

[Elbows]

I'm normally a pretty big MDF whore, but this whole thing just leaves me cold. 

[Achilles]

Nice but spendy .

[commissarmoody]

comes fully painted, Should I suggest to them to make a separate road and accessory set?

[Major_Gilbear]

I'll elaborate a bit more on further thoughts I had:

1) You need to emphasise that these are pre-painted a bit more. For some people, that may be worth the premium price.

2) It may be worth considering an unpainted option for those who want to paint their own, and are not interested in paying a premium for something they are going to "overwrite".

3) Hexagons are fine, but nearly all the other terrain people have will be square or rectangular. This may make it tricky for people's layouts, especially as most people play on square or rectangular tables anyway.

4) The terrain looks very flat-pack. As in, there is nothing to conceal or disguise the joins and connectors. The engraved greebling, being curves and circles, actually serves to highlight this.

5) It also looks fairly clunky for something that is supposed to be reasonably futuristic - it looks like it's been designed around stacking boxes rather than having a proper architectural style of its own. That's fine, but it's been thoroughly done to death already/. Given how expensive MDF terrain is, I suspect that many people are already tapped out on similar stuff and are going to be reluctant to invest in "more of the same".

6) The monorail is pretty cool, and with a few more tweaks it could really be a winner.

7) Check out what Spartan Games have done for an example of a similar product. Always worth knowing what you're up against, especially if you're asking people to invest in expensive terrain. For what it's worth, these come with engraved interior detailing, appliqué detail panels, interlocking floor clips, and removable Star Trek style doors.

[Achilles]

Agreed. I had no idea they were pre painted. I have no interest in anything painted by someone else. If an unassembled, cheaper version of this were on the Kickstarter I would be in.

I imagine you'd sell a lot more of those as well... and FAR less work for you!