PREVIEW BATTLEGROUPS AT GEN CON AND ONLINE THURSDAY

Whether you’re attending Gen Con this week or are considering ordering the preview battlegroups online, here is everything you need to know!

SUMMARY

Quantities are limited at Gen Con so purchases will be limited to one of each battlegroup per person on Thursday and Friday. No limits Saturday or Sunday.
No limits on online purchases, but delivery times could be longer than normal depending on order volume.
Online purchases available from Thursday, August 4^th to Wednesday, August 10^th.
FREE shipping on orders over $100 to U.S., Canada, UK, EU and Australia.
All models are 3D prints. Please read ‘Understanding 3D Printed Models’ below for detailed information on understanding what to look for, how to work with your 3D prints, and what to do if you feel that you have received a defective part.
Satisfaction guaranteed. Return your purchase for a refund if you don’t like what you receive. (See full details below.)
Khador Winter Korps Battlegroup will be available online, but not at Gen Con.

KHADOR WINTER KORPS PREVIEW AVAILABLE FOR ONLINE ORDERING

Let’s start with that last little bit: Our team at Privateer managed to complete the engineering earlier than expected and we’re going to be able to offer a preview of the Winter Korps battlegroup online this week, which will include the Great Bear and Dire Wolf heavy warjacks as well as warcaster Kapitan Ekaterina Baranova. This was not done in time to get them to Gen Con, however, so they will be available exclusively online.

The Beta demo cards will be updated today with stats and spells for the models in the Winter Korps preview battlebox.

GEN CON PREVIEW BATTLEGROUPS

For those attending Gen Con, we’ll have unpainted models to pass around in line or at the counter so you can inspect them for yourself before making a purchase.

Preview battlegroups at Gen Con will be in limited quantity. In order to give everyone attending a fair chance at them, purchases will be limited to one of each battlegroup per person on Thursday and Friday of the convention. If we still have stock on Saturday or Sunday, then all limits are off. This is our first time back to Gen Con in three years and we don’t really know what to expect. We could have stock through Sunday, but if it’s anything like past years, we expect to sell through what we were able to ship out before that.

ONLINE ORDERS

Our goal is to accommodate all online orders made between August 4^th and August 10^th as quickly as possible. While we’re already producing stock so we’re ready to start shipping immediately, depending on the volume of orders, delivery time could take longer than normal. Without trying to sound overly optimistic, if the volume of orders looks like it could overwhelm our production resources and delay the Core Army Starter releases in October, we will discontinue availability of online orders before August 10^th as necessary. While available, there will be no purchase limits for online orders.

All orders over $100 will ship for free to U.S., Canada, UK, EU and Australia.

GENERAL INFO ABOUT THE PREVIEW BATTLEGROUPS

These battlegroups will not be offered in this configuration as a general release in the future. We’ve configured them for the preview this way in order to ensure that you aren’t put in a position where you feel you have to repurchase something you don’t want multiples of after the fact. The warcasters included in the previews will not be the ones included in the Core Army Starters, and will be available individually later this fall. The warjacks in the battlegroups are included in the Core Army Starters releasing this fall, and will be also be available for individual purchase. We feel that most players will desire more than the two warjacks in the Core Army Starter, which is why we have packaged them with the warcaster for these previews. If you don’t think you will collect beyond the Core Army Starter and play larger than 50 point games, then we recommend not purchasing the preview battlegroup at this time.

Preview battlegroups will be $75 each, and include the warcaster, two warjacks, and eight weapon/arms and four heads for each warjack. (Approximately $90+ if purchased individually.) Magnets are supplied in the kits for magnetizing the customizable components. The model has been prepared with sockets sized for the magnets so that only a small amount of glue is required to assemble them.

UNDERSTANDING 3D PRINTED MODELS

The models supplied in the preview battlegroups have been manufactured in resin on 3D printers. Just like how zooming in on an image printed in a book you would see the individual ink dots, or zooming in on the computer screen you’re reading this on would reveal individual pixels, if you put a 3D printed model under a magnifying lens or photograph it and zoom in on that image, you’re going to see the individual build layers that make up the model. If you typically view your miniatures at 1000% magnification, then 3D printed models might not be for you. But if you typically view your models with the naked eye, we are confident that the micro layers will not be visible, just like you don’t see the halftone in printed images or the pixels on your high-definition television. If you do easily see the build layers without the assistance of extreme magnification, then chances are you received a bad print, in which case we’re going to happily replace that for you. More on that in the next section.

We use what are called build structures or scaffolding to support the models during the 3D printing process. When the model parts come off the printer, it looks like a little cage around them. Our production team carefully clips the builds structures off each model, leaving as little of the scaffolding as possible. However, you may see small ‘nubs’ on model parts that will need to be cleaned up before assembly and painting. Typically, the support structures are strategically placed on the underside of model parts so that they would be hard to see from a normal viewing angle on the model. If you spot them, they are easily removed with the careful application of a hobby knife. It is our experience so far that the 3D models we are producing require far less cleanup time than traditionally cast models, and one thing you’ll never see is a mold line.

When 3D printed models come off the printer, they are somewhat pliable until they are washed and cured. The curing process entails exposing the model to UV light, which hardens the material and makes it rigid. If the model is not cured long enough, it might appear a little bendy. If it’s over-cured, it could be a little brittle. Our production team endeavors to make sure that, like Goldilocks would want, parts are cured just right. In the event that you receive something that is too bendy or too brittle, we’re going to be happy to replace it. Again, more on that in the next section.

Because UV light can affect the models, it is ill-advised to expose your unpainted model parts to direct sunlight for prolonged periods of time. But this is nothing new, as we’ve seen many tragic instances of melted resin models left to bake under the sun or in a hot car. We’ve also seen way too many tragic instances of armies being stolen out of cars, so let’s just all agree not to leave our armies in cars anymore, alright? Temperature is not as much a concern as continuous exposure to sunlight, however extremes can still be harmful. This should just be more incentive to get your models painted. So, paint your models!!!

We don’t expect you’ll find much reason to sand our 3D printed models, but if you do, as with any resin, we advise wearing a respirator to protect you from inhaling any small particles. Our 3D printed models do not need to be washed before painting, but you should still apply a primer coat as normal. They take glue wonderfully, but the magnets take a little longer to adhere than the printed pieces because they’re metal, so be patient. Above all, when assembling, be very careful about the polarity of the magnets. Resident hobbyist Charles Foster III has some great advice for working with magnets in his recent hobby article on painting the Orgoth Sea Raiders, as well as PrimeCast episode six, which will publish on August 2^nd.

SATISFACTION GUARANTEED

Mass production using 3D printing technology is a new process for us, and as such, despite our best efforts we’re going to occasionally make mistakes. Even after 20 years of producing the good ol’ fashioned way, we still manage to make mistakes from time to time because we’re human beings making this stuff. But we always stand by our products and will make good on your purchase, so we hope you’ll be patient with us as we enter this exciting new era of production for Privateer Press.

If you receive a model part that appears to be misprinted or breaks too easily, we are always happy to replace that part for you. Just contact us through our customer support portal and we will get your replacement right out to you.

Most importantly, we want you to be happy with your purchase. If for any reason you are not completely satisfied with your preview battlegroup purchase, return the complete contents of the product to us in the original packaging with a copy of the receipt within 30 days of purchase, and we will provide you a refund for your purchase.

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