The ACB ‘Pickman’

Every faction in The Third Law has a workhorse, a Wrecker that can be relied upon to do the less glamorous jobs.  For the Carbon Combine the Pickman encapsulates reliability, durability and flexibility.

The Pickman is a brutal machine transported from the mineshafts and rockfaces of heavy industry straight onto the battlegrounds of The World After.  Requiring virtually no retrofitting for combat, the heavy roller and rock drills that allow it to chew through mountains have found a welcome role dismantling the flimsy Wreckers’ of supposedly more ‘advanced’ factions.  It is often stated that quantity has a quality all of its own and nearly 25 tonnes of Pickman has demonstrated this to great effect, grinding delicate servos and flimsy armour plating to scrap beneath its wheels. 

On the tabletop the Pickman fulfils the role of an ‘armour tank’ perfectly.  With masses of durability and the heaviest of armour (its hard to damage a giant roller!) it can frustrate multiple opponents and dominate strategically significant ‘Nodes’.  It is a powerful Wrecker indeed that can go metal to metal with a Pickman and survive.

As you can see, the Pickman underwent some quite dramatic changes during the design process.  Originally imagined as a much quicker machine, the initial concept sketches felt too fragile and speedy for a Carbon Combine Wrecker.  The final artwork is much more in keeping with the overall faction aesthetic and feel on the tabletop; an implacable, ponderous drilling machine.

Whilst we love Adam’s art, his complex, impressionist style does always pose some challenges for our sculptor, Romeo.  He felt that the drilling arms of the Pickman needed a much greater presence on the tabletop and exercised his artistic perogative in substantially bulking up this aspect of the model.  We are very happy with the eventual outcome, feeling that he has really captured the weight and bulk of this Wrecker.  The Pickman dwarfs most of the other ‘large’ Wreckers and is very much a monster in its class.  For those of us who like our miniatures to have heft and physicality the Pickman is a dream come true.